Chapter 23 Werewolf: How could it be a Peaceful Night?!
Player 5 and Player 6 discussed what they would say when they stood up in the daytime.
Although they might have pushed out a Good Guy,
the Wolf Team was still at a huge disadvantage.
So they had to push out one more Good Guy to have any chance of winning.
When day came they would have to burn their boats.
Win or lose, it all rode on this round!
[Seer, please open your eyes.]
"Choose the player you wish to check."
The mask on Player 10's bearded face vanished, and his gaze went straight to Wang Changsheng.
"This kid's only a substitute, yet I actually can't tell from his speech whether he's human or wolf—I still have to check him," the bearded man muttered, brows knit.
"Still, he must be a wolf, right? Otherwise how would he dare stand up first to defend Player 9?"
He flashed the Judge a seven.
Then he stared hopefully at the screen in the center of the round table.
"As long as Player 7 comes back wolf, the game's already over!"
Bearded Guy looked quite expectant, but when the Judge revealed Wang Changsheng's identity he froze.
[Golden Water]
"How is it Golden Water??"
Bearded Guy was a little dumbstruck.
He'd assumed Players 7 and 9 were both Werewolf Cards.
But now the check showed Player 7 was actually a gold water card—so what about Player 9, whom he'd voted out? Bearded Guy's scalp prickled.
He'd finally slammed into the south wall.
At last he wanted to turn back.
He had no choice; if the faction won and everyone else racked up points while he earned only that pitiful faction-victory bonus,
their boss would chew him out for sure.
The mask settled back over Player 10's face.
[Witch, please open your eyes.]
"Tonight this player has fallen; will you use the antidote, will you use the poison?"
Wang Changsheng opened his eyes sneakily; through the big hole in his helmet he'd already seen whom the werewolves had knifed.
So without hesitation he gave the Judge a thumbs-up.
[Dawn has broken.]
The Judge's deep, magnetic voice rang out.
All the masks on the players' faces disappeared.
Good Guys in the outer positions turned their eyes to Player 7 and Player 10.
Clearly they were dying to know what Player 10 had discovered about Player 7.
If it was wolf, Player 7 would have to Self-Destruct in a moment.
They were also waiting for the Judge to announce last night's death toll.
Good Guys and werewolves alike wanted to know whether the Guard had gambled on mindset against the wolves.
[Last night was a Peaceful Night; Sheriff, please choose the speaking order.]
What the hell?!
The moment the death report came,
Good Guys and werewolves alike were stunned.
Especially Player 5 and Player 6.
They couldn't keep the look off their faces; it was downright ugly.
First: with the Witch still alive, unless the knife had found the Witch or landed on Player 10, a Peaceful Night was inevitable.
But how could Player 11 not be the Witch???
Hadn't he only claimed Guard to confuse us??
Otherwise why jump as Guard at last position?
Wasn't that just the Witch trying to dodge the knife?
Player 6 was lost.
Player 5 had basically aimed the knife last night.
She'd already planned to stand up and flatten Players 12 and 2.
But now a sudden Peaceful Night
meant they'd wasted a Good Guy for nothing the day before.
"I pick Player 11."
Player 10's expression was complicated too.
He let Player 11, the Golden Water, speak first.
Which meant he was giving Wang Changsheng the Golden Water status.
Everyone except Player 8 of the Lang Huahua Team
seemed unsurprised that Player 7 was Golden Water, as if they'd expected it.
[Player 11, please begin.]
When it was Old Chu's turn, he stayed silent a long while, then sighed.
"Player 9 didn't look like a wolf voted out; you still checked Player 7 at night..."
He took a deep breath.
Player 11 didn't complain about Player 10; instead he analysed: "You found Golden Water on 7, so the factions are basically clear. Yesterday you pushed Player 9, so the wolves must have piled on. I suggest we look among them—like I said last round: vote five, check six, smash eight, or take two."
"Listen to what Player 7 has to say, then I'm done."
Player 11 named the players he thought were wolves and passed the mic.
After all, the Seer might not heed his advice.
[Player 12, please begin.]
"My turn. I voted for Player 5 last round because Player 11's end-position speech made sense—Player 5 looks like a wolf from either side."
"Pushing Player 9 in that round was pretty senseless; we could just have checked him. But since he's out, I'll drop it. Vote five, it's a double-sided wolf pit, I'm done."
Though Player 12 was convinced Player 10 was Seer, she didn't want to follow his vote and knock out someone who might be a Good Guy.
Let alone barrel them out.
That would lose points.
Big points!
Going Crazy Supreme would never accept that outcome.
[Player 2, please begin.]
"Well, I voted 9 yesterday because the Seer pushed 9."
When it was Player 2's turn, he gave an awkward smile and explained.
"First, although I didn't think nine looked like a wolf, he did cast a bandit vote, so there was a tiny chance he was a Werewolf Card."
"Plus the Seer had voted him out. I figured instead of letting wolves maybe barrel a Good Guy in the outer positions, we shouldn't split votes; we'd follow the Seer and exile the possible wolf, Player 9."
"That was my mental journey voting 9. Now that Player 10 says 7 is a Good Guy, I didn't protect the wrong person last round. I'll vote 5 again—5 attacked 7 yesterday, so voting him out is fine."
"I'm done."
[Player 4, please begin.]
The earlier speakers had been brief.
Player 4 stood up excited: "A Peaceful Night last night—looks like the Guard has game, nice nice."
Player 5 beside him narrowed his eyes at those words.
No one before had even mentioned the Peaceful Night.
Only this guy stood up singing praises?
Could Player 4 be the Guard?
"I voted 5 yesterday because he sounded wolfish, and Golden Water Player 11 also said vote 5, so I agree."
Player 4 first gave the Guard a sincere shout-out.
One Peaceful Night could make up for voting out a Good Guy last round.
As a Good Guy, he was happy.
But from the wolves' different view, his joy looked like a Guard proud of having saved the right target.
Player 4 decided not to claim this round; that would yield the biggest profit.
"I won't claim my role this round; vote five, then hear what the next person says, I'm done."
Hearing that, Player 5 was certain Player 4's hidden role was Guard.
His eyes lit up.
He was already sketching out his next move.