"Is this the reason I wanted to become a doctor?
Is this why I wanted to save more people?"
Edwin sat in his chair, staring at Lillian's blood.
Is this what it takes to be a good doctor?
For a moment longer, he whispered,
"I better check on Nira's body."
They had laid Nira in one of the empty rooms.
He entered.
"I'm sorry, Nira..."
He moved closer, reaching her neck, gently adjusting her hair.
He held a syringe between two fingers
Inside, a drop of Lillian's blood.
Still swirling.
Too faint for human eyes to notice.
He hesitated, then injected a single drop.
Not much. Just for a test. What if...
He pulled the needle away and scribbled a note in his book.
At first, nothing happened.
Until
Her hair grew.
Slightly.
The color darkened
No longer her natural blonde.
"No way..." he whispered, shocked.
Could I use her blood to cure?
Then suddenly, a voice.
Low and haunting.
"IF YOU KILL LILLIAN, YOU'LL LEARN EVEN MORE SECRETS..."
Edwin froze.
His eyes darted from left to right.
But he saw no one.
"Who's there?" he asked, voice shaking.
Nothing replied.
Am I just imagining things?
Sweat rolled down his temple.
He backed out of the room and closed the door quietly.
Meanwhile, at Robert's library...
The town had become a ghost town.
Everyone hid inside their homes.
Silent.
Not a single soul on the street.
Lillian and Mikael arrived.
"It's... scary..." Lillian looked around.
She tried the front door.
Locked.
She wandered, searching for a way in.
At the second floor,
a window was slightly ajar.
"Mikael... do you think you can carry me up there?"
Mikael's face changed worried.
"My lady, I don't think it's a good idea."
She looked at him firmly.
"Well, I guess I'll try it myself."
"My lady..."
He had no choice but to help.
He carried her as they climbed onto the second-floor roof.
When Lillian reached the window, she pulled it open.
A bookshelf blocked the way.
She frowned.
"Why is this here?"
She brushed it off and squeezed herself inside,
pulling the shelf back, bit by bit.
As her feet landed on the wooden floor
Why would Robert cover the window?
She took a few steps into his room.
It was dark.
The curtains were covered in heavy blankets.
She frowned again.
What's going on in here?
She pulled down one curtain.
Sunlight crept in. Dust floated through the air.
She turned
And froze.
Everything was a mess.
Chairs flipped over.
Books scattered.
Bedsheets torn.
On top of the bed—
A medical kit.
Open.
Medicine spilled across the sheets.
She stepped forward carefully.
All the bandages were gone.
Only bloody wraps remained.
"Why is there so much blood?" she whispered.
"Is he injured? Why didn't he tell me...?"
Beside it was a book.
Robert's diary.
She reached out.
But hesitated.
"Should I...?"
Her fingers hovered over it.
Don't open it, a voice inside warned.
She took a deep breath.
"No, I... I can't."
Her eyes shifted to the desk.
There it was.
The second book he'd been writing.
She turned to it.
"The second book..." she murmured.
She opened the first page.
"The Beast.
They have no heart. No feeling. No emotion.
They exist in the dark.
Their only weakness is fire.
They cannot die.
They eat, not to survive
But to feel."
"So they decided to play a human game
To feel alive. Just to feel amused.
One must kill five humans without getting caught.
The other must make a girl kiss him.
And... the girl's name... is... Lillian."
She stopped.
What?
Her hands trembled.
"Robert... is a beast?"
Her whole body shook.
Since when?
Since when did I fall in love with a beast?
Then
A voice.
Too deep.
Too familiar.
"LILLIAN...
NOW YOU SEE?
HE WAS JUST PLAYING WITH YOU."
She turned left. Right.
No one was there.
Suddenly
Robert's diary flipped open.
Page after page.
"IF YOU DON'T BELIEVE ME...
SEE FOR YOURSELF."
All her memories with Robert...
He had written them down.
But her name
Her name was circled in every entry.
"Why...?" she whispered.
"THAT WAS THE MARK.
SO HE KNEW WHO TO TARGET.
HE HAD TO STARE LONGER...
JUST TO RECOGNIZE YOU.
DIDN'T HE?"
Lillian's heart dropped.
Is that why... he didn't remember me?
She clenched her hands.
"Then who are you!?
What do you know!?"
A low, raspy chuckle answered.
"I'M JUST A PLAYER LIKE HIM.
HELP ME...
AND I'LL SPARE YOU IN THE END."
"Spare me? What are you talking about?"
Then
A shadow moved behind her.
He inhaled deeply near her neck.
"YOU SMELL GOOD..."
She turned pushed behind her.
But only pushed air.
"What do you want from me!?"
"AGH, LILLIAN, WHAT DO I WANT?
FUN.
THE SAME THING YOUR BOYFRIEND WANTS
FUN."
His laughter echoed.
Circling her.
She stood in the center of the room.
Terrified. Confused.
"Fun..." she whispered.
"Fun toying with people's lives?"
She stared at the floor.
Clenched her fists.
"No... I won't let either of you win.
This town is not a prize for your stupid game!"
His laugh grew louder.
She covered her ears.
The wind swirled.
A small tornado formed.
Books and papers flew in every direction.
"I HAVE A GIFT WAITING FOR YOU WHEN YOU RETURN HOME!"
"What...?"
Lillian whispered.
Then
The shadow vanished out the window.
Its laughter faded into silence.
Papers floated down, slowly...
Settling around her like falling snow.
She stood frozen
In the middle of the room.
Alone.
"No... no. No.
What did he mean by that?
Please—no."
She grabbed the book
Clutching it tightly to her chest
And rushed out of the room.
Down the staircase, her feet barely touched the steps.
Her eyes caught on to something.
She stopped. There it was.
The basket of bread a gift she gives to Robert before.
She turned her head slowly toward it.
Her breath hitched.
Her fingers Trembling, pulled back the napkin.
Inside
All the bread was untouched.
Molded. Gray and blue.
Her hands shook. Her heart sank.
"...He never ate it."
Her voice cracked.
"So... it's true."
A tear slipped from her eye.
"He's... a Beast."
She stood there, quietly.
Then whispered broken
"I'm in love with the Beast...
How could I?"
She wiped her tears,
Took a deep breath,
And walked out the front door.
"Mikael," she said softly,
Her voice steady now.
"We need to hurry home."