These words made Eric Foster snicker, but just as he met Mr. Bennett's stern gaze, he quickly restrained himself. That little act of restraint was caught by the watchful Paul Carter, who glanced at him with a peculiar look. Eric Foster shrank his neck and instinctively tried to hide.

"Good, I like to see such a vibrant and energetic team."

Paul Carter paced a couple of steps on the podium, his eyes scanning pairs of eyes that reflected different states of mind—some filled with longing, excitement, and joy, and of course, some with confusion and puzzlement. He had just spoken with the old principal Olivia Bennett and was not without concern about the quality of the current graduates. Like other colleges, the police academy was also expanding enrollment, which made recruitment more difficult and diluted the purity of the team. His mind was turning, thinking about what topic to address. Maybe it was time to temper the overly high enthusiasm for staying in the provincial capital, since most people would not be selected. With this thought, he said in a deep voice, "What we need to do is very simple: today, fill out the forms; in the next two days, there will be physical tests. Those selected will spend a six-month internship handling cases in different cities across the country."

These words made the eyes of many young men and women light up. Traveling around the country before even leaving campus—just imagine, walking down the street in a shiny police uniform, basking in the admiring gazes of others. That feeling must be exhilarating.

"Before we start filling out the forms, let's play a game together to liven up the atmosphere and also to get a sense of your abilities," Paul Carter interjected at the right moment, smiling with a kindness that was hard to describe. Facing the puzzled looks of the trainees, he explained the game: "How about some deduction? It's a basic skill for a detective."

At these words, quite a few trainees straightened up, puffed out their chests, and got ready to show off. These kinds of cases were common in their regular classes, and over time, all sorts of bizarre case deductions had become one of the trainees' favorite games. When it came to this, they were all experts.

No one objected—after all, it was like Lu Ban testing apprentice carpenters. Paul Carter smiled, the wrinkles on his face deepening, and announced the question with a grin: "Please listen to the deduction conditions: One day, I caught several theft suspects. During questioning, A said it was B who did it; B said it was D; C said it wasn't me; D said B is lying. Later, it was proven that the suspect acted alone, not as a group, and only one person was telling the truth..."

The lecture hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Many of those bright eyes seemed to have already figured out the answer. The question was of moderate difficulty, but Paul Carter filtered out all the faces that couldn't hide their excitement. With a sweep of his eyes, he spotted a trainee in the back right row who had been whispering the whole time. He remembered that face—unremarkable eyebrows, not a high nose, not a big mouth—a face with no distinctive features. But there was something about him; judging by his expression, it seemed he hadn't been listening at all.

This was a clear-headed person, Paul Carter thought to himself. But he also noticed that this one belonged to the more mischievous type in the group. Multitasking, he continued explaining the question while thinking, then stepped down from the podium and called out, "Who wants to answer? Please stand up."

"Whoosh"—eleven or twelve people stood up at once, all beaming and eager to show off in front of their senior. Paul Carter noticed that the most people stood up around a certain girl—five in total. Those five spirited young men clearly wanted to impress, sneaking glances at the girl from the corners of their eyes.

The overall atmosphere was great, just as he had hoped. A sly smile flashed across Paul Carter's face...

Chapter 02: Everyone Falls Into the Trap

"Eric, it's C, right?" Ethan whispered to Eric Foster, who didn't react at first, but then heard people in the front row discussing the answer.

"Nope," Eric Foster shook his head.

"Stop pretending, as if you know. So who’s the real culprit?" Ethan mocked.

"I'm not talking about the answer," Eric Foster smiled, leaning in to whisper, "I mean, if even someone with your IQ could guess it, wouldn't that mean the organizers are a bit lacking?"

That jab made Ethan angry. He rolled his mostly white, barely black eyes and pointed at Eric Foster with a fierce curse: "Jerk!"

"Loser," Eric Foster replied with a friendly grin.

While the two were whispering, Paul Carter was already scrutinizing the eleven or twelve who had stood up. He smiled encouragingly, "Good courage! You can all answer my question at the same time. My question is..."

He deliberately paused for suspense. Just as everyone thought the answer was about to be revealed, Paul Carter grinned mischievously and changed the subject: "How many conditions did I just give? Three seconds, quick answer."

The boys who had stood up stammered, their eyes bulging and throats stuck, jaws dropping to the floor. The words on the tips of their tongues were swallowed, and none of them managed to answer. The trainees who hadn't stood up started snickering.

These deduction games are always about guessing the culprit—who would bother counting how many conditions there were? Clearly a trap.

As laughter broke out, one boy blurted out, "Five."

"Are you sure? Why not six?" Paul Carter smiled slyly, and the handsome boy really wasn't sure. He scratched his cheek and thought hard, but the room was in chaos and his mind couldn't keep up. Just as he was about to speak again, Paul Carter waved his hand: "Too slow. I declare your right to answer revoked. Please sit down."