Minutes passed in that hole, each giving me a feeling of dread and despair. There was no light above and while someone could’ve turned off the light to that one room specifically, I did not believe that was the case.

There must be a blackout. Now that I think about it, the lights were always turned on. I haven’t noticed any light coming from the windows.

“Petra! Amy! Dante! Anyone?” I heard a familiar voice yelling from above. It was Alex.

“We’re inside the dumpster!” I hoped that he heard my voice.

“Petra, is that you?”

“Yes! Try to find the rope, it should be somewhere in the room. Throw it down and hold one end!”

He did just as I asked and I saw the rope next to the dirty wall. I gave the flashlight to Amy and hurried over to the rope. Amy followed and we got out without a problem.

“Oh, a flashlight,” Alex let out a sigh of relief. “Finally, some light. I almost pissed myself when the lights went out. What if the traitor managed to turn them off?”

“So, you also realized?” Amy added, “I assumed you were too stupid to think of that.”

“You’re still acting the same way you did during the discussion. Can you stop? I’m already scared that the others might not be safe.”

“I don’t care if you’re scared, let’s just go and look for everyone.”

Shortly after we began our search the lights came back on, lessening our worries. It happened while we were going up the stairs, and soon after, we saw Dante and Blake coming down from the second floor.

“Have any of you by chance come upon Eden?” Dante asked.

“No, Amy and I were in the hole for most of the blackout and Alex came alone.”

“Oh, I greatly apologize that the two of you had to wait there. My brother was very worried that the traitor was heading towards the dumpster room when the lights went out, so he forced me to run out with him in a fearful frenzy.”

We headed together in one group, checking every place we haven’t been in, which wasn’t anything more than the right wing of the first floor and the places under the staircase.

What surprised me the most was how he was dead silent. The blackout is over, why is he quiet?

The right wing was completely empty. The backyard had nothing but wind stopping the area from being filled with silence. That only left one room on the first floor. Under the left part of the staircase, the tiny room where he and Dante tried doing a ritual right before Rose’s death. I wondered why he would be there, but wandering got me nowhere, so I opened the door.

I prayed that the scene in front of me wasn't real, but my prayers were nothing more than worthless words.

Everyone stood shocked, unable to comprehend what they saw. Eden was on the ground with his back against the wall on the other side of the room, motionless in a puddle of his own blood. Drops of it fell between the gaps in the wooden floor. That was the only movement in the room. Most of the blood came from his stomach, although there was a noticeable amount coming from his mouth.

I turned around to see how everyone else reacted. Everyone was shaking and had an expression that showed pure despair and fear. Dante was on his knees, rivers of tears pouring out of his eyes.

“W-Why? Why would the Gods I bow down to allow this? T-this is bad, very bad! The traitor, they are not a regular mortal! He, she, whatever, is a demon! Nothing else explains this. My dear brother, he followed every tradition of the Divinitas family, his soul and mortal body were guarded. Lord, have you abandoned us?”

His sadness hastily turned into anger.

“I guess this is the test of my servitude. I know what must be done and I shall do just that.”

He stood up and ran to the second floor, each step of his echoing through the main hall. I had a bad feeling about what he was going to do, but I didn’t react fast enough to stop him. He was on the second floor for no more than a minute or two, although during that time Lucia entered the main hall.

“Oh, I see that Dante has left the scene. Well, let’s wait for him, then I’ll explain the situation.”

I stared at Lucia until Dante came back. I couldn’t stop my body from shaking while standing near her, her mere presence was a poison.

I have to stay calm. Do not lose your cool, do not! I screamed in my thoughts and simply stood in place with a fake expression on my face that barely hid any fear.

Dante came down from the second floor and I immediately realized that he planned to do something horrible. In his right hand was a weapon, a dagger to be more precise. I couldn’t see the entire handle due to him holding it, although I saw that it was dark red. The blade was shiny, it was obvious that Dante kept it sharp and clean. Alex also realized what Dante most likely planned to do.

“Dante! What are you planning to do with that?” Alex directed everyone’s attention to the dagger.

Dante was taking deep breaths.

“I believe that it is obvious. I will kill the traitor.”

“You know who the traitor is?” I nervously asked.

