With Big Herta's dashing departure.
Owlbert picked up the microphone with trembling hands. Even his lips were shaking, and the white breath he exhaled was clearly visible under the lights. It felt less like he was hosting a show and more like he was conducting a polar expedition.
"U-Unexpectedly... Lady Big Herta... actually chose to... conserve her strength! As expected of Lady Herta. Such a wise decision!"
He felt as if his tongue was about to freeze stiff, with almost no sensation left.
"Now on stage, only Little Herta from the Boss Team and March 7th from the Castorice Team remain! Can they... can they still hold on?"
Although that was what he said out loud, Owlbert was screaming internally:
Stop holding on! Please! Just end it already! If this continues, he suspected he might not make it off this stage alive. Tomorrow's headline would be: "Famous Host Found Frozen to Death — The Joke Was Too Much."
Would this count as a work injury?
He would definitely have to ask Boss Su Chen to reimburse him for mental damage, medical fees, and a top-tier down jacket later!
[She... left? Big Herta... just left like that?]
[I think leaving was the right choice. Freezing your brain for one point isn't worth it. Look, she was even walking funny when she left.]
[I agree... This is no longer an intelligence competition... This is a Siberian survival challenge.]
[Now on stage it's just Little Herta... and March 7th. But... it feels like... Little Herta's CPU is about to burn out. Her eyes are already unfocused...]
[I... go... why... even typing a comment... is making me shiver...]
On stage, Cyno turned his gaze toward Little Herta. She had just raised her hand, though the movement was somewhat stiff.
"Lady Little Herta, you raised your hand because...?"
Little Herta's body suddenly stiffened. Then, extremely slowly, she moved her arm.
"N-Nothing. My arm was just a little sore. I was stretching to promote blood circulation."
"Very good." Cyno gave a faint smile. That smile, in everyone's eyes, was no different from the gaze of the Grim Reaper. "Then, let us continue to the next round."
He cleared his throat, and a new wave of mental contamination descended.
"One day, Di Renjie told his wife that he planned to remove the character 'Ren' from his name. His wife asked why?"
Cyno showed no mercy whatsoever.
"Di Renjie said: If I were DJ, would you still love me?"
"Hahahahahaha..." Shush beside him let out an extremely piercing mechanical laugh that sounded especially eerie in the cold, deathly silent theater.
"This is the best joke I've heard in my life! It's quite amusing!"
The live stream audience had completely given up on resisting. The bullet comments had stopped. Many people silently turned off their air conditioning and pulled out last year's down jackets from their closets.
Backstage.
"Achoo!" Sparkle hugged her arms and let out a violent sneeze. Even the tip of her nose had turned red from the cold.
"Achoo! Achoo!" Su Chen and Mydei also got hit one after another. The three of them instinctively huddled together, shivering like three quails trying to stay warm in the cold wind.
On stage, Little Herta's expression had completely frozen.
She stood there motionless, staring blankly ahead with lifeless eyes, transformed into a delicate yet fragile ice sculpture.
Only March 7th still stood tall. The white mist from her breath had simply grown a little thicker.
"Contestant Little Herta... has lost consciousness! She's crashed!" Owlbert used the last of his strength to raise the microphone with trembling hands and announced, "The final winner of this round's intelligence competition is — Miss March 7th from the Castorice Team!"
The moment his words fell, Owlbert's eyes rolled back, and he collapsed straight backward, finally achieving his career dream of "earning money while standing, claiming work injury while lying down."
March 7th staggered off the stage, her steps somewhat unsteady. She didn't notice the fatigue in her eyes.
In a voice only she could hear, she muttered to herself.
"March... March, this is already my limit..."
"I've already done everything I can."
"I didn't expect... Cyno to be this strong. Even I almost couldn't hold on."
"Good thing my ice resistance is already maxed out... Whew..."
"Next, I probably won't wake up for a while..."
"It's up to you now."
The instant her words fell, her calm eyes once again returned to their usual clear and foolish state.
"Huh? Why am I here? Is the competition over? Did I win?"
March 7th blinked and returned to the backstage area with a completely blank expression.
Then, she was stunned by the scene before her.
The backstage had turned into a temporary field hospital.
Including the host Owlbert, who had just been carried down by the staff, more than half of the theater's staff and contestants were lying scattered across the floor, covered with whatever clothing, curtains, or tablecloths they could find, muttering "So cold."
Meanwhile, Hyacine, Luocha, Bailu, and several doctors were running back and forth between the "patients," sweating profusely and looking extremely busy.
"Quick! Take this gentleman's temperature! Is the thermometer frozen?"
"Doctor Luocha, we need more hot water bottles over here! The more the better!"
"Aiya!" Bailu stomped her foot. "My acupuncture needles are all frozen and stuck in the box!"
Director Mr. Reca, wrapped in a thick blanket, also arrived on the scene, shivering. Looking at this human tragedy, he issued what was probably the most tragic order of his career into the walkie-talkie.
"All channels, attention! All channels, attention! Insert half an hour of advertisements... no, insert one hour! Before... before starting the next match, ensure everyone's life safety first! This is an order!"
Then, with trembling hands, Mr. Reca switched the walkie-talkie to a private channel.
"Yaoguang, Yaoguang, are you still there? How's it going on your end? Respond! Don't freeze to death!"
A burst of static came from the other side. A moment later, a female voice with a heavy nasal tone spoke.
"Achoo——!"
Yaoguang sneezed hard.
"I'm still here... Don't worry, I won't freeze to death. The content for the next match... Achoo! I've more or less figured it out... Consider it... warming everyone up..."
"Next match... what kind of match?" Mr. Reca asked urgently. He had a very bad feeling.
"The next match..." Yaoguang's voice sounded a little floaty, but carried a gritted-teeth viciousness.
"Let's compete on... whose firepower is stronger. Time to warm back up!"