Chapter 28: Order Cards (3)
“There has to be at least one True Order among those three. Otherwise, it would be too strange for them to appear together.”
A abruptly offered two words.
“Mutual opposition.”
“What does that mean? The players are supposed to fight one another?”
Su Qiong stared at A and said uncertainly, “I think A means the True and False Orders are opposing each other.”
“That’s right!”
The True and False Orders both addressed the same situation, yet their instructions were completely opposite. Clearly, each existed to restrict the other.
After entering the World of Order, the players had subconsciously treated it as one unified system and assumed that both True and False Orders were directed at them.
Once they escaped that rigid way of thinking, the answer became easy to see.
True and False Orders opposed one another. The players were merely variables caught between them.
If their theory was correct, then whenever the two types of order clashed, the players would always have an opportunity to benefit.
“Let’s analyze the first one,” Yu Qimiao said. “‘During the carousel’s rotation, the players’ internal organs will not be thrown out.’ What do you think?”
Shi Yuntian answered honestly, “I think it’s terrifying.”
Lu Shufan patted him on the shoulder. “Boss Shi, staying silent won’t expose your intelligence.”
Shi Yuntian: “…?”
“There’s no need to discuss that one,” ERROR said with certainty. “Based on the other two cards, regardless of whether it’s true or false, it will definitely happen.”
If their organs would not be thrown out, then there would be no reason for players to choose what remedial action to take after their organs went flying.
“I agree with ERROR. The key question is whether the other two cards are true or false.”
“If it were our group, we’d probably initiate an Order War and change the card’s property.”
“Huh?” Su Qiong said with obvious resistance. “I don’t think we should.”
“Why?”
Everyone turned toward him simultaneously.
“Think about it. The two Order Wars we just fought had different guardians. The first card concerned the carousel’s operation, so its guardian was the operator. The second concerned the kangaroo pouches, so its guardians were the kangaroos.”
“Then who do you think would guard these three cards?”
“…”
“Don’t tell me…”
“The internal organs?”
Su Qiong shrank backward, disgust written across his face. “I don’t want to fight a war against internal organs.”
Besides, the organs mentioned on the cards specifically referred to those flung from players during the ride.
That meant the guardians were highly likely to be the organs’ original vessels—
The players themselves.
Would the bastard system ever pass up an opportunity to make players kill one another?
“The real problem is how to deal with the remaining two cards.”
The other cards gave opposite instructions.
The card on the right required anyone who found another player’s organs to return them within three minutes. Otherwise, the organs would enter the finder’s body.
The card on the left instructed anyone who found another player’s organs to throw them away immediately.
There were no obvious logical flaws in either statement. Without risking a test of one card, it would be difficult to determine whether the other was true or false.
Seeing that they had reached an impasse, ERROR spoke at the right moment.
“Every event has a cause, a process, and an outcome. When the process and outcome contain too many variables, you can try changing the cause.”
Their current assumption was that the players’ organs would inevitably be flung out while the carousel operated. Once someone picked up a flying organ, either returning it or refusing to return it would trigger an order.
Then what if they simply never picked it up in the first place?
—That was allowed?
Everyone looked at ERROR and nearly praised him for raising his rebellious child so well.
Yu Qimiao sent their conclusion to the second group. The instant they finished reading it, the carousel began operating at a terrifying speed.
Heart-wrenching screams filled the air, accompanied by several sounds of vomiting.
Su Qiong’s eyes were sharp. He saw large chunks of bright-red matter being vomited out and sent flying everywhere.
The marshmallow turned his face away, unable to keep watching.
When he finally composed himself and looked forward again, both the carousel and its platform had vanished.
“Where did the carousel go?” Su Qiong asked.
“It was spinning so quickly that it left the ground,” A replied.
“Or perhaps it never left the ground and merely exceeded the speed the human eye can perceive.”
“As expected, even after leaving the pouch, the system won’t let us observe the complete process.”
“Is there truly a correct way to ride the carousel?”
“There is,” ERROR said calmly. “IF doesn’t create situations with guaranteed death.”
“How can you be so certain? The system is clearly no longer under your control.”
“Even if it’s an unfilial child, I still created it myself.” ERROR raised an eyelid. “Guess how many restrictions I placed on it.”
He had not said, Guess whether I placed any restrictions.
He had said, Guess how many.
When they thought about it, that made sense.
If the system had completely escaped ERROR’s control, then given the degree to which it targeted him, he would have died eight hundred times already.
