Perhaps it was the unspoken understanding that naturally developed between an assassin and a thief.

Although Mu Ke hadn't told Mu Shicheng what he intended to do, the thief's instincts—sharpened by years of dealing with stolen goods—allowed him to seize the opportunity the instant Mu Ke drew the Kings Guild's attention.

A sharp glint flashed through Mu Shicheng's eyes.

With one hand, he grabbed the shoulder of the Kings Guild member Mu Ke had just shoved forward, pressed down to gain leverage, and sprang upward.

The next moment, he landed directly on the man's back.

Then he turned toward the Queen of Hearts, who stood at the very center of the encirclement.

With a malicious grin, Mu Shicheng raised his middle finger.

He arched an eyebrow at her.

Then he dragged that same finger slowly across his own throat in a brutal slashing gesture.

Before the Kings Guild members inside the formation could react and chase after him, Mu Shicheng was already moving.

Like a nimble acrobat, he sprinted across their shoulders, maintaining impossible balance as he dashed along the tops of their heads.

The entire human wall guarding the perimeter immediately began to collapse into disorder.

“Now!”

Mu Ke's roar exploded through the area.

“Get in there!”

“Recharge the points!”

“Redeem Bai Liu!”

The Carrion Guild players surged forward.

The Kings Guild members scrambled to stop them.

One side desperately tried to force its way inward.

The other struggled to maintain the blockade.

Because no one could directly harm anyone else in the Game Lobby, the conflict instantly devolved into complete chaos.

Heads emerged from impossible places.

Arms flailed wildly.

People were shoved, squeezed, tripped, and tangled together.

Mu Shicheng darted across the crowd like a monkey loose in a marketplace, running over people's heads without a care in the world.

Meanwhile, Mu Ke continuously activated Flash Strike, appearing and disappearing throughout the battlefield to create even more confusion.

The entire scene resembled an overpacked subway station during rush hour.

A massive human knot had formed.

No one knew where anyone else's limbs were anymore.

The two sides became hopelessly entangled.

Yet despite the chaos, the ransom meter beneath Bai Liu's television continued to rise.

That meant people were successfully depositing points.

Again and again, system panels appeared in the crowd.

Blue screens flashed on.

Hands reached out.

Points were transferred.

Then the players were swallowed back into the chaos.

Locked high atop the rusted iron shelving unit, Bai Liu watched everything unfold from within the small television.

His expression remained calm.

Almost indifferent.

It was as though he could see through the screen and observe everything happening below.

And yet it also felt as though he knew nothing about it.

He merely glanced down once before withdrawing his gaze.

Cold.

Detached.

Like a god who held no concern for the struggles of mortals.

And yet it was precisely this greedy god who stood at the center of everything spiraling out of control for his sake.

Amid the surging crowd, only one person remained completely unaffected.

The Queen of Hearts.

Standing calmly at the center of the storm, she held her hat and skirt in place to keep the surrounding crowd from knocking her over.

The chaos around her seemed not to exist.

Instead, she tilted her head slightly and observed Bai Liu's television.

Her gaze was thoughtful.

Evaluating.

Interested.

“No wonder Jiayi chose you.”

Her half-lidded eyes curved slightly.

A restrained smile touched her red lips.

“You really are the perfect Gege for her.”

Why hadn't Liu Jiayi chosen the most perfect older brother?

Why not the one she liked most?

Or the one who treated her best?

Why not even her real brother?

Why Bai Liu?

One could call him selfish.

One could call him manipulative.

One could even call him sinister.

The humanity Bai Liu displayed was often nothing more than a thin layer covering the calculating merchant underneath.

Only occasionally did it reveal itself through the professional smile he wore when deceiving others.

He was shrewd.

He honored transactions.

And he never betrayed his own desires.

There were countless better candidates among the Villagers.

So why had the Little Witch willingly offered him her antidote?

Her trust?

Even her soul?

The wind created by the crowd stirred the wine-red curls beside the Queen of Hearts' face.

Her gaze softened.

Once someone openly reveals themselves as the Werewolf...

Doesn't that become proof that they no longer need to be suspected?

Liu Jiayi would never doubt Bai Liu.

That was why she chose him.

The Little Witch would never return.

She had already found the Gege best suited for her.

The Queen of Hearts withdrew her gaze from the television.

Almost immediately, Mu Shicheng appeared on her left.

Still running across the heads and shoulders of the surrounding players, he rapidly closed the distance.

At nearly the same moment, a second figure materialized on her right.

A phantom armed with twin daggers.

Mu Ke.

The two moved in perfect sync.

Without exchanging a single word, they attacked simultaneously.

Mu Ke swept his dagger low, aiming directly for the Queen of Hearts' ankles.

