Welcome to the Bizarre Games

Chapter 14 Daytime
Zhou You's memory isn't exactly photographic, but it's certainly not the kind that can forget something from a chapter ago in the blink of an eye.

Therefore, he quickly recalled the contents of those newspapers.

"Frequent accidents"

"Seeking qualified candidates. Excellent compensation package available."

"A street vendor died from overwork; it was his own family member."

This is it!

Zhou You raised his head and looked at the face that was now only half full, but clearly etched with deep wrinkles.

—Although no names were mentioned, this person was working so hard that if he didn't die from overwork, who else could have died from overwork?

As the face drew ever closer, and even the head in the pot began to float away from the broth, Zhou You couldn't think of anything else. Instead, he coughed lightly and spoke in a very gentle tone.

"Master, it must be very hard to do what you do."

A few seconds later, the rotting face stopped less than five or six centimeters away from him.

Zhou You also breathed a sigh of relief.

—It seems he guessed correctly.

The other party did not continue to attack, but slowly pulled its head back, and then, like an NPC that had triggered a dialogue, began to sigh repeatedly.

"Sigh, no job in our line of work is easy. We have to prepare ingredients as soon as we get up in the morning, and we're busy until the afternoon. Before we can even catch our breath, we have to push the cart out to set up our stall, otherwise we won't even be able to get a spot. Then we work from night until the early hours of the morning, and when we get home we're so tired we fall asleep as soon as we hit the bed. The next day, it's the same cycle again. It was a little easier when I was working with my brother, but now that I'm the only one left, I'm finding it hard to keep up."

"Um, may I ask where your brother is?"

The stall owner didn't reply, but instead glanced at the pot.

In a daze, the floating head resembled the half of his face that remained.

—You really can do something like having your own brother make soup.

—Oh no, just pretend I didn't say anything.

During that brief pause, the other person's face seemed to be starting to rot again, so Zhou You quickly continued speaking.

"What about your wife and kids at home? Surely they can help out a little, right?"

Upon hearing this, the stall owner sighed even more deeply.

"How can I count on them? My wife has to go to work every day to sweep the streets, and she doesn't earn much. As for my kid, he's a good kid, obedient and sensible, and his grades are very good. But the better he is, the less I can hold him back. So I have to shoulder all of this myself. By the way, are you going to drink this soup or not?"

Well, it seems we can't delay any longer.

The next moment, the stall owner's only response was to resolutely push a bowl back.

"Ah, I won't drink this soup," Zhou You said, and before the other person could react, he picked up the cleaver next to him.

Seeing this, the boss and the head in the pot were both stunned for a moment, then suddenly burst into laughter.

"Guest, you don't actually think you can kill us with this thing over there, do you? You're really dreaming."

To everyone's surprise, Zhou You nodded in agreement.

“Indeed, I also feel that this mission cannot be completed so easily, but I really don’t want to drink your lousy soup, so, you see.” Zhou You reversed the blade, smiling as he pointed it at his own throat. “This thing is for ending my own life.”

The blade pierced down, and blood splattered.
-
"you are dead."

"He died at the hands of an old, rusty, broken kitchen knife."

"Your death was utterly pointless."

"You didn't uncover any erosion points, nor did you advance the plot in any way, so you won't receive any reward for this death."

"Your remaining resurrection attempts are: 14."

"Players can use 10 Soul Stones to replay the ten seconds before and after their death. Would you like to replay?"

"Please note that since the player has left the beginner phase and no longer enjoys preferential treatment, this skill can only be used once per scenario." — I'll replay it for you, my foot!

Hearing those extremely familiar words, Zhou You rolled his eyes, but when he saw the option to re-enter, he suddenly paused.

Next to the familiar re-entry option, a button to enter daytime suddenly appeared.

Only now did he realize that the script seemed to be a cycle of day and night.

But after thinking for a while, Zhou You did not choose to 'enter again'. Instead, he moved his finger to the other side.

Admittedly, he still had a good supply of resurrection coins and could try a few more times at the stall owner without wasting this precious daytime opportunity. However, based on his understanding of the system, he felt that there was something fishy going on.

If Zhou You's guess is correct, this stall can probably only be dealt with during the day—moreover, it's also a good opportunity to familiarize oneself with the level mechanics.

"The player has chosen to enter the daytime of the second day."

"Game progress will be saved automatically."

When Zhou You opened his eyes again, the scenery around him had changed.

It was still the same security room, but unlike the eerie atmosphere at night, it was very peaceful and serene. Bright light streamed in from the window, bringing a touch of warmth to the small room.

"Moshi moshi, is anyone home?"

Zhou You called out a few times, but no one answered. Then he looked up and glanced at the clock.

It's noon, does that mean all of them went for a lunch break?
But just as he was wondering where all the day shift workers had gone, he suddenly noticed something unusual.

—I don't know when, but my security guard uniform has been changed. Compared to the previous one, this one looks clean and tidy, and the fabric is much better.

But this doesn't really serve as any clue.

Undeterred, Zhou You searched the area again, only to find another wallet hidden in some obscure corner.

It appears to be something someone lost, but judging from its thickness, it clearly doesn't belong to someone whose salary is barely enough to make ends meet.
Whose is this?

Well, whatever, it's none of my business. I'm not the one who lost the money.

Zhou You accepted the money, whose owner he didn't know, with a clear conscience. Then he went to the door, carefully reviewed the terms and conditions and the calendar again, and then left the small security room.

The light outside was just right, but for some reason, there was always a bit of fog lingering in front of me. Although it wasn't very thick overall, it always seemed to cling to me like fine gauze. Occasionally, a figure would pass by in the fog, but before Zhou You could call out to them, they would disappear on the other side in the blink of an eye.

"Looks like this is some kind of restriction on me?" Zhou You reached out, catching a wisp of mist, feeling its dampness slip through his palm. "The purpose is to prevent me from obtaining more information from passersby. As for going inside the building to find someone..."

He suddenly grabbed a door lock next to him and tugged at it hard.

However, unlike the unit door that seemed to open easily at night, this stairwell was locked incredibly tightly at this moment, and it would probably be difficult to break it even with tools.

"Fine, you're awesome."

Seeing how meticulously the other party had considered everything, Zhou You could only shrug and walk to the other side.

But the further he went in, the more uneasy he felt.

—Even though there are voices and figures around, you can't interact with them at all. As time goes by, even the roadside stalls become blurry. Everything seems to be ignoring you, giving you the feeling of…
Am I the one who's dead?
Zhou You shook his head, trying to banish this chilling guess from his mind.

The main street wasn't long—besides, he had already walked it once—but when he reached the food stall, he found that the fog suddenly became much thicker, and it seemed to have a disorienting effect. No matter how many times he went in, he would always come out of the same exit.

However, Zhou You did not show any disappointment. He simply turned around and walked down another path, following the sign at the entrance of the security room.

However, just over twenty minutes later, a slightly damaged sign came into view.

"Shanhe Environmental Services Co., Ltd."

There is also a line of small words below.

"Company owner: Liu Shang. Scope of business: municipal road cleaning, garbage collection and disposal, urban landscaping, and..."

"Recruitment and management of all local sanitation workers."

(End of this chapter)