Playing the Mute Transfer Student - Chapter 2

I pushed open the villa door.

The moment I saw the man sitting in the living room, I stopped.

If I remembered correctly, the man on the sofa was the avatar’s older brother, Chen Tianyi.

He was casually polishing an obviously expensive pocket watch. Beside him sat an NPC company president, smiling obsequiously.

“Mr. Chen, about our project…”

Without a word, I withdrew my gaze and tried to slip up the staircase on the other side.

According to the character background in the synopsis, the avatar and Chen Tianyi weren’t related by blood.

Seven autumns ago, Chen Tianyi’s family had prepared to emigrate. For some reason, however, he had stubbornly refused to leave. In the end, his parents had come begging the avatar’s family to let him stay with them for a while.

That “while” had stretched into seven years.

Worse, Chen Tianyi was the sort of perfect child every parent compared their own to—brilliant grades, modest manners, impeccable courtesy.

My family had long since come to treat him as one of their own, and I had regarded him as the best brother anyone could ask for.

…

Before the avatar transferred schools, he and Chen Tianyi had gotten into a vicious argument. Things between the brothers were strained, so I had no intention of drawing attention to myself.

But the instant my foot touched the stairs, an unhurried voice came from behind me.

“Xiaoshui, have you forgotten to greet your elders?”

I had no choice but to stop and slowly turn around.

The portly company president scrambled to his feet and gave me a fawning smile.

“So this is the young master. I’ve heard so much about you.”

He desperately searched for compliments, as though I were the key to bringing his company back from the dead. “What a distinguished-looking young man…”

I couldn’t blame him for trying.

Chen Tianyi was infamous for how obsessively he doted on his little brother. Supposedly, he felt so sorry for the boy who had suddenly developed aphasia that even when his brother smashed an entire wall of pocket watches worth hundreds of millions in a fit of temper, Chen Tianyi applauded—and then gave his secretary another hundred million to find watches that would feel even better to smash.

He was a complete lunatic.

With Chen Tianyi indulging the avatar to that extent, no one in the Chen household dared slight him, especially after the avatar’s parents had both died three years ago.

Apart from the avatar’s grandfather, who remained secluded in the old family residence and still retained a measure of authority, almost all power in the Chen family now rested in Chen Tianyi’s hands.

While my thoughts wandered, Chen Tianyi’s gaze darkened on my face. His lips slowly curved, but his voice betrayed nothing.

“Xiaoshui, what filthy thing did you sneak a taste of outside today?”

The reminder of what had happened, combined with the confidence granted by my role, made me turn and walk away without looking back.

Chen Tianyi didn’t seem offended by the snub. The company president beside him, on the other hand, was too frightened even to breathe.

The door slammed shut behind me.

Chen Tianyi’s smile vanished. He blew gently across the face of his pocket watch.

“It seems my little brother doesn’t like you very much…”

“Butler. Show our guest out.”

The president dropped to his knees with a thud. He kowtowed frantically, begging for mercy.

“Mr. Chen, I have elderly parents and young children to support—”

Before he could finish, the unmoved Chen Tianyi lifted one hand.

The next second, burly servants dragged the president away by force. His screams rang out beyond the door.

Then came the servants’ mechanical murmurs.

“He defied Heaven… Now he reaps what he sowed…”

I stood with my back pressed to my bedroom door, cold sweat inexplicably soaking my spine.

Far-Reaching Hearing was a reward I had drawn in the previous scenario. It could be used any number of times, but once activated, it had a three-day cooldown.

I had used it without hesitation because something about the president’s expression had struck me as wrong. There had been a subtle terror in his eyes. He kept wiping away sweat and glancing instinctively toward an object in the corner of the living room, something like a shrine concealed beneath black cloth.

My instincts had warned me that something was off.

I hadn’t expected to hear an actual clue.

Once I had forced my erratic heartbeat to settle, I looked around the room. I decided to search the avatar’s belongings first.

Luckily, it didn’t take long to find his diary.

Most of the pages had been torn out completely. The few that remained began on the day the avatar transferred schools.

【Didn’t Brother say transferring would be enough?】

【I’m so scared… Why did it follow me here? I saw it at school again…】

【There seem to be even more urban legends this time.】

【1. Students are forbidden from studying seriously at school. Laughing, fooling around, sleeping, skipping class, and similar behavior are permitted.】

【2. After a compulsory course ends, you must bully a classmate or be bullied by one. Violators will be locked in the Punishment Room. Inside the Punishment Room is (blacked out)】

【3. There are no students at this school who wear red tracksuits. Do not approach! Do not let them see you! Leave the area immediately! If they see you, (blacked out)】

I stared at the inked-out passages and frowned in irritation.

Why had all the important information been erased?

The useful clues in this scenario were painfully scarce. It was far more difficult than the last one.

【Players must identify the killer responsible for creating the urban legends.】

Easier said than done.

As I frowned over the rules, a shadow appeared soundlessly behind me. Its eyes drifted slowly across the open diary.

After finding nothing amiss, a weightless voice floated down from above. The cold, eerie timbre sounded like a vengeful ghost crawling out of reeking mud.

“Xiaoshui, open your mouth…”

“Let your brother see what filthy thing you’ve eaten.”