TTRIA 59

“Haa… Aah…!”

What he thought were faint breaths turned into deeper, more viscous sounds. Jeff raised his head and faced the scene in the banquet hall.

The masked people were trembling after inhaling from the small bottles. Their faces were locked in ecstasy. Some staggered and leaned against their partners, while others pressed their lips together. A few began to slip their hands inside each other’s clothes, indulging in abnormal pleasure.

“What… is this….”

The glass bottle trembled in Jeff’s hand. In that moment, he realized. He couldn’t smell the fragrance. The fact that his sense of smell was paralyzed. The only one who had not succumbed to the scent. That ominous realization shot down his spine.

Jeff, covering his mouth, turned his head. His eyes met Wayne’s, who was standing in the center of the banquet hall. Unlike the crowd hidden behind masks, his face was fully revealed. Coldly shining blue eyes and a serene smile.

“Everyone.”

He opened his mouth.

“To enjoy the fragrance even more, shall we all play a game?”

With his voice, the lights in the banquet hall went out. Pitch-black darkness swallowed the space. Frozen, Jeff felt an unknown movement in the space filled with moans and breaths. It was an indescribable anxiety. And then, thump! The sound of a beating heart echoed in his ears.

The darkness lifted.

“……”

The scene in the banquet hall was different from before. Among the people copulating, a few were staring intently at Jeff. Their masks were different from before. They were white. Symbolizing purity. A grotesquely dazzling, pure white mask.

“It is always a pleasure to find the prey.”

“Sir. Then I hope you will stay in your room.”

Wayne’s voice rang out again.

Following that, Mila’s voice came to mind.

“Shall we look for an ingredient that suits the new perfume?”

“Because that is the only way I can protect you, sir.”

Prey.

Jeff realized. The ingredient that suited the perfume, Wayne’s prey, was none other than himself.

His body reacted first.

Jeff frantically turned to escape the banquet hall. At that, the people in the white masks all began to move at once.

“Damn it!”

Jeff suppressed the fear rising in his chest and ran towards the hallway. The carpet absorbed the sound of his footsteps, but the pursuing shadows stretched long along the walls, chasing him. The shadows were deformed. Though they had human forms, they were bizarrely intertwined, creating strange shapes.

Jeff barely escaped the hallway and ran to the stairs. He nearly fell several times but managed to descend with all his might. When he reached the end of the steeply curved staircase, one of the white masks was staring at Jeff from the bottom of the stairs.

“…!”

It felt like his heart would explode. His body, sensing danger, instinctively turned and headed for the opposite hallway. He ran, ignoring the suffocating pain in his lungs and the rough breaths that burst out.

“The other way! Get him!”

A sharp shout echoed from behind him. Jeff grabbed the doorknob of a door in the hallway. Click, clack! The doorknob wouldn’t budge. In the meantime, the presence of his pursuers grew closer, and Jeff ran forward again and opened another door. It was also locked.

“Damn it…!”

He couldn’t breathe. Everything went black. Instinctive fear washed over him, gnawing at Jeff’s breath. He couldn’t think of anything. Only the instinct to run made his body move. It was the moment he turned the corner at the end of the hallway and jumped to the right. A door opened in front of him, and a black hand shot out and snatched Jeff’s arm.

“Ugh!”

Helplessly caught, Jeff was dragged into the room like a piece of luggage. The half-mask covering his face fell to the floor, and then the door was locked with a click. Jeff, who had swallowed his breath, tried to shake off the arm, but the grip was unbelievably strong. Jeff identified the form looming in the darkness. Soon, as his eyes adjusted to the dark, he could recognize the owner of the hand that held him.

“……”

The old man with the inscrutable face. The butler was in front of him. But why? The old man present before his eyes was somehow different from the one in his memory. A familiar yet strange aura emanated from him. He felt an inexplicable sense of incongruity. Jeff, who had forgotten to even breathe while facing the old man, soon realized the source of this incongruity.

His expression. It was his expression. The old man was smiling innocently. It was an expression that did not suit his age at all.

“Hello, sir?”

The old man greeted him. The voice was the old man’s, but the feeling given by the tone was eerily similar to someone else’s.

“You… what the hell are you.”

His voice trembled terribly. The old man, looking back at Jeff, tilted his head. As Jeff’s expression slowly hardened, unable to take his eyes off that bizarre face. A sound came from the darkness of the room.

