Buzz—

Lynn jerked to his feet.

Because those two characters were written in a completely different hand from the characters he had seen before, as if a monstrous ghost had gouged them into the wall with bloodied fingers.

In other words,

that ghost had once lost control at some point because the role he was playing hesitated and wavered in his resolve, and had killed two students?!

Lynn frowned, staring hard at the blood-written characters on the blackboard.

He understood very clearly.

If the script for this trial really was based on something that had actually happened before,

then once that ghost sealed a contract, there was no turning back.

After the contract was signed,

you could not simply choose not to kill.

This had been that "ghost's" warning to him.

And Lynn could be 100% certain.

The bullied kid he was portraying must at some time have hesitated about revenge because of something.

"Was it the one who helped bandage him?"

Lynn hesitated, his eyes flickering.

There was no doubt some important connection between the two.

Because from this script, Lynn had gleaned a few principles: everything symbolized something.

The dead mouse represented the bully's mockery and intimidation.

The students' stares represented rejection and coldness.

A teacher without eyes or ears represented indifference.

The bloody blade represented harm done to him.

And the gauze… most likely represented the only comfort and care he received during that painful time.

Lynn tightened his brow.

Does that mean that among the students in this classroom, there was someone he cared about who never bullied or rejected him?

If that were the case,

could the key be on that person's person?

Because the key symbolizes "life" and also symbolizes "hope."

That person's care had once made him consider giving up revenge, but the "ghost" had intervened and stopped him!

Exactly!

Lynn snapped his head up and rapidly scanned the entire classroom.

That person might be the key to breaking this script!

No question!

Start by looking for the girls!!

(╯‵皿′)╯︵┻━┻

A gentle older sister who uses her warmth to give the protagonist love and protection!

Absolutely perfect!

And if that person really existed, then in the eyes of the role he played, she would be different from the other students' coldness and emptiness!

She would shine as if surrounded by golden light!

Lynn calmed himself and quickly searched the classroom, but he soon realized things might not be so simple.

Because every living student now—without exception—was hollow and lifeless.

Lynn even suspected something else.

The students still lingering in this classroom looked like walking corpses, possibly the victims of that incident.

What he was experiencing might only be an echo of that event.

And if the one who had shown care hadn't died…

Lynn slowly turned his head, eyes narrowing, and focused on an empty seat near the window in the second row.

An empty spot.

But just as Lynn rose and walked over to that window seat, the lights dimmed again.

Buzz—

The classroom plunged into darkness once more.

A deathlike silence.

So silent he could hear only his heartbeat.

The next moment,

vision returned.

Lynn whipped his head around, and even he felt his heart skip at what he saw.

Dead.

Two more dead!

Those two students had been cruelly nailed to their desks, and this time the entire classroom was even more disturbed.

The pristine white walls were smeared with one bloody handprint after another.

Cracks marred the blackboard and walls, blood steadily seeping out of each fissure.

And on the wall riddled with cracks, several huge, grotesque blood characters had been written.

DEAD!

Lynn grew grave.

It seemed that starting from the words he had seen on the gauze, the ghost had become increasingly unhinged, even openly disregarding the rules.

But he knew

he had been searching in the right direction!

He ignored everything else and calmly sat in front of the empty seat, opening the drawer.

Inside the drawer,

was an aged, bloodstained photograph.

"So it’s a girl after all."

Lynn narrowed his eyes.

The yellowed photo showed a sweet, pleasant girl in a school uniform with straight-cut bangs. She wasn't strikingly beautiful, but she clearly radiated gentleness and a loving nature.

The photo had been taken at some unknown time,

slightly yellowed,

and stained with blood.

Lynn examined the picture, finding no extra clues, then shifted his gaze to the drawer beneath the desk.

It was locked.

But rusted through.

And showed signs of being pried open.

Lynn stood up quickly, expression composed. He yanked a dagger from the hand of the second deceased student, then returned to the seat and easily forced the drawer open.

A yellowed notebook lay inside.

It, too, was smeared with fresh blood.

Lynn frowned and flipped it open, scanning fast.

February 12

I've heard from classmates and people in town that Wang Tao's mother seems to be a medium. She used to help townspeople talk to their dead relatives. I met her once—she was a good person... but later I found out she died, and killed by her husband...

February 15

The classmates have been avoiding him and whispering that he is the son of a murderer, that the blood in his veins is dirty, and that his mother's death was deserved for offending the dead. Even if he wasn't killed, he surely wouldn't live long... But I don't think classmates should treat him like that...

February 21

He found a dead mouse in his pencil case, stabbed by his own pencil, and everyone looked at him with disgust and rejection, thinking he's some kind of sadist. He acted panicked and surprised. I think someone might be deliberately teasing him...

February 26

I saw him outside school, his arms covered in blood. He was trembling and scratching at wounds on the back of his hands, like someone had carved two insulting words into his skin... Who would do that to him?! Monsters?! The people carving words into him are the monsters!! I'm so angry, I wanted to call the police, but he stopped me...

I... I could only take him to the hospital. I stayed and talked to him all afternoon. He's lonely and introverted, his head constantly lowered, he didn't dare meet my eyes. It seems he never spoke to girls before, but when I left he still said thank you—I know he's just a shy boy, there's nothing different about him and us.

March 15

Someone keeps bullying him! Are they insane? During PE I saw a few boys drag him into the restroom, and when he came out he was filthy... They're going too far! No matter what, I have to tell the teacher. I remember those boys!