Chapter 19 - One Step Behind

(The Earl Died Again)

Edited by Silver Wind

Truthfully speaking, there was no difference between day and night at the castle; perpetual dark clouds shrouded overhead, and it made the sunlight dismal.

And when the sun set below the mountains, the darkness only grew thicker.

The evening banquet began when the bells tolled through the castle at night.

First to enter the hall was the balding middle-aged man and the chequered shirt otaku, and they sat at the corner, anxiety distorting their expressions slightly.

After the bearded man was overcome with an inexplicable sickness, they had heightened their vigilance and they did not dare to touch anything, for fear of committing a taboo and dying in vain.

Even the delicious food set in front of them did not shake them.

However, Shen Dongqing did not abstain from the partaking.

In his opinion, the game was akin to going on vacation and it did not place a single shilling of psychological burden on him. The moment he sat down, he picked up a slice of the warm apples and delivered it to his mouth.

The chequered shirt otaku asked quietly, “You’re still eating?”

To him, it was plausible that the bearded man had met with trouble last night because he ate something, considering how he ate the most last night.

Shen Dongqing stopped his movements and said: “It’s quite delicious, no?”

Chequered shirt otaku glanced at the table of food and quietly swallowed his saliva but he did not make a move.

The bell rang.

Seemingly awoken, the balding middle-aged man opened his dull eyes.

His hands and feet were stiff as he walked out of the room soundlessly.

There were no lights in the corridor, only pitch-black darkness.

The balding middle-aged man stepped into the darkness without any hesitation.

He heard a woman’s voice which was tinged with laughter.

“Come. My sweet and pretty lamb, dedicate your everything as tribute to your Lord.”

“With your cool spring eyes, with your snowy-white skin, with your nightingale voice, with your satin black…”

Moonlight dripped down, and the back of the balding middle-aged man’s head shone like a lightbulb.

“… We can forget that, just come here.”

The Earl stood in a garden full of roses and extended her hand out to him.

The balding middle-aged man felt a cold wind blast past him and it gave him a start. He opened his eyes and found himself in the flower garden, with the Earl standing in front of him.

The Countess was smiling at him; half of her face was youthful and unchanged while the other was bone white and ghastly. Under the trickling moonlight, countless tentacles crawled out from her shadow.

Despite seeing the approaching tentacles, the middle-aged man felt abnormally calm.

Since the Earl wanted his life, he might as well kill the Earl.

Either way, as long as the Earl was killed, they could clear the copy.

The balding middle-aged man revealed a demented grin.

Zhou Wenyan opened the door.

And he saw a gleam of bright light down the steps.

He chased after it, but he only saw the housekeeper at the end of the stairs.

Expressionless, the housekeeper asked, “Young lady, are you in need of something?”

Zhou Wenyan stood still and said the first thing that came to mind. “The Earl invited me tonight.”

The female housekeeper stared at Zhou Wenyan with deep eyes and there were no fluctuations in her tone of voice: “Someone has already gone, so please, you do not need to worry, young lady.” Her eyes rolled strangely as she smiled, “Either way, it will eventually be your turn.”

Footsteps sounded from above the stairs.

Shen Dongqing and Wu Jia had walked down.

Seeing that the two people at the intersection were at an impasse, Shen Dongqing asked: “What’s wrong?”

“We’ve been deceived,” said Zhou Wenyan.

Evidently, the Earl had already guessed their intentions and staggered the time on purpose so they would not have the opportunity to speak to her.

The housekeeper’s eyes swept past the three men before she turned around and left.

Before she could take two steps forward, she felt a sudden pain in her neck and her entire person collapsed to the ground. Simultaneously, the candlestick fell to the ground with a clatter and it caused the fire light to go out.

Zhou Wenyan raised his head. Under the cold moonlight, he seemed more villainous than the housekeeper that was lying on the ground.

“Bring her back first.”

Wu Jia ran down, and hoisted the housekeeper by the collar before he started dragging her upstairs. But halfway, he asked: “What about you?”

Zhou Wenyan said: “Well… We’ll go and see if we can still rescue the Earl.”

It came as no surprise that they did not manage to do so.

The balding middle-aged man had already hacked the Earl to the point where she was dismembered into pieces; her limbs lied around the rose garden, and under the watering of her blood, the roses seemed more delicate and charming.

The executioner did not seem to see the two of them as he walked back to his room with a blank expression and a blood-stained peach wood sword in hand.

Zhou Wenyan commented, “Another one.”

Shen Dongqing looked towards the rose garden: “It’s the same as yesterday, there’s nothing.”

Absolutely nothing.

It was as though the Earl was just a body without a soul.

Zhou Wenyan stroked his chin: “Why do I feel that after two rounds, the game finally learned its lesson and specifically prepared a BOSS that can’t be killed to allow us to cut at it until we are satisfied?”

“I don’t like cutting people,” Shen Dongqing muttered.

Zhou Wenyan laughed: “Let’s go back first.”

“We can’t find the Earl, but we can have a good chat with the housekeeper first.”

When the housekeeper woke up, she saw three people sitting in front of her.

“What are you doing?” The housekeeper found herself tied firmly to the chair and unable to move. Slightly panicked, she uttered, “Release me this instant, you’re provoking the Earl by doing this!”

Zhou Wenyan knocked his fingers against the armrest of the chair: “Relax, we just want to ask you a few questions. After all, we aren’t bad people.”

Shen Dongqing chimed in solemnly: “We don’t hack people either.”

Housekeeper: ……

Even though they said that, it felt like they were going to take a knife and chop her up in the next second.

The housekeeper only panicked for a while before she calmed down: “I don’t know anything.”

Zhou Wenyan said in an affirmative tone: “You’re not afraid of death.”

The housekeeper’s pupils moved slightly.

Zhou Wenyan smiled at her: “Rest assured, we do not like killing and slaughtering, but… when it comes to trapping a person, there are many ways to ensure it lasts forever and ever and without a chance for reincarnation.”

Regarding this, Shen Dongqing was more experienced. He offered a few examples cheerfully: “For example, you could stuff a person in a glass bottle, fill it with mercury and seal it up, or you could nail their limbs and head before burying them in soil. Furthermore…”

Zhou Wenyan listened to his suggestions earnestly and gave occasional nods. “I think your methods are fairly adequate.”

The housekeeper struggled: “We don’t have those items in the castle.”

Thoughtfully, Shen Dongqing said: “You’re right, then we should just go ahead with the simplest method. I’ll eat you and be done with it, although you don’t look very appetising…”

He scrutinised the skinny female housekeeper resentfully.

Zhou Wenyan said: “No, you’re not allowed to eat hideous things.”

Obediently, Shen Dongqing nodded. “Okay, then I’ll think of other methods.”

Wait, wait a minute.

Under their threats, the housekeeper spilled the beans on everything she knew.

“The Earl is not afraid of death, but the Earl is afraid of ageing.”

“The Earl found a forbidden book that taught her how to maintain her youth by means of black magic, but she has to sacrifice six virgin maidens to the devil every year.”

“No one can kill the Earl, no one can leave the castle, no one…”