Chapter 55 The Coffee Shop: Twists and Turns
You swallow the last drop of your drink and look at Xiaoming across from you, who seems a little anxious but is trying to hide his emotions.
Those terms bombarded your ears one by one, and your thoughts flowed like water, following Xiaoming's train of thought and introduction.
You agree with her point of view.
When a sword is held to your neck, you can't calmly wait for the other party's goodwill like a saint. Instead, you will grab the blade and cut back even if your hands are cut raw.
Of course, you still feel fear.
What if one day you can no longer grasp the boundaries of self-defense?
Will you become the one who takes the initiative to draw your sword?
So you say to Xiaoming, "If the instance has consciousness, then I welcome the arrival of the liquidator. I will follow my heart and I will keep winning based on that."
Xiaoming didn't say anything. You laughed and reached out to rub her face: "Don't look so sad. In the end, it's just that we have different personalities. I might still be a bit stubborn, but I don't want to be a sneaky person. My path will become clearer and clearer as I compete with these people."
"Alright, you're right, that's more like you." Xiaoming seemed to have thought of something, and her anxiety vanished. She relaxed her shoulders and rested her elbows on the table. "Then I need to tell our warrior lady how to fight."
You listened attentively, your hands tucked under one ear, looking incredibly obedient.
Xiao Ming was amused by you, gave you a light slap on the hand, and said, "The liquidator's ability is to change the rules."
"While the major dungeon rules can't be changed, it's quite common to modify the minor rules within certain scenarios. What they excel at is trapping you in what you think are familiar scenarios, exploiting your mental habits to trigger errors, and then you get caught." Xiaoming gestured with his hand as if to fire a gun.
“However, I’ve never actually encountered a Purifier. Of course, maybe I’ve only met some idiots, so I can’t guarantee anything. If you ask other people, they won’t tell you the truth—who would openly admit to having killed someone?” Xiao Ming shrugged. “But finding the Purifier and taking care of her is the only thing that’s certain.”
"The liquidators must be present in the scene to activate their skills."
"Then I take back what I just said," you said with a sigh.
"Why would you swallow back what you said? Don't do that, Berserker," Xiao Ming continued to tease you.
"Hey, hey, hey, how come saying just one more word gets me a promotion?" you protested. "Alright, do you want something else to eat?"
"Sure, I'll treat you?" Xiaoming asked deliberately.
"Of course I'll pay! Ms. Xiaoming has so kindly shared such important experience with me, so I definitely have to respect her and repay her!" you said with a chuckle.
"Then thank you." Xiaoming lowered his head shyly.
You get up and walk towards the counter.
Actually, you feel much better now, but thinking that Xiaoming will have to rush back to work soon, and that everyone will be leaving the instance in a few days, and you don't know if you'll be able to meet him again next time—this will be Xiaoming's last instance—you feel melancholy again.
Let's find some light and refreshing desserts, and after you've eaten, you can go for a walk and have some fun. Then, if Xiaoming has time, we can have dinner together.
That's the decision.
You bend down and peer into the dessert display case, gazing at the exquisite cakes and pastries displayed inside. Fresh berries adorn the beautifully decorated frosting, and the glass case reflects everyone's shadow.
Standing in front of the counter, you look around and see a wide variety of dessert options listed on the menu.
No way!
There's something wrong with these options.
"What's going on?" You stare at the menu, then look at the display in the dessert cabinet, and find that the desserts and the names on the menu don't quite match.
For example, the menu says "Foamed Raspberry Tart," but what's displayed in the counter is something that looks like jelly; the "Classic Tiramisu" is served on a thin white biscuit.
"What would you like to order?" the clerk behind the counter asks with a smile. She is wearing a uniform and her tone sounds gentle and friendly.
You glance at the dessert, regretting your earlier comment about "Welcome, liquidators," but calmly reply, "Hmm, let me take another look."
"Would you like to order something?" the waiter asked again, his voice gentle.
This store became popular because of its very gentle and meticulous service attitude. Its main point is to let customers spend as much time as they want choosing, and the staff will never rush them.
Only half a minute later, she asked again, "Haven't you decided yet?"
"This one will do." You said "this" several times, just to be on the safe side. You weren't sure if you'd tampered with the dessert's name, or if it was just safer to point with your finger.
The waitress nodded and turned to serve you your dessert. In that instant, you quickly scanned your surroundings. Everything seemed normal with the other customers in the café, and you couldn't find anyone who looked like a liquidator.
