Chapter 22: The Good Man Is Out

"If Number 9 dares to vote against me, I cannot possibly include him in my police badge investigation flow. So, today we are voting out 9. My police badge investigation targets will be 7 and 4."

"As for why I am the Seer, I won't say much more. I believe 9 is a werewolf. Number 8 stood up and challenged 9, which is fine, but 7 turned around and refuted 8's argument from that position, protecting 9 with reasons I couldn't quite follow."

"So, although I feel your alignment is off, you were prepared to side between me and 11 during the police badge election, so I will investigate you directly to ensure you aren't a 'hook-wolf' positioning yourself early..."

Player 10 belonged to the God-Slaying Team. He had a thick beard and appeared rather eccentric. He rambled on and on, yet failed to touch upon any key points. He even suspected Wang Changsheng might be a werewolf, leaving Wang Changsheng speechless.

Where there is sorrow, there is joy. The two werewolf cards on the field had originally thought, after hearing the speeches from 12 and 11, that they would have to concede. They never expected the Seer to transform into the fifth wolf.

"What a good person! He's really giving us room to breathe!" The cute girl at position 6 had round, sparkling eyes. If she hadn't needed to maintain her composure, she would have been moved to tears.

Player 5, the buzz-cut guy, was also ecstatic. If they could push out a "good" player today, they might actually have a chance to keep playing. If they had voted for any of their own wolves, they would have essentially had to concede.

"That's all for now. We'll discuss the rest tomorrow. Everyone vote to fly Number 9 out. Police badge investigations on 7 and 4 in that order."

"Pass."

Player 10's expression was extremely confident. He stroked his thick beard and glanced at his "gold-water" (confirmed good player). However, Old Chu’s face had already darkened. *You want to investigate my gold-water, I help you analyze, and you don't listen. Then what the hell are you babbling to me for?* Even with his gentle and scholarly nature, he was rendered speechless by Player 10.

However, based on his understanding, it was no surprise that Player 10 had such thoughts. After all, the members of the God-Slaying Team didn't seem very bright, or perhaps they were just incredibly stubborn. On the surface, they always claimed they would listen to others' opinions, but in reality, once they had an idea in their heads, they would inevitably follow it to the end. They wouldn't turn back until they hit a brick wall.

Number 11 sighed inwardly.

***

The judge began to announce:
[All players have finished speaking. The exile vote is now underway.]
[The Sheriff directs the vote to Number 9. All players, please cast your votes.]
[Players 2, 5, 6, 8, and 10 voted for 9, totaling 5.5 votes.]
[Players 4, 7, 9, 11, and 12 voted for 5, totaling 5 votes.]
[Player 9 has been exiled.]
[Player 9, please deliver your last words.]

Hearing the judge's final verdict, the young man at position 9 looked helpless. He sighed and stood up to say, "Now that the vote counts are out, surely you know who the wolves are? I am a villager. It’s five to five, and even your 'gold-water' didn't vote for me."

"So who would choose to vote with you? Only wolves would, right? Didn't 5 and 6 just spend the last minute attacking each other? How did they suddenly cast all their votes on me?"

"Looking at it now, can you still argue that there are wolf teammates of mine among those who voted for 5? Look at them—which card looks like it? You’re going to investigate 7 tonight, go ahead. Your gold-water already told you to investigate one of 5 or 6 and take them out. I really don't get it. Aren't the wolves 5, 6, and 8? Maybe one more for margin of error."

Observing the situation, Number 9 realized most people were still rational. Among the five cards that voted him out, three were wolves. One was the Seer, and one was a good player following the Seer’s lead. Aside from the Seer himself, the external good players had figured out the situation, so the young man at 9 couldn't be bothered to say more. As long as the Seer investigated 7 and found him to be a good player, they could push the right person tomorrow. He was a professional player, after all—surely he couldn't be that dense?

He chose to pass the mic.

[Night falls. Please close your eyes.]
[Guard, please open your eyes.]
"Please select your target to protect."

The mask on the face of the busty woman at position 8, sitting next to Wang Changsheng, disappeared. Her beautiful, captivating eyes shimmered in the darkness. She was thinking: Should she guard the Seer tonight? The Witch was already out of the game. The wolves knew the Guard would certainly protect the Seer, so the wolf kill would surely land on an external target. Should she try to outsmart the wolves? She could directly guard an external card; if she succeeded, it would be a peaceful night.

Even if she didn't, the Seer would get one more day to investigate. Plus, this move should earn her team quite a few points, right? The woman sat up straight, her chest heaving slightly. The more she thought about it, the more she felt it was possible.

However, just as she intended to act on her idea and guard an external card, she suddenly hesitated. If she gambled on the mindset, it would be a happy ending if it worked. But what if the wolves were determined to kill the Seer in two nights? Then she would have prevented the Seer, who could have provided two solid investigations, from only getting one police badge investigation. Such a move would inevitably cost her team a large number of points.

"Forget it, better to be safe." She held up a number with her slender, jade-like fingers.

[Your target to protect is:]
[Number 10]
[Confirmed. Please close your eyes.]

The judge's voice echoed softly, but instead of reading the number aloud, it appeared on the screen. The woman closed her eyes again, and her mask reappeared. Wang Changsheng wore his mask, but through the large hole in the helmet, he could see her conflicted expression. From his perspective, it didn't matter who the Guard protected. As long as the wolf kill didn't land on him, he could use the antidote to save someone. And based on his speech during the day, the wolves certainly wouldn't think he was the Witch.

[Werewolves, please open your eyes.]
"Please select your target to kill."

The judge's voice sounded. The two remaining werewolves opened their eyes. They looked at each other, seeing a sense of helplessness in each other's gaze. Then, they began to gesture.

Cute girl at 6: "How are we supposed to play this? Even if we managed to push someone out, that 7 is going to attack you. If the Seer finds out he's a good player, he'll definitely attack you during the day! And the Witch is still in the game. Have you found out who it is?"

Player 5, the buzz-cut guy, didn't respond immediately. He thought for a moment before gesturing back: "That 11 is likely the Witch. He wants to pretend to be a villager and claim to be the Guard so we won't kill him, but we are going to kill him tonight. The Guard will definitely protect 10."