["Wait a moment, Astrad…"]
Just as I'm about to leave, four-eyes calls out to me. Normally I'd ignore him, but since the atmosphere is so tense, I'm in a good mood.
["What do you want? Make it quick, I'm in a hurry."]
If I don't make it home by tomorrow, I feel like that girl won't let me go.
And with no network, and no way to text her from a public Wi-Fi spot, I'm doomed to be haunted by her in spirit or in the flesh…
SHIT, THERE WAS WI-FI AT THE SCHOOL, I FORGOT, DAMN IIIIIIIT.
["We discussed it and voted… We decided we'll sleep here and leave early tomorrow."]
["…Good for you?"]
What the fuck do I care?
The sudden declaration was so random I can't even process it correctly.
How am I supposed to respond? I can't even use sarcasm properly.
["What the president is trying to say is that we should stick together in times like these. Regardless of our differences… we'll survive better this way."]
Franco started a little speech for some reason…
But again: what are these assholes saying?
The rat kid feels that our languages are too different. The rat kid doesn't understand Idiot-speak.
Forget it. For moments like this, I have Louise.
Thinking of a practical solution, I turn my gaze to Louise for help.
Translate for me, bitch.
["They want you to stay and follow their plan,"] —she said, rolling her eyes—. ["Their logic is: 'more people is safer.' They don't understand that for you, 'more people' just means 'more stupid variables.' Do you want me to explain it to them with drawings? Are you an asshole or just pretending? Even now, I can't figure it out."]
["HAAAA!? I refuse. We're leaving. Milia, say goodbye to your friends and come on."]
Where do these idiots get such an idea?
I signal to my childhood friend to move to my side, but what I get is a lecture.
["Even after all this, you're still going to act like that?"]
For fuck's sake. Don't you see I'm in a hurry?
["Why do you never think of anyone but yourself? Even now, why insist on leaving so selfishly when we've all already agreed to Franco's plan?"]
It was his idea? I knew he was an idiot, but this is a new record.
["Is your desire to oppose him that strong? Why do you never listen? Why do you always do what you want, even if you hurt others? Don't you see that your actions could hurt the girls who are following you? You want me to follow you? I'M NOT YOUR GIRLFRIEND ANYMORE, WHY SHOULD I FOLLOW YOU?!"]
["Vixen, it seems you have a misunderstanding. Let me clear it up now: I didn't come here for you."]
This vixen has really pissed me off.
["Huh?"]
Milia lets out a stupid sound when I speak to her harshly.
Apparently, she wasn't the only one who didn't expect it, as the whole place falls silent.
["I came for Louise. And I helped you along the way because otherwise, the old lady would have complained to me. But this is different: I came, I got you out of the school, you decided not to follow me. Done. I don't owe you anything. I tried. Goodbye."]
I turn towards the door.
The air in the house is stale; it smells of damp wood and fear.
Truly delicious. You think the rat kid doesn't want to stay in this lovely, cozy place? The rat kid suffers too.
But unfortunately, I have a schedule to keep. That, and I don't want to die.
["Is it okay not to tell them?"]
As I try to leave again, Louise blocks my path.
Does this house have some taboo spell that's stopping me from leaving? Do I need holy water? That shit burns, so no.
["You all, do you really not understand where you are?"]
["Brat, let go of my pants or I can't leave."]
["Seriously, if even I can see it, why can't you?"]
["Delinquent girl, I need my arm."]
["I don't know what's going on, but, hey…"]
["DON'T CLING TO ME FOR FUN, DAMN IT!"]
["But I was the only one who hadn't done it. Besides… you like it when my boobs touch your back, don't you?"]
The girls immobilize me like a damn net.
If you force me to join your democracy, I swear I'll abandon all of you, Louise included.
But just before I start shoving them away, I saw the face of the (self-proclaimed) genius girl—eyes filled with disgust, and lips that moved as if she were calculating the perfect dose of poison, a careful and precise calculation, designed to satisfy a desire that bordered on sadism.
