The air of the rainy night was cold. Water heavily dripped onto the floor from the ceiling due to the downpour. Thunder shouted like anger at the sky. Under the mysterious mansion—there, Charity was running for her life.
She ran from the haunted mansion. She jumped through an open window, crashing from the second floor. Her other leg immediately cracked as she fell down. Good thing it wasn't that high, or she would have definitely broken her bones.
"Someone, please help me! What was that thing!?"
Her breathing quickened, and her heartbeat pounded like it could stop any second. She rushed toward the open gates until she could no longer see the mansion.
The girl didn't know it was the Arcangelis Manor—an abandoned mansion that had stood since the 1800s. It was a mysterious place full of the paranormal.
She didn't know where the monster had gone—but one thing she remembered: its voice. That broken sound like underwater chords, that deep, haunting tone that could make your spine shiver.
She ran and ran until she heard people—loud noises, even as the rain didn't stop. Her hair and dress were completely wet and muddy from the fall. Her shoes were no longer white—the ones she had cleaned just a few days ago were already dirty again.
She slowly stopped running, looking everywhere but behind her. She now stood in front of a huge carnival house, full of people inside. There were even people outside, holding umbrellas against the heavy rain.
I wonder where Opala is…
Ugh, I shouldn't have entered that place. Stupid Charity. Just like people used to tell you—stupid, foolish, stubborn. Innocent.
"Heyyy! Sissy, over here!"
Her back straightened. She looked around to find the voice. There was Harold, standing in the corner of the carnival house. She immediately ran over before the rain could grow heavier.
"Oh gosh! What were you doing just standing there—in the middle of the rain?" Harold looked at her with a concerned face. "Look at you, your clothes are soaked! And what happened to your knee—why is it bleeding?"
She didn't respond. She was still breathing heavily, making Harold confused. Charity still remembered everything that happened in that mansion—the way its bright white eyes swirled hypnotically, and its glowing teeth—sharp, with liquid like ink dripping from its mouth. It smelled… too sweet. Like candy. An evil candy.
"I—I uh…" she paused, looking at Harold. The rain still poured down heavily. "I'll tell you later… Let's go find Opala."
Harold frowned but didn't push her further for answers. She looked like a mess right now—dirt all over her knee and dress.
They decided to find Opala inside the carnival. The circus was full of kids—crying, shouting, and playing. Parents stood nearby, watching as their children ran and bumped into everything.
The carnival inside was huge—the giant parasol in the middle serving as a roof against the rain. There was a carousel, a small Ferris wheel, and food vendors selling delicious cotton candy and snacks.
"Charity? What happened to your face!?" Opala's eyes widened as she looked at her skirt and knee. "Your knee!? Gosh! What game did you even play?"
People were now staring at Charity because of the way she looked.
A bit later, they led Charity outside the carnival once the rain had stopped. They sat down on an old cardboard box in a dark alley with a wet floor, making sure they were alone.
Her face was full of stress. Her golden blonde hair was a mess, just like her clothes.
"Now, care to explain what happened to you?" Opala broke the silence between them, both hands under her chin. Harold, on the other side, was leaning on a trash bin, not even caring about the smell.
"I got curious about the mansion… just down the town," she said, making the two confused.
"What mansion?" Harold tilted his head.
"Yeah… the one with the rusty gate and a sign of—"
"'Don't enter.'" Opala cut her off, eyes wide. "Don't tell us you entered…"
"A what?"
"An abandoned mansion with murder case stories in it?" Harold's eyes widened with fear. He and Opala exchanged looks.
"What mansion is that?" Charity asked.
"That's the Arcangelis Manor! The most haunted place here in Hollowveil!" Opala raised her hands dramatically. "What did you see!? Did you feel anything!? Was there a ghost!?"
Charity froze. Flashbacks of the monster flooded back.
"Y-You mean… the mansion where many people died? Years ago…" she looked down at her lap. Every moment from that night was a total nightmare.
"You didn't know?" Harold held her hand. "Sissy…"
Charity didn't respond. Instead, she stood up, walking to the corner of the alley. Rats scurried from the trash cans. She found a larger, dry cardboard box and placed it under a small roof. Sitting down, she looked at the two.
"I think we should sleep first…" she said in a low voice.
The two went to her side, sitting down. Opala lay between Harold and Charity. They said no words before sleeping. Charity stayed awake, her eyes open, thinking about everything that happened back there.
She remembered it perfectly—the glitching noises, the voice calling for her to set it free. What did that monster mean?
Charity finally fell asleep, though a low whispering voice echoed nearby. She tried to ignore it, letting tiredness consume her. She slept for two hours before a sudden crash woke her—the sound of rats tumbling in the alley.
She gasped, looking around but finding nothing. She felt like something was staring at her. The sky was still dark. Midnight. Nothing happened, so she was about to go back to sleep when someone whispered loudly from the alley across the road.
"Huh?" She stood up, looking across. There were no more people walking around. The rain had stopped, leaving the streets washed clean.
She stared into the dark alley. The street lamps flickered. Opala and Harold were still asleep, using another cardboard box as their blanket against the cold.
"Psst! Psst!" someone called. Charity looked again into the alley but saw no one—until something appeared from the corner of darkness.
Her eyes widened. A glowing, swirling white thing—like a lollipop. And that wide, creepy smile.
She froze. She couldn't move, even though she wanted to scream. The monster from the mansion was there—staring back at her. Smiling. Not from joy, but from a familiar hunger. It recognized her soul. Her sweet soul.
Charity stepped back but froze again when it spoke from the dark.
"You…" it said. Its voice sounded like a broken speaker—low, but terrifying. She could hear it perfectly, even from meters away.
She swallowed hard, heart pounding. "W-What do you want?" she asked, her lips trembling.
"You…"
She closed her eyes, refusing to look.
"What even are you?" she forced her voice to speak through the fear.
"Your soul… it's too sweet."
Her eyes flew open. The monster was gone from the darkness. She gasped when she heard a glitching noise behind her.
"What do you mean?" she whispered, her face pale.
"Are these your friends?"
She flinched and turned around—seeing the monster, smiling, pointing its claws toward the two sleeping peacefully.
"D-Don't touch them! I beg you, please! What do you want!?"
The monster only chuckled, that glitching sound tearing through the silence. How did it find her?
It didn't answer. Its smile widened, revealing sharp teeth that could devour two or three people at once. Its tongue glowed green. The scent of sweet, fruity bubblegum filled the air, too strong to bear.
Charity didn't move, watching the monster slowly fade back into the dark—still smiling.
Before disappearing completely, it spoke once more, voice like a grounded speaker, yet carrying something close to sorrow.
"Free me," it said, fading with its last words sending chills down her spine.
"And I'll give you a gift…"