Chapter 72: The Result
"What was that sound?"
Alice's eyes flashed with confusion. Before she could think, she heard a piercing noise.
"Screech—"
Alice's attention was drawn to the source of the noise. She saw that the demon hound, for some unknown reason, had dug its front claws into the ground, coming to an abrupt halt from its incomplete pounce.
The demon hound's claws left deep scratches on the ground. Its forward-leaning body nearly toppled over from the momentum, but it managed to stop just in time.
Then, before Alice and Evelyn could react, the demon hound turned and fled, as if something terrifying was chasing it.
Alice got up from the ground in a daze, watching the demon hound leave.
She looked at Evelyn, who was still sitting on the ground. Evelyn met her gaze and asked in a trembling voice, "What was that... just now?"
"Go to the Church of the Night and tell them you encountered a 'demon'," Alice said calmly, lowering her eyes. "Someone will explain it to you."
"Are you from the church?" Evelyn asked.
Alice didn't answer. She approached Evelyn, ignoring her flinching and trembling, and checked her wounds—thankfully, they were only superficial.
Alice looked at Evelyn's slightly more composed expression and pondered, "I used to be."
"Used to be?" Evelyn repeated, looking confused.
"Can you stand?" Alice asked, pushing herself up from the floor and extending a hand to Evelyn.
After a moment of hesitation, Evelyn took Alice's hand. Alice noticed Evelyn's palm was clammy and cold, clearly still frightened.
Seeing Evelyn use her other hand to support herself against the wall, Alice pulled her up with a firm grip.
Evelyn staggered a bit as she stood, still weak from the fright, but the sense of security from Alice's rescue helped her regain some strength.
Alice watched Evelyn steady herself against the wall and then repeated, "Go to the Church of the Night."
"Can... can you come with me?" Evelyn asked nervously, "I'm afraid of encountering that monster again..."
Alice stared at her meaningfully and said, "Don't worry, that streak of bad luck has mostly run its course. At worst, you'll just trip a few times."
"Huh?" Evelyn clearly didn't understand.
"It's inconvenient for me to go to the church with you," Alice said with a slight smile, ignoring Evelyn's confusion. "Besides, if I go with you, you'll be in more danger."
Before Evelyn could ask more questions, Alice withdrew her hand, took two steps back, and said, "The church people will explain everything."
Without waiting for Evelyn's response, Alice turned and left without looking back.
...
"How did it go?"
"The good news is, she provided an important clue for the serial murder case—the 'demon' responsible is actually a dog."
"And the bad news?"
"The suspected wild extraordinary individual didn't disguise her appearance or cover her tracks. We even found fragments of her clothing at the scene. But unfortunately, all divinations failed without exception."
"Let's just leave it at that. At least from the questioning, she doesn't seem to have malicious intent."
"But I'm very concerned... what did she mean by saying she 'used to be' part of the church?"
"Maybe she was an informant."
"Maybe, but I feel it's not that simple... why did the 'demon' suddenly run away?"
"I have a theory about that."
"What is it?"
"Extraordinary individuals on the 'demon' path share a common trait—they have an exceptionally keen sense of danger."
"You mean it sensed danger from that girl?"
"I think so."
"Then why didn't it sense it at first? Why did it stop suddenly during its third attack after failing twice?"
"..."
...
In her hotel room, Alice wrote "Person influencing Evelyn's fate" on a piece of paper, then stared at it with an unreadable expression.
Even though she couldn't deal with that mercury snake, with it already targeting her, she didn't mind killing a few of its minions.
This decision had little to do with Evelyn.
Alice and Evelyn's relationship wasn't close enough for her to seek revenge on Evelyn's behalf. What Alice couldn't tolerate was the other party's attempt to threaten her.
It wasn't about revenge; it was about feeling offended and wanting to kill the offender.
She knew this mindset was wrong, likely tied to her arrogance, but she couldn't control the rising urge to destroy.
In fact, calling it a killing intent wasn't accurate. It was more of a desire for destruction.
If she didn't kill the mastermind, destroying a few buildings or slaughtering some ordinary people might achieve a similar effect.
"I can't do that," Alice warned herself. "If I do, how am I different from a monster?"
For a moment, Alice recalled the dream where the girl called her a "born monster."
Struggling to suppress that destructive urge and reminding herself she was human, how could she not be considered a "monster"?
Closing her eyes, Alice pushed aside her thoughts and began divination.
Alice saw a jubilant Evelyn.
Evelyn was skipping along the road, calling back to someone behind her—unclear, probably a friend.
Suddenly, Evelyn bumped into a man. The scene shook twice but stabilized. Alice saw the man's face.
It was Charlie King!
Alice abruptly exited the dream, sitting up in shock.
She remembered that Charlie King was recently a "Calamity Priest."
And if Charlie King hadn't lied to her—there was no reason for him to—"Calamity Priests" shouldn't have the ability to bestow misfortune on others.
"Is it the Sequence 5 'Winner'?" Alice murmured. "Did he advance recently? Bestowing misfortune... is that a 'Winner's' ability?"
Alice thought of the clumsy patchwork. If it was done by a newly advanced Winner, it made sense.
Demon Hound: Thank goodness I ran fast enough to escape.