Matryoshka Off-Limits

Chapter 16: Castle Night

Views:

Player 460872, it’s Player 460872 again!

A new player who survived the endgame.

This is as outrageous as a child winning a marathon against adults.

There were more and more discussions, and the city, which had been silent for a long time, suddenly became lively like a pot of boiling water.

"Peng Lu is dead." The speaker was an internal member of the Seventh Commandment. "What a pity! The boss wanted to recruit him."

If your boss can praise you for your development potential, then you are really good.

The teammates looked indifferent: "What a pity! Their death proves that they are not strong enough. Those who are still in there are worthy of our recruitment. We should eliminate the inferior ones and absorb fresher and more beneficial blood."

There were crowds of people around the projection screen, but there were not many people around them. The players who could move around in this area were not simple, but they still did not dare to get too close to the members of the top ten guilds.

"Let's go to the 1332 dungeon exit." The Seventh Commandment's internal member said coldly, "With only one person left, the new player should be able to clear the level quickly."

*

Wen Shi also felt that he was about to come out.

The medical records mentioned that the Real Bride was a work of art created by the owner of the castle. Considering that the monsters in the castle were all related to paintings, and that both the Real Bride and the Blood Bride could control blood, but the former was more proficient at it, he speculated that the Real Bride was also a painting.

Now all we have to do is find the paintings.

With a direction and the advantage of a single-player game, Wen Shi was in a good mood when he woke up the next day. Until he saw a figure with long flowing hair sitting by the window, he was scared to death.

The person who came was Xie Tangyan, and her strength returned to normal with the new day.

Wen Shi sat up, patted his chest and said, "Sister, you scared me."

Xie Tangyan: "Sorry, I just got here too."

Wen Shi looked at her and suddenly had a bold guess.

The owner of the castle did not show any special impression of him on the first night, but later he said that the smell on him was very strange, and he emphasized it deeply last night. If anything happened in the middle, it was nothing more than that he successfully activated the skill, and not long ago, he successfully summoned Xie Tangyan.

Could the charming scent that the castle owner was referring to be Xie Tangyan

He told Xie Tangyan about this guess.

"I don't use scented powder, and I haven't had any long contact with you. Even if he's a dog, he can't smell anything." Xie Tangyan calmly analyzed: "But when that strange voice suppressed my power, it said it in a very high-sounding way, saying that if I don't suppress it, the load on your body will exceed the load."

Carrier

Wen Shi fell into deep thought. Just like the blood bride was born on the drawing paper, summoning the parallel world self also needed some kind of medium. After thinking about it, only the broken peace locket could play the role.

Could it be that some of the other person's aura was left in the peace locket

Xie Tangyan handed him some wild fruits, and Wen Shi quickly ate a few after washing up. He could eat in the hospital, which meant there were no rules restricting him from eating outside food.

The damn cuckoo in the dining room continued to make sharp calls. Its call today was a little different. Wen Shi frowned and said, "I'll go down and take a look."

dining room.

The long table was empty.

There were no plates or food. The owner of the castle sat in the main seat with a stern face. He had not moved his eyes away since Wen Shi came in. It was frighteningly cold.

Wen Shi asked tentatively: "Are you eating air today?"

After asking this question, I felt that it was a bit silly.

The fact that the dishes and food were not prepared properly at the same time was the fault of the housekeeper and the chef. Wen Shi suddenly thought of something and stood there awkwardly.

Could it be...

God bless it's not...

"ah-"

The miserable howling came from some distance away from the dining room. The sound became smaller as it spread, but the heart-wrenching sound could still be felt.

“Ah—ah—”

It was another different voice, but with the same vibrato.

I can still vividly remember the scene of me helping the chef yesterday and secretly stealing tableware and communicating with the housekeeper several times.

Wen Shi lowered his head and pretended to be calm: "Someone is sick? Why not let them take a day off."

The owner of the castle sneered.

Wen Shi: "...There should be annual leave here, right?"

Snapped.

The owner of the castle slammed the table without any warning. Wen Shi subconsciously stood up straighter, but his head was still lowered.

The fact that the Earl, who is always known for his elegance, could make him slam his head on the table showed that his patience was really reaching its limit.

The air was terribly silent for a moment.

Wen Shi couldn't help but think that the other person's wardrobe must be very large, and he never had the same clothes twice. Yesterday's expensive clothes were replaced with a dark brown lapel windbreaker. The owner of the castle wore a pair of black leather boots and openly held his murderous weapon, the scepter.

