Volume 3: High School Arc - Mirror Game
Then, I arrived at the storefront entrance.
I had already sent a text message while I was still in the car, so when I got out, I saw the two of them waiting for me by the roadside.
We had discussed it in the afternoon, so this time the two of them didn’t show off riding a motorcycle together in front of me, but instead directly brought a car.
They were still game players.
Money wasn’t much of a problem at their level anymore, of course, under the premise of not dying.
After all, no one would really trade survival for points.
It was a very ordinary car, probably a few years old, a Honda—just a regular family sedan.
I got in with Jiaoza and sat in the back seat.
The one driving wasn’t Jiang Yulong, nor was it Xu Han, but Shan Xuelin.
After a few polite words, the car started moving.
Time waits for no one.
No one knew what might happen at the rendezvous point.
The sooner we arrived, the sooner we could prepare.
When we reached the small shop, it was already 9:30.
Based on the distance, it would take at least another half hour to get there.
I wasn’t in a hurry.
There wasn’t much to see outside anyway, so I simply closed my eyes to rest.
Jiang Yulong and Xu Han didn’t seem in the mood for joking either; both had their eyes closed, resting.
Shan Xuelin probably understood what most people would do in such situations, so he didn’t question my behavior.
He just kept driving silently.
The car moved forward bit by bit, and the scenery around us gradually became desolate.
In the blink of an eye, more than half an hour had passed.
At this moment, the car was only a few minutes away from the rendezvous point.
This time, the players' meeting place was on the main road in front of the mirror factory.
Although we had been there before, at the time we didn’t get a good look at the road.
Most of our attention had been focused on the small path leading to the mirror factory.
Fortunately, when there were less than five minutes left until arrival, Shan Xuelin casually tossed me a digital camera.
"This round of the game might be dangerous if you get too close. It may not be so simple this time, so these photos were taken by someone I asked. Take a look. At least get familiar with the situation. Be careful once we get there."
By now, I was also considered a member of the Survivor Alliance, so when I accepted the camera, I didn’t feel much.
After all, since I had joined an organization, there would naturally be times I needed to contribute.
In exchange, these players also had their own benefits.
I took the camera and flipped through the photos one by one.
Unlike at night, most of the photos were taken during the day.
It was obvious that the person taking the pictures had professional skills.
Each photo captured key areas—like knee-deep ditches on both sides of the road, or the abandoned fields in the distance.
The photos even showed two escape routes, which were marked to some extent.
This made me admire the people in the Survivor Alliance.
They were really...
"The photos are well taken, but can we really use these escape routes?"
Being chased by a monster and still expecting to escape along a marked path?
What a joke.
"No, these two routes aren’t prepared for the monsters."
Shan Xuelin immediately understood what I meant, and in that moment, I also understood what he was saying.
These two escape routes were actually prepared for people.
Maybe I didn’t express it clearly enough.
But… I still understood.
These routes were for escaping in case we were threatened by other players.
"Thanks for the trouble."
Glancing at Shan Xuelin, this guy gave off a very gentle vibe, so I didn’t use any honorifics when speaking to him.
He didn’t mind, and he naturally accepted being addressed like that.
It was obvious that this person was genuinely kind and approachable.
Maybe it was because he had served in the military—he thought of everything.
At the very least, I hadn’t had time to consider what to do in case of conflict with other players.
These past few days, my mind has been completely filled with the four words: "I am the anomaly."
There was no room left for anything else.
I memorized the two escape routes in the photos.
One led to an abandoned house in the nearby farmland.
Inside the house, a box had been deliberately placed under a worn-out iron bed.
The box contained some self-defense weapons.
I didn’t know where they got them from, but they were all real.
The other route led directly to a small hill beside the mirror factory.
Behind the hill was a cliff about seven or eight meters high.
Below the cliff, a small speedboat was hidden in the reeds.
As long as you jumped down, you’d be able to find the boat.
I had to admit, there really was strength in numbers.
At least, before I became an adult, I wouldn’t have been able to prepare this thoroughly.
Soon, the car arrived at the rendezvous point.
At this moment… up ahead, someone was already waiting.
Two Mercedes S-classes were parked by the roadside, along with two motorcycles.
Most surprisingly, I even saw a bicycle… Seriously, all kinds of people show up, huh?
The car slowly came to a stop.
Sitting in front of me, Shan Xuelin frowned as he looked at the vehicles in the distance.
"Xu Han, Yulong, Yunyan, be careful. There really are people from Death Coffin here this time. It’s probably one of those five, or else there wouldn’t be such a grand show."
As Shan Xuelin spoke, he casually pulled the handbrake, but didn’t remove the key to turn off the engine.
Instead, he directly opened the door and got out.
When he got out, I noticed that Shan Xuelin always kept his front facing those people.
He seemed really alert, huh?
Jiang Yulong and Xu Han exchanged a glance.
From their eyes, I saw a hint of seriousness.
It looked like… Death Coffin really might be troublesome.
Did I choose my team too early?
Look at them—two S-class Mercedes.
Those two motorcycles didn’t look like theirs, though.
One of them was even a Suzuki 125, clearly a very old bike.
The other was obviously a brand-new muscle Harley.
Couldn’t tell whose side it was on.
I took a deep breath and turned to get out of the car.
Maybe hearing my deep breath, Xu Han even turned her head and gave me a smile.
"Yunyan, don’t be nervous. Our team isn’t weak. They won’t make a move easily."
Yeah, "won’t make a move easily" just means they definitely will make a move, right?
You really didn’t comfort me at all, huh?
I didn’t respond to Xu Han and just turned and got out of the car.
While we were in the car, the three of them had asked about Jiaoza.
I just explained that he was my pet, used as an alarm.
After I said that, I didn’t expect all three of them to look so surprised.