NOVPUB“Wha— Wait, wait, wait, your house?!”
“Mm.”
With that brief, indifferent response, she tugged me away from the bench, her hand firmly clasping mine.
My feet dragged along the ground, struggling to find some kind of balance, but it was useless.
It wasn’t that her grip was particularly strong, but she always managed to disrupt my center of gravity at just the right moment, leaving me stumbling helplessly behind her.
“Wait, Snowy, you could just tell me what the assignment is! There’s no need for me to go to your house, right?”
I don’t want to go...
Actually, I just want to get as far away from Snowy as possible right now.
Whether it was the nauseating scent of blood lingering on her or the murderous intent she’d exuded just now, every part of me screamed to stay on guard.
Though there was no concrete evidence yet, in my mind, an equal sign had already formed between Snowy and the dismemberment killer.
How could I not suspect her? No matter how I looked at it, it could only be her...
The way the bodies were methodically dismembered, the active devotee of mutilation, the two blades she carried on her person — there were just too many clues all pointing straight at Snowy.
And then... there was that bone-deep coldness that seemed to exude a chilling, almost tangible murderous intent.
Murder born from hatred. Hatred born from the heart. The heart driven by enduring humiliation.
A person always has a reason for harboring murderous intent — that’s what they call motive.
So what was Snowy’s motive for killing?
Was it just because she wanted to turn people into cripples?
Was she bringing me back to her house to cripple me as well...?
Earlier, she stuffed Kan Tsukiyo’s severed finger into her shirt pocket... Would I also be divided into seventeen pieces like that, each chunk carefully sliced by her seven-night dagger, and then pocketed away like grotesque little meat slices...?
A chill ran down my spine.
“...”
“My hands... are they dirty...?”
“Huh? Ah, uh?”
She suddenly stopped walking and asked such a vague and unexpected question.
Her voice was so soft that I barely caught what she said, and I could only stammer back with a confused reply.
But for some reason, Snowy didn’t repeat herself. She only mumbled something even softer.
“My hands... mm...”
Hands? What about her hands?
Just as I was trying to make sense of it, Snowy suddenly let go of my hand.
She let go! She actually let go! I was free again!
Perfect opportunity! Run away now!
This was the perfect chance — if I missed it, I might never get another shot!
The word "run" echoed frantically in my mind, and my brain sent urgent commands to my legs. But just as I was about to turn and bolt —
I saw what Snowy was doing, and I froze.
She was rubbing her blood-soaked hands against her clothes, trying to wipe them clean.
She wiped a few more times, but the stains remained stubbornly smeared across her palms. Some of the blood had already dried, and even water might not be enough to wash it away completely.
Still, she kept rubbing, smearing the blood across her shirt, even going so far as to lick her palm, wetting it with her saliva, then rubbing it again.
So that’s what she meant earlier... She was asking if her hands were dirty.
Because I had pulled a disgusted face and wrinkled my nose the whole time, she must have thought I was repulsed by the blood on her hands.
She was trying to be considerate of me, while all I thought about was running away...
A wave of guilt surged through me.
Tch. What the hell am I afraid of? Snowy’s title is blue.
That’s the color of trust, the color of safety.
Even that necrophiliac killer Lillian Ji didn’t do anything to me when her title was blue...
So, what was I so afraid of?
I really must be losing it tonight... Maybe it was the sight of Kan Tsukiyo devouring corpses, the experience of losing my senses again, or that moment when Snowy’s title had briefly flared red... All these things had piled up and made me lose my composure.
She wasn’t emotionless. Definitely not.
I just hadn’t noticed it before because I could never quite understand what she was thinking... She always seemed like a doll, devoid of any real feelings.
But the truth was, she was still a living, breathing human being.
Maybe a bit twisted, but still a person with flesh, blood, and feelings.
If I ran now, it would only backfire. It would make her feel betrayed, and betrayal would only breed resentment. If she felt pushed away, who’s to say her title wouldn’t turn red again?
Calm down. I can do this.
If I could manage to laugh and chat with Lillian Ji, then I could certainly handle getting along with Snowy.
And in a way, Snowy was actually far more stable than Lillian Ji.
“It’s fine. I don’t mind.”