“No, I am absolutely unaware. With that said, my servitude to the Gods who guard my soul cannot be stopped. The traitor is the devil’s pawn, a danger that cannot be let roam this world free. I shall make a sacrifice! I shall rid the world of this demon by filling this mansion with the corpses of every mortal here!”

Dante lifted the hand with the dagger up and ran towards me since I was the closest to him.

As he approached, I dodged toward the hand that wasn’t holding the dagger and pushed him to the cold floor. I took away his dagger before letting Dante get up.

“Drop the Divinitas dagger right now, you corrupt wench! Nobody who lacks true faith may wield the treasure of my family.”

“No way, I’m not letting you repeat Adam’s mistake.” I clutched the dagger.

Lucia sighed.

“Are you done?” she asked with an irritated voice, but nobody said anything.

“Alright then, let me begin.” Lucia continued speaking. “This murder was committed by the traitor which means that no discussion will be held. When you're sure that you know who the traitor is, you're free to kill them, although if you get it wrong, a discussion for your murder of an innocent person will be held, so be careful, or don't, I couldn't care less. I just thought I should remind everyone what the rules are."

In a blink of an eye, she was gone, leaving us hopeless yet again.

Murder the traitor ourselves? That's right, Lucia mentioned that we had to do that back when she introduced herself. We had to hurry up, yet, we couldn’t make a single haphazard decision. I stayed cool with all my strength and raised my voice.

"Then let's get started this second! Everyone, find a partner and explore any place that you deem suspicious."

Amy ignored my request and slowly entered the room with Eden's body, completely calm like always.

"Amy, what are you doing?” I asked.

“The obvious. I’m going to investigate the body.”

“You witch, don’t touch my brother. He must be properly buried.”

“Shut up. If your traditions were actually helpful here, we would’ve been outside by now.”

Dante looked like he was ready to strike again, so I stood between them. Even starting this investigation is tough! Is there even a chance of success?

“Calm down!”

“Why should I be obliged to stop? This is a direct insult to all I stand for.”

Blake, who was standing completely silent along with Alex until now, limply grabbed Dante.

“Chill out. Our priority is finding the traitor. Take deep breaths and we can all work together. Please don’t make this even harder than it is, you’re not alone in this fucked up place.”

“I guess I shall, no, I must accept that, for Eden and for myself. I cannot stand being here for much longer. I shall go to the dumpster room and explore where I think he might’ve headed off to. I’m bound to find something, the Gods themselves will lead me to an answer.”

With that he left alone and Amy started looking at and touching the body. Alex felt sick merely seeing what she was doing.

“How are you not phased? This is someone you literally talked to recently.”

“Well, I guess I’m the only one who recognizes how terrible the situation we’re in is. Also, it’s not like I’ve never seen a corpse before.”

“What did you just say?”

“It’s a long story, I’ll tell you it if we get out alive.”

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

“No, I want to know right now.”

“Stop being such a dumbass, you don’t know what you’re saying. Go do something actually helpful for once.”

Alex wasn’t satisfied with that answer, yet he knew that he couldn’t get through Amy so he left as well, probably to start investigating.

“Hey, Petra.” Amy said while still crouching next to the body.

“Yes?”

“Can you do me a favor while I do everything needed here?”

“Is it related to the murder?”

“Sort of. I want you to go to the third floor.”

“Third floor? I thought that was nothing more than an attic, it doesn’t even go inside the main hall, and the only way to go to it is the small staircase at the end of the second floor left wing.”

“I assumed the same thing, although you should think about it. Twelve tables in the dining room, twelve pictures in the tunnel. Four people per group. Do you get it?”

I paused for a second before answering.

“How did I manage to miss that?”

“Well, since the traitor can be anyone inside the mansion, we need everyone involved, no matter if they want to participate.”

“I’m the one for the job, God knows what they’re going through up there considering they never bothered to go downstairs. I’ve been trying to keep everyone somewhat motivated and hopeful. I wonder how they’re keeping up.”

I ran upstairs and sprinted through the long hallway until I reached a small staircase which insinuated that the third floor was built as an afterthought. At the top, I was greeted by a shade of purple that reminded me of grapes. Everything was that color. Walls, floor, ceiling, though the doors were light brown.

