Chapter 8-2

All of them went to sit at the tables, with Ryder and the others sitting at the same table they sat back in the first round. Sitting down quietly as they waited for the Brewmaster to walk over to the middle; grabbing a bottle of gin then placing it on the bar. He turned around to face them, placing his hands behind him. "After a few… obstacles during the aftermath of the first round, we are now ready to begin the second; the rules are the same, with the slight change of the drink." He pulls out a lime from behind, showing all of them as he lifted it for them to see, "Which I believe, won't change the way the game is played." He pulls the lime back from above, placing it on the bar before turning back again, "Now, we must not waste time any longer; Let us begin!" the Brewmaster shouted as he takes a hand out of his back, revealing a piece of paper. They saw firmly, waiting for the Brewmaster's voice to tell them the event; Ryder dusted off his jacket, inching his body closer to the table; a few contestants did the same. The Brewmaster finally lets does his hand to read the piece of paper. "Have all of you… made life without a thought… then when it came to your reality; you destroy with a flick of tool?" For the first few minutes, there were no contestants that grabbed the glass; making the room completely quiet, where Ryder could even hear the other contestants. Ryder however, didn't understand the question; thinking it was the same question as before, where the question means of a pet that you let into your life, then just flick it away. But as he looked at the other contestants on the other tables, they too were confused; except of course, when he laid his eyes upon Larah; her eyes almost tearing up as she stared the glass of gin. And when she extended her hand to grab the glass, Ryder's mind jumped into dismay; he thought that Larah misunderstood the question, and he was afraid she will choke on the gin because of it. He tried to stand up from his table to stop Larah, but the Brewmaster came into his mind; not wanting to imagine what would happen if he intervenes. So, with his bated breath, he gazes at Larah as she inches the glass of gin to her lips, taking a large sip until the glass turned empty; even Drew stared in dismay, while Channe holds her hand tightly. And in their surprise — and relief — nothing happened except for the Brewmaster's words, "You are now safe for the rest of the round, please proceed to the side of the room." He walked over to Larah's table with a bottle of gin, refilling the empty glass cup while Larah walked away from the table. After Larah was safe and away from her table, the Brewmaster went back to the middle; putting his hands behind his back before pulling a hand again to reveal a piece of paper. He begins to read the piece, "Have all of you… made someone hate you forever?" And unlike the first question, there were one contestant of each table that decided drink, and became safe; and as far as Ryder could see, there were also who wanted to drink, but were too late to grab the glass. His eyes followed the new safe contestants to the side where Larah stood, but something else caught his eye. He looked beside Larah and in his surprise, saw Channe standing beside her, "Did… Channe drink?" he thought as he turns his head back to his table. After the Brewmaster refilled all the glasses with gin, he went back and did the same things. During the next minutes and the next letters of the round, a lot of contestants drank and were deemed safe, but Ryder and Drew still haven't heard an event for them; and so, they watched as the safe contestants walked away from the table. After the fifth question, there were only a few contestants left sitting at the tables — Ryder and Drew included. The Brewmaster refilled the glass and went to reveal another piece of paper, reading it aloud. "Have all of you… took something for granted… that it made the worst of you?" And after that, another batch of contestants drank; making Ryder uneasy, for there only three of them left at his table. He looked at the other tables to see who gets up, and at his relief — or surprise — Drew was one of them, hesitantly taking a sip on the drink until it emptied. After Drew gets up from the table, Ryder lets out a sigh of relief, "Phew… At least Drew's sa—" "BANG!" A noise of something hitting the floor alerted their eyes and ears, frantically trying to see where it came from. Ryder looked at another table, and there it was: another contestant was squirming on the maroon mat, gripping his neck and shirt like the girl before. Ryder looked as the Brewmaster walked over to the suffering contestant, and he thought that he was just going to refill the glass and ignore the contestant like before. But he didn't — instead, he did the opposite. The