Scrape, scrape. A regular scraping sound on the floor. It sounded like a wheelchair moving. Jeff turned his head in the direction of the sound.

“It’s been a while, what are you doing not saying hello, Jeff.”

What appeared from the darkness was Hugo in a wheelchair. He was staring at Jeff with a smile on his lips. As if he had swallowed a long-twisted anger, a chilling coldness was embedded in his smooth smile.

“…Hugo.”

“I heard they did something to your nose. You really can’t seem to smell anything.”

At his words, Jeff clenched his fists. Of course, they had done something to him when he had lost consciousness in the labyrinth. Hugo, who was quietly watching his expression contort with anger, added.

“Don’t you know, Jeff?”

“What are you trying to say. Explain it so I can understand!”

At the rough burst of his voice, Hugo turned his gaze and looked at the butler. And he whispered lowly.

“There are ‘two’ men here who missed you.”

“…What?”

Those words were somehow strange. Speaking of ‘two’ men, with his gaze fixed on the butler. It sounded as if he wasn’t including himself, but was pointing only at the butler. Frozen stiff, Jeff slowly turned back to the butler. The butler, as if responding to his gaze, took a step closer and firmly gripped Jeff’s two hands. The strength was unbelievably strong for an old man, and his face was as bright as if a child’s had been superimposed on it.

“I missed you, sir. I was just waiting for the day we would meet again.”

That tone, that expression. Jeff could no longer pretend not to know. Jeff, who had turned pale, raised his head and faced the old man.

“…Daniel?”

“That’s right, sir!”

The old man with the wrinkled skin nodded his head like a delighted child. Jeff thrashed his arms as if convulsing to shake off the damp touch.

“How… how in the world….”

How could Daniel’s soul be in the old man’s body? A ‘bug’ wasn’t born as a person, but,

“…it could be made?”

“No, Jeff. To be precise.”

Hugo moved his wheelchair closer to Jeff.

“It is not made, it is taken.”

“…Taken?”

Like an unoiled wooden doll, Jeff stiffly turned his head. Hugo raised the corners of his mouth bizarrely, like a doll forcing a smile.

In that moment, thunder crashed outside the window. A flash of lightning streaked through the room, illuminating the darkness and revealing their shadows. Jeff clearly saw the form cast at the old man’s feet.

The outlines of the shoulders and arms were sharply angled, and both forelegs were bent like severed scythes. The waist, where the spine was, was abnormally long, and below it, it was swollen and round like a bee’s abdomen.

It was a form that looked like a combination of a praying mantis and a bee.

“I quite liked this body, though.”

Hugo whispered to the frozen Jeff in a venomous voice.

“I have no need for a crippled body.”

At the same time, Daniel’s eyes lit up and he swung a hidden snare.

“Keoheok…!”

Daniel, holding the snare, charged across the room. Jeff, who had lost his balance and fallen, struggled, gasping for breath. He tried to get out of the snare wrapped around his neck, but Daniel’s movements were rough.

“Hahahaha!”

The sound of a child’s laughter, erupting from the old man’s voice, echoed. The sound pierced his ears like a nightmare. Daniel pulled the rope hard, dragging Jeff across the floor.

“Ghk!”

As his body was forcefully dragged, Jeff’s toes scraped the floor. Daniel would stop pulling the rope and then pull again, dragging Jeff as if he were fishing. Like playing with a toy.

“How is it, sir? Isn’t it fun? Did you get enough air?”

Daniel, who had been fiddling with the rope, pulled it again with force.

“Keuheuk…!”

Even if he tried to resist, he couldn’t get his bearings due to the lack of air. Jeff was dragged helplessly, his eyes rolling back. Hugo, watching the scene, casually threw out a word.

“Play with him moderately. Don’t injure the body too much. It’s already broken enough.”

Daniel paused the rope for a moment and turned his head. A child’s complaint was plastered on the old man’s face.

“Are you really not going to give up this body? The teacher was always the priority for the prodigies, wasn’t he?”

“That was before you missed your chance. Jeff is no longer a teacher. He is prey. Prey that will now become my body.”

Tsk, Daniel clicked his tongue and licked his lips with a regretful expression.

“It was such a perfect body.”

“Don’t be sad, Daniel.”

Hugo added lightly.

“Wayne promised to give you a new body, didn’t he?”

“I hope you’ll give me an adult’s body if possible. A child’s body is too fragile, and I’m tired of waiting for it to grow.”

