Global Collapse-Chapter 655 - 623: ’Take’ _1
"Hand it over," Gu Mian snatched the papers from Coach Che's hand. "You run every time you see me. Is it really that amusing?"
Held aloft, Coach Che shut his eyes in resignation.
Holding the dossier in one hand, Gu Mian passed Coach Che to the nearby Chu Changge. "Hold him for me for a second."
Chu Changge expressionlessly took Coach Che from Gu Mian.
Only then did Gu Mian begin to focus on the case file.
At this point, the other players were peering around the restroom door.
They had only seen both judges enter the restroom, followed by the sounds of wails and sobbing.
"What are they doing in there?" Bai Lu asked, a peculiar expression on her face.
The Doctor claimed to be fetching the Guiding NPC, yet he took another team's judge into the restroom and then made strange noises.
If it weren't for the fact that they had entered the men's restroom, Bai Lu would have rushed in to see what was going on.
Li Yuan hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Should I go in and check?"
Their team's judge is in there; it wouldn't be good if something happened.
However, Keke was blocking the men's restroom door, apparently determined not to let anyone in.
Fortunately, the noises from inside didn't last long, and soon they saw the two judges emerge, one after the other.
Gu Mian walked in front, holding a relatively thin case file.
Bai Lu's eyes brightened upon seeing the file in Gu Mian's hand. "Is that the case file? Did you really find it in the restroom?"
Chu Changge followed Gu Mian, his hand clutching a peaceful-looking individual.
When they saw this stranger, the players cautiously stepped back, then tried to pull up his player panel. Unable to do so, Li Yuan hesitantly asked, "NPC?"
Hearing someone call his name, Coach Che briefly glanced at them before lowering his head again.
The players were immediately puzzled; this was the first time they had encountered such a dispirited NPC.
"This is our Guiding NPC," Gu Mian said, pushing Coach Che forward and handing the case file to Keke.
Bai Lu looked Coach Che up and down, then decided to look at the case file Keke was holding.
"On June 3rd, at 10:00 PM, a brutal murder occurred at Ping'an Apartment in Dianxin District, resulting in two deaths and one minor injury."
"The suspect, Yuan Haotian, armed with a kitchen knife, broke into the victims' home, hacking Zhang Shengli and Cao Deren to death. While Yuan Haotian was attacking them, another victim, Li Shu, rushed out of the room shouting for help. This alerted the neighbors, who then worked together to subdue the suspect."
"Suspect Yuan Haotian has been detained in the 'Screaming Court,' awaiting judgment."
"The bodies of Zhang Shengli and Cao Deren have been sent to the morgue at Dianxin Hospital."
"The survivor, Li Shu, has been sent to Dianxin Hospital for treatment."
That was the summary of the case—just a few sentences, not very detailed.
"Looking at this, there are still some questionable points," Bai Lu said, having read the brief account. "Three victims, two died on the spot, and the remaining one only sustained minor injuries. If Yuan Haotian is truly innocent, then this Li Shu is highly suspicious."
"You also need to pay attention to something else," Gu Mian, who had already read the case file, interjected. "Of the three people, two died on the spot. The remaining one might also be dead."
"What?" Bai Lu looked up, baffled. "You mean Li Shu is an imposter?"
"No, he might not know he's dead." Gu Mian recalled the amnesia instance. "I entered an instance before where there was a ghost who had forgotten she was dead. She had no killing power when she had amnesia, but once she remembered she was a ghost..."
"That instance would also trick players, making them believe that helping her regain her memory was the way to survive. In the end, it successfully conned and killed many people."
"Good heavens, that instance was really twisted," Bai Lu shivered.
"Of course, Li Shu's death is just my hypothesis. You can continue reading," Gu Mian said with a shrug.
Keke reached out to flip through the case file in her hand.
The following pages contained personal information about the suspect and the victims.
"Suspect: Yuan Haotian, male, 26 years old. Residential address: Apartment 1302, Unit 2, Building 13, Dayang Garden, Dianxin District."
"Victim: Li Shu, male, 24 years old. Residential address: Apartment 501, Unit 1, Building 5, Ping'an Apartment, Dianxin District."
"Victim: Zhang Shengli, male, 30 years old. Residential address: Apartment 501, Unit 1, Building 5, Ping'an Apartment, Dianxin District."
"Victim: Cao Deren, male, 29 years old. Residential address: Apartment 501, Unit 1, Building 5, Ping'an Apartment, Dianxin District."
There wasn't much written on the few pages, just this information.
Looking at the case file, which she had now flipped to the end, Bai Lu frowned. "To find clues, we should still check the crime scene. I wonder if there are any surveillance cameras in the victims' building corridor. To find the truth, it's best to look at any available footage first."
Gu Mian, however, was stroking his chin. "I want to go to the morgue first... or rather, to Dianxin Hospital to check on the survivor's condition. If you want to look at the crime scene footage first, we can split up."
