I wanted to scream. The entire cave was a web made of flesh. It felt as though it was saying that the only thing that had entered was prey.
Owen, who had grabbed me, looked desperate as he spoke.
“Listen carefully, miss. Right now—”
—Bang!!!
Time seemed to slow to a crawl. Or maybe my eyes couldn’t keep up with what was happening.
When things returned to normal, Owen Cassfire was no longer beside me. He had been hurled by an invisible force and was now crumpled against the wall, his body twisted unnaturally. Blood was seeping from his abdomen, where a shard had pierced him. Through the torn fabric, I could see the broken bone protruding.
Who could possibly throw a grown man like that?
“Owen!” I screamed. At the same time, I sensed a presence behind me. It was something I couldn’t ignore.
Turning slowly, I saw Herschel Hopkins half-emerging from the stairway, reaching out. His face was a mix of surprise and relief as he called out to me.
What is he talking about?
“What?”
The question of whether I was ‘alright’ seemed absurd. Owen Cassfire had been trying to warn me and was concerned for my safety. If there was anything truly dangerous, it was the grotesque, mysterious flesh hanging from the ceiling.
However, Herschel’s demeanor suggested he was wary of the man who had been with me.
“Stay away from him! Owen Cassfire is behind all these incidents! We need to escape now! It’s dangerous here!”
What? My eyes widened in confusion. Owen was the culprit? I was overwhelmed by too much information.
Herschel quickly descended the stairs, continuing to explain.
“The missing people were last seen with Owen. It seemed odd when he suddenly reappeared and started talking about Dahlia. At first, I thought he had received a gift too, but after questioning around, there was a common testimony. They had seen a red-haired man.”
I swallowed hard. Did Owen discover this place because he was the culprit? Then how did Herschel track us down?
Something didn’t add up. There was a crucial piece missing, and I couldn’t figure out what it was. What was I missing?
“Anyway, we need to leave quickly. This place is not safe at all.”
Now, the ring on my right thumb was squeezing tightly, as if trying to sever my finger. It seemed to be warning me about Herschel’s approach, emitting a sharp light.
Herschel’s gaze fixed on my finger as he slowly approached.
“Miss Jane, what is that?”
“No, Professor.”
I aimed my revolver. My finger was burning, but I could still shoot.
“Don’t come any closer.”
His performance was convincing. For a moment, I almost believed him. His face looked so sincere, as if he truly cared for me.
But—
“Miss Jane, you must trust me.”
Herschel Hopkins’ eyes, as he took a step toward me in the darkness, were different from the ones I knew. They were the eyes of a beast, glowing yellow, with slit pupils like those of a goat.
Though he spoke like a human, his movements were unnatural, as if he were being controlled, his joints moving independently. His smile remained, but each step felt increasingly unsettling.
The most peculiar thing was the tear flowing from one of his eyes.
‘This isn’t his own will.’
Something was clearly controlling Herschel’s body. Initially, I thought he was being threatened, but no. He was sending me a message. This wasn’t really him speaking.
Click. I disengaged the safety on the revolver and spoke with a hint of certainty.
“Who are you?”
If something had taken over Herschel’s body, I was confident I could shoot it. Absolutely.
And the thing using Herschel’s appearance spoke.
“You catch on quickly.”
This wasn’t the Herschel Hopkins I knew. His smiling face was unfamiliar.
Though we hadn’t known each other long, I could tell. Over the past few days, I had seen how different Herschel’s behavior was. Distinguishing the ‘real’ Herschel wasn’t difficult. The one who had thrown me out of his house in fear didn’t want to hurt me.
Now it all made sense.
The yellow eyes continued to watch me, no longer pretending to be human.
“What did you do to the professor?”
“Oh, don’t worry. He’s alive. He resisted a bit during the process, but he’s quite obedient now, isn’t he?”
Had something taken over Herschel Hopkins’ body?
He flexed his fingers and shrugged.
“Poor fellow. If he hadn’t been involved, he could’ve lived a long life.”
I held my breath and stared at him. Could anyone live a long life without being involved? The malice emanating from him was unimaginable. To him, ‘long’ had a vague meaning. An overwhelming pressure filled the place. I barely managed to ask what I had been curious about.
“Why Liam Moore?”
“He was quite bothersome.”
That’s it?
“That’s it. But since you haven’t done anything, I’ll give you a chance. You can leave now. Forget everything that happened here and return to your life. Forget Liam Moore. Pretend he never existed.”
It was a sweet temptation. The promise of survival was indeed sweet.
At the same time, my rational mind mocked my wavering heart. I couldn’t leave Liam Moore behind. I couldn’t let him die. I swallowed hard, looking alternately at Liam Moore lying in the circle and the strange Herschel.
“If you don’t, you’ll have to face your end here.”
Could I kill him? The thought suddenly struck me. Could I kill ‘it’? The presence it emanated was far from human, and I wasn’t even sure it could be killed.
That’s not ‘a person.’
I probably couldn’t kill it. I might be able to stop it temporarily, but never permanently. I was powerless and would lose Liam Moore forever.
An irresistible fear was approaching.
“It’s alright. You’ll die here, Herschel Hopkins will be found injured, and Owen Cassfire will be blamed for this gruesome murder spree. I’ll return to the shadows, and it will all be over.”
I barely managed to ask.
“What’s the reason for doing all this?”
“Oh, child. You’re so curious.”
It chuckled, sitting down. Shadows obediently formed a chair for it. It didn’t seem to consider me a threat at all, acting leisurely.
“It’s almost merciful to explain to a child who’s going to die anyway. Yes, stay with that boy. You can check his condition. Oh, how merciful I am.”
Arrogantly allowing me, I slowly backed away. It watched me with amused eyes as I approached Liam Moore to check on him.
“Liam.”
I whispered. As I turned over the prone Liam Moore, I was terrified. What if he was dead? What if he had left me forever? I didn’t want to confirm it. Carefully, I placed his head on my lap.
His face, peaceful as if asleep, looked serene.
“Liam…”
A tendril from the ceiling’s flesh had latched onto his mutilated wrist. No… maybe it wasn’t just latched on. It was deeply embedded, greedily sucking the life out of Liam Moore.
Red tendrils bulged along his blue veins, pulsating as they fed. Every twitch caused Liam’s expression to twist in pain.
He lay discarded in the center of the vast chamber, blood seeping from his chest wound with every breath. It felt like he had been thrown here to die.
I was too late.