On a snowy night, a young detective arrived and decided to stay the night.
I never expected the castle to be so lively tonight.
Besides the wise and composed detective who was the last to arrive, there was also a gloomy-faced young poet who was said to be revisiting the place and wanted to see the scenery on the mountain, but like the detective, he was unable to leave due to heavy snow blocking the mountain when he came down, and could only stay here temporarily.
In addition, there's a short-tempered hunter, a rebellious girl, a middle-aged office worker with a sarcastic way of speaking, a consumptive ghost who's always yawning, and a crazy, eccentric beggar...
Finally, it was revealed that two people originally lived in the castle: a hunched-over, frightening-looking old woman who was also a little girl who always spoke incoherently and was waiting for her parents to come home.
A group of people, each with their own circumstances, gather at the castle because of the heavy snow, and in their conversations and actions, they seem to be hiding secrets from others.
Soon, as the blizzard swept in again outside the window, the murder occurred—
There were twelve actors on stage, each dressed in their own unique style. Even without detailed introductions, the audience could generally identify their identities and professions. The arrangement of the actors was also not chaotic, with each actor having a reasonable place to "wait" on stage without affecting the main storyline, making the viewing experience very comfortable.
On the contrary, the plot development is not as exciting as the original work.
After all, the original stage play of "The Twelve Mirrors" is two hours long, while this version is only twenty minutes long. Basically, after all the personality characters have been explained, the murder case will begin. Therefore, this part has been heavily cut. The plot twists and turns that give you goosebumps are gone. It basically just follows the clues as they appear.
The detective eventually uncovers the truth and discovers that everyone in the castle is a villain—including himself.
A detective who solved countless cases but could not avenge his daughter ridiculously imprisoned himself in this ruin, repeatedly reenacting the events and truth of the case from years ago, ultimately driving himself insane.
He implanted the souls of these people into his own body and fabricated a lie to alter the truth.
—But the truth is, he couldn't accept all of this, and split off these personalities, constantly forcing them to play the roles they played back then.
When the detective on stage finally went mad, snatched the hunter's rifle, and killed everyone except himself, the stage lights suddenly went out for a moment.
The audience held their breath and remained completely silent.
In the darkness, something seemed to be brewing—
"Whoosh—"
The bright lights came on again, shining solely on the person in the center of the stage.
The lonely young man sat blankly in the chair, facing everyone.
His expression was pained and contorted; he clutched his head, then suddenly slumped down—
In that instant, the curtain behind him suddenly fell, and a huge mirror appeared in front of everyone, causing everyone to gasp in surprise.
"What is that—"
"A mirror! What a huge mirror!"
The enormous mirror, about five meters high and three meters wide, stood behind the young man, reflecting not only him and the chair, but also the audience below the stage and the distant stands.
The initial surprise turned into anticipation, as if something big was about to happen.
Sure enough, the young man raised his head again the next moment.
The wise and composed detective disappeared, replaced by a melancholy and frustrated poet.
His eyelids drooped slightly, even the light in his eyes dimmed, his tightly pursed lips pressed down completely, and even his straight back showed a hint of restraint and timidity.
Behind the youth, the poet of "death" reappears, looking left and right in the mirror, his movements synchronized with the youth in the chair, but his voice has changed to the same tone: "So that's how it is... that's why my letter can never be sent out."
The actor playing the "poet" then calmly left the area illuminated by the lights and disappeared back into the darkness.
Closely following behind was the hunter with an explosive temper.
The young man's demeanor changed abruptly. In just a moment, as he looked up and down, his gaze shifted again. The melancholy vanished, replaced by an aggressive scrutiny, as if he were someone who had been hiding in the jungle, watching his prey.
At the same time, the hunter was standing behind him.
Their hands were simultaneously stroking the air, as if wiping their hunting rifles, and they spoke in the same voice, but with different tones: "That damn little brat stole my hunting rifle! She deserves to die!"
The next moment, the hunter seemed to lose control and flew out of the light and into the darkness, while the young man in the chair also lost control and swayed to the side, but regained his balance just before falling off the chair.
He then sat up straight again, swinging one leg slightly. At the same time, his expression changed again, his eyes widening a little and becoming rounder. His posture with his arms crossed had a slightly feminine coyness, as well as the casualness and wildness of a young man.
The girl behind him looked at herself in the mirror with disdain, subconsciously brushing a stray hair from her forehead: "I'm not interested in your affairs, but I don't want to stay here anymore. Everything here disgusts me!"
...
The other eleven actors on stage took turns appearing, looking at the huge mirror.
They seemed to be confirming their true bodies, or awakening their full consciousness, and finally, they gradually began to understand—they were not a person, but a personality.
This body belongs to them, yet it doesn't entirely belong to them; it is theirs, and it also belongs to others.
Because the true dominant personality has died.
Wait, something seems off—
one two three......
The personalities present had all looked in the mirror, but the people in the mirror were not themselves.
So where did the real dominant personality go?
Everyone turned their heads
In front of the mirror, all the personalities gathered together, silently watching the young man before them, and their positions blocked the mirror, preventing it from reflecting the young man's image.
At the same time, the young man raised his head again.
—He became that detective again.
The [N O V E L I G H T] detective who appeared at the very beginning and then disappeared at the very end.
The detective slowly stood up from his chair.
The personalities all avoided a path, allowing him to walk straight to the mirror.
This time, the detective began to examine himself closely in the mirror, and no one else on the chair behind him followed his movements.
And so, everyone understood that the detective was the beginning of all the stories, and also the owner of this body.
But in the end, he died.
The detective staggered back to his seat, clutching his chest in a disheveled state. When he raised his hand again, it was covered in blood. Even the white shirt he had taken off his trench coat was stained with large patches of red.
He was the first of the main personalities to die, but his body was the last to be buried.
All evil was branded with his name, and the final punishment was a tragic death.
