Chapter 19: The Doll’s Gaze

“And where might you have come from, girl?”

Lei Ze’s voice was low, carrying a pressure that left no room for argument. His dark-gold, slit pupils locked onto her crimson eyes like knives, as if he meant to pierce straight through to her soul.

Ningshuang’s lashes fluttered violently. Her breathing went short and shallow, and she was trembling, a plain maid caught in the Marshal’s eye and too frightened to know what to do.

“I…”

Her voice scraped out from the back of her throat.

For one moment, Ningshuang had no idea how to answer.

Then, at that very instant:

“Uncle Lei Ze.”

Luoxue’s voice came softly.

Lei Ze furrowed his brow but did not let go. “What is it?”

“Ningshuang is a child from the Mercy Home,” Luoxue said, tilting her head. Her tone was as calm as if she were commenting on the weather. “I brought her back yesterday. She’s very well-behaved. I like her a great deal.”

“Mercy Home?”

Lei Ze’s eyes narrowed.

Mercy Homes were organizations the Alliance had founded over the past few decades to care for children who had lost their families in war. Those with an aptitude for the Heaven’s Source were raised to become new fighters; those without were taught skills they would need for survival later in life.

After a brief silence, he pressed further, “Which Mercy Home?”

“I don’t actually know where it is. The steward took me there that day. I think it was the one near the zoo at the city outskirts.”

Luoxue answered without hesitation, then tipped her head to one side and let a hint of confusion color her voice.

“Why does Uncle Lei Ze need to ask so many questions? And in a tone that fierce. You’ll scare Ningshuang to tears! If she cries, I’ll be angry with you!”

The white-haired girl pursed her small mouth, delivering a stern “warning” to Lei Ze.

“Near the outskirts zoo… the Third Mercy Home of Yuhai City, then.”

Watching Luoxue’s serious little face, Lei Ze repeated the words in a low mutter and filed them away. At the same time, this Marshal of the Alliance turned his attention back to Ningshuang.

Right now, the new maid’s eyes were slightly damp, her shoulders faintly shaking, her fingers gripping her skirt. She was unmistakably a frightened little animal.

“Relax. I won’t startle the girl.”

He let go of Ningshuang’s chin and walked back over to Luoxue, yet his dark-gold pupils remained on the maid.

“My apologies. I suppose I went a little too far. Since you’re a person close to Luoxue, I have to be cautious.”

Lei Ze lifted his teacup and drank it down in one gulp. After clearing his throat, his tone turned meaningful.

“Because… you remind me of someone.”

As those words landed, Ningshuang’s body went rigid.

“Remind you of… someone?”

“Yes, that witch your Saintess met before. Nan Muxi.”

A cruel note crept into Lei Ze’s voice. Usually sparing with words, he now went on without precedent.

“That wretch who colluded with the Blood Spirit Territory and slaughtered her teammates. She killed not only so many comrades, but even her own family and friends.

“She even wanted to fool Luoxue into taking her side and frame me in front of her.

“Truly heartless. Wouldn’t you agree?”

In the end, Lei Ze asked in a very relaxed tone. Yet as he asked, he never stopped staring at Ningshuang’s face, watching for any sign of emotion.

Resentment? Guilt? Or the killing intent and fury spilling out of a person whose shame had turned to rage?

Lei Ze awaited the reaction he wanted.

Instead, Ningshuang nodded mildly in agreement. Her eyes held no negative feeling, only approval of his words.

“Mm. People like that don’t deserve a good death.”

Lei Ze had no retort.

“But…” Ningshuang scratched her head, a trace of puzzlement on her face. “I’ve seen that witch’s photo before too. Do the two of us really look alike, Marshal? Why would you say we do?”

Looking at her like this, the suspicion and wariness in his eyes receded slightly.

“Well, I think your eyes are fairly similar to hers.”

“Huh? Are… are they?”

Ningshuang raised a hand to her eyes and touched them, looking as naturally confused as a girl who, upon being told she resembles some movie star, still goes to the mirror without thinking.

Lei Ze watched her for two seconds and did not answer. A moment later, he adjusted his uniform cuffs and turned back to face Luoxue.

“Luoxue. Since you’re all right, I’m relieved. There’s a great deal of military work waiting for me. I’ll be off now.”

“So soon? Won’t you stay for some afternoon tea?”

“No. I’m pressed for time.”

“Oh… all right.”

Luoxue, hugging her bear, nodded lightly, a note of disappointment in her voice.

“Then go slowly, Uncle Lei Ze.”

“Mm.”

Lei Ze turned around and walked toward the door.

“I’ll come back and chat with you another time.”

As Lei Ze was about to leave, Teresa and Mochen both nodded respectfully to see him off.

Of course, Lei Ze spared no thought for the farewells of such minor attendants. His mind kept replaying the moment just now, the probes he had directed at Ningshuang, the shifts in the girl’s expression.

Her response had been fairly steady. If it had been Nan Muxi, she would have lost control by now.

In other words…

Not her?

“Luoxue seems to be without problems, too. Could it be I really did overthink?”

While musing, Lei Ze reached the door and rested his hand on the handle.

Then, at the very moment he was about to leave, the Marshal’s pupils shrank and his steps came to an abrupt halt.

Not because Luoxue was looking at him. She had been “looking” at him through her eyepatch the entire time. That faint, half-there attention was something he had already grown used to.

But at this moment, relying on the extraordinary perception of the Saint Ruins realm, Lei Ze was certain… another gaze had fallen on him.

An icy gaze.

A gaze so cold it did not feel human.

Something was staring at the back of his neck.

As soon as he realized it, his pupils constricted and alertness flickered in his eyes.

He whipped his head around.

Like a flash of thunder, his gaze swept over Luoxue, over Ningshuang, over Teresa and Mochen.

And finally came to rest on the little bear plush tucked in Luoxue’s arms.

The pure-white stuffed animal lay quietly in her embrace, motionless.

Lei Ze’s brows knitted hard.

He remembered clearly that when he had entered the room, the bear’s button eyes were facing the window. When he had turned to leave just now and glanced back, they had still faced the window.

But now?

They were aimed squarely at him.

When had they turned? Luoxue hadn’t moved at all.

Lei Ze’s breath caught in his throat. Garrozo’s ravings from the comm call surfaced in his mind, the mad talk of dolls and bears that moved, that swelled into something enormous.

So he released the doorknob, quietly turned, and strode back to stand before Luoxue.

“Uncle Lei Ze?”

Sensing his approach, Luoxue raised her head, a note of anticipation in her voice.

“Are you staying to have some afternoon tea with Luoxue after all, Uncle Lei Ze?”

Hearing this, Lei Ze smiled slightly.

“That’s not impossible. But before that…”

The next moment, his expression suddenly turned cold and fierce.

A majestic wave of Heaven’s Source power spread outward.

Under Teresa’s stunned and Mochen’s terrified gazes, this Marshal of the Alliance, without the slightest warning, reached out and snatched violently at the plush toy in Luoxue’s arms!

‘Time to get rid of some filth first…’

But the instant he touched the toy, Lei Ze felt another sharp stab in his chest, and the lights in the room flickered irregularly several times.

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