“Is this the super risqué game you had in mind?” Akino Kazuko stared blankly at Liang Sheng, who was gesticulating wildly with excitement. “You’ve actually been prepared for this all along, haven’t you?”
Liang Sheng held up the card in her hand. It clearly read “Werewolf.”
“Not risqué enough?” Liang Sheng grinned like a kid in a candy store. “All that stabbing and killing—super gory! This is totally 18+ territory!”
Ou Lu, Mo Qingrou, and Cha Susu had never played before, so they sat off to the side as spectators. Teacher Dong Yue figured it wouldn’t look right for an adult like her to goof around with her students, so she volunteered to moderate.
Liang Sheng’s crew was clearly ready for this. The moment she suggested Werewolf, she whipped out a deck of cards from her bag—goodness knows how old they were.
She’d always been cursed with rotten luck. Online games? Always a villager. But this time, she drew werewolf. She was over the moon.
The group had settled outside a hotpot restaurant, waiting for their food to arrive, and decided to kill time with a game.
Not all the girls had played before, but some were eager to join Liang Sheng anyway—after a quick online rules check. Take Young Miss Lu Ziqing, who had no friends to play with, or the masochistic An Hua, whose strict schedule left no room for fun.
It was a nine-player round: three werewolves, three villagers, three special roles—seer, witch, and hunter.
By some hilarious twist, Lu Ziqing—the one who’d only skimmed the rules—drew the witch.
On the first night, Gu Yuqi got knifed. It was pretty much inevitable. After all, their beloved Senior Sister Gu spent all her time glued to Liang Sheng’s side, and Liang Sheng had a habit of clinging to her even more.
Lu Ziqing? She didn’t save her. Partly out of petty revenge, and partly because the guide she’d read said not to use the antidote on night one.
“Who do you want to poison, then?” Dong Yue asked.
Lu Ziqing hesitated for a moment. Then her eyes landed on Song An’an, the little crybaby who sat diagonally across from her and always pestered Liang Sheng at lunch. Without a second thought, Lu Ziqing pointed right at her.
Dong Yue’s face froze, a laugh bubbling up that she fought to suppress. “Daylight breaks,” she announced. “The werewolf team wins.”
Liang Sheng blinked. “?” What the heck? Was she dreaming?
“Teacher, what just happened?” The others looked utterly baffled.
Dong Yue couldn’t hold it in anymore and burst out laughing. “Hahaha! Last night, Bai Zhen and Liang Jin targeted Gu Yuqi, who was the hunter. Liang Sheng didn’t vote to knife her, but it was two against one—no contest. Then, our witch, Lu Ziqing, skipped the antidote and poisoned Song An’an, who was the seer. Game over.”
“……Huh???” Liang Sheng’s face was a masterpiece of confusion and exasperation. Her precious werewolf experience card, and it ended without her even making a move.
Lu Ziqing hadn’t quite processed it at first either. Once Dong Yue explained, her cheeks flushed bright red. Of course, there was no way she’d apologize.
“Um…” Liang Sheng raised her hand hesitantly. “How about one more round? The spicy hotpot isn’t even ready yet.”
The girls exchanged glances. When their favorite girl asked like that, how could they say no?
This time around, Liang Sheng got insanely lucky again and drew the seer.
She pressed a hand to her forehead, barely hiding her smug satisfaction. Being invincible was so~ terribly~ lonely~ Being invincible was so~ utterly~ empty~ She nearly hummed the tune playing in her head.
“Food’s up!” The boss lady’s booming voice shattered the moment.
“……” Damn it all, Liang Sheng nearly cursed out loud. She’d finally drawn a killer role, and now it was time to eat?
The girls’ eyes turned to her once more. Liang Sheng glanced at little Zhen Zhu, who was staring at the bubbling spicy hotpot, swallowing hard with desperate hunger. With a sigh, she said, “We’ll play later. Everyone’s starving—let’s eat first.”
At her words, the girls picked up their chopsticks and dug in.
“Hold on!” Liang Sheng called out. “Have none of you ever had spicy hotpot before?”
“Not healthy.” Mo Qingrou was meticulously wiping her chopsticks with the wet wipes she’d brought. Liang Sheng handed over her own pair too—she had a bit of a germ thing with strangers’ utensils.
The others—everyone except Bai Zhen, Liang Jin, and Cha Susu—shook their heads.
“Uh…” Liang Sheng stood up and cleared her throat. “The real magic of spicy hotpot is in the dipping sauce! You can’t skip mixing it!”
“Ah…” They all lit up with sudden realization.
They clearly didn’t get it yet. Liang Sheng stepped out from the table and waved her hand grandly. “Come on! I’ll show you how to do the sesame paste.”
The girls trailed after her like kids on a field trip, heading obediently to the sauce station.
“Just sesame paste won’t cut it~” Liang Sheng pointed to the array of condiments on the table. “Throw in some other stuff, and it’ll taste even better.”
Unfortunately, she’d forgotten these were girls who’d probably never set foot in a kitchen.
“Hey! Young Miss!” Liang Sheng spotted Lu Ziqing dumping in a flood of soy sauce and rushed over. “You’ll drown it in salt!”
Lu Ziqing bristled at being scolded. “No way! Butt out.”
Well… Liang Sheng slunk back to her spot and finished her own sauce. Hmph~ Don’t heed the wise words, and pay the price. She muttered under her breath.
Sure enough, once everyone was back at the table and eating, Lu Ziqing picked up a piece of tripe, dipped it in her creation, and spat it right out. Tears welled up in her eyes!
Liang Sheng let out a little “hmph” in imitation of the young miss. “Here, I made this bowl just for you.”
She slid a small bowl of sauce over to Lu Ziqing. She’d prepared extra, knowing full well the other girl would oversalt hers.
Ding~ Favorability increased.
“Lu Ziqing’s Favorability Toward Liang Sheng: 176”
“M-My bowl isn’t actually that salty,” Lu Ziqing stammered awkwardly, taking the offered sauce.
“Sure, sure, I get it,” Liang Sheng replied without calling her out, stifling a laugh. Tsundere moments like this were the best. “I’ve already mixed this one. Do me a solid and try it?”
“Hmph~” Lu Ziqing took the bowl, her face turning red.
Ding~ Favorability increased.
“Lu Ziqing’s Favorability Toward Liang Sheng: 181”
The other girls watched the exchange in stunned silence. Sauce mixed by Liang Sheng herself? Score!
Weird knowledge unlocked!
“A-Sheng… um, my sauce tastes kinda off too…” Song An’an jumped in first, beating the others to it with her best pitiful look.
