An illusory figure slowly appeared with her back to the demon hunter. She was wearing the black dress that Alice wore when she died, with a black veil covering her face. This was mourning attire.
She looked at the painting of Alice and Ogierd, both of whom had warm smiles on their faces.
She is Alice's incarnation as a spirit.
Her face was covered with a black veil, her hands were folded on her belly, and she stood elegantly and dignifiedly; Lan En couldn't see her expression at the moment, but he felt that her body gave him a sense of fragility and seemed to disappear at any time.
After a long time, the demon spirit seemed to be awakened by the painting. She stretched out her fingertips and gently touched the drawing board. Then a bright white light spot appeared on the canvas and gradually spread out, until the painting changed into another appearance.
Lann looked closely and saw that the content of the painting had changed from a portrait of the couple to their home - Everec Manor.
It was not a place that was eerie and cloudy, like a dark magic manor; but a noble mansion that was sunny and full of blooming flowers.
Just by looking at this painting, everyone seems to be able to hear the chirping of insects and birds in midsummer, full of vitality.
It was not until the cold wind from the manor blew over again that everyone regained consciousness. When they looked up, they saw the spirit incarnated by Alice gently placing her palm on the painting. The whole person turned into green ash and was gradually absorbed by the painting.
The witchers looked at each other.
The cat and the dog were indifferent when Alice came out, until this moment they gathered in front of the drawing board and explained:
“This is a world in a painting, but also a world in a dream. It is an independent space created by Alice’s works, and she is sleeping inside. If you want to find Alice’s home, you have to look for her here.”
Lan nodded and signaled to the witcher behind him, who followed Alice's soul and placed his hands on the drawing board. Then he felt dizzy.
Landing, retching, Lann felt for a moment as if he had passed through a portal for the first time.
He looked back and saw that the five demon hunters who suddenly appeared had the same reaction as him.
Lann suddenly realized that this was a problem. Demon hunters were too sensitive to the dizziness of the portal because of their sharp senses, just like people in their previous lives suffered from motion sickness. But what if the enemy caught this weakness one day? Is it possible to eliminate this weakness through desensitization training?
In front of him was the Everec Manor, which was similar to the one in the painting. It looked neat and lively, and it was obviously before Olgierd left. Lann looked up and could see a blue-green halo like the aurora surrounding the horizon, reminding everyone that this world was actually an illusion.
The demon hunters behind him recovered from their dizziness. Letho tentatively grabbed a handful of dirt from the ground, wondering, "I have never heard of someone who can independently create such an illusory world using only a painting as a carrier..."
"I thought that turning into a demon spirit based on resentment after death was the limit, but I didn't expect that it could actually create a world... Could it be that Mrs. Alice is also a master of black magic like her husband?"
Lann shook his head and sighed, "The magic in this world is always so wonderful. Some warlocks spend hundreds of years learning but may not be able to defeat a magic-blocking gold dagger, while some ordinary people can create the wonders before their eyes with their pure and powerful emotions."
Before Kaiyan's brain recovered from the dizziness, his five senses were suddenly affected by the aura of the black cat and the black dog.
The pair of demons that possessed the small animals actually followed in.
"You seem to have strong perception abilities, and now is the time to use them. This world is made up of fuzzy, withered memories, which are things that the mistress tried hard to forget but could not get rid of. You need to find these nightmare memories of the past and destroy them before you can wake up the mistress."
Kaiyan laughed and said, "This script is a bit like a fairy tale, but shouldn't this be the scene where the prince wakes up the princess?"
"If that's the way it is," Lan said, "we actually went to ask the princess for help to kill the prince."
Letho said expressionlessly: "I don't think Olgierd is a prince. He is not as good as you."
After they finished talking, the cat and the dog disappeared into the air, and no one knew where they were.
