Chapter 30
Evelyn, her face drained of all color, clutched her chest and breathed heavily.
“Hah… hah…”
The floor of the drained chamber was soaked in blood. Pieces of human flesh spilled out from shattered glass jars, scattered everywhere.
Evelyn stared at the sight, dazed.
“This is different from the game. Is the Suriel of this hotel even more brutal?”
She thought she could handle gore, but the vivid body parts and the nauseating stench overwhelmed her.
“Ugh…!”
She gagged and quickly covered her mouth.
How many times do I have to go through this? How many more are left?
Even though she didn’t want to cry, her eyes burned as tears streamed down.
Maybe it was because she’d spent every last drop of strength just to survive—Evelyn could barely think straight.
While she was still lost in despair, a quest completion window appeared before her eyes.
[Story 09: “Set Me Free” — SUCCESS!]
She pretended she was fine, but this time she had really almost died.
The throbbing pain all over her body wouldn’t fade. The blood that drenched her body felt like it was draining her very life away.
Her body trembled uncontrollably from fear, shock, and blood loss.
Someone began walking toward her.
The stench in the air disappeared, replaced by a pleasant fragrance. Evelyn lifted her head.
Before she could even see who it was, a white cloth was placed over her eyes.
Startled, Evelyn tried to grab the hand and pull it away.
“W-what?! Who are you—”
“Shh.”
At that voice, Evelyn froze.
That low, velvety tone—she could never forget it, even if she wanted to.
“Halloway…”
For some reason, her trembling subsided a little.
Even though Halloway was clearly the most dangerous being in the hotel, Evelyn felt a strange sense of relief.
She reached out, fumbling toward him.
He watched her hand groping the air, then slowly reached out and took it in his own.
The desperation of her grasp, the faint upward curve of her lips that said I’m safe now—it was all so pitifully trusting that it pleased him.
“Do you even realize who I am, to be this defenseless?”
Despite his words, his hand gently stroked the back of hers.
Evelyn pretended not to notice, reminding herself of the system’s warning.
“You’re… the one who saved me back then, aren’t you?”
“…”
Halloway said nothing. He merely looked down at her in silence.
The stillness made Evelyn swallow hard.
I can’t see anything… I don’t know what he’s doing…
Her thought trailed off when his hand brushed her thigh. She flinched.
“…”
Did she imagine it?
But no—the next moment, his hand clearly slid along her waist.
When she jerked her shoulder, he paused briefly—only briefly—then his long, cold fingers glided up her neck and shoulder, stopping near her collarbone.
With her vision covered, her sense of touch was far too sensitive.
That one faint touch made Evelyn shudder, and he murmured softly,
“You’re sensitive.”
Her body responded to every brush of his hand.
Her thin negligee clung to her soaked body, outlining her fragile curves.
When he couldn’t take his eyes off her trembling form, her quivering voice broke the silence.
“…That’s…”
Of course she couldn’t help it.
But his hand didn’t stop—it traced the line of her jaw.
“Why… why are you doing this…?”
She asked, her voice thick with tears, and his calm, indifferent tone brushed her ear.
“No reason. Are you cold?”
“…What?”
“You’re shaking.”
You think I’m trembling from the cold? Can’t you see I’m bleeding out?
And you keep…
Before she could finish the thought, his finger brushed her lower lip.
Feeling her soft lips against his skin, a strange heat surged through Halloway’s body.
[Possessiveness +5%]
“Or maybe… you’re trembling because of my touch?”
“If you could just tell me why you’re doing this…”
[Possessiveness +2%]
Even through the blindfold, the system window was clear. Evelyn bit her lip.
His possessiveness is rising.
“It’s not so bad, seeing you tremble from just my hand.”
What kind of kink is that?
Feeling the situation spiral in a weird direction, Evelyn raised both hands and clutched his.
She couldn’t see his expression, and that frustrated her even more.
“Can I take this cloth off, please?”
“No. Not yet. You’re still too weak to see me.”
Too weak?
What, do I need to mentally prepare myself to look at you?
Well… actually, maybe I do.
Halloway’s allure wasn’t something he could control.
Everyone who saw his true form became entranced—especially humans, who would lose themselves completely to him.
That’s why he rarely revealed himself, unless he was about to kill.
As a child, his appearance was harmless, but in his true form, it was dangerous.
Whenever he had to face humans, he covered his eyes with bandages or a veil—or, like now, covered theirs.
Though this was the first time he’d ever done it for someone else.
The silence grew heavier. Evelyn found this adult version of Halloway far more difficult to deal with than his child form.
Something about him was… unnerving.
“You’re dying,” he said quietly.
“Ah… please, save me.”