The entire floor was a single hallway that went from the end of the left wing to the right with doors randomly placed on both sides. The first four doors, two on each side, had labels above them.

Evelyn.

Leon.

Maya.

Naomi.

Since Evelyn’s door was the closest to me I knocked on it. I waited, but nobody answered. I knocked again and then opened the door.

Nobody was there.

I checked all four rooms, but nobody was there.

They must be further down the hallway. I opened the first door I saw.

The room inside was way larger than I had thought. It was an entire library. Shelves filled with different kinds of books everywhere gave charm to the room. It was mostly well organized apart from one shelf where every book was thrown onto the floor. Out of curiosity I approached the pile of books, in case there was something related to the secret of the mansion there.

I crouched down to grab a book.

Hmm… Maybe the third group just doesn’t clean after themselves.

Suddenly, I felt someone grab my shoulder.

“Boo,” I heard a male and noticeably hoarse voice behind me.

“Ah!” I fell over despite the voice being pretty quiet.

“Gotcha! You should honestly learn to expect everything at all times, especially here.”

I looked at the person who surprised me. The first thing I noticed was his messy hair because it was dyed turquoise and his ear piercings. Another thing that really stood out was his black eyeshadow, I didn’t expect to see anyone bother putting on makeup while their life was at risk. Compared to his hair, his clothes didn’t stand out. The only thing I noticed was that his shirt was slightly too big for him.

“Why are you staring at me?” he asked.

“Oh, sorry.”

“Why’d you come over here, Petra? Do you need help with the investigation or something?”

“Wait, how do you know about that?”

“If I never checked the situation downstairs, I’d be completely clueless and who wants that? I want to know everything there is to know. That’s why those books you were looking at are on the floor.”

“Really?”

“No, of course I’m lying. I set them there as a distraction. If you were the traitor, I would’ve killed you without you even seeing my face.”

I was taken aback by his knowledge. How did he manage to find out about the murder and our names without being seen by at least one of us?

“Sorry for startling you with all that information, I completely forgot how to properly introduce myself. Name’s Leon. Leon Voss, and yes, that last name is on the table in the dumpster room tunnel if you forgot.”

“How the hell do you know about that?”

“Shit, I shouldn’t have told you that until later. Well, who cares?”

“What the hell? How much do you exactly know about what happened downstairs?”

“I know the major events. Rose dying, Adam idiotically failing to save himself, the tunnel and rope and also the traitor’s identity.”

“You know who the traitor is?”

“No, that was a joke.”

“You…”

He laughed hysterically until it made him cough.

“How naive can you be?”

I can’t believe what this maniac is doing.

“I feel bad for you! Hahaha, just kidding, I don’t.”

“You sure like pissing people off, don’t you? That probably puts you at risk.”

“Oh, you believe the traitor will go after me?” He started laughing again. “I want to see him try! If that bastard thinks he can outsmart me then I welcome him!”

Leon was a phenomenon, and even that would undermine my first impression of him.

“Well Leon, it was nice meeting you. You should head down and talk to everyone else as well.” I faked a large smile on my face.

“You’re a really horrible liar. I already mentioned how I know everything.”

“I’m not faking anything, I’m just a positive person. I’m not falling for your lie again either.”

He laughed yet again.

“Now that I actually decided to be honest, you didn’t trust me, simply amazing! Hahaha, I can’t believe it.”

“You’re useless.” I sighed.

“And there’s proof that the smile was fake. Alright, I’m going to go mess with the others and investigate. See ya!”

He walked past me without saying anything else and I followed him back into the hallway. He went downstairs.

What the hell was that? Everything about Leon confused me. He wasn’t like anyone else. With the others, I could cooperate or at least talk with, maybe calm them down if things go too far, but Leon seemed to know exactly what he was doing. All his lies sounded true, no matter how bizarre they were.

I realized that I was standing in the hallway not doing anything so I started walking towards the other end carefully looking for the other members of the third group.

The door after the library didn’t look like the other doors. It was made out of metal instead of wood and it was a shiny gray color. I tried opening it.

Locked.

I was about to continue walking, but before I could do that, I heard something.

“State your business,” It was a very calming female voice, yet I couldn’t see who it belonged to, even when the door opened slightly.

