Chapter 3 - People with Skills

"Liar..."

Qi Xia silently repeated the word a few times in his mind. After confirming his identity, he nonchalantly placed his card face down.

Just a minute ago, he had fantasized about the idea that "everyone could survive."

But now, things were different.

Although he didn't know any of the eight people sitting before him, there was no doubt in his mind—the ones who would die this time could only be them.

"If no one has any objections, please remember the rules. In this game, there is 'only one liar'..." The goat-headed figure pointed to the sensual girl seated to Qi Xia's left. "We'll begin with you and proceed clockwise."

"Huh? Me?" The girl was startled, then pouted her lips.

Qi Xia glanced to his left. Starting the storytelling clockwise from the girl seemed unfavorable to him—he would end up being the last to speak.

Under intense tension and pressure, people usually only remembered the first speaker and the last speaker.

However, raising an objection now would make him stand out too much, so he decided to wait and see.

The girl furrowed her brows, her large eyes darting around anxiously before she sighed and said, "Alright, I'll start. But I'm not good at storytelling, so don't blame me if it's bad..."

The others didn't say anything, simply sitting in silence as they listened.

The girl tucked a strand of hair behind her ear with her slender fingers and began, "My name is Tiantian, and I'm a... uh... 'technical worker.' We earn money using our skills, and I don't think there's anything shameful about that."

Only now did everyone notice that this girl, Tiantian, was dressed scantily in a dirty low-cut mini-dress that barely covered what needed to be covered.

But she didn't seem to care about her appearance at all.

"Most of my stories aren't appropriate to share here... Just call me 'action-oriented,' not 'descriptive.' Honestly, if I were more educated, do you think I'd be in this line of work?"

"Anyway, before I came here, I was working. But the client I met was really something... Our shop provides a proper service area, but he insisted on using his car, saying it would be more 'exciting.' So, for the money, I agreed to go with him..."

"It was my first time working in a car. Though it looked fancy on the outside, the inside was so cramped, and soon I was sweating all over. I really don't get what's so 'exciting' about it. On top of that, his phone kept ringing, and he refused to answer. It was driving me crazy..."

Tiantian seemed ready to continue complaining about the client, but her eyes accidentally drifted to the dead body on the table. She shivered and took a deep breath before continuing, "Sigh, whatever. I chose this profession, so I accept it. But I never expected an 'earthquake' to happen out of nowhere! At first, I thought our movements were too intense and causing the shaking, but it turned out to be a real earthquake."

At the mention of "earthquake," everyone's expressions subtly shifted, as if recalling something.

"Our car was parked in a small alley... Right above us was a huge billboard. I had my head sticking out of the car window and saw it clearly," Tiantian said, pointing above her head as her voice trembled. "That massive billboard broke with a 'clang' for no reason and fell directly onto the car. I lost consciousness immediately..."

She let out a long sigh and added, "When I woke up, I was here. I was scared to death..."

Tiantian made a pitiful expression, clearly a practiced look designed to tug at men's heartstrings.

The tattooed man sitting next to her paused for a moment before saying, "Do we need to continue listening to these stories?"

The man in the white coat looked confused. "What do you mean?"

"This 'lady' has already lied. We can just vote now," the tattooed man declared confidently.

"You...! What are you saying?!" Tiantian exclaimed, visibly startled. "How did I lie?"

The tattooed man gave her a cold look and said, "Your name. You said your name is 'Tiantian,' but everyone knows that companions like you use fake names. Names like 'Tiantian,' 'Xiaofang,' or 'Lili' are common aliases. So by hiding your real name, you've already lied."

Hearing this, Tiantian's face turned bright red.

"You... you're talking nonsense! My name really is Tiantian! I haven't used my real name in years!" she protested. Looking around nervously, she added, "At work, everyone only knows me as 'Tiantian.' If you called my real name, no one would recognize it!"

The group began to ponder this, while Qi Xia's expression grew serious.

From Tiantian's story, Qi Xia couldn't detect any sense of dishonesty. Her storytelling was steady and conversational, like chatting with friends.

Such a natural delivery suggested two possibilities: either she had rehearsed the story many times, or she was telling the truth.

But now, the tattooed man had introduced a new angle: lying about one's name.

Lying about a name didn't require logical consistency or coherence, making it hard to spot. After all, none of the participants knew each other, and names were only conveyed through personal claims.

Qi Xia recalled the goat-headed figure's words: "Among all the storytellers, one person is lying."

The rules didn't specify that the lie had to involve a false story—it could also involve a false name.

Tiantian, now accused, looked nervous and panicked. "If you still don't believe me, my real name is Zhang Lijuan... I'm from Shaanxi... You can call me by my real name, but I won't respond unless you call me 'Tiantian.' I... I..."

Hearing this, Qi Xia shook his head silently.

This woman wasn't as clever as she seemed.

This meant she couldn't have planned such a detailed lie in advance, nor could she have come up with the "name deception" strategy on the spot.

The goat-headed figure said there was "only one liar," and that liar could only be Qi Xia himself.

If no one else caught onto the significance of Tiantian's "name issue," Qi Xia had found a foolproof method to win.

To craft his own lie, Qi Xia decided to avoid attention-grabbing details. For instance, using the surname "Qi" wasn't ideal—it was uncommon enough to be memorable.

Instead, he decided to call himself "Li Ming."

As for the rest of his story, he would keep it straightforward. This way, no matter how sharp the others were, they wouldn't find any inconsistencies.

The game was about to end.

[--------------------------------------------]

Enjoyed the chapter?

If you want early access to new chapters and to support the continuation of this story, consider subscribing to my Patreon. Your support means a lot and helps me bring more great content to you! 

Join me on Patreon: Patreon.com/flokixy