Chapter 1060: Thank You, I Will Definitely Help You Figure It Out
Huh? Is that really it?
Bohemia"s mouth half-opened, unable to believe her own stroke of luck. The fact that the serial killer had blood on them made the puzzle too easy to solve. "W-why her? Explain it to me."
However, the Pocket Dimension host ignored her.
"Now, it"s time for the punishment for your one mistake in the game. Remove one layer of the skin!"
As the Pocket Dimension host had previously mentioned, the onion skin removal happened immediately after the game ended. Bohemia heard a sharp sound coming from the onion on her head and quickly looked up. She saw a layer of onion skin gradually disappearing, blending into the air.
Just say it, she thought, there"s nothing to be afraid of. After all, didn"t she know her own secrets?
"Regarding player Bohemia"s first fact..."
As the Pocket Dimension host began the report, the entire game Pocket Dimension fell into silence with only his voice echoing softly.
"Currently, the ident.i.ty you hold is Bohemia"s fifth reincarnation. To explain further, as a posthuman, her lifespan has been divided into segments, each segment of equal length. After completing a segment, she will reincarnate, be born, and grow up again, without remembering anything from the previous life... and now she is in her fifth segment."
Bohemia stood up abruptly, her golden-brown eyelashes flickering rapidly, and her face filled with a dazed and bewildered expression. She couldn"t comprehend whether the other person was joking or if she had misheard.
"What...?"
"It"s normal for everyone to be surprised. Almost all players have the same reaction after hearing the onion skin report. It"s interesting how we always have something that can startle ourselves... How little we truly understand ourselves. But I a.s.sure you, everything I say is true. That"s also why this Pocket Dimension is so precious. Alright, let"s continue the game." The Pocket Dimension host seemed oblivious to her shock. "Oh, wait, player Lin Sanjiu requested mutual viewing. Perfect. Since you just solved the mini-game, you can exchange for a right to influence the "Final Exam" game."
Lin Sanjiu"s face appeared on the wall, followed by a female voice, seemingly that of an invigilator, saying, "Number 39, lower your head! Stop looking around!"
However, Lin Sanjiu seemed oblivious to the voice and stared intently at Bohemia, whispering, "What"s going on? Don"t you know either?"
Bohemia felt as if she were floating in a dream, as if she could wake up at any moment. She stared at those familiar amber eyes, her expression blank and confused, and shook her head.
"Number 39!"
"The fifth segment... Don"t be afraid," even though her brain had been invaded by spores, Lin Sanjiu"s resolute tone hadn"t changed a bit. She clearly understood Bohemia"s situation and seemed to be thinking along the same lines as her. "Once we"re out of here, I"ll find a way to help you. What Pocket Dimension said might not be true, and even if it is, there are many ways to sustain life. You don"t have to be confined to this body..."
"Number 39! If you don"t lower your head and answer the test properly, I will punish you!"
With a tinge of anxiety, Lin Sanjiu pursed her lips and quickly whispered, "I will help you," before lowering her head once again.
Bohemia still couldn"t fully grasp the situation. Reality felt like a solid block of cement, and it took what felt like an eternity for Lin Sanjiu"s words to slowly seep through the dense reality and be understood by her. Even though she understood everything in her mind, she still felt no sense of reality.
For a posthuman, their lifespan generally wouldn"t exceed a couple of hundred years.
Even if we calculate based on a lifespan of two hundred years, divided into equal segments—let"s symbolize this number as "X"—the value of "X" wouldn"t be large because Bohemia was nearly twenty-six years old.
If each segment of life lasted only forty years, then the current segment of Bohemia"s life as "Bohemia" would be her final segment, even though she was only twenty-six. What"s more, who could guarantee that her original lifespan was two hundred years? If her total lifespan was only a hundred and fifty years, divided equally into "X" segments, and she was currently in the fifth segment... then each segment would be at most thirty years long.
"The fifth segment..." No matter how you looked at it, she didn"t have much life left.
"That"s..." the Descartes Spirit spoke softly, "Who did this to you? This can"t be a natural occurrence. Someone must have imposed this effect on you. It"s quite cruel for you humans... It"s not really dividing one person"s life into five segments. For you, it"s just one incredibly short life."
If she had no memories from her previous life, then the so-called reincarnation meant nothing to Bohemia. Once she died, the next person in the next life would have no connection to her.
Bohemia sat numbly in her chair. After a few seconds, she looked up at the projection on the wall. Although Lin Sanjiu had her head lowered, it was clear that her thoughts were still focused on Bohemia. Her gaze lingered at the edge of the exam paper, and for this whole time, she hadn"t even glanced at the questions.
"You... You will help me, won"t you?"