Jeff, gasping for breath, focused on the conversation between the two. His mind was hazy, but he could clearly understand one important thing. They could take a person’s body and make it their own. And that he had now become Hugo’s prey.

Jeff barely managed to raise his hand and grab the snare around his neck. Gathering all his remaining strength, he held onto the rope and twisted his body. As he grabbed the snare and pulled it hard, Daniel lost his balance and fell forward.

“Ugh!”

Daniel let out a short scream and fell to the floor. Jeff did not miss the opportunity. With a trembling hand, he snatched the rope from Daniel’s grasp, got to his feet, and left the room. The long snare dangled from Jeff’s neck, swaying. Jeff ran down the hallway, dragging the long rope behind him. He didn’t even think of removing the snare. Only the thought of running away dominated his mind. He was out of breath and his head was spinning, but his legs didn’t stop.

“There he is!”

Just then, a masked man who was wandering the hallway spotted Jeff and shouted. Jeff ran with all his might. As he headed for the stairs, the man snatched the snare’s rope. His neck was pulled hard, and he fell backward. The impact of hitting the floor spread through his spine. His neck was squeezed so tight it felt like he would stop breathing.

“Got him!”

The man, who had let go of the rope, quickly approached.

“Haha! I got him, I got him!”

The man grinned with a voice full of delight. He bent down and looked at Jeff’s unmasked face. The eyes revealed beyond the white mask gleamed strangely.

“What, quite….”

The moment the man’s clammy hand was about to cup Jeff’s cheek, a blade flashed from Jeff’s clothes.

“Aargh!”

The man screamed and clutched his hand. Blood dripped from the deep cut on the back of his hand. Jeff, who had raised his upper body, slashed the man’s leg to prevent him from following. There was not a single moment of hesitation in his movement.

He then got to his feet and headed for the stairs. Down the second floor, and until he reached the first floor. The blood on the tip of his knife gradually became soaked, and it dripped down at Jeff’s feet as he left the mansion.

It was raining heavily. Jeff staggered across the garden. His two legs, soaked in the splashing rainwater, were heavy. His whole body felt as if it were freezing from the mercilessly pounding rain. His deathly pale lips trembled, and a mumble escaped through the gap.

The labyrinth’s basement.

Even in his hazy consciousness, only that place filled his mind. To the basement, to the basement. The muddy water that hindered his heavy steps clung to Jeff like the grasp of the dead. Nevertheless, Jeff slowly moved forward.

The labyrinth he barely reached was unlit, submerged in an endless darkness. Rainwater flowed down the walls of the labyrinth, and the dark paths were filled with cold, damp air. Jeff lowered his head and looked down at the knife in his hand.

The blade was washed by the rain and shone smoothly, but the handle was sticky with a mixture of blood and rainwater. Jeff smiled self-deprecatingly and felt the weight imbued in the knife. Carrying a weight like a thousand pounds, he carefully took a step. As he submerged himself in the darkness, searching for the spot in his memory. The sound of footsteps, which had been buried in the rain, grew closer. Splash! The sound of a firm step on the ground pierced his ears. Jeff couldn’t even turn back and was pulled by the snare.

“Haha! Sir, the stairs were quite spectacular, weren’t they?”

A voice soaked in pleasure echoed. The old man, no, Daniel tightened the snare and pulled the rope.

“It was convenient and nice, since I just had to follow the bloodstains.”

“Ghk, heuk!”

The rope tightened around his neck, digging deep. Under the suffocating pressure, Jeff swung his knife. Daniel lightly dodged and pulled the end of the rope. The vibration was so strong it felt like it would tear his skin, and the knife couldn’t cut the thick rope.

“Do you think that will cut it?”

Tsk, Daniel clicked his tongue and kicked Jeff in the face. Daniel climbed on top of Jeff, who had dropped the knife. Two wrinkled hands wrapped around his neck.

“Ah, whatever. I’ll just take him for myself!”

He grinned and added more strength to his grip. Jeff desperately twisted his body, trying to escape, but his rain-soaked and exhausted body could no longer hold out. His consciousness faded, and everything went dark. As his eyelids trembled and his pupils were about to roll back. A sudden sound cut through the rain. The pressure on his neck disappeared.

“Keok!”

The tip of a sharp blade had pierced his neck. As the knife was roughly pulled out, blood spurted from Daniel’s neck. The wrinkled hands immediately clutched his own neck, but it was not enough to stop the gushing blood.

“Keoheok, heok…!”

