She couldn't take it anymore. With a yelp, she threw the brooch away with all her might. The brooch was tiny, only about an inch square. It hit the stairs and bounced all the way down to the floor below.
But at the same time, Xin Huohuo suddenly felt a searing pain shoot through her entire arm.
In the dim light, she saw a blood-red line snake up from the puncture in her palm, reaching her shoulder before disappearing under the fabric at her chest.
Before she could rip open her clothes to see, an icy sensation shot down through her body to the soles of her feet. Her foot had been pricked earlier, but it wasn't serious and hadn't bled—the skin was barely broken. Now, however, as if in response to her injured palm, she clearly felt a warm, sticky liquid pooling at the sole of her foot. She didn't need to look to know it was blood, and that she was bleeding heavily.
TING, TING, TINKLE... The melodious sound of the Lyre drifted up from downstairs. And it was getting closer.
