The auditorium slowly emptied.
Students poured through the exits in groups, talking about the Exhibition Match.
Some were impressed by Bai Shuying.
Others were more interested in the strange decision she had made at the end.
She had won.
She had been given the right to choose a punishment.
And she had chosen nothing.
That shouldn't have been possible.
At least...
not according to what everyone believed about XO Project.
Lin Xia remained seated.
Yue Ning sat beside her.
Mei Chen was already halfway out of her seat.
"I'm hungry."
Neither girl moved.
Mei Chen looked at them.
"...What?"
Lin Xia's eyes remained fixed on the empty stage.
"Something is wrong."
Mei Chen sighed.
"Of course something is wrong."
She sat back down.
"What is it this time?"
THE UNANSWERED QUESTION
Yue Ning opened the notebook.
The page containing the First Lock was still there.
But something had changed.
A small line of text had appeared beneath the recovered memory.
FIRST LOCK — 8% RECOVERED
Underneath it was another line.
EXHIBITION OBSERVATION: COMPLETE
Yue Ning frowned.
"Observation?"
Lin Xia leaned closer.
"We weren't playing."
"I know."
"So why did the system record us?"
Yue Ning didn't answer.
She slowly turned the page.
Another message appeared.
BEHAVIORAL PATTERN UPDATED
Mei Chen's expression hardened.
"It is studying us."
BAI SHUYING
A quiet voice came from behind them.
"You finally noticed."
The three girls turned.
Bai Shuying stood several rows away.
She had removed her white gloves and folded them neatly into one hand.
Her expression was exactly the same as it had been during the match.
Calm.
Unreadable.
Mei Chen immediately stood.
"You've been listening?"
"No."
Bai Shuying looked toward the screen.
"I've been watching."
Lin Xia studied her.
"Why did you waive the punishment?"
Bai Shuying didn't answer immediately.
Instead, she walked down the steps.
One row.
Then another.
Finally, she stopped directly in front of them.
"Because I didn't want to punish him."
Mei Chen frowned.
"That's it?"
"Yes."
"Then why accept the match?"
Bai Shuying looked at her.
"Because refusing an invitation wastes an opportunity."
Yue Ning closed the notebook.
"What opportunity?"
Bai Shuying's eyes moved toward her.
"Information."
That answer made Lin Xia's expression change.
"You were investigating something."
Bai Shuying smiled faintly.
"So are you."
THREE QUESTIONS
Lin Xia stood.
"Then let's stop pretending."
Bai Shuying waited.
"Who sends the invitations?"
"I don't know."
"Who chooses the games?"
"The system."
"Who created XO Project?"
For the first time...
Bai Shuying hesitated.
Only for a moment.
But Lin Xia saw it.
Yue Ning saw it too.
Mei Chen stepped closer.
"You know something."
Bai Shuying shook her head.
"I know what everyone knows."
"Then why did you hesitate?"
Silence.
Bai Shuying finally said:
"Because I once met someone who knew."
"Who?"
Bai Shuying looked toward the auditorium doors.
"He disappeared."
THE RANK THREE PLAYER
Mei Chen folded her arms.
"You're Rank Three."
Bai Shuying nodded.
"How did you get there?"
"I won."
"Against everyone?"
"No."
She looked at Mei Chen.
"Against the people who challenged me."
Mei Chen frowned.
"But you've never lost."
"That isn't true."
The girls went silent.
Bai Shuying continued.
"I lost my first game."
Lin Xia's eyes narrowed.
"Then how are you Rank Three?"
Bai Shuying smiled.
"Because I learned something more important than winning."
"What?"
"How to make sure the next person doesn't get the chance."
THE HALLWAY
The four girls left the auditorium together.
The school was strangely quiet now.
The announcement screens had switched back to ordinary notices.
Clubs.
Classes.
Homework.
Lunch menus.
Normal things.
Almost convincing.
Bai Shuying suddenly stopped.
"Don't take the eastern staircase."
Lin Xia looked at her.
"Why?"
"Because someone is waiting for you there."
Mei Chen immediately looked toward the staircase.
"Who?"
Bai Shuying shook her head.
"I don't know."
"Then how do you know they're waiting?"
Bai Shuying pointed upward.
A tiny camera was hidden inside the ceiling.
Its red indicator light blinked once.
Twice.
Then disappeared.
THE NEW RULE
Yue Ning stared at it.
"That's not one of the school's cameras."
"No."
Bai Shuying's voice became quieter.
"Those cameras don't blink."
Lin Xia's expression hardened.
"Then what is it?"
Bai Shuying looked directly at the ceiling.
"An invitation camera."
Mei Chen stared.
"A what?"
"It watches players who are being considered for special matches."
Yue Ning's face went pale.
"Considered?"
Bai Shuying nodded.
"You don't receive an invitation because you are chosen."
She paused.
"You receive one because the system thinks you're interesting."
THE MESSAGE
Every screen in the corridor suddenly turned black.
Students stopped walking.
A single white symbol appeared.
XO
Then text appeared underneath.
SPECIAL MATCH CANDIDATES HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED.
Three names appeared.
LIN XIA
YUE NING
MEI CHEN
The hallway erupted.
Students backed away from them.
Whispers spread instantly.
"Three of them?"
"All together?"
"Why them?"
"They're Watchlist players..."
Mei Chen stared at the screen.
"You've got to be kidding me."
Yue Ning's hands tightened around the notebook.
Lin Xia didn't move.
Then another line appeared.
INVITATIONS WILL BE DELIVERED INDIVIDUALLY.
A pause.
The screen flickered.
ACCEPTANCE IS VOLUNTARY.
Mei Chen laughed bitterly.
"At least they're giving us a choice."
Bai Shuying looked at her.
"That's what you should be afraid of."
THE ENVELOPE
Something slid beneath Lin Xia's shoe.
She looked down.
A crimson envelope.
No one had seen it arrive.
Her name was written across the front.
Not printed.
Handwritten.
LIN XIA
Yue Ning found another beside her.
Mei Chen looked down.
A third envelope rested at her feet.
None of them touched theirs.
Bai Shuying slowly stepped backward.
"Don't open them here."
Lin Xia looked at her.
"Why?"
"Because whoever sent them..."
Bai Shuying glanced toward the cameras.
"...already knows whether you will."
The three girls exchanged a look.
For once, none of them joked.
None of them moved.
Then Mei Chen picked up her envelope.
"Well..."
She looked at the other two.
"We're not opening them separately."
Lin Xia nodded.
"Together."
Yue Ning held hers tightly.
"Together."
THE FINAL MOMENT
Across the school, thousands of students watched the announcement screens.
Nobody knew what the three invitations contained.
Nobody knew who had sent them.
Nobody knew what game would be chosen.
But somewhere deep beneath the school...
three identical envelopes were placed into an empty machine.
A mechanical voice spoke.
"Three candidates."
Another voice answered.
"And one variable."
The machine paused.
Then a fourth envelope appeared.
Its name was hidden.
Only the first letter was visible.
B
The second voice whispered:
"Let's see what the Rank Three player does when the game finally comes for her."
The screen went black.
And the three girls stood in the empty hallway...
holding invitations they had not yet opened.