Laila opened her eyes, covered in wounds. She couldn’t tell when she had lost consciousness, nor where she was.

But the moment she realized that coarse sand dust was touching her cheeks and entering her nose and mouth with every breath, she sprang up as if leaping.

Her vision was all gray. Only after rubbing her eyes several times could she confirm that there was nothing wrong with them.

Everything around was gray. The furniture that must have once greeted guests with an elegant and arrogant attitude before being covered in cobwebs and dust, the carpets and tapestries, even the massive chandelier with dozens of candles.

“Ugh…”

As she dusted off her hands that had turned black as if covered in ashes, she felt a stinging pain that made her scalp prickle. Her left wrist ached, perhaps twisted wrongly while being dragged. Laila, tightly gripping her throbbing wrist, looked around.

She suddenly felt anger rising. It was an impulsive rage, wanting to kick or smash everything in sight.

Perhaps what had been building up all this time had gained momentum. The momentum of pain, bewilderment, and fear.

“Come out!”

Laila shouted with all her might towards the empty gray landscape. Her voice lingered as a hollow echo before disappearing. This fact made Laila furious.

“I said come out! Right now!”

Just then, there was a rustling sound. It came from the direction of the stairs on the right. Laila ran towards the sound without a moment’s thought. Her fist, clenched so tightly that her nails dug into her palm, trembled violently.

What could it have been? Laila pondered as she bounded up the stairs two, three steps at a time. Was it Alice? Or just something that looked like Alice? Did the real Alice still exist?

Why, of all times?

The sound of something massive crawling on the floor grew closer then farther repeatedly. It felt like being mocked. Even in her anger, Laila felt chills at the nature of that sound.

It was the sound of bare human skin brushing and scraping against something. She recalled Alice’s appearance in the forest, grotesquely contorted and flattened like a spider.

“Come out! Show yourself!”

Laila’s voice once again echoed through the empty hallway, then dissipated into nothingness.

When she realized the sound had disappeared, Laila knew she had entered someone’s room.

That place too was all gray, as if something had completely stripped away all color. Crude paintings hung on the walls in contrast to the antique furniture and fixtures.

“I once longed for this room.”

Laila whirled around, narrowing her eyes fiercely as she glared at the speaker.

It was Alice. No, something that looked like Alice. At least now it wasn’t crawling on all fours, but that was no reason to let her guard down.

“Who are you?”

As Laila asked, Alice lifted the intact half of her lips in a crooked smile.

“I am Alice.”

“Don’t lie.”

“No, it’s true. To be precise, I’m not exactly the same being as Alice, but she and I coexist. When I’m asleep, Alice wakes up. When Alice is asleep, I wake up. Do you understand, witch?”

This time, a smile lingered on Laila’s lips. But it wasn’t complete. She was almost angry at herself for not being able to mock with all her might. It was because of fear.

“I’ve heard of things like you before.”

Alice sent an intrigued look at Laila’s words. She seemed to find it amusing. Laila clenched her fist, trying not to care.

“Things that parasitize the souls of newborn babies. Vicious creatures that burrow into the child’s mind like worms and take over their body.”

Alice suddenly burst into laughter. It was such a frivolous yet innocent sound. Startled, Laila felt her stomach tighten.

Alice looked at Laila with wide eyes. But her voice was as smooth as flowing water and soft without any edges.

“Yes, as you say, I am indebted to this child. Of course, I didn’t get her consent. But her parents displeased me. So I took my payment.”

“What nonsense are you talking about?”

Alice smiled faintly. At that moment, her hideously distorted face suddenly seemed to become normal on one side. When the surprised Laila blinked, the face returned to its original form.

Laila asked again.

“I asked what you’re talking about.”

The gray landscape was quiet. Alice walked into it as if dancing, lightly on her toes. She even hummed a tune, walking on tiptoe as if wearing shoes worn by dancers.

She stood in front of a painting of a nude man and lightly touched the frame with her fingertips.

The man in the painting was lying diagonally on a sofa with a proud expression. The only thing covering his body was a thin shawl draped diagonally from his shoulder across his chest.

Laila watched Alice anxiously, wondering if she might kiss that dust-covered painting. After all, the look in Alice’s eyes as she gazed at the man in the painting was undoubtedly that of a human in love.

After staring at the painting for a long time, Alice spoke.

“I’ll tell you an old story, witch. It’s a very old story from before you were born. You can sit and listen. Be careful not to sit on any spiders.”