The blood that gushed out fell onto Jeff’s face. Soon, the old man’s body slumped on top of him. Jeff, who could feel the convulsing tremors, blinked blankly. Swishhh— The rain obstructed his vision, but Jeff saw. He saw Cecil, holding the knife. His cold, frozen blue eyes, revealed between the strands of black hair plastered to his face by the rain.

Splash, splash. Cecil approached and grabbed the old man’s hair. And without a word, he slammed his head against the ground. The movement was relentless, and the sound continued cruelly.

Thud. The sound of flesh being crushed.

Thud. The sound of bones breaking.

Thud. The sound of something being mashed.

The sound, mixed with the rain, continued several times before finally stopping. The old man, Daniel, no longer moved. Only then did the pale hand fall away. Thump, the blood that flowed from the face smashed into the ground mixed with the rain.

Jeff stared blankly at the rainwater flowing towards him. The moment his gaze followed the flow like a stream of water, with a snap— sound, something squirmed and crawled out of the mashed flesh.

“……”

It was a mantidfly, stained with blood, flesh, and brain matter. Its bizarre form was staggering and moving. But even that didn’t last long. Because Cecil, who had gotten to his feet, crushed it by stepping on it. Crunch, the bug’s form was completely mashed under his cold foot.

Jeff stared blankly at the series of events. Everything felt unreal. He couldn’t move, couldn’t scream. He could only blink his eyes helplessly. Cecil approached, cutting through the muddy water tainted with blood and rain. His large hand removed the snare wrapped around his neck. His sunken blue gaze was fixed on the clear mark left behind. Soon, he carefully pulled Jeff’s body into an embrace and buried his face in the crook of his neck.

Whether the trembling body was due to the cold or fear. Whether the wetness felt on his neck was tears or rainwater.

Jeff, who had given up on judging, slowly closed his eyes.

In that moment, only the sound of the rain filled the world.

The orphanage’s garden was peaceful. Under the warm sunlight, children were running around, bursting into laughter. The blue sky, the clear air, and the bright sound of laughter made the place seem like a space of perfect peace.

But that peace was cracked by the commotion that continued under an old tree.

“Ugh, it’s gross!”

“Look, it’s wriggling!”

“I think I’m going to puke….”

The children were poking something with a branch and screaming. Some covered their mouths and pretended to gag, stepping back, while others screamed and ran away. The child holding the branch beckoned to Jeff, who was watching from behind.

“Hey! You, come here!”

Jeff slowly approached. The child with freckles on his nose roughly grabbed Jeff’s arm. The small body slumped onto the dirt floor, and right in front of him was what the children had been watching.

A large praying mantis lying on the dirt.

The mantis, as if it had been hit hard by something, was wriggling its twisted legs. But that wasn’t what caught Jeff’s attention.

“You know what that is, right?”

The child asked with a grin. Jeff looked at it without a word. A long, thin thread that had pierced through the mantis’s body.

‘…….’

The thread was constantly wriggling. It was crawling out of the mantis’s body as if it were alive. A child standing next to him asked.

“Tell me. You know what that is. Right?”

The long thread pointed to by the small fingertip. Jeff, who was staring blankly at the bizarre creature that had begun to curl its body, nodded.

“Yes, I know.”

I know what that is. That is….

The spiral crest I saw in the documents.

When he opened his eyes, what he saw was someone’s neck. Next, he felt a fullness of warmth. It was the weight of a body holding him tightly. A dry breath faintly brushed against his ear, and the scent carried by the body heat was like water found at the end of a long thirst. A nostalgic fragrance faintly mixed with the smell of cold rainwater.

His sense of smell was slowly returning. Jeff bit his lip with a deep breath. A suppressed resentment that was as deep as his longing bloomed. Jeff held his breath and tried to pull away. At that, the owner of the warmth urgently pulled him closer. He tightened his arms as if he would not let go.

“Let go.”

Jeff whispered coolly. There was no reply. Instead, the force of the embrace only grew stronger.

“I said, let go.”

This time, a colder voice flowed out. Nevertheless, the other person remained stubbornly silent. Jeff grit his teeth and roughly shook off the arms, breaking free from the embrace. Without looking back at the other person, he got to his feet on the wet ground. The rain poured down relentlessly, and the forest, shrouded in darkness, was terribly silent. Jeff took a step forward without hesitation.

Just then, the other person ran up from behind with a panting breath and wrapped his arms around Jeff’s waist.