161 The Butcher and the Youth (2/2)

”…” In the silence, Seton’s face must have been very angry under the horse mask.

”D*mmit, go away!” He smashed the bone saw onto the ground, cracking it. He threw Ye Qingxuan one last glance before turning away. But behind him, the youth stared at him and suddenly shouted, ”Seton!”

”Yes?” Seton looked back.

”Be careful!” the youth bid farewell quietly.

The Butcher scoffed. ”You’re the one who needs to be careful.” He waved without even looking back. ”Don’t worry. I’ll take revenge for you if you die, for Old Phil’s sake.”

”Oh, that’s great.” The voice of the youth came from the distance. As he walked away, Seton could not hear it anymore.

-

The Butcher walked slowly through the darkness, following the scent of blood in the wind. According to the map that his employer had given him, he needed to walk through the corridor, go up the ladder, cross the third operating room, turn to the right, breach the sixth hall, go down the elevator, and land in the central security room.

All the places in the path needed to be destroyed, all the information about the blood sacrifice needed to be burned, and all the living things needed to be killed, including the thugs from the mafia, the original caretakers of the hospital, the minions of Parliament, and the hired…dark musicians.

The Butcher suddenly halted his soundless march. The white light above his head flashed, and a baby’s cry came from behind a closed door. The plaque engraved with ”Third Operating Room” on the steel door was rusted.

A surgery was being performed. Blood seeped out from the crack under the door. There was an eerie yet gentle singing that could be heard over the baby’s crying, as if a dead woman was screaming and wailing while gazing at the world. The Butcher opened the steel door silently and saw blood everywhere.

Under the pale, hot light, a figure in a white gown had his back to the Butcher. He carefully soaked a string of entrails in an antiseptic solution, meticulously cleaned every ending, and finally threw the emptied baby into the trash. When he turned, the eyes behind the mask saw the newcomer and froze. ”Butcher?”

His hoarse voice seemed to come from dozens of mouths. The voices overlapped and became a shrill noise. The Butcher stared at him, eyes landing on his body. Through the clothes, he could see dozens of open mouths on the body. It dawned on him. ”Yellow Foot, the dark musician?”

Yellow Foot, brother of the dead Blue Teeth, lowered his head slightly. ”A few minutes ago, Alberto’s men told me that someone had come in. Where is your companion? Where did he go? To tell you the truth, I'd rather see Sherlock Holmes than you. We’re both dark musicians, so there must be a lot of topics we can discuss together.”

A scoff came from the mask.

Yellow Foot seemed to understand something and his eyes grew pitiful. ”Forget it, it’s ok if it’s you. It’s rare to find such good material for experiments…”

The butcher silently clenched the bone saw. The joints in his body popped and cracked. His body expanded, expanded, and expanded even more! Finally, he transformed into the ferocious giant again.

”God, please give me mercy. I kneel in the river of souls, attempting to wash away the dirtiness! God, please give me salvation. I am waist-deep in curses. Can you hear my pleas? God, please give me your blessing. I am neck-deep in blood. I beg for relief…”

The music score engraved on his body was awakened, transforming the flow of blood into a tidal wave. His heart beat like a drum, causing the aether to vibrate. Blood flowed from his pores, transforming in the air into faces of the dead. The faces laughed and echoed, ”Lala, lala, lala~”

The light was snuffed without a sound. In the darkness, the singing of the dead overlapped with the dark musician’s chanting. The din and the quakes spread, raising a shapeless cloud of dust. The heat of the blood and the tangible evilness spilled in all directions. The darkness swallowed all.

-

In the quiet corridor, the youth watched as the Butcher faded into the distance. He looked around at the blank faces and sneered. ”Well then, let's wreak some havoc, shall we?”

He knocked his cane on the ground violently, emitting a metallic clang. ”Whether it’s the Professor or the parliament, let’s get everything straightened. Since I am called Vengeful Spirit, I’ll have to make them pay for what they’ve done!”