Death Game: Starting as a Trickster, Pretending to Be a God

Chapter 742: Family

"Click."

The door gently closed. Inside the study, Li Nian spun around once in the plush, wide boss chair that her father usually sat in, then looked at Lin Yu standing by the door.

"So... Sister Zhu Ming, what do you want to talk about?"

The other members of the Free Alliance were still downstairs, each busy with their own things.

Li Nian had sensed that "Zhu Ming" seemed to have something to say to her. With perfect understanding, she had come upstairs, waiting for the other to seek her out.

She looked at the girl who was only a few years older than her but seemed far more mature and composed, folding her hands on the desk.

"Are you worried about the fight the day after tomorrow? Afraid you'll lose, afraid we'll lose... or is it because of that May May?"

Lin Yu walked to the chair opposite Li Nian and pulled it out.

"He's not that important to me," Lin Yu said, his tone detached and proud. "But you two have met and talked before, haven't you?"

Li Nian stuck out her tongue. "Yeah, it was last night... just a chance encounter."

"We both, out of respect for you, Sister Zhu Ming, secretly made a deal with each other and exchanged some information, like about that demon... Of course, Order doesn't know, and the Free Alliance doesn't know either."

Lin Yu pursed his lips. "I know the general gist, but... he punched you three times in the nose."

"I don't really mind it, actually, but if you get the chance, Sister Zhu Ming, please teach him a lesson for me," Li Nian said, rubbing her nose. "Because it really did hurt quite a bit."

"If I get the chance, I will. I'll punch him right in the nose," Lin Yu said, clenching his fist and shaking it, then looked back at Li Nian. "So... you found out about me being Second Tier from him, huh?"

"I actually guessed that part," Li Nian said with a sigh. "Because in the last dungeon, Sister Zhu Ming, you didn't seem like a First-Tier at all... even more exaggerated than you were before."

"I wasn't really sure you were already Second Tier—but when Comedian judged that you were, and you didn't deny it..."

"Uncle Comedian is pretty accurate when it comes to assessing other people's strength. He and Xiaoyun act as 'analysts' in our Free Alliance."

As Li Nian explained, Lin Yu looked at her slightly guilty expression and spoke again.

"Alright, I have to apologize to you... Before, when I told you I'd completed my Promotion, I had actually already promoted."

"I completed my First-Tier in the sixth dungeon, so by the twelfth dungeon—the one before last—I'd already completed the Promotion Trial for Second Tier... When I first met you, I couldn't be sure you were completely trustworthy. And because of the Fluoxetine situation, I really couldn't disclose the number of my dungeons to someone I didn't fully trust, so I lied to you."

"One lie requires another to cover it up... that wasn't my intention."

Li Nian was stunned for a moment as she watched Lin Yu suddenly apologize to her, then she smiled. "I'm not blaming you, you know. That's just how this game works..."

She paused, then continued, "Besides, the fact that you're telling me this now just shows that you're starting to trust me, right, Sister Zhu Ming?"

She looked at Lin Yu, her cunning eyes sparkling, reflecting the shadow of "Zhu Ming."

"Also, you and that May May really are a perfect match. He's also a Second Tier pretending to be a First-Tier," Li Nian said, clicking her tongue in amazement. "He even hid his Unique Class from you! If it weren't for this fortuitous 'bet,' we wouldn't have known that you two were both hiding your strength!"

Lin Yu gave a silent smile. "His reasons are different from mine... He's just more 'special' than everyone imagined, and in this Death Game, being too special attracts a lot of unnecessary trouble."

Li Nian nodded slightly. "I understand—well, given his personality, that makes sense."

"But... you've been hiding something from me too, haven't you?"

Lin Yu changed the subject, his gaze fixed on Li Nian.

Caught off guard by Lin Yu's question, Li Nian's eyes darted around.

"Oh, how should I put it... It's not really hiding, I guess, just... well, I had good intentions, good intentions."

Lin Yu hadn't expected Li Nian to actually be keeping something from him, so he crossed his arms and looked at her with interest.

"Go on, tell me."

Li Nian let out a breath, then clasped her hands together.

"Sorry, Sister Zhu Ming. That day at the school, when I found out you had a younger sister, and since you're currently in a state of faked death... I couldn't help but investigate and look into your family situation."

Lin Yu raised an eyebrow. "Investigate and look into?"

"I'm sorry, I snuck into your house," Li Nian said, dropping her head onto the desk. "I didn't mean to, I just wanted to confirm that your little sister and mother were okay."

Having said that, Li Nian quietly lifted her head, a hint of hesitation in her voice. "And..."

"And?"

Lin Yu asked, surprised.

"And I did find something off. Some members of the Psychological Society were seen near your house—they didn't spot me, but I spotted them."

"At first, I thought it was because Sister Zhu Ming you had joined the Psychological Society, so they sent people to protect your family. But later, I asked around through Brother Wang and Yuqiang... it seems the Psychological Society doesn't have that kind of benefit."

"So I got worried they might be evaluating your mom or your little sister, so I... well, I kept a bit of a watch on them."

As she spoke, Li Nian stood up, pushed herself up with both hands, and hopped onto the desk, crawling over to sit in front of Lin Yu.

"I didn't expect to actually catch something—just last week, I found out that not only were Psychological Society members hanging around your neighborhood, keeping an eye on your mom and little sister, but also... an even bigger shot had moved into your complex."

"Demon Hunter Chris... from what I could see, he was also targeting your mom and little sister. He even rented a house right across from yours to make it easier to keep watch."

"So I went to the Hunters' Association to investigate... After combining multiple sources and my own observations of him, I discovered that he seems to have been commissioned and hired to protect your mom and little sister!"

As Li Nian spoke, Lin Yu froze.

He finally understood when Li Nian had stolen Chris's items—this little girl hadn't stolen them for someone in the organization; she'd just done it "as a casual favor."

And her real reason for getting close to Chris was that he was protecting Xia Yue's family?

Lin Yu fell into deep thought.

"The Psychological Society is keeping an eye on Xia Yue's family, and someone hired a famous Third Tier to protect Xia Yue's family..."

Although, given that his "Zhu Ming" identity had gained more prominence, this was probably an inevitable event to some extent...

And honestly, wasn't Li Nian also keeping watch?

Still, Lin Yu felt that there was something deeply suspicious about this whole situation!