The magical manor 3

He had not turned into a cat yet, so it probably was not midnight.

Lu Mi wanted to ask why he could not open his eyes, but a hand gently covered his mouth from behind.

Roman did not take off his gloves even when he slept, and the rough fabric inevitably rubbed against Lu Mi's lips.

Was this the only way to shut someone up? This guy was definitely doing it on purpose.

He listened warily to the sounds around him, but all he heard was Roman's faint breathing right beside him.

But Roman had no reason to suddenly stop him from speaking. That meant something unusual had to be happening.

Cold moonlight spilled through the window. Roman slowly raised his eyes and gazed at the figure pressed against the glass outside.

A tiny palm rested against the stained-glass window, slowly wiping away the frost formed by the condensation.

The little girl pressed her face against the glass and opened her blood-red mouth, unidentified shreds of flesh caught between her teeth:

"Is anyone there? Is anyone in here?"

"I want something to eat."

They were on the second floor.

The spot where the two of them lay had been carefully chosen. It was a blind spot for anyone looking in through the window.

After a while, Roman withdrew his hand. "She's gone. Go back to sleep."

Before he received a reply, the space beside him suddenly grew much emptier-it was midnight, and Lu Mi had turned into a cat as usual.

Lu Mi inwardly groaned. They had slept separately in the Public Rest Area for the past few days, and it had been so peaceful that he had forgotten about this.

Unexpectedly, Roman reached over and rubbed the cat's head beside him, chuckled softly, and did nothing else.

The next morning, Lu Mi was woken by a piercing scream.

According to his body clock, it should have been just before seven.

By the time he and Roman followed the sound to the third floor, the other players were arriving one after another.

He looked around. A few people were missing.

A newcomer pointed at a room and said in a trembling voice, "D-dead..."

"Was it that young couple from yesterday? I remember them taking Noel to the children's room." Jin Bi was still combing her hair as she spoke. Turning her head, she found Lu Mi silently staring at her. "What? Got a crush on me?"

Roman stepped directly between them. "No."

Lu Mi gave a tactical cough and smoothed things over with a few words. Then he went forward, opened the door, and looked inside. "It's a middle-aged man."

It was a large bedroom, with a four-poster bed facing the window.

Some of the braver players leaned in to look, then stumbled back several steps in panic.

The middle-aged man lay on the bed, his eye sockets empty.

In the children's room, they found the bodies of the young couple from the night before.

Or rather, their mutilated remains, in a far more gruesome state.

"Oh my God!" Jin Bi covered her nose and mouth. "Killing them is one thing, but why eat their bodies?"

"I'm a forensic pathologist." He Shengguang leaned in and examined them for a while. "The parts that were eaten are concentrated around the waist, abdomen, and thighs. They were still alive when it started eating them. It looks like it ate the boy first, then the girl."

"Enough! We don't need that much detail!" Jin Bi stepped back as she spoke. "I won't be able to stop picturing it!"

Many players had only come over out of curiosity, and hurried away immediately after taking a look.

Li Fan looked particularly pale, as though she was about to throw up.

Lu Mi was about to ask her a few casual questions out of concern, but the moment Li Fan saw him approach, she took off without looking back. "I-I drew a blank slip yesterday! I'm going to make breakfast for that young lady!"

"Huh?" Lu Mi was baffled. "What's wrong with her?"

Roman pretended not to have noticed the apprehensive look Li Fan had cast at him before running off. "Maybe she got scared."

"True." Lu Mi turned his gaze back to the horrifying sight before him. "Did any of you notice anything unusual last night?"

Jin Bi nodded. "She kept knocking on my and Shengguang's door, but we never opened it. It still scares me to think about it. Did you run into her too?"

"Yes. If the couple were killed because they said or did something that upset Noel while playing with her, that would make sense."

Lu Mi rested his chin in his hand, thinking. "But why were players like us, who weren't involved, also targeted?"

Jin Bi was just about to say she did not know yet when she heard the oddly dressed man say, "Just ask her."

"Huh?" Jin Bi's eyes widened. "You mean-wait, you're not going to...?"

Roman turned slightly and called outside, "Noel, what did you do last night?"

Jin Bi looked back and, sure enough, saw a little girl peeking through the doorway of the children's room.

Noel walked in with her teddy bear in her arms, the same sweet smile on her face. "Good morning, ladies and gentlemen."

"I asked you what you did last night." Roman's tone was even, like a parent questioning his child about whether she had hit her deskmate.

Jin Bi shuddered. "Seriously, dude, what are you-? Shengguang, Lu Mi, let's run." She grabbed He Shengguang and started to flee.

"Roman!" Lu Mi complained in displeasure too. "You're being too harsh. You'll scare her."

Then he bent down and gently stroked Noel's head. "Don't be afraid. Can you remember anything?"

Jin Bi stopped in her tracks, making sure she had heard correctly, her mouth hanging open wide enough to fit an egg.

The butterfly wings over Noel's eyes opened and closed as she stared straight at Lu Mi. "I don't remember anything. Sir, everything is fine here. Why do you ask?"

Everything was fine??

Everyone present silently glanced at the two bodies on the floor, their stark ribs exposed.

Lu Mi was about to ask something else when the butler's voice suddenly rang out. "Miss, it's time for breakfast."

Noel nodded, gave Lu Mi and the others a polite bow, then turned and left.

After a few seconds of silence, Jin Bi called, "Butler!"

As though summoning every last ounce of courage she possessed, she asked, "Where do we have breakfast?"

"You will have to take care of that yourselves." The butler smiled.

Jin Bi muttered a few curses and said she would make it herself, then.

Lu Mi and Roman wanted more time to practice riding, so they simply bought meat buns from the Panel Mall and asked the butler to take them to the stables.

The butler said nothing along the way.

Roman asked, "Why are you so quiet?"

The butler gave a mysterious smile. "These matters are not for you to inquire into..."

The next second, Roman's icy words cut him off. "Shut up. I wasn't asking you."

Lu Mi closed his panel. "I was checking my status. My popularity is at a thousand, and viewers have been tipping me gold coins here and there. But I still need to spend carefully. One day, the novelty will wear off for them."

As they spoke, they arrived at the stables. While the butler fitted the horses with tack, Lu Mi stared intently at his face.

The butler's face really was so pale...