At the same time, Mu Shicheng launched himself from a nearby player's shoulder, twisting through the air and delivering a vicious flying kick straight toward her face.

One attacked from above.

The other from below.

Together, they sealed every obvious route of escape.

Their coordination was flawless.

As though they had rehearsed the maneuver countless times before.

Mu Shicheng's face was filled with unconcealed resentment.

Mu Ke, meanwhile, remained comparatively calm.

The moment he saw Mu Shicheng charging toward the Queen of Hearts, he immediately understood what the thief intended to do.

Logically speaking, it was pointless.

Attacks couldn't truly harm anyone in the Game Lobby.

Yet for once, reason lost to emotion.

Mu Ke thought about Bai Liu.

About the blockade.

About every obstacle the Kings Guild had placed in his path.

And before his mind could stop him, his body had already joined Mu Shicheng's petty act of revenge.

Mu Shicheng was even less restrained.

His reasoning was simple.

If he couldn't hit her, then making her fall flat on her face in front of her guild members would still be satisfying.

He was here purely to vent his frustration.

After all—

He was sick of being pushed around by this group of lunatics.

The Kings Guild always acted as though they stood above everyone else.

Especially this woman.

Always composed.

Always elegant.

Always playing the role of some flawless goddess.

Fine.

Let's see how graceful you look after landing on your backside.

Mu Shicheng's eyes flashed.

His kick accelerated.

The loose fabric of his sweatpants snapped through the air.

At the same time, Mu Ke's dagger screeched against the floor as he lunged forward.

His body tilted low.

His wrist twisted.

The blade stabbed upward toward the Queen of Hearts' ankles.

One was an assassin.

The other a thief.

Both belonged to classes renowned for their speed.

Yet compared to the Queen of Hearts, they seemed painfully slow.

The woman simply lifted the hem of her skirt with one hand.

Then she jumped.

The movement was graceful.

Almost playful.

Like a little girl skipping rope.

She landed lightly.

And her high heel dropped perfectly into the circular opening of Mu Ke's dagger guard.

The weapon jammed instantly.

Mu Ke's forward momentum stopped dead.

For a brief moment, he couldn't pull the dagger free.

At the same time, the Queen of Hearts leaned her upper body backward.

The brim of her wide hat tilted downward.

Mu Shicheng's kick barely missed her face.

Instead, it lightly grazed the edge of the hat.

The hat flew free.

Slowly spinning through the air between them.

The Queen of Hearts turned.

One foot remained pinning Mu Ke's dagger in place.

With one hand, she caught the falling hat.

With the other, she reached beneath its shadow.

Her fingers closed around Mu Shicheng's ankle.

Then she pulled.

Hard.

Caught completely off guard, Mu Shicheng lost his balance.

The next instant, he crashed onto his back.

The Queen of Hearts slowly lowered the hat.

A practiced smile rested on her lips.

The smile of a model.

Polished.

Perfect.

Yet infinitely more dangerous.

Her skin was flawless.

Her lips crimson.

Her eyes deep red and mesmerizing, as though they could draw a person's soul from their body.

The wine-red curls framing her face had become slightly disheveled during the commotion.

The result was devastating.

The rigid beauty she normally possessed suddenly gained a softer, irresistible charm.

Then she leaned forward.

Looking directly down at Mu Shicheng.

Her appearance began to change.

The curls vanished.

Transforming into a neat ponytail.

Her fitted suit shifted into a clean school uniform.

The sharp, alluring eyes softened into round almond-shaped eyes filled with apparent kindness.

Halfway through the transformation, Mu Shicheng froze.

His eyes widened.

He couldn't look away.

It wasn't the expression of someone captivated by beauty.

Nor was it desire.

It was something else.

Something between fear and memory.

The expression of someone confronting a ghost from the past.

The Queen of Hearts smiled.

Slowly, she hooked a finger beneath his chin.

“...Is this the person you fear most?”

Before her finger could touch him—

A foot slammed into Mu Shicheng's side.

Mu Ke.

The kick sent Mu Shicheng rolling away.

He landed several meters distant.

Flat on his back.

Breathing heavily.

His eyes remained vacant.

As though he still hadn't fully awakened from whatever he had just seen.

The Queen of Hearts turned her attention toward Mu Ke.

Mu Ke immediately retreated several steps.

Instinctively.

Even turning his face away.

Avoiding direct eye contact.

The reaction looked almost pathetic.

But after witnessing what had happened to Mu Shicheng, caution seemed entirely justified.

He didn't understand her ability.

Not completely.

But he understood one thing.

Whatever it was—

It was dangerous.

Very dangerous.

“Mu Ke.”

