Circus of Horrors (15)
Noticing that everyone was now looking at them, Chen Li hurriedly pushed Fu Moyang away. His eyes darted around nervously before he turned to Joker and asked: “Is the performance over?”
But his mind wasn’t cooperating. It involuntarily replayed that scene from the other day: the man’s explosive legs wrapped in tailored suit pants, his long and powerful hands gripping a whip—veins faintly visible beneath the skin—while the black whip bent to his command, striking with precision and force.
It was cool. It was impressive.
Just thinking about it made Chen Li’s heart race a little—probably just admiration between men.
When he didn’t get a direct answer, the smile behind Fu Moyang’s mask vanished.
Joker, who had been watching them like a hawk, immediately changed his expression upon hearing Chen Li’s words: “Of course, Young Master Rum.”
A brief wave of dizziness hit, and the next moment, they had returned from the circus back to the castle.
Emily was already waiting nearby. Seeing them appear out of thin air, she showed no reaction, simply lifted the hem of her maid dress and went to summon the chef.
The banquet was as lavish as ever, with a generous spread of seafood and meat.
After everything he’d been through these past few days, Chen Li had developed an impressive ability to keep a straight face during dinner—even after such disturbing performances. His adaptability was stronger than he’d imagined.
Still, his fork kept drifting toward the salad.
Fu Moyang watched him for a while, then took the initiative to move the steak in front of him. His tone was gentle: “Young Master, don’t be a picky eater.”
If it weren’t for the predatory look in his eyes, he might’ve seemed like a loyal and dutiful butler.
Too bad he was a wolf in disguise.
To be polite, Chen Li forced down two bites of meat—only to be distracted by a lobster Joker presented with a small magic trick.
The snow-white, plump lobster meat had been broiled in butter and cheese, releasing an irresistibly rich and savory aroma.
A little intimidated by Joker, Chen Li saw him staring intently and, bracing himself, took a few bites.
Joker’s mood visibly brightened. It wasn’t that fake, polite smile he usually wore—it was genuine joy, from the inside out.
His little cotton candy had eaten the food he gave him!
Meanwhile, a certain butler’s presence began radiating a cold pressure.
Unaware of this, Chen Li summoned a bit of courage and casually asked: “Joker, what’s the next performance?”
The dancers and the dart throwers both turned to look, visibly tense.
Joker paused for a moment, a mysterious smile spreading across his face: “That’s confidential…”
Before disappointment could register on Chen Li’s face, Joker continued: “But if it’s Young Master Rum asking, of course I’m willing to oblige.”
He was in such a good mood that he didn’t mind bending his principles a little, just this once.
The players all glanced at each other, surprised they’d gotten a clue so easily. They hadn’t even done anything—just sat and ate.
As tension filled the air, Joker leisurely picked up a napkin and folded it into an origami crane. His tone was light: “Tomorrow’s performer will be—”
The paper crane suddenly lifted from his hand and floated slowly across the table.
The female dancer’s face turned pale. She clutched her boyfriend’s arm tightly, her fingernails digging into his flesh, eyes locked on the crane that would determine her fate.
The white crane circled in front of her for a moment, and just as despair began to settle on her face—it veered sharply and landed between the dart thrower and his assistant.
The dart thrower’s face twisted in disbelief: “Me?!”
His assistant looked like he might cry, reaching out to shoo the crane away. But once it had landed, it became lifeless—no longer magical, just a plain napkin crane.
Still, it lay there on the table mockingly, its pointed beak aimed straight at him.
Joker nodded approvingly: “Yes, that’s right. Tomorrow’s performance will be dart throwing~”
The last syllable rose exaggeratedly, as if simply filled with anticipation.
The assistant panicked: “Cousin… what should we do? I don’t want to die yet. I’ve only been through three games, I don’t want to die!”
But he didn’t have the courage of the Puppeteer, the luck of the Magician, nor the strength of the Beast Tamer. Even knowing that tomorrow was his turn to perform, he felt powerless to change anything.
