“I don’t remember you.” Kylar said.

“Really? That’s a shame.” Su Lingyan sighed. She genuinely felt like she had seen those eyes somewhere before.

Bai Luoyin covered her face. This girl really did whatever she wanted without the slightest regard for common sense.

Then Su Lingyan picked up her knife and fork, cut off a piece of steak, and put it into her mouth.

“Mm. The chef really is quite good.” she said.

Kairo, Echo, and SunnyBoy still hadn’t recovered from Su Lingyan trying to hit on Kylar when they saw her do something even more unexpected. She actually ate the steak?

“I’m glad someone is finally willing to try Wendy’s steak.” Keller nodded in satisfaction.

After seeing Su Lingyan eat the steak, Bai Luoyin also picked up her knife and fork, cut off a piece, and put it into her mouth. “Mm. It really is good.”

“Wait before you eat.” Echo said. What she meant was that they should wait a few minutes and make sure Su Lingyan was really fine before eating.

“Since she ate it, that means there’s nothing wrong with it.” Bai Luoyin trusted her friend.

“Actually, I can’t be sure that yours is safe.” Su Lingyan suddenly said.

Bai Luoyin stopped what she was doing and glanced sideways at Su Lingyan.

“But it should be fine.” Su Lingyan quickly added.

Kylar vaguely heard their conversation, but couldn’t make out what they were saying.

“Miss Heroin, didn’t you say you had acid reflux earlier?” Keller asked.

“It suddenly got better. I don’t know why, either.” Bai Luoyin said.

Keller nodded and continued eating his steak.

“……”

Kairo, SunnyBoy, and Echo had no idea whether they should eat or not. Seriously, this whole part was so bizarre! What was it even supposed to be for?

“I understand that what happened to this gentleman just now has made you somewhat nervous.” Kylar looked at SunnyBoy. “But please rest assured. There is nothing wrong with the manor, and there is nothing wrong with the steak.”

Hearing Kylar’s words, Kairo immediately realized that he had known all along that the players suspected something was wrong with the steak. He had deliberately forced them to choose between coming up with a reasonable excuse and eating the steak.

Was this some kind of sadistic sense of humor?

The steak really was fine, but whether there was anything wrong with the manor was another matter. Su Lingyan gently swirled the wine in her glass.

“I’m touched that Miss Zerion is willing to trust me.” Kylar looked at Zerion with a smile.

“Because the moment I saw you, I felt like there was something familiar about you.” Su Lingyan continued trying to flirt with him.

Bai Luoyin glanced at Su Lingyan. Did this NPC really happen to be exactly her type?

The corner of Kylar’s mouth twitched, then his smile widened. “It’s my pleasure, beautiful lady.”

Su Lingyan’s movements were quite elegant. She cut off another piece of steak, then turned her head. “I’m perfectly fine right now.”

The players all understood what she meant. She hadn’t been afflicted with any negative status effect.

“Also, aren’t you hungry?” she added.

“……Ah!” Kairo understood what Su Lingyan was implying.

Although the players’ minds were inside the game, their bodies were merely lying inside their game pods. Even though this was a full-dive holographic game, it didn’t simulate every sensation. Normally, players wouldn’t feel hungry while inside the game. So if they were feeling hungry now, that could only mean one thing.

It was a mechanic of the dungeon. The players needed to find food.

Of course, that wasn’t the direct reason Su Lingyan could conclude that the steak was safe. The real reason was……

She had already switched her plate with Kylar’s.

It was that simple.

SunnyBoy and Echo also understood what Su Lingyan was hinting at and began enjoying their steaks.

Kylar didn’t ask any further questions. However, there was something wrong with Su Lingyan.

“Mr. Rainer, actually, I’ve heard some unpleasant rumors about the manor. Apparently, some people went missing after being invited here by you? Oh, don’t get me wrong. It’s only a rumor, after all. I don’t mean anything by it. I was just curious.”

Kairo glanced across two seats at Bai Luoyin, who clearly knew Su Lingyan.

Kairo: Is she always this bold?

Bai Luoyin: Not at all. Honestly, I can’t even figure out what she’s going to do next.

Kylar thought for a moment, then suddenly looked as though he had figured something out. “I see. No wonder you were so wary earlier.”

“I don’t know why there are rumors like that, but everyone who has been invited here has returned home safely. Why don’t you look it up online?”

Look it up online? The players felt around in their pockets and pulled out their phones.

The phones had both an internet connection and a signal. That was quite unusual. Normally, shouldn’t a manor like this prevent them from contacting the outside world?

“Do you know Daniel Parker? He came to Ekil Manor not long ago.” Keller said.

In this dungeon, Daniel Parker seemed to be a somewhat famous singer, with more than a million followers on Instagram. There were news reports online about his visit to Aicher Manor, and he had even posted an update on Instagram yesterday.

Before Kairo could raise his doubts, Keller continued. “Ah, I know. That only proves that he left safely. It doesn’t prove that everyone else did. But how am I supposed to prove it? I didn’t even know there were rumors like that.”

“This manor is so large, and I’m the only one living here. I feel like it’s a waste, so I’m planning to open it to the public as a tourist attraction. That’s why I’ve been inviting people to stay here for a few days and give me their opinions. As for inviting Mr. Parker, that was mainly for publicity.”

Keller looked at Su Lingyan. “May I ask where you heard this rumor?”

The game system told us.

Sigh. They obviously couldn’t say that.

“I don’t quite remember. It was probably something I saw online. Perhaps someone was spreading false information. Mr. Reiner, do you have anyone who holds a grudge against you?” Su Lingyan asked.

She was turning the tables and trying to pry information out of the NPC instead.

“Hmm. I don’t think so.” Kylar shook his head.

“I see. But rumors don’t appear out of nowhere. Someone must be pulling the strings behind the scenes. You’d better be careful, Mr. Reiner.”