Chapter 12:Castle Past 12 Cage

Fu Ruxue stepped protectively in front of Xu Nian, eyeing Cheng Li warily.

“Nothing,” he said, looking away.

He noticed Xu Nian’s clothes, faded but clearly expensive brands, and lingered on them.

Today, Xu Nian wore her own clothes. The previous day, she’d left them folded on the bed before going out. When she returned, they were washed and hung to dry.

Probably the maid’s doing.

Traces of mopping marked the floor. Xu Nian could imagine the pitiful maid, dripping blood while frantically cleaning.

Touching the fabric, it was cool and dry.

In a rare good mood, Xu Nian put them on.

Cheng Li hesitated, glancing at Fu Ruxue blocking his path, sighed deeply, and gave up talking to Xu Nian.

“I’m heading back.”

He walked off slowly, as if hoping someone would stop him.

No one did.

Fu Ruxue muttered behind him, “Acting all deep, Mr. Broody.”

Cheng Li’s lanky frame stiffened, and he quickened his pace.

Xu Nian paid no mind, heading to the sink. Cold water ran through her fingers, washing away blood foam.

Her body, fueled only by a bit of protein, signaled intense hunger from her stomach.

Fu Ruxue rubbed her empty belly, poking Xu Nian’s shoulder. “Xu Nian, that moldy bread in the maid’s box—think it’s edible?”

Xu Nian glanced at her. “If you want to eat it, go ahead. The maid can’t.”

No head, no mouth to eat with.

“…You’re a devil.”

Fu Ruxue, floored by her dark humor, felt her hunger fade.

Forcing herself to rally, she slapped her cheeks. “What’s next?”

She seemed glued to Xu Nian, never leaving her side.

“Don’t you have your own stuff to do?”

“I’m scared alone.”

Fu Ruxue gave her a pitiful, homeless-puppy look.

Pretending again.

“Fine, follow me.”

Xu Nian shrugged, wiping her hands dry and flipping through the books again.

Fu Ruxue felt a chill, rubbing her arms and glancing around. Nothing seemed off.

Just nerves, probably.

Bang. Bang. Bang.

Sudden thuds echoed, each one striking their hearts.

What was that?

Fu Ruxue nervously clutched Xu Nian’s sleeve. Xu Nian’s gaze lifted from the book to the cabinet, fingers absently tracing the pages, still lost in thought.

Bang.

The cabinet door shuddered, something inside straining to break free, louder than before.

“Run!”

Xu Nian’s heart raced. Without hesitation, she grabbed Fu Ruxue and bolted.

Bang!

The cabinet door splintered, countless sticky black tendrils bursting out, oozing nauseating fluid, lunging toward the fleeing pair.

“Ah!”

Fu Ruxue lagged, a tendril snaring her ankle. Her body lurched forward, but the tendril tightened, yanking her back.

Xu Nian flicked her sleeve, a knife flying out, slicing into the tendril.

It split halfway but clung stubbornly, tightening. Fu Ruxue, pulled by Xu Nian, drew a curved blade from her waist, hacking off the rest.

Xu Nian dragged her out of the kitchen.

The tendrils hit the kitchen’s edge, as if triggering a taboo, and swiftly retracted into the cabinet.

Huff, huff—

Fu Ruxue, relieved, collapsed, clutching Xu Nian’s clothes like a lifeline.

“I’ve got a plan.”

Xu Nian, holding the books, pried off Fu Ruxue’s trembling hands.

She’d helped Fu Ruxue escape, but her fear wasn’t Xu Nian’s concern.

Fu Ruxue’s hands fell, and she gave a bitter smile at Xu Nian’s back.

Xu Nian was kind to her, no doubt.

But so cruel.

The black residue on her ankle dissolved into a sticky puddle.

Shivering from lingering fear, Fu Ruxue stood, chasing after Xu Nian.

Xu Nian was at Cheng Li’s door, about to knock, when Fu Ruxue stopped her.

“What do you want with him?” she whispered.

“Business.”

Xu Nian, the conversation ender, knocked.

Cheng Li, surprised but playing it cool, said, “You? What’s up?”

“Remember that line?”

“What?”

“The diary page: The land of eternal despair buries sin.”

Cheng Li’s face shifted, frowning. “Found something?”

“Spider lilies symbolize eternity, hopeless love, and longing. ‘Buries sin’ suggests something tied to the Duke’s crimes is hidden.”

“What’s that mean?”

“The red flower sea outside might hide the Duke’s embezzled treasures.”

Cheng Li’s eyes gleamed with greed. “You mean…”

“Go dig. We’ll wait for good news.”

“Why not come along?”

“We can’t dig,” Fu Ruxue cut in, rolling her eyes.

Cheng Li, determined, grabbed digging tools and stormed off.

“Is there really treasure?” Fu Ruxue asked skeptically.

“No idea.”

Xu Nian blinked, a cunning glint in her innocent eyes.

Cheng Li, too excited, forgot to close his door. A gentle push opened it.

He’d never shared details about his room, which felt off. Now, it wasn’t surprising.

Shelves lined with chemical reagents, neatly organized in the Duke’s style.

If Fu Ruxue had this room, she wouldn’t share either.

With such reagents, poisoning others would be easy.

“Find luminol,” Xu Nian said.

“Okay.”

Fu Ruxue didn’t know luminol but trusted Xu Nian.

While Cheng Li dug in the garden, they split up, searching the shelves.

Xu Nian’s eyes lit up at one bottle, shaking it, the liquid swirling.

It matched the one from the Duchess’s room.

Reading the label, she said, “Bismuthrol reagent?”

Never heard of it.

She put it back, continuing her search.

Time ticked by, the countless bottles dizzying.

Silence hung as they searched.

“Found it!”

Fu Ruxue carefully held a bottle, pale yellow liquid sloshing gently.

Xu Nian checked the amount. “That’s enough.”

Night fell.

The door clicked shut, two figures slipping quietly to the maid’s room.

Fu Ruxue stood in front, taking deep breaths, unable to open the door.

“Open it,” Xu Nian urged.

Fu Ruxue’s eyes held fear. “What if the body’s rotting…”

Xu Nian, impatient, pushed past and opened the door.

Fu Ruxue braced for a maggot-crawling corpse, but the room was eerily clean, the floor polished to a shine, the body and head gone, replaced by a chilling emptiness.

Even a less creepy room felt unnervingly strange. Everything had changed except the timid girl’s head and body.

Xu Nian grabbed a red-and-white spray bottle, poured in the luminol, and tested it on the floor.

In the dim room, luminol glowed faint blue.

Sprayed areas revealed glowing bloodstains—a large pool from the maid’s neck, and a smaller trail.

Following the glowing droplets, they left the room, tracing an unobstructed path to a large jar in a corner.

“Move it.”

With effort, they shifted the jar aside.

Xu Nian’s heart pounded, trembling with excitement as the truth neared, joy sparkling in her eyes.

The “key” might be there.

Her longing to go home peaked, knowing she was close.

A flash of memory: three figures walking away, fading, as she watched from afar…

In the shadows, the blonde woman watched, a smile on her lips, her possessive gaze chillingly intense, scanning the oblivious Xu Nian.

They reached the basement.

She couldn’t wait to see Xu Nian’s face when she saw the cage crafted just for her.

She wanted to lock her away forever, hidden, covered in her scent, marked as hers.

[Luminol Reagent: Used to detect trace blood in dark or low-light environments. Reacts with an oxidant to emit faint blue-green fluorescence.]