The last to emerge from the castle was a ghostly figure, tall and thin, with a deathly pale face-the "Butler" who had already been replaced by an impostor.
They came to a statue of a Weeping Angel. Tears filled Mrs. Bart's eyes as she asked, "Why did you let these demons in? What did they offer you, Mr. Butler?"
The Butler smiled and rested his hand on Mrs. Bart's hair. "Mrs. Bart, even now, do you still not recognize me?"
Mrs. Bart stared blankly at the man before her.
"Very well." The Butler sighed in disappointment. "Your husband would surely be delighted to know you've completely forgotten your old lover."
Mrs. Bart's eyes slowly widened. Clearly, she had begun to suspect who he was.
Seeing the change in her expression, the Butler smiled and waved a hand. A gunshot immediately rang out, and beside them, the gray-haired grandmother, who had kept her eyes proudly closed, fell to the ground.
Terror instantly filled Noel's little face, a scream trapped in her throat.
"Michel-" Mrs. Bart cried out in horror. "Why? Why are you doing this?"
"Ah, after all these years, you do still remember me." The Butler scooped up a little snow and rubbed it over his face.
The white powder fell away layer by layer, revealing the face of a thirty-year-old man-Michel's true appearance.
"I adored you so much, and you once told me..." Michel seized Mrs. Bart's beautiful golden hair, forcing her head back. "Do you remember what you said?"
Dozens of dark gun barrels pointed at Noel.
"You said you loved me."
"No, don't kill my daughter!" Mrs. Bart was on the verge of breaking down, her bound body twisting frantically.
"Perhaps if you sing me a song and improve my mood, I'll consider it."
"Sing... I'll sing."
Mrs. Bart's pale lips trembled as she sang that song in a voice already hoarse.
Michel closed his eyes and listened for a while, then smiled. "My dear, you're so naive. Are you trying to stir up our shared memories with that passage? Too bad. Your singing is dreadful."
Noel sobbed and shouted, "You're a bad man! Stop hurting Mama! Mama's singing is the most beautiful in the world!"
Michel looked troubled. "What a dilemma. Such an adorable little girl, and you, so beautiful. How am I supposed to choose?"
Tears streamed down Mrs. Bart's face. "Let Noel go. I'll give you anything you want... I'll love you, I swear..."
"Ah, is Welly City's most enchanting opera singer finally willing to accept a poor country boy like me?" A flash of joy crossed Michel's face, only to be replaced by viciousness a moment later. "Too late."
He took a pistol from the soldiers' leader and pressed it against Mrs. Bart's forehead.
"My brother has already led his army through your defenses in the West. All the most beautiful women in the country will belong to me. Now, let me see you bow that proud neck of yours, my swan-"
"No-" Mrs. Bart screamed. "No, don't let Noel watch..."
As though he had thought of something amusing, Michel smiled and put away the pistol.
"Of course."
He walked over to Noel and looked down at her for a long time. "What beautiful eyes. Just like your mother's. Aren't they?"
The next moment, he drew a dagger and aimed it at the little girl's large, tear-filled eyes.
Lu Mi could hardly bear it. For an instant, his urge to look away became almost overwhelming.
No. What if I miss an important clue?
Noel and Mrs. Bart's heart-rending screams rang out at the same time.
Michel came up to Mrs. Bart and opened his blood-soaked hands. "My dear, why have you closed your eyes? These are the fruits of your love with Mr. Bart."
"You cruel beast." Mrs. Bart leaned weakly against the statue, her eyes red and swollen, her hair disheveled. "I hate you. I curse you to hell..."
"Why would you say that? Am I not granting your wish?" Michel casually tossed Noel's eyeballs into a crevice in the statue, then raised his pistol at Mrs. Bart. "Your daughter certainly can't see this now."
Amid Noel's hoarse sobbing, a bang rang out, and blood seeped into the earth.
As Mrs. Bart's beautiful head drooped, the scene before Lu Mi gradually blurred.
When he opened his eyes again, Roman was combing Noel's hair.
The little girl's eyes were red, and her shoulders shook incessantly.
"No, I don't want to have dreams like that anymore. I don't want to watch it over and over..."
"Noel." Only then did Lu Mi realize how dry his throat was. He opened his arms and slowly drew her into an embrace.
Roman hesitated, then set down the comb and wrapped his arms around them both-
A hug.
"Don't think about it anymore," Lu Mi said softly. "All of that ended long ago."
The little girl's tearful voice suddenly fell silent.
Confusion appeared on her face once more. "Gentlemen, what's wrong? Everything is fine."
Lu Mi froze, realizing that the Butterfly Eyes had once again drawn her into a beautiful but illusory world.
"It's nothing." He gently stroked Noel's hair, but his gaze gradually sharpened.
I have to put an end to all this, quickly.
He said softly, "Noel, how about we chase the butterflies away?"
Noel was taken aback. "But without the Butterfly Eyes, I won't be able to see anything."
"Noel, the beautiful things you see aren't real," Lu Mi said. "Only your real eyes can show you the real world."
When they returned to the hall, He Shengguang hurriedly waved them over. "I have something to show you."
Lu Mi was about to ask what it was when the Butler's voice rang out without warning. "It's nearly time. Is the teacher ready for class?"
"Coming!" He Shengguang called loudly. Leaving them with a quick "We'll talk later," he turned to go.
Mo Yu came over. "Is it something important? How about I cover for you?"
He Shengguang waved away her offer, saying he was afraid it would arouse the Butler's suspicions.
"He lost his eyes, so I thought he'd shut himself away. Turns out the kid's still going strong, working hard to find clues."
After that backhanded compliment, Mo Yu turned her gaze toward a corner of the hall. "Unlike certain people, who hurt someone else and then spend all day doing nothing, as though they're just waiting to hitch a ride out once everyone else clears the game."
The person in the corner clenched her back teeth and forced a smile. "And you've been actively looking for clues?"
Mo Yu snorted. "Of course. I spend every day in the Library..."
"Hiding in the Library reading nineteenth-century novels, you mean?"
"Jin Bi!"
Seeing that the two were about to start arguing, Lu Mi interrupted. "Mo Yu, have you found anything interesting?"
Mo Yu made a face at Jin Bi, then thought back. "Loads of things. What kind do you want to hear about?"
Jin Bi scoffed. "And you still claim you weren't just killing time?"
The quarrel they had barely managed to quell was about to flare up again. Roman walked straight up to her and said coldly, "Shut up."
Lu Mi thought for a moment, then asked, "Were there any books about making a white powder you can rub on your face to disguise yourself as someone else?"
"Why? Who do you want to look like?" Mo Yu joked, but when she noticed how serious Lu Mi was, she stopped.
"I think there actually was one. It was called Dark Arts or something. It included that method."
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