Father’s visit this time seemed to be on a sudden whim, yet he saw another side of his daughter, the only one left. Susan Wright couldn’t figure out what Adrian Wright really meant, nor did she have the energy to focus on her father. She felt that today hadn’t gone smoothly. Back in the dorm, she climbed into bed, pretending to take a nap, and opened the letter.

Just like you.

I did it again today, and she didn’t notice at all—she drank it.

So satisfying.

Still haven’t figured out your method?

Another classmate

Susan Wright was stunned, and the fear that had been suppressed outside the toxicology lab surged back, doubled.

Is this talking about yesterday?

How could that be? What did I drink yesterday? Did I ever let my water out of my sight? How did he do it?

Susan Wright’s mind was in chaos. For a moment, she couldn’t recall how many times she’d drunk water yesterday, or under what circumstances each time. She only knew that she’d been extremely vigilant lately, thinking she had plenty of time to play a game of deduction with the poisoner, but she hadn’t expected that she’d already drunk the poison again!

Don’t panic. Susan Wright, calm down, Susan Wright, thank goodness we have this correspondence! I can definitely turn the tables.

She took out pen and paper and immediately began to write a reply. Halfway through, her hands were shaking, but she tore up the letter—she realized she’d written it in her normal handwriting.

I’ve got it! A very interesting method, it shouldn’t be detected, at least under current medical testing conditions, the chances of detection are very low. I just need a bit more time to prepare, it’ll be ready soon, I can hardly wait to see the results.

The only thing I’m a bit concerned about is whether the method I use and yours might interact. If there’s a “chemical reaction” and it causes too obvious physical symptoms, that would be bad. Can you tell me, roughly what mechanism your method uses to slowly destroy her body?

Wishing Susan Wright rest in peace soon.

A classmate

Before class in the afternoon, she dropped this letter into the tree hollow. How would he reply? The tone of the last letter had become much more casual, not as cautious as at first. Her question was a bit too direct, but what else could she do? If she kept getting poisoned, how much longer could she survive?

5

Susan Wright hadn’t expected to be discovered by Fiona Bennett.

She’d done this several times already. When everyone is sound asleep, they’re most relaxed. Maybe they’ll reveal some secret in their sleep talk, or if they harbor any malicious thoughts, their expressions might turn sinister. Would someone plotting to kill her look as peaceful as an ordinary college student when asleep? Actually, she just wanted to see these faces clearly, up close and unguarded—it would be more real than in the daytime. Maybe at some moment, her intuition would tell her who it was.

But she was actually caught by Fiona Bennett. Seeing Fiona Bennett pretending to sleep, Susan Wright found it a bit funny—her face stiff with her eyes closed, clearly frightened. She knew what Fiona Bennett really looked like when asleep; she’d seen it the night before.

So now, what should she do about Fiona Bennett? She’d put a lot of effort into winning this ally. Fiona Bennett was like her little shadow, eyes shining with admiration, always following her lead. But after all, they’d only become friends this semester, not for long. Seeing her act so strangely in the middle of the night, Fiona Bennett would probably start to distance herself, right? If so, she’d be back to being completely isolated.

So, what about dragging Fiona Bennett into this? Would that be too cruel to such an innocent child? After all, between her and the poisoner, it was a life-and-death struggle.

Susan Wright’s hesitation lasted until she received the next reply.

Before class in the morning, she went to the pine grove again. She didn’t expect to get a reply so soon—after all, she’d received a letter at noon yesterday and replied in the afternoon, and they’d never replied this quickly before. But she couldn’t help herself; she couldn’t be at ease without checking. Maybe in this reply, she’d finally learn what kind of poison she’d been given.

There was actually a reply in the tree hollow. Susan Wright quickly glanced around, then opened the letter under the tree.

No matter what method you use, it won’t interact with mine. The portions I use are very stable. Remember to keep the dose small each time, to create the illusion of a chronic illness with long-term health decline. Sudden death is risky, understand? The pine grove isn’t convenient—let’s switch places. You know the last wobbly, unused desk in the self-study classroom? If you have a letter, stick it under the desk.

