“A Subject who loses in the plunder war will not be turned into a puppet — they will only lose puzzle pieces.

A Subject who wins in the plunder war will receive no rewards — all spoils are turned over to the King, who holds the right to distribute rewards.

When a Subject’s puzzle piece count reaches zero, they are demoted to a Commoner and must leave the battlefield.

…”

As the Inspector continued his explanation, text appeared on the walls once more, with the complex rules appearing line by line before everyone’s eyes —

Not that they were actually all that complex. It was essentially the system getting a group of players to slaughter each other.

But they weren’t exactly simple either — because they involved two different identities:

King, and Subject.

The Inspector smiled at the crowd and asked: “So then… will you choose King, or Subject? Or will you withdraw from the war and forfeit your chance to collect all the puzzle pieces entirely? You have 10 hours to consider.”

With those words, the Inspector’s image disappeared, leaving only the walls covered in rule text.

Someone almost immediately started having second thoughts.

Su Man was one of them.

She had only just moments ago been thrilled to have won three puzzle pieces for herself — and now she only felt like what she was holding was a pile of scorching trouble!

“I can’t do this, I can’t do this…” Su Man groaned in frustration. “I’m not cut out for this…”

She was all too clear on her own capabilities. If she entered a game together with her companions, she might be able to contribute. But if she had to enter a game alone, playing mind games and schemes, she was completely no match for anyone else!

Lu Yuwen consoled her: “If you forfeit, your puzzle pieces will be reclaimed. You might as well choose Subject — that way, even if you lose in a game, there’s no danger, you just lose one puzzle piece.”

“But then who becomes King?” Su Man looked worriedly toward her companions.

A Subject had to be affiliated with a King in order to survive.

Yan Qingwen thought for a moment, then looked at Shen Mo and Bai Youwei. “King or Subject — what are you two thinking?”

Bai Youwei answered openly: “The King has the right to distribute rewards, can recruit Subjects, can sanction Subjects — obviously you choose King~”

“But the risk for a King is very high.” Yan Qingwen analyzed calmly. “A Subject who loses a game only loses puzzle pieces. But a King who loses a game loses their life. That means a King must maintain an unbroken winning record throughout the war games in order to collect all the puzzle pieces.”

“High risk comes with high reward, naturally.” Bai Youwei’s expression remained calm, with no sign of changing her mind. “The King can recruit Subjects, receive Subjects’ spoils, distribute rewards freely, and even demote Subjects to Commoners. With that many privileges, a higher risk is only natural.

Our original goal was always to collect puzzle pieces. If we choose Subject, we’re essentially handing our rewards over to someone else — what’s the point in that?”

Yan Qingwen thought it over, then turned to Shen Mo. “What about you?”

Shen Mo said mildly: “I’ll also choose King.”

Yan Qingwen’s mouth curved slightly. “Not worried about internal competition?”

Shen Mo shook his head with a cool expression. “The King has one opportunity to surrender. This detail in the design was clearly put in place specifically to encourage cooperative alliances.

Internal competition can be resolved through surrendering. But if there’s only one King, the risk becomes too concentrated — that’s actually more disadvantageous.”

Once Bai Youwei fell, the remaining Subjects would be leaderless and could only go seek shelter under another King.

Yan Qingwen glanced at Bai Youwei, then back at Shen Mo. “In that case… it means both of you have to maintain unbroken winning records — otherwise, you’ll still die.”

Bai Youwei lazily propped her chin in her hand and asked him: “After all that rambling, which side are you planning to choose?”

“Me…” Yan Qingwen smiled slightly. “I’ll also choose King.”

Bai Youwei laughed. “Oh? Not afraid of dying anymore?”

“Afraid — still afraid, of course.” Yan Qingwen’s smile faded. “It’s just that, compared to death, there are things I’m even more afraid of.”

—