They looked at the world again and found that there were many insects emitting yellow lights flying in disorder in the air, and black fog was slowly emerging from the ground. They looked into the distance, but found that the houses not far away were blurry, and only the scenery in front of them gave them a slightly solid feeling.
In front of you is a garden that looks like a maze. It seems that the whole thing will not be complete until the guests are lost in it. Almost all manors have such a facility.
And in the pavilion of this garden, there are two figures standing still like sculptures.
There was a couple. The husband was sitting on a bench with a sad look on his face, staring at his empty hands, as if there was something in them that could free him from his distress; the wife had a happy smile on her face, and was painting the home of herself and her lover on the drawing board, wanting to record it all.
Ever since Lann came into this world, the badge on his neck has never stopped vibrating. He easily distinguished the nature of the two "people" in front of him - magical creations.
Kolgrim swung his sword and tried to chop at Olgierd's figure, and the silver sword cut through the void without any hindrance.
"It's the phantom of Alice and Olgierd. There doesn't seem to be any clues here. Should we look around for clues?"
The black cat and the black dog suddenly appeared again and explained to everyone: "It's not an illusion. It's a reflection of the memories of the master and the mistress, and it's also the beginning of the mistress's nightmare. This reflection is incomplete. Only by carefully repairing this memory can we continue to go deeper into the mistress's nightmare and finally see her."
Lann concluded: "That means we can't see the next memory until this reflection is repaired. We can only do it one by one, right? Like a puzzle game?"
The cat and the dog answered together, "Yes."
Everyone looked around and now understood why the house in the distance was blurry, but the garden and pavilion under their feet were solid.
Kolgrim sighed: "I thought we entered a painting, but it turns out we entered a woman's dream."
Kaiyan nodded in approval: "What you said is a bit like poetry."
Finding clues is what demon hunters are best at, they are all natural detectives. The six demon hunters activated their senses together and searched together in this pavilion that could only accommodate a dozen people, and soon everyone found something unusual.
"The hostess is painting the manor." Oaks came forward, "It's the same one we came in with. It's exactly the same."
Serrit fell into deep thought: "There are discs, palettes and a book on the ground. Shouldn't all these things be thrown on the ground?"
Lann glanced at the empty table and Olgierd's eyes fixed on his hands. "Restoring memories means returning these things to their original places, right? Alice neglected the location of these details because she fell into a deep sleep, and we need to correct them."
Serrit opened the book and placed it in Olgierd's hands, allowing his inquiring eyes to look directly at the words; then he placed the palette on the table so that Alice, who was painting, could reach it when she turned around.
Before he could figure out where to put the disc, the reflection of his memories, which had been like a sculpture in front of him, suddenly began to ripple, and the illusory body gradually solidified.
The demon hunter tossed the disc aside. "This doesn't seem important."
Lane took a step back and watched as the reflection of his memory began to recreate the beginning of Alice's nightmare.
…
The breeze blows and the fragrance of flowers wafts.
Olgierd sat in a chair, silent, staring at the book in his hands. But he had not turned the pages for a long time, and his thoughts had long drifted away.
Alice turned her back to him and was unaware of her husband's distress. Or maybe she thought it was just a temporary setback in life and she would soon see her husband's smiling face again.
"Shall we get a dog? Or a cat and a dog together?" Alice suddenly suggested. "When it rains, the dog can warm my feet, and the cat can play with the woolen ball by the fire. What do you think?"
Alice smiled as she painted bright colors on the canvas, her tone full of longing for the scene she painted. As she spoke, the clear chirping of birds around her echoed her words.
But she waited for a long time but didn't hear any reply from her husband. She turned around and saw him staring at the book.
Alice complained unhappily, "Are you listening to me?"
Olgierd awoke from his dream. "I'm sorry, dear. I was too absorbed in my reading."
Alice pursed her lips and suddenly felt a little sad: "Is that book so good?"
Olgierd said without looking up. “I’m sorry, you’re right, this is actually a terrible book… Shall we go back?”