“Besides, the World of Order is only Circle One, so its difficulty is relatively low,” ERROR concluded. “There should be several methods of clearing it.”
“Mm.” Su Qiong nodded obediently. “The main system confirms that there is indeed more than one clearing route.”
Hearing a system NPC say that, the surrounding players once again wore expressions of complete despair.
The situation seemed to have returned to its starting point.
There was more than one clearing route, yet they could not find even a single one.
“Hello, Guild Leader Yu.” One player finally abandoned his position as an observer and approached Yu Qimiao, extending a hand. “I’m a member of Extremity and the captain of my team. Our guild leader told me that Extremity has an agreement to cooperate with you in Circle One.”
“That’s right.”
“Extremity is different from all those miscellaneous guilds. We obey our guild leader’s instructions completely. During the upcoming challenges, we will actively provide your guild with information.”
“Oh, so now you’re anxious?” Lu Shufan immediately saw through their intention. “If you sincerely wanted to cooperate, why didn’t you say so from the beginning?”
The other captain replied self-righteously, “There were too many people watching at the time. I didn’t want to expose our cooperation too soon.”
Right. As if anyone would believe that.
Su Qiong did not particularly care.
As a former guide NPC of the beginner zone, he had encountered too many players who discarded him the moment they finished using him.
However, he now knew his true identity and was bound to ERROR.
Naturally, he could no longer help other players unconditionally as he had before.
Su Qiong raised his gaze. “You want the clues we have. What will you give us in exchange?”
A layer of molten gold floated within his eyes, making them sparkle constantly and softening the hearts of anyone who saw them.
After being stared at by Su Qiong’s innocent eyes for a while, the captain’s conscience was presumably condemned into surrender. He voluntarily revealed his trump card.
“Actually, our group triggered a hidden card earlier concerning the next stage of the game.” His expression became grave as he lowered his voice. “And we successfully authenticated it.”
“Oh?” ERROR spared him a careless glance. “The first group triggered at least nineteen cards. In the World of Order, cards are the least valuable things there are.”
Yu Qimiao, who had nearly been swayed, immediately regained his reason after hearing ERROR.
“Show us the card first. We’ll trade with you only after deciding that it has value.”
“…Fine.”
After a fierce internal struggle, the Extremity captain removed the hidden card from his card slot.
The card was silver, representing a True Order, and the number one was written on its back.
[The carousel horses will not leave the rotating platform.]
“What kind of useless nonsense is that? Yu Qimiao, don’t trade with him.”
“Exactly. Of course the horses won’t leave the platform. Everyone saw it with their own eyes.”
Yu Qimiao did not immediately answer. Instead, he turned toward ERROR and Su Qiong.
ERROR lowered his head and asked the person still huddled beside him, “What do you think?”
“I think this information is valuable enough to trade for,” Su Qiong answered.
Everyone looked at Su Qiong with the same thought.
Their precious child was so kind that he was willing to trade even for a useless statement.
“Mm,” A suddenly agreed.
“As expected of my bound NPC. We truly understand each other without speaking,” ERROR said.
Shi Yuntian erupted in fury. “Are you ever going to stop? We know Su Qiong is your bound NPC! Do you have to repeat it hundreds of times a day?”
Yu Qimiao frowned. “What’s the reason?”
“It looks like nonsense, but it introduces a new possibility.” Su Qiong explained, “The horses might be capable of leaving the platform.”
He added, “We saw only that they hadn’t left at the beginning and end of the ride. In the middle, they were moving too quickly for us to see anything.”
“That makes sense.” Yu Qimiao returned the card and tapped its surface with a bent finger. “In exchange, I’ll give you one deduction: a Tier-One True Order doesn’t mean something will happen absolutely.”
The Extremity captain’s expression shifted. “Thank you. I’ll discuss it with my teammates. If we discover any new clues, I’ll bring them to you.”
“All right. A pleasure doing business.”
Yu Qimiao watched the Extremity captain leave, then turned back toward the group and released a heavy sigh.
“Our current situation is extremely difficult. We—”
Before he could finish, the carousel and platform reappeared, signaling the end of the second group’s challenge.
Su Qiong instinctively looked at the timer.
Only twenty minutes had passed.
The second group had failed to complete the ride.
Every one of them had vanished.
Another layer of fresh blood now coated the contaminated platform.
“I remember carousels being rides for all ages. Even children can ride them.” Lu Shufan clicked his tongue. “What a relaxing, delightful family attraction.”
