This episode contains violence, strong language, and themes that may be disturbing to some readers. Viewer discretion is advised.
Veriza's body flinched again, accompanied by waves of pain that followed repeatedly.
The sensation crawled slowly from her joints, seeping into her bones, marking just how often the shocks of this night had greeted her without warning.
But this time, the trigger was no longer the strange whispers she had been eavesdropping on from the two tiny figures in front of her.
No. What triggered this jolt was actually something much closer. Something more real. Something more familiar with the pulse of her own life.
Beside her, a rectangular object cast a pale, ghostly light.
The phone—which had been lying there unnoticed for who knows how long—suddenly jolted to life. It vibrated like a restless, frantic creature, skittering inch by inch across the rough, damp ground.
"Mother?"
Her eyes immediately caught the letters that formed her mother's name, even though her vision suddenly blurred every now and then.
"I don't even know where I am… or why I ended up in this place."
"And then, by accident, I overheard the conversation of two strange small children—their forms resemble animals and they call themselves… shapeshifters?"
"Creatures who can turn into humans? Living side-by-side with humans? Having feelings… just like humans?"
She tried to repeat and recall what she had just heard from the bizarre conversation of the two small children in front of her, as if convincing herself that what she heard aligned with the conclusions of her mind.
"What kind of world have I actually entered? Why does everything feel so foreign—and terrifying?"
"But… my phone can still receive calls from Mother. If that's the case… this is still the same world, isn't it? I haven't moved to another dimension… have I?"
She began to stand, wavering between doubt and the desperate desire to believe.
However, between the two, neither could dominate; they pulled at each other in a constant tug-of-war.
Every time she felt doubt, there was a heavy sensation that seemed to press against her chest, making that doubt feel alive—like something ready to become reality, swallowing the fragile conviction within her.
On the other hand, as soon as she tried to steady herself and believe, the doubt did not leave; instead, it reappeared, clinging to the corners of her mind, whispering the possibility that what she believed was nothing more than an illusion that could collapse at any moment.
"But—why now?"
"Just when I am hiding from the two of them…"
"I don't know if they are dangerous, or if they pose no threat at all."
"But one thing is for certain—the sound of this phone will attract their attention."
"If they find me here…"
"…what should I do?"
The anxiety was finally answered.
From a distance, the corridor echoed with footsteps that were initially just whispers against the walls, then crawled closer like an accelerated heartbeat.
The rhythm was steady yet urgent, as if the owner were holding their breath while rushing.
Veriza flinched again.
She immediately squeezed her eyes shut, held her breath, forcing her body to remain still—completely still—without the smallest movement.
"Damn it…"
"Damn it…"
"Damn it…"
"It must be them. I knew it—this phone's ringtone must have drawn their attention here."
The sound of those footsteps grew clearer, more real, and incredibly close.
Second after second passed until she finally felt a presence near her clenched fingers.
Then, without realizing exactly when, the light behind her closed eyelids seemed to dim. A looming shadow fell over her face, blocking out the remaining light.
"What should I do…?"
Her mind spun, searching for a gap amidst the suffocating fear.
"They are so close now. I can even feel their gaze fixed on me right now."
There was a sharp sensation at the back of her neck, as if a pair of eyes were weighing her presence, reading every tiny movement.
"Dear God… please don't let them realize that I'm only pretending to be unconscious."
Unfortunately, the universe seemed to be playing against her wishes.
That prayer seemed to choke in the air, never reaching the ears that could grant it. Instead, her own ears caught their voices once more.
"A human…?"
"She's really a human, right?"
"But… why are there two humans here?"
"And why do they both… seem like they aren't breathing or moving?"
"Are… they… dead?"
Veriza could feel the gap closing in.
There was a strange breath approaching, accompanied by a small movement that made the hair on her neck stand on end.
The short child's nose sniffed toward her face, sending a cold sensation that forced Veriza's body to flinch subtly.
Yet, Veriza restrained herself with all her might. She allowed the panic to flow within, hidden, shrouded by the frozen pretense she had created.
"Abbie, what are you doing?"
Veriza was certain Abbie's footsteps shifted to her side.
She heard a small sound—Abbie picked up her phone with a light, almost noiseless movement, but it was enough for her to realize that Abbie was now holding her personal belonging.
