I Met My Online Boyfriend—He Was the Horror Instance Boss - Chapter 5

I was furious. Absolutely furious.

Who wanted to die together? Who?!

So that was why they served individual portions—to inflict personalized torment. What kind of evil instance was this?

[Kid, stop crying. Crying won’t help.]

[Why’s she crying? I don’t get it. Look at Gu Heng’s steak instead: charred outside, raw inside, bitter without even being crisp. Grilled perfectly awfully.]

[Go on, Gu Heng. Tear into that steak like a hyena.]

[Gu Heng: If you’re bringing out food, bring me the good stuff!]

“The chef’s coming,” Qin Zheng said urgently. “Stop crying.”

The rules said the chef would watch the guests enjoy their food.

I quickly sliced a piece from the edge of the cake and put it in my mouth.

The bitterness of the chocolate perfectly balanced the sweet-tart raspberry filling.

This was infuriating. Why did it have to taste so good?

The chef bent down and asked, “Is there something unsatisfactory about your dish?”

Perhaps it was my imagination, but he sounded nervous.

I wiped my tears and shook my head. “No.”

The chef sighed in relief and turned to leave.

Buzz Cut called after him from across the table. “She’s crying. That still counts as enjoying the food?”

The chef looked at him. “It tasted so good that it moved her to tears. What’s the problem?”

Buzz Cut fell silent.

The third course soon arrived.

“Chargrilled beef short ribs with seasonal vegetables.”

I was lowering my head to check when Gu Heng shouted,

“Wait—what the hell is this?!”

We all turned toward him.

The server beside him repeated with a polite smile,

“Beef-shit soup. Please enjoy it promptly.”

“This isn’t my dish.” Gu Heng remembered Rule Seven. “Take it away.”

The chef walked over, inspected the dish, and said, “No. This is your dish.

“You have already made one mistake. You have two chances remaining, and I don’t believe you wish to learn the consequences.”

When he finished, the chef didn’t leave. He stood beside Gu Heng and watched with leisurely interest.

How was Gu Heng supposed to fake eating with him that close?

Suppressing his nausea, Gu Heng slurped down a mouthful.

“Is it good?” the chef asked.

His face green, Gu Heng nodded.

The chef looked at him expectantly. “Say it.”

Gu Heng swallowed in silence. “…It’s good.”

I was thankful Qin Zheng and I were seated far away.

[It’s worse than I imagined.]

[Is that shit? Sorry, typo. What is that?]

[Gu Heng has discovered that closing his eyes while eating feels wonderful.]

[Must be a carb coma.]

[Chef: It is beef shit. Please enjoy it with confidence. Uncle would never make a joke of your health.]

[A big shit meal. Drop any one word and it still works—I’m not kidding.]

Qin Zheng paid no attention to the farce. She lowered her voice. “We don’t have enough time.”

The candles had already burned down by a quarter.

“At this rate, they won’t last until midnight.”

A chill went down my back.

As I thought, the corner of my eye caught Buzz Cut reaching for the cutlery beside him.

The candle flame wavered, revealing a golden fork.

“Don’t touch it!” I blurted.

Buzz Cut paused and looked down. Only then did he realize the cutlery at his place wasn’t silver.

Gu Heng reacted quickly. “I found the Duke’s missing golden cutlery!”

The chef came over. He picked up the fork, examined it, and nodded in satisfaction. “This is indeed the Duke’s missing cutlery.”

He looked at Gu Heng. “Then who stole it?”

Gu Heng froze. How could he possibly know who the thief was?

Afraid that failing to answer might violate a rule, he grew tense.

When Gu Heng gave him no answer, the chef did not lose his temper. Instead, he turned toward Buzz Cut.

“In that case, it would seem you are the thief.”

Two servers stepped forward. Each seized one of Buzz Cut’s arms and hauled him from his chair.

The chef took Buzz Cut’s candle and held it out to Gu Heng.

Gu Heng stared for a moment before delight spread across his face.

[Holy shit, isn’t that blatant framing? They’re openly forcing the players to turn on each other!]

[Did none of you see it? Ha, I did. It was the server holding him—the one on the left.]

The left? But whose left?

The live feed’s, or Buzz Cut’s?

The chef was already about to blow out Buzz Cut’s candle. I had no time to hesitate.

“It wasn’t him.”

I stood and pointed to the server on Buzz Cut’s left. “He’s the real thief.”

[Ha! Wrong one. It was the other guy!]

[She was probably just trying to save him. Classic newcomer naïveté.]

My heart sank. Had I gambled wrong after all?

Yet the person I’d accused only went blank for a brief instant.

Then, like Yuan Hua, he dropped to his knees screaming, “No!”

Everyone stared. Even the live comments were confused.

[How is that possible? Did… I see it wrong?]

[What kind of eyes does this newcomer have? She could see that?]

[Pull the USB. This isn’t fun anymore.]

[Damn, this frame looks sick!]