Overprotected By My Tsundere CEO-Chapter 663 - 407: Variety Show Filming (Part 2) – Master Pedro: I’m an NPC

Chapter 663: Chapter 407: Variety Show Filming (Part 2) – Master Pedro: I’m an NPC

The ground floor’s buffet was quite formal, with a wide variety of food to choose from, accommodating over a hundred patrons. Meanwhile, the program crew had arranged for sixty to seventy guest extras.

The six of them were among the crowd, and once dispersed, finding each other would be challenging.

Jerry Yates and Nora Scott agreed to separate. After Jerry picked out several ingredients and looked for Nora, he unexpectedly found Nora with Hugo Queiroz.

The two were carrying trays, chatting side by side, looking more like a loving couple.

Jerry Yates: "..."

Though they were only pretending to be a couple, they were ultimately part of the same team, and seeing Nora so blatantly collaborating with others made Jerry slightly uncomfortable.

This woman must be toxic.

Could she be more obvious?

"Have you chosen?"

Hugo Queiroz approached, smiling amiably, and proactively asked Jerry.

Jerry Yates nodded slightly.

"Then let’s sit together. Claudio and the others have chosen a spot, and we can each exchange information." Hugo suggested.

"Okay."

After a brief consideration, Jerry glanced at Nora, who was picking out fruit nearby, felt a bit disdainful, then agreed with Hugo.

Hugo gave Jerry a meaningful glance.

The brief encounter with Nora was enough to reveal her intelligence and calm demeanor, not to mention her manner of conduct; Nora was not an ordinary person. If Jerry’s mindset wasn’t adjusted correctly—

He might end up being played by Nora.

Hugo... was a little excited.

The curve of his lips became more pronounced.

...

Not long after, the six of them sat together.

"Diana Johnson and I are father and daughter. We received an invitation one week ago, which included a plane ticket and hotel information. It said if we wanted to fulfill our wish, we should come to this hotel tonight." Claudio introduced first.

Anastasia nodded, then introduced herself: "Carlos and I are brothers. Like you, we received exactly the same invitation a week ago."

"Couple." As Nora savored a piece of fruit, she spoke unhurriedly, "Same."

"You are a couple?"

Anastasia feigned surprise, exaggerating her expression.

—Everyone could see that Nora and Jerry Yates didn’t act like a couple at all. Using this as a tease served to ease audience discomfort and subtly remind the two of them.

Nora responded with a sound of "Hmm."

"Will you break up?" Claudio teased, "My brother is still single; I wonder if there’s a chance?"

Nora replied with a startling comment, "Sure, I’ll contact you as soon as we break up."

"..."

Diana Johnson almost spat her noodles.

Hugo Queiroz was taken aback, then laughed.

The two teachers were at a loss whether to laugh or cry.

Only Jerry Yates appeared awkward and uncomfortable, growing more rigid.

Anastasia timely steered the topic, "So, what wishes do you all have?"

"..."

Everyone unanimously chose to remain silent.

Anastasia laughed to ease the awkwardness, "Well, we’re not familiar now, let’s wait until we know each other better."

Nora chuckled and, using a fork to twirl her noodles, spoke leisurely, "I just asked; the front desk staff and waiters are all first-timers, unfamiliar with the hotel’s business. Based on this, we can infer it’s the hotel’s reopening day. However, the number of customers... seems a bit too high. The receptionist mentioned she only hosted six guests."

"You asked all that?" Diana Johnson was surprised.

Nora raised an eyebrow without speaking.

Hugo Queiroz took the initiative, "I asked a few people. They all had normal reasons for staying here: business trips, leisure, or visiting friends... plenty of reasons. However, one thing—"

Pausing, Hugo scanned the group, smiling warmly, but his voice suddenly lowered a few decibels, "Their timing seems stuck a year ago."

Hugo’s voice was highly infectious.

A testament to this was everyone feeling an unexpected chill upon his words, involuntarily getting goosebumps.

Knowing it was a recorded show and everything was fake, the eerie atmosphere Hugo created and a certain indescribable immersion left everyone stunned.

Looking anew at the bustling guests around, they even found them hard to gaze upon directly.

—The information Hugo obtained suggested: the guests present were all NPCs, the same group staying at the hotel a year ago.

However, is the number of these people a bit excessive?

Or perhaps, the reported death toll was inaccurate.

Diana Johnson was wholly focused on eating, not realizing she could have asked the NPCs for information, remained silent, only thinking Nora and Hugo were peculiar.

Claudio, Anastasia, and Jerry Yates were relatively alert, noticing something off, like some guests bearing burn marks or the elevators only reaching the third floor, other buttons being broken, staircases locked off, making entrance and exit impossible.

