Chapter 63: Playing Games, Big Brother
At this point, even the blue-haired delinquent, who had poor grades in school and had relied on his fists and words to solve problems since high school, had come to understand the unspoken rules of Bus 18.
No loud shouting, no talking to the driver, and no sitting alone in a seat on the row of connected seats. If you don't get off at the designated stop, you'll be devoured and killed by the strange beings.
The latest rule was that if they didn't deal with the newly boarded strange beings, they too would inevitably encounter the same fate—until death.
But now, with the rules no longer hidden and out in the open, their anxiety had eased, and they felt more confident. As long as they followed the rules, they would be okay.
The bus slowly pulled up to a stop. Compared to the first stop, this one had a little more light.
Through the bus windows, they could vaguely hear a few distant sounds.
Click...
Both the front and back doors of the bus opened.
This time, the blue-haired delinquent and the middle-aged man stayed seated, unmoving. They knew this wasn't their stop. Thanks to Lin Ye's earlier warning, they understood that they needed to get off at the "Chiba Station," which was designated as the safe stop for humans.
The blue-haired delinquent stared at the map, his eyes fixed on Chiba Station.
Two stops left.
Only two stops to go. Hope was ahead.
The strange being getting off this time was a lone one—seated in the first position on the right-side row.
A little boy in black sportswear, with a pale face resembling a dead person, boarded the bus.
Ren Nanase glanced at him from afar and quickly withdrew her gaze.
The passengers on this bus were terrifying!
"The bus is about to depart. Please take your seats quickly," the announcement said.
With that, the bus doors closed again, and the vehicle slowly accelerated, the rumbling engine noise echoing through the bus.
The pale boy tilted his head and took small steps, walking down the aisle.
The bus was silent, except for the sound of the boy's clear footsteps.
"Uncle, will you play a game with me?"
He asked the strange being sitting at the front left side, but it didn't move or react, completely ignoring the boy's request.
The boy asked the strange being next to it the same thing, but it, too, chose to ignore him.
He continued walking, reaching the third row, where he asked the middle-aged man sitting to the left.
The man lowered his head, staring at the floor, silently praying that the boy would move on and ask someone else.
"Uncle, will you play a game with me?"
The middle-aged man trembled, too terrified to look up.
Suddenly, the boy's head appeared under his seat, his large, bulging eyes staring at the man.
Hiss...
The middle-aged man sucked in a sharp breath, but quickly covered his mouth with his hands, forcing himself to hold in the scream that almost escaped.
He closed his eyes, refusing to see anything, praying that the boy would just leave him alone.
Seeing this, the boy seemed to give up and turned to the next person: the blue-haired delinquent.
"Don't pick me, don't pick me, please don't pick me," the delinquent silently begged.
"Big brother, will you play a game with me? I want to play a game..." the boy said.
But the blue-haired delinquent was too afraid to answer, keeping his head down and closing his eyes, pretending he didn't hear anything.
Lin Ye had been observing the whole time. The blue-haired delinquent and the middle-aged man could do whatever they wanted, but he couldn't afford to ignore the boy. By now, the boy had asked everyone else, and it was down to just him and Ren Nanase.
If everyone refused the boy's request to play, the death rule would surely be triggered.
What could that rule be?
Lin Ye quickly sorted through the information he had. Then, something clicked in his mind.
The bus was speeding up.
The engine was roaring.
Compared to the previous sections of the route, the bus had jumped several levels in speed.
It was really accelerating now.
"Big brother, will you play a game with me?" the boy asked again.
The question finally reached Lin Ye. He immediately felt the bus accelerate even further.
If Ren Nanase also refused, the bus would likely speed up to a terrifying degree, and everyone would experience a "flying" sensation, followed by death.
"Alright, big brother will play with you," Lin Ye answered.
The blue-haired delinquent and the middle-aged man both were taken aback, silently admiring Lin Ye's decision. He really was the one who had kept them alive this far!
Only Ren Nanase was worried. She knew if she refused, the next person the boy would ask would be her. If she turned him down, she'd be the first to suffer.
The cute nurse couldn't help but look at Lin Ye with a worried expression.
Lin Ye simply gave her a reassuring thumbs-up to ease her worries.
At this, Ren Nanase smiled.
"Yay, yay! Big brother is going to play with me!" the little boy cheered, jumping up with joy. At that moment, the bus seemed to tremble slightly.
Even Ren Nanase now understood the invisible connection between the boy and the bus.
"We're going to play the game where you guess which hand the candy is in. I'll hide it, and big brother will guess. If you guess wrong, you'll have to come home with me and play more games."
A fifty-fifty chance!
The odds were quite favorable, thought the blue-haired delinquent and the middle-aged man.
Ren Nanase thought the same, but something didn't feel right. Playing games with a strange being seemed too simple, with such a high chance of winning. Was that even possible?
"How about this, I'll hide it, and you can guess, little friend?" Lin Ye suggested.
"Sure! You're the first person in the bus to play with me. I agree!" the boy replied, handing Lin Ye the candy.
"By the way, big brother, don't think about throwing the candy away or hiding it in the other hand, okay?"
Damn…
The blue-haired delinquent suddenly felt embarrassed, realizing that even a little kid was smarter than him.
"Of course," Lin Ye said with a smile.
Ren Nanase understood that Lin Ye's plan had been foiled. The little boy was too clever.
Lin Ye placed his hands behind his back and began switching the positions of the candy.
Then, he extended his hand, palm facing up.
"Guess, where's the candy?"
The boy slowly pointed to Lin Ye's left hand.
Ren Nanase's heart raced.
"Is it this one?"
The boy then pointed to the right hand.
"Are you sure?"
"Sure! Open it, big brother!"
"Really? No backing out now! If you want to choose again, I can give you one more chance."
"Hehe, no backing out. It's this one."
The boy made his final choice: the right hand.
Ren Nanase's face went pale.
Because she had seen Lin Ye hide the candy in his right hand.