"Why? What a nice weather today! The birds are singing, the bees are buzzing... It's like a poem or a picture. You seem to be worried recently, and this kind of environment can make you feel better."
欧吉尔德却很不解风情地避开妻子期待的眼神，说道：“我有点不舒服，先回去了。如果你喜欢今天的天气，就一个人多呆一会吧。”
说完他不等妻子的回应，摇摇晃晃地走了。
爱丽丝似乎想要挽留对方，但是看着那疲惫的背影却还是犹豫了，她的眼里满是失落和担忧。
……
回忆结束。
兰恩如有所感地抬头，只见晴空万里的庄园突然暗了一分，天上的云朵遮住了太阳。
另有一股冷风袭来，吹动树梢沙沙作响，光是听着就让人感到三分生寒。
“嗡——”
只见凉亭延伸出去的一条花园小路突然从虚幻变得凝实起来，显然那是爱丽丝下一段回忆的地点。
而随着这条小路的凝实，大团密集的黄色亮点从灌木丛中涌了出来，它们就好像是新手画家随手用颜料泼洒出来的斑点，但是却偏偏发出了宛若蜜蜂的声音。
“嗡——”
“鸟儿在歌唱，蜜蜂嗡嗡叫……”兰恩抬起左手，“但是今天却不是什么好天气啊。”
【伊格尼法印】！
锥形的火焰汹涌着排开眼前的一切，将密集地几乎像是黄色屏障的蜜蜂一起点燃。
这个数量的蜜蜂群，足够把整个凉亭都密不透风地埋起来，兰恩可不想尝试被它们近身的滋味。
“走！”
兰恩一马当先，保持左手前伸的姿势一路向前。花园小路上密布着蜂群，而兰恩也不停地喷射火流，为众人打开一条火焰路径。
“你没问题吗？”如此往复许久之后，雷索突然说道，“你已经用了十几次【伊格尼】了吧？”
兰恩瞟了一眼自己的系统栏——【法力值：3033／3400】
“早得很，我是狮鹫，记得吗？”
兰恩面不改色地驱赶着眼前的蜜蜂，很快就到了一个喷泉边上。
当众人踏入这里的时候，就立刻好像有一层无形的结界将那些蜜蜂都隔绝在了外面，显然爱丽丝的回忆不希望蜜蜂出现在这里——或者说之后还会有新的东西。
眼前依旧是欧吉尔德和爱丽丝两人，不过看上去似乎比之前在花园凉亭中的时间线更早一点。
此时的夫妻两人看上去更年轻，甚至在欧吉尔德的脸上都能够看到能用“幸福”来形容的笑容。
“看样子这就是第二段回忆了。”兰恩看了看两人，“你觉得他们这段回忆在干什么？”
猎魔人朝他们看去，此刻夫妻二人四目相对而立，欧吉尔德似乎在给爱丽丝递什么东西，手掌虚握。
“我觉得这回就是要找欧吉尔德手里的那个东西。”寇格林姆说道，“而且我觉得我已经找到了。”
琥珀色的蛇瞳由亮转暗，关闭猎魔人感官。他扬了扬双手，各自抓着一个酒杯。
将两个酒杯塞进夫妻俩的手中。很快，两个虚影再次在众人的眼前凝实起来。
……
“希望你身体健康，我亲爱的妻子。”
欧吉尔德的眼中倒映出眼前美丽的爱人，脸上是从未有过的温柔和笑。
“你也一样，我的丈夫。”
爱丽丝画着精致的妆容，几乎舍不得把视线从丈夫的脸上挪开。
