When evil gods hold a meeting in my head

The peeling, water-soaked walls smelled musty, and the sweltering wind blowing through the narrow alley between the buildings blew into the room, causing the bronze kerosene lamp by the bed to flicker. All of this made Richard's back feel increasingly damp and cold.

The closer he got to the box, the colder it became. This feeling gradually made him understand why the original owner of this body had lit the fireplace...

What exactly is inside?

Richard eagerly inserted the round-headed, half-finger-long key into the lock of the box and gently turned it to the right.

Click!

The box suddenly opened, and an extremely biting cold emanated from the gap. The feeling was no less than that of a naked person being immersed directly in icy lake water, and Richard couldn't help but get goosebumps.

Carefully open the box, and a dazzling, blood-stained turquoise necklace comes into view.

It is framed with a rounded silver border, and small clasps on the border connect to a half-arm-length silver chain. The turquoise itself has a rich luster and is so bright that it can reflect the oil lamp in the room.

Relying on his memory, he quickly recognized that it was a replica of the jewelry that Alice always carried with her.

The box belongs to Alice?

The original owner wouldn't have really killed Alice, would she...?

"Hiss..." The chill seemed to be coming from this piece of turquoise. Richard's hands were already almost frozen before he even touched it.

He took a deep breath, pulled out the necklace along with the padding underneath, and tossed it aside.

This stone smells amazing; I actually feel a little scared. It's delicious, though!

It seems to be cursed, and the curse has spread to this foolish boy. No wonder his soul died before!

A curse that will kill if not lifted...

Could this turquoise be the real object affected by Professor Puta's experiments, and could the voice within me come from a more mysterious place, different from the curse?

Richard felt a chill run down his spine and dared not think any further.

Only after making sure the turquoise was away from him did he take out the fabric from the bottom layer of the box.

He noticed the brown fabric at first glance, but only after handling it did he realize how incredibly soft it was. It seemed to be a finely crafted silk satin, with the "Xixi Creek Beauty Shop" logo embroidered on the edges.

This is a very luxurious brand!

"Alis is really rich. I never realized I had a hidden rich woman in my life."

In the previous semesters, Richard even frequently provided financial assistance to this seemingly impoverished woman, but now it seems that this was completely unnecessary!

He remembered that the silk was worth no less than 20 gold coins, while a textile worker's monthly salary was only 1 silver coin and 8 copper coins. He would have to work for about nine years without eating or drinking to afford that piece of cloth. A poor boy "inheriting" his rich classmate's fortune—it really seemed like… a murder!

He carefully folded it and placed it on his lap, then continued to feel around under the box.

The wooden plywood below is clearly not the end; its position is not aligned with the bottom edge of the box.

After Richard gave it a good whack, the splint was opened.

Inside, there was a compressed, balloon-like object.

"A sewing machine?" Richard scratched his head, puzzled. He could tell from its appearance and details that it might be a sewing machine.

But it was so light and delicate, like a small balloon, so blurry and distorted that it could float in the air, that it was truly beyond reason. Although he had seen the cursed necklace and heard the strange sounds inside his body, he still couldn't fully accept this extraordinary phenomenon for a while.

When he subconsciously touched the "balloon," it burst as if pricked by a needle, deflating with a hole.

puff!

The transparent outer casing covering the sewing machine ruptured, and the sewing machine suddenly swelled up to its normal size. It then slammed down with a loud bang.

Smoke and dust filled the air, and when Richard opened his eyes again, a crack had appeared in the floor.

"Oh no... Mrs. Rosalie, I really didn't mean it," he muttered to himself, trying to reassure himself.

It's unbelievable that a box only as long as an arm could contain something bigger than a person!

This sewing machine looks just as ordinary as those in the textile factories outside, with nothing particularly special about it, and one can't imagine it having any other function besides weaving cloth. There are no special parts anywhere on it; if it were placed in a factory, Richard would probably have a hard time identifying which one it was.

[What incredible luck! An ordinary person like him couldn't buy such "joyful items" and "fearful items" even with all the mundane gold coins he earned, yet he got two for free!]

[Alis is a descendant of some ancient family? How could such a thing exist? By the way, why did you use such a common name for the "sacred object"? I usually call them "creation" and "puppet"...]

Creation and fear? What does that mean?

