Chapter 44: The Performance of Life and Death (Part II)

Traitors! All of them traitors!

Henry gripped his gun in fury, striding down the cold, narrow corridor.

He had never imagined that he would suffer such betrayal! The enemies on the battlefield had not defeated him, yet the arrow that pierced his back came from within his own family!

His wife and children, his servants, his family! He had devoted himself to them wholeheartedly, but they had completely betrayed him.

That damned bunch of bastards! They had utterly forgotten who had given them everything they had.

And now, of course, he would take it all back! Including their lives!

“Traitors!!”

A shadow suddenly flashed in the distance, and Henry roared, raising his gun and firing at it.

“Bang!!”

The shotgun blast struck a sack, exploding it into pieces.

Meanwhile, Levi, who was hiding behind cover, stretched out his hand and wiped his face.

“Goodness, looks like this one’s going to be troublesome.”

“Never thought Mr. Henry would be so fierce.”

Katie, trembling, huddled close to Levi.

Just moments ago, when they had entered the cellar, they had run headlong into Henry, who was clutching a shotgun and searching for something.

The result was that before Levi even had time to greet him, Henry had fired without a word.

No matter how skilled Levi was, he had no means of directly facing a shotgun head-on, and so he had no choice but to drag Katie and Anthony into frantic retreat.

“Is that man truly Mr. Henry?”

Anthony, hiding on the other side, reached into his coat and pulled out a mirror, angling it around the corner.

“All I see is a doll clutching a weapon, raging like mad.”

“If it weren’t him, I would’ve blown his head apart already.”

Levi sighed helplessly.

The only reason he was certain that this doll-like figure, straight out of a horror film, was Henry was simple: Levi had used 【Soul Sight】.

Earlier, with this very ability, he had seen through the dolls’ control over Katie and Anthony, rescuing them.

But now…

“Come out! Traitors!”

With Henry’s roar, another gunshot rang out, spraying the walls with fragments of stone.

Katie buried her head in her arms and curled up into a ball.

For all her abilities, she was not bulletproof.

“Seems Mr. Henry remembers some betrayal with deep hatred.”

Anthony sneered, but Levi only raised an eyebrow.

“More likely it’s the doll controlling him. Otherwise, what do you say, Mr. Anthony—abandoned by his wife, driven to suicide?”

“………I’ve no plans to marry yet… far too early for that…”

Anthony gave an awkward laugh, then quickly changed the subject.

“So what do we do now? Mr. Henry is clearly skilled, and this place has no good hiding spots. Once we step out, we’ll be shot to pieces.”

“Indeed, troublesome.”

Levi nodded.

If Henry had been using a rifle or pistol, Levi would have had full confidence in using the Eye of the Reaper to counterattack and evade the bullets.

The problem was that Henry held a shotgun.

That weapon blasted in a spread—no matter what Levi did, there was no way to dodge it.

“Still, I’m not completely without a plan. But I’ll need the two of you to help.”

After a moment’s thought, Levi made his decision.

“Either of you have fire?”

“I have a lighter. Levi, sir, for a gentleman, you’re rather unqualified.”

Anthony pulled out a lighter from his coat, looking curiously at Levi.

“I don’t smoke.”

Levi shrugged.

His lifespan was already short enough; he wasn’t about to waste more of it on such meaningless indulgence.

“Truly rare. May I ask why?”

“Because smoking is harmful to health.”

One cigarette for two hours of life—Levi’s 【Special Ability】 didn’t even consume that much.

“Mhm, yes, exactly.”

Katie nodded repeatedly in agreement.

“Father loved smoking. The smell was choking and foul. I could never understand why so many men enjoyed it.”

“That’s not what we need to concern ourselves with right now.”

Levi clearly had no interest in debating the dangers of tobacco and alcohol here.

The Church often preached abstinence from both, but his own avoidance of them had nothing to do with piety.

“In a moment, I’ll distract him… Anthony, I need you to light the lighter and cast a shadow—make it fall at Henry’s side.”

“Understood.”

“Then, Katie, I’ll handle his weapon. What you must do is seize the chance to rush him and strike him hard.”

It was shameful to admit, but among the three of them—two men and one woman—the strongest physically was this delicate-looking young lady.

“Alright… but be careful, detective.”

Levi nodded, then gestured to Anthony.

“Let’s begin.”

“Got it.”

Anthony shifted carefully, retreating silently a few steps.

Then he pulled out the lighter and flicked it open.

A small flame sprang up, casting light upon a wooden barrel by the wall.

A long shadow stretched and fell across the wall beside Henry.

