Chapter 19: Forcing a Wave of Presence

"Cough, cough, cough~ I played the wolf pretty well, didn't I?" Although Chen Fan had won the game, he wasn't the MVP; instead, his daring teammate took that honor, which surprised him.

"It was your teammate who played brilliantly. That self-sacrifice move really fooled us."

"I already knew Player Six was a wolf, but these good guys just wouldn't listen to me. What could I do?"

"I shouldn't have trusted that fake seer. Player Six should've been eliminated on the first day."

Chen Fan felt dissatisfied—he had listened earnestly to everyone's statements, yet no one had mentioned Player Six. Chen Fan spent the whole round chasing the kill, and managed to turn the tables despite the wolves lagging by two kills.

Such an impressive record was rare for Chen Fan. He wanted to argue, but couldn't find the words; everyone's conversations seemed to operate on a completely different level from his own.

"Enough analysis, let's start the next round. I'll show you how formidable I really am." Chen Fan grew impatient; talk was pointless, it was time to prove himself in actual play. But in the very next moment, he regretted it...

"Player Six speaking. Six is a wolf card; Nine is my wolf teammate. Let's eliminate my companion Nine today, and let me survive one more round until tomorrow, all right?"

This time, Chen Fan wasn't the wolf, but held a gun card. He continued to court disaster with his extravagant play, desperately seeking attention by making himself the focal point.

Unsurprisingly, Chen Fan failed.

"Player Seven here. I don't think Player Three could be the seer in my view, since his statements are too aggressive. I'll go around and identify everyone's roles, and deduce the wolf's den..."

Chen Fan perked up, eager to hear how he'd be characterized, but the speaker stopped abruptly after mentioning Player Five.

"Damn it, you said you'd point out everyone, didn't you? I'm the wolf!" Chen Fan exchanged glances with Player Seven, even pointed at himself, but the other still ignored him.

"Player Eight speaking. I think Player Twelve is a card that was checked and killed, so eliminating him this round is fine. As for Player Six..."

Finally, someone mentioned him. Chen Fan, slumped in defeat, immediately straightened up, eager to hear what they'd say.

"Sorry, I misspoke. I meant Player Five. I think Player Five is a good role, and Seven, with all that talk, is likely good too."

Chen Fan instantly deflated again.

"Come on, seriously? Am I invisible to you?" Chen Fan grumbled inwardly.

As expected, after a full round, no one mentioned him again. The little invisible Chen Fan, seething with rage, voted for himself in frustration, nearly eliminating himself from the game.

"Player Six speaking. Six is just an invisible card, coasting through the whole round. You can't do anything to me."

Chen Fan had given up resistance. Someone else had donned his gun card's identity, but no matter how he protested, no one paid him any mind.

"Game over. The wolf camp wins."

"Six, what kind of useless play was that? Someone took your role and you didn't expose them."

"In a god-slaying round, that guy wore your identity for three days and never got eliminated. Doesn't that strike you as odd?"

"Odd, my foot. There was no counter-jump; whether I believed it or not, I had to go along!"

Chen Fan could no longer swallow his anger, cursing loudly, "Stop spouting nonsense! I revealed as hunter on the second day—are all your ears deaf? Did none of you remember my speeches on day two and day three?"

"I think he did reveal as hunter..."

"Did he? I don't recall."

"Maybe Number Two's good looks distracted you."

"Get lost, I'm straight!"

"It feels like he did, but maybe not..."

"Rookie, clean your ears before you play again." Chen Fan spat out a final harsh word, stood up, slammed the door, and left, unwilling to see that bunch ever again.

At the corridor's corner, Chen Fan bumped into an old acquaintance.

"Fan, you're burning with rage—I could smell the gunpowder even in the spectator room," Zhou Ji remarked, sporting a new hairstyle that seemed even more slick.

"It's their fault, all of them acting like post-game strategists, the worse they play, the louder they argue." Chen Fan couldn't contain his anger; today's game experience was the worst he'd ever had.

Zhou Ji couldn't understand it either. "I happened to glance at your match while watching others. You identified the wolf, yet no one cared. You survived to the finals. What were they playing?"

"I have no idea what they were doing. My words might as well have been unheard—everyone just filtered them out automatically." Chen Fan shrugged helplessly.

Zhou Ji teased, "Is that so? That's pretty weird. Did you use some kind of magic, like Harry Potter?"

"You've read too many novels—how could that be possible? If such things existed, I'd want something like x-ray vision to broaden my horizons." Chen Fan scratched his head, losing some hair in his agitation.

"Are you still grinding for rank? Is your brick-moving job going well?" Chen Fan asked about Zhou Ji's current situation.

Zhou Ji replied, "I'm not climbing anymore—already in the top ten percent. Just waiting for the free VR trial qualification. This gig won't last long; once school starts, I'll focus on graduate studies, but I'll have a lot less time for Werewolf."

"So you're still a student? I thought you'd been in the workforce for ages. You seem so mature. Is the VR experience really that much fun?" Chen Fan reassessed him; his manner and speech didn't match a student's.

"I was about to graduate, but decided I didn't want to start working so soon, so I went for a master's degree. Just biding my time for two years. The job market's tough now, so I'll wait it out." Zhou Ji munched on a fry, his face marked by time's wear.

"VR Werewolf is thrilling—you've played it. Having the witch sneak over at night and force-feed poison at someone's bedside is exhilarating. Plus, VR isn't just Werewolf; you can try those beta nurturing games too." Zhou Ji grinned wickedly.

"No thanks, that's not my thing. Where are you studying?"

Zhou Ji replied casually, "Deepfish University. Are there any other decent universities in our city?"

Chen Fan forced a smile and hastily explained, "Don't say that! We're at least a top-tier city. The faculty can't match the capital, but we're miles ahead of most provincial capitals."

"Just making do. Gotta go." Zhou Ji checked the time and prepared to leave.

Chen Fan asked, "Will you join the Wolf King Tournament?"

Zhou Ji pondered, "Not sure if I'll have the energy this year. After all, Werewolf can't feed you."

Chen Fan thought, that's true—once you're in university, you can't neglect your real responsibilities.

Feeling guilty, Chen Fan promptly started a new game to calm his nerves.

"I am a wolf, I really am a wolf, please believe me, give me a little wolf's dignity."