Brewmaster gazed down at the contestant, exchanging looks with him; and he tried his best to speak, "But… It… Did… Happened…" Then the contestant — like the girl before — had his eyes filled with his own blood, and his heart stopped beating. But despite the obvious, The Brewmaster continued to speak — to both the corpse of the contestant, and the others. "Yes… But only in your mind — your imagination turned into your own so-called reality; Is still a lie nonetheless," he said as he turns back around to the middle, without doing anything more. While Ryder eyes looked and listened to the incident, there was something noticed. The Brewmaster didn't refill the glass of the dead contestant's table, even though there were still two that remained; but there was still gin, half of it in fact that was in the glass. Ryder went deep into his mind, trying to figure out why he didn't fill it, "… What if…" But he was interrupted by the voice of the Brewmaster, announcing another letter. The round continued until the brink of its end, and luckily, Ryder had the opportunity to drink; with the question if they have gone back to something after so many times of quitting. He walked over to Drew and Larah, except for Channe who was playing with his plushie to clear his mind. He moved his head close to Drew and Larah, trying to speak loud enough for their ears to hear, and not the Brewmasters. "I think I have somet—" He stopped his mouth after seeing Drew's face, which was bright red, "Wha-are you drunk?" raised Ryder's eyebrow. Drew looked at him before burping and gave a quick chuckle, "I-I don't know what you're talking about hehe." He tilted his head after he burped. Ryder gave him a glare before he turned his head to Larah, "He's not in his right mind. I found some—" He looked at Larah and saw her face red like Drew's. but she held her tongue and mind unlike him. "Found what?" she asked, even though Ryder was giving her the same look he gave Drew, but he decided to tell her. "The Brewmaster didn't fill the glass of gin the dead guy drank," said Ryder quietly. "…" Larah raised her eyebrow, trying to think of what he could mean; but she gave up and asked him instead, "And… what does that mean?" "It means… perhaps more than one person can take a sip of the glass, and maybe become safe with the one he drank it with," he explained. "You said maybe… so you're not entirely sure," said Larah, looking down then back to the Brewmaster. "Yeah… we should probably do it as a last resort; if we can convince the one with us to split the drink that is." Half an hour passes, the second round was now at its end; but no one smiled. For the Brewmaster would exact the punishment to the ones that were left. Knowing what happens, most of the safe contestants shunned their eyes from the one's left behind — with Larah turning Channe's eye away along with them. Drew wanted to resist and look, but his stomach would disagree and force him to follow suit. But Ryder forced his eyes to look, even after knowing the fear of it recurring in his dreams. He saw with his eyes, the contestants shaking; looking down on their knees as they almost made their hands bleed from praying. And as always, the Brewmaster seemed to not give a single inkling of pity and care as he walked over to the tables; cleaning the glasses before taking them back to the bar. With every step that echoes through the contestants' ear, they shivered at the fear of the Brewmaster walking closely to them. After he took the glasses, the Brewmaster walked back to the middle; letting out the very words they all feared of him to say — even the ones who were safe. "…Now… Place your hands on the table," slowly said the Brewmaster, waiting for them to follow. An obvious hesitance waved through the contestants, but in the end, they had no choice. Three of the contestants reluctantly placed both of their hands on the table, shaking excessively — so much that it made the tables shake as well. But the punishment didn't start — not yet — there were still one last contestant who didn't follow. They waited for him to place his hands and end the second round; but more minutes passed, and it was obvious. "I-I-I do—" The contestant shook frantically, but still made his word, "I-I d-don't w-want to," he said shaking, making a confusion if it was bravery, or fear that made him so bold. After hearing his words, Ryder and some of the contestants that heard silently praised him; but there were some who called him stubborn and stupid. And not long after, the Brewmaster would give his reply. He turned his head towards the stubborn contestant; and even though Ryder couldn't see behind his mask, he knew that he was glaring. The Brewmaster walked over to his table, standing beside him as he looked down on him; the contestant jerked back slightly, trying