The rat kid can wait a little~~.
["Listen up, you retards: those wolves are most active in the morning. Their senses are extreme, and we are in the center of their territory. What do you think will happen if you stay here?"]
And I'm not disappointed. With just a few words, the color drains from these idiots' faces.
Absolute silence, tense, suffocating. Even the creaking of the wood contracting under our feet is heard with chilling clarity.
Thinking about it, this house has given me some great moments.
Sorry for wanting to exorcise you, you cute little house.
["Brat, your talent for insulting people's intelligence and, at the same time, plunging them into despair… I'm falling in love."]
Is this what they call love at first insult?
......
(Note: The following monster profile is identical to the one provided in a previous chapter and has been reproduced here for consistency.)
JOURNAL ENTRY NO: 311
SCIENTIFIC NAME: Confessor Umbrae
REGIONAL ALIASES:
Urban Zones (Latin America): El Resentimiento (The Resentment)
Academic Circles (Pre-Apocalypse): The Collective Guilt Parasite
Survivor Nickname: The Devil's Psychoanalyst
NICKNAME (ASTRAD): The Shitty Therapist
📊 THREAT ASSESSMENT
CLASSIFICATION: PARASITUS / ANOMALY
Its nature is that of an Anomaly, a living paradox: a psychic entity with the impulse to purge guilt (Light) which, due to its shadowy nature (Shadow), can only do so in a parasitic and destructive way. It's a healer that doesn't understand the difference between open-heart surgery and butchery.
DANGER LEVEL: ? (Variable)
Still impossible to categorize. Its 'help' is the real danger. For a healthy group, its therapy is an uncomfortable breeze (Green, 1 star). For a group with secrets, its 'shock therapy' becomes a Red-level event (5 stars) that ends in tragedy. It's not malicious; it's incompetently benevolent, righteous, and that's infinitely worse.
AGGRESSIVENESS LEVEL: PASSIVE
It's an emotional scavenger. It doesn't attack, it doesn't aggress, it doesn't initiate anything. It's a mere presence that acts as an amplifier for all the shit that already exists in the environment. Its passivity is its most dangerous weapon: you'll never know it's there until its 'therapy session' is about to end.
🧬 COMBAT FILE (TL;DR)
TYPE: Spectral
AFFINITY: Shadow / Light / Psychic
🎯 PRIMARY WEAKNESSES:
Group catharsis (confession and forgiveness), Trust and honesty, Genuine humor, Solitude (ineffective against a stable individual).
📌 KEY STRENGTHS:
Completely undetectable, Immune to all physical damage, Indirect emotional manipulation, Scales its power with the group's dysfunction.
📚 ORIGINS AND COMPARATIVE MYTHOLOGY
Medieval Theology: Compared to minor demons like incubi or succubi, but instead of tempting with lust, it tempts with the truth. A demon specialized in using honesty as a weapon.
Analytical Psychology: Some pre-apocalypse theorists described it as a "psychic field," a manifestation of a group's collective unconscious that only takes form when repression and guilt reach a critical mass. The eternal question: does the creature cause the paranoia, or does the paranoia create the creature?
Folklore of Prisons and Convents: Associated with the "whispers of the walls" in places of confinement and accumulated guilt. A psychic echo of thousands of confessions and kept secrets that has taken on a life of its own.
Astrad's Analysis: It's the bitter cousin of a poltergeist. While one has fun throwing plates, this one sits in a corner with a bowl of popcorn and watches your group self-destruct.
📝 DETAILED ANALYSIS
PHYSICAL AND SENSORY DESCRIPTION:
It lacks a stable physical form. It manifests as a subtle disturbance in the environment. It can be a shadow in the corner of your eye that no one casts, a reflection in glass that moves with a delay, or the feeling of a presence right behind you. In moments of high emotional tension, it can take the form of a blurry, accusatory face in the gloom. It has no smell or sound of its own, but its presence causes physical sensations: a dry mouth, a knot in the stomach, and an