The dart thrower shot him a glare: “Shut up. What can I do about it?”
The assistant, a man standing 1.8 meters tall, was so scared he nearly cried: “You’ve been through five games. You must have some kind of life-saving tool, right?”
The two of them started to argue at the dinner table.
Chen Li couldn’t help but glance over.
He hadn’t expected the dart thrower and his assistant to know each other. It seemed that the system’s character setups weren’t all just random after all.
His gaze didn’t go unnoticed by the man beside him. Fu Moyang suddenly acted, swiftly grabbing a fork from the table and throwing it with a sharp motion.
The silver fork sank halfway into the table with a resounding thud.
Fu Moyang’s killing intent filled the air: “Quiet.”
The room fell deathly silent.
No one knew how they had angered this deadly figure, but no one dared to challenge him at this moment, terrified of being obliterated just like the monster from the other day.
The dinner resumed in silence. Aside from the clinking of cutlery on plates, no one spoke.
After Chen Li finished the last grape on his plate, it was swiftly taken away, so quickly it left him dazed.
He looked up in confusion, and Fu Moyang’s calm voice met his ears: “Young Master, it’s time to rest.”
Beneath the calmness lay an underlying danger.
“Oh.” Chen Li didn’t react much. Seeing that his plate had been taken away, he simply stood up and made his way upstairs.
After all, this identity didn’t require him to interact with the other players.
The others let out a collective sigh of relief. Only Joker, who had been in a good mood earlier, suddenly became dark-faced, glaring at Fu Moyang in silence. He didn’t say anything until they were upstairs, at which point he released the shattered glass in his hand.
. . . . .
“Young Master.”
Chen Li was submerged in a bath full of bubbles when he heard the voice. Without raising his head, he muttered: “What is it?”
The butler, standing behind the bathroom door, slowly opened it and stepped inside, his bare feet making barely a sound on the floor.
Chen Li felt something was off. After watching the performance tonight, Fu Moyang had been acting strange.
After entering the room, Fu Moyang didn’t say anything, just silently watched as he got into the bath.
After hesitating for a moment, Chen Li asked again: “Is there something you need?”
Fu Moyang answered simply: “Mhm.”
Something wasn’t right. He was too close!
Suddenly, Chen Li turned his head, and right before his eyes was Fu Moyang’s waist and abdomen, damp from the steam, with his prominent abdominal muscles looking incredibly powerful.
“…You,” Chen Li stammered, “Why did you come in?”
He realized he was completely exposed, and though it wasn’t the first time Fu Moyang had seen him bath, he still felt his face heat up with embarrassment.
Fu Moyang crouched down: “Young Master has been very naughty tonight.”
“What?” Chen Li felt his brain heat up, his thoughts a bit scattered.
Fu Moyang removed his mask, revealing his silver-grey eyes: “Why didn’t you answer my question?”
“What question?” Chen Li hurriedly pressed himself against the side of the bath.
Through the rose petals, the curve of his slender waist and rounded body became faintly visible.
Fu Moyang: “…Which performance was better, mine or the Puppeteer’s?”
He extended his hand, blocking Chen Li’s way.
The lamb trapped in his grasp could only look up and be swallowed by those deep silver-grey eyes.
Why was he still obsessing over this?
Chen Li murmured softly: “Y-Your performance was better.”
Fu Moyang’s expression darkened immediately, his previously simmering anger soothed by those words, but he wasn’t about to let it go that easily.
He moved closer, cornering him: “Why did you only eat two bites of the meat I served you, but five bites of that clown’s lobster?”
Chen Li froze. The questions just kept getting stranger… Was he upset about something like this and had even gotten angry at the table?
He tilted his head slightly, answering honestly: “Because the lobster was tastier.”
Fu Moyang raised an eyebrow: “Is that so?”
Chen Li stopped speaking, his round eyes silently looking at him with a hint of grievance.