"What is that object, Abbie...?"
"Why is that object glowing... and making such a strange sound?"
"And... what is it, actually?"
"Why are there so many words... and colors inside of it?"
Veriza could imagine—as if she were seeing it herself—the short child standing on tiptoes, his tiny body tensed, eyes beaming with curiosity at the phone Abbie held.
"This thing... it seems... its name is a phone?"
"I'm not sure... but I once saw my owner using this object... to talk to someone through it."
Abbie's words made Veriza's ears twitch.
She slit her eyes open slightly—still half-closed—to try and catch Abbie's movements as he held her phone.
"He only knows its name... but he doesn't know how to use it, right?"
"I hope he doesn't press that green button... because if he does, and Mother's voice is heard... and then he decides to answer it... I truly don't know what will happen... and how Mother will respond."
She struggled with all her might to keep her eyes half-open, desperate to glimpse what Abbie was doing with her phone.
However, the sudden thud of the short child's footsteps approaching Abbie echoed abruptly, forcing her to snap her eyes shut once more.
"Do you know how to use it, Abbie?"
At that very second, Veriza's fingers clenched hard.
"Please... don't press that button. If you must, just throw the phone away, and the noise won't bother you anymore."
However, it seemed the universe was not listening to her prayers this time… or perhaps, it was listening all too well.
Suddenly, the sound from her phone ceased just like that.
"I can use it… and now the phone has stopped ringing."
Abbie's answer made Veriza's body tremble subtly.
Behind her calm, almost flawless face and tightly closed eyes, her teeth chattered faintly.
"Why did it stop…? What did you do?"
"And… what about the text and those colors? Did they vanish? Has the surface of the object turned black?"
No answer came immediately from Abbie.
Instead, Veriza's ears caught a strange sound—dry, stifled, like something being squeezed and twisted with a force deliberately held back so as not to fully explode.
A surge of panic suddenly rose, urging her to see what was actually happening.
Almost unconsciously, she peeked again, and in the next second, the world seemed to stop turning. Her eyes widened, reflecting a shock her mind couldn't filter.
"Inside this phone, there is a name: 'Riana Nadem.' Perhaps this person is someone close to this human."
"So, it is better if I destroy the phone. It's useless to call this human… they are both dead."
The phone—now half-destroyed, its screen cracked into irregular patterns and its casing peeled at the corners—slid from Abbie's hand, thrown away without a clear direction.
There was a brief whizzing sound as it flew through the air before finally hitting something hard at the end of the corridor with a deafening crash. It bounced once, twice, and then shattered into pieces.
"But… but… maybe they aren't dead yet, right?"
"They are just hurt… surely they can still live, right?"
Abbie didn't answer the question immediately.
Instead, somehow, his gaze dropped—looking directly at her.
"Damn it."
"Damn it."
"Damn it."
"How could you be this stupid, Veriza?!"
"Why can't you just calm yourself down?!"
"Why do you always let yourself get triggered by such trivial things—by a tiny sound you should have ignored the moment you noticed it?!"
Even though her heart screamed to retreat, to turn away, to break free from the pressure that suddenly felt so heavy, she remained trapped. She couldn't tear her eyes away from Abbie's gaze.
"Damn it."
"Damn it."
"Damn it."
"What am I supposed to do?"
"Am I really going to die this time—in a world I'm not even sure is mine anymore—at the hands of these two strange children?"
As if answering the questions that had been running wild in her head, Abbie's gaze—previously flat and devoid of even a hint of surprise when he caught her staring—suddenly shifted.
Those eyes, which had been like empty mirrors, now radiated an unfathomable darkness.
Then, a thin curve appeared at the corner of Abbie's lips—a cold, lopsided smirk that made her breath hitch and her body seize with tension once more.
"What is the meaning behind that smile?"
"Why do I suddenly feel like something horrific is about to happen?"
At that exact second, before Veriza could even think of anything else—even before she realized her own body's movements—her eyes remained transfixed, unable to break free, staring into Abbie's eyes which seemed to swallow her entire consciousness.
Suddenly, something unexpected befell her hand.
In that instant, a foreign sensation—like a thin electric shock that touched every nerve ending at once—made her scream silently within her heart.
"You won't know until you check for yourself."