Bai Liu's voice suddenly sounded in front of him.

Almost instinctively, Mu Ke looked up.

The moment he did, his pupils contracted violently.

Standing before him was Bai Liu.

Or rather—

The Queen of Hearts wearing Bai Liu's face.

She smiled exactly the way Bai Liu smiled.

The curve of her lips.

The angle of her eyes.

Even the subtle expression that seemed forever tinged with amusement.

Everything was identical.

Slowly, she extended a hand toward him.

Her voice was gentle.

Soft.

Tempting.

“Do you want to leave this place with me?”

Mu Ke froze.

“Do you want to keep playing games with me forever?”

Bai Liu had never spoken to him this way before.

“You're the teammate I rely on most, Mu Ke.”

“I trust you.”

“I trust you even more than I trust Mu Shicheng.”

A faint smile lingered on Bai Liu's face.

“I'm sorry for being cold to you before.”

“I never disliked you.”

“Even if our first meeting wasn't pleasant, that doesn't matter anymore.”

“You've already proven how important you are to me.”

Mu Ke's breathing became uneven.

The world around him blurred.

Heat shimmered through the air like a summer mirage.

Everything became hazy.

Unreal.

Except for Bai Liu.

Only Bai Liu remained perfectly clear.

Clear enough to be irresistible.

Clear enough to make anyone willingly follow.

“Mu Ke.”

The smiling Bai Liu took another step forward.

His hand remained extended.

Palm upward.

Waiting.

“What are you hesitating for?”

The ground beneath Mu Ke's feet seemed to soften.

Everything swayed.

The world tilted.

He staggered backward.

Then shook his head violently.

He knew it was fake.

He knew it was an illusion.

He knew it was a trap.

But it felt exactly like a dream during sleep paralysis.

No matter how desperately he struggled, he couldn't wake up.

Couldn't move.

Couldn't escape.

His body no longer seemed to belong to him.

Like a puppet controlled by invisible strings, he slowly lifted his hand.

Then took a step forward.

And another.

Drawn irresistibly toward the Queen of Hearts.

Toward the illusion wearing Bai Liu's face.

His fingertips were only moments away from touching hers.

Then—

A system notification exploded across the entire area.

[System Notification: Player Bai Liu's Small TV has reached 100,000 points.]

[Ransom requirement fulfilled.]

[Player Bai Liu has been successfully redeemed.]

[The Small TV will now be transferred to the Multiplayer Game Area.]

The world shattered.

Mu Ke abruptly regained control of his body.

His eyes cleared.

His outstretched hand froze midair.

The Queen of Hearts—still wearing Bai Liu's appearance—also paused.

Then she slowly raised her head toward Bai Liu's television.

The faint smile on her lips deepened.

There was something difficult to decipher within that smile.

Interest.

Amusement.

Perhaps even approval.

This was the first time someone had successfully broken through a Kings Guild blockade.

And succeeded.

For the first time, Bai Liu had escaped their grasp.

The surrounding crowd erupted.

The Carrion Guild players shouted excitedly.

The Kings Guild members stared in disbelief.

After all—

The Kings Guild had never failed before.

Not once.

Yet today, a collection of bottom-tier players had forced open a path through their blockade and rescued Bai Liu right under their noses.

The impossible had happened.

And at the center of it all stood Mu Ke.

Breathing heavily.

Still shaken by the illusion he had nearly fallen into.

The Queen of Hearts looked at him one last time.

Then the illusion faded.

Her wine-red curls returned.

The school uniform disappeared.

The familiar elegant figure of the Queen of Hearts reappeared before everyone.

As though Bai Liu had never been there at all.

Only the lingering fear in Mu Ke's chest remained.

A reminder of how close he had come to reaching out and taking that hand.

***

Author's Note:

6: I heard someone can use my appearance to make you do certain things?

Mu Ke (immediately feeling guilty): It's because my willpower wasn't strong enough.

6: Mu Ke.

Mu Ke (suddenly nervous): ...!

6 (imitating the Queen of Hearts' seductive tone): Mu Ke, listen carefully. Right now, I'm actually the Queen of Hearts in disguise.

Tell me.

Where is your family's safe?

What's the password?

And when you wake up tomorrow and discover it's been emptied, remember to go find the Queen of Hearts. She's the culprit.

Mu Ke: ......

Queen of Hearts: ......

Author: Xiao Ke's psychological knot is actually pretty simple.

His father didn't like him very much when he was younger.

Six wasn't particularly fond of him at first either and constantly compared him to other people's children—especially Number Four.

So Mu Ke has always desperately wanted Six's approval.

Friend: Look at that.

That's the lifelong shadow left behind by a father who doesn't know how to love his child.