At that exact moment, Levi sprang forward, leaping out of the corridor!

Henry, however, was not taken by surprise.

From the instant Anthony lit the lighter, Henry had already raised his gun, aiming.

The very moment Levi’s figure appeared from the corner, he pulled the trigger without hesitation!

“Bang!”

At that instant, Levi’s eyes flashed.

【Eye of the Reaper】!

Time slowed around him.

He could clearly see the scattering pellets of lead surging toward him.

But Levi did not panic.

He activated another skill.

【Shadow Step】!

The shadow covering Levi, which originally had no substance, at this moment gave him a chilling sensation, as if that pitch-black darkness had turned into an icy cloak draped over his body.

His figure seemed to merge with the shadow, instantly darting forward.

He passed through the bullets and arrived at Henry’s side.

Then Levi raised the gun in his hand, aiming at Henry’s tightly gripped weapon.

“Bang———!!”

With the gunshot, Henry felt a massive impact strike him, blasting the shotgun right out of his hands.

Just as he came to his senses, he realized the enemy had appeared beside him—but it wasn’t over yet.

As a soldier, even without a gun, he could still fight!

Henry clenched his fist and charged toward his enemy.

Yet in that very instant, out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a small figure suddenly crashing into his chest.

The next second, the scenery before Henry’s eyes rapidly receded.

“Thud!!”

Levi raised his head just in time to see Katie, who had thrown herself into Henry’s arms, extend her fist and slam it into his chest.

Henry was immediately hurled backward, smashing into the wall.

At that same moment, a flash of light gleamed—and Henry’s burly body was ejected from within the puppet, collapsing onto the ground.

“Huu……………”

Levi exhaled and finally relaxed.

At last, it was settled.

Like the others before him, once freed from the restraints, Henry swiftly regained his senses.

“I felt rage… and pain.”

Sitting on the floor, Henry could not get up for a while.

Anthony understood this well—after all, he had just taken a similar blow from Katie himself.

“At that moment, I truly believed everyone had betrayed me. All I wanted was to kill them… and then kill myself… Fortunately, because of your arrival, I delayed my suicide. Otherwise, you would likely only have found my corpse.”

At this, Henry’s resolute face now carried solemnity and heaviness.

“I still can’t believe… that such strange things truly exist in this world.”

“I feel the same.”

Anthony nodded, then turned his curious gaze toward Levi.

“But I’m more curious—Mr. Levi, how did you dodge that last shot? From my perspective, there was no way you could have avoided it. Yet not only did you dodge, you even appeared right at Mr. Henry’s side…”

“A little trick. A sleight of hand.”

Levi waved his hand dismissively.

“When facing things like this, one must have a few skills. I wouldn’t just walk in and throw my life away.”

“Now the only one left is Miss Eliza. Where could she be?”

Katie clearly cared more about her companion’s whereabouts, while Levi sighed.

“Do you even need to ask? Think back—remember the case file on this house you once read? The victims?”

“You mean the tragic fates of the previous owners—ah, yes, that’s it!”

At Levi’s reminder, Katie suddenly realized.

The second owner had killed himself after his wife left him.

The third had murdered his wife and children before committing suicide.

The fourth owner, along with his family and servants, had all vanished, with only bloodstains discovered throughout the house.

Thinking it over now, compared with their own present plight, it was clear—their experiences matched those of the three former owners.

In other words, after those owners died, were they also turned into puppets?

If so…

“What we’ve encountered are those past owners… then Miss Eliza…”

“Obviously, she’s also trapped among them.”

Levi stood and stretched lazily.

“Our next task is to find her.”

“Where should we search?”

“There’s only one place, of course.”

Levi looked at Katie and smiled faintly.

“Do you still remember what the old lady told us, about the young master obsessed with puppets?”

“I remember. That young master always stayed in his room, never once leaving… You mean Miss Eliza is in that room?”

“Most likely. At the very least, I doubt she’s waiting for us in the laundry room or the toilet.”

Levi spoke as he turned around.

“But before that, we may have some trouble.”

As Levi finished speaking, the group heard footsteps approaching.

Soon after, from the dark shadows, pale faces began to emerge.

They were also puppets—but not the kind dressed up for display.

These were unclothed, looking as if they had just been freshly made, not yet polished.

Their bodies were crudely assembled from wood, heads and limbs slapped together, bound with string.

The carved mouths of these puppets opened and closed ceaselessly, producing “clack clack” sounds.

From their movements, it was clear these creatures came with hostility.

“What should we do next? Drop to our knees and beg? Or fight our way through?”

At Levi’s question, the others gave no reply.

But their actions already revealed their answer.

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