两人手中各自举着一个酒杯，微微一碰，随后抬头饮尽。
这是一场婚礼，两人刚刚的健康祝词和饮下的酒就是婚礼的最后一环。
欧吉尔德放下酒杯，怅然若失地环顾四周，眼中尽是对妻子的愧疚：
“在我的家乡，习俗规定新婚夫妇要用盐和面包来招待客人……但是我们现在身边没有人，这是一段不被人祝福的婚姻。”
“我有你就够了，其他的东西都不是我所求。”爱丽丝缓步上前环住丈夫的脖子，“这是我一生中最幸福的时候，真希望这一刻能够永远冻结。”
欧吉尔德抱住妻子，宠溺地笑了：“如果这是你的愿望，那我会想办法的。”
爱丽丝没有在意丈夫的许诺，只以为他只是跟自己一样快乐而开了个小玩笑。
“来吧，看看我们以后的家。”
欧吉尔德做出一个邀请的手势，在他示意的方向，一栋房子从幻影渐渐凝结成实体。
爱丽丝被牵着手走在路上，有些犹豫地小声地说道：“我知道这听起来很蠢，但是这屋子毕竟空了很久，会不会……”
欧吉尔德胸有成竹地打断妻子的话：“你害怕蜘蛛，我知道的。它们早就已经被清扫干净，全都被我丢进花园了。”
听闻这话，爱丽丝的脸上绽放出了更加欢喜的笑容：
“我的骑士，你总是这么面面俱到。”
……
两个回忆幻影朝着庄园的主楼前进，兰恩等人一开始跟了几步，但是他们突然又停住了脚步。
在灌木和花丛的缝隙，有巨大的黑影穿梭其中。
“锵——”
猎魔人们一起拔出武器。
紧接着，就有数只跟人一样高的黑色虚幻蜘蛛撕碎植物猛扑而出！
没等他们接近众人两步远，兰恩早就站在队伍的最前方严阵以待。他左手平举，澎湃的热浪在他的掌心酝酿。
【伊格尼法印·魔力爆发】！
远超之前的狂暴火焰顷刻间就吞噬了所有的蜘蛛，甚至还掀起了巨大的冲击将它们尚未燃尽的身体重新打了回去。
滚烫的火焰带来了剧烈的空气回流，将兰恩身后的猎魔人吹得头发狂舞。
寇格林姆抹了一把脸：“你之前烧蜜蜂的时候不是这个威力吧？”
“不同的敌人用不同的威力……小心！”
脚下大地隆隆震动起来，另有一只黑色的虚幻蜘蛛好似地龙一般破土而出，而顺着它挖出的地道，还有源源不绝有如拳头般大小的小蜘蛛从里面爬出来。
“这哪是爱丽丝的噩梦。人家开开心心举办婚礼，而我们在这里砍蜘蛛。”凯亚恩拔出银剑，一个闪身躲过蜘蛛的扑击，“我看这简直就是我们的噩梦！”
兰恩一拍地面，庞大的【亚登法印】将猎魔人六人一起笼罩在内，让每一个扑过来的蜘蛛都会被削弱掉速度。
“从刚刚的回忆场景来看，这个婚礼是在刚刚他们发生争执之前，那个时候欧吉尔德还比较年轻。”兰恩一剑劈开蜘蛛，紧接着又补上一记火焰，“或许正是他们曾经有着幸福的时光，所以之后发生的灾难事情才会愈发让人悲痛，最终变成爱丽丝的噩梦。”
此时，有大量的蜘蛛被兰恩的【亚登法印】削弱而被猎魔人杀死，更多的蜘蛛在外面徘徊的时候就被紫色的闪电击伤乃至杀死。
那些蜘蛛怪物似乎还有智力，见此情况，居然远远地朝着兰恩等人开始喷吐蛛丝！
“呼”得一声，就好像有人射出了一支没有箭头的箭矢，寇格林姆正把剑从一支蜘蛛的尸体里面拔出来，耳畔只听到一个风声就被打碎了身上的保护法印，持剑的手顿时被白色的蛛丝和身体黏在了一起。