Halloway chuckled lowly at her immediate plea for mercy.
“Of course. I’ll save you.”
But his gentle tone quickly turned cold.
“As long as you answer my questions.”
…I don’t like where this is going.
Her voice trembled with fear.
“W-what… kind of questions?”
“How did you do it?”
“Do what?”
“The teleportation. You moved, didn’t you?”
“…”
“How did you do it?”
Evelyn couldn’t answer. Watching her slightly parted lips, Halloway pulled her onto his lap.
Her whole body stiffened from tension.
“You wrecked Suriel’s collection just to get here—why?”
At first, he thought maybe she’d been misplaced by the hotel’s demonic energy.
But the destruction in Suriel’s room seemed far too intentional.
All that damage… and she ended up on the 5th floor, of all places? In Suriel’s chamber?
It didn’t look like coincidence.
Something in his gut told him there was more to it.
“If you can’t come up with a good lie, I’d suggest staying silent.”
It was a threat—but Evelyn had thick skin.
She’d expected this kind of suspicion eventually, so she managed to act convincingly.
“I-I don’t know! I just appeared here suddenly and opened the drain to survive, that’s all!”
Her voice sounded genuinely desperate.
Halloway was silent for a moment, then gave a faint nod.
“Normally, that would make sense.”
But he didn’t believe her completely.
How could he get the truth?
He leaned down, pressing his forehead against hers.
Even that small touch made her flinch.
“Still… why do you seem so suspicious?”
[Halloway has begun to suspect you.]
[Halloway’s Danger Gauge +20]
The sharp spike in numbers didn’t shake her composure.
“If you think someone’s suspicious, everything about them will look suspicious. Maybe try being less paranoid.”
Being lectured about his personality made Halloway fall silent.
No one had ever said that to him before. He changed the subject awkwardly.
“Well… you’re suspicious, but there’s no proof.”
“What gives you the right to call me suspicious?! We’ve met, what, twice?!”
Her frustration flared—and she swung her arm in exasperation.
Smack!
Her hand landed squarely on his chest.
“…”
He said nothing, but Evelyn instantly realized she’d probably made a huge mistake.
“Um… I couldn’t see, so I didn’t mean to hit you.”
“…”
Hey, I said it wasn’t on purpose!
Are you sulking?!
She kept quiet, but he seemed to guess what she was thinking.
Halloway chuckled lowly.
[Halloway’s mood has improved.]
[Danger Gauge resets to 0!]
Even a short exchange with her could be… oddly delightful.
Fine. I’ll let it slide this time, he thought lazily.
He had all the time in the world.
“Alright. Maybe it’s still too early.”
Too early for what, you creep?
Evelyn muttered under her breath, but Halloway’s focus was entirely on her now.
“Still, you’re glad I came, right?”
“…Huh? What do you mean?”
He’d seen the flicker of relief on her face the moment she realized she wasn’t alone.
In a voice warmer than she’d ever heard, he whispered,
“You were scared, weren’t you?”
“Yes.”
Because honestly, she had been.
Halloway brushed aside her wet hair. His tone softened completely—no longer threatening, just strangely tender.
His crimson eyes glowed faintly beneath silver lashes, gleaming with an unplaceable madness.
Though she couldn’t see his gaze through the blindfold, the heat of it pricked against her skin.
When she flinched from the strange sensation, his cold hand wrapped around her throat.
Cold.
She shivered violently.
His hands hadn’t been this cold before.
His fingertips grazed her pale cheek. Tilting his head, his silver hair slid forward, his tongue darting out to wet his lips—like a predator savoring the moment before a bite.
“Now you understand, don’t you?”
[Possessiveness +11%]
…What?
Evelyn blinked in disbelief at the obscene numbers climbing on the system window.
His lips brushed her ear, his breath hot against her skin.
His low voice whispered like a temptation.
“Now you know what happens when you stray too far from me.”
[Possessiveness surges!]
[ヽ(ﾟ◇ﾟ )ﾉ +20%!ヽ(ﾟ◇ﾟ )ﾉ]
[Affection: 10.5%]
[Attachment: 11%]
[Possessiveness: 50.2%]
[Warning: Attachment and Possessiveness differ by more than 20%.]
[Reduce Possessiveness immediately!]
Wait—hold on!
Seeing the numbers explode, Evelyn panicked and struggled to pull away. Halloway released her instantly.
Thud!
Without his support, she collapsed to the floor.
As she tried to push herself up, something cold pressed against her neck.
A blade.
[If Possessiveness is not reduced soon, the event “Beautiful Taxidermy: Evelyn” will begin.]
“Evelyn.”
His tone was gentle—so gentle it could have belonged to a lover, not a man holding a sword to her throat.
