The day I was forced to be a detective pendant

"Is everyone in?"

I looked left and right, and at the moment I was in a round stone room with no windows, but the fluorescent tubes above my head provided very strong lighting.I looked down at my feet—a short, thin silhouette, cut off by the lenses and frames as far as I could see—and I was nearsighted.

At this moment, another person appeared beside me out of thin air. That person was tall and slender, with a pair of peach-blossom eyes, his nose tip turned up, and the corners of his mouth slightly raised. .The man stretched out his hand and looked down, just like everyone who wears VR glasses is used to. After checking his character, he said, "I'm in."

Immediately afterwards, four more people appeared in the room one after another—a gentle young man, a dark-skinned strong man at least 2 meters tall, an ordinary-looking middle-aged man, and an older woman.

The six of us looked around at each other, and no one spoke again. Suddenly, all the overhead lights went out, and the room was pitch black.The next moment, with a "pop", a searchlight hit the middle of the circular room, and there appeared a man wearing a top hat, round sunglasses, and holding a cane, like a scene from a stage play.

"Everyone is here," he said, "Hello everyone, I am the secret keeper for this session, you can also call me KP or host."

"The background introduction of this time has been sent to you before, but let me introduce it again." His voice was like an inorganic machine, just like the words of a translation software, "The background is modern, in 2020, and the location is in a place in the south of our country. A third-tier city called Zhuozhou, don’t need to check, there is no such place. The story begins in the Seventh People’s Middle School of Zhuozhou City. Recently, a student went missing. The lost student’s name is Steve, and you guys There needs to be motivation to help find Steve, so the position and identity of your characters need to be related to the school, and you need to know the parties and each other. It is recommended to have at least one player who is a student to facilitate communication with classmates, and recommend at least one person to study computers and electronics Hey, I can see that you all have pre-built character cards, so let me introduce myself."

The older woman was about to open her mouth, but I interrupted first: "Wait a minute KP, I have a question."

The man in the top hat: "Say it."

"Isn't the background in our country? Why is this man called Steve, and why are there foreigners?"

The man in the top hat: "His surname is Shi, Shi Tiesheng's Shi."

I:"……"

The man in the top hat: "Then please introduce yourself first."

My speaking voice was also automatically changed by the system to a younger and weaker voice: "Well, my name is George Zhang... I am a student at the Seventh People's Middle School, and I am in the same class as Steve. I am a hacker in private. So those who are proficient in computer electronics. Uh--because I only like to play computers and don't like sports, so I don't have a good physique." After that, I lit up my slender arms.

KP seemed a bit speechless about my name, but didn't say anything.

The pretty boy next to him was the second to speak: "I am also their classmate, in the class next door, my name is Li Jieke, and I am a member of the drama club, so I am proficient in disguise and speaking skills, because my APP (appearance value) is very high , so social skills are also good.”

The man in the top hat nodded: "Okay, next."

The older woman said: "My name is Xiaohong. I am the librarian of the school. I am especially good at finding students who like to talk small things and don't keep quiet in the library, so I am very good at listening and stealth. Books, library, history and foreign languages ​​are all good."

KP asked: "How much do you look like?"

Xiaohong said: "40."

KP said: "Okay, some NPCs in the game may be reluctant to talk to you because of your ugly appearance."

Aunt named Xiaohong: "..."

The tall and strong dark man continued: "My name is Xiao Hei, I am the security guard of the school, and I am a veteran."

KP asked: "No more?"

Man: "Well, my character is a tough guy who doesn't talk too much."

KP asked: "What about skills?"

Xiao Hei replied: "Investigation, fighting, unlocking, climbing, and first aid."

"It fits the personality very well," KP asked again, "What's your physique?"

"80," he replied, "I'm 2 meters tall."

KP nodded: "Okay, due to height and size restrictions, there are some narrow places or small vehicles in the game, you may not be able to get in."

The next person who spoke was the unattractive middle-aged man: "I am the owner of the canteen at the gate of the school. People who come and go to and from the campus pass by under my nose. And a lot of gossip is also told in the canteen. My listening, The detection is not bad. On the other hand, I like to look at the inventory in our bookstore, so Cthulhu and occultism are also very high."