“这些蜘蛛这些年都是吃什么长这么大的，混沌能量吗？”寇格林姆一边大喊一边后退，取出匕首开始迅速地切割手臂上面的蛛丝。另外的蛇派伙伴很有默契地将他护在身后，挡住追击而来的蜘蛛。
“数量太多了，这样下去没完没了！”
雷索和兰恩对视一眼，默契地点了点头，随后两人一起后退，顺手拉过激战正酣的凯亚恩，与蛇派三人兵合一处。
虚幻蜘蛛不管不顾地扑上来，兰恩和雷索同时左手前伸，掐出玄奥的手势。
【阿尔德法印】＋【伊格尼法印·魔力爆发】！
比兰恩大上将近一倍的手掌喷涌出强烈的风暴，裹挟着再次出现在场中的火焰热流席卷大地。火借风势，转眼间将他们眼前的蜘蛛尽数吞噬，甚至连不远处的喷泉都开始被烤热而“滋滋”作响。
兰恩和雷索两人背对着其他的四名猎魔人，剩下的四人也有样学样，用法印组合来对敌。
以六人背靠背为中心，整个喷泉周围的花园顿时化作了火海。
乔木和花朵噼里啪啦地被烧成木炭，然后化作灰烬飞散在空中。兰恩等人担心一轮火焰还烧不死对方，之后是第二次、第三次，直到火焰中彻底没有惨叫声传来才作罢。
除了兰恩的之外几人都喘着粗气。正常猎魔人使用法印的时候还会消耗大量的体力，此刻几人汗如雨下，好像刚刚从怪物群中提剑杀了好几个来回一样。
和气定神闲的兰恩形成了鲜明的对比。
“呼，呼。”凯亚恩平复着呼吸，突然说道，“我们在别人的回忆里面这么干，是不是反而会变成她的噩梦？”
等到众人平复完呼吸，兰恩连续打了几个【阿尔德法印】将众人前方的火焰驱散，犹能够见到有蜘蛛的身体还在燃烧，身体化成的灰烬和草木融为了一体。
如果这是真实的庄园的话，来年一定会杂草丛生。
他们脚下，沿着花园的碎石路一直延伸到庄园主楼的路已经变得凝实。
推门而入，这是众人“第二次”进入这栋楼。和第一次看见的破败废墟不同，现在这个地方整洁而有序，看得出来这里的主人在精心的保养这里。从一旁的房间中还有点点烛光透过来，显然众人寻找的这段回忆就是在烛光的方向发生的。
顺着光亮的方向走过去，一场长桌出现在众人眼前。
这是爱丽丝的回忆中第一次出现这么多人，之前都不过是她和欧吉尔德一对。这回除了他们两人之外，还有另外三人，加起来总共五个人坐在长桌边上。
这似乎是一次家族晚宴，主座上面坐着一个中年的男人，他左手边是一个中年女人和一个年轻的男子，右手边则是爱丽丝和欧吉尔德。
桌子上面摆着几个名贵的银色烛台，有着火候恰到好处的烤乳猪、新鲜的葡萄、松软的白面包还有色泽诱人的奶酪。兰恩甚至看到了一瓶产自陶森特的卡士朵拉维葡萄酒，价格高昂。
显然，主人精心准备了这次的会餐。
看到桌子上面琳琅满目的菜品，寇格林姆揉了揉肚子：“这要我们修复这次的回忆？这么多的东西，我们怎么知道那个摆哪里？”
兰恩环顾了四周，很快就发现墙上挂着一副油画。
招呼着众人围上来，这幅油画上面的内容赫然就是这次用餐的场景。
寇格林姆皱着眉头环顾四周：“屋子里面难道还有专门的画师？他们这次的用餐就这么重要？”
兰恩摇了摇头：“这幅画可能不是画出来的，而是直接通过爱丽丝的噩梦具现出来的。这说明这一餐发生了她不愿意见到的事情，给她留下了比外面的那几幕更加深刻的记忆。我们对着这幅画来复原他们用餐时候的场景，应该就能够修复这段记忆了。”
