Inside the venue of the Feiteng Theater, the performance continued. To the surprise of the audience, during this show, the dancers who were supposed to be performing on stage, while dancing with all their might, leaped down from the stage one by one, dancing into the audience seating area for close contact with the spectators.
The audience, who had been growing increasingly bored due to Adele's long absence, brightened up at this sight. They had never seen a performance like this, where the dancers weren't even dancing on the stage.
Dancers in white gowns joyfully leaped and danced through the aisles of the audience seating. They interacted closely with the spectators, astonishing and exciting many. Some audience members who were further away and couldn't see clearly also stood up, eager to catch a glimpse of the dancers who had entered the seating area. The entire venue seemed to become even livelier all at once.
Clearly, all the spectators took this as a unique and innovative performance, involving direct interaction with the audience. Although many seated in the inner sections couldn't see the show, the special guests in the private boxes had a clear, unobstructed view of the scene below due to their high vantage point.
"I have to say... these women Adele trained can dance pretty well. Some of the acts are quite novel."
Sitting on the sofa in his private box, Byron spoke slowly while watching the group dance below. As he spoke, he ate various pastries from the coffee table, which were complimentary in the luxury box.
'If it weren't for the trouble leaving would cause, plus wanting to confirm Adele's situation, I would have found a way to smash a window and leave already... But oh well, the pastries here are decent, and occasionally one or two of these acts are quite novel. Staying here to watch isn't a loss...'
Byron thought this to himself. His mission had actually been completed when Maria was "killed" in the washroom. For safety, immediate withdrawal would have been the best option.
However, for soundproofing, the entire theater was quite sealed during the performance; all doors and windows were closed. If he wanted to leave, he would inevitably have to break glass or exit through the guarded main entrance, which would definitely leave traces, making people think he was the escaping murderer. This would neither help frame Adele nor prevent him from getting into trouble.
Therefore, Byron chose to stay and continue watching the show, taking the opportunity to observe the immediate impact of Maria's death and witness his success. Since he had a complete alibi and was entirely absent when Maria "died," there was no way the investigation could ever lead back to him.
Thus, Byron continued to watch the show in the venue with peace of mind, quietly awaiting the end of the concert and the explosion of the public opinion bomb he had personally crafted.
Until then, he was happy to enjoy the delicious pastries while watching the performance.
"These theater pastries taste quite good..."
After eating another small cake, Byron remarked with a hint of emotion. He felt that the current pastries tasted excellent, significantly better than those at some of the high-end restaurants he frequented. He hadn't expected to find such delicious desserts in a theater.
'Such delicious pastries. I feel like only the Blood Food from the Society can compare.'
Eating the desserts on the table, Byron thought this to himself. Unconsciously, his movements became faster and faster. He continuously picked up the sweets and put them into his mouth, displaying a ravenous, wolfing-down manner.
While rapidly consuming the pastries on the table, he was also intently watching the dance in the audience area. Although there were many dancers in the seating area, all dressed identically, Byron's gaze was fixed on only one of them.
That dancer was located in the central aisle of the seating area. Although she wore the same white dance gown as the others, donned the same half-mask, and had her hair styled identically, appearing outwardly indistinguishable from the other dancers, her dance movements were markedly different.
This dancer's movements were more powerful, more precise, the rhythm faster, and the difficulty greater, drawing more attention than the other dancers. As she moved, the other dancers unconsciously began to circle her, starting to accompany her dance.
What was originally a group dance without a lead figure gradually found a protagonist. All the dancers began to revolve around one specific dancer. Her exquisite skill not only drew gasps of admiration but also sparked speculation among some.
Inside the box, Byron stared intently at the dancer, his hands rapidly grabbing the pastries from the coffee table and shoving them into his mouth. He felt the food tasting increasingly delicious, and his stomach growing even hungrier.
Byron's speed in grabbing food accelerated, moving from using one hand to both. He began frantically stuffing food into his mouth, disregarding all manners, trying to fill the constantly expanding feeling of hunger. His abnormality attracted the attention of a nearby servant, who immediately stepped forward to stop him.
