"I" The Sousei woman volunteered.
"Another flower? But you smell really bad, just like that girl from before," the clown said.
Some people understood what he said but didn't say anything, Sousei herself didn't understand much so she didn't pay much attention.
"So who goes first?" asked the clown.
"Please… sir," Sousei said.
"Okay. Hmm, I like roses. I like the taste of blood. I loved someone once."
Sousei was silent, everyone was also silent to think.
"All three sentences are quite normal, can't be distinguished right away but if I had to choose, it would be two or three," Ruminas judged.
"The second sentence is a lie," Sousei replied.
"Oh why?"
"Because there is no blood on you," she replied.
Bam!
The guillotine fell on the clown's finger, thus pulling the score from victory to a draw, with this result making everyone somewhat relieved.
"What an experienced person," the clown exclaimed. He had lost two fingers in total but still showed no pain.
"My turn… I am a weak person. I don't like men. I want to survive."
"Are all three of those words true?" Ruminas speculated since these words could be seen just by looking at Sousei's personality.
"Hahaa, are you playing a trick on me?" The clown asked but Sousei remained silent.
"Okay, the second sentence is a lie."
Bam!
The guillotine came down on the clown's finger again.
"Alright, the fifth round is over, the score is 3-2, keep it up." The clown returned to his previous cheerful mood.
"What? He clearly knew all three were true, but he still deliberately chose the wrong one. Is this his weakness? Sincerity means not lying? Did Sousei-san discover this? Through skill or observation?"
Ruminas didn't know, but if she wanted to confirm it, she would have to go do it herself.
"Sixth turn, who?"
Ruminas said nothing and just walked straight over and sat down on the chair.
"Oh my, what a bright and fragrant flower. I like it very much." The clown's mood was slightly agitated but quickly returned to normal.
"So who goes first?"
"I"
"Okay"
She was silent again, wondering if she should try what she was thinking, which was to tell the truth in all three sentences but there was also the risk that this clown would turn against her.
"If the information provided by the system is correct…"
"I come from the countryside. I don't remember my birthday. Both of those sentences are true."
A silence fell over everything.
The clown did not reply, only looking at Ruminas with doubtful eyes, the others also held their breath waiting.
Finally he replied: "The first sentence is a lie."
Bam!
Another finger was taken away.
"Indeed." Ruminas secretly breathed a sigh of relief in his heart. That was his weakness. As long as he didn't lie, he would turn a blind eye. In reality, he probably always knew which words were lies, but it was just that he didn't want to expose them.
"Crazy clown," Ruminas cursed under his breath.
"Come to me. I like sincerity. I like making people insincere. I like forgiving others."
"All three are telling the truth"
Bam!
Another clown finger gone.
"Wonderful! What a shining flower. What is your name?" the clown asked.
"Ruminas," she replied, backing away.
"Can the rules still be played like this?" One person whispered, but by the time he realized it, it was too late.
Now it was the middle-aged man's last turn, the score was tied so this would be the game that would decide the final result of the game.
He stepped forward and his legs were shaking, the clown who was happy a second ago had a serious and scary look on his face the next second, making the man tremble even more.
Ruminas observed and realized another miracle.
"The things he says about a person like 'fragrant flower' or 'rotten smell' are probably not random. He can really see a person's soul and the things that person has done."
Only then did Ruminas silently thank himself for always living honestly before.
As for this man…
While she was thinking about this, the match on the other side had already ended. The clown won both rounds with great speed, the man who had lost two fingers sat on the ground in pain.
"Haizzz, all fun must come to an end." The clown said and shook his hand, the four severed fingers immediately grew back as normal.
"You cheated!" Kazin shouted.
"Oh, do you have proof?" The clown just smiled and asked back.
No one said anything more.
Even if they knew he cheated, without any evidence, nothing could be changed. The important thing was that they had already lost the game.
"But I am a compassionate person. So I will let the winners live and the rest…" He smiled sinisterly as he said this.
Everyone's attitude changed again, Kazin heard that he could survive and was happy without saying anything more while the middle-aged man started kneeling down to beg the clown.
He even yelled at the woman Sousei and Akira to follow suit, but it was clear that the clown did not waver in the slightest.
"The law is the law, it cannot be changed," said the clown.
"Then why did you let them escape?!" The man shouted back angrily.
"Oh, I didn't say this was a team game in the first place?"
"You said it!" The man shouted again.
"Oh, where is the proof?"
"Grandfather!"
Ruminas sighed and shook his head.
This was clearly a black-and-white reversal in broad daylight, but it was true that no one recorded it at the time. Furthermore, the clown was also the one with the higher power, so it was understandable that he could do whatever he wanted.
"Forget it, just survive." Ruminas only felt sorry for Yaka. Although there was an unacceptable truth about him, he had been the most sincere person to her in the past.
"Clown, I don't need this right to survive, please transfer it to my son," Sousei said.
"Mom…"
"Be quiet, let me decide this."
"Okay, I really can't stand mothers."
