Chapter 345

Chapter 131 Light and Darkness Part Twenty-Eight

“So, shall we start now?”

When Duke Lex said this, his heart was pounding with anxiety.

He feared that the girl might suddenly realize what was happening and change her mind, unwilling to give her any time to think. He immediately added, “I’ll hide first. You… just stand here, close your eyes, and count sixty… or even a hundred and twenty counts. Count slowly, then come find me… That’s how the game works, right?”

Duke Lex unconsciously used a tone usually reserved for soothing young girls, even though his voice still trembled slightly.

But the girl seemed delighted.

“Okay!”

She nodded again seriously, letting go of her shoulders and placing her hands behind her back.

Duke Lex gently moved his sore shoulder, secretly exhaling in relief.

Haha…

He held back his excitement, keeping his expression neutral.

“Then, let’s start now?”

Duke Lex struggled to keep his trembling voice steady as he told the girl, “Close your eyes. I’m going to run away… I’m hiding.”

“Alright~”

The girl happily agreed.

What a childish little girl.

Duke Lex looked at her obedient and adorable manner, unable to resist the urge to reach out and touch her head—this was an unconscious action, and by the time he realized it, his hand was already raised.

The girl clearly noticed Duke Lex’s movement.

She looked at her raised right hand, her black eyes brimming with laughter, but also flickering with a cold glint, making Duke Lex feel as if he had fallen into an icy abyss.

Touching her would be fatal…

Realizing this, cold sweat dripped down his forehead.

Damn it…

Had he lost his mind? What was he thinking…

Just go…

“Then…”

Duke Lex quickly changed his gesture, pointing casually at the empty street behind him.

“I’m leaving?”

As he spoke, he took a cautious step backward.

He didn’t want to say so many humiliating words. If he could, Duke Lex wouldn’t have stayed a second longer, but he had to consider the girl’s emotions—she was acting strangely.

It was an indescribable feeling, like when he first met Princess Shantelle at the banquet; she wasn’t the same person as the girl before him.

It was absurd.

But the girl continued to smile at him, closing her eyes slowly.

“One! Two! Three…”

She started counting.

…Run!

Duke Lex didn’t hesitate for a moment, turning and running as fast as he could. After running some distance, he turned into a narrow alley by the side of the street.

The girl’s counting gradually faded behind him.

Duke Lex didn’t dare look back; he kept running until her voice completely disappeared, and he felt a sense of survival wash over him.

“Haha…”

He couldn’t help laughing.

But he knew it wasn’t time to relax yet.

The girl was powerful, and he didn’t know what other tricks she had up her sleeve. If he just kept running, she might discover him instantly—Duke Lex remembered her fighting the monster, and she could fly like Elizabeth.

Duke Lex ran through the empty streets, twisting and turning until he was disoriented. He didn’t know how long he had been running when he reached a partially collapsed house. He saw the pile of rubble and the wooden cabinet under a log, catching his breath before walking quickly towards it.

The cabinet door was stuck tight, and Duke Lex struggled to open it, pulling out all the clothes inside and stuffing them under a large rock. Then, he squeezed himself in, trying to close the door, only to find it broken and unable to close properly, leaving a small gap.

Forget it, this will do…

The dark, cramped space gave Duke Lex a sense of security, and his tense nerves finally relaxed. At this moment, he realized his hands were shaking uncontrollably, and his whole body was trembling.

“Living like a dog for so many years…”

Even so, Duke Lex felt incredibly happy.

That foolish girl…

The capital is so vast, and everything is in chaos. How could you possibly find me… How could you know where I am—

Thud.

Suddenly, he heard a faint sound from outside. It seemed someone had landed on the wooden log.

Who is it?!

Duke Lex was startled, his heart racing again.

He covered his mouth tightly, holding his breath, hiding motionless in the cabinet, listening carefully to the sounds outside.

Tap, tap, tap…

Those were light footsteps.

Could it be… those insane ironclad guards?

Immediately after, Duke Lex heard a humming song.

“Hum hum hum… la la la…”

The song was sweet, sounding like a nursery rhyme from somewhere. Duke Lex had never heard such a tune before, but he didn’t know what she was humming, and the source of the song was getting closer.

He recognized whose voice it was.

She’s here…

Damn it! Damn it!!!

Duke Lex was terrified out of his wits.

He didn’t know how the girl found him so quickly, and he was so scared that his mind went blank, unable to think.

Tap, tap, tap…

The girl’s footsteps sounded like the countdown to death, accompanied by a strange song as she approached the cabinet, then stopped.

“Oh, you’re here, right?”

He heard her muttering, still in her playful tone, as if enjoying a fun game.

But this wasn’t a game for Duke Lex.

“Whew… Whew…”

Despite his efforts to control his breathing, the sound of his gasps was piercing. Duke Lex peered through the gap in the cabinet door, staring intently at the shadowy figure outside, his trembling hand slowly moving toward the hilt of his sword.

He didn’t know what would happen if the girl found him.

But he definitely didn’t want to experience it firsthand.

The shadow outside swayed with the faint light seeping through the gap, like a flickering flame in the wind. Time ticked by second by second, and Duke Lex’s breathing grew heavier. He felt like he was being choked, each second agonizingly painful.

Just as he was about to force the cabinet door open and escape, the shadow outside suddenly vanished.

How…

Did she leave?

It shouldn’t be—

In the next moment, a pair of dark, cold eyes peered through the gap into the cabinet.

“I found you~”

“Aaaaah!!!”

Duke Lex’s scalp tingled, as if his hair stood on end. He screamed and tore open the cabinet door, struggling to escape.

Immediately afterward, he heard a terrifying screech.

“I forgot to mention the rules earlier… The loser has to accept the punishment~”

What…

Bam—

A flash of black light, and the cabinet exploded.

Duke Lex felt his body lighten. He flew upward, then fell back down, landing hard against the stone wall, his head ringing.

“Cough…”

Ignoring the pain in his body, Duke Lex shook his head, trying to get up and run, but his legs were too weak to support him. In desperation, he used his right hand to prop himself up—where was his right hand…

With confusion, he slowly turned his head to look at his right arm.

There was no right arm anymore.

In his field of vision, half of a bloodied arm was spurting dark red blood, splattering onto the ground.

His arm was severed…

“Ughhhhh!!!”

Fear and sudden, excruciating pain made Duke Lex roar like a wild beast. At the same time, he heard the girl’s footsteps stop again in front of him.

“It was too quick, no fun…”

Her voice became muffled, as if he were hallucinating.

But Duke Lex knew he couldn’t pass out now.

He bit his tongue fiercely, trying to stay conscious: “Wait, wait… Don’t kill me! I know… I know what you’re looking for, I know where it is!”

“…What?” The girl was puzzled.

“It’s… something from the heretics, Teresa sent it out… You know, you know…”

“Oh…”

Hearing this, she seemed thoughtful.

But then, Duke Lex heard a mocking laugh.

“What’s it to me?”