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Phedra Henry, for about an hour, continued to encourage everyone: "Eat dinner and then get some sleep. We'll leave again in the morning."
Baldwin glanced secretly at Beatrix Henry, seeing that the leader had no intention of eating calmly. Only then did he dare to keep nibbling on his chicken wing.
After eating, Beatrix Henry put his dishes in the tub and quickly went upstairs: "I'm sleeping inside."
Phedra Henry stayed behind to help the landlady with the dishes, only returning to the room late at night. Seeing him so eager to help, the landlady kindly gave him an extra blanket. This cotton blanket was much thicker and warmer than the thin one in the bedroom.
Beatrix Henry had finished his personal hygiene early, lying with his face toward the wall and his back to the room. Phedra Henry lay down carefully next to him. Although the bed was small and cramped, it was still better than sleeping on the floor.
Perhaps because Beatrix Henry was too familiar with these terrifying worlds, he fell asleep in no time, even in such a tense atmosphere.
Beatrix Henry slept soundly, but Phedra Henry lay awake for a long time, unable to fall asleep. He put his hand to his forehead, silently thinking that tomorrow he would have to check out that coffin. Suddenly, his gaze fell to the floor. The floor was spotless, without a single speck of dust. Even the blankets looked new.
Phedra Henry frowned in thought. Yes, tomorrow he must also ask Dante about the appearance of the demon he saw.
Lying in bed, lost in thought, he finally drifted off at the wrong time.
The next morning, Phedra Henry woke up startled in the empty bed. The pillow beside him was cold, clearly showing the other person had been up for a long time.
Leaving the warmth of the cozy blanket, Phedra Henry shivered as his bare feet hit the icy floor. He instantly fell in love with that soft cotton blanket. He couldn’t believe it was just as cold in the morning as it was at night. He quickly put on his shoes and got out of bed.
He wondered how he could have slept so soundly in a world full of demons and supernatural powers—he should have been too nervous to sleep at all.
Rubbing his eyes to chase away sleepiness, he dragged himself over as if he had just been washed away by a passing car. Then he remembered—there was no bathroom in this house.
Looking again, he found a clean bowl of water and a towel prepared at his bedside. It wasn’t hard to guess who had done it.
Silently, Phedra Henry thanked his considerate roommate and used the water to wash up, gazing at his reflection in the water. Usually, he slept very lightly—just a cat meowing in the middle of the night would wake him. He had no idea how Beatrix Henry had gotten up this morning without waking him.
After finishing his hygiene routine, Phedra Henry went downstairs to look for breakfast. In the kitchen, there was only a single portion left on the table—the landlady had saved it for him.
He was about to sit down and eat when a message from No. 3 came through.
[Team: You have a new announcement from the captain.] Beatrix Henry: Awake yet? Little Bell: Why didn’t you wake me? Beatrix Henry: You looked like you were sleeping so well, I couldn’t bear to wake you. Little Bell: ...Thank you. This is a world full of monsters. What if I fell asleep and didn’t wake up? Beatrix Henry: Then I’d use true love’s kiss to wake up the sleeping prince in the room. Little Bell: ఠ_ఠ
After reading this “prince”’s sweet message, Phedra Henry suddenly lost his appetite. He decided to go for a walk before coming back for breakfast.
Phedra Henry opened the door and stepped into the yard.
Outside, the sun shone brightly, flowers bathed in the morning light. But no one was in the mood to enjoy the beautiful scenery—everyone had gathered at a house nearby. A crowd was clustered outside the door, lively discussions coming from inside.
Everyone here was new, their nerves worn thin. They pointed and whispered, but no one dared to go in.
As Phedra Henry approached, he caught the scent of fresh blood in the air.
He hadn’t seen Dante or Baldwin that morning—they must be here too.
“What happened?” Phedra Henry asked.
Baldwin saw him and immediately leaned in, whispering, “Someone died.”
Phedra Henry frowned. “Did they find the missing bodies from last night?”
Dante was startled. “Missing bodies? Didn’t No. 3 say the game automatically cleans them up?”
Phedra Henry shook his head slightly, distracted. “Did anyone die last night?”
Dante, still fearful, replied, “Yes. The village chief told us yesterday not to overcrowd the safe houses, but some people didn’t listen. Villagers came and tested, and some houses had more than two people.”
Phedra Henry asked, “Why? Didn’t you say they all died last night?”
Dante replied, “Last night, I was so scared I nearly wet myself. I didn’t count.”
Phedra Henry thought, “The safe house is disabled… Does No. 3 know about this?”
Baldwin shook his head. “I haven’t seen him since breakfast.”
Dante sighed. “It’s so noisy this morning, I think he’ll find out soon enough.”
Baldwin asked, “What should we do now? The mission says to survive, but so many people died overnight…”
Phedra Henry said, “Let’s stay in the safe house for now. We’ll look for clues in the morning.”
Dante asked, “Where do we even start?”
Phedra Henry fell silent, deep in thought.
Suddenly, he glanced back at their house. “What are the landlord and his wife doing?”
In front of their house, the host couple were holding a huge bouquet of incense, moving in and out and filling the house with white smoke.
Phedra Henry recalled, “When I woke up this morning, I saw white smoke coming out the window. At first, I thought there was a fire, but I couldn’t smell anything burning. On the contrary…”
Dante said, “It’s actually pretty fragrant.”
Baldwin added, “I asked them. They’re burning incense to purify the house and drive away evil.”
Dante saw Phedra Henry still watching the couple and called out, “Want to go take a look?”
“I haven’t eaten breakfast yet,” Phedra Henry hesitated.
Baldwin chimed in, “We missed ours too. You have to see this!”
Phedra Henry considered quietly. There was no need to join in something like this.
But in the end, he was pushed into the crowd by the two of them. The three squeezed their way inside.
He didn’t expect to see Ika there as well. The werewolf wasn’t standing at the door, but had already gone straight inside to look at the murder scene.
- Writer