to be far from him as possible, but it was all he could do. After an eerie paused, the Brewmaster slowly lowered his upper body to make his head in line with the contestant's. The contestant jerked back more, trying to hold his breath and not move a muscle. The Brewmaster stared with his mask, his expression not seen; but he felt his breath crashing down his cheek. "Place… your hands… on the table," said the Brewmaster somewhat nicely, but he knew he demanded. But the contestant continued to resist, shakingly shaking his head. "I-I-I don't want to!" yelled the contestant, but the Brewmaster didn't show a flinch, instead he gave a short pause of silence. After receiving the contestant's answer, the Brewmaster retracted his body, making it stand firmly. He walked away from the table, averted him away from the contestant's sight. In his mind, he thought it worked — he was saved. He slowly began to stop shaking, even moving his hands apart from each other. He sighed in relief and almost chuckled; he looked at the safe contestants and smiled, but… he looked at Ryder and saw his face. Something was wrong. His face showed his mouth gaped and his eyes widen; he thought he was looking back at him — thinking that he was surprised that he survived. But that was not the case — it was far from it — Ryder wasn't looking at the happy contestant, his eyes were gazing at something beside him — something behind. The contestant noticed the direction, and tried to look behind; but was stopped. A hand grabbed his head firmly, making it look to the front; a sharp object pressed against his skin — against his neck. His eyes quickly darted up, trying to see who it was — and in his despair, it was the Brewmaster. He felt the sharpness going from the side of his neck to the other, and a second later, he was already falling down to the floor; his neck opened. Blood sipping into the fur of the mat, while the Brewmaster held the bloody knife above his lifeless body. He killed the contestant, slitting his throat; he wasn't even given the chance to scream or to beg for a change. The Brewmaster walked back to the bar with the knife, cleaning it with a clean towel before using it again to cut limes. Ryder gave him a piercing look, clenching his fists; but not just because of anger towards the Brewmaster, but because he didn't do anything to save him; he only looked as he drove the knife across his neck. Ryder stayed his hands and turned around, not wanting to see the contestant's dead eyes looking at him. Even though tipsy, Drew noticed Ryder's expression going to a frown — something different than normal. "Hey…" he gulped before continuing to speak, "D-did something h-happened, buddy," Drew said, trying to sound sober. Ryder looked at him before he replied, "You… you don't want to know — just don't turn around." "Come on!" exclaimed Drew, "It can't be that ba—" he began to turned around, but was stopped by Ryder suddenly grabbing his shoulders, preventing him to turn. "Just… don't Drew, there is nothing good there to see…" said Ryder, his eyes drifting towards the ground, "Let's wait until he finishes cleaning it up, yeah?" And just like he was sober, Drew examined Ryder's face; knowing that he really doesn't want him to look. He wanted to protest and turn anyway, but there was little he could do; and vomiting after was beyond useless. And so, he replied softly, trying his best to smile and keep eye contact, "Okay… I'm to dizzy to see anyways," he joked, going back to face the opposite end with the rest. After a cutting the limes, the Brewmaster finally set down the knife and went back to the middle; seeing all the other ones who were left behind shivering after what they saw. He looked at each individually, giving them what Ryder thought was a glare. "… I really do hate it when the ones who lose, try to resist what they deserve; now look at what it brought, fur is now tainted," said the Brewmaster, turning his head towards the other losers, "Now… place your hands on the table; for I do not want another stain on the floor." Without much of a choice, the three that were left placed their hands on their table, with one of them praying a little loudly. When he heard the sound of something hitting the table, Ryder knew that it was time; it was about to end. And as expected, screams were heard throughout the room; many contestants covered their ears to not ear the contestants burning as they begged for everything to stop. The screams continued until it was replaced the sound of fire going down, and the touch of ash on their hair. Ryder was the first one to look back, seeing the burned corpses; and there the Brewmaster stood, in the middle without a care as he faced towards them. Drew turned around and tried to look at the corpses, but the alcohol had taken more of him than