The moment he finished speaking, a mother frog appeared before them, holding a child in her arms.
The frog hopped toward their group. The big-headed tadpole in her arms handed them a card.
After only a few hours, everyone had already developed a psychological shadow concerning cards.
Su Qiong first looked around and noticed that the other groups had not seen the frog. This was most likely another hidden card.
Only one card had appeared, just as when the kangaroos arrived.
That meant there was an eighty-percent chance it was a True Order.
The frog went directly to Lu Shufan.
He looked around pleadingly for help, but no one showed any willingness to intervene. He could only accept the card with trembling hands.
After reading it, Lu Shufan’s vision went black. He deeply regretted allowing disaster to emerge from his mouth.
[Visitors who praise the carousel are entitled to priority boarding.]
The others gathered around, read the card, and then examined the carousel tickets in their hands.
The number printed on each ticket had originally been five.
When the card appeared, it changed to three.
In other words, their group would be riding next.
“Lu Shufan!” Shi Yuntian exploded. He drew his blade and prepared to hunt Lu Shufan down.
“Boss Shi, spare me! I didn’t know the system couldn’t understand sarcasm!” Lu Shufan was on the verge of tears.
Moi and Qiyi pressed their faces together and comforted each other in voices only they could hear.
“Sister, we’re going to be separated. You must stay alive. As long as you live, I won’t die.”
“You too. You have to survive for me.”
“Qiyi loves her sister most.”
“Moi loves her little sister most.”
A glanced at the sisters stuck together and silently approached ERROR, giving him a look that asked, Should we act?
ERROR examined him with interest. “How unusual. You actually approached me voluntarily?”
“The situation requires it.”
Seeing that A practically had the word disgust written across his face, ERROR smiled and praised him maliciously, “As expected of the server’s second-ranked player. You know when to bend and when to stand tall.”
A withdrew his gaze in revulsion and deeply regretted his decision.
As the saying went, those who followed different paths could not work together.
He must have gone insane to consider joining forces with ERROR.
“Oh? Are you angry?” ERROR leaned closer and asked breathily, “Can you see that tadpole’s level?”
A froze and looked toward the tadpole.
He activated his scan but saw only the frog’s information card.
The tadpole’s level was replaced by question marks, meaning it was at least twenty levels higher than the bracelet’s user.
A had not noticed that earlier.
He had assumed the frog and tadpole were a single entity.
“Even Su Qiong couldn’t scan the tadpole’s level. It may be far stronger than we imagine. Only three groups remain, so we’ll have to ride sooner or later. It isn’t worth fighting it and leaving both sides injured merely to gain two positions.”
The moment ERROR finished speaking, Su Qiong suddenly popped up beside them.
“Besides, we probably won’t obtain more clues by staying outside.”
A looked surprised to see him. “You could hear our conversation?”
“Mm.” Su Qiong reached over, removed a small white flower from ERROR’s collar, and hung it back on his wand. He declared confidently, “I can hear even without using my ears.”
A fell silent.
Eavesdropping was one thing. There was no need to do it so openly.
Su Qiong told him, “Many Order Cards are hidden on the platform. If we want to clear the attraction safely, we must alter several of them.”
ERROR ruffled Su Qiong’s lamb-like curls and agreed, “Exactly. If we fight the tadpole and both sides suffer now, we might die once we get onto the ride.”
A lowered his lashes and thought for several seconds.
In the end, he said nothing and walked directly toward the ticket checkpoint.
At the same time, the pursuit of Lu Shufan came to a temporary end, and the other teammates also headed toward the checkpoint.
The players originally waiting in line looked stunned when they saw them cut ahead.
IF truly could drive people insane.
They were even fighting for the chance to die sooner.
The original third group remained astonished for a long time. When they noticed the sequence number on their tickets had changed to four, they erupted in cheers, hugging one another and crying with joy.
“Is that really necessary?” Lu Shufan asked. “They only have to wait a little longer.”
“Whose fault is that?!” every teammate shouted simultaneously.
Lu Shufan shrank his neck and instantly became as quiet as a chicken.
The ticket attendant continued pacing in front of them.
Only when five minutes remained before the next session did everyone begin handing over their tickets.
The attendant verified the numbers and tore away the record section along the perforated line. The entire procedure resembled an ordinary amusement park, and no alarms were triggered.
A entered the platform first.
He did not immediately choose a horse. Instead, he stood motionless and examined the lifelike horses and circular platform at close range.
