Traitors! Every last one of them!
Henry gripped his gun in fury and strode down the cold, narrow corridor.
He had never imagined he would suffer such betrayal! His enemies on the battlefield had failed to bring him down, yet the shots aimed at his back had come from within his own family!
His wife and children, his servants, his family! He had given them everything he had, yet they had utterly betrayed him. Those damned bastards! They had forgotten who had given them all of this. Now, naturally, he would take it all back! Their lives included!
"Traitors!"
A dark figure suddenly flashed past nearby. Henry roared, raised his gun, and fired straight at it.
Bang!
The shotgun blast struck a burlap sack, tearing it to shreds.
Behind it, Li Wei reached up and wiped his face.
"Well, damn. Looks like this is going to be tricky."
"I never imagined Mr. Henry could be so vicious."
Katie huddled beside Li Wei, trembling. They had just entered the cellar when they ran straight into Henry, who was searching for something with a shotgun in hand. Before Li Wei could even greet him, Henry had fired without a word.
However capable Li Wei was, he could not take a shotgun blast head-on. All he could do was flee with Katie and Anthony, ducking for cover.
"Is that really Mr. Henry?"
Hidden on the other side, Anthony reached into his coat, took out a mirror, and angled it around the corner.
"All I see is a crazed doll holding a weapon."
"If it weren't him, I would've blown his head off already."
Li Wei sighed helplessly. His reason for identifying this thing, which looked like a killer doll from a horror movie, as Henry was simple: he had used Soul Sight. He had used the same skill earlier to see through the dolls controlling Katie and Anthony, then rescued them both.
But now...
"Come out, traitors!"
More gunfire rang out with Henry's furious roar, sending chips of stone flying from the surrounding walls. Katie clasped her hands over her head and curled into a ball. Capable as she was, she was not bulletproof.
"It seems Mr. Henry has some deeply rooted feelings about someone's betrayal."
Anthony made the mocking remark, while Li Wei merely raised an eyebrow.
"More likely, the doll controlling him does. Otherwise, how would you explain yourself, Mr. Anthony, who killed himself in despair after his wife abandoned him?"
"...I haven't even planned on getting married yet... It's still too early for me..."
Anthony gave an awkward smile, then changed the subject.
"What do we do now? I imagine Mr. Henry is quite skilled, and there isn't enough room here for us to hide. If we step out, we'll be blown to pieces."
"It is tricky."
Li Wei nodded. If his opponent had been using a hunting rifle or a pistol, he was confident he could use Death's Eye to counterattack, then dodge the incoming bullet.
The problem was that Henry was holding a shotgun. That thing hit a whole area with a single blast. There was no way Li Wei could dodge it.
"But I'm not entirely out of options. I'll need both of you to help."
After a moment's thought, Li Wei made his decision.
"Do either of you have a light?"
"I have a lighter. Mr. Li Wei, you're rather lacking as a gentleman."
Taking a lighter from his coat, Anthony looked curiously at Li Wei.
"I don't smoke."
Li Wei shrugged. He already had little enough time left to live. There was no point wasting more of it on such meaningless pleasures.
"How unusual. May I ask why?"
"Because smoking is bad for your health."
One puff cost him two hours of life. Even Li Wei's special abilities did not consume that much.
"Mm-hmm, exactly."
Katie nodded repeatedly.
"Father likes smoking. It smells awful and makes me choke. I don't understand why so many men enjoy it."
"That isn't what we need to worry about right now."
Li Wei clearly had no intention of discussing the dangers of smoking and drinking under these circumstances. The church preached abstinence from both, too, but his own abstinence had nothing to do with religious devotion.
"In a moment, I'll find a way to draw his attention... Mr. Anthony, I need you to light your lighter and cast a shadow beside Mr. Henry."
"All right."
"Then, Katie, I'll deal with his weapon. You need to take that opening, rush over, and hit him hard."
Embarrassing as it was, out of the two men and one woman present, the strongest physical attacker was this seemingly delicate young lady.
"All right... Be careful, Mr. Detective."
Li Wei nodded, then signaled to Anthony.
"Let's begin."
"Understood."
Anthony quietly shifted his body and retreated several steps without making a sound. Then he took out his lighter and lit it.
A small flame flared, illuminating a wooden barrel against the wall ahead. It stretched the barrel's shadow across the wall beside Henry, and at that very moment, Li Wei sprang up and charged out of the corridor!
