Chapter 8: Ivywood Girls’ Academy (8)

There were 30 players remaining.

Everyone turned to look at Rowan. Damn, that was creepy—he had appeared behind them without making a sound.

Rowan flexed his fingers slightly, then reached out and tapped the phone screen. "He was poisoned."

The players who had been about to argue with Rowan immediately turned back to examine the screen more closely.

A girl suddenly let out a gasp. "Yes, he's right! He wasn't hanged; he was poisoned!"

She pointed at the victim's nose. "I'm a doctor, and I didn't even notice before—there are bubbles coming from his nostrils…"

She began explaining with professional expertise.

To put it simply, people who die from hanging usually have a purplish-blue complexion. In contrast, those who die from poisoning often have painful expressions, grayish lips, and foam around their mouth and nose.

If someone had poisoned the victim first and then staged it as a hanging, the face wouldn't show extensive cyanosis. After death, blood settles at the lowest points of the body—it doesn't pool in the face due to hanging.

The photo had been taken against the light, so the victim's face wasn't clearly visible. Even a doctor specializing in forensic pathology had missed the details at first, yet Rowan had noticed…

For a moment, the entire classroom fell silent.

Jack was the first to break the tension, shouting angrily, "Damn it, this game is already deadly enough, and now we've got players killing each other?"

The realization struck everyone—if these deaths weren't caused by breaking game rules, then someone among them must have murdered them.

There was no way those players had simply died in their rooms and just happened to be staged as suicides.

"But… maybe they offended an NPC," Yulia suddenly suggested.

Rowan glanced at her, smiling slightly.

Yulia continued, "In horror games, NPCs have emotions too. If you offend them, you might not even know how you died."

"…I didn't know that was possible," a new player murmured.

The rookies exchanged uneasy glances and silently memorized this hidden rule—no matter the instance, don't carelessly provoke NPCs.

"But we all went straight to our dorms and rested. How could they have offended an NPC?"

The timing didn't add up. If someone here was a killer, that was even more terrifying.

Jack turned toward the newbie who had spoken and sneered. "Didn't you see the dorm supervisor during bed check? That body."

He whistled, his expression turning suggestive. "Not to be crude, but I bet some of you couldn't keep your mouths shut. Maybe someone said the wrong thing when they saw a hot woman, and now that NPC is holding a grudge."

At this, many players started recalling last night's bed check.

Some had been too scared to even open their eyes and had missed the supervisor's appearance entirely. But those who had looked immediately chimed in.

"Yeah! That woman—damn, she was seriously built."

More and more players confirmed seeing the "attractive" dorm supervisor. Some even looked proud, as if noticing her meant they were braver than the cowards who kept their eyes shut.

Those who had been too afraid to look said nothing, silently keeping their heads down.

Just then, the sound of leather shoes clicking against the floor echoed through the hallway.

Leo walked in, carrying his briefcase with a cheerful expression. He took a deep breath as if savoring fresh air—though the room still had a faint metallic scent of blood, it was much better than last night.

"Good morning, students! Another beautiful day! Let's start with a test analysis."

The players quickly sat back down, maintaining silence. Everyone knew what that smiling tiger was.

This guy kills without hesitation. If they violated some unknown rule or angered an NPC, they could die just as easily.

"I'll be calling names now. Please come up and collect your test papers. Ray Greller…"

Ray walked up nervously. When he saw the bright red "30" on his paper, a chill ran down his spine. The NPC was definitely going to punish him!

But Leo's smile never wavered. Instead, he said, "Thirty points—not bad! Make sure to improve next time."

"Y-Yes! Thank you, Mr. Carter!"

No one could resist the thrill of being praised by a teacher—even if that teacher was a murderous NPC.

Ray excitedly took his test paper, suddenly feeling a strong desire to study harder.

One by one, the students were called up, and each received praise.

Every player scored at least 20 points—some even reached 60.

In a test out of 100, getting 60 was not only lucky but a sign of genuine skill.

The last name called was Rowan's.

He walked up lazily, glancing at his score with a raised eyebrow.

Three points.

He must have guessed one multiple-choice question correctly.

Leo's smile vanished. He gripped Rowan's test paper tightly.

"You are the worst student in the class! To avoid dragging everyone down, you will complete double the homework assignments! Understood?!"

His expression instantly became monstrous—veins bulging, eyes filled with murderous rage.

His furious shout echoed through the room, shattering the previous calm.

So this was how the last-place student was treated…

Even though they weren't the ones being scolded, the players instinctively cowered, heads down.

After a long pause, they hesitantly looked up at Rowan.

Rowan remained as relaxed as ever, his eyes still half-lidded with amusement.

He smiled at Leo, his gaze unwavering, and accepted the test paper.

"Thank you, Mr. Carter."

Leo's eyebrow twitched. For a split second, his lips curled downward—almost imperceptibly—before he quickly masked it with another smile.

He distributed a thick stack of workbooks. "These are your assignments. Be sure to complete them! After all, it's the school rules~"

He chuckled and turned to write on the blackboard, beginning the test analysis.

The entire morning was spent with Leo's lecturing.

Apparently, there were no other subject teachers.

Leo alone taught Reading, math, and biology.

Of course, as expected, almost no one understood anything.

Reading lesson was more less of a struggle.

Math and biology? Yeah, right.

At the end of class, Leo collected the test papers and smiled. "This afternoon is self-study time. After lunch, be sure to study hard."

With that, he turned to leave the classroom.

Listening to his lectures was exhausting and hunger-inducing. But since the homeroom teacher was a literal killing machine, they had no choice but to endure it.

Just as everyone was eagerly waiting for him to step out, Leo paused with one foot outside the door.

He turned back, smiling.

"Oh, I almost forgot—starting tonight, there will be an exam every night. I hope you all prepare well and make progress~"