Moi and Qiyi followed him in. They also did not select horses immediately, instead embracing each other and trembling.
Su Qiong suddenly felt curious.
The two girls were quiet, well-behaved, and good-natured.
Why had someone sent them into a death game?
The other players who entered afterward similarly avoided choosing horses. Instead, they walked slowly around the platform and carefully examined them.
Suppressing his disgust, Su Qiong approached the horses and discovered an obvious difference between the tall and short ones.
It was not merely the length of their legs.
The tall horses had smooth, glossy manes and long tails. At a glance, they were clearly superior animals from excellent bloodlines.
The short horses appeared dispirited. Their manes were short and coarse, and several had obvious physical deformities.
The two types were clearly not the same breed.
Su Qiong even suspected they were not the same species.
“Does a carousel horse necessarily have to be a horse?”
“Not necessarily.”
“…”
Those two simple sentences plunged the entire area into an atmosphere that became more terrifying the longer one considered it.
Su Qiong’s thirst for knowledge temporarily overpowered his resistance.
He moved closer, hoping to inspect the differences more clearly.
Before he could properly examine the horses, however, he first saw a card.
[Players must mount a horse within two minutes of entering the platform.]
The two previous groups had mounted their horses within two minutes and had not triggered this card.
Therefore, it was most likely a True Order.
The timer had already started a new round.
One minute and fifty seconds had passed since A stepped onto the platform.
Only ten seconds remained.
“Let’s avoid violating orders at the beginning. Mount a horse first.”
“All right.”
Su Qiong chose the lame horse directly in front of him.
Its limp was extremely obvious, and its back was uneven. No one had selected it before, so both its back and the ground beneath it were relatively clean.
Su Qiong’s current body and the gender previously assigned by the system were both male.
Therefore, choosing a short horse would not trigger punishment.
The other members of the Orphan Alliance were not as obsessive about cleanliness as Su Qiong, but they similarly avoided the bloodstained horses. They settled for damaged but relatively clean ones.
Only Moi released Qiyi’s hand and mounted a magnificent tall horse.
Because the first group had shown that choosing a tall horse could result in punishment, none of the later players had selected one.
They now knew whether the two original orders were true or false. With a little deduction, the correct choice appeared to be:
Female players should choose tall horses, while male players should choose short horses.
At the same time, all players were permitted to ride short horses.
The True Order did not force everyone to ride a short horse.
Given that situation, Moi and Qiyi preferred to separate. If danger occurred, at least one might survive.
Qiyi stared worriedly at her sister, while Moi gazed back with equal concern. They pressed their palms together and sincerely prayed for each other.
“Don’t be afraid,” Yu Qimiao comforted them.
“I’m not afraid,” Qiyi replied firmly. “I’m making a wish.”
“What are you wishing for?” Lu Shufan asked.
“If one of us has to die,” Qiyi said seriously, “then this time, it should be my turn.”
The surroundings fell silent.
—Whoever sent these sisters into the game deserved to die.
Once everyone had chosen and mounted their horses, the three cards concerning internal organs appeared before them.
“What do we do?” Qiyi looked toward the adults.
Although she had prepared herself to die, she did not want to vomit out her internal organs during the ride.
That would look far too awful.
Shi Yuntian gave up on thinking and looked toward Yu Qimiao.
Out of options, Yu Qimiao looked at A.
A immediately turned toward ERROR and asked without context, “It’s time to act now, right?”
“Mm. I don’t want to vomit my organs either.”
ERROR extended a hand and touched the middle card directly.
Su Qiong immediately understood his intention.
Although the platform had disappeared earlier and they had been unable to determine whether the cards were true or false, the middle card served as the premise for the other two.
The guide NPC had said that every action within the World of Order had to obey an order.
But what if the order itself no longer existed?
Every outcome required a cause.
If the cause disappeared, then the resulting consequences would naturally vanish as well.
But—
“Is it really that simple?” Su Qiong murmured.
“I’m not certain.” ERROR somehow heard him and replied, “We have to try.”
With that, he pinched the card.
Burn marks immediately appeared on his fingers.
Forcefully taking a card that did not belong to him triggered the card’s retaliation.
ERROR’s handsome brows creased slightly. He extended his other hand and brushed it across the card’s surface.
His fingers were clearly clean, yet the card seemed to have been defiled. Pale-blue flames ignited across it.
“What’s happening? Will our cards react like that when we touch them too?”
