Chapter 39: You Are the Anomaly!

Half an hour...
Forty minutes...
Fifty minutes...

As more than half the exam time slipped away, not a single class in the entire Dark Night High School had successfully identified the hidden specter. Chen Mu’s class was faring relatively well; bolstered by his prestige, the students remained composed. While they buzzed with chatter, there had been no injuries or deaths.

The other classes were not so fortunate. In the classroom next to Chen Mu’s, four candidates had already been killed in less than an hour.

Slaughter is a Pandora’s box; once opened, it cannot be closed. After killing the first person, the students in that class could no longer stop their murderous rampage. They adopted a seemingly democratic method to carry out their killings: whenever a suspect was identified, the entire class held a vote. As long as the majority voted in favor, the individual was executed to see if they were the specter. No one wanted to die; everyone was desperate to find the entity. Consequently, every vote saw nearly 90% in favor. In reality, it was nothing more than a tyranny of the mob.

Everyone lived in constant fear.

"Kill him!"
"He hasn't spoken a word—he must be the specter!"
"Right! I’m his friend, and he’s not acting like his usual self. He must be possessed!"
"Everyone, start the vote! Raise your hand if you agree!"

*Swish.*

A sea of hands went up. Unsurprisingly, the majority was reached.

"Kill him!"
"Kill him!"
"Kill him!"

Caught in a feverish frenzy, the students were nearly insane, using this brutal ritual to vent their inner terror and despair. Finally, after another boy was killed, a bespectacled student stood up. He was the class top-scorer, known for his academic brilliance. He stood tall and spoke in a steady, calm tone:

"Everyone, quiet down. Listen to me! I have found the specter!"

The moment he spoke, the frantic classroom fell silent. Every pair of eyes turned toward the prodigy.

"You found the specter?"
"Who is it? Tell us!"
"You’re the smartest one in class; if you say so, it must be true."

Under the urgent pressure of his classmates, the student declared:

"The specter hidden in this classroom is right before our eyes! They are sitting right there, and everyone can see them! Our invigilator—you are the specter hidden in this class. The one we are looking for is you!"

The surrounding students exchanged confused glances.

"Hey, genius, what nonsense are you spouting? The rules stated from the beginning that the invigilator is a specter."
"Exactly, we already knew that."

The student smiled—a mysterious, confident smile—and said:

"Yes, the truth is often that simple. You have all overthought this to the point where you’ve forgotten that the answer is right in front of us. The rules stated there is a specter in the classroom. Did the rules explicitly state that the specter is *not* the invigilator? No! The rules never defined the identity of the specter! We have a specter in the room, and the invigilator is a specter... therefore, the conclusion is natural: the specter we are tasked to find is the invigilator!"

After he finished, the classroom erupted.

"My god, could it really be that simple?"
"How is that possible? How could a mission be that easy?"
"But think about it—what he says makes sense."
"The rules didn't say the specter *wasn't* the invigilator."
"Damn! He’s actually right!"

The student added, "That is the cruelty of the rules. They told us at the very start that the invigilator was a specter, which biased our thinking. We assumed the task would require immense effort, that it couldn't possibly be as simple as pointing at the invigilator. We’ve spent years taking exams, and our thinking has become rigid; we subconsciously assume, 'How could the test be this easy?' We’ve all fallen into a cognitive trap, ignoring the simplest answer! Furthermore, I have evidence. Look at the third point regarding the specter's characteristics: 'The specter, just like humans, has four limbs.' Everyone saw that and subconsciously assumed the specter had taken the form of a student, so you spent the last hour observing each other. But have you considered that this sentence is actually a hint? The invigilator, like everyone else, has four limbs. This proves the invigilator is the specter we are looking for!"

Following his impassioned speech, the class was once again in an uproar.

"Damn! He’s right!"
"A genius indeed, seeing the truth at a glance."
"Great! We’re going to survive."
"Quick! We have the answer, let's hand in our papers!"
"Hand them in!"

Under the shadow of death, the candidates were desperate to escape. Having heard the answer, they were all convinced and couldn't wait to submit their papers. The invigilator, sitting at the podium, watched the excited students with a sinister smile. Yet, in their fervor, no one—not even the prodigy—noticed it.

"Teacher, we want to submit our papers."
"Are you sure?" the invigilator asked.
"Yes!" nearly every student shouted in unison.
"Very well, hand them in," the invigilator said with a chilling grin. "Once the papers are collected, I will reveal the answer, and you will know if you were correct."

Meanwhile, in Chen Mu’s classroom, a student had a sudden epiphany and shouted, "I’ve got it! The invigilator is the specter!"

In truth, after an hour of adaptation, many students' brains were racing. There were quite a few who, like the prodigy next door, had concluded that the invigilator was the target. Chen Mu looked at the excited student, shook his head coldly, and said, "No. Your answer is wrong."

"Why?" the student asked, unconvinced.

"Heh, believe me—anyone who submits that answer has already sealed their fate to die for failing the exam," Chen Mu replied.

As his words faded, a chorus of screams and shrieks erupted from the classroom next door.