“蜡烛。”雷索突然道，“桌子上面的蜡烛和画里不一样。”
兰恩点了点头，众人回头看去，餐桌上面的烛台没有一根是点亮的。
当众人手搓火焰对比着油画点亮蜡烛之后，这一桌的人也如之前一样开始活动起来。
……
木柴在壁炉之中缓慢地燃烧，将温暖送进餐厅。
本应该是其乐融融的家庭聚餐，现场的气氛却仿佛在抗拒温度，用餐人员的表情和“温馨”这个词怎么都沾不上边。
爱丽丝看了看脸色麻木的丈夫和一直皱着眉头的父母，主动开口缓和气氛：
“父亲、母亲，你们能够过来看我我真的好高兴。”
坐在主座的中年男人审视着坐在自己女儿身边的女婿，从落座开始，两人之间就没有一丝的眼神交流。
坐在爱丽丝对面的中年女人责怪地看了一眼自己的丈夫和女儿的丈夫，关切地朝着爱丽丝问道：
“你还好吗？我亲爱的。你看上去脸色很难看……我觉得有些不对劲。”
爱丽丝穿着黑色的长裙，画着浓郁的黑色眼影，在火光的照耀下楚楚动人。但是这黑色系的打扮却愈发显得她脸色苍白，好似大病初愈。
“我很好，如果说有什么不对的，那就是我今天太高兴了。”爱丽丝由衷地说道，“但是祖父和祖母怎么没有来？我也很想他们。”
欧吉尔德听着妻子的询问，麻木的脸上突然浮现出了毫不掩饰的不耐烦，甚至不住地摇着头把视线偏向了一边。
这一切被爱丽丝的母亲尽收眼底，她似乎想要说什么，但是看了看女儿脸上的笑容又忍住了。
但是坐在她身边的年轻男人却没什么顾忌了，看到了欧吉尔德态度，他讥讽地笑着开口：
“老人家不喜欢这样的路。又漫长又崎岖……还到处都是泥巴！”
欧吉尔德听此，第一次把视线移回来跟爱丽丝的家人对上：“他们还是不愿意见我对吧？”
年轻人脸色僵了僵，似乎没想到欧吉尔德说话这么直接。
主座上的爱丽丝父亲朝着年轻男人重重地哼了一声，把警告的眼神投向自己的儿子，让他不要再多嘴。
欧吉尔德则似乎打开了话匣子，朝着桌子上面的摆放着的东西问道：“这些是什么，让你们不远着崎岖而漫长的路也要带过来？”
爱丽丝的哥哥看了一眼自己的父母，见他们都没有说话的打算，解释道：“我们带来了一些爱丽丝最喜欢的东西，这些是她的梳子、她最喜欢的娃娃。”
桌子上放着一把乳白圆润的玉质梳子，娃娃则绣着银线和珍珠，看样子都价格不菲，与现在爱丽丝略显朴素的打扮形成了鲜明的对比。
“除此之外，我们还给你带了礼物，欧吉尔德。”爱丽丝的哥哥指着一份文件。
看到那个东西，爱丽丝的脸上露出了欣喜的笑容，反观欧吉尔德的脸上则是更显不耐。
“银行文件。”欧吉尔德一眼就认了出来。
爱丽丝的母亲似乎忍不住了，她伸手按住了自己儿子的手，对着欧吉尔德说道：“我们清偿了伊佛瑞克家族的债务，买下了债权，免得我们家族的人在外面抬不起头来。”
欧吉尔德的脸上突然变得平静了，他毫无波澜地站起身，拿起那份银行文件，一边朝着壁炉一边说道：“‘爸爸’和‘妈妈’还记得我，这是多么地令人感动啊。”
那语气中既没有温馨，也没有可以阴阳的油腻，只是一种平静。他回头看了一眼桌边的众人，将银行的文件扔进壁炉的火焰。
爱丽丝的母亲腾地一下站了起来。而欧吉尔德却好似见不到她，自顾自地大步离开了餐厅。