before, making the corpses wiggle in his eyes. Larah and Channe turned around soon after, with Larah only getting a red face because of the gin, and Channe being somehow unaffected. When they were finished giving their pity to the dead, they stood firmly to listen as the Brewmaster raised his voice, "The second round has ended, and you are all lucky to have survived… But your luck will be put to the test in the third." The Brewmasters takes a step forward, closing towards the large table in the middle, "There will be slight changes — not just for the drink — but where you'll be seated; which will be the middle table where all of you will be joined." He began to walked in front of the contestants, stopping at Ryder, "… And there can only be one who dies; or more, if any of you decides to rid what's left of your intellect and lie, but I'm sure the examples I shown made clear sense…" While walking back to the middle, he continued to speak, "We will start at once, after I fill the glass of the table with your usual drink; but I must warn you all, do be sober when you think; or else your mind will betray you." He pointed his hand at the table, signaling them to now take their seats. The contestants began to walk towards the table, staying silent as they does so; there were also a few of them that were slapping their own faces, which Ryder thought was trying to snap the dizziness; but he knew better not to follow. Before Larah, Channe, and Drew walked away — with Drew struggling to see where his feet landed, "Listen you two, we need to stay focus." His eyes turned to Drew, "Drew, you need to make sure that if you drink, you drink with the right question," he said firmly. "Ooooh, don't worry Ryder!" said Drew with his voice tipsy, "I will be fineeee, my head is as clear as the ocean seaaaaa!" His head bopping up and down, his body moving excessively as he talked. Ryder could only give him a worried glance, patting his shoulder and prayed for his head to be really be clear. And then he turned his eyes to Larah, "… Remember what I told you, if it happens…" "I know," said Larah instantly, "I hope that none of us get to choose it, especially Channe…" Her eyes landing on Channe as he gripped her hand. "What are you guys talking about?" asked Channe, his eyes widen and his eyebrows lifted. With Channe not knowing the meaning, Ryder went down on his knees to face Channe, placing his hand on his tiny shoulder, "Larah will explain it to you Channe, and you'll know why — why we are hoping tha none of us will face it." "…Okay Mr. Ryder," said Channe softly, "I trust you." After a nod, Ryder stood back up; facing Drew and Larah, "…Good luck to the three of you, we really need it." "Good luck to you too..." said Larah as she and Channe walked over to choose their seats. "Don't worryyyy Ryder, we will get through thisssss!" exclaimed Drew somehow reassuringly, but changed when Ryder saw him walking clumsily towards the middle table, pulling out a chair and instantly made his butt fall. He looked at all of them, including the other contestants; trying to hope that nothing goes wrong. But he himself questioned that thought. He took a step forward, following the last contestants walking to the table; he sat on the very middle chair of the table, facing with another contestant seated on the opposite end. He looked at the new glass in the middle, the same empty glass like the others, but it was slightly bigger. As the last contestant sat on the last empty chair, the Brewmaster tinged an empty glass on the bar with his knife; getting the attention of all of them. After they turned their eyes, The Brewmaster put down the knife on the bar, then walked over to them; he strolled around the table as he began to speak. "Welcome, to the very end," he said, sliding his finger along the chairs, "I give my congrats to all of you that have made it this far, although I wished there were little of you; But no matter, we will begin and we will end; nine contestants out of twenty, I wonder how many of you will go before the one…" The contestants said nothing during the Brewmaster's words; because most of them were clenching their hands under the table, praying endlessly until the Brewmaster walked over back to the bar and then back to them with a bottle of gin and a piece of lime. He reached out to the middle with them, pouring the empty glass with gin and then added a squeeze of lime; but that was not all. Ryder looked at his hand, seeing it reach down in his pocket; pulling out a packet, which Ryder instantly recognized as vetsin: a kind of seasoning, that when added to an alcoholic drink; the drinker easily gets wasted. And as Ryder expected, the Brewmaster opened the packet and poured the vetsin in the drink. Seeing him did that, Ryder prepared himself as he wiped his mouth, trying