All players in the Death Game were selected to enter this game because they possessed a "strong desire to live."

This means...

Although many people become dissatisfied with this life of weekly dungeons and constant anxiety after becoming Players—even Lin Yu has occasionally complained in his heart—no one would give up their life because of it.

Only those whose obsession with "surviving" surpasses everything else become "Players"... This is the common characteristic and underlying nature of all Death Game participants.

Therefore, even with the "suicide note" as evidence, everyone shared Good Night's thought when he voiced it.

"How could it possibly be suicide?"

In the hotel room, Fu Luo looked at Cassia Seed's corpse, frowning as he muttered.

"But... it also looks exactly like suicide."

The pistol Cassia Seed used to kill himself was a Browning M1906. It wasn't an item, but a pistol that could be purchased in the real world.

After entering from under the chin, the bullet remained inside the cranial cavity.

Because this pistol model has a very small caliber, the bullet barely damaged Cassia Seed's face.

Lin Yu looked him up and down. This Craftsman from the Player Mutual Aid Association wasn't tall and had an ordinary appearance.

Most importantly, his expression before death showed no signs of terror or struggle.

"Have you used your Detective ability yet?"

Lin Yu asked.

"I have. The clues point to the body itself," Fu Luo stroked his chin. "I'm waiting for the preliminary identification results."

"The fingerprint check on the pistol came back fine. The entry angle also matches suicide."

"Most importantly... the timing this time is even shorter."

Fu Luo pointed outside the door—a sturdy man was sitting on the floor in the corridor outside, sighing and seeming unable to accept reality.

He was Lotus from the Player Mutual Aid Association.

The successive deaths of Radish and Cassia Seed were clearly a blow to him.

Lin Yu understood his feelings very well.

Especially Cassia Seed's suicide note, which was undoubtedly the final straw that broke Lotus's heart.

"It was me. I killed Radish. For the future of the Player Mutual Aid Association, I had to do this, but I will atone for it with my own life. I had to do this. Sorry, I had to do this!"

Lin Yu's gaze returned to the location of the suicide note, which was placed right beside Cassia Seed's hand.

"I just feel like there's something weird about this suicide note too..."

Lin Yu muttered.

"Right? You feel it too," Fu Luo took off the baseball cap on his head and swapped it for a beanie. "His suicide, the note, the confession... they all give off a sense of incongruity."

"If the original clues were a puzzle... we had almost finished piecing it together. But the news of this guy's death immediately made all the previous puzzle pieces seem like they were put together wrong."

Fu Luo said with frustration.

Lin Yu also nodded.

Indeed, Cassia Seed shouldn't have died.

In his and Fu Luo's reasoning, Cassia Seed was absolutely not the murderer!

Just as Lin Yu was thinking, Hannah's voice sounded.

"Croak, Director, Old Zheng says he has a clue for you."

"What clue?"

Lin Yu communicated with Hannah in his mind.

"Croak, Old Zheng says this guy's death was indeed suicide, but he was 'hypnotized.'"

"The evidence is that suicide note—he says there's an eighty percent chance it was done by someone from the Psychological Society."

After hearing this, Lin Yu was momentarily stunned.

With Old Zheng's hint, Lin Yu understood where the incongruity of this "suicide note" lay.

Indeed, even though people experience intense inner struggles before suicide, hastily written suicide notes often contain highly emotional content.

But this note repeatedly says "I had to do this"... It's too much like some kind of compulsive behavior or intrusive thought.

"So, he was induced to commit suicide... When? Is there someone from the Psychological Society here?!"

Lin Yu felt some shock in his heart.

"Croak, Old Zheng says it's a 'trigger'—the suggestion might have existed a long time ago. It's just that something flipped the switch in his subconscious, prompting this idea to become reality."

Listening to Hannah's words, Lin Yu understood again.

Right...

That makes sense.

He looked at Fu Luo.

"Furbollo, I've completely understood the truth now."

"We weren't wrong. The reason this puzzle piece doesn't fit is because we reversed the cause and effect—he wasn't part of the 'cause' of Radish's death, but rather the result that Radish's death was going to produce."

"His suicide note indicates that this guy's mind might not have been normal when he killed himself."

Fu Luo looked at Lin Yu and immediately caught on.

"But this is just your conjecture, right?"

Lin Yu nodded—he knew this wasn't conjecture, as he had Old Zheng, the specialist, backing him up. But he couldn't bring Old Zheng out.

"But it's the most reasonable conjecture so far."

"I still need to verify it," Fu Luo turned and looked behind him. Good Night and Li Hua were still guarding the door, one on each side. "Help me call the one at the door in. I have something to ask him."

Good Night gave an OK sign and then dragged Lotus inside.

"Hey, stop crying here, you're supposed to be an Enforcer... We have questions for you."

Lotus was pulled dejectedly in front of Fu Luo and Lin Yu.

"What do you two want to ask? Regarding the deaths of Radish and Cassia Seed, I've already said everything I know."

Fu Luo waved his hand. "Not asking about that. Tell me about the recent internal factions within the Player Mutual Aid Association... As someone close to Radish, you should know, right?"

Lotus was clearly taken aback. "Is that related?"

"Are you a pig brain? Your mission partner left a note saying he killed the person he was supposed to protect for the sake of the organization, and now you ask if it's related?"

Fu Luo said, frustrated at his lack of insight.

Scolded, Lotus's face turned slightly pale, obviously somewhat angry.

But after thinking carefully, he realized Fu Luo had a point, so he finally spoke.

"Indeed, there have been many different voices within the organization recently..."

"Although we are a relatively loosely structured organization, we still have 'positions'—Mr. Radish has always been the leader of our entire organization."

"He was one of the founders and the most senior member, so it was naturally him."

"However, as the Player Mutual Aid Association's members grew in number and the newcomers became more and more powerful, they began to feel dissatisfied with the organization's current philosophy."

"So... over the past two months, calls to re-elect the leader or form a new decision-making layer have grown louder and louder."

When Lotus reached this point, he seemed somewhat remorseful. "But what I never expected was that they would actually resort to murder!"