The Twisted One

The change happened so fast that neither of their minds had time to process it before it was already done.

Mr. Klin's expression froze into a sinister, unnatural smile as the gunshot suddenly shattered the air. His head blew apart like a rotten water melon. A spray of blood, brain matter, and fractured skull fragments blasted backward, mixing into a sticky slurry that painted the pristine white wall behind him like an abstract painting. The viscous liquid then trickled slowly down the wall, leaving long, narrow streaks of blood in its wake.

Deprived of strength, the headless corpse slumped back into the chair, neck tilted back, eyes wide open, staring blankly at the ceiling—as if still pondering something in its final moment.

Lynch’s face turned deathly pale as his mind went completely blank. A wave of chilling cold swept through him, making him feel as though he had been thrust back into the night he first transmigrated, forced to face bizarre and gruesome deaths over and over again.

Under the shock wave of mysterious filth, his body trembled involuntarily. Fear and pressure repeatedly chipped away at his willpower, instilling a primal urge to turn and flee.

Soon, however, his willpower resisted the pollution’s corruption. Calmness and clarity reclaimed his mind—recovering far faster than when he had first laid eyes on Drunken Peter’s corpse.

In the next instant, Officer Natalie’s expression shifted abruptly. She turned, threw her arms around Lynch to shield him with her own body, and pointed her sword toward the doorway.

【Authority, Protection, Ability, Escape】

Her speed surged. Just as they set into motion, a violent rumble echoed from the corpse behind them. A powerful shockwave slammed into their backs, propelling them through the air and slamming them heavily against the wall outside the office.

Locked in a tight embrace, they were pinned together against the wall. With Lynch sandwiched between the hard brick and her body, a suffocating pressure crushed his chest, nearly forcing him to cough up a mouthful of blood.

Lifting his head, he saw Officer Natalie’s face was equally pale, with a trickle of blood leaking from the corner of her mouth.

This woman was injured. To protect me, I must protect her.

Gritting his teeth, Lynch forcibly pulled the officer behind him, using his own body to shield her from the office doorway.

A sharp screech erupted without warning. Lynch felt a prickling chill down his spine, as if he could already hear the breath of death itself. Just as the screech hit its highest crescendo in the blink of an eye, his soul shuddered. A sudden realization welled up in his heart, making his body react instinctively as he raised his cane to block in front of himself.

【Authority, Death, Ability, Death Omen】

Clang! A massive force rattled his wrist, nearly knocking the cane out of his hand. A dull thud echoed beside him as the tremendous impact was deflected by the cane, slamming violently into the thick brick wall and leaving a deep crater behind. It then retracted with a high-speed whoosh—so fast that Lynch couldn't even catch a clear glimpse of what it was.

He did, however, get a clear look at what was inside the office: the headless Mr. Klin.

Four eerie tentacles had burst from Klin's neck, seemingly replacing his original head. They whipped through the air with fluid, lifelike precision. At the tip of each tentacle was a razor-sharp, blade-like layer of keratin. It was as if four orbiting blades were whirling through the air, whistling back and forth and carving deep gouges into the walls.

As for the headless torso, the clothes and skin had long since split open, exposing the raw, bloody muscle underneath. Thick muscle fibers surged and expanded, bloating the corpse to several times its original size. His hands and feet had transformed into massive paws, tipped with sharp talons that glinted coldly under the gas lamps.

A chill ran down Lynch's spine as he realized that those creepy tentacles had almost impaled him just now. He had to... Holy shit.

In the span of a single blink, the monster vanished from his sight. The screeching sound rang out once more as the attack came at a speed far beyond his brain's ability to process. The Death Omen he had just forced out gave no warning this time. Right as the blade-like tentacle was about to slice into him, a familiar sword extended from behind. Accompanied by a harsh, ear-splitting metallic clash, the incoming tentacle was forcibly repelled.

As the attack was deflected, Lynch felt his waist tighten as a pair of strong arms wrapped around him. The two of them tumbled together along the base of the wall for several meters, clearing the area directly in front of the office. Officer Natalie then shattered the sealed glass on the wall with a quick punch and yanked down a red lever.

Ring-ding-ding!

The sharp, piercing alarm echoed down the corridor in a frantic rhythm, instilling an immediate sense of urgency that tightened their nerves and sent their heart rates soaring.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Alongside the alarm, heavy iron doors slammed down one after another, sealing off every door and window inside and outside the archives. Only a single, dark corridor remained. Yet, just a moment before the iron door to Mr. Klin's office struck the floor, a red shadow flashed past, accompanied by a sudden gust of bloody stench.

The iron door had failed to lock the monster inside the office.

“Hide!”

Amidst the clattering of dense gears grinding inside the walls, the officer released her grip on Lynch's waist: “Too strong, too fast. You can't handle this.”

As she spoke, she delivered a kick to Lynch’s thigh. As Lynch rolled to one side, she used the momentum to roll in the opposite direction, quickly separating the two of them.

Thud! The blade tentacle darted forward at a speed too fast for the eye to track, plunging deep into the wall. Only after impact did the delayed screech of torn air reach their ears.

“A man never says he can't!”

Leaving behind those harsh words, Lynch vanished mid-roll. Looks like his body is honest after all, the officer thought, letting out a small sigh of relief. She drew her sword and slashed down at the empty space beside her.

The monster's silhouette lunged to her side, its razor-sharp claws sweeping toward her waist as if aiming to sever her in two. Her downward slash intercepted the massive claw just in time.

It felt like striking tough leather. This was the first time Lynch had ever seen Officer Natalie's sword fail to slice through a target. Deflected off course, the claw tore into the wall, leaving four terrifying gouges. Pushed back a few steps by the recoil, she raised her voice and yelled urgently, “That's Klin—he's undergone a twisting transformation! Be careful! Hold out for thirty seconds until backup arrives!”

In the brief span of that single sentence, four metallic clashes had already resounded. The monster moved at speeds resembling teleportation, flashing back and forth around Officer Natalie. Her expression remained taut as silver sword-light twirled around her body. Abandoning all offense, she focused entirely on placing her sword along the shortest path of the incoming claws and tentacles, narrowly deflecting every assault.

After four consecutive collisions, the massive force drove the officer back step by step. Following the fourth strike, her back slammed heavily against the wall.

And then came the fifth.

This time, both front claws crossed together, coming down in a heavy, chopping strike.

Officer Natalie's expression turned grave. Switching to a two-handed grip, she forced her sword up to meet the claws head-on. Amidst a shower of flying sparks, the claws and blade locked together in midair, trapping the monster and the officer in a momentary clash of raw strength.

It had finally stopped—if only for a split second.

At that exact moment, a revolver suddenly materialized behind the Twisted One, its muzzle pressed almost directly against the creature's skinless back.

“Hi.”