Mechanical Alchemist

Chapter 7: Rune Puppetry

Su'en's gaze gradually became serious.

Because he also picked up a fork and skewered a large piece of bloody meat, bringing it to his mouth.

If he didn't find a solution, he would probably taste the flavor of human organs for the first time.

He knew that if he didn't find a breakthrough, he would eventually be played to death by the "ghost species".

.......

A terrifying manor, eerie dolls, a ghost species that enjoys killing humans...

Su'en's thoughts raced.

Suddenly, he thought of something, a flash of inspiration: "Since the weirdness in this room has the ability to easily kill us, but it doesn't... it means that this 'weirdness' has some intelligence, and it's not low."

It's a good thing that the monster has intelligence.

He was afraid that the monster only knew instinctual killing, which would be a desperate situation.

Fighting was definitely not an option.

But based on his experience from thousands of horror games and movies, as long as an NPC has intelligence, they can obtain plot twists (clues) through conversation.

The study, the corridor, the banquet hall... the clues in his mind suddenly connected.

Su'en felt that he had probably found the key to breaking the deadlock!

"Phew..."

He let out a sigh of relief.

Su'en decided to give it a try.

At this moment, his expression suddenly froze, and he said something inexplicable to the empty space: "Miss Pestoya, can I talk to you?"

......

With this opening, it was as if time had stopped.

Su'en, with a piece of meat in his right hand, stopped in mid-air.

Upon hearing these words, the bald man nearby, whose mouth was filled with blood, clearly paused, not understanding why Su'en suddenly said something so inexplicable.

However, at this moment, a response came from the void, "Huh... How do you know my name?"

It was still the deep and eerie voice of the old lady from before.

He guessed it right!

Upon hearing these words, Su'en immediately realized that his reasoning was correct.

That Marcus guy mentioned that this "ghost species" discovered them but didn't kill them directly. Instead, they played a few games, like hide-and-seek, marbles, and bowling...

As long as they followed the rules of the game, they could temporarily survive; but if they violated the rules, they would be killed immediately.

The current situation was the same. This weirdness could easily kill them, but it chose to "play".

This also proved that this "ghost species" was young, or rather, psychologically young.

On the dining table, besides the corpses, there were only three dolls: a gentleman in a suit, a noblewoman, and a young woman. The gentleman sat in the main seat, indicating that they were a family of three.

When Su'en observed them on the table earlier, he had a familiar feeling about these three people.

After thinking for a moment, he remembered seeing a family photo on the wall in the study.

In the photo, these three people were present.

And there was actually a fourth person in that photo.

A little girl holding a teddy bear!

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So... it wasn't difficult to guess that the only remaining person was the little girl referred to as "the master" by the butler, who liked bloody pranks. The identity of this "ghost species" could only be that little girl.

And on that photo, there happened to be a name written, "Pestoya Isaac"!

......

Su'en didn't answer that question but said directly, "Can I have a chat with you, Miss Pestoya?"

Although he didn't know what this "weirdness" was, it was probably similar to the "ghosts" he had in mind.

Moreover, since he knew that she was young at heart, there was more room for conversation (manipulation).

Therefore, he needed to pique her interest first.

He continued, "I can tell you interesting stories, dance, sing, perform shadow plays, puppet shows... I think Miss Pestoya will like them..."

.......

After saying these words, the room fell silent for a while.

Su'en thought that things were still not quite there, but at this moment, the surroundings suddenly changed. The banquet hall transformed into a delicately decorated girl's bedroom.

At the workbench by the window, a little girl in a princess dress was sitting, tinkering with some doll parts.

She seemed to be earnestly assembling a doll covered in runes. Without turning around, she said, "You haven't answered how you know my name."

Her voice was gentle and sounded tender.

The first step was successful!

He successfully piqued her interest.

While quickly observing everything in the room, Su'en continued, "I saw your name on a photo in the study..."

He spoke in a calm tone as much as possible, fearing that he might provoke the other party.