After a long while, the owner of the castle finally responded to his previous proposal: "Breakfast and dinner, must be there."

These six words seemed to jump out from between teeth, containing deep hatred.

Wen Shi knew the deeper reason behind this. The rules of death were hidden in food, and without food, these rules would be abolished.

But now that things have come to this, who can be blamed

Who said there are not many people eating in the castle and there is only one chef? If we hired one more, wouldn’t we avoid this problem

Although he was thinking about it, he pretended to be concerned and said, "I'll go over and take a look."

I walked all the way to the kitchen, where the chef was lying on the ground, holding his stomach in pain, with plates scattered all over the floor. The housekeeper was lying diagonally opposite him, screaming in pain at the beginning, but his strength gradually faded and his cries turned into a puppy-like howl.

Wen Shi carefully walked around the debris on the ground.

Hearing the footsteps, the chef reluctantly opened one eye. In his hand was a bloody lamb leg, and the stench all over his body made him look more like a butcher. Chefs like to handle raw meat on a daily basis, and they like to develop "allergens" and add them to food according to certain rules.

Whenever a diner accidentally happened to be exposed to an allergen and fell to the ground and died in pain, he would dance with joy.

This is a little game for the chef to entertain himself.

Unfortunately, he is not happy now.

When the chef woke up this morning, he felt a bloating and pain in his stomach. Until now, the pain has not only not subsided, but has become stronger. He can smell a strange fragrance coming from his skin.

"Help me up," the chef said with difficulty, "... I can still do it."

Even in this state, he still insisted on harming others. Wen Shi gave him a thumbs up and praised him: "A good boy with a strong will despite his disability."

He supported the chef, who had just picked up a kitchen knife when his waist ached so much that he couldn't stand up.

The chef threw the lamb leg directly into the pot with a trembling voice: "Water..."

Wen Shi went to get some water and helped the housekeeper up from the ground: "Are you okay?"

The butler grabbed his sleeve and said, "Is it you?"

After yesterday's contact with the doctor, the owner said he was dirty.

"It's not mine, don't talk nonsense." Wen Shi reflexively pushed the person back to the ground.

It’s clearly the fault of that mutant pomegranate flower.

After calming down, he realized that his reaction was too great, and he comforted the other person again: "Hold on."

Add an appropriate amount of warm water again, crush the fishy ingredients and put them in to stew together.

The poor housekeeper couldn't find the culprit, so he had to do his job, pointing to something in the corner with a trilling voice: "Thank you for catching the damn thief."

It was a small palace-style lantern that he was going to hand over to Wen Shi personally, but he just couldn't hold it anymore.

"Recently, the castle has had occasional, inexplicable power outages... You can take this with you when you travel."

[Lantern: A lighting tool that does not require fuel and can stay lit all the time.]

The housekeeper held his breath and said in one clear sentence: "Why are these damn thieves staring at the studio?"

Wen Shi immediately became alert, realizing that he had been waiting for a key clue. He had specifically reminded the housekeeper to communicate with him when the side quest was completed. He quickly followed up the conversation and asked, "Has anything else been lost in the studio?"

"A few years ago... ah—"

The butler was so overwhelmed by the stomach cramps that he couldn't finish what he was supposed to say.

Wen Shi suddenly felt that the NPC was quite pitiful. He couldn't control his own will and had to follow the plot step by step even though he was in so much pain.

When the housekeeper thought about not doing his job well today, his eyes were moistened: "Master."

Wen Shi: "This is a work-related injury. The Earl will be responsible."

The butler asked hopefully, "Really?"

Wen Shi: “…”

The maid brought two painkillers.

After finishing his meal, the butler managed to calm down a little, rested for a moment and said, "A few years ago, the master devoted a lot of effort to painting a portrait. The woman in the painting can be said to be the most beautiful woman in the world. The master also loved the painting very much and said that he would use this as a standard to find the most perfect bride in the future."

At this point, the butler sighed heavily: "After that, many strange things happened in the castle. Sometimes there were strange noises at night, and the things we packed up were all over the place the next day. No one could rest well. Later, the owner simply asked us to move out. Not long after, the painting disappeared inexplicably."

"If we can get the painting back, the owner probably won't be obsessed with the wedding anymore."

Looking for a painting, isn't that the same as looking for a real bride

"Do you remember anything special about that painting?"