After Laila was taken away, Eustar ran at full speed towards the village. Ridiculously, as soon as he returned to the bustling streets, his seeker started working properly. The same was true for other magic tools.

After checking his seeker, he gritted his teeth so hard they creaked and searched for Donovan’s house.

However, the entrance was already crowded with numerous people. Eustar forced his way through the crowd. Some people who were pushed by him complained, but he had no time to listen.

Entering the house, Eustar saw Donovan sitting on the floor, staring into space like a madman. Suddenly, an ominous feeling swept over him.

“Mr. Donovan.”

Just as Eustar was about to approach Donovan, a middle-aged woman blocked his way.

“Who are you? I haven’t seen you before! Don’t touch Donovan. He’s not in his right mind right now!”

“What happened to Mr. Donovan?”

The woman answered.

“We don’t know why he’s like this either. The doctor went to get medicine, but goodness, did he break his wrist picking herbs? I don’t know why he’s taking so long. We heard a terrible scream, and when we came, my goodness, Donovan was sitting on the floor foaming at the mouth. I thought he was dead.”

Eustar’s heart raced even more at her explanation. Suddenly, the image of the dazed Donovan and Alice’s appearance in the forest connected with a click in his mind.

He must have seen it. Eustar thought. Alice, no… whatever was inside Alice must have done this to Donovan.

“Make way!”

Finally, the doctor seemed to have arrived, as murmuring sounds were heard.

The middle-aged woman who had blocked Eustar scolded loudly, asking why he was so late, but Eustar could guess the reason. The doctor was an elderly man, and he even seemed to have a limp in one leg.

He limped toward Donovan and sat down heavily. Then he took out several pills from his bag and tried to push them into Donovan’s mouth.

“Donovan! Come to your senses! Can someone help open his mouth?”

“I’ll do it.”

Eustar stepped forward. The doctor looked at his strange attire with a puzzled expression for a moment but soon made way.

Donovan’s mouth was tightly shut as if sewn with thick silk thread. Even in his semi-conscious state, he seemed to be clenching his teeth with all his might.

Eustar pushed his lips up and down to expose his teeth, then grabbed the gap between his front teeth and looked at Donovan’s face.

“Mr. Donovan, you need to come to your senses. Otherwise, your jaw will break.”

At the same time, the doctor looked at Eustar with wide eyes.

Just as he was about to say something, Eustar casually opened Donovan’s mouth wide. There was a cracking sound of bones dislocating, but Donovan didn’t seem to feel any pain.

“Hurry and put it in.”

Eustar urged in a cold voice. The doctor, with a dazed expression, looked at Donovan and then forcibly pushed the pill into his open mouth before closing it again. Then, tilting his head back, Donovan’s Adam’s apple moved up and down.

“What kind of medicine is this?”

“It’s literally a medicine that wakes you up. We use it to wake up unconscious people. He’s practically unconscious, so we’re giving it a try. I don’t know what happened to make him like this. He usually doesn’t even blink at serious matters.”

“Then this must not have been an ordinary matter.”

Eustar said. The doctor thought he was making a tasteless joke, but that was a wrong assumption.

Eustar kept thinking about the image of Alice that wouldn’t leave his mind. If anyone saw their daughter become like that, they would surely faint… Honestly, it was a miracle that Donovan’s heart hadn’t stopped.

“Huurgh!”

Donovan, who had been twitching, suddenly hunched his shoulders and took a sharp breath. The moment Eustar saw his pupils trembling in confusion, he grabbed Donovan’s shoulders.

“Mr. Donovan, do you recognize me?”

Donovan’s eyes scanned Eustar’s figure. His pupils, which had been shaking violently from side to side, suddenly seemed to be covered with a film, and then tears began to pour out like a waterfall.

Donovan grabbed Eustar’s sleeve as if his life depended on it.

“M-my Alice, sob… Please, please save my daughter. My daughter…”

The doctor interjected.

“What do you mean? What happened to Alice?”

Eustar looked at the wailing Donovan with a cold face, his lips tightly pressed together. Then he turned his head and spoke to the gathered crowd.

“I have something to discuss with Mr. Donovan, so please step back for a moment.”

“No, who are you to say such…”

Eustar said.

“My name is Eustar Hyanmorik. His Majesty, the righteous King Ord Hyanmorik is my only brother. So I’ll say this just one more time. Everyone, step back.”