Because he knew that the seemingly harmless little girl in front of him had a twisted mind that enjoyed killing humans.

The little girl asked, "How did you discover me in the study?"

Obviously, she was referring to the incident with the nutcracker.

Su'en thought it was a good sign. At least, she took the initiative to start a conversation. He responded, "Because I noticed that the eyes of the doll moved."

"Oh, so that's how it is."

Upon hearing this, the little girl slowly put down the rune doll in her hand.

As if time stood still for a moment, she then turned around slowly.

Seeing this, Su'en narrowed his eyes slightly and had a vague feeling that there would be a major turning point in the plot. Just in case, he silently played a background music from a horror movie in his mind - "Today is a Good Day."

As expected!

In the next moment, the little girl turned to face Su'en and suddenly reverted to the previous low and terrifying voice, asking in a sinister tone, "Now, do you still want to chat with me?"

.......

It was a burnt and charred face, with facial features wrinkled together due to high temperature burns, and only three holes left for the mouth and nose.

A normal person would definitely be startled upon seeing this face.

But what surprised the little girl was that Su'en's expression remained unchanged. There was no fear, disgust, or fear... Instead, he looked at the little girl's face intently and even showed a warm smile.

If you have watched a thousand horror movies, it's probably hard to be scared.

In horror movies, there were countless ways of "turning back and killing," including sulfuric acid, burning, dismemberment, pus... all kinds of terrifying and disgusting scenes.

So, when Su'en saw this burnt face, he wasn't particularly affected.

He knew that if he showed an expression of being scared or afraid, it might trigger some instant death effect, and the conversation would definitely not continue.

However, he successfully passed this first level.

Su'en went straight to the point, "Of course, Miss Pestoya. I can sense your loneliness..."

He imitated the tone of the psychiatrist who treated him before and began the conversation.

.......

The little girl was stunned, as if she hadn't figured out how to respond if the other person wasn't scared by her terrifying appearance.

Su'en didn't give her a chance to attack. He immediately started telling his own story.

"When I was in the juvenile detention center, I was often put in solitary confinement. Oh, the juvenile detention center is a place for disobedient children. So, I can understand the loneliness of being locked in a small room alone..."

"I was born into a loving family, but at a young age, my parents left..."

"..."

If you have read eight hundred books, you won't find anything new in the world.

Italian writer Carlo Gozzi said that there are only thirty-six plotlines in the world: pleading, rescue, revenge, revenge between relatives, pursuit, disaster, misfortune, enlightenment, seeking...

Upon seeing the face of "Pestoya," Su'en immediately speculated on many plotlines.

Burned?

Either it was an accident, or she was a victim.

And the family sitting neatly at the dining table, either it was nostalgia or resentment.

From the limited clues, it seemed like a harmonious family.

Pestoya was probably born into a loving family, but when she was around ten years old, she lost her life in an accidental fire.

Her life was frozen in that year.

Su'en wasn't entirely bluffing; he could actually empathize with that kind of loneliness.

Because he was telling his own story.

Perhaps only a mentally ill patient could understand a mentally ill patient?

After being treated in the juvenile detention center for so many years, reading so many books on psychology, he could easily communicate with troubled children.

Although this "weirdness" was powerful and could easily kill a hundred Su'en, it was ultimately just a little girl with limited life experience.

With intelligence comes emotional needs...

That's what the psychiatrist who treated him said.

The desire to survive overwhelmed any guilt Su'en had for manipulating the little girl. They slowly started talking as if they were good friends, sitting side by side.

Su'en told her some strange and interesting stories from Earth.

Pestoya also talked about the events that happened in the manor.

"My parents are both powerful alchemists, and they are busy every day... Only these dolls accompany me all the time, but unfortunately, they can't talk..."

"..."

Su'en didn't ask about the fire incident. It was easy to guess that it would trigger painful memories for Pestoya.

The two of them chatted about happy and interesting trivial matters.

The plot unfolded as he had predicted.