"Your dessert." The waitress's voice interrupted your thoughts. She smiled and handed you a pastry. "This is a sample of our new product."
You smiled naturally and said, "Thank you."
But after taking the tray, you don't rush to leave. Instead, you go to the area in the middle of the store where the finished desserts are displayed, pretending to pick and choose among them, and glancing around at the surroundings out of the corner of your eye.
Suddenly, a man rushed in from outside and awkwardly cut into the queue. You notice that as soon as he stood still, he was glared at fiercely by the two people behind him.
So you walked closer to the dessert counter, pretending to be attracted by a cheesecake in the display case, but your ears were perked up.
"Sir, please do not cut in line." The counter clerk's cold voice rang out, drawing the attention of those around.
The man, blushing furiously, tried to defend himself: "I just... went out to answer a phone call..."
"Sorry, we don't allow queue jumping." The waiter's expression was completely emotionless. "Please queue again."
The man glanced at the long queue, then at the waiter, and gritted his teeth as he retreated to the back of the line. He muttered something under his breath, so softly you could barely hear it, but a young girl standing next to him frowned and glared at him several times.
"The rules for queuing haven't changed," you thought. "They haven't even become more dangerous or stricter."
This dessert is really easy to choose. You pick up a box every now and then, flip it over to study the ingredient list. It seems like you're burying your head in the packaging, but actually your eyes are out there looking around.
After placing her order, another customer didn't leisurely walk to the seating area as before. Instead, she immediately went to the food pickup area and stood there, her eyes fixed on the back of the counter. She looked anxious, as if she didn't want to waste a single second.
You look over there, but your gaze is fixed on a few untouched drinks on the counter in the food service area. They are placed haphazardly, but there is a special sign on them: a small white note with the words "Void" printed in striking red.
"Invalid?" You frowned; this clearly didn't align with your previous understanding of the cafe's rules.
In your mind, after ordering, customers can pick up their food at their own pace, and drinks will not be discarded because of exceeding the time limit.
You stand up, pretend to stretch, and head towards the food area with your tray, near the drinks.
Out of the corner of my eye, I glanced at the cups marked "void." Each cup clearly bore its corresponding order number, exactly in the same order the waiter had called out.
A young man rushed through the queue, his face flushed, and panting as he said to the server, "Is my order still there? Sorry, I was just a moment ago..."
The waiter pointed expressionlessly to the "cancelled" drinks on the counter: "Sorry, your order has been cancelled."
"Invalid?" The young man looked shocked. "But I was only a little bit late!"
The waiter remained unmoved, his tone indifferent: "We cannot be responsible for orders that are late. If you would like, please reorder."
The young man gritted his teeth, looked at the drinks on the counter, and tried to argue: "Then why can't I buy these drinks again? I clearly paid for them!"
"There's no reason why." The waiter lowered his head to sort out the bill, clearly not intending to respond further.
You notice that other customers in line are also glancing this way, some frowning, others looking down and pretending not to see.
The young man's voice rose: "This is absurd! I'm going to file a complaint!"
The waiter didn't look up, but an elderly woman next to him spoke up: "Child, rules are rules. Don't make things difficult for the waiter, just order yourself and then queue up."
The young man was furious. Seeing that there was no way to change the situation, he had no choice but to turn around and go back to the end of the line, waiting angrily for his next drink.
Now it's your turn to be dumbfounded.
Is this all the revised rule is?
Since the person who came is the liquidator, these rule changes should be aimed at you or Xiaoming. But if you didn't change your mind at the last minute and want to stay here a little longer, what's the point of these insignificant changes? They have no punitive measures and don't affect you at all.
Are you overthinking it? Is it just that this small shop suddenly changed its rules on its own?
You were completely baffled, and you returned to your seat, looking back every few steps.
Xiao Ming wondered why you had been gone for so long. You returned to your seat and told Xiao Ming in detail everything you had seen in the food pick-up area.
Xiao Ming frowned and analyzed, "This does sound abnormal, but if they are liquidators, they wouldn't do something pointless. If the rule changes were really just to restrict food collection, that would be illogical. They didn't change the rules in the copy to 'regulate,' but to 'frame' them."
With a furrowed brow, you rapidly replay every detail in your mind.
"Yes, it's all a setup!" You suddenly sat up straight, realizing the key point. "These obvious rule changes are just a diversion. If they want to arrest me, they'll do it discreetly, even making people think they haven't broken any rules. This blatant change to the food pickup rules is just a smokescreen!"
