Chapter 434 - 285: The More You Watch, The More Scared You Get; The More Scared You Get, The More You Watch

Chapter 434: Chapter 285: The More You Watch, The More Scared You Get; The More Scared You Get, The More You Watch

’But what kind of change?’

The captain couldn’t figure it out right away.

Just as Hannibal had predicted in the Shadow of Evil, Buffalo Bill struck again, kidnapping a girl.

Coincidentally, this girl was a noblewoman. The case’s importance was immediately elevated, and the entire police department mobilized. All sorts of newspapers and media outlets swarmed in, chasing this hot story.

’So realistic.’

The captain gave a wry smile.

A commoner’s life was less important than a noble’s dog, and most of the media were just bloodthirsty jackals. Hype was the scent of blood they chased, and whether it might have a negative impact was not something they considered.

Starling didn’t have the power to change Hannibal’s prison, but the warden did.

The warden of the mental asylum had monitored all of Starling’s and Hannibal’s conversations. He was a utilitarian and saw this as a golden opportunity to curry favor with the nobility. He struck a deal with Hannibal: if they caught Buffalo Bill, Hannibal would be transferred to a prison with a nice view.

In his excitement after striking the deal, the warden left his pen behind in the cell.

’Seeing this, the captain suddenly had a strange thought. If the earlier requirements mentioned not to give Hannibal a pen, does that mean he has the ability to escape using just a pen? Surely this Shadow of Evil won’t end with the villain escaping scot-free?’

’That would be too audacious.’

The captain didn’t dare imagine the kind of reaction such an ending would provoke if it were widely released.

Based on past cases, Buffalo Bill would starve his victims for three days before killing them, after their skin had loosened.

The countdown on the noblewoman’s life had begun.

Seeing that there was credit to be had, Starling, who had made the initial breakthrough, was immediately shut out. A group of higher-ranking officials fought tooth and nail to claim the final victory.

Compared to Starling, these high-ranking officials seemed to better fit the stereotypical image of a Devil.

’That’s right, how much nobler are Humans than Devils, anyway?’

’The captain had been on the job for so many years and had seen so much evil among Humans. Maybe it was time to give Devils a chance, to stop treating them as the default enemy.’

’Perhaps the Devil race was actually well-suited to being police detectives. After all, with their naturally superior physique, catching criminals would surely be easier.’

Because she was excluded from the case, Starling had a final conversation with Hannibal.

Starling made her final confession to Hannibal.

The story this "toy" had hidden in the deepest corner of her heart came from a childhood trauma.

After her parents died, she was sent to live on a relative’s ranch. There were lambs on the ranch, and they would scream at night. A young Starling tried to set them free, but they didn’t know how to run. She could only carry one away, but collapsed from exhaustion before getting far. She couldn’t save the lambs. Ever since, she can still hear the lambs screaming late at night.

’A religious metaphor.’

’Of course, the lambs weren’t just lambs.’

Church history was a required course in many regions, and the captain had studied a bit of it. The lambs represented the weak who needed saving.

And Starling, a Devil, possessed the heart of a savior who wanted to rescue the weak, and was even mired in self-blame over her powerlessness.

Now, she had to rescue the nobleman’s endangered daughter—to save the "lamb," and to save herself.

Hannibal also gave his final clue: Buffalo Bill coveted his first victim. People covet what they see every day.

’So, hidden beneath this horrifying story, is it actually an inspirational and heartwarming tale?’

However, the story’s development quickly showed the captain that while it might be somewhat inspirational, it was definitely not heartwarming.

Because of his deal with the warden, Hannibal was transferred and temporarily detained in a separate building. The security wasn’t as tight as it was at the asylum, and police officers delivered his meals to his cell.

The almost-forgotten pen reappeared. He used it to open his shackles. Accompanied by elegant music, he gnawed the face off one police officer and used another as material for a very unique "artistic creation."

That poor officer was "displayed" hanging from up high, exuding a strange sense of sanctity amid its evil nature.

Such a bizarre and gory scene was displayed so frankly to the entire audience.

It was a reminder to the audience that no matter how elegant and charming Hannibal appeared, he was an irredeemable psychopath.

Muffled gasps came from the theater. The more faint-of-heart ladies even let out piercing screams.

Even for someone like the captain, who had witnessed plenty of bloody crime scenes, he had to admit that the impact of this scene was second to none. Even a psychopath would have to look at it and admit, ’Now that’s a psychopath.’

’The captain now suspected the team that produced this Shadow of Evil weren’t exactly angels themselves. How else could they have come up with such a cruel scene?’

Strangely, even after seeing Hannibal commit such a heinous act in the Shadow of Evil, the captain still didn’t quite dislike the character.

’He just seemed to have this special charm.’

This was perhaps due to the instinctual Human admiration for the strong; one always tends to have a soft spot for powerful and intelligent characters.

Of course, a character is a character. If he were to run into a criminal like that in real life, he’d put as many bullets in him as he could. He had no intention of showing any humanity to that kind of enemy.

Still, out of his fondness for the character, the captain was now even hoping Hannibal would escape.

’Will he succeed?’

An ending where the villain ultimately wins their freedom—no one ever dared to write that in a play.

However, to his disappointment, the detectives in the Shadow of Evil found the target in the stairwell, wearing a prison uniform, collapsed from excessive blood loss.

’Were they too afraid to film such an unconventional plot after all?’

The captain sighed.