Yes! He's the god of acting

"It's possible the 'Calamity' was just too weak… one axe blow and it was dead," Lily suggested, her voice a mix of disbelief and fear.

Vito didn't answer. His eyes were fixed on the figure lying in the pool of blood, motionless. He turned and walked to the kitchen, pulling out a large kitchen knife.

"What are you going to do?" Lily's voice trembled.

"I'm going to open its chest, see if the heart's still there," Vito rasped. "At least I need to know… whether I killed a monster or if I just ended up killing the salvation that God sent."

He knelt next to William's body, his hands trembling as he worked to cut into the chest. Lily, pale and shaken, stumbled into the kitchen, her stomach rebelling as she vomited violently.

Minutes later, Vito stood slowly.

"Is it…?"

"Empty." His voice held a strange sense of relief as he looked at the hollow chest. "He doesn't have a heart."

"No heart? Then how…?"

"I don't know." Vito paused, his voice darkening. "Whatever it was, it's dead now."

"What about the body?"

"We'll hide it in the cellar. It's too risky to take it out now, with the enforcers outside."

Vito moved aside the coffee table and removed a heavy wooden panel from the floor, revealing a narrow, dimly lit underground space.

In the absence of refrigeration, the cellar was the best place to store food. He was about to shove William's body inside when he stopped, staring at the gruesome wound on his neck.

"Get Henry's costume," Vito said, his voice quiet but firm. "No matter what this thing was… it was William's body. If we don't bury him, at least we can dress him decently."

Lily shuddered. "But… he was wearing it when he came home last night."

"It's just a costume," Vito said quickly, though his mind flashed back to the horrific sight of William staggering home, his body in ruins. He paused, then sighed. "Never mind. Let's do it."

After placing William's body in the cellar, Vito replaced the wooden panel and put the table back in place, finishing the task.

Lily began cleaning the bloodstains on the floor, her stomach turning, but she forced herself to continue.

Then, a series of urgent knocks echoed from the door.

Lily froze, her heart leaping in her chest. She turned and looked at Vito.

"Someone's here?"

"Ignore it," he said softly. "Pretend no one's home."

Lily nodded, and the two of them held their breath. The sound of knocking grew louder, more insistent.

Then a low voice called from outside:

"Enforcers! Open up!"

Hearing the word "enforcers" drained the color from their faces. Vito hesitated, then gave Lily a look, signaling her to stay quiet. He quickly changed into a shirt, half-buttoned, and walked toward the door.

Creak.

The door opened just a crack.

Vito stepped outside, closing the door behind him. "Enforcers, what's the matter?"

Light rain fell from the dark sky, and two figures in black-and-red uniforms stood on the doorstep, their expressions grim.

"Why didn't you answer the door sooner?"

"I was sleeping… took me a while to get dressed," Vito said, offering a nervous smile.

The enforcers exchanged a glance, their tension easing slightly. "Is this William's house?"

"Yes…"

"Where is he?"

"He left this morning and hasn't come back yet."

"Give this to him when he returns." One of the enforcers handed Vito a document. "There's a full lockdown in Zones 2 and 3. All candidates who passed the written test are to report for recruitment. He's on the list."

The enforcer handed him the paper. "He's expected to report to Zone 3 Enforcer Headquarters by 7 AM tomorrow. If he doesn't show up, his spot is forfeited."

Vito's heart skipped a beat, but his face remained neutral. He took the document. "I'll make sure he gets it."

The enforcers turned and left. Vito let out a silent breath as he closed the door behind him.

Click.

A chilling sound—sharp, like nails on a chalkboard—pierced the silence.

Lily was curled in a corner, trembling with fear.

When she saw Vito enter, her gaze locked onto his, and she slowly extended a hand toward the kitchen.

In the dim light of the kitchen, a figure dressed in crimson stood with its back to them, its head lowered as if chewing something.

Vito's brain froze.

It was William. The William who had been decapitated and whose heart had been removed.

His throat was nearly severed, but the wounds were healing unnaturally fast. In one hand, he held a kitchen knife; in the other, a bloodstained axe. Both weapons were being shoved into his mouth.

Realization struck Vito like a blow to the chest. The figure slowly turned, its hollow eyes and jerky movements making Vito's blood run cold.

"Dad," the voice was faint, almost childlike. "I'm hungry…"

William had a dream.

It was an afternoon, dark clouds gathering above.

As usual, he had finished his workout at the suburban gym, drenched in sweat, and pushed open the door to his home.

Although it wasn't his birthday, there was a cream cake on the table. The flickering orange candlelight cast a dim glow across the room, and two figures sat at the table, their eyes red-rimmed.

A cream cake, worth 200 copper coins—a luxury their family could hardly afford.

Puzzled, William asked, "What's today?"

His parents looked at each other before answering, "Today is the day Henry will undergo surgery."

Hearing this, William felt relief flood him. His brother Henry's congenital heart condition had been their family's constant nightmare. For years, they had traveled far and wide for help, but every clinic had turned them away.

Just a few days ago, his parents told him they had found a hospital in District 2 with a real chance of curing Henry.

Overjoyed by the news, William finished the cake. But soon, a wave of dizziness hit him, and before he realized it, he collapsed onto the table. The last thing he saw was his mother, Lily, holding her mouth in horror, tears streaming down her face.

"I'm sorry… truly sorry," he heard his father whisper. "Henry's condition… it needs a heart… You'd be willing, right?"

William opened his mouth as if to respond, but he drifted into unconsciousness.

Then, he felt himself shoved into a bag. The sound of rain hitting the bag echoed around him. After what seemed like an eternity, he was lifted onto a table.

He felt his chest being opened, and something was taken from inside.

He was then dressed in something, carried through the pouring rain to an unknown location. Heavy soil slowly covered him, and everything around him sank into darkness and silence.

In the pitch-black void, William's eyes suddenly snapped open.

Spotlights blazed overhead, illuminating the figure draped in red, lying center stage. After a brief daze, William pushed himself up, hands shaking as he stood.

"Damn it… how am I back?"

His face went pale as his eyes instinctively fell on the screen in the middle of the stage. His pupils contracted.

[Audience Expectation +1]

[Audience Expectation +1]

[Current Expectation: 67%]

[Actor connection lost. Performance interrupted.]

[Audience Expectation -50]

[Current Expectation: 17%]

[Warning! Warning!]

[Audience intervention detected!]