Richard was pondering, but before he could study the sewing machine further, there was a knock on the door.

"Oh no." He opened the door, thinking to himself that the landlady must have been disturbed by the loud noise that was even more absurd than an earthquake.

Contrary to expectations, the person standing outside the door was a blind female tenant from downstairs, with her braids hanging down her shoulders. At first glance, she looked like a well-behaved neighbor's younger sister.

She spoke cautiously, "First of all, I didn't mean to eavesdrop on your conversation with the landlady. Secondly, could you please lower your voice next time you conduct the experiment?"

Even if he wanted to smash it again, he couldn't lift such a heavy sewing machine... Richard apologized, "It was an accident, I'm really sorry... I can promise that there won't be such a loud noise again."

"Thank you."

The blind woman hesitated, then turned back. She held out half a piece of old newspaper and asked shyly, "Could I borrow some charcoal ash to paint? A while ago, I left my paint box and keys downstairs, and then someone stole the paints..."

Is it reasonable for a blind person to paint...? Richard looked into the other person's eyes.

But no matter what, he was in the wrong first.

Although he didn't understand, he still took the old newspapers back to his room and filled them with charcoal ash for the other person.

Of course, he would never say that the ashes came from the fireplace...

The female tenant took the charcoal ash, an awkward expression on her face, a result of someone not used to socializing often. "Thank you again. By the way, my name is Anna. Can I ask you to take a look at my drawing after I finish it? You know, my eyesight isn't very good."

"Sure, you can come to me anytime. Don't be so polite, Miss Anna," Richard replied, then briefly introduced himself.

Anna nodded, preparing to go downstairs, and added before leaving, "Oh, right, let me reiterate, I didn't eavesdrop on purpose. Ms. Alice, whom you agreed to meet at the coffee shop last time, seems to have been waiting there for quite a while."

Was this not intentional eavesdropping?

Once is one thing, but twice! Richard almost spat out blood. He had finally found someone even less able to lie than himself.

"How did you know?" Richard asked.

"I went to buy a coffee a while ago and heard her voice in the coffee shop," Anna said with certainty.

After she finished speaking, she smiled politely, not giving Richard a chance to ask any more questions, and turned and left as if she were in a great hurry to get back to painting.

Richard outwardly feigned composure, but inwardly he was in turmoil.

Wasn't Alice dead?

He closed the door, frowning as he looked around the room. A sewing machine, an expensive piece of "West Creek Beauty Shop" silk, a bloodstained necklace that would put him under police interrogation... all of these seemed to have been left behind by Alice.

The voice inside her body said that Alice was dead! Perhaps, like the original owner, she was killed by Professor Puta's experiments.

The two voices may not know what's in the box, but they certainly know it's Alice's box, otherwise they wouldn't have concluded that "the box will get Richard arrested."

Unless, unless the voice is lying!

"Oh no, don't be so nervous." Richard realized his emotions were off and tried to reassure himself, "Maybe Anna misheard?"

Although Alice has a very distinctive duck-like voice, there's still a possibility that she might have misheard... not to mention that Anna is blind and can't see the person's face.

"I'll just have to go to the coffee shop to find out!" Richard thought to himself, scratching the side of his thigh.

He didn't know when it started, but he began to feel an unusual discomfort in his lower body, as if a block of dry ice was pressed against it!

"Dry ice?" Richard suddenly reached into his pocket, where he found a piece of something that looked smooth but had sharp edges.

Turquoise necklace!

It somehow ended up in my pocket!

"Ouch!" Richard cried out in pain as he wrapped the necklace in silk, quickly pulled it out, and threw it and the silk on the ground.

By this time, his thighs were already red from the cold, and some frozen skin clung to the inside of his trouser legs. Gently pulling them apart, a piercing pain shot through his heart.

An irresistible chill swept over my entire body, burrowing into my bones like insects.

What exactly happened? Richard recalled the events that had just transpired with frustration. He clearly remembered that he had never picked up the necklace that had fallen to the ground.

The mat is still on the ground!

He really wanted to report Professor Puta. A teacher should be teaching properly, not researching such dangerous things!

"Now look what's happened! The students are almost all going to die!" Richard thought to himself, silently lamenting.

Hahahaha!

Don't laugh, we absolutely mustn't tell him that as long as he pays the corresponding price, "creation" can produce anything he wants!