Xiaoming nodded, clearly realizing something as well. She said softly, "Have you noticed that the only thing that hasn't had its rules clearly adjusted yet is the seating arrangement?"
"Yes!" You looked up, your gaze sweeping over the surrounding seats. You noticed that although there were a few empty tables, most customers remained in their seats, no one changing seats arbitrarily. Moreover, you and Xiaoming had been sitting there for a long time, longer than anyone else. The rules regarding seating are easily overlooked, but what if someone deliberately uses them?
"They must have tampered with the seats!" Your voice wasn't loud, but it carried a certainty.
Xiaoming didn't say much, but quickly looked down and searched the things on the table. She flipped over your food pick-up number cards, looked them over carefully, and then reached her hand to the edge of the table, groping for clues that might be hidden.
"Found it!" Her voice suddenly rose. She flipped the number plate over and pointed to a barely perceptible red number, saying, "Look, there's an extra number here! When did it appear?"
You look closely and see the number is "12," completely different from your current seat number "7." A chill runs down your spine; the number plate should only show the queue number for picking up food, and shouldn't be associated with a seat at all. This sudden change is clearly not normal.
"So, our current seats may have violated the changed rules. Should we change seats while there's still time?" Xiaoming said.
You didn't answer, but immediately stood up and quickly scanned every seat around you.
The surrounding customers are quietly sipping their coffee or chatting hushed tones. You still can't find the liquidator, and the coffee shop is far too peaceful these days.
It's so calm, it's like it's encouraging you to "hurry up and take action."
Unlike the original rules in the instance, whether it's your initial "protection theory" or as Xiaoming said, the rules of the instance are for the sake of the game's fun, sometimes giving hope, and then crushing you outsiders with despair. The rules are all things you have to rely on.
You need to pay attention to the correct interpretation. You can find some divergent points, but you must follow the rules in order to find a way out.
However, the liquidators' purpose is clear: they changed the rules to catch you, and have no intention of benefiting you, let alone letting you complete the rules comfortably.
Therefore, if you follow their rules, you might actually end up in their clutches.
You need to find the flaws in the rules they've set.
Suddenly, your gaze falls on a table in the corner. It's table number 8, and it looks unusually deserted.
Although the surrounding seats were occupied, this table stood alone with a drink on it, which had clearly been left behind.
A thought flashes through your mind: this is the loophole of the liquidator, a logical dead end that cannot be reasonably explained.
The liquidators, as the manipulators of the new rules, cannot completely bypass the original logical framework. They can only add rules on top of the framework, but cannot transcend the limitations of logic.
This table wasn't assigned to any customers, and the drink remained unclaimed. According to the revised rules, this drink should have been marked "void" long ago, freeing up the seat. Yet, it remained untouched at table number 8—a loophole in the rules, a blind spot the liquidators couldn't reach.
You realize that an opportunity has arisen.
You strode over to the table, pointed to the drink on it, and asked the counter clerk in a slightly raised voice, "Is this drink past its expiration date? If no one comes to pick it up, is it already wasted?"
The waitress paused, clearly not expecting anyone to notice the drink; she herself hadn't even noticed it. But out of professional habit, she nodded anyway: "Yes, ma'am."
You feign indifference and continue, "In that case, shouldn't we get rid of it? After all, the table should be reserved for new customers, right?"
The waiter nodded again: "That's indeed the case."
Hearing this, you breathed a sigh of relief, but your face remained impassive. You grabbed the drink, quickly walked to the counter, and placed it back in the beverage processing area. At the same time, you glanced at the other customers out of the corner of your eye. They didn't seem to notice your actions, except for Xiaoming, who understood your intention and had already quietly run to the side.
You say loudly, "Since this table is not properly occupied, can we sit down again?"
The waiter looked up at you, then at the table in the corner, and nodded: "Yes, ma'am, you may take a seat."
At this moment, you turn to look at Xiaoming and say softly, "Let's go, let's go somewhere else."
Xiao Ming had already thrown away the empty drink cup he had just finished drinking from, and carrying the snacks he had just gotten again, he headed straight for seat number 8.
The moment you sit down, your body trembles uncontrollably, not from the cold, but from an extreme tension.
Who knew that, by such a coincidence, you would run into the Pursuers while Xiaoming was still around?
Don't choose the wrong one, don't choose the wrong one...
You two only have 7 days left to leave here. If you are temporarily detained, who knows what will happen if you can't leave in time!
"Ah!" A short scream came from a corner that you had automatically ignored several times.
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Author's Note: Third update! I'm not feeling well... I'm going to faint...
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