Are you kidding me? Bai Lu thought. Even back when instances didn't involve real death, I wouldn't have dared to split up. Now that the death protection mechanism is off, I'd be even less inclined to do something so reckless.
"Sure, sure," Bai Lu waved her hand. "Let's go to the hospital first. After that, we can look for the footage."
Gu Mian nodded and looked at Chu Changge. "What case are you handling?"
Light from the window reflected in Chu Changge's eyes. "A young man killed a woman in her sixties. That's the case I'm assigned to."
He really is as concise as ever, Gu Mian thought.
"Where are you planning to go first?" Gu Mian asked.
"To the hospital."
"Dianxin Hospital?"
"Mm-hmm."
Is Chu Changge's case also connected to Dianxin Hospital? Gu Mian wondered, frowning.
Soon, a remark from one of Chu Changge's teammates answered Gu Mian's question.
The player named Yan Shuang Fei suddenly spoke up, "Judge, isn't our case completely unrelated to Dianxin Hospital? Neither the suspect nor the victim went to that hospital. If I recall correctly, the words 'Dianxin Hospital' don't appear anywhere in our case file!"
Chu Changge pushed up his glasses. "That's right."
Yan Shuang Fei continued to ask, puzzled, "Then are you going to that hospital because you found some hidden clues, Judge?"
"No." Chu Changge's denial was blunt.
Hearing this blunt denial, a strange expression appeared on Yan Shuang Fei's face. "Judge, you're not going there just because Gu Mian is, are you?"
This is an instance where we can actually die! Why would any player abandon investigating their own case to just wander around with another group? And he's a judge, no less!
Chu Changge seemed to have run out of patience; he didn't respond to Yan Shuang Fei.
Bai Lu and Chu Chu also had somewhat strange expressions on their faces. Although they had a good relationship, it was unthinkable for them to abandon their own cases to wander around with the other.
Keke, however, wasn't surprised. She knew that as long as she followed Gu Mian, barring any special circumstances, she definitely wouldn't die.
Gu Mian's presence was like a safe zone. But Chu Changge didn't seem like the type to freeload off a safe zone.
Gu Mian also felt Chu Changge was acting a bit strange. Ever since the Circus Dungeon ended, he'd sensed a peculiar incongruity about Chu Changge, though he couldn't quite put his finger on what it was.
It wasn't until just now, when he heard Chu Changge say he wanted to come along, that Gu Mian finally realized what that incongruity was. Clinginess. Chu Changge had been a bit clingy lately. Previously, Chu Changge might not have shown his face even once throughout an entire instance. He was always off in some unknown, dark corner, attending to his own business. But now, he was tagging along so eagerly. Was he possessed by Xiao Hong?
Gu Mian heard Xie Bi'an, who was off to the side, let out a chuckle. His voice was somewhat cold as he said, "No need to worry about me. I won't do anything."
What is he suddenly talking about? The other players thought, turning to look at him in confusion.
Xie Bi'an lightly leaned against the wall and fell silent.
Is Chu Changge worried Xie Bi'an will do something? Gu Mian mused.
Just then, Chu Changge, who was in front of him, suddenly stepped back and said, "You guys go ahead."
He seemed to have changed his mind about coming along.
Gu Mian nodded, then swiftly grabbed Coach Che, who was attempting to sneak away. "Keep in touch through the group chat."
With that, he led the pale-faced Coach Che away.
After bidding Chu Chu farewell, Bai Lu trotted after Gu Mian's group. "Will our Guiding NPC stay with us the whole time? I notice Keke's team doesn't seem to have one."
Gu Mian concocted a reason that played up Coach Che's supposed handsomeness and kind heart. "To make up for disappearing at the beginning, he has decided to stay with us for this entire instance."
The truth, of course, was different; he had forcibly detained Coach Che.
"Oh, I see," Bai Lu nodded hesitantly. "I didn't expect NPCs in these instances to be so... considerate."
The 'considerate' Coach Che managed a stiff smile.
Gu Mian's first stop was Dianxin Hospital. Since it wasn't nearby, they hailed two cabs.
Bai Lu was reluctant to take separate cabs. Danger could pop up anywhere in an instance, especially if they split up.
However, five people and a guitar couldn't fit into one taxi. Since they couldn't find a tractor or a large truck that could carry passengers, they had no choice but to split into two groups.
Gu Mian, Coach Che, Keke, and the guitar were in one car.
Xie Bi'an and Bai Lu were in the other.
Before getting in, Bai Lu carefully scrutinized their driver. Only after confirming there was nothing abnormal did she dare to enter the car, much to the driver's confusion.
In the other car, Gu Mian had already begun his interrogation of Coach Che. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞
Keke sat in the front passenger seat, while Gu Mian and Coach Che were in the back, making the questioning more convenient.
Gu Mian didn't waste time on pleasantries and got straight to the point. "Besides the Circus Dungeon, what other instances do you know of that have high-level NPCs?"
At these words, Coach Che's eyes rolled back in his head as he began to pray for his fellow NPCs.
