Chapter 79: Family
Herag recalled the arm on the dining table outside, suddenly realizing that it looked a lot like Robert's.
Because of using a dagger for years, Robert had noticeable marks on his hand.
"No wonder it looked so familiar..."
When Herag saw that arm earlier, it felt familiar, but he didn't connect it to Robert right away.
He had just seen Robert out in the street from the first-floor window, so how could he be dismembered in an instant?
Herag put down the photo he was holding, didn't touch the leg, and turned to leave the room.
The arm on the dining table was still there; Herag glanced at it as he passed by and then left.
He continued to the other two rooms on the second floor, where he also found a hand and a leg.
There were also some photos in these rooms, both group photos and solo ones. Without exception, they all had no faces.
Herag strolled through the second floor, finding nothing else, so he went up the stairs to the third floor.
He recalled that outside, he remembered the third floor should have an attic-like structure.
Upon reaching the third floor, Herag found it was indeed a low attic where you had to walk slightly bent over to avoid hitting your head.
As he bowed his head, he noticed something and stopped.
On the floor was a long trail of blood, extending all the way to the windowsill at the far end of the attic.
Following the blood trail with his eyes, Herag found a severed head placed beneath the attic window.
"Robert..."
He carefully identified the face; there were several terrifying wounds on it, making it almost unrecognizable.
Herag observed for a while: "The wounds look like they were made by an axe, very deep."
The skin and flesh at the wound had rolled back, exposing the white bone underneath.
"Did you die so tragically?"
Herag scratched his nose awkwardly; after all, it was him who asked Robert to lead the way, and now that Robert died so horribly, he felt somewhat guilty.
Dying in such a place, Robert's remains couldn't even be taken out.
"I should think about how to get out of here." Herag shook his head. He was in danger himself and hadn't found a way out.
If the dead Robert were real, then he probably wasn't far from danger himself.
Despite being a strong Great Knight Level, Robert was silently taken out.
Herag scanned the attic, which was full of clutter, nothing else.
He was looking for the axe, the murder weapon used on Robert, but so far, he hadn't seen it.
After searching the attic for a while and finding nothing, Herag started heading downstairs.
He had been all around the house but found nothing else.
"If Robert is dead, then part of his body is still missing. Where did it go?" Herag was puzzled.
Thinking as he descended the stairs, he returned to the first floor.
Herag went to the window to see if Robert was still outside, but as he approached, he found a face pressed against the window.
Robert was pressing his face against the window, looking hard inside, seemingly searching for Herag.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Suddenly, a heavy banging sound came from upstairs, as if someone was hitting the door with something heavy.
A chill rose in Herag's heart as he clearly felt a huge threat from something upstairs.
"I have to get out of here quickly!"
His heartbeat quickened, and the feeling of impending doom grew stronger.
The banging from upstairs abruptly stopped, and the house became quiet again, yet Herag felt a sudden chill around him.
He turned to see a little girl on the stairs leading to the second floor, wearing a red plaid dress, holding a doll quietly.
The girl's face, like in the photos, was featureless, but Herag could feel her gazing at him.
"She's smiling?"
Herag suddenly felt that the little girl was smiling at him.
Then, suddenly, a mouth appeared on the girl's featureless face, revealing white teeth with some red filaments between them.
Herag felt no warmth from this smile, only a chill down his spine.
In his hand, Fire Elemental Energy Particles quickly gathered, and a Small Fireball Technique was about to form.
The little girl seemed not afraid at all, showing a horrific smile as she gradually walked down the stairs towards Herag.
At this moment, Herag noticed that the doll in the little girl's hand was also a Resentful Doll.
"Could the Resentful Doll in my Space Ring have come from here? That Wizard got this thing but died outside of Valley Town..." Herag noticed the Resentful Doll in the girl's hand, although its appearance was different from the one in the Space Ring, both were top-level curse technique casting materials.
But now he had no time to think about acquiring the Resentful Doll, his mind was racing to figure out how to escape.
Just then, there was a noise at the door.
The sound of a key opening the door came from the entrance, causing the little girl to stop in her tracks.
The key inserted into the lock, and then turned with a click, and the door opened.
A big bearded man stepped in with an axe hanging from his head.
The axe was embedded in his forehead, deeply cleaving into his head.
Yet he seemed unaware, and upon seeing Herag, showed a delighted expression: "It's you! Thank you for treating me to a Butter Beer."
"Blacksmith Uncle?" Herag was taken aback, surprised to see the Blacksmith Uncle he had met at the tavern.
But now the Blacksmith Uncle was clearly different from when he met him in the tavern, besides the axe in his head, his eyeballs had turned a pale gray.
His facial skin was also abnormal, presenting a bluish-green hue, not quite human-looking.
The Blacksmith Uncle chuckled warmly, although his facial skin seemed stiff, making the smile look wooden and spooky.
He looked at the little girl with feigned anger: "Go back! Don't be rude to our guest!"
The little girl, holding the doll with both hands, trembled slightly, seemingly very frightened.
She turned and ran up the stairs in small steps, disappearing in the blink of an eye.
The chill enveloping Herag disappeared too, making him feel much lighter and breathe a sigh of relief.
"You should leave here; you shouldn't have come." The Blacksmith Uncle said, seeing the little girl upstairs and turning back.
Herag nodded: "Thank you!"
Clearly, the Blacksmith Uncle had helped him, without whom he couldn't imagine what that terrifying little girl would do to him, he had no confidence dealing with such a thing.
The Blacksmith Uncle sighed: "Alas, few in the town can remain lucid. Haha, can't even be called people."
He forced a smile, looked up, and said: "You should go quickly. I can't guarantee when I'll lose my mind, it will be dangerous then, hurry and go!"