“Yours won’t,” ERROR explained leisurely. “I’m the only one in the entire game world with this ability. Because the system hates me, everything in the game would rather destroy itself than allow me to possess it.”
As he spoke, the “chaste” card’s flames intensified, burning it until nothing remained.
[System: Player ERROR has committed a violation. Punishment will be administered.]
[System: Within the Order Cards instance, the points obtainable by Player ERROR will be reduced by half. Player ERROR cannot obtain any abilities or weapons.]
ERROR rubbed his burned fingertips and said unconcernedly, “The unfilial child never intended to give me anything in the first place, yet it still went out of its way to invent so many dignified excuses.”
“A-amazing.”
“Making system items destroy themselves could be considered an invincible ability.”
ERROR sighed theatrically. “Unfortunately, this method can’t be used a second time anytime soon.”
He raised his eyes toward the cards that had secretly retreated.
It was easy to predict that the system would place future cards somewhere he could not reach.
The remaining two cards barely escaped ERROR, but they were not spared.
Su Qiong clearly saw the writing detach from the cards and become blurred before eventually transforming into the same four words.
[Invalid Card]
Once the premise that “players’ internal organs will be thrown out” disappeared, restricting their behavior after those organs had been flung away naturally became meaningless.
The players watching from a distance collectively sighed in relief.
Order Cards were universal.
Now that those cards had been destroyed, later players riding the carousel would not need to worry about losing their internal organs either.
Even if another dozen cards were triggered afterward, at least they would not receive a death sentence immediately.
The carousel began spinning faster and faster, soon exceeding human limits.
Su Qiong was not at all surprised that the earlier players had vomited out their organs.
After only two revolutions, he already felt as though the contents of his skull had been shaken into an even mixture.
In a daze, the rapidly spinning horses carried them off the platform and began galloping across an endless Gobi Desert.
A Gobi Desert?
Su Qiong shook his head forcefully and focused on the scene before him.
Yellow sand filled the sky. Violent winds howled, blurring the distant horizon.
It was not an illusion!
An enormous Gobi Desert had truly appeared before them.
Su Qiong gradually adapted to the speed of their charge. From the corner of his eye, he spotted his companions and opened his mouth to speak.
Instead, his mouth filled with sand.
“Ptooey! Ptooey!” Su Qiong spat it out vigorously.
Hoofbeats sounded behind him.
A and ERROR caught up from either side.
Using his high-level player authority, A projected his bracelet interface in front of Su Qiong.
ERROR freed one hand and used the chat function to communicate with the rest of the group.
Shi Yuntian and Lu Shufan, who frequently played games, typed extremely quickly and were already flooding the channel.
[Shi Yuntian: What the hell is this?]
[Shi Yuntian: They’re literally runaway horses!]
[Lu Shufan: I’m about to fall off! I never want to ride a carousel again in my life!]
[Yu Qimiao: Hold steady. Is everyone here?]
[Qiyi: My sister isn’t.]
Moi had chosen differently from the others and was riding a tall horse alone.
[ERROR: Can you confirm her condition?]
[Qiyi: Yes. My sister is on a vast grassland.]
“???”
The unfortunate people riding short horses simultaneously cursed.
No wonder the tall horses were sleek and glossy.
Apparently, even horses were divided into social classes.
[Yu Qimiao: As long as she’s safe.]
[ERROR: There’s no longer any need to verify the card stating that carousel horses won’t leave the platform.]
The horses were galloping across mountains and plains. The answer appeared extremely obvious.
The other players thought so too.
“But…” Su Qiong recalled a detail and struggled to speak. “That card was authenticated as a Tier-One True Order.”
“!!!”
ERROR relayed Su Qiong’s words to the others, who also remembered.
That was right.
“The carousel horses will not leave the platform” was a True Order.
The card had already been placed in a card slot, so no other player could initiate an Order War over it.
Then why were the horses they rode running wildly through a desert?
While the group remained confused, a familiar card appeared again.
Only one card emerged.
[Carousel horses that leave the rotating platform will not attack humans.]
The instant he saw the writing, A turned and warned, “Careful.”
Unfortunately, he was one step too late.
Qiyi, who was moving slowest, was struck violently by a horse charging from behind.
The horse she had chosen was already defective and could not run quickly. She was immediately surrounded by the others.
“Damn it!” Shi Yuntian changed his horse’s direction, drew his heavy blade, and charged back to help Qiyi.
