The Eldritch Files

As the girl with the ponytail screamed, the monsters around the dining table all froze.

Strange smiles crept onto each of their faces as they watched the girl with an air of amusement.

A Ghost-like figure vanished from beside the table without a sound. When it reappeared, it had materialized behind the girl with the ponytail, seemingly growing into existence right there.

She was tall—exceptionally so, standing a full two meters—and wore a long black dress and an elegant formal hat. Her face was a hollow void, her features mostly swallowed by the shadow cast from the hat’s brim, making her look like a patch of darkness.

A single, peculiar meat horn sprouted from her forehead.

The horn was a full twenty centimeters long, extending beyond the hat’s brim. As she looked down, it pointed silently toward the floor, as if it were a gentle gaze, quietly appraising the brave girl.

”Don’t... don’t come near me...”

The girl with the ponytail pointed the candlestick at everyone, but she only realized a monster was standing behind her when she saw the other children staring at her in terror.

She spun around, aiming the candlestick at the figure while screaming, ”Run! Everyone, run! They’re—”

”—monsters!”

...

Her shout was the spark that lit the fuse. All the repressed terror that had been building since they entered the Ancient Castle erupted at once.

The children surged and jostled. Some burst into piercing, terrified wails, but they only huddled together desperately like lambs. None could muster the courage to actually run.

The butler stood off to the side, simply watching as the children descended into chaos.

Though he could have quelled the panic with a simple clap of his hands, he remained aloof, as if his task was complete the moment he brought them inside.

The woman in the black dress with the meat horn, standing behind the girl, only shifted slightly at the sight of her panic, as if letting out a silent, inscrutable laugh.

Only Han Su’s heart sank as a dreadful thought occurred to him. He glanced toward a particular figure at the dining table.

”I don’t want this! I don’t want this! I wanna go home! I want my mommy...”

”Mommy! Mommy, come save me...!”

Spurred by the girl’s screams, the children seemed to finally remember their fear, and one by one, they began to wail.

But among all the children, one boy with a small green backpack cried the loudest. His sobs were exceptionally loud, sharp, and grating.

His cries seemed to drown out all the others.

He paid no attention to the other children, nor to the monsters.

Head thrown back, arms flailing, feet stomping, he just howled and shrieked, like a toddler throwing a tantrum to tattle on someone to his teacher.

Han Su already knew what was about to happen. His gaze fell on one of the monsters at the table.

It wore a black leather apron and had a fat, bloated, pig-like head. At first glance, it looked like a pig-head mask, but a closer look revealed the horrifying truth: that was its real head, hideously deformed and twisted into that shape.

He had been sitting quietly at the table, not even joining the other monsters in their discussion when the children first entered. He hadn’t so much as glanced at the frightened little ones.

But when the boy’s sharp wails began, the creature suddenly started to tremble. It slowly lowered its head and clapped its hands over its ears.

It covered them with such force it seemed to be in extreme pain.

A grunting sound rumbled in its chest, like an uncontrollable groan. It was a noise that seemed to be trying to tell the children to stop crying.

But no one understood the sound emanating from its chest. Besides, it was completely drowned out by the children’s ruckus; no one could hear it.

And so, its agony intensified. Its body trembled more violently, and an expression of indescribable torment twisted its pig-like face. Its eyes squeezed shut, tighter and tighter, until they snapped open, revealing a blood-red glint.

Han Su couldn’t help but shut his eyes, unable to bear watching what came next.

But he didn’t try to stop it. ’On a previous return, I tried to intervene,’ he thought, ’but it was useless.’

’Once that boy starts crying, he won’t stop until he gets what he wants. He’s used that trick on his parents, his elders, and his teachers. It never failed him before.’

’I learned my lesson then. Don’t take pointless risks in the Ancient Castle. Only try something after I’ve done everything possible to ensure my own safety.’

HUFF...

The crying continued until the brute in the black leather apron shot to his feet. In that same instant, he yanked a blood-splattered cleaver from his apron and hurled it at the little boy with all his might.