"Wow, head iron..." I murmured in a low voice to add points to this skill.

KP asked: "Are you the owner of the canteen or the bookstore?"

"Our canteen also sells and rents books. It's a grocery store." The man said, "My name is... Zhao Yingjun."

The last one who spoke was the young man with gentle temperament, he said: "Uh, then my name is Tie Zhu. I am a teacher in this middle school. I often teach students and guide their lives, so my psychology, anthropology and Good for a quick chat.”

I couldn't help it: "Teacher, why are you a cultural person called Tie Zhu?"

He said: "I am the kind of phoenix man. My family is uneducated and gave me a name, but I rely on my own efforts and knowledge to change my destiny and go to a big city."

I clapped my hands: "Proud of you."

"Ahem," KP cleared his throat, "Okay, everyone understands each other, so let's get started."

"Wait," the handsome boy named Jack Li suddenly said, "How long is a chapter? How long does it take to complete a chapter? Does each chapter have a chapter treasure chest?"

KP said: "The duration of a chapter is about 3 hours of real time and 24 hours of game time. Of course, this is related to the progress of each group, and may be longer or shorter. Our group has seven chapters in total. That is to say, there are a total of seven chapter treasure chests, which can theoretically be completed by starting the group seven times. Most of these treasure chests are key props, and if they cannot be obtained, it will be difficult to advance to the next step of the plot.”

"There will be at least one day's rest between each team opening. There are six green pills in a chapter treasure box. At the same time, you can accumulate a bonus of 100 million yuan every time you open a chapter treasure box, but only when the player clears the level and plays any one Cash can only be withdrawn after the plot ends. Since each of you has different skills and strengths, I suggest that you help each other survive to the end as much as possible, so as to make the most of each person's professional advantages and strengths. But..." The man tilted his head slightly, and the shadow of the top hat moved back, exposing his chin to the sharp light.This machine-like man showed a chilling smile: "But naturally, the total number of bonuses remains the same, so the fewer people who share the bonus, the more money everyone can get."

He suddenly raised his voice, and said in a way of chanting lines in a stage play: "As long as you complete the game, you can get a huge amount of wealth, provided that you can live until then. And there are only two ways to end the game, one is One is to finish the game, one is to die from the game."

"Then what if we don't finish the game, for example, we are missing some key clues, but we still haven't died?" asked the people's teacher named Tie Zhu.

"In this world, there is not only real death, but also an ending more terrible than death. If you lose all your sanity and endlessly reincarnate in madness and chaos, it will be a more tragic ending than death."

"Isn't it just that the San value has returned to zero? It's so mysterious." I said, "I have one last question."

The man nodded: "You say."

"How can we confirm that you, as the KP, are absolutely neutral?" I said, "Maybe in order to prevent us from getting the bonus, you will deliberately mislead our investigation, or put us in danger."

Hearing this, the man clamped the crutches under his arms, raised the backs of his hands towards us, and then slowly took off his white gloves in a show-like manner.He put his fingers into the front of his clothes, took out a mobile phone and said, "Please take out your mobile phones too."

I reached into my bag and actually pulled out an iPhone—I clearly remember that it wasn’t listed among the personal items in the character card I filled out.

"Since the background this time is modern, we have distributed this item to each player for you to communicate with each other and find information in the game. At the same time, the recording of the mobile phone is turned on 24 hours a day during the game, so everyone If there is any cheating or ultra-game comments beyond the scope of the game, it will be recorded and punished." He clicked on the phone, pointed to the only app on it and said, "All the information you get in the game is You can re-view it inside, please use it.”

"But what I'm asking is..."

He held up an index finger to remind me to stay safe: "Just like you, my behavior is also monitored and watched. I must provide you with real information, and I don't have any regard for players or characters. Subjective judgment and emotion, the Keeper does not and cannot lie. However, the Keeper is obliged to make the player's enemies cunning and evil, and..."

He laughed again, this smile was more obvious and pleasant than before: "Even if I don't remain neutral, what can you do? I believe that the little red pill has fully melted in your digestive system. If You have been unable to find clues to advance the plot, and you have not died in the game, then there is only one ending...you will die painfully and meaninglessly due to poison in this world."