“Is that a False Order?” Lu Shufan instinctively asked.
[System: Incorrect judgment. Player Lu Shufan loses 1,000 points.]
The card rotated twice in place. Its back turned silver, and a large number two appeared.
It was actually a Tier-Two True Order?
Then why were the horses violating it?
Before anyone could understand, a new card appeared.
[When carousel horses attack humans, stand on the horse’s back to ensure safety.]
The surrounding horses gradually converged and began attacking the players like mad.
After the previous two surprises, no one dared trust the card easily.
Furthermore, standing on the back of a galloping horse required exceptional core strength.
Su Qiong stared at the card for a moment. Remembering Lu Shufan’s recent punishment, he suddenly realized something.
“I judge this to be a True Order.”
A mechanical voice immediately sounded.
[System: Correct judgment. Su Qiong receives 1,000 points.]
Lu Shufan became furious. “Is this the law of conservation of points?”
His points had not disappeared.
They had merely flowed into Su Qiong’s pocket.
“Don’t worry about those details. Since it’s a True Order, let’s try it.”
Taking advantage of his lightweight body and his long experience as a bundle of bandages, Su Qiong stood easily on his horse’s back.
The short horses charging toward him seemed to regain their senses. They gradually scattered and stopped attacking him.
Seeing that it worked, everyone else followed his example, assuming all manner of strange balancing poses on their horses.
“If both are True Orders, why does this one work?”
Su Qiong reached out and took the Order Card he had correctly identified.
Its back had already turned silver, displaying the number three.
“A Tier-Three True Order. I think I understand.”
“It’s a containment hierarchy, right?”
“Mm.” Su Qiong explained his deduction. “Since orders have tiers, their strength must differ. Tier Three exceeds Tier Two, and Tier Two exceeds Tier One. That’s why the Tier-Two and Tier-One Orders became ineffective under the influence of a Tier-Three Order.”
“But the first two cards didn’t disappear because they’re also True Orders?”
“Speaking of that…” Su Qiong stared at the card’s back and asked curiously, “What color is the back of a False Order Card?”
“…”
No one could answer.
Since entering the game, they had never seen a successfully authenticated False Order.
Because of habitual thinking, they had subconsciously assumed that False Orders were bad and had avoided triggering them.
But looking at the wild horses surrounding them with hostile gazes…
True Orders were not necessarily good either.
“I’ve been wondering about that too. We should find a way to authenticate a False Order later.”
“Agreed.”
Su Qiong struggled to maintain his balance and looked up, only to be stunned by the sight before him.
Countless Order Cards hung amid the yellow sand filling the sky.
Any random action could potentially trigger one.
No wonder the first two groups had activated dozens of cards after riding for only a short while.
“Ah!” Qiyi suddenly cried out.
She was small, and her core strength was far weaker than that of an adult man. She swayed unsteadily while standing on the horse’s back.
The moment her body tilted, a wild horse charging from behind bit into her fragile ankle.
“Qiyi, are you all right?”
“I’m—” Qiyi began to answer, only for darkness to suddenly cover her vision.
She raised her head and found herself staring directly at a card.
[Visitors whose feet are bitten off by carousel horses will grow hooves.]
Qiyi’s eyes widened. Terrified, she clutched her foot and felt around frantically, afraid she would touch something horrifying.
Fortunately, no hoof had appeared.
That card was probably a False Order.
Qiyi was about to sigh in relief when another card appeared among the countless others.
Before she could read the words, the new card seemed to exert a powerful attraction, slamming into the False Order Card.
Several seconds later, the False Order merged with the newly arrived card.
Its back turned silver, the color representing a True Order.
A False Order could actually become a True Order?
How could something like that happen?!
Amid her shock, Qiyi fearfully pulled back her hand.
She timidly looked down and indeed saw an eerie outline where a human foot should have been.
“Ahhh—!” Frightened by her own foot, Qiyi screamed.
But no one heard her.
A new Order Card appeared. A large number four was written across its silver back.
[Horses possess hooves. Anything possessing hooves is a horse.]
Su Qiong turned and looked behind them but saw nothing unusual.
Shielding his face from the oncoming sand, he asked quietly, “A, did you hear a strange sound?”
“Yes. It might have been a horse.”
“…Oh,” Su Qiong murmured. “A horse.”
“ERROR, did you hear it?”
ERROR did not answer.
He stared fixedly at the guild membership list, sensing a powerful incongruity.
Had the Orphan Alliance always had only seven members?
