Chapter 65
Chapter 65
After lunch, they gathered around the long table in the hall.
Lilith sat at the head of the table. She clapped her hands lightly, her voice crisp and sweet. “The game we are about to play is one I created myself.”
“I will provide a single sentence, and everyone must use it as a starting point to deduce the entire plot of the story.”
How were they supposed to guess that?
Everyone looked grave, the same question echoing in their minds.
George quickly presented the game rules.
[Game Rules:
Rule One: Each person can ask Lilith one question per round.
Rule Two: Lilith can only answer ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ to each question.
Rule Three: There will be a five-minute discussion period before each round begins. While a participant is asking a question, others are not allowed to speak.
Rule Four: The questioning order for each round will be the reverse of the previous round’s order.
Rule Five: The interval between questions must not exceed five minutes.
Rule Six: During the questioning period, no one else is allowed to give any form of hint to the questioner.
Rule Seven: The game consists of three rounds. If the puzzle is not solved after three rounds, Lilith will punish the participants.]
“I want to play with them alone,” Lilith said, looking up at George. “Uncle George, you should leave first.”
“But…” George hesitated for a moment, but he couldn’t resist Lilith’s request and nodded in agreement.
Lilith watched George’s figure disappear before smiling at them again. “We can begin now.”
“The sentence is: ‘The mother’s heart beats because of the daughter, and the daughter’s heart beats because of the mother.'”
Lilith glanced at the clock. “You now have five minutes to discuss freely. Please decide on the questioning order after five minutes.”
She made a gesturing motion.
Her small face was full of solemnity, making her look like a little girl trying to act like an adult-it was actually quite cute.
However, no one present felt that way.
They quickly huddled together to discuss.
There were only four of them in total, and the game was divided into three rounds, which meant they could ask Lilith a maximum of twelve questions.
Trying to piece together the background story behind such a cryptic sentence with only twelve questions sounded far too difficult.
“I have a feeling it’s not that simple,” Tu Nan whispered. “‘Mother,’ ‘daughter,’ ‘heart’… I think Lilith is hinting at something.”
“You mean the sentence she provided is likely a story that actually happened in this Manor?” Fu Zhixing asked.
Tu Nan nodded.
Ruth looked a bit nervous. “I-I don’t know the first thing about these kinds of games. I have no idea what to ask. My mind is a complete blank right now.”
“It’s okay,” Jenny comforted her. “Just ask whatever you think might be relevant.”
“If the story behind Lilith’s sentence really is about the Manor, I think we could ask this…” Fu Zhixing lowered his voice.
“Since Ruth doesn’t know what to ask, let’s have her go first. The rest of us will adapt based on Lilith’s answers.”
Tu Nan looked at Ruth. “Don’t be nervous. It’s just a question.”
Ruth nodded vigorously.
Five minutes slipped by quickly.
“Alright.” Lilith’s cheerful voice rang in everyone’s ears. “I trust you’ve finished your discussion. Let the questioning begin.”
“First question.” Ruth licked her dry lips and asked nervously, “Is this story something that actually happened?”
“Yes,” Lilith replied.
It was much simpler than she had expected. Ruth breathed a sigh of relief and smiled at Tu Nan.
The second person to ask a question was Jenny.
She was also quick to speak, asking with a beaming smile, “Is the protagonist of this story you and Rose Madam?”
Lilith paused for a moment, giving Jenny a long, deep look. Her gaze was strange, filled with a complex mix of emotions; she seemed somewhat gratified, yet also a bit sorrowful.
“Yes,” she said.
So it really was a story about the Manor.
Tu Nan’s hands, hanging at her sides, clenched unconsciously.
If things went smoothly, they might be able to uncover the secrets of the Manor through this game.
Every subsequent question had to be handled with extreme caution.
She was the next one to ask. Tu Nan looked at the smiling Lilith, feeling a wave of nervousness.
“My question is…” She thought for a long time before finally speaking with caution. “Madam is already dead, isn’t she?”
Lilith’s smile faded.
Ruth looked at her in surprise.
Tu Nan had her own reasons for asking this.
“The mother’s Heart beats because of the daughter; the daughter’s Heart beats because of the mother.”
This sentence wasn’t actually difficult to understand. Taken literally, it seemed to imply that the two relied on each other, living for the sake of the other’s love.
They already knew that Lilith had a severe Heart condition and that Madam had been searching for a new Heart for her.
There were so many Sheep in the Manor, and countless people had died here.
Every once in a while, Madam would have to find a new Heart for Lilith.
The second half of the sentence was understandable, but what about the first half?
“The mother’s Heart beats because of the daughter.”
She didn’t know why, but her mind kept flashing back to the strangely heavy scent of perfume on Madam, her skin which was painted so thickly its original color was invisible, and the clothes that covered almost her entire body.
Madam seemed to be deliberately hiding something.
The fire that had occurred at the Manor back then had scorched the walls of the Mansion black. Had they really all escaped?
In this world of the Weird, it wasn’t strange for the dead to still be ‘alive.’
“That question is a bit difficult to answer,” Lilith said calmly. “If I must answer… then yes.”
Madam really was dead!
The person they were seeing now was merely a Madam who had become a Weird.
The walls of the Mansion were covered in ivy, never letting in a single ray of light, and Madam rarely appeared during the day…
When many small details were pieced together, a vague truth began to emerge.
After Madam was burned to death in the fire, perhaps because she couldn’t let go of her child, finding a Heart for Lilith became her obsession. Thus, she became a Weird and began to continuously lure others into the Manor to provide Hearts for Lilith.
“The last question of the first round.” Lilith looked toward Fu Zhixing. “What is your question?”
Fu Zhixing contemplated for a long time, finally posing his question just as the countdown was about to end.
“Do those whose Hearts have been cut out turn into the animals in this Manor after they die?”
Lilith tilted her head.
“Yes.” There was a sort of cruel innocence on her face.
“That’s why I keep them all as pets.” She stroked Xiao Bai and gave a soft sigh.
The first round ended.
They were once again granted five minutes for discussion.