Several n and won had gathered in the living room of the villa.
They were mostly in groups of two or three, standing relatively apart from each other.
Neither the pitch-black night sky, the magnificent snowscape, nor the howling cold wind could move them.
That was because the situation in the living room was far from harmonious.
In the center of the living room was a half-foot-high mini stage covered in shiny black flooring.
On the stage was a classical grand piano and a leather piano chair that radiated a dim light.
On the stage, apart from the piano and the chair, there was a person.
Or rather, a body that had not completely gone cold yet—
A lean middle-aged man lay face down on the piano keys, dressed in luxurious attire.
He appeared as though he had just played a heart-stirring piece of music and had then fallen into an extrely tired slumber.
What was horrifying, though, was that a winding trail of fresh blood seeped out from beneath him, forming an almost circular bloodstain on the stage's floor. On top of it lay a wicked little knife, sared with fresh blood.
Crimson blood trickled along the edge of the middle-aged man's clothes and the piano keys, and the breast pocket handkerchief peeking out of his left chest had turned a deep shade of red.
This pool of blood reflected the piano's light brown lacquer bottom and the emaciated body of the perforr, revealing an eerie, dark essence.
anwhile, the notifications continued to update, and everyone was holding their breath, focusing on them.
[Each challenger has a key that can unlock a blessed bedroom.]
[Each bedroom can accommodate a maximum of two challengers; exceeding this number will nullify the blessing.]
[Solving the mansion's puzzles has significant aning for regular challengers.]
[Among the regular challengers, one is a detective.]
Dekan and Cornelia both couldn't help but pat their pockets and found that there was indeed a key inside.
Furthermore, their clothes seed to give them a slightly uncomfortable feeling.
It wasn't because they didn't fit.
It was just that they were dressed ssily.
It was as if they had just rushed down from their beds and hastily changed their clothes.
This was definitely related to the plot background.
In general, they didn't care much about the plot.
But…
Cornelia's attire this ti was very special.
She wore a detective's deerstalker on her head and a beige woolen coat.
Even without doing anything, she had already attracted the attention of everyone in the room.
Standing by her side, Dekan seed to be her assistant.
"Hey, wait a minute. Why did this special role go to Cornelia?"
So students watching from the outside were puzzled.
"In general, special roles don't necessarily have special abilities, but they often foreshadow sothing. For example, in detective plots, the role of the detective often goes to the person most likely to uncover the enemy's identity."
"She will also beco the primary target for rebel challengers' attacks..."
Following that, the most basic plot information began to update.
[Starting Scene: The owner of this mansion, Sir Oloch, perford a well-known local piece called the "Blood Resuscitation Overture" thirty minutes ago, waking everyone up.]
[His performance was extrely brilliant, and anyone with even a little knowledge of music, or even a complete musical ignoramus, should have applauded him.]
[But at that ti, no one would admire or appreciate it because it was 6 AM. The guests were all in a deep sleep, indulging in the warmth of their blankets and enjoying an incredibly comfortable rest.]
[His splendid music disrupted the sweet dreams of one guest after another, making them angry, helpless, and miserable.]
[After he had been playing for a while, so angry guests, unable to tolerate it any longer, decided to go to the living room to stop the performance.]
[But before the guests could turn on the living room lights, the piano had already stopped playing.]
[Then, a piercing scream made everyone fully awake.]
[Gradually, people gathered in the living room, shocked, vigilant, and contemplative.]
[Core plot progress: 1/3]
At this point, the notifications finally ca to a halt.
From the chanics of the Shadow World, the hidden werewolf and witch with absolute power had a significant advantage.
So, to find their identities during the dayti, which was the only ti they could stand against them, the challengers needed to rely on plot clues.
The werewolf and witch also needed to find ways to obstruct the decryption from happening in secret.
It seed unlikely that the mansion owner had committed suicide, although it looked like it.
But currently, the clues made it difficult to point out the killer.
So, everyone in the living room turned their attention to Cornelia.
It appeared as though they were waiting for her to speak first.
Cornelia looked at the crowd with a blank expression.
She neither spoke nor showed any fear in her gaze.
Her silence didn't raise any doubts but rather reassured many challengers.
She was indeed a calm person, exuding the aura of a detective.
However, ti passed by second by second.
The atmosphere in the living room seed to freeze.
Cornelia looked sowhat helpless as she glanced at Dekan.
Dekan, using both hands to pat his cheeks, seed to be trying to wake himself up.
The weather did make it easy for people to feel drowsy.
"What's going on?"
He noticed Cornelia's attention, t her gaze, scanned the surroundings, and instantly understood Cornelia's predicant.
She was confused and had no idea what was happening.
"Say whatever you want to say, just go with the flow. Treat as your assistant."
Dekan slightly tilted his head and whispered in her ear.
"Okay."
Cornelia nodded.
Then she looked at everyone sincerely and said, "I haven't thought of anything, please don't expect much from ."
"Phew."
Upon hearing this, an elegant and graceful girl smiled.
It seed that Cornelia's words had slightly eased the tense atmosphere in the living room.
"Anyway, let's start by discussing things."
This girl took over the conversation.
She appeared to be around 16 years old, had a slender figure, and possessed exceptional beauty. It was easy to guess that she was a noble in the real world.
"I'm Lilith, a sophomore at Philoen Academy, and I'm good at solving puzzles and detective-thed Shadow Worlds."
Having said that, she looked at Cornelia, smiling as she asked, "Miss Detective, if you're clueless, do you mind passing your job to ?"
Cornelia hesitated.
All the challengers present knew that Cornelia, having the role of a detective, essentially acted as the leader of the group. Her words carried weight.
Just when she was about to look at Dekan, seeking guidance from him, Dekan lightly patted her back.
She instantly understood Dekan's aning - to improvise, not to look at him.
So, Cornelia nodded in Lilith's direction.
She had beco a detective sowhat haphazardly and didn't want to burden the other challengers.
But now, soone who appeared clever was willing to take over her role. It was quite a relief.
Lilith's lips curled into a slight smile.
"Thank you for your trust, Miss Detective."
Although the content of her words was humble, Lilith's tone didn't conceal her underlying arrogance.
It seed like she was proud to regain the identity that rightfully belonged to her.
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