"Do as I do, and you will know—whether they are still alive… or not."
Abbie's legs moved swiftly, as if possessed by a will of their own. Kicking and stomping on Veriza's hand alternately—without pause, without mercy.
The rhythm made the small child's body tremble in confusion, until eventually, he began to mimic Abbie's movements.
"Abbie… if we keep doing this, it's the same as torturing them."
The short child stopped targeting Veriza's hand.
He began to kick Veriza's stomach with softer movements—not forceful, merely ordinary thuds that were not intended to cause harm.
"Is this... okay?"
That innocent question, for some reason, instantly spurred Abbie's movements to grow faster, as if an explosion of energy had erupted from within him.
This time, his target was no longer Veriza's hand or stomach, but both of her legs.
"Why would you ask something like that?"
"Weren't you the one who said it? When you asked humans for food, all you received was rejection—along with rough, cruel blows."
"So why do you hesitate to do the same to this human? Even if she wasn't the one who did it to you, aren't they all the same?"
"And as for whether I hate humans…"
"The answer is clear from what I am doing right now, isn't it?"
"I hate humans. I only hope that one day I will be brave enough to stand before them—and take my revenge."
Abbie suddenly halted his movements, causing the short child to stop immediately as well.
"Then, why don't you just appear directly in front of them, Abbie?"
"You could strike them at this very second, without waiting for them to die, couldn't you?"
The two innocent questions that escaped the short child's lips somehow made Abbie sigh deeply.
Without a word, he turned slowly, his eyes sweeping across the entire room.
His hand reached for something in the corner of the corridor—a large, hard, and heavy stick, looking unfriendly, as if waiting to be used.
Abbie gripped it firmly, once again taking position, and returned to stand right next to Veriza's body.
"You are right…"
"But humans are strong—too strong, even."
"I have no idea what makes them weak. If I appear and immediately strike, most likely they won't be afraid—they will just hit me back, won't they?"
"Besides, if I am given the chance to take revenge in the way I am doing now, I will still do it."
"Even so, I hope one day I can do it without having to wait for them to die first."
Abbie lifted the large, heavy, and hard stick into the air.
"Can you step back a little? I am going to destroy this human."
"If you are afraid to see it, you can turn around and close your eyes."
Veriza, still on the brink of consciousness—even though her body had begun to grow numb in various places, paralyzed by the series of merciless blows—clearly heard that one horrific word escape Abbie's lips.
It was spoken in a tone so flat, so calm, that it contrasted sharply with the heavy weight of the meaning behind it. Instantly, her half-paralyzed body trembled violently; her entire nervous system seemed to reject the reality she had just heard.
"Wait... wait... wait..."
"What did he just say? He... he wants to destroy me? He's going to kill me?"
"No... no... no... that cannot happen."
"I have to leave right now and save myself. I don't want to die in this world, and even if all of this is just a dream, I still don't want to die. I... I have to run..."
However, she was truly cornered.
She couldn't move at all, not even to force her body to budge an inch.
"Anyone... please help me.... help me..."
"I don't want to die... I don't want to die..."
"Dad... Mom... Grandpa.... Grandma... I don't want to die... please help me..."
Tears began to flow thinly at that very second—unheard, invisible, slipping past her face which was already utterly battered and caked in filth.
But again and again, as if the universe had closed its ears, no one heard the inner whimpers that were nearly on the verge of exploding.
Now, Veriza's attention was snatched by something else—a sharp, clear sound echoing above her head, a sound she was certain came from the massive stick held by Abbie, ready to plummet toward her at any moment.
Panic spread rapidly, flooding her entire body; her heart hammered erratically, every muscle seized, and her body shook violently, refusing to find peace.
"I beg of you... someone... save me.... save me.... save me..."
She prayed incessantly within her heart.
And finally, amidst a chaos that had reached its absolute limit, her ears caught the sharp whistle of the swing from above her head, moving rapidly toward her.
Her instinctive reflex forced her to shut her eyes tighter, holding her breath, holding back her terror—bracing for seconds that felt like thousands of years.
In that agonizing silence, before the stick could even graze her head, during those seconds filled with uncertainty, a shout suddenly echoed through the air:
"HEY! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!"
In that very instant, Veriza lost consciousness.