Another classmate

As expected, he didn’t say. Still too impatient with the questioning, Susan Wright thought. Looks like it’s time to bring Fiona Bennett in. She needed someone to take the lead and stir things up. Fiona Bennett could become a bright searchlight—maybe she wouldn’t actually uncover anything, but at least she’d force that person to be more cautious and slow down the poisoning. To catch him, she’d still have to rely on herself.

But with Fiona Bennett’s personality, if she knew there was a murderer, would she dare to charge forward?

Because she was late, by the time she entered the classroom, several groups of students had already started dissecting. The sounds of forceps, scissors, muscles, and bones being pulled and cut all blended together—something unimaginable to non-medical students. Susan Wright was used to it, but Fiona Bennett was far from it. Her face was pale as she gripped the scalpel and inhaled. Susan Wright walked over to her and asked how she was feeling today. Fiona Bennett said she felt a bit more relaxed. Indeed, during the first class, she’d been so scared she almost fainted, but now she could stand straight, not tremble, and make incisions—all thanks to Susan Wright’s exposure therapy and encouragement. Although Susan Wright had her own motives, what she showed was exactly what a true friend should do.

Susan Wright watched as Fiona Bennett lifted the skin of the chest on her side, separated the fat under her instructions, and cut the attachment of the pectoralis major. She felt this girl was practically her own creation. In the process of overcoming her fear of dissection, Fiona Bennett’s fear of the world was also slowly diminishing. In some ways, the pressure Fiona Bennett’s father put on her was somewhat similar to Adrian Wright’s. Did she really want to drag this girl into the whirlpool? She could foresee her being torn apart, but how much would it help herself? Susan Wright actually hesitated.

She seemed to hear Fiona Bennett calling her. Susan Wright looked up and saw the same emotion in Fiona Bennett’s eyes as always. Even after last night’s strange events, she still held onto that friendship and trust! She can do it, Susan Wright immediately realized, and snapped back to clarity.

“Last night. You saw it,” Susan Wright said.

Fiona Bennett was startled, then apologized. Susan Wright said, “Sorry for scaring you.” Fiona Bennett asked if she was sleepwalking. Susan Wright hesitated for a moment, then said, “Someone wants to kill me.” Fiona Bennett clearly didn’t catch it, so Susan Wright repeated the words loudly.

This sentence sounded so abrupt amid the symphony of cadaver dissection that almost all the students noticed. Susan Wright calmly met the gazes directed at her. She didn’t expect to spot any unusual expression from the poisoner, but at least, the poisoner would understand that Fiona Bennett was now involved—there was now one more person to deal with.

6

Susan Wright used a sewing needle to poke a hole in a bottle of mineral water, shook it a few times to make the pinhole obvious, and placed the bottle next to the microscope during the histology class. Yesterday, she hadn’t told Fiona Bennett everything, but had left things half-concealed, waiting for Fiona Bennett to discover them herself. Things you find out on your own are always more convincing than what others tell you.

Halfway through the class, Susan Wright returned from the bathroom, composed herself, reached for the water bottle, and then screamed. Her face was full of emotion as she rushed out with the bottle.

Susan Wright threw the bottle into the trash can in front of the bathroom. On her way back, she saw Fiona Bennett walking out of the classroom.

Go look for that bottle, find the pinhole on it, Susan Wright thought. Fiona Bennett was a careful girl; she shouldn’t miss it.

However, the reason she staged this little drama today wasn’t just to make Fiona Bennett believe there was a poisoner. Ever since the first letter, Susan Wright had been crafting her own persona—a cautious inquirer, with a hint of admiration and awe. In other words, a weakling. Weakness means safety; if the other party feels safe, they’ll naturally lower their guard. But this weakling couldn’t just talk without acting, or she wouldn’t be convincing. What does it look like when a weakling takes action? That’s exactly what Susan Wright wanted to show today. She believed that after this “pledge of loyalty,” the other party’s vigilance would drop even further.

I did something stupid today, or rather, I didn’t expect her vigilance to be this high already. I thought I was being completely stealthy, but she actually noticed. It was the most terrified I’ve ever been in my life—no exaggeration, every muscle in my body was stiff. Luckily, Susan Wright was also scared; she actually ran out and threw away the bottle, and didn’t make a fuss about it. What a relief.