Chapter 19: Knocking Outside the Cabin

Jon frowned, this foul smell wasn't here yesterday.

Moreover, the low temperature in the cellar should prevent the stored food from spoiling. So why was there a rotten smell now?

Could it be... the foul smell was always there?

It's just that now, with his psychic energy levels normalized and the cognitive pollution gone, he could smell what was originally present.

Jon entered the cellar, the puppy obediently following behind him.

He couldn't immediately locate the source of the stench.

Since the cellar was small and the air couldn't circulate, any smell would permeate the entire space, making it hard to pinpoint its origin.

After grabbing some smoked meat and pickles, Jon sniffed them but found they didn't match the stench.

He then noticed a bag of "expired dog food" in the corner.

Jon recalled, "Hanson mentioned that Player No. 3 broke the rules and fed the puppy this expired dog food…"

The puppy turning into a Werwolf might also be related to eating this dog food.

He pondered for a moment and then looked back at the puppy: "But if it's dangerous, why didn't Grandma throw it away?"

The logic here could be explained—

Generally, people don't keep dangerous items at home, like guns or poison.

But if they do, it must mean there's a use for them.

Jon considered this for a moment and decided to put the dog food in a place where it wouldn't be easily accessible. Just as he stepped forward, he froze.

That bag didn't contain dog food at all…

It was filled with foul-smelling chunks of meat!

It looked like some animal's body had been fed into a wood chipper and ground into tiny pieces.

Jon remembered that yesterday, under the influence of cognitive pollution, the bag appeared to be filled with bone-shaped dog food.

The meat chunks were so finely ground that it was hard to tell what kind of animal they came from.

It could even be human…

Jon turned to look at the puppy behind him. It gazed longingly at the meat in Jon's hand.

Jon frowned and placed the dog food on a nearby shelf.

He was now almost certain.

Player No. 3's puppy turned into a Werwolf not only because it absorbed a lot of psychic energy but also because it ate this dog food.

But why would Grandma leave this meat for the players?

Jon narrowed his eyes, he could think of only one reason—at certain critical moments, turning the puppy into a Werwolf might be necessary to deal with other threats!

Jon placed the dog food on the shelf, making it hard for the puppy to reach.

He then took the ingredients for today's breakfast and left the cellar, returning a few times to bring up firewood for warmth.

Jon closed the cellar door. In such cold weather, there was no need to store food in the cellar, it wouldn't spoil.

But he noticed that the pull ring on the cellar door, though oxidized and blackened—

The heavy feel of it suggested it was made of silver.

As everyone knows, silverware can be used to ward off evil, many monsters fear silver, and it can even kill them.

Grandma's cabin is very simple, so using such an expensive silver pull ring here must be to prevent creatures other than players from opening the cellar door.

Thinking of this, Jon got up and went to the entrance hall.

The handle of the cabin door was also made of silver, likely serving the same purpose as the cellar door.

Jon muttered to himself, "So, are these silver items meant to guard against the puppy that can turn into a Werwolf, or to guard against 'It'?"

If they are meant to guard against 'It'—then it proves one thing: 'It' also has a physical form.

Jon stood up and returned to the living room. The reason he chose to take a small amount of food from the cellar at a time was to prevent 'It' from tampering with the ingredients.

Who knows what other unexpected tricks that eerie entity might have.

Grandma must have had her reasons for storing the ingredients in the cellar.

All the details in the house are actually more precise and detailed survival tips than the rules left in the notes.

...

Soon, Jon made the dog food.

He placed the freshly made dog food on the ground. The puppy ran up to sniff it but showed a lack of appetite again.

Jon sighed softly, "Being picky again, huh..."

He turned to look at the pickles and the garlic inside them.

Eating garlic can make dogs feel unwell, and Werwolves fear garlic even more, so it's no wonder the puppy is being picky.

Jon suddenly remembered and went to the dining table in the living room.

The liquid the puppy vomited last night had dried, leaving only a faint stain.

Jon recalled in his mind that ingesting even a small amount of garlic can cause poisoning symptoms in dogs, including weakness, vomiting, and lethargy.

But this was the dog food list left by Grandma.

There didn't seem to be any logical flaws in it.

Jon began to speculate on Grandma's intentions—

Perhaps she wanted the puppy to remain in a state of low psychic energy and weakness.

This would prevent the puppy from accumulating enough psychic energy to turn back into a Werwolf.

This possibility exists, but it inevitably means the puppy would be in a state of low psychic energy, susceptible to being controlled by 'It'.

So, at this time, players need to transfer some psychic energy to the puppy through appropriate petting.

Jon instantly understood Grandma's intention: "So that's how it is..."

The dog food is meant to temporarily restore some psychic energy and maintain basic vital signs while keeping the puppy in a poisoned, weakened state.

Thus, even if the puppy absorbs an excess of the player's psychic energy, it wouldn't turn into a Werwolf.

The dog food is a safeguard Grandma left for the players.

It also allows the puppy to retain some psychic energy, making it less likely to be easily controlled by 'It'.

But if the puppy vomits and expels some toxins, it will again be in a state of low psychic energy. To avoid being controlled by 'It', the player needs to moderately replenish its psychic energy.

The conclusion is obvious—

Players need to keep the puppy in a state of low psychic energy that won't be controlled by 'It'.

And those "dog foods" can quickly turn the puppy into a high-psychic-energy Werwolf to deal with other monsters.

This way, everything makes sense.

Jon nodded. "Hmm, it's like winding up a toy car, you can't let it run too fast, but you can't let it stop either."

He knew that everything he did was being livestreamed.

Hanson and the others could see the movements of players from other classes, so naturally, students from other classes could see him too.

Some of Jon's vocal analyses were intentionally said for Hanson and the others to hear.

However, he didn't mention keywords like psychic energy.

These hidden elements in the background settings are the keys to passing, much like solving a math equation. Once you find the value of 'x', all subsequent answers become clear.

Jon understood that in this so-called "entrance exam." half of the school's classes would be eliminated and erased. The Black Goat was definitely not joking.

The abilities displayed by the Black Goat were beyond human comprehension.

Just the act of summoning everyone into the classroom without them noticing was already a miracle.

So, he must be a powerful demon or an Evil god.

Now, the lives of everyone in the school were in his hands, making his commands the rules that must be followed.

When Jon chose to participate in the eerie game, he had already resolved that—until he had the ability to protect himself, he would not help any potential competitors unless there was a benefit in exchange.

...

Jon took out a can of tomato from the cellar and added it to the puppy's food.

Sure enough, the puppy no longer resisted and began eating, wagging its tail.

Jon was puzzled. "What is in this can? This little guy loves it so much?"

He already knew that the puppy was actually a Werwolf... So what do Werwolves like to eat?

He sniffed the can and was hit with a strong scent of blood, it was clearly meat mixed with blood.

He couldn't help but smile wryly. "It's like the cabin has become even weirder now that the cognitive pollution has lessened..."

Jon suddenly thought of a good way to test for cognitive pollution.

After searching Grandma's room, Jon found a cloth bag with a drawstring.

He returned to the basement and took some of the meaty dog food, placing it in the small cloth bag.

To determine whether he was under cognitive pollution, he could simply open the bag on him to see if it contained dog food or chunks of meat.

"Thump, thump, thump, thump, thump!"

Just then, an abrupt knocking came from the entrance hall.