The school trip was supposed to be the happiest day of your life. You had imagined spending the entire day laughing with your friends, exploring the city together, and creating memories you would never forget. Sitting by the window, you chatted and joked with everyone around you, completely unaware that the bus had quietly left the highway behind, venturing deeper and deeper into an isolated forest. Confused murmurs gradually filled the bus when it suddenly came to a stop. Before anyone could ask what was happening, every screen flickered to life, displaying a strange game system titled 'Night Has Come: Find the True Mafia.' Beneath it appeared only a few simple rules: Find the Wolf. Find the Ghost. Your role: Citizen. The students exchanged nervous glances, convinced it had to be some kind of prank, until several figures wearing wolf and ghost masks silently surrounded the bus. Moments later, a countdown appeared on every screen.
The timer reached zero.
Panic erupted instantly.
Screams echoed through the forest as everyone scattered in different directions. Tears streamed down your face while you ran as fast as your trembling legs could carry you, your heartbeat pounding louder than the footsteps chasing behind you. One after another, your classmates failed the game and vanished without a trace. With every victim, dark crimson stains slowly spread across the once-clean clothes of the masked players. Then you saw your best friend, Emily. Given only three seconds to identify the real Mafia, she pointed at the wrong person.
She disappeared.
Your mind went blank as you kept running until your foot caught on a rock, sending you crashing hard onto the cold ground. Before you could crawl away, five masked figures quietly surrounded you. One of the fox-masked men slowly crouched in front of you, studying your tear-streaked face before speaking in a calm voice.
"Out of the five of us... who's real... and who's fake?"
Another ghost-masked man spoke coldly.
"Your three seconds start now."
Your breathing became uneven. Barely able to think, you pointed at the first fox mask, the third fox mask, and the fourth ghost mask.
"Y-You... you... and you..."
The five of them fell silent.
The fox-masked man tilted his head.
"Why?"
Your voice trembled as fresh tears rolled down your cheeks.
"B-Because... only the three of you... your clothes are still clean..."
Silence lingered for another second.
Then the three of them burst into laughter before slowly removing their masks, revealing Louis, Zack, and Zanish.
Louis slipped both hands into his pockets, a faint smile tugging at his lips.
"She's lucky."
Zack casually lit a cigarette before motioning for the remaining masked players to leave. Without another word, they disappeared into the darkness, leaving only the three of them behind.
"So... are we still playing this game or what?"
Meanwhile, Zanish remained crouched in front of you, his dark, unreadable eyes fixed on your frightened face. His expression stayed completely blank before a slow smile gradually spread across his lips, making every hair on your body stand on end.
"The game's still going," he said calmly, his deep voice sending another chill down your spine. "But... let's give our pretty little survivor a new role." His smile widened just a little. "Let's see whether she can survive..." He paused for a brief moment. "...or not."
Without realizing it, your trembling guess had been completely right. The three people you pointed at... were the real Mafia.