At midnight, the pure white moonlight poured into the mansion, and Francis had just woken up from a nightmare.

There hasn't been a restful sleep since the first day here, and there's always a way to keep you awake from the strange sounds coming from the corridor on the left or the screams that aren't human.

Francis kneaded his forehead, trying to ease the headache caused by poor rest. This is not the only bad thing, Pfister, who was supposed to come every Saturday to deliver daily necessities, did not come for two weeks, and their food reserves are almost at the bottom.

Just then, there was a knock on the bedroom door, and Aisha walked in.

Francis walked over and picked up the little girl with a smile on her face and asked; "Why didn't you sleep?"

Aisha looked uneasy and replied softly; "Hallway, they're not the same tonight as they were before..."

But in the eyes of others, it is just the same as always, everything is very normal. Francis did not ignore what Aisha had said, and whispered; "What's the difference?"

Elsa's next reply was startling - "They're starting to speak human language".

Taken aback for a moment, Francis turned around and put Aisha on the bed, reassuring her that she would be fine.

"They're usually just gurgling, but tonight they seem to be happy, chattering."

Aisha recalled what they had said and reproduced it to Francis as best she could.

Oddly enough, they seem to start out telling a story with one voice;

Countless years ago, before time ticked, the Supreme Beings washed the land with gray mist.

The crown was not born, and the gems were nothing but dust.

Until the torches were raised and the mansion was erected, we were imprisoned in agony.

Tick tock, who makes the clock swing?

Tick-tock, ridiculous humans, they have long forgotten his name ...

Francis listened quietly to Elsa and said; "Looks like they've kindly told you a bedtime story."

Aisha shook her head, panicked;

They know you, and all the voices that follow are repeating a word;

Poor Francis, along with his seven children, will die on the full moon.

Warning or threatening, Francis was lost in thought, but the sudden sound of the door breaking downstairs instantly made him stand up.

Francis murmured; "Elsa, go stay with Abel."

Abel is the eldest child.

Francis removed a battered musket from the wall and quietly paced to the first floor.

The moonlight reflected the first floor very brightly, and he could clearly see a woman in a trench coat and full of strange equipment standing in the lobby, looking around.

"Now listen, you explain where you came from and who you are in one sentence, and I'll fire as soon as the ink is inched."

The woman scoffed, raised her hands to show that she was not hostile, and then spoke; "May, Church Junior Hunter."

Francis was relieved to hear that it was the people of the church, but did not let her guard down and demanded that she come up with something that could prove her identity.

She shrugged her shoulders, one hand still raised, and the other slowly lifted the side of her trench coat, revealing a five-inch medal of pure gold pentagram.

"You can put down your musket now, but honestly, if something happens to you, you won't survive this week's full moon with your seven children."

It's a full moon again, associated with what Aisha said.

Francis put away his musket, carried it on his back, and went to the first floor, questioning; "Pfister hasn't been here for two weeks, and besides, what are the church hunters doing here?"

Mei pinched her waist and began to talk endlessly;

"First of all, Pfister almost died when he came here two weeks ago, and then the relics of the old gods appeared in this area, and a lot of unclean things were grown. One of the nearest villages died in one night, and Pfister knelt in the church begging them to send someone to help you, and here I am. ”

Francis, who learned of the situation, couldn't help but look serious, his lips squirmed a few times, but in the end he only said thank you for me.

May frowned disapprovingly at Francis's words; "You should thank me, because no one wants to be here but me."

Francis waved his hand and asked what to do next.

Mela pulled out a chair, sat straight up, and put her feet on the table; "As you can see, I'm just an ordinary person, and I'm not qualified to drink alchemy potions and become extraordinary—but you have twelve bottles, don't you?"

"Let's be clear."

"These seven children, one bottle per person, if you are lucky, four of them can survive the mutation, and then it will be safe here."

Hearing that Francis's forehead showed a bruise, he said angrily; "They're kids, and I'm not going to let them drink any bullshit potions."

"Look, that's why no one wants to come here."

Francis's unquestioning attitude made the atmosphere tense for a while, and May sighed and held out a finger; "There's another way."

After speaking, Mei pointed to the left hallway on the third floor.

No one had dared to open that room for hundreds of years, and there were a lot of extraordinary things in it that might not be useful, but it was possible to open the door and release a monster that would wipe everyone in the mansion clean.

"The choice is yours, Francis."

Francis had a lot of thoughts, he wanted to drink the potion himself to protect his seven children, but he did not have pure blood, and the probability of mutation failure was infinite.

If you fail, you will become a monster, and the hunter in front of you will have to kill yourself, and then no one will care about the children's life or death.

A ban has been issued in this area, and Pfister can't come.

"No one will drink the potion, I'll open the room in the hallway." Francis held down May as she was about to get up. And then he said; "If I die, do you think twelve bottles of base potions can buy you to leave here with these children and let them live."

Mei smiled slightly, deal!

Francis retrieved the key to the room and broke the plank of the hallway that had been used to seal it.

The floor here is covered in dust, and Francis leaves a clear footprint with every step.

Mei's voice came from behind him - "Tell me, it's only been a few months, and most people will choose to fly away with the potion, what made you choose these children." ”

Francis paused in front of the door, put his hand on the doorknob, looked back at May and said;

"Once Aisha asked me, 'Daddy, will you always protect us?'

With that, Francis opened the door and walked in.

Mei looked at the empty corridor on the right with emotion, muttering in her heart;

Two words make you willing to hand over your life, what makes family love build such a strong bond.