translator: xiin
editors: apricot & juurensha
The episode finished airing, and the TV set turned off with a snap.
The final voting results came out. Wu Jin rose up to 21st place from 36 and was safe for the next round.
The crowd of trainees were dazzled by these two people’s performance, and Caesar was even praising Wu Jin. Oh, hey! This tactical thinking was pretty good!
Yu Chu also sent the two of them an admiring smile, while K showed no reaction at all. At the other two ends of the training workshop, Ming Yao’s eyes brightened, Thin Fire was stunned, and Raphael burst out into goosebumps from the gayness.
Before the end of the evening class.
The AI director said, “For the upcoming 36 into 24 round, the three groups of trainees will attend stage rehearsal at the same. I hope you’re all ready.”
Wu Jin understood.
It was like he’d guessed. The threads connecting <Red Dancing Shoes>, <Snow White>, and <The Nightingale and The Rose> were finally converging together. Karen, the Nightingale, and the Queen would compete against each other on the same stage, and the contestants would change from being ‘personal sacrifices’ to ‘shared sacrifices’.
The melee brawl would begin from the 36 into 24 round.
In the training room, players all went back to bed one after another.
Karen had come to ‘visit’ yesterday, so she would definitely be here again today. As for the King of Hearts, he’d disappeared at the end of the broadcast.
Yu Chu spoke in a low voice, asking Wu Jin about trainee September’s identity.
“September is an A-level trainee.” Wu Jin gave a vague answer, “If he doesn’t make a move against us tonight…”
“… We’ll attack him.”
Yu Chu paused.
Wu Jin’s tone was firm and brokered no refusal. Yu Chu nodded quickly, “How will we do it?”
That night, 11PM.
Time passed three times faster than normal in the seventh elimination match. Because the director would check the rooms during the day, September’s room wasn’t locked and was just closed slightly. Wu Jin and Wei Shi hid silently on the other side of the door.
The key to the room belonged to K, and he was also the only one with a key.
This was K’s safe zone. He would definitely go back that night.
The corridor was silent.
In an abandoned part of the forum on their wrist watches, Caesar made a report every minute, while Yu Chu kept guard at the other end of the corridor.
According to the rules of the game, it would take at least 3 minutes for the mask to be fitted perfectly over a face. So, the two of them would meet once every three minutes just in case the other party had been eliminated and ‘replaced’.
As for Wu Jin and Wei Shi, they stood in the middle of the bedroom with sharp blades in hand, waiting for K to push open the door––
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
There was a scream in the corridor!
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Their wrist watches beeped as Yu Chu hastily sent a message: There’s more than one person, September is attacking Caesar!
Wu Jin’s expression stiffened.
The King of Hearts’ strength wasn’t inferior to Caesar’s.
K appearing early was Wu Jin’s own fault as a commander. He couldn’t let Caesar be eliminated in the 36 into 24 round because of him.
Wu Jin looked quickly at Wei Shi.
Wei Shi raised his eyebrows, will you guard this place alone?
Wu Jin nodded.
They had confirmed that the room had a mirror right from the start. It was behind the door to the walk-in robe, and Yu Chu had checked again and confirmed it beforehand. He had roses in his pocket and red dancing shoes on his feet. Even if the King of Hearts snuck in, he could call up a female ghost at any time.
Wei Shi nodded.
According to his agreement with Wu Jin, Wu Jin would be taking the lead in this competition round. Even if Wu Jin was eliminated, he wouldn’t intervene.
From seventh elimination match to the eight elimination match, to the rookie competition, Stardust Cup and Star League, he would no longer intervene.
This was the path that Wu Jin had chosen for himself.
The door opened slightly.
Wei Shi disappeared down the dark corridor, heading out to meet with Caesar.
Caesar was shouting in the distance, and sounds of footsteps could be heard running away. A message came through the wrist watch that it had been K who’d attacked Caesar, but Caesar and Wei Shi had already changed posts. Everything was safe.
At this moment, a series of barely noticeable footsteps arrived outside the bedroom door.