Bohemia"s voice trembled as she spoke halfway through her sentence, her voice filled with helplessness and a hint of sobbing, "If this is true, then I don"t know what to do—"
Lin Sanjiu remained silent, her gaze fixed on the test paper, nodding quietly.
Bohemia suddenly raised her arm and buried her face in the wide sleeve of her clothing.
"Fortunately, you have a friend like her," the Descartes Spirit, true to his lack of human emotions, couldn"t grasp the atmosphere, "Hey, but what if she says, "I will ask Truth to help you," once we"re out of the Pocket Dimension? What will you do then?"
"Then I"ll strangle you first," Bohemia muttered under her breath, her remark serving as a reminder. She sniffled a few times, wiping her face, and then raised her red eyes, saying, "I... I want to exchange for that thing called "Authority.""
"Oh, so you"ve decided to influence the "Final Exam" game? But your next target, Stage 2, is about to appear, and you don"t have enough time."
Bohemia hesitated for a moment. "Can I at least see what authority I have?"
To get both of them out together, aside from waiting for Puppeteer"s mercy, the only option was to give Bohemia some leverage. Even if they couldn"t grant it to her immediately, it would be good to investigate the situation on the other side.
After the host agreed, the image on the wall s.h.i.+fted, and Lin Sanjiu suddenly disappeared. The camera angle changed to looking down from above, revealing a sea of people with dozens of heads, each furiously writing. The shadows of the rotating ceiling fans repeatedly intruded from the left side of the view, prompting her to turn her head in that direction. Strangely, it seemed like the footage sensed her gaze and turned along with her.
After finally getting a clear view of the ceiling fan, Bohemia sighed inwardly.
Just like Lin Sanjiu, her physical and combat abilities in the game were only at an average level for a normal woman. If a heavy, high-speed rotating ceiling fan were to crash onto her head, she would not only lose her leverage but also risk severe injuries.
"Even with the Authority you"re exchanging, you won"t be able to remove the ceiling fan," the Pocket Dimension host timely stated, "You can imagine yourself as a ghost. The greater the Authority you have, the more powerful your ghost will be. You can throw things, communicate, and even kill... But for now, you can only look around in the "Final Exam" game."
Bohemia didn"t respond, attempting to lower her head to look beneath the cla.s.sroom. Slowly and leisurely, her vision descended as if she were a balloon being pulled down by a string, landing between rows of desks.
"Hurry up, don"t look for too long."
"Don"t rush me, it"s like you need to pee." Bohemia retorted, trying to look past the students on the desks. Her gaze paused for a moment on the test papers. "Huh? What... What"s going on with these test papers?"
"That"s how the test papers are."
"But... This is too dangerous!" Bohemia grew increasingly shocked, examining several students" answers on the test papers. Each one was almost the same, and she finally understood why Lin Sanjiu had been sweating earlier. After floating over to look at Lin Sanjiu"s test paper for a while, she couldn"t help but gasp, "What subject is this exam for?"
"It"s a self-rescue course." The Pocket Dimension host spoke plainly, "If you answer incorrectly, besides your onion being stripped, there are also risks based on the content of the questions. In other words, the consequences of incorrect answers will actually happen to the person."
As if to confirm his words, as soon as he finished speaking, Bohemia heard a sudden retching sound coming from the corner. She turned her head and saw a female student falling off her chair, vomiting a mix of green and red, unsure whether it was vomit or blood, onto the floor.
"Number 11, get back in your seat." The invigilator sitting in front of the cla.s.sroom seemed accustomed to such scenes, saying, "Five, four, three..."
The girl"s face turned pale, covered in sweat, and trembling, she crawled back into her seat.
"Alright, you"ve seen everything you needed to," the Pocket Dimension host urged, "Now target 2 of "Prison Turmoil" will also be revealed. Are you ready?"
Bohemia regained her composure, hastily nodding. Suddenly, the images on the wall disappeared in an instant. Looking around, she found herself still in the Warden"s office. With the ability to freely change her observation perspective in "Final Exam", it felt like she had entered a 3D movie. For a brief moment, she even forgot that she hadn"t moved at all.
"In target 2, you need to find evidence of why the female doctor is a serial killer. Secondly, find your allies in this game and protect him/her or them. Lastly, deal appropriately with the two detectives from the Investigation Bureau."
Compared to the previous stage"s objectives, this time her tasks were more general, but on the other hand, she had more freedom of action. Since she had successfully guessed the answers in the mini-game, she could finally leave this office. As the Warden, she hadn"t had a chance to take a good look at her prison yet—
"Oh, one more reminder," the Pocket Dimension host calmly added, "Since the serial killer has a keen sixth sense, she now knows that someone has discovered her ident.i.ty and is secretly searching for who it might be... Please be careful from now on."