SHHNK!

The faces of the children—still crying, shoving, and calling for their parents and teachers—were suddenly spattered with fresh blood.

All at once, the crying stopped.

The little boy who had been crying and stomping his feet now stood stock-still, unable to make another sound. His head was gone. A vicious, heavy cleaver was embedded halfway into the wall behind him, still quivering from the impact.

The pig-faced brute’s heavy panting echoed through the now-silent hall.

On the Worm Monk, who was covered from head to toe in crawling insects, every single worm retreated back into his robes and the wounds on his body.

Then, in the silence, he wordlessly resumed leading the girl with the Glasses upstairs.

The lady in the black dress standing behind the girl with the ponytail slowly raised a hand, shielding the girl’s eyes as if to block her from the gory sight.

But the girl seemed to realize what had happened anyway. Her body went rigid, and the candlestick she was holding fell to the floor with a CLANG.

Every child in the room looked as if their soul had left their body.

The pig-faced brute had crouched down between the chairs at the dining table, seemingly still lost in his earlier agony and unable to pull himself out of it, looking as though he wanted to hide under the table.

The other monsters, however, all began to laugh silently. They watched as the Worm Monk and Lady Meat Horn led their chosen children upstairs, then turned their appreciative, greedy gazes upon the remaining children.

With the noisiest lamb culled from the flock, they could now take their pick of the rest.

The Half-Doctor, a being with only a torso wrapped in bandages, chose a boy wearing a small pair of glasses.

A massive, bloated monster with deathly pale skin chose a doll-like girl whose little dress had two Angel wings on the back.

Another monster simply rose with a smile and beckoned gently to the group of children.

The distance was too great for the children to tell who she was beckoning to, but each one felt the gesture was meant for them.

And so, one child dazedly began to walk toward her. She simply took the hand of the first to reach her and led him slowly up the stairs.

Even the pig-faced brute, who had been trembling in silent agony under the table, recovered. He slowly rose and stared blankly at the children he had terrified. When his gaze fell upon the headless corpse, tears actually welled up in his eyes.

It seemed he also had to make a selection, but even in their terror, the children remembered what he had done and desperately scrambled away from him.

But just then, a boy with a neat side-part, wearing a small Tuxedo, suddenly ran forward and stood quietly before the pig-faced brute.

None of the other children could fathom what he was thinking. They could only watch as he was the last one to be led upstairs, by the pig-faced brute.

’That kid’s as smart as ever,’ Han Su thought to himself.

’I know these monsters, and these kids, all too well.’

’I know that among these rich and noble little brats, there are a few very shrewd ones. The fear and cowardice of the others serve as their perfect camouflage.’

’Some stay quiet and obedient the entire time, but they’re secretly scanning the area, looking for an escape route.’

’Some even remain perfectly still, subtly pulling other children in front of them as shields.’

Throughout the entire process, Han Su simply stood quietly in place.

’I know I won’t be chosen.’

’These monsters seem to have something against me. They don’t just pass me over in the first round; they still look down on me even in the third. My current predicament aside, that’s actually pretty damn insulting...’

Each monster at the table chose one child. Then, the old butler smilingly pointed out six more children and escorted them upstairs as a separate group.

Only then did the selection seem to be over. The dozen or so children remaining in the hall huddled together. Some breathed a huge sigh of relief, thinking they had escaped disaster. Others grew even more worried, their eyes fixed on the bloodstains splattered on the floor.

”Alright, you unfortunate little ones. It is time for you to rest.”

The butler, having just sent the six children upstairs, descended the staircase with a smile. He looked down at them, his gaze seemingly holding a sort of sympathy as he offered words of comfort.

”But do not be disappointed. There will be other chances.”

As he spoke, he gently raised his hands and clapped twice. The sound was crisp, yet gentle.

At the sound, all the remaining children’s eyes went vacant once more. They stood rooted to the spot, completely still.

Han Su stood ramrod straight. ’This time,’ he thought, ’I can’t let that butler discover my secret—that I’m immune to his hypnosis.’