Henry was not caught off guard. The moment Anthony had lit the lighter, he had raised his gun and prepared to aim. When Li Wei appeared around the corner, he pulled the trigger without hesitation!
Bang!
At the same instant, Li Wei's eyes flashed.
Death's Eye!
Time slowed around him. He could even see the spreading pellets hurtling toward him.
But Li Wei did not panic. He activated another skill.
Shadow Movement!
The intangible shadow covering Li Wei suddenly felt cold, as though the darkness had become an icy cloak draped over him. His body seemed to merge with that shadow, shooting forward in an instant.
He passed through the pellets and appeared beside Henry. Then he raised his gun and aimed at the hand gripping Henry's weapon.
Bang!
With the gunshot, Henry felt a tremendous impact that knocked the gun straight out of his hands. Only when he recovered did he realize his enemy had somehow appeared beside him. But this was not over yet. He was a soldier. Even without a gun, he could still fight!
Henry clenched his fists and lunged at his enemy, but just then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a petite figure charge straight into his chest.
The next instant, the scenery before Henry's eyes rushed backward.
Thud!
Li Wei looked up and saw Katie, who had rushed into Henry, drive her fist into his chest. Henry flew backward and slammed into the wall. A flash of light followed, and his burly body sprang free of the doll, falling to the floor.
"Phew..."
Li Wei caught his breath and relaxed.
Finally, that was over.
Like the others, Henry soon regained his senses once he was freed.
"I felt anger... and pain."
Sitting on the floor, Henry could not get up for a while. Anthony understood perfectly. After all, Katie's earlier blow had been more than enough for him, too.
"At the time, I truly believed everyone had betrayed me. All I wanted was to kill them... then kill myself... Fortunately, your arrival made me postpone my suicide. Otherwise, you probably would have found nothing but my corpse."
As he spoke, Henry's resolute face grew solemn and grave.
"I still can't believe it... That something this strange could actually happen in this world."
"Neither can I."
Henry nodded, then looked curiously at Li Wei.
"But what I'm more curious about is how you dodged that shot, Mr. Li Wei. From what I could see, there was no way you could avoid it. Yet not only did you dodge it, you also appeared beside Mr. Henry..."
"A little magic trick. A little sleight of hand."
Li Wei waved a hand.
"You need a few tricks to fight things like these. I didn't come here completely unprepared just to get myself killed."
"Now only Miss Elizabeth is left. Where could she be?"
Katie was clearly more concerned about her companion's whereabouts. Li Wei sighed.
"Do you really need to ask? Think about it. Remember the case files you read about this house? Those victims?"
"You mean the tragic fates of the previous owners? Oh, right! That's it!"
Li Wei's reminder seemed to finally bring Katie to her senses.
The second owner had killed himself after his wife left him. The third had killed his wife and children before taking his own life. The fourth owner, his family, and his servants had all vanished, leaving only large bloodstains in the house. Thinking back on those cases and comparing them with their current situation, the experiences of the three of them clearly corresponded to those three owners.
Did that mean the owners had been made into dolls after they died?
If that was the case...
"What we experienced belonged to those previous owners... Then Miss Elizabeth..."
"Obviously, she's trapped in one of them, too."
Li Wei stood up and stretched.
"Our next task is to find her."
"Where should we look?"
"Naturally, there's only one place."
Li Wei looked at Katie and chuckled.
"Do you remember the story that old lady told us about the young master who was obsessed with dolls?"
"I remember. He stayed in his room all the time and never came out... You mean Miss Elizabeth is in that room?"
"Most likely. At least, I doubt she'd turn up in the laundry room or the toilet."
As Li Wei spoke, he turned around.
"But before that, we may have some trouble to deal with."
As his words fell, they heard footsteps. Then, from the dark shadows, one deathly pale face after another emerged.
They were dolls as well, but not the kind dressed up for display. None wore any clothes. They looked freshly made, not even sanded down, with roughly fashioned wooden torsos, heads, and limbs held together by string.
The dolls' carved mouths opened and closed, making clicking sounds. Judging by their movements, they clearly had not come with friendly intentions.
"What should we do next? Kneel and beg for mercy? Or fight our way out?"
The others did not answer Li Wei's question.
But their actions had already made their answer clear.
Before you continue