I stepped forward and took her hand again. The sticky sensation returned, but this time, it didn’t disgust me.
If anything, the thought that her hands were not only smeared with blood but also her own saliva somehow made me feel... relieved.
Mm... Is it just me, or is that thought kind of twisted?
“...Mm.”
Snowy nodded softly, taking my hand once more and pulling me forward.
After leaving the park through a barely noticeable side path, we emerged onto a street.
“So dark...”
Sure, it was past midnight, and the streetlights had gone out, so the darkness was to be expected. But...
This was beyond dark.
There wasn’t a single light in sight. Not from any shop signs, not even a hint of moonlight.
A pitch-black void.
I pulled out my phone, tapping the screen twice to bring the display to life. It was the only source of light in the entire area.
I was just about to pull down the menu to turn on the flashlight when I noticed...
101 missed calls.
“...Uh...”
“Mm?”
“Oh, nothing. I was just checking my phone. It’s already almost one o’clock.”
101 missed calls. All from Cora.
This was... a bit much.
Cora was always the obedient type. Why would she suddenly do something so extreme?
Even if she had that scheming personality, she wouldn’t go this far, right?
Ah, damn. My phone’s battery was almost dead.
With only 8% battery left, I gave up on using the flashlight. I might need that battery for something else.
But why did my phone run out of power so fast? When I left the house, it was still at 50%.
Had it been drained by those hundred missed calls...?
Cora was probably asleep by now. She usually went to bed early, and it was already past her usual bedtime when I left. So she was probably already asleep now.
Should I call Serena instead? Mm...
After a moment’s thought, I decided not to. Instead, I composed a simple text message:
[Spending the night at a friend’s place. Not coming home. Don’t worry about me.]
I sent it to both Serena and Cora. Once I saw the “Delivered” confirmation, I put my phone away.
I’d still need to call her later...
Despite the street being shrouded in utter darkness, Snowy continued to lead me forward with unerring confidence, as if she could see clearly through the blackness.
After about fifteen minutes, she finally came to a stop. Judging by her expression, we’d reached our destination.
“Are we here?”
“Mm.”
I couldn’t make out the house’s structure clearly, but it was definitely spacious. There was even a small courtyard.
So, this was Snowy’s home...
Snowy walked ahead of me and stopped at the door. I didn’t hear the sound of a key turning in the lock. Was it an electronic lock? Or... did she just leave the door unlocked?
After following her inside, Snowy didn’t bother turning on the lights or even taking off her shoes as she headed straight into the living room. Meanwhile, I stood at the entrance, groping around for a light switch, but came up empty-handed.
Left with no other choice, I stepped into the living room without taking off my shoes either, considering there were no spare slippers around.
Inside the living room, a faint click echoed through the darkness. Then, a small flame flared up, casting flickering light over Snowy’s face.
It was a lighter. She used it to ignite one candle after another, gradually filling the room with a dim, wavering glow.
Using candles... That’s a bit old-fashioned, isn’t it?
The house was deathly silent. It didn’t seem like anyone else was around. The furniture was relatively modern — everything you’d expect was here — but under the candlelight, the atmosphere grew eerie.
For some reason, one of the windows was boarded up with wooden planks, as though it had been hastily repaired.
I guess haunted houses probably looked like this...
“Do you live alone?”
“Mm.”
“I see...”
The more I saw, the more curious I became about Snowy.
Did she really live in such a dilapidated place?
No, that wasn’t the right word. The house itself was actually quite large, but it had a strange, abandoned feeling to it...
Yeah, that’s it. It felt like an old, deserted mansion.
Even though Snowy clearly lived here, the place had the atmosphere of a house that had been uninhabited for years. It lacked any warmth or sign of life.
“Well, anyway, you should take a bath first and wash off all that blood. And your clothes... you can’t keep wearing those. Change into something else.”
“Mm.”
Snowy nodded obediently, as compliant as ever... and proceeded to strip right in front of me!
Kan Tsukiyo was one thing, but now you too?!
Before I could stop her, she had already swiftly removed her clothes.
Maybe it was because of her thin, flat-chested frame, but there was nothing obstructing her as she pulled her shirt over her head. Then, she unfastened the buttons on her skirt, and it slid right off her hips.