Su'en's goal was to survive, and it seemed that he probably wouldn't be killed.

But it seemed like something else had been added.

Resonance, it was always mutual.

Although there was no affection level panel like in games, Su'en felt that he got along well with this little girl.

.......

They chatted for a long time, and Pestoya seemed very satisfied, with a lovely smile on her face.

"Thank you. It's been years since someone talked to me."

The little girl thought of something and said, "But you can't stay with me for too long... Otherwise, you will become distorted."

"Distorted?"

Su'en thought it wouldn't hurt to stay a little longer, but upon hearing Pestoya's words, he realized that there might be other dangers in this space.

At this moment, Pestoya seemed to think of something else.

She walked to her workbench and picked up the completed rune doll, putting it in an exquisite box. She said, "This is a farewell gift for you, Mr. Su'en. Thank you for talking to me."

Upon hearing this, Su'en knew that he had successfully survived.

Su'en didn't hesitate and accepted the wooden box containing the rune doll.

It was a simple doll with yellow skin, quite heavy to hold, as if it contained many metal parts. The most peculiar thing was the faint blue rune light that appeared on its surface.

He didn't ask further questions but smiled slightly and said, "Thank you for your gift, Miss Pestoya."

"Mr. Su'en, we probably won't see each other again. Even if you come again, I might forget about you..."

As they were about to part ways, Pestoya's face showed a touch of sadness.

Then, she took off a butterfly brooch from her clothes and pinned it on Su'en's chest with her own hands. "This is my favorite brooch. It was a birthday gift from my mother when I was six years old. It's also a small gift from me to you. I hope you can do me a favor when you leave."

Su'en readily agreed, "Sure."

"If you can see my parents in the future, please ask them..."

When Pestoya said this, she suddenly stopped and didn't continue.

Su'en asked in confusion, "Ask them what?"

Pestoya's tone suddenly became painful, alternating between the terrifying voice of the old lady and the voice of a young girl, "Ask them... why did they burn me to death?"

With these words, an inexplicable chill suddenly swept through the entire room.

Ah?

Su'en never expected her to suddenly say such a thing.

He immediately realized that the truth of the matter wasn't so simple.

So Pestoya was burned to death by her parents?

How is that possible? A harmonious and loving family, and yet the parents burned their beloved daughter to death?

Where did the problem lie?

Was it Pestoya who had a problem, or was it her parents?

However, there was no time to think further. At this moment, Pestoya seemed to be reminded of something else.

She walked to her workbench again, took out a well-made rune doll, and put it in an exquisite box, saying, "This is a parting gift for you, Mr. Su'en. Thank you for talking to me."

Upon hearing this, Su'en knew that he had successfully survived.

Su'en didn't hesitate and accepted the wooden box containing the rune doll.

It was a simple doll with yellow skin, quite heavy to hold, as if it contained many metal parts. The most peculiar thing was the faint blue rune light that appeared on its surface.

He didn't ask further questions but smiled slightly and said, "Thank you for your gift, Miss Pestoya."

"Mr. Su'en, we probably won't see each other again. Even if you come again, I might forget about you..."

As they were about to part ways, Pestoya's face showed a touch of sadness.

Then, she took off a butterfly brooch from her clothes and pinned it on Su'en's chest with her own hands. "This is my favorite brooch. It was a birthday gift from my mother when I was six years old. It's also a small gift from me to you. I hope you can do me a favor when you leave."

Su'en readily agreed, "Sure."

"If you can see my parents in the future, please ask them..."

When Pestoya said this, she suddenly stopped and didn't continue.

Su'en asked in confusion, "Ask them what?"

Pestoya's tone suddenly became painful, alternating between the terrifying voice of the old lady and the voice of a young girl, "Ask them... why did they burn me to death?"

With these words, an inexplicable chill suddenly swept through the entire room.

Ah?

Su'en never expected her to suddenly say such a thing.

He immediately realized that the truth of the matter wasn't so simple.