“Who are you?” I asked, confused as to where the girl I was talking to was.

“Answer my question first.”

“Well, I’m here to meet and gather everyone from the third group.”

“You’ll have to get permission from Leon for that.”

“What?”

I didn’t hear the voice again. What did Leon do? I stopped looking around and ran back downstairs. Not only did I need to find a way to meet the rest of the group, I had to warn everyone about Leon. Why do things keep getting worse?

Both he and Amy were in the main hall, most likely waiting for me.

“Hey Petra, can you come to my room? I want to talk about the case privately, I don’t want this freak to listen in.”

“What a rude way to talk about someone you just met. Shame on you!” Leon was without a doubt being sarcastic again.

Blake entered the hall from the reading room, the tiny room on the left wing, and saw Leon.

“Hey, who are you?” Blake loudly mumbled.

“I’m Jesus. I’m here because you are dying. Repent for your sins!”

“I’m not doing this today.”

Blake walked back inside the reading room, obviously unwell and annoyed, but Leon followed him in hopes of pestering him more. What the hell did I just witness?

It was useless to think about anything that came out of Leon's mouth, so eventually, I stopped thinking. Amy and I went towards her room slowly, making sure that Leon wasn't near, and surprisingly, he wasn't following us. Right as we entered her room, Amy, with my help, moved the nightstand next to the door.

"Alright, that idiot isn't here." Amy sighed.

"That's good. I'm assuming he would mess with the case if he had all the details."

I sat on Amy's bed and began listening to what she found out.

"What confused me the most about the crime scene was the amount of blood. I mean, you saw it yourself, right? So I began looking for wounds that would make Eden bleed that much. There were wounds and bruises around his stomach and chest, he would've bled without a doubt, however not as much."

"Then where was the blood from?"

"From a different room."

"Huh?"

"No doubt about it, it's fake blood."

"Then… The storage room! It must've been from there, that place has everything."

"It's not that easy, I already checked."

"Then where?"

"I still have more information."

"Go ahead, you're the only one who can do something like investigate a corpse. I'm counting on you."

"Of course you are. Anyway, I found the murder weapon as well, it was hidden behind Eden inside his robe."

Amy quickly reached under her bed and pulled out a slightly bloody combat knife.

“Why would you put it under your bed?” I asked Amy, confused.

“So that the traitor wouldn’t take it, isn’t that obvious?”

“You’re still a suspect though.”

She ignored what I said and showed me the knife. She didn’t clean the blood, looking at it made me really uncomfortable. Less than an hour ago, someone was murdered with the very thing in front of me and I had to live with that fact and keep going, no matter how much I wanted to stop.

“Amy, didn’t you say that there was too much blood near the body for it all to be real?”

“I did.”

“If a knife was used then the amount of blood would make sense, wouldn’t it?”

She ignored me again.

“Amy? You aren’t telling me something. Come on, I won’t do anything stupid if you tell me! Don’t you trust me?”

“Well… I might’ve licked some of the blood to see if it was real. It looks pretty much identical, but it tastes nothing like it.”

“Why would you do that? I’m not going to tell anyone, but why? Why would you even think about it?”

“It was necessary, wasn’t it?”

“I mean, that’s true, but how did you even get to the idea?”

“I’ve just been into detective related stuff since I was little. Pretty simple. After a while, nothing is out of the question.”

“I see, I see. I’m sorry if I overreacted.” No, something is not right here. I don’t want to annoy her, but I can’t trust her like this, she might be the traitor.

“Petra, you look sick.”

“I do? I’m sorry.”

For some reason I could barely walk. I was shocked by Amy’s confession, but that wasn’t the reason why I was barely able to stand, something else was happening to me and it came out of nowhere. I put one of my arms around Amy.

“C-Can you help me get to my room?”

“Sure, I don’t mind,” Amy replied with no hesitation.

We started walking and with each step my vision started getting more and more blurry.

“Are you like this because of what I told you? I don’t think it was that extreme of a confession.”

“No, that’s not it. I started feeling sick randomly, it’s really sudden too. This has never happened to me before, but I probably just need some water and to lie down.”

We reached my room and Amy dropped me on my bed. I wanted to ask her for water, but everything in front of me quickly turned black before I could say anything.