“欧吉尔德……”爱丽丝呼唤着自己的丈夫，似乎想要他回来，但是语气却充满了迟疑。
“你看到他了吗？我在婚礼前就警告过你了。”爱丽丝的母亲没有等欧吉尔德走远就开始训斥女儿，或者说她就是故意想让自己的女婿听见。
“这就是他的本性。他就是一个和强盗恶棍做朋友的平庸之辈！和这种暴徒生活在同一个屋檐之下你都不会害怕吗？回家吧，爱丽丝，趁着自己还没有无法脱身。”
爱丽丝一脸忧伤地看着自己母亲，摇摇头，转而看向欧吉尔德离开的那扇门。
……
桌边众人的动作停下，而欧吉尔德离开的那扇门再次打开，走出一个斜挎着弯刀的黑色人影。
兰恩默默拔出湖女之剑：“每次看过回忆都要出现一个敌人……我已经有些不耐烦了。”
雷索也拔出蛇首银剑：“同意。”
金光和银光同时划出两道圆弧朝着黑影劈过去，这次的敌人不但形状是人型，力量也是常规的战士水平，当即就被两人打得倒飞而出。
“砰”地一声把刚刚自己关上的门再次撞开，一支弩箭悄无声息地钻了出来，穿透黑影的脑袋。
黑影消散。凯亚恩把自己的十字弩挂回背囊：“我也不喜欢这个房子，快一点吧。”
门外是通往二楼的楼梯，众人拾阶而上，来到卧室。
爱丽丝的记忆幻影倒在**，神情恍惚。而欧吉尔德则在木盆里面洗手，神色不安。
众人靠着猎魔人感官找到一条染血的毛巾放进木盆里面，眼前的幻影再次开始活动。
……
爱丽丝这次只穿了一件黑色的丝绸上衣，这似乎是睡衣。衣服的领口一直开到腹部上方，露出大片腻白的圆润和两条匀称的大腿。
她的肤色苍白到近乎不正常，在壁炉火光的烤制下就好像一个娃娃，充满了令人怜惜的破碎感。
“现在……几点了？欧吉尔德，你还没睡吗？”爱丽丝躺在**苦恼地揉着自己的眼睛，灵雀般清甜的嗓音此刻带着点点沙哑。
此时已是深夜，妻子已经浅睡一觉，却发现丈夫依旧在忙碌。
欧吉尔德整整齐齐地穿着长袍，背对着她：“已经很晚了，你继续睡吧。”
爱丽丝若有所思地看着丈夫的背影：“你又整晚在看书了……你手上那是什么？是血吗，你受伤了？”
爱丽丝的语气急切，马上就要从**起来。
欧吉尔德快速地用毛巾在手上抹了几下，转过身来主动岔开话题。
“这是墨水，我刚刚在写信不小心打翻了墨瓶。我打算过几天去牛堡一趟，你要一起来吗？”
爱丽丝的思维瞬间就被拉扯走了，自从住进庄园之后她几乎从来没有外出过。
“当然！这个主意好极了！出去旅行一趟对我们都有好处。”
看着妻子突然明媚起来的表情，欧吉尔德麻木的脸上为不可查地出现了一抹笑容，他的眼神温柔起来。
“快点睡觉吧，养足精力。”他轻声道，“我很累了。”
“可是我现在睡不着了。”爱丽丝跳下床，朝着丈夫撒娇，“要不我去画画吧，我想要完成给你的那幅肖像。”
欧吉尔德愣了愣，没有说话的机会就被自己的妻子拉到了已经被他们改造成画室的次卧。
画家上面摆着一幅未完成的画像，欧吉尔德在爱丽丝的指挥下摆出姿势，调试细节。
Alice didn't notice that the warmth that had finally appeared in her husband's eyes was slowly disappearing.
