The living room lights shone on the pale yellow tablecloth, lending it an incredible warmth. A news report was playing on the television.
"The Rainy Night Killer strikes again! A third murder has occurred in our city's Old City District!"
"The police have identified the suspect! Citizens are urged not to panic. Lock your doors and windows, and avoid going out late at night!"
Torrential rain lashed the windowpanes, and fierce winds howled outside, but Gao Ming felt no chill as he stood inside.
Bathed in the light, he looked around the unfamiliar yet familiar home as Memory Fragment fitted together like pieces of a puzzle.
His fingers brushed the walls, which had been fitted with soundproofing foam, and his gaze shifted to the brand-new, oversized refrigerator. He walked over and lifted the kitchen curtain. Plastic storage bags just large enough to hold fist-sized chunks of meat lay scattered across the cutting board and kitchen knife. Beneath the counter were heating agents that accelerated the decay of meat.
This home was different from the one Liu Yi had been in. The feeling it gave him was fundamentally different.
"I'm back. Are you home?"
There was no response. All the walls had been coated with sound-absorbing paint, so Gao Ming could not even hear his own echo.
As his memories gradually pieced themselves together, he searched every corner of the home without finding anyone.
Alone, he finally sat down at the dining table. There were no steaming dishes on it, only a solitary cake.
"I'm back... Are you home...?"
He did not know what the blood-red candles were made of, but they smelled fragrant. Gao Ming reached for them, yet perhaps because the table was uneven, the candles began rolling, as though deliberately avoiding him.
He stood up and reached for