That message is put up everywhere…

It was in the living room, this conference room, and the dining room, and in the selection round, which had long been over.

Once everyone put away their empty meal boxes, Reina started blinking red in the middle of the table and started talking.

[Okay, let’s make this quick. Let me introduce the game you will be playing.]

“…!!”

Too much time had passed for the words, “let’s make this short” to bear any relevance.

All 12 players’ eyes were on Reina, who finally began to describe the game that would decide their fate.

[Now, you will all be playing Mafia here. It is also known as Werewolf or Lupus in Tabula. Have you heard of it?]

What?

The players began speaking among themselves. Most of the younger players nodded, whereas the older ones looked clueless. Junsung was one of the younger ones who knew about the game. It was a party game, where the players are divided into two groups, mostly citizens and a few mafia members. During the day, players discuss and vote to eliminate a mafia member. At night, the mafia choose and eliminate a citizen.

It’s a game I’d played countless times in college parties! Can’t believe those stupid drinking parties actually help!

The game was unpredictable. There were some people in the room who did not have a clue about it in the first place. This pleased Junsung.

Reina went on. [Don’t panic. It’s okay if you don’t know the game. The rules are very simple. Let me explain. Even if you know the rules, please focus. There are many different points here. So what matters are the rules, really. Tee-hee-hee.]

This Artificial Intelligence has changed, not just the gender but the way it talks…

Reina's titter sounded almost evil. It was like a villain who had just revealed their identity, which sent a shiver down Junsung’s spine. Reina projected a slide show on the wall and continued.

[The players will have one of four jobs. Focus on my light!]

Roles in Mafia

Each of the 12 players is assigned 1 of the 4 roles: mafia, sheriff, doctor, or citizen. There are 3 mafia members, 1 sheriff, 1 doctor, and 7 citizens.

With 12 players, that sounds reasonable.

[The rules will be sent to your personal tablets later, so no need to memorize them. Let’s just go with the flow now, okay?]

“Tablets?”

[Oh, your tablets are in the drawers in front of you. Leave them, they won’t turn on now.]

Despite Reina telling the players to leave the tablets, a few opened their drawers anyway. They concentrated on the tablets. Junsung just realized that his smartphone and wallet had been taken away.

Well, I guess I’ll get them back later. Whatever.

He could just replace them with new ones if he got out of this alive. What he needed most right now was the personal tablet provided by Reina, and not his smartphone. Reina kept talking.

[Your role must remain a secret when the game begins. The citizens can hold trials during the day and kill a mafia member through a vote. The mafia can kill one of the citizens at night through a vote. Voting literally means selecting one player, on your tablet. The tablet is a critical item for you. Let’s look at the rules now.]

Ground Rules

Players cannot make physical contact with other players. Players cannot touch or sneak a look at another player’s tablet. Players cannot show their tablets to another player. Players cannot leave the designated area of the game (30 meters from the mansion). All votes in the game will be cast in the form of open ballots (voters voting openly).

[Easy, right? I’ve mentioned rule one multiple times. Rules two and three intend to preserve everyone’s privacy. Rule five is the spice of this game, really. It is a “law.” On the other hand, rules one through four are “rules.” If you break them, you will be eliminated, so careful, careful! Any questions?]

“Number three! Why can’t we show each other our tablets?” raised his hand and asked enthusiastically.

Reina responded nonchalantly: [You’ll figure it out as you play.]

“Oh, okay.”

What? Why not? Just tell us now!

Junsung was frantically thinking to himself when began nodding as if he understood. Junsung felt like he was already lagging behind.

[Now, about the day and night. Let’s speed up a little. This game will be played in real-time. A day in this game is the same as a day in the real world, as is the night. So, you eat, sleep, and play the game right here in this house. You will have some clothes to wear and enough to eat for a month, but there is no way you would use it all. Now let me explain what a typical day in Mafia is like.]

Game Plan (Daytime - Selection and Trial)

The day lasts from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. During the day, players get a chance to hold one trial. If most players agree to [vote to select or not], the selection vote begins. The player selected by most players in the [selection vote] stands trial.

4-1. In case of a tie in the selection vote, there will be a final vote. In case of another tie in the final vote, there will be no trial.