"So let's stop wasting time and start having fun playing time."

three days ago.

Bian Yao sat down in front of Zhuang Chen again.

Facing Bian Yao this time, Zhuang Chen put away all his fake sociable smiles, and instead asked with a haughty look looking at his defeated opponent, "What else do you want?"

Bian Yao said: "I want to join the SIP running group."

"Heh," he chuckled, "Here we go again."

But Bian Yao looked at him without blinking, and didn't think it was funny.

The other party's very unpleasant scrutiny eyes stuck to him: "Are you serious?"

Bian Yao nodded and said, "Yes, I'm curious about what kind of game can have such a great charm."

Johnson smiled, it was a smug smile like watching the prey walk into the net.He said, "Okay, then let your friend come in."

Bian Yao frowned, but I had already consciously walked in from the door, he glanced at me, and did not linger on my face for a long time - maybe he didn't realize that I rubbed shoulders with him in the toilet a few days ago And people who pass by connect together.

Then, he spread his hands on the table, with two small white plastic boxes in his palms, two blue pills in the left box, and two red pills in the right box—he had already prepared it.

I couldn't help complaining: "What is this, The Matrix?"

SC Johnson smiled and said, "Basically, now you are facing the same choice as Neo - choose the blue pill, and you will forget about all this, forget about our meeting today, and forget about everything related to SIP , live as before.”

"What about the red pill?" Bian Yao asked.

"Choose the red pill, and you will join the game. In fact, no matter how you investigate, you have no other way to join the SIP game without taking this pill." SC Johnson said, "As I said before, we The player's game experience is very important. On the one hand, we don't want anyone to quit irresponsibly during the game. On the other hand, we hope that you can experience a very real, time-critical, and life-threatening...crisis in the running game feel."

"Ah no, I mean, to experience the feeling of being alive." Johnson laughed mischievously: "The red pill, as you guessed, is a slow poison, and it has no side effects on the body until the time of poisoning expires. You can think of it as a time bomb, if you don’t believe me, I can even take one with you. After taking the red pill, you have to take a green pill every five days to delay the time of poisoning, and every Unlock a chapter chest and there will be enough green pills in it for every player."

"When you have cleared all the chapters and completed the game plot, you will get another choice - this blue pill, which will permanently remove the poison and keep you away from this game forever, forget SIP, and let SIP forget You, will not contact you again. Or..."

He took out another black pill from his pocket: "Eat this black pill, you can keep all the data of your character in the last game, and wait for one day to reincarnate in the game again."

Our guess is basically correct - the surviving players will be tempted by huge bonuses, and once greedy again, it is easy to rejoin the game with a fluke mentality.

SC Johnson misunderstood our subtle expression and said, "Of course you don't have to believe it. You can think that the choice of red and blue pills is just for a sense of ritual. In fact, no matter which medicine you take, if you go to the hospital for testing immediately, We can’t find anything, we’re very confident about that. Maybe it’s just a vitamin tablet, do you want to try it?” He shook the pill in the small box with a “caracalla” sound.

"You think we're stupid? Who knows what's in your blue pill, what if it's also poison?" I said, "If I choose not to participate in the game, I'll just stand up and leave."

"You can try it." Johnson said. He raised his head and motioned us to look at the menu list written on the blackboard above the bar counter. I didn't know why, but I suddenly saw the name of the store on it—"Silver Ink Bar", The following is the English SilverinkPub of the curlicue.

Just when I saw the word clearly, all the shutters outside the storefront windows were suddenly closed, and I quickly went to see the door behind Johnson—it had already been locked at some point.

"SilverInkPub, SIP." Bian Yao said, "This is your site? How is it possible, this is obviously..."

"This is obviously the place you chose, right?" Johnson shook his head, "You children, think that you are safe in public places? You don't know that there is no public in society, only infinitely intersecting and overlapping circles."

"So, how do you choose, the red pill or the blue pill?" Johnson spread his hands again.

Bian Yao and I looked at each other, and reached out to the small box containing the red pills at the same time.