his best to grip his mind firmly with the best of his strength. "Let the round… begin!" The Brewmaster takes out a piece of paper again from the back, reading it as always. "Have all of you ever… slept in someone else's home without them knowing you were there?" No one took a sip of the glass, not even their looks hinted that they were hesitating; so, the glass remained full until they waited for the next paper to be taken out. After the Brewmaster realized that no one was going to drink, he moved his hand back to his back only to take another piece of paper again. Trying to examine the other contestants, Ryder turned his head around to look; seeing Drew almost falling asleep on the table, and Larah holding her head while her face turned bright red; but Channe was still playing with his bunny plushie without a care, which placed a smile upon Ryder's face. It lasted for a minute, until the Brewmaster started to read the paper he got aloud. "Have all of you ever… made someone fall in love with you… then left them like it meant nothing?" And with this, A contestant quickly grabbed the glass and drank it until empty; and Ryder could see that there were others who wanted to drink, but was too late at grabbing. The Brewmaster refilled the glass, then took out another paper again. "Have all of you… started a fire purposely… just because of hate?" Another contestant grabbed the glass and drank; but there was no other contestant who had the intention to drink except her; which they only let out a look of envy as she stood up — but Ryder could see her stumbling. The Brewmaster refilled the glass again and took another paper. "Have all of you…" The round continued longer than the previous ones, with a few questions felt needed to pass before somebody grab the glass; but after what seemed like hours, there were a few contestants who finally got up — with each of their standings being clumsy and their heads almost falling to the ground. The first of Ryder's companions to be safe was Larah, which drank the glass after the Brewmaster asked if they had a trauma that changed their entirety. Relief waved over Ryder, trying to nod at Larah; but she was too dizzy to even look at him clearly, forcing her to sit down on the floor. Seeing her acting like that, Ryder almost let out a chuckle; but he could not. Warmth suddenly appeared behind Ryder's ear, and he could hear his heart pounding; the alcohol was starting to catch up with him. He held his composure and stayed sober, reaching through the next question. "Have all of you… made somebody hate you… forever?" Ryder instantly went deep into his memories, trying to see if he has done it; which a part of him wanted hope that it was true, for he would become safe. But in the end, he couldn't grasp a memory. And so, he had to wait for the next question; and it seemed the others haven't grasp theirs either. But a hand caught his attention — a hand about to grab the glass. He first shrugs it off, and envied the owner of the hand; but as he followed through the wrist upwards to the shoulders, it was small — smaller than the rest. And after his eyes laid upon the owner, it widened; for it was Channe, grabbing the glass and drinking it without hesitating — and without stopping, which Ryder became even more surprised, "H-how?!" Ryder thought as his eyes followed Channe standing up and walking away from the table, and unlike the ones before, he wasn't even messing up a step. He wanted to question why Channe was capable of doing that; and if he really is; then the question was real. Did Channe really made someone hate him forever? He stepped it aside to focus on the game; which were now only three of them: Ryder, Drew, and another contestant. They waited in bated breath before the Brewmaster poured the glass with gin again, reading out another paper he took out. "Have all of you… buried a body before…" The table stood silent with their minds doing the talking for them, with Ryder trying to remember if he taken part in a burial of a deceased love one of a family of his or another. And just like before, there was none he could find. He looked at the contestant from across him, and saw his face turning into the same as him. It seems no one buried a body; making them wait for the next question. But he saw Drew's hand suddenly going up, like somebody raising their hands in attendance. "I…." he burped, "have done it!" he said drunk. Ryder felt relieved, but somewhat still worried. He was already too drunk to begin with, and he feared what would happen if he takes the drink. He would find his answer when Drew reached out his hand to grab the glass; almost dropping it as he inches it near his lips, taking a sip until it was empty. Ryder sticked his eyes attentively on Drew as he puts down the glass with a slightly too much