The players present were startled by the sudden murder. They reflexively looked back at the doll maker, only to see that the doll in his hand had also been crushed.
The face hidden in the darkness beneath his cloak turned slightly, seeming to glance at everyone around the dining table. He gave no reaction, however. After sitting down, he raised a hand.
Everyone sat down as well, as though no one had seen the pile of flesh on the table beside them.
Numbers 1 and 2 began serving the food, while Numbers 3 and 4 silently cleared the body away from the table. They didn't clean away all the bright red blood, leaving it on the tabletop.
The players were unusually quiet, even unconsciously slowing their breathing. The middle-aged man had died too suddenly, without the slightest warning. And he hadn't been killed by some ordinary item or device, but by a force within the Dungeon. That meant the players' Defense Artifacts might be completely useless—if the Castle's owner wanted them dead, there was no escaping!
Quite a few people discreetly turned their eyes toward the high ponytail.
The high ponytail sat rigidly in her seat, not even daring to look at the doll maker. Her eyes were wide as she stared straight ahead, while beneath the table, she quietly put her doll into her Storage Compartment.
"Clink!" A clear chime rang out as a wineglass was tapped. The Castle's owner raised his glass in a toast to everyone. The players didn't dare refuse to follow suit, but just as they lifted their glasses, the high ponytail at the end of the table was suddenly crushed, just like the middle-aged man before her. And because she had used an item to protect herself in advance, the players beside her even