He didn’t understand Fu Moyang’s behavior, unsure of what he had done wrong to be scolded.
Even a docile little lamb meant for sacrifice can have a temper, especially the ones that are prone to becoming arrogant from being spoiled.
So, Chen Li decided to protest in his own way.
The two of them stood facing each other for a while, but in the end, Fu Moyang was the first to break.
It was because Chen Li, still underwater, sneezed.
“If I catch a cold, it’s all your fault,” Chen Li said, his voice a bit nasal, as Fu Moyang dried him off with a soft towel, helping him into his nightgown and tucking him into bed.
Hearing the slight congestion in his voice, Fu Moyang sighed: “Yes, my young master.”
My delicate little young master.
Chen Li eyed him suspiciously: “Are you secretly mocking me in your mind?”
Fu Moyang gave him a sincere look: “No.”
The atmosphere between the two had just grown warm again when, just as Fu Moyang was about to shamelessly lift the blanket and crawl back into bed, a piercing scream shattered the silence of the night.
Chen Li, who had been drifting off to sleep, suddenly sat up with his hair practically standing on end: “What happened?!”
Fu Moyang suppressed his irritation at being interrupted and gently ruffled Chen Li’s hair in reassurance: “It’s nothing. I’ll go check.”
As he spoke, he put on a dark green mask.
System 001 suddenly spoke up: [A player’s in trouble.]
The implication was clear—this was a prime opportunity to collect horror points!
But since Fu Moyang was still present, System 001 didn’t dare say more and quickly pretended to go dormant again.
Luckily, Chen Li seemed to understand what it meant this time. With some effort, he stretched two fingers out from under the blanket and grabbed the corner of Fu Moyang’s clothes.
His grip was feather-light, yet Fu Moyang immediately stopped in his tracks and turned back patiently: “What is it?”
“I want to go with you,” Chen Li said, eyes full of pleading.
Fu Moyang replied: “Young master, I’ll be back very soon.”
He didn’t want this adorable little lamb in a bathrobe to be seen by anyone else—
especially that clown.
Chen Li blinked.
Fu Moyang: “…”
Chen Li blinked again.
Fu Moyang: “…Fine. But don’t leave my side.”
Chen Li quickly nodded, slipped on his slippers, and followed closely behind.
Because of this short delay, by the time they reached downstairs, all the surviving players were already gathered.
When they arrived, the crowd instinctively stepped aside to make way for them.
Feigning displeasure, Chen Li asked: “What’s with all the noise this late at night?”
The master of the castle had spoken. The players exchanged glances before the Puppeteer stepped forward and answered: “The dart thrower is dead.”
Dead?
They’d just had dinner together two hours ago.
And it wasn’t even time for the performance yet—how could he have died inside the castle?
Peeking from behind Fu Moyang, Chen Li saw a pair of deathly pale feet hanging in mid-air, and his heart skipped a beat.
“Young Master, don’t be afraid.” Fu Moyang shifted slightly, shielding him from the view of the body.
The fear in Chen Li’s heart was halved just by that seemingly small gesture. He inhaled sharply and whispered: “He died exactly like that butler did…”
The Butler NPC had died on his first night here, and nothing had happened again since—until now.
Same method. Cause of death unknown.
The dart thrower’s body hung from the beam above the door, with a large pool of blood already gathered below.
Just as everyone was absorbed in grim silence, an ill-timed sneer came from behind.
Joker twirled a rose in his hand: “I know who did it. The murderer is among us. Surely Young Master Rum won’t protect the killer, right? We’re all your guests, after all.”
As the master of the castle, Chen Li had no choice but to steel himself: “Who?”
“Why, of course it’s…” Joker bared his teeth in a wide, sinister grin. “Our current butler.”
He dragged out the last word, full of vicious intent.
Author’s note:
Fu Moyang: I’m jealous. Hurry up and coax me.
Li Bao: Achoo—
Fu Moyang: (Sprints like he’s in a 100-meter dash to grab a towel)