The scariest part was when she got to her underwear. Instead of pulling it down, she pulled out a knife and, with a circus-like flourish, sliced through both sides of the waistband.
The white panties, now speckled with tiny spots of red, fluttered to the ground like snowflakes.
When all was said and done, the only things left on Snowy’s body were a pair of black thigh-high socks and two scabbards.
Under the dim, dancing candlelight, her thin, small body somehow took on a strangely surreal and dreamlike aura.
Snowy then peeled off the thigh-high socks, her expression blank as she looked up at me.
“Help me.”
“Uh...”
Help with what...?
Ahh, what the hell am I supposed to do?!
But Snowy wasn’t the least bit troubled by my hesitation. She took my silence as consent and, as always, grabbed my hand and dragged me toward the bathroom.
Inside the bathroom, Snowy reached up and flicked the switch for the bathroom light...
Why is there only a light in the bathroom? This just makes it all the more impossible to avoid seeing her clearly!
Once the light was on, Snowy walked straight over to the showerhead and turned it on...
The cold water sprayed over her body and splashed onto me as well.
Freezing cold! The chill shot through me, making goosebumps rise all over my skin.
I quickly reached out and turned off the water, my sleeves now completely drenched.
“That’s cold water! Why are you using cold water for a shower?”
It’s not even summer yet. Does she want to catch a cold or what?
Snowy looked at me with a puzzled expression, as though she couldn’t understand why using cold water was a problem.
“Mm?”
“Don’t tell me... you always use cold water to shower?”
“Hot water... is there any?”
This is your house. How do you not know if you have hot water or not...?
I rolled my eyes and glanced around. Almost immediately, I spotted a water heater mounted above the washing machine, its power light glowing green.
“Oh, look. There’s hot water.”
The water heater was working, indicating that the water was already heated.
I then turned my gaze to the clean bathtub. Since there was a tub, I might as well fill it up for her.
If there’s an option, soaking in a hot bath is definitely better. Back at home, I usually just took quick showers, except on weekends when I’d visit the public bathhouse.
I turned the faucet on, and steaming hot water gushed out, filling the room with a gentle mist.
“Let’s wait a bit. It’ll be ready soon. Uh... in the meantime, maybe put some clothes on? You’ll catch a cold...”
Snowy’s hair, now damp and clinging to her cheeks, made her look even more fragile. She simply stared at me and said, “It’s fine. Not cold.”
“Alright, then... how about you wash the knives first? If you don’t mind, I could help with that.”
I tried to sound casual as I made the suggestion.
The main thing was to get her to put down her weapons first...
“...Mm.”
Snowy hesitated for a moment — a rare occurrence. After two or three seconds, she untied the straps around her waist and handed me the scabbards.
I breathed a sigh of relief, clutching the two knives as I walked over to the sink to start rinsing off the blood.
Surprisingly, they were easy to clean. In fact, there was barely any blood left on them.
At first, I thought all the blood had soaked into the scabbards, but when I ran water through them, not a single drop of blood washed out.
What the hell...
Could these scabbards absorb blood or something?
“The water’s ready.”
Snowy’s voice suddenly sounded right behind me, making me nearly slice my finger.
“Huh? Oh, right. Go ahead and get in.”
“Mm.”
I stood facing the bathroom wall like a monk in meditation.
“It’s so warm...”
“S-Sure is...”
Warm?
“I feel like... I’m melting...”
Huh? That’s a weird thing to say. No matter how warm the water is, it shouldn’t feel like your body is melting, right?
A bad feeling crept up my spine, and I called out to her.
“Snowy?”
There was no response.
I turned around just in time to see Snowy sinking under the water, her body going limp, bubbles rising to the surface.
She passed out in the bath?!
Was the water temperature too high for her?
Why didn’t she tell me?!
No, wait. It wasn’t that she didn’t tell me — she probably didn’t even realize it herself. After all, she’s only ever used cold water for showers. She had no idea she was sensitive to heat...
Ah, damn it...
After a brief moment of hesitation, I finally steeled myself and pulled her out of the tub.
Wrapping her in a bath towel, I draped another towel around my waist and hurried out of the bathroom, frantically searching for a bedroom.
Ahh...
Taking care of a loli who fainted in the bath...
Looks like there’s no way I’m going home tonight.