force. And when he stood up, Ryder jerked back after the table shook and the chair being slid over. Ryder looked under him, turning his eyes to the side only to see Drew passed out drunk on the floor; snoring softly as he hugged the leg of the chair. Now it was only two of them left, Ryder sweated alongside the one with him; making eye contact with the glass as they waited for the Brewmaster's voice to fill the room again. He filled the glass with the one last shot of gin, filling it to the brim; the other contestant gulped at the sight. They placed both their hands on the table, ready to strike and grab the glass before the other one gets it before them. And so, the Brewmaster took out the final piece of paper, reading it as loud as ever. "Have all of you… killed somebody?" The straightforward question, that would make anyone uneasy and hesitant; but it was either Ryder of him, and neither wanted to admit it; for they have done it. Ryder's heartbeat screamed louder than ever, forcing him back to the painful memory where he thinks he did, and he was hesitant to take the sip. He looked at the contestant with him, and he too, was reluctant to drink. He tried his best to think about his family rather than morality, his hands starting to shake back and forth. And when he finally looked down and decided, it was the only way; he decided to reached out and take the sip. But… he was already being bested. He saw the other contestant holding the glass, staring at it without glancing at Ryder; which his mouth already gaped at the sight. The contestant inches the drink almost upon his lips, about to drink it until it was empty. Then Ryder remembered. "Wait!!" He yelled, taking the contestant by surprise. "W-what is it?" The contestant replied his sudden outburst. "I…" he thought hard and clear, "… I have a way for both of us to be safe," he announced with his voiced assure. The contestant — hearing Ryder's plea — immediately put down the glass of gin, " G-go, o-on" he said shaking.

"…The drink is full right? I saw a glass from the table half empty after the contestant passed; meaning it doesn't have to be fully be empty for it to take affect; and that would possibly be the case if two contestants drank half and half with their truths." Ryder looked at the Brewmaster, but somehow, he didn't reach. The contestant took a pause of silence as he considers Ryder' theory; but Ryder could tell, he didn't want anyone to die. "So… have you considered it?" "…Okay, I'll work with you" said the contestant as he drank the glass until it was only half, then gave it for Ryder to drink. Before Ryder grabbed the glass, he nodded at the contestant; drink what's left of the gin. And after he placed the glass down, it seemed to have work. Nothing happened, and no one choked into their deaths. They both sighed in relief… but as Ryder was about to leave the table "AHHHHHH!" The contestant suddenly screamed, making Ryder panic and tried to help him; but he was stopped. The Brewmaster forced him to sit still on his chair as the contestant burned in front of his eyes. He could only watch as the body turned into a burned corpse. "I… I don't understand…" said Ryder sadly "… Of course you don't, you didn't even think of planning it fully." The Brewmaster began to walk over to the bar, grabbing something, "But you were right about one thing; that more than one person can drink from the glass, so more can be saved for each question." Then the Brewmaster slowly walked over to him as Ryder while his hands were on the table, "But you forgot one thing: the difference, between half a truth and half a lie…" the Brewmaster explained, making Ryder's eyebrows curl up. "If you recall the last contestant — who was sure he done the deed but didn't — still died, was because it was only in his mind — his fantasy turned into reality; is a lie — will always be a lie" he continued to explain. "That is the case with the one who burned in front of you." "But… what about me?" asked Ryder. "… You have half a truth; you believe that you killed someone, because you have done something to them that most likely made them dead; but that is not the case, for the one you thought is still alive, yet you really did the deed of almost killing them…" The Brewmaster inched close to Ryder, at breathes reach, "Since there is a truth, you can live… but." Suddenly, a sharp pain waved over Ryder's arm as the Brewmaster's knife he used before was plunged deep into his hand, "AHHHHHH," screamed Ryder in his pain. "… That is your punishment," said the Brewmaster, before quickly pulling out the knife from Ryder's." Ryder was left grunting in pain as Drew and Larah went up to help him cover the wound, but they were told by the Brewmaster, "Now, the game has ended; you may all go now." "… Or else I will be forced to burn you…"