“Leica!” Yu Chu stood outside the door, panting for breath.
Through the crack in the door, Wu Jin once again confirmed that Yu Chu’s mask was well fitted, and he hadn’t been replaced.
Wu Jin was finally relieved.
The one to attack Caesar was K, and his ally had interfered with Yu Chu. Yu Chu hadn’t requested help, which aligned with Wu Jin’s conjecture that his ally was smart, either a support or commander position, and was good at hiding instead of attacking directly––
Outside the door, Yu Chu grasped the door handle.
The door was mostly closed; Wu Jin went forth to help him open it.
However, Yu Chu moved faster than he did.
There was a slight ‘click’ in his ear.
Then, the sound of a key rustled. The copper door lock mechanisms collided together in Wu Jin’s keen hearing. The key rotated 180 degrees, gathering the copper teeth together, and the key was unhesitatingly pulled back out!
Yu Chu had locked him inside K’s room!
Wu Jin’s pupils shrank.
The man standing outside the room had clearly been Yu Chu. How could Yu Chu have the key to K’s bedroom? Why had Yu Chu locked the door? Who’d been chasing Yu Chu just now?!
Wu Jin was caught off guard and spoke, “You––”
Outside, Yu Chu didn’t say anything.
He seemed to remain standing outside the door for a long time before suddenly saying gently, “Contestant Wu Jin, I’m glad to have met you.”
“Goodbye.”
The sound of footsteps disappeared down the corridor.
Wu Jin’s demeanor changed abruptly.
He didn’t hesitate to call out to Wei Shi and Caesar in the corridor for help, but there was no response from the other side of the door! Wu Jin quickly turned to the terminal wrist watch. In the abandoned forum thread that they were using to communicate, the last response was from Caesar when he’d last reported in.
––September had led them to the <Snow White> training building.
Wu Jin looked up suddenly.
In the ceiling above him, the sharp sound of fingernails scraping against metal rang out, and it sounded like a pulley mechanism was rising and falling. There was someone moving above Wu Jin’s head.
There was a slight opening in the ceiling.
Wu Jin didn’t doubt that Karen, the female lead from <Red Dancing Shoes> was lying in wait in the ceiling over his head, staring at him through the gap with her huge, strange pupils!
In the locked room, Wu Jin zipped up his protective clothing at a speed faster than he’d ever done before, drawing out his knife with his left hand. K’s bedroom was located on the third floor. It had no windows and was very gloomy inside. Wu Jin then went to open the closet door and reveal the hidden mirror––
Wu Jin’s ears twitched, and he was violently startled.
In the distance, on the other side of the wall and across the open factory yard, in the <Snow White> program group building, there was the sound of violent fighting, accompanied by the sound of breaking glass!
K had led the big boss and Caesar in the direction of <Snow White>.
Then, K had lured the Queen out.
There was only one Queen.
If the Queen appeared in <Snow White>, she would never appear simultaneously in the <Red Dancing Shoes> building. Karen was afraid of the Queen in the mirror, not the mirror itself––
Inside the room, it was clear that it wasn’t only Wu Jin who was aware of this. Overhead, the gap in the ceiling that had been pushed open by Karen widened slightly.
Wu Jin suddenly lifted his head.
A pair of creepy eyes met Wu Jin’s. They blinked slowly, and there was a momentary pause. Then, there was a splash as blood dripped down from the ceiling.
The Queen who suppressed her wasn’t here, and the female ghost seemed to be very happy. Her face was ruddy, and at this time, she appeared very similar to an ordinary person. It was unknown which trainee’s life she’d just taken.
Wu Jin’s gaze collided directly with hers!
Karen didn’t come down, and Wu Jin couldn’t go up.
The two of them were locked in a stalemate. It was more like Karen was playing with prey, while Wu Jin, who was locked inside the room, had no way to escape. Karen looked at the locked door with satisfaction, and it seemed that it hadn’t been the first time she’d accepted tribute like this. She was so skilled at it that Wu Jin even suspected that the first six trainees had also been locked in this room and ‘fed’ to Karen.
Wu Jin clenched his fists, and a vague guess rose up to the surface of his thoughts at this moment.
Karen’s AI wasn’t any stronger than the Queen or the Nightingale’s, but the number of trainees eliminated by the female lead of <Red Dancing Shoes> was higher than that of the Nightingale and the Queen combined. It was as though there was someone who was deliberately supporting Karen, deliberately using Karen and the locked door to ‘kill’, and finally, using Karen and the useless mirror to get rid of him––
It was Yu Chu.
Wu Jin took a deep breath.
It was K who knew that the mirror restrained the female ghost, and Yu Chu who knew the clue about the Queen’s magic mirror. If Yu Chu and K had originally been allies who shared information, then, if Wu Jin could figure out the relationship between the red dancing shoes, the mirror, and the roses, then Yu Chu could as well.
The King of Hearts’ ally. Support, commander position. Not good at fighting, an intricate mind, and good at camouflage––
Yu Chu was the only one who met all the requirements!
In the ceiling, Karen was still enjoying Wu Jin’s final struggle as prey. Karen didn’t come down, and Wu Jin didn’t urge her. He even opened up his wrist watch and sent out a message on the forum.
“Yu Chu is K’s ally.” There’s an insider, cancel the deal––
However, it didn’t matter if Caesar could see it or not. It didn’t change the fact that Wu Jin and Karen were now in the same room.
However. Yu Chu. How could it be?!
Countless fragments of memory flashed through his mind. Caesar and Yu Chu had formed an alliance from the 100 into 60 round. In a survival show, hard work and friendship were praised, and those who betrayed their alliances and went back on their promises would be looked down on by both the players and the audience.
Unless Yu Chu had been replaced halfway through––
However, Caesar and Yu Chu had never been separated for more than three minutes.
Caesar and his own trust in Yu Chu had been based on this point.
It took at least 3 minutes for the mask to be torn off and fitted on the face. Yu Chu hadn’t changed masks from beginning to end, and his behavior was as good as any other qualified teammate. Ever since Wu Jin had met Yu Chu, he’d never done any actions that went ‘beyond common sense’, except––
On the first night of the 60 into 48 round, Yu Chu had used a support card for himself, hiring a water army to cheer for him on the forums all night.
Wu Jin’s heart beat accelerated abruptly.
Neglected details flashed back in his mind!
Yu Chu was in the high ranks, and his ranking was stable. There was no reason for him to stir up momentum for the 60 into 48 round. However, the large number of posts from the water army also played out a purpose.
The new posts would crowd out old ones.
Any artist’s black history could be eliminated and forgotten over time. The way to speed up this process was to erase old news with new news.
Wu Jin looked warily at Karen, who was still in the ceiling. His hands moved fast as he searched up ‘Yu Chu’ in the main forum, clicking in directly to the last 80th page of the results––
Yu Chu…How could you…!
(My twin sister: Mira is lying, she thought he was sus from the start.)
Thanks for the chapter~
uwaaaa, I knew yu chu was fishy!!! the fact that he’s a trusted ally of caesar has been brought to attention too many times for it to be natural!! his schemes are cool tho!!!
Thank you for the chapter!!!
Thanks for the chapter! ^ ^)♡
This chapter isn’t even hiding the cilff 😅. Thank you for the chapter!
not surprise
Let’s face it, it was obvious that You Chu was the traitor, since only he fits the requirements
I knew it , I knew it Yu chu ಥ_ಥ
BAHSHSH not surprising i could tell it was him hahaha but still… why yu chu😭😭😭
Wow, K and Yu Chu are both so mercenary. Maybe Yu Chu doesn’t see this as a betrayal of his alliance since he’s not trying to take out Caesar. I guess we’ll see. Thanks for the chapter!
I had a feeling the ‘ally’ might have been Yu Chu,
It’s so fun seeing Little Witch being scammed 😂
Little Witch was finally scammed betrayed and backstabed how does it feel to be in the receiving end of tricks and deceit little Witch ?