The more information they exchanged, the more suspicious points emerged, intensifying the feeling of chills.

Once done with the meal, besides Nora and Hugo, who seemed to enjoy their food, the other four found it tasteless and gobbled a few bites before losing their appetite.

Thank heaven, the food wasn’t poisoned; they finished the meal without any broadcasts suggesting a loss of life.

"Share any information anytime."

Before leaving the hallway, Anastasia gave these instructions.

The others all responded in agreement, then turned around and returned to their respective rooms.

However, in less than five minutes——

"Ah——ah——ah——"

A sharp, panicked scream echoed from the hallway.

An unfamiliar voice.

Among the guests, there were only Nora Scott and Diana Johnson as women, and this distressing scream clearly wasn’t from either of them.

Jerry Yates was idling, and upon hearing the sound, he immediately headed to the door, reaching out to open it, only for a hand to suddenly stop him. Nora Scott reminded him coolly, "Wait!"

Jerry Yates turned his head to look at her.

Nora Scott pointed her chin towards the peephole, gently reminding, "Check the peephole first."

Jerry Yates: ???

You still have the mind to check the peephole at a time like this?

Jerry Yates glanced at Nora Scott with a sullen face, slightly turned his body, and seeing that Nora Scott was a woman, he decided not to argue with her. Very perfunctorily, he leaned in front of the peephole, taking a look.

That one glance nearly sent Jerry Yates into a shock-induced state.

"Shit."

Unable to hold back, Jerry Yates cursed, instinctively jumping back.

"What is it?" Nora Scott turned to look at him.

His face slightly pale, Jerry Yates’s breathing became noticeably heavier. He licked his dry lips, his voice a bit unsteady, "There... there’s a pair of eyes."

"..."

Nora Scott suddenly understood.

No wonder Jerry Yates was so panicked—seeing another pair of eyes through the peephole unexpectedly is definitely a five-star-level fright.

Glancing at the peephole, Jerry Yates pursed his lips slightly, his scalp tingling, not daring to look again. He paused and asked Nora Scott, "How did you know someone was outside?"

"I didn’t," Nora Scott replied unhurriedly, "Being cautious is a means of survival."

Jerry Yates: "..."

How tough and perilous must your life be for you to make caution a habit?

With Nora Scott preventing him, the door of room 306 didn’t open, but the doors of rooms 305 and 309 definitely did, causing a commotion in the hallway——

"Holy crap crap crap——"

"What the hell is this!"

"Ahhh, don’t come near me, stay away from me——"

"Help, ah ah ah ah ah!"

...

The noises came from the people in rooms 305 and 309.

A few minutes later, the chaotic noises subsided, and Jerry Yates, obviously uncomfortable, broke out in a cold sweat, silently thankful for the cautious presence of Nora Scott.

——Otherwise, his fate might have been like those outside.

If this weren’t a game but reality, they’d probably be on the verge of losing their lives.

Amidst all this, Jerry Yates mustered the courage to look through the peephole again, but this time, it was directly covered, pitch-black, and he couldn’t see anything.

...

Once the noises outside disappeared, doors closing could be heard from both 305 and 309.

Then, Anastasia raised her voice to loudly remind them——

"Nora Scott! Jerry Yates! Do not leave your room! There’s danger outside!"

"Got it."

Nora Scott responded.

Then, Jerry Yates knocked on the door, asking, "What happened to you?"

Claudio responded, "There are ’ghosts’ in the hallway! A bunch of them! Once you’re caught, you ’die’!"

Both teachers had some resilience, but the recent ordeal frightened them quite a bit, and there was a hint of panic in their voices.

The special effects makeup artists from the Escape Room show team were all international, and the NPCs’ makeup... especially the horror effects, were top-notch.

Having participated in the Zombie Academy game before, Nora Scott was well aware, and she understood the teachers’ panic.

"Is it starting now?"

Joining the show for the first time, Jerry Yates furrowed his brows, cluelessly asking.

"The production team has a set of plans, from A to B to C to D and E, with at least five of each for the same segment. So the guests have a high degree of freedom in playing the game." Nora Scott didn’t mind explaining to him, "Pulling something like this means we gathered enough information downstairs, step out and you die, preventing us from gathering more intel."

Jerry Yates: "..."

The analysis was well-reasoned and unassailable.

Just then——

A deep and authoritative voice broadcasted: "Diana Johnson, Carlos, Claudio, Hugo Queiroz have been captured, death once. You have four chances left."

???

Nora Scott raised an eyebrow.

CEO Langley, are you really short on money for broadcasting?