How to Stop the Villain from Going Crazy
Translator: Fuyu
Chapter 50 - She was feeling sympathy for her predator (1)
Bo Li bought baking soda, poured it into a bucket, stirred it into a paste, and instructed a cleaner to smear the paste onto the carriage's bloodstained areas.
Facts had proven that it was beneficial to watch American shows.
She left the paste on the carriage overnight, and the bloodstains were easily washed away the next day.
Bo Li had thought Erik wouldn't be interested in such a trivial matter. However, he stood next to her and observed the entire process. He watched her mix the baking soda into the water, sprinkle white vinegar on the carriage, and instruct the cleaner to scrub the carriage.
His staring made the cleaner profusely sweat. The cleaner didn't even dare to breathe loudly in his presence.
Bo Li was a bit puzzled.
Why was he so interested in her every move recently? She preferred when he was completely indifferent to her.
After all, if he asked her on a whim how she knew this method and where did this method originate, she wouldn't know how to answer him.
His memory was terrifyingly strong, and his insightfulness was beyond that of ordinary people. She still remembered how he almost perfectly restored the strands of hair in the door to their original positions.
If she hadn't taken a photo with her phone, she would have been deceived by him.
She could get away with telling him little lies not because she was a good liar, but because he didn't care, didn't pay attention, and didn't ask follow up questions.
However, if he directly asked, she wouldn't be able to continue lying. If her lie was exposed, she would lose his trust.
Losing his trust was tantamount to losing her life.
Bo Li felt clammy. She was worried that he would ask her a question and raise the difficulty level of her survival.
Fortunately, he only looked and didn't comment or ask any questions.
Bo Li sighed in relief.
Soon, she forgot about this matter.
After cleaning the carriage, it was time to worm her way into Mrs. Merlin's good graces.
Mrs. Merlin was a middle-aged woman. She seemed to have a cold exterior but a warm heart. She had a stocky figure, stern face, and didn't joke around. However, every time she visited Mrs. Merlin, Mrs. Merlin would serve her a plate of snacks and coldly watch her eat it before asking her to leave.
After a few days, Bo Li learned that Mrs. Merlin's husband had died over a decade ago. They didn't have any children, so she treated Mrs. Ciri as her child.
She seemed to have a deep affection for Mrs. Ciri. Every time Mrs. Ciri was mentioned, she would fall into a long silence.
"I don't want to talk about her," Mrs. Merlin said, "If you're here to find out information about my lady, you can leave. I have nothing to say."
Bo Li said, "You know I'm not here for Mrs. Ciri."
Mrs. Merlin was silent again for a moment. Suddenly, she laughed. Her laughter sounded a bit strange. "Are you really not in the business of turning deformed people into specimens?"
The mood became strange.
Bo Li rubbed her arms. She didn't notice until now that she had goosebumps.
She raised her eyes and looked around. It was 3 PM, and the sun was shining brightly. Even if there were ghosts in the world, they couldn't appear right now.
"How about this?" She thought it over and sincerely offered, "You can blindfold me and take me to see them. If they're not willing to leave with me, I promise to not come back."
Mrs. Merlin thought it over and seemed to think it was better to get this over with and end her pestering.
"Fine." Mrs. Merlin nodded. Her voice sounded like molasses without the sweetness. "I hope you're an honest girl."
Bo Li's eyes were covered by something.
She came here with a gun, but Mrs. Merlin confiscated it from her. She brought along a gun the first time she came here, so Mrs. Merlin searched her every time and took away the gun each time.
In fact, Bo Li had hidden a knife in her petticoat.
Mrs. Merlin had suddenly become so strange. She slipped her hand down her dress and squeezed the knife.
Of course, this might just be her imagination.
If Mrs. Merlin wanted to do something to her, she could have done it a few days ago. There was no need to wait until today.
She heard rustling sounds and a click.
Mrs. Merlin pulled back the carpet in the parlor, slid the bolt of the basement door, and unlocked the door.
Bo Li felt odd.
Was Mrs. Merlin hiding the people with deformities in the basement?
Mrs. Merlin helped her stand. "Come, this way, there are stairs."
Her hand was strong and powerful. Her voice had become even more viscous, and her breath carried a strange smell. "Slow down. If you fall and get hurt, I won't take you to the hospital."
Bo Li abruptly stopped. She raised her hand to tear the cloth off her eyes. "... Never mind, next time."
"Next time?" Mrs. Merlin laughed. She grabbed her wrist and wrenched it behind her back. "There won't be a next time, dearie."
Bo Li underestimated Mrs. Merlin's strength. No matter how she struggled and squirmed, Mrs. Merlin kept her securely restrained. The muscles on her arm bulged, and then Mrs. Merlin pushed her into the basement!
Bo Li felt like the world was spinning. She fell headfirst into a haystack in the basement. The stench of sweat assailed her nose, but she was in too much pain to get up.
"I never do the business of trafficking normal people. That would be too sinful." Mrs. Merlin's voice came from the entrance of the basement. "But you keep asking about that wretched girl. That girl let me down too much. I treated her like a daughter, but she took the gold, silver, and jewelry and ran away with that female hoodlum. She abandoned me here."
"You and her are both freaks," Mrs. Merlin said, "She loves women instead of men. And you, you're interested in those deformed people and want to help them become stars."
Her voice became slimy again. This time, Bo Li understood. That tone, it was sarcasm and contempt.
"If you're going to blame anyone, blame yourself for being a freak and offending me." Mrs. Merlin closed the door, slid the bolt back into place, and locked the door.
After a long time, Bo Li crawled out of the haystack. Her head was still dizzy.
Fortunately, she had been wearing a dress these days to gain a favorable impression with Mrs. Merlin. It was the type of dress with several layers of petticoats underneath. Otherwise, even with the hay as a cushion, her legs would be swollen if not broken after falling from such a height.
Bo Li felt vexed.
Her level of wariness was too poor. She believed everything that Mrs. Merlin said.
Bo Li really didn't expect that Mrs. Merlin would attack her after witnessing Trique and Body's terrible deaths. Even in the case of "I never do the business of trafficking normal people", Mrs. Merlin still did this. Did she find her that hateful?
Never mind, just think, if Mrs. Merlin was a good person, how could she be so calm when seeing a corpse?
The reason she didn't show much reaction when she saw Boyd's corpse and the decapitated head was because she had seen too many people dying during this period. The circus guards and the manager's deaths were so horrific. She didn't have the strength to be surprised anymore.
Also, modern society had everything: horror games, horror movies, horror novels… She had experienced seeing all kinds of bizarre and terrifying images that numbed her nerves.
It was normal for her to not show any reaction, but Mrs. Merlin's indifference was abnormal. As the personal servant of an upper-class lady, she was too calm that night.
Bo Li winced in pain.
She failed to notice that oddity at the time.
Translator Ramblings: I think Mrs. Merlin's explanation was plausible. I can easily imagine that Trique and Boyd have killed people in this house, and Mrs. Merlin had to clean up after them, so that was why she was unfazed by their deaths.
What do you guys think? Did you find Mrs. Merlin's behavior suspicious before Bo Li offered to be blindfolded?
Edited on 9/19/24: The author went back and edited the story after finishing the story, so I striked-through the original text and bolded the new text.