Gentlemen and Ruffians
Five minutes ago, at around 10:10 p. m.
The Phillips Library is closed.
Except for the kerosene lamp between the two professors and Wilbur, all the lights on the fourth floor were off.
As Hope walked up to the fourth floor, he took off his shoes, leaned against the wall in the dim light, and went around to Wilbur's back for a while.
Hope was worried about being discovered by Professor Armitage, so she always had a dagger in hand, ready to fight Wilbur.
But Professor Armitage didn't notice him either.
Hope still doesn't know what the purpose of the professor's high Self-Sense of 4.11 is.
Hope, using the sliver of moonlight streaming in through the window, memorized the shape of the area under the window before coming up behind Jack and crouching down behind Jack.
Hope threw away his revolver; without Jack's help, he wouldn't have been confident in using the weapon given his current eyesight.
He dared not aim directly at the skull in Wilbur's arms, because Wilbur was shielding Oliver to his chest, Hope feared the bullet would kill Wilbur.
--
That would allow Wilbur to return to Dunwich resurrected.
Unable to obtain the Necronomicon and with his plans exposed, Wilbur, in his anger, might order the Transparent Monster to do something extreme.
Jack's spell blocked the two professors' vision, Hope stood in darkness where no one could see her; the conditions for activating "Uncertainty" had been met.
Hope closed his eyes and went to the window he had just been observing.
He gripped the dagger in his hand, took a step forward, and stood directly in front of Wilbur was looking back.
The dagger slashed out.
This specially made blade owned by Dr. Morgan was entirely black, so dark that it blended into its surroundings, and it didn't make a sound when swung quickly.
Hope's target was the slightly yellowed skull.
Unfortunately, Wilbur realized what was happening at the last moment.
The Goat Head covered the entire arm on top of the skull.
The dagger easily sliced through the old clothes covering his body, then cut downwards into his flesh, and blood splattered out.
An unpleasant odor emanated from the wound.
Hope didn't hold back; the dagger cut through flesh as easily as cutting through damp soil, but when it reached the bone, it seemed to hit a rock and was blocked.
Wilbur took two steps back and wrapped the skull inside his coat.
Hope nearly failed to pull the dagger back. He ignored the blood on the dagger, pretending it didn't exist, to calm his panic.
Through the tattered clothes, Wilbur's rough skin, covered in long, black hair, was revealed.
His arms had round, shiny yellow-black spots that looked like the markings on some kind of snake.
The exposed skin clearly annoyed Wilbur even more, but he quieted down, and even looked at Hope with a hint of ingratiation. "I really didn't expect you to come here."
He was bleeding; the blood was initially red, then turned somewhat black, and had a strong, foul odor.
Wilbur ignored the two wounds and continued to back away, enduring the pain.
Just as Number One Hope said, this creature, which looks like a human, has a body that no human could possibly possess.
Hope did not respond to Wilbur's greeting; he had no intention of chatting with Wilbur.
He was wary of Wilbur suddenly chanting a spell, so he followed Wilbur with a dagger in hand.
"Hey," Wilbur said, "I think we can still—"
The dagger suddenly stabbed Wilbur in the abdomen, at the wound inflicted by the revolver.
Wilbur dodged hastily, but tripped and fell. "Damn it! Professor, your guest is injured!"
Jack, who had been watching them from a distance, sat in the spot where Wilbur had just been sitting and poured a cup of tea for each of the two professors.
The veteran investigator showed no emotion; he clearly harbored no ill will towards Wilbur. Oliver's skull was still working on him; he was simply following his agreement with Dr. Morgan.
He sat here, and the two professors sat with him.
Professor Armitage always sensed something was amiss, while Professor Rice, having worked for many years, was accustomed to listening to the investigators' opinions when faced with things he couldn't understand.
"This is no good time for tea," Professor Rice muttered.
But he still took a sip.
Wilbur finally gave up trying to Communication with Hope, and his tongue, which was groaning in pain, began a new spell.
The obscure syllables had barely been uttered when Hope pounced on him, a dagger pointed at his neck.
The goat-faced man struggled, kicking Hope off him, but this interrupted his preparation of the incantation.
They rolled around on the floor like thugs, wrestling and fighting.
Wilbur found an opportunity to discard the skull, which would become a burden.
He has the advantage in both weight and strength.
However, he was not as agile as Hope and was injured. He tried several times to take Hope's dagger but failed and was instead slashed by Hope.
Hope pretended to have her dagger taken from her, and took the opportunity to slip her fingers into Wilbur's bullet wound, stirring the warm flesh inside.
Wilbur's voice sounded like he was dying, and he dropped the dagger he had just received because of the pain.
"Damn it— Hope," Wilbur cursed.
But Hope's advantage did not last.
The familiar feeling of weakness suddenly returned, making it almost impossible for Hope to support her body.
It was the ability Wilbur used the night he first transmigrated.
Hope used the "Exchange" technique to search for targets on Wilbur's body, but found nothing to exchange except for attributes.
This ability is neither magic nor a spell—it must be a special ability that Hope doesn't yet understand.
Unfortunately, the activation condition is still unclear— Wilbur's numbers haven't changed at all.
Wilbur chuckled twice, but his laughter was quickly swallowed up by Affliction groans.
He pushed Hope off him, and the sound of incantation began.
It sounded somewhat familiar to Hope —that death-commanding spell.
Hope collapsed to the ground, completely unable to dodge.
But he didn't panic.
Because another voice rang out not far away, also consisting of incomprehensible syllables.
Professor Armitage finished his spell before Wilbur could finish, and Wilbur clutched his neck.
A small red mark appeared on the skin there, but it disappeared quickly.
Wilbur opened his mouth, but could only make "uh-huh" and "ah-ah" sounds.
He was deprived of his ability to speak.
"It feels so good to take sides," Hope thought to herself.
He mustered his last bit of strength and managed to roll over, and Oliver's skull came into view.
Realizing he could no longer use the spell, Wilbur could only exhale a few angry breaths.
He didn't care about Hope's actions, since Hope wouldn't be able to stand up for a while and couldn't do anything about the skull.
But Wilbur still went over and tried to push Hope away.
Although Wilbur didn't know why Hope had suddenly appeared there, it made him feel a sense of danger.
He planned to temporarily abandon the Necronomicon and leave with Oliver's skull.
But then, Hope stopped looking at the skull and turned to look at him, a smile on her face.
The exchange has been initiated.