"Well, well… Ethan Winters. Escaped my brother's foolish game?" Giant Lady sneers.
"Madao's her brother? No resemblance!" Eveline quips.
She smirks wickedly, clearly despising Heisenberg.
"Let's savor him," she says.
"Yes, Mother," the daughters reply.
"What—argh!?" I cry.
Giant Lady raises her hand. Her daughters lift me, pinning my left hand. A knife slices my palm, and they drink the blood. Vampires!? A strange sensation hits me. Eveline, behind Giant Lady, covers her mouth.
"Oh," Eveline gasps.
"Hm? The flavor's fading," Giant Lady says.
Did she hear Eveline? My imagination?
"Let's feast, Mother!" one daughter urges.
"No! I caught him!" another protests.
"No fighting. We report to Mother Miranda first. Then… we'll have our fun. String him up!" Giant Lady orders.
"Wait, stop!" I shout.
"Ethan's hand's a mess again!" Eveline wails.
"Hey, stop! Let go!" I yell.
They pierce my hand with a hook, chaining me up. Giant Lady definitely reacted to Eveline. Pain sears, but it's better than losing more fingers. I stay calm. She scans the room; Eveline slips into her blind spot. Finding nothing, Giant Lady turns to me. Eveline gestures for silence.
"Fine, my mistake. Mind your manners, Ethan Winters. Stay put," she says.
"Let me down!" I demand.
Satisfied, Giant Lady and her daughters leave. They wave bloodied handkerchiefs, taunting me. I check my right palm, then left. I can endure this.
"Ethan, you okay?" Eveline asks.
"Yeah. Thanks to you, I'm used to pain."
Both palms torn, I yank free, landing hard. I pour healing potion on my hands. It stings, but I manage. These freaks make the Baker house seem tame.
"They're insane…" I mutter.
"You're calling them insane? Scary… Wait, my fault?" Eveline frets.
"Forget that. Eveline, can she see and hear you?"
Eveline stiffens, eyes darting. I search the room—a bedroom? I find a healing potion and a red glass, good for selling to Duke. I toss it in my sack.
"I was ignoring it…" Eveline mumbles.
"My blood?"
"I didn't know! Rose sees me because she has your blood. Maybe the Lycans that ate your fingers saw me too…"
"Spot on."
She was heard but hid, so no confirmation. Untouchable anyway, so no issue.
"Let's explore. Duke said this castle's suspicious."
"Four enemies? No flamethrower—can you win against those bug girls?" Eveline asks.
"With dual handguns—oh."
"What?"
I try drawing both handguns but fumble with my left hand, missing fingers. Gripping's tough now.
"I was hoping for stylish Ethan…" Eveline sighs.
"Why fight stylishly? What now?"
Two useless handguns—wasted money. I wield the regular one. The dangling Mr. Everywhere accessory annoys me.
"Find it healing," Eveline suggests.
"That creepy face? No way. Damn, locked."
"They'd trap us," she says.
The next room's locked too. No windows for escape.
"Eveline, find an exit."
"Not your personal scout!"
"Totally not."
"I'm your daughter too, you know!"
"Never said you were."
"Mean, but you really think that?" she teases.
"…"
"Wow, harsh, Papa," she fake-cries, phasing through walls to search.
I can't call her my daughter—not after killing her. It hurts to think about.
"Fireplace leads somewhere," Eveline reports.
"Nice work."
"I heard your thoughts, you know."
"Forget it."
Crawling through the fireplace, I grimace at scurrying rats, emerging in a dim, narrow space unlike the lavish rooms. Following the path, I return to the main hall. Now what?
"A map would help."
"No notes?" Eveline asks.
"Don't have any. We'll get lost."
"Bigger than the Baker house," she says.
"House…?"
"Well, yeah, I get it."
That "house" was anything but normal. Documents reveal this is Dimitrescu Castle, and Giant Lady is Alcina Dimitrescu, its lord. Her daughters—Bela, Cassandra, Daniela—aren't the painting's sisters, oddly. Solving creepy puzzles, I push forward. Swarms of insects gather, and I swat them. One pierces my right palm, drawing blood. They'll eat me alive…!
"Damn it, what!?" I yell.
"There they are!" Eveline shouts.
"Carving up a man? Been a while. First, hang him upside down… then slit his carotid!" a girl says.
A daughter—Bela, Cassandra, or Daniela?—floats like Eveline, harpe in hand. I shoot her head, scattering insects, and charge through to escape. Sadist!
"No thanks, Bug Bitch!" I shout.
"How vulgar. Alive or dead? Your choice," she taunts.
"Neither!"
"All done. Good boy."
"I've got an idea," Eveline says.
Sliding down a stair railing to escape, she keeps pace. The bug girl can't.
"Give up and let her attack," Eveline suggests.
"What?"
Her mischievous grin tells me she's up to no good.
Missing fingers ruin dual-wielding. Ethan's blood (cells, really) lets others perceive Eveline.
Hope you're excited for the next part! Feedback, ratings, or typo reports are welcome—comments fuel my writing speed!