"Young Master Byron, something is wrong with you. Please stop immediately..."
"Get lost!"
The restrained Byron roared, then violently swung his arm, hitting the servant. The servant was sent flying by the immense force, crashing into the wall, breaking his bones instantly.
After hitting the servant away, Byron suddenly seemed to realize his own abnormality. He stood frozen for a moment, various thoughts rushing into his mind. He clenched his teeth, clutching his head as he thought.
'Hiss... No, something is wrong! Why does this suddenly taste so good? Why am I suddenly so hungry! It definitely wasn't like this before! Before, these pastries were just normal pastries! They only suddenly became so delicious after those dancers came down to perform in the audience area... Or rather, I only suddenly became so hungry! It's those dancers!'
Byron thought this to himself, but even after realizing that something was wrong, his hands did not stop. He continued to stuff food into his mouth while watching the dancers who were still performing in the audience, especially the one in the main position whose dancing was far superior to the others.
Just like Byron, countless eyes in the audience were now fixed on the dancer, watching this extraordinary performance. Some people in the audience shouted loudly.
"Adele! Adele! Adele!"
Soon, the cheers calling for Adele spread throughout the entire venue. Amidst the repeated shouts of the crowd, the dancer finally removed her mask and let down her coiled hair during her movements. As her long golden hair cascaded down like a waterfall, Adele's face reappeared before everyone.
When Adele reappeared, the entire venue erupted. Waves of people surged through the audience seating, and the deafening shouts even drowned out the music.
Meanwhile, in the private box, Byron, who was still gorging himself, understood everything upon seeing this scene.
'So that's it, that's Adele... I was affected by her, which is why my appetite surged uncontrollably... Adele found me, knew I was here, and used this dance to control my desires. To prevent me from sensing her approach, she disguised herself as a regular dancer, performing in the audience area. By leaving the stage and entering the seating, she moved closer to me... making me watch her dance unknowingly, closing the distance and amplifying the effect of her ability...'
At this moment, Byron understood everything—the reason for his abnormality. Logically, he should stop now and flee immediately, but he couldn't.
"Now... I should... run... immediately... But... but I'm so hungry! So hungry, so hungry! I want to keep eating!!" Byron said, his face ferocious and twisted, grinding his teeth. His eyes were wide and bloodshot, and copious amounts of saliva dripped wildly onto the floor from between his clenched teeth.
At this point, Byron was completely dominated by the desire named Appetite. Frantic desire had flooded his brain. Although his rationality told him he was in great danger and needed to run immediately, rationality was no longer in control of his mind.
The extremely inflated desire overwhelmed his rationality. At this moment, only one thought remained in Byron's mind: eating.
Byron completely transformed into a beast, frantically devouring the food before him. While eating, he could no longer control the violently surging "Cup" within him. He activated his ability and began to transform. During the frenzied feeding, his body started to swell, black fur grew all over him, his muzzle elongated slightly, his hands morphed into claws with sharp talons, and his mouth filled with fangs.
Before long, guided by his appetite, Byron unconsciously completed his beast transformation, becoming a pitch-black beast. The black beast quickly devoured all the remaining food before him in one sweep.
After consuming all the food in the private box, Byron's bottomless appetite was still unsatisfied. Once he finished what was in his mouth, he fixed his gaze on the audience seating. In his eyes, the spectators were now nothing more than savory, cheering flesh and blood.
Just as the bestial Byron, driven by primal appetite, was about to leap toward the audience, Adele, who was dancing in the seating area, looked toward Box Number Seven where Byron was. She winked at the transformed Byron inside, then glanced toward the servant who was also in the box, slowly regaining consciousness after being knocked out.
In an instant, the beast Byron's target of desire shifted. Under the guidance of an inexplicable force, he looked at his servant, who had just managed to stand up—an Apprentice-level Starver.
At that moment, in the eyes of the beast Byron, the servant Byron emitted an irresistible aroma. He couldn't control himself and lunged forward. Before the servant could react, he bit through his neck at an extremely fast speed, instantly hunting and killing him.