A player who stands trial is eliminated if most players agree in the [elimination vote]. If a player eliminated after a trial turns out to be a mafia member, the players get a chance to hold another trial.

Game Plan (Nighttime)

The night lasts from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. At night, the mafia members hold a selection vote to eliminate a player. A player who receives two or more votes becomes the target for elimination.

3-1. If there is only one mafia member left, only one vote is necessary.

3-2. If there aren’t enough votes, there is no elimination that night.

The sheriff selects one player to identify whether he or she is a citizen or mafia member. The doctor selects one player to save them from the mafia’s attack.

[Blah blah blah… It may all sound familiar if you’ve ever played this game before. During the day, the citizens hold a trial to find and kill a mafia member. At night, the mafia members kill a citizen that may have annoyed them. Any questions?]

It all went by too fast. The players who had never heard of Mafia before were busy reading all the rules. Even Junsung, who had played this game before was struggling. Meanwhile, a twenty-something woman with the name tag raised her hand and asked a question.

“There seems to be too many votes during the day. In Mafia, if one player is selected, they just get eliminated. But these rules tell us to vote thrice, like [vote to select or not], [selection vote], and [elimination vote]?”

“I know. That [vote to select or not] sounds kind of ridiculous, if you ask me.”

agreed with . Reina swayed briefly from side to side.

[Hmm. That’s not exactly a question, but a just personal complaint. The procedures are much “easier,” “simpler,” and “quicker” than you think. You’ll figure it out as you play, especially by the last day.]

“……??”

Well, yeah, you just need to jump into the game to get the hang of it.

It was impossible to just ‘jump into’ this game right now.

, a man in his fifties, spoke up with his hands trembling. “Shit, I ain’t got a clue. Can’t we just… try a practice round or somethin’?”

[Aww, no way. A practice round will really affect the main game. Denied.]

“B-b-but if we get eliminated, we die! This collar will blow up!”

[You’re right. I missed the most important part here. Excuse me.]

Reina added another sentence right on top of the list of Ground Rules.

The eliminated players will lose their lives.

“…”

This didn’t seem to change the looks on the players’ faces as they were already aware of this fact. However, there was a clear difference between knowing something and having to see it in your face, especially when it comes to something shocking like death. The players began asking questions. The bulky raised his hand.

“I heard there’s a chance that all players can survive… But nothing about this game seems like it can make that possible!”

Huh? That’s right…!

Some players would clearly die in Mafia. Quite a few, actually. There would be a minimum number of victims if the citizens could find all three mafia members and kill them, but this would still kill three players. It was a rather ideal case scenario, but usually, many players are eliminated in Mafia.

A murmur swept through the room, when and , both women, raised their hands and complained about different things.

“Wait. You said there were 11 players, but why are there 12 here? The prize money’s still 3.3 billion won! This means less for each winner!”

“You also lied about the game. You said in the selection round that it’s the Turing test, and it’s also written all over this house. And now you say it’s Mafia?”

A protest began to unfold among the group members. The players began to raise countless questions about the game and its rules. As they continued talking, their collars suddenly made loud, shrill beeping sounds.

“…!?”

It was a horrifying sound that sent a squeezing pain right into everyone’s heart. The sound from their necks shut them up, leaving them in complete silence. Reina blinked red and began to speak.

[Okay, everyone. Quiet, quiet. Sorry, it was just a machine check…]

Fucking bitch! She could have just told them to be quiet instead of demonstrating her power!

Junsung was seething, and it seemed like all the other players felt the same way. But Reina continued speaking nonchalantly.

[I am impressed by the excellent quality of your questions. Instead of answering each one, I think I will answer all of them at once. Let me first summarize your questions. “1. What are the terms for all 11 players to survive?” “2. Why are there 12 players instead of 11, like we originally said?” and “3. Why is this game called the Turing test when it’s just Mafia?” Tee-hee-hee.]

What’s with the giggle? Don’t even start.

They were all waiting for a lubricant to remove the friction from their game. But in addition to all those rules that Junsung was struggling to follow, Reina dropped another bomb.

[There is one hidden among the 12 players.]

Just like Judas among the Twelve Apostles in The Last Supper.