"Akira, after you escape, try to live," Sousei said.
Akira bowed his head, saying nothing but tears were flowing down his face. It seemed like he truly loved his mother, but in Ruminas' eyes, he was nothing more than a liar.
"Now that we're out, we might as well settle the score with them," she thought to herself.
"Then let's go"
The clown snapped his fingers, the invisible barrier he created instantly shattered and the monsters rushed in. The three people, Ruminas, Kazin, and Akira, were enveloped in a layer of light and disappeared on the spot.
"Are not…!"
The last sounds Ruminas could hear were the middle-aged man's screams.
When she opened her eyes again, she found herself outside, not too far from the mall but a safe distance from the monsters. She immediately picked up her knife and raised her guard.
The monsters are gone but now humans are the problem.
Ruminas silently looked at the remaining two.
Akira had previously made a deal with her to help him kill Kazin and he would steal his stats to transfer to her, but in the last game, Ruminas discovered that Akira had lied.
Now she still did nothing, just waiting to see what Akira would say next.
If he was really in cahoots with Kazin, he wouldn't have said those words in-game to let Ruminas know the truth.
The three stood in silence.
Akira bowed his head, clenching his fists. Kazin kept his calm smile as if nothing had happened. But Ruminas knew—he was definitely thinking about something.
"What now, Akira?" she asked.
Akira looked up at her, his eyes filled with conflict. He swallowed.
"Ruminas… I'm sorry."
She said nothing, just waited.
Akira took a deep breath and continued.
"I… I lied to you before," he said, his voice trembling. "Kazin told me that if I approached you, he would spare my mother."
Ruminas narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Then why reveal it?"
Akira clenched his fists so hard that blood oozed out.
"Because you saved us, my mother scolded me a lot after she found out about this. She told me to find a chance to tell the truth and correct my mistakes in time, so I chose to tell it in the game."
Kazin clicked his tongue. "You weakling, do you think I want your mother? Just to give you a taste."
Akira gritted his teeth.
"Ruminas, I still want to do the previous deal. I will transfer his stats to you and mine as well"
"Although I don't like liars, but okay"
But just as Ruminas finished speaking—
Swish!
Another, faster blade was already at Ruminas' neck.
Kazin smiled, holding a sharp knife in his hand, pressing it against her skin.
"It's a pity, but I'm faster. You just need to lie down obediently under me and you'll survive."
Ruminas had no expression.
"He's right," she said. "You really are a piece of shit."
" Humph, if you don't want to live, then don't blame me!"
But just as he was about to make his move—
Bam!
The pain came from the lower abdomen.
Kazin opened his eyes wide and looked down. A knife had pierced his body, sending blood gushing out onto the pavement.
Akira stood from behind, breathing heavily but his hand holding the knife did not loosen at all.
"Dog, you are just… weak…" Kazin said unsteadily, then collapsed to the ground.
Ruminas sighed, taking a step back.
"Too slow," she muttered.
Kazin did not die immediately. He tried to look up, his eyes filled with hatred.
"Damn…"
Akira stopped, he walked over and placed one hand on Kazin, the other hand reaching out to Ruminas. She hesitated a bit but then took it.
[Receive: +2 to Luck, +2 to Endurance, +1 to Defense]
"Mine too," Akira said, continuing his move.
[Receive: +1 to Strength, +1 to Intelligence, +1 to Luck, +2 to Agility]
"This is really good…" Ruminas clenched her fists, feeling her strength slowly increase.
"I thought he was just bluffing."
After that, Akira picked up the knife again, his eyes filled with hatred as he looked at Kazin.
His face showed fear. "Don't!" he shouted.
"Go to hell and apologize to my mother." Akira said, then stabbed again.
This time, Kazin did not move.
The air returned to silence.
Ruminas looked at Akira. "That's it. Now what are you going to do next?"
Akira smiled bitterly. "…There's nothing else to do."
Ruminas narrowed her eyes. "You don't intend to live on?"
Akira shook his head.
"I don't deserve to live. At that time, I should have refused my mother's offer, but I wanted to avenge her and apologize to her, so I agreed to let her change my right to live."
He raised his knife, but Ruminas quickly grabbed it.
"Are you going to die in such a ridiculous way?" she asked, her voice cold.
Akira said nothing, just looked at her.
"Your life is not something you can just throw away like that," Ruminas said. "But if you really want to die, then at least have a good reason, since your mother saved your life."
Akira looked down, then laughed.
"…Thank"
But then, before she could react—
Bam!
Akira stabbed himself in the heart.
Ruminas was startled, but it was too late.
You are really a good person but I want to see my mother again, I will apologize to her later. I will leave all this food to you" Akira said and quickly took out all the food he had collected earlier.
Then, blood splattered everywhere, his body collapsed.
"Finally… I get to see my mother again…" Those were Akira's last words.
Ruminas stared at his corpse, saying nothing.
The wind blew, carrying the smell of blood.
She closed her eyes, feeling the wind that had a hint of blood in it.
"Human life is really cheap," she exclaimed.