If Wen Shi wants to survive, he must determine the real bride's weakness as soon as possible.

"Special?" The housekeeper seemed a little puzzled by his statement. "Does it count as particularly beautiful?"

"… "

The housekeeper once again emphasized the beauty of the woman in the painting: "At first, the owner wanted to frame the painting, but he couldn't find a suitable frame. Later, he exhausted all his efforts to find materials and hired the best craftsmen to create a frame that could rival the painting."

Wen Shi's mind moved. The key to controlling the monster also lies in the picture frame, so it makes sense to infer this by analogy.

“Is the frame still there?”

"Locked up in the attic."

Wen Shi tentatively said, "I want to take a look at that picture frame."

Butler: "Help me up, I'll take you there."

Passing by Peng Lu and Luo Xiao's room, the housekeeper seemed not to smell the pungent smell of blood, and kept complaining: "Young people nowadays really don't know manners. They don't even know to say hello before leaving, and they also mess up the house."

Wen Shi asked tentatively: "The red liquid on the wall..."

"It's a prank. It's happened before," the butler said calmly. "The ungrateful stranger stole the blood from the slaughtered sheep from the kitchen and scattered it everywhere."

“…” Wen Shi was speechless.

The attic is on the top floor of the castle.

Although he said he was supporting him, Wen Shi actually carried the person all the way up.

The butler opened the door with a brass key.

There was only one small window in the attic, and the sunlight that came in was very sparse.

"Here are all the treasures of the owner."

None of the collections were regular works of art. On the three-tier iron shelves in front of him, each compartment was filled with torture instruments. Some were mottled in color, and the dark red parts were either blood or rust.

The contractions came back, and the butler, suppressing the discomfort, pointed to the wall diagonally to the side.

If it hadn't been specifically pointed out, Wen Shi probably wouldn't have used this thing as a picture frame.

On the square picture frame, there is an extra edge lining that is inclined upward, and the broken edge is polished to be sharp and smooth, resembling a guillotine that is about to fall.

Wen Shi came closer and found that the picture frame was really heavy. It was made of a material between stone and blunt iron, and it weighed at least dozens of kilograms. At that time, the picture frame in the book would hurt his hands, and Luo Xiao relied on props and the blood pool to succeed. The "true face" of this picture frame might be even more terrifying.

The painkiller wore off, and the housekeeper suddenly covered his stomach and looked towards the door, calling out excitedly, "Master..."

Wen Shi realized belatedly that the owner of the castle had arrived. He was standing at a very tricky angle, making sure he was in the shadow of the iron frame, which represented his aversion to sunlight.

"Master - vomit -" the butler vomited. He did not have the ability to ripen seeds like the Blood Bride, and his physique was not strong enough. He had struggled to say too many words before, and now that he had explained everything he needed to explain, the huge stone in his heart fell to the ground, and his physical discomfort was more thoroughly revealed.

The butler continued to speak persistently: "Master—ooh—"

Wen Shi: "Master."

The clear voice had a sexiness to it because of certain words, and the butler tilted his head in surprise.

Wen Shi: "I called for you. You're welcome."

He really didn't want to face another pile of vomit.

The owner of the castle had a cold and frightening expression: "Back off."

The butler covered his mouth and rushed out.

When he saw the picture frame, the coldness in the castle owner's expression dissipated a little. He did not mention the butler's rudeness. He stared at the picture frame for a moment and said:

"Doctor, I miss my lost paintings so much. Those useless strangers are gone, so I can only ask you to help me find my bride."

Wen Shi was quite proactive: "How can I help?"

"Tell her to come to the attic. I'll be waiting here for her."

Wen Shi exaggeratedly said: "Excuse me, your strength is unmatched by ordinary people. As long as you take action yourself..."

The owner of the castle interrupted: "I love her free soul."

“… ”Then let go!

Wen Shi would not say anything to seek death, he had already received the notification tone:

[Main quest generated]

[Main Quest: Find the Real Bride

As a doctor, you are left behind to help. Please help the castle owner get what he wants as soon as possible and leave the castle. Frank Hospital needs you!

Tip: A true bride is nostalgic and will occasionally think of the past.

"I will do my best to make sure you get what you want." Wen Shi promised.

The owner of the castle nodded nonchalantly, still looking at the picture frame, his eyes glued to the 'guillotine' above. After a long while, he slowly said, "It's better this way."

(End of this chapter)