"Smile, dear."
The husband tried his best to keep his expression calm and then pulled the corners of his mouth.
"It's a smile, not showing teeth." Alice said coquettishly, and then, I don't know what she was thinking, her face began to be filled with happiness.
"It's just like... the smile on your face when my father agreed to marry me to you. I want to see it again and draw it, okay? Please!"
Olgierd looked at his wife with a face full of longing, closed his eyes and tried to recall the past scenes, but it was of no use, instead his expression changed from calm to distressed, and even slightly sad.
"You are worried about something." The sensitive Alice immediately noticed the change in her husband.
"I..." Olgierd opened his mouth, "I still have some work to do, and I'm thinking about those things. Sorry."
"Work again? Olgierd...you never told me that we swore to keep no secrets from each other."
Alice spoke softly. Even though her words were reproachful and accusatory, they sounded indescribably gentle.
Olgierd couldn't resist the tone. "I'm sorry, but I don't want to talk about it."
He lowered his head and walked out of the studio quickly, not even giving Alice a chance to react.
"Ogierd..."
With a bang, Ogierd walked into his study and the door closed in front of Alice.
Alice couldn't stand it anymore. She was shivering in the cold wind with bare legs and wearing an airy silk pajamas, but even so she stayed outside her husband's study.
"Ogierd, come out, we must have a good talk today!"
Hearing his wife's voice trembling with tears as she spoke, Olgierd closed his eyes.
"I want to be alone."
Alice yelled, "Not this time, come out!"
Olgierd's tone suddenly became fierce: "Leave me alone! I just want to work in peace!"
There was suddenly no sound outside the door.
Olgierd slumped in his chair as if his bones had been pulled out. He thought he should be very tired, but in fact he didn't feel tired at all. It was like this when he just got up, and it was still like this at night, even after one night, two nights, and three nights.
This is not right.
He looked at the table in front of him, on which were two books and a basin of blood. The titles of the books were "Blood Contract: Alien Creatures" and "Between Different Worlds".
There was also a five-pointed star painted on the ground, with candles lit at each corner of the star.
This is a dark magic circle.
Ogierd never let his wife enter his study, and Alice was always considerate of her husband and gave him enough privacy, so she was unaware of everything that happened in the study.
"I can't feel happiness, I can't feel joy, now even the tiredness has disappeared, only loneliness and pain are left..."
Olgierd's sad expression deepened as he heard his wife's retreating footsteps.
Even though he had tried many times, he still knelt in the pentagram formation again, spread his arms, clenched his fists, and recited the spell steadily and quickly.
Then he opened his eyes, hoping to see the figure he expected. After failing, he closed his eyes again and changed the spell to continue.
Over and over again, he tried almost every spell he had ever tried before finally breaking down.
"Damn it! What other spell do you want me to use? I've tried them all! I want to terminate our agreement and come out to face me - Gaunter O'Dimm!"
Rolling black mist mixed with red light emanated from Olgierd's body, and gathered on his arms as his mood fluctuated violently. Finally unable to endure the failures that followed, Olgierd's suppressed negative emotions burst out at this moment, and he punched the floor in front of him fiercely.
Suddenly, the red and black mists seemed to explode in all directions, and the five-pointed candles were all extinguished at this moment. Olgierd was still panting on the ground, unaware of the changes that had taken place in the room.
Until there was a loud "boom", the flames in the fireplace suddenly gushed out as if inspired, and the crossbeams on the study floor glowed red at the same time.
The chaotic energy caused by Olgierd's continuous spells did not dissipate into the air, but ran wild at this moment!
At that moment, it seemed as if countless transparent figures were partying in the house. Books, tables, chairs, and decorations were thrown into the air in a mess; the roof, floor, and walls were also on fire at the same time.
Olgierd looked around blankly, and suddenly shouted, "Oh no, Alice!"