Deceitful Game

Chapter 252 A well-fed wolf becomes a dog

Liao Tinglan followed closely behind Mingpo like a shadow.

Seeing her nervous expression, Mingpo smiled and casually said, "Don't worry too much, I won't kill you."

He turned slightly, glancing sideways at Liao Tinglan, and said meaningfully, "If you're a wolf, you'd better not make a move now." "I...I'm not!"

Liao Tinglan was startled when she heard Mingpo's words.

Her face turned bright red, and she was so flustered that she even started to stutter.

The more intense her reaction, the more she felt like she was acting guilty.

"I really didn't! I'm one..."

Liao Tinglan tried hard to explain.

But she quickly realized what was happening, abruptly covered her mouth, and stood motionless in place.

A hint of horror flashed in her eyes as she looked at Mingpo.

Because just now, she wanted to "explain that she was really a sheep and not a wolf."

But if she did that, she would be breaking the rules, and the outcome would be certain death.

What truly terrified her was that Mingpo knew "if she died at this moment, Mingpo would inevitably be suspected of being a wolf," yet she still dared to take such a risk.

What exactly is Mingpo's purpose?

If you just want to kill yourself, you don't need to go through all this trouble.

Given the skills of the section chief in the executive department, he had absolutely no ability to resist, yet he insisted on leading him into such a dangerous situation... It was the look of fear that appeared when he saw something incomprehensible and indescribable.

"..."

Mingpo smiled and reached out to pat her head.

Feeling Liao Tinglan trembling like a small animal in her hands, Mingpo's tone was quite gentle: "No... that's for the best."

"I have high hopes for you, Tinglan. Interested in... joining the Executive Department?"

Upon hearing this, Liao Tinglan's eyes widened immediately.

A very clear longing was evident in her eyes.

"...But...but I haven't graduated yet..."

Liao Tinglan's reaction softened instantly, and she forgot her previous fear.

Those are the eight giants!

This is one of the eight most powerful monopolies in the world!

It might even be a direct recruitment by a mid-level manager... If I accept, I could very well become Mingpo's confidant!

The innocent yet foolish college student, forgetting that he is already dead, is still dreaming of being accepted by the top eight universities.

"Then we'll wait until after you graduate."

Mingpo said casually, rummaging through the suitcases on the passenger seats.

None of the boxes were locked, and Mingpo opened them one by one. But when Mingpo opened two, they were both empty.

As Mingpo was searching through the documents, he kept glancing at Liao Tinglan out of the corner of his eye. Although Liao Tinglan didn't notice, her every move was precisely locked onto by Mingpo's prosthetic left eye.

Yes... Mingpo only just realized that his prosthetic body could actually be used.

Although the internet connectivity functions were disabled due to the lack of signal, the local functions were still available.

Mingpo searched through all the suitcases, and Liao Tinglan didn't question her actions at all. Therefore, these shouldn't be considered "resources only wolves can see."

It's highly unlikely that both Mingpo and Liao Tinglan are wolves.

Therefore, Mingpo is basically certain that he is a sheep.

"Oh?"

When Mingper opened the third box, she found a strange pink part.

It looks like a nail with a strange five-sided cone.

From the top, a five-pointed star shape is clearly visible.

"This must be what they call 'resources'."

Mingpo looked up at Liao Tinglan and showed her what she had found.

"oh!"

She suddenly perked up, seemingly forgetting what Mingpo had done to her earlier. Like a naive and clueless college student, she thought, "I can do that kind of work too…!"

“Yes,” Mingpo said gently, “let’s split up and look for it. You can have everything in this room. I’ll go check the back first.” As she spoke, Mingpo held up her right index finger to her lips and then slowly raised it between the two of them.

Seeing this, Liao Tinglan was stunned for a moment, not understanding what Mingpo meant.

"One chip."

Seeing that Liao Tinglan didn't understand, Mingpo said gently, "As collateral."

Upon hearing this, Liao Tinglan's expression immediately changed.

Is this... extortion?

"You need to know one thing, Tinglan. In this game, it's not just wolves who can kill."

Mingpo said slowly, "Or rather... wolves are actually less dangerous than sheep. Because wolves don't really benefit from killing sheep."

Liao Tinglan was completely stunned upon hearing this.

She didn't understand the logic behind Mingpo's statement at all.

How could there be no benefit? If the wolf doesn't kill the sheep, it will die on its own!

Isn't this just a game of wolves hunting sheep?!

If we don't find all the wolves, the sheep will be killed by them!

Moreover, the sheep's profits will be...

"...Huh?"

Thinking of this, Liao Tinglan suddenly paused for a moment.

At Mingpo's prompting, Liao Tinglan realized something important.

A wolf killing a sheep... won't "earn points".

Unlike typical competitive games, this game doesn't reward players based on the number of kills they make. Simply killing opponents without taking their chips yields no reward whatsoever!

In this game, the wolf doesn't actually need to kill too many people.

The wolf only needs to find someone who is "definitely not a teammate" and kill them... and its entire mission is complete! After that, it just needs to stick with the main group.

On the contrary, it's the sheep...

The sheep must find the wolf among the crowd and kill it!

If both wolves survive, then all the sheep are essentially dead.

But once all the players realized this, the nature of the game changed.

This isn't a game of wolves preying on sheep at all; it's a game of mad sheep hunting wolves!

And in this process... sheep will kill other sheep.

Because once wolves have completed their task, they become harmless afterward.

In this situation, the wolf actually needs to protect the flock from being killed by other mad sheep.

They have already secured the victory and now need to minimize the variables as much as possible.

Once the wolves are all fed, they become sheepdogs, the most loyal and reliable companions.

They need to save as many sheep as possible in order to complete their final mission.

Even if a sheep kills just one person, it won't solve its inner unease. As long as the flock isn't certain that "at least one wolf has been definitively ruled out," killing many more people will still leave them feeling uneasy.

You could even say...

Once the first person dies, the more reliable the individual seems to be trying to "protect the pack," the more likely they are to be a wolf who has already accomplished their mission! "...This...this is..."

Liao Tinglan realized why Mingpo had reacted so quickly.

Because of the rules of the game between the wolf, the sheep, and the dog...

This is precisely the life principle of "corporate dogs".