The servant, whose neck was severed, fell down with wide eyes, unable to even scream. His body was immediately ripped open by the beast Byron's claws. Byron bent down, opened his mouth, and began tearing and eating the servant's flesh in large chunks, ravenously consuming his internal organs. Blood splattered throughout the luxury box.
In the main venue, the music, cheers, and applause were fervent. Dancers moved wildly, the orchestra played passionately, and the audience shouted... Meanwhile, in the corner of the private box, unnoticed by everyone, a bloody feast of gluttony was taking place.
Inside the box, the beast Byron quickly finished consuming the servant's main edible parts, yet his appetite remained unsatisfied. Just as he raised his head and looked around, eager to find the next target to vent his hunger on, the door to the box suddenly opened, and the beast Byron immediately turned his gaze to see a piece of fresh meat thrown directly inside.
Without thinking twice, Byron, completely dominated by appetite, rushed forward and ate the piece of fresh meat. After he finished, another piece was thrown in. Byron ate that too. After finishing, he looked toward the door, and another piece of meat was thrown in, prompting Byron to lunge again.
Outside Box Number Seven, in a theater corridor, several servers wearing theater uniforms were gathered. Beside them was a small trolley laden with a large basin of fresh meat. This meat had been transported from the theater kitchen and was usually used to prepare meals for VIP guests in the private boxes.
Besides the fresh meat, the trolley also carried a stack of glass bottles containing liquids of various colors, many of which were clearly labeled with skull-and-crossbones stickers.
These theater servers, loyal to Adele, took fresh meat from the basin, used syringes to draw a small amount from the skull-labeled bottles, and then injected it into the meat. They then threw the poisoned meat into the box. Several people coordinated their efforts, continuously tossing meat injected with various toxins into the box. If one were to read the labels carefully, these poisons were strong enough that even large cattle or horses couldn't withstand a tiny amount.
Standing beside the trolley, Ed silently watched the scene before him. Through Ed's vision, Dorothy also witnessed the event.
'Well, I'll be. So this is how you manage to leave a corpse intact? Adele, I didn't expect you to resort to poisoning.'
Watching the scene, Dorothy thought this to herself. She had initially been guessing what method Adele would use to leave the killer's body intact. In her memory, the methods used by the "Cup" Pathway during combat were always extremely violent. Supported by the strongest physical strength among all Pathways, battles involving the "Cup" resulted in, at best, shattered heads and broken bones, and at worst, being torn to shreds—all R-rated scenes if filmed.
'Desire Manipulation... elevating a person's desires until they shatter rationality, turning them into a pure beast driven by lust... and even controlling the target of that desire's release... If she weren't aiming to leave a corpse intact, she likely has much more efficient ways of dealing with him than poison... 'Food and sex are human nature...' The spiritual manifestations of the 'Cup' all stem from various desires rooted in biological instinct. Compared to the Beast Branch Pathway, which focuses on material manifestation and physical enhancement, Adele's branch seems to prioritize developing the 'Cup's' spiritual manifestation. To manipulate a transformed beast with just a dance—what a terrifying woman. The level of this ability must be beyond the Black Rank...'
Dorothy thought this, gaining a deeper understanding of the spirituality of the "Cup" Pathway. Not all "Cup" Beyonders were just muscle-brained brutes.
Thinking this, Dorothy shifted Ed's gaze back to the trolley, specifically the glass bottles filled with various toxins and medicines, and a question arose in her mind.
'It's normal for the theater to provide catering services and have meat, but what's with all these toxic chemicals? A theater shouldn't have this kind of stuff, especially not in such large quantities. What is the theater keeping all this for?'
Watching the scene, Dorothy thought this with confusion. She decided to ask Adele about it later... *Ahem*, as mentioned before, I've been experiencing severe writer's block lately, and my schedule is a mess. So, I'm taking two days off during the National Day holiday to adjust my routine and also go out and relax for a bit. Therefore, there will be no updates tomorrow or the day after.
Wishing everyone a happy National Day!