Chapter 224

Chapter 224

The Night Watchman was found dead in his home, yet unusually, the door was wide open.

"Someone must have broken in to commit murder. How terrifying. Who could have done such a thing?"

"Who knows? But how did they even find out that Jona and Mark were Night Watchmen? Did they tell anyone?"

"It's unclear. Those two didn't have many friends, and their family had passed away long ago. They didn't seem like the type to gossip."

"Speaking of which, was it really a burglary turned deadly? Could it be... another instance of the rules at play?"

"I doubt it."

As the black cat and Druid approached the site of the Night Watchman's death, they overheard nearby residents whispering about the freshly deceased pair. Cornelia had also dispatched Bernie to help search for clues. Yes, despite his rugged appearance, he possessed a fair amount of knowledge among the townsfolk, which was why he held a position in the decision-making circle.

"Is the Night Watchman's body still there?" the black cat inquired.

"Still here, as the body hasn't been examined yet, I told them not to touch anything. If you want to take a look, do it quickly, corpses can give off a strong odor after some time," Bernie urged.

Promptly, the Black Cat and the Druid hurried to the spot where the Night Watchman had met his end. They were meticulous in their inspection, casting Detect spells as they approached the area.

"Detect: Success"

"You notice a jumbled trail of footprints, all belonging to one person."

"Detect: Failure"

"Detect: Success"

"You see a faint white powder by the window, along with a circle of black marks."

"You discover..."

The Black Cat searched inside while the Druid examined the outside, both consciously sharing their findings on the team channel. Unbeknownst to them, Bernie was at the entrance, mentally preparing himself. The Black Cat approached the corpse within the room and began rolling for Medicine.

"Medicine: Judging from the stiffness of the corpse, you estimate that death occurred over three hours ago. The abdomen is severely sunken, and several internal organs seem to be missing. You deduce this to be the cause of death, but no external wounds are visible on the body."

"

But if it wasn't magic, could it be that the Night Watchman was murdered?

While the black cat was pondering, Bernie had already pressed on the Night Watchman's abdomen and, upon realizing it was empty, his face twisted in horror. "His organs are gone. Are there any knife wounds on the surface?"

"No."

"It's over. It must be a rule," Bernie nervously clutched his head. "The Night Watchman died at home, which isn't one of the established rules. A new, unknown rule has emerged, and more people will die! Many more!"

The black cat didn't jump to conclusions. Instead, it looked at the wide-open door thoughtfully. "Was the door to his house open from the moment you discovered the Night Watchman?"

"Yes, yes." An onlooker outside rushed to answer. "I was the first to find him. I live next door. When I stepped out, I saw his front door wide open. That's when I found his body."

If the man had been at home, why would the door be unlocked?

The black cat was puzzled. Could it have been a burglary? But that didn't make sense either. How could someone remove a person's organs without magic, let alone commit murder inside the house?

A Druid approached from outside, meeting the black cat's inquiring gaze with a shake of his head. "There are white powders, burn marks by the window, and damp soil on the other side. Nothing else unusual. No signs of traps or mechanisms around the area, and the footprints have been covered by morning pedestrians."

"Um, is it really a rule that's killing people?" The same resident who spoke earlier ventured to ask, staring intently at the black cat and company.

The black cat didn't respond but instead asked, "You live nearby, did you hear anything unusual at night?"

The resident shook their head. "I thought I heard a distant explosion, but I was deeply asleep and assumed it was just a dream. When I woke up, it was already morning."

With that clue, the black cat stood up and went to another night watchman's house. The scene there was similar—disordered footprints, an open door, white powder by the window, burn marks, an empty stomach of the corpse, a face contorted in fear, and no visible wounds on the body.

Bernie was growing impatient with following the black cat in search of clues. He was convinced that such bizarre deaths must be connected to the rule, and he wanted to report this to Cornelia. However, as soon as he stepped out, he was surrounded by curious residents.

Amidst the cacophony outside, the druid glanced over and saw the residents urgently asking Bernie if he was the rule, their faces on the verge of collapse. Bernie looked distressed but was still trying his best to soothe their anxieties.

The druid could understand their concern. If it was indeed a new rule, more lives might be lost before they could decipher it.

The size of the town's houses didn't match the number of people they had seen, suggesting a grim fate for those unaccounted for.

The black cat remained composed, inspecting the night watchman's quarters before moving on to the bell ringer's post. It wasn't far from where the bell ringer had died, a small, public toilet-like structure that could barely fit a bed.

But here, the black cat noticed something amiss. Focusing on the entrance, he spotted two long drag marks.

The force, the direction...

"Hmm? What did you find?" Seeing the black cat freeze in its tracks, the druid crouched down out of curiosity, also noticing something amiss. "This shape... It seems to fit that movement perfectly."

After their exchange, the two exchanged glances. Their close friendship led the black cat to instinctively collapse on the ground, while the druid placed his hands under the cat's armpits. The cat relaxed, allowing the druid to drag it along for a short distance.

Sure enough, the shape matched the trail leading up to the entrance almost exactly!

Excited, the black cat jumped up but accidentally stepped on a pebble, causing it to lean backward. This collision sent the enthusiastic druid tumbling to the ground, landing right on top of the cat with their noses touching.

Coincidentally, Cornelia, preoccupied with her thoughts, was lifting her skirt as she approached. From afar, she caught sight of the players piled on top of each other.

"What are you...?"

"HAHAHAHA! Fencing, quick, fencing!"

"Oh my sides, what happened? How could such a coincidence occur? Some anime rule at work here?"

"I screenshotted it, gayness confirmed!"

The black cat and druid hurriedly stood up, awkwardly separating under Cornelia's meaningful gaze. "Nothing's going on between us!" they both insisted.

"There's no need to worry. No one in this town would discriminate against you two," Cornelia interjected gently, diffusing the tension. "At a time like this, people wouldn't be bothered by such taboos. After all, who knows what the world will be like tomorrow."

"Thank you for your defense," the black cat replied, its face darkening. "But it's not really like that. We just discovered that the bell ringer didn't actually die at the scene we found him."

"Hmm?" With the conversation turning serious, Cornelia's amusement faded, her gaze turning sharp. "Are you certain?"

"We're quite sure. The soil near the door of the watchroom is softer. The killer might have overlooked any traces left there. If that's the case, the actual crime scene could be inside," the black cat explained, its excitement growing. "Let's check if there are any clues left."

With that, the black cat entered the watchroom first, swiftly scanning the area and conducting an investigation. Unfortunately, there were no footprints this time – they had likely been deliberately concealed. The cat imagined where it might choose to commit murder in such a confined space.

The bell ringer was an adult man, albeit slender, and would have put up some resistance. The room was tiny; with a bed taking up space, it was only a few steps from one end to the other. If the killing occurred by the door, there would have been considerable commotion.

Unless it happened...

The black cat turned its attention to the room's solitary bed and conducted another investigation.

"Investigation: Great Success!"

"You find two hairs of different colors tucked between the blankets!"

Black Cat: !

The black cat grew agitated and immediately examined the two strands of hair he found – one was short and rather thick, black hair, while the other was slightly longer brown hair.

"Murdere must have taken place in the bed," Black Cat muttered, lifting the covers. Perhaps his luck wasn't on his side, or perhaps the most crucial clue had already been discovered. "Would the Bell Ringer sleep with someone else at night?"

"How could that be? There's no such tradition," Cornelia denied outright.

"Then the other person might know something," Black Cat said with a faint smile, finally picking up a lead. "How many people in town have long brown hair? Are there any who have a closer relationship with the Bell Ringer?"

"There are a few possibilities. I'll go ask around." Cornelia had already gleaned something from Black Cat's series of questions. "It's indeed a murder, isn't it?"

"Exactly. Otherwise, why would there be a rule that someone could sleep with the Bell Ringer?" Black Cat pointed at the longer brown strand.

"Fantastic!" Cornelia breathed a sigh of relief. To her, the absence of a new rule was the best outcome, even if it meant there was a traitor. The small town couldn't withstand another storm.

"Let's go. We should examine the Bell Ringer's body again. There might be clues we missed, or we might discover something new." With the case making significant progress, Black Cat was thrilled. His player ID hinted at his love for Edgar Allan Poe's classic novels, and he personally enjoyed puzzles and deductions.

"The cleaner moved the body to the church. I'll take you there."

"Well, alright, so we..." The black cat paused abruptly in its speech.

"What's up with the black cat?"

"Damn, guys, there's a shadow by the window!"

"???"

"Someone's eavesdropping! Damn it!"

"The culprit returned to the crime scene?"

"This is the perfect chance for a caught-in-the-act arrest!"

The black cat didn't respond verbally but instead sent a message to the Druid in their team channel, who promptly understood and stealthily exited.

Exiting the room, the black cat moved silently to encircle the area from the other side. Before catching sight of anyone, the Druid's voice boomed, "Don't run!"

The black cat quickened its pace and witnessed a figure clad in a black robe dashing into an alleyway just ahead of the Druid. It hurriedly gave chase.

"Excitement, a chase!"

"It's time to be nimble!"

"C'mon, Blackie!"

As Blackie turned a corner, she nearly collided with the Druid's back. "Caught anyone?"

"No… Don't move."

The Druid's forehead was beaded with cold sweat.

Before them, a figure dressed in white, whose face was indistinct, was sweeping the ground with a broom.

Upon closer inspection, they realized that the person was sweeping up bloody chunks of flesh and organs. The red liquid seeped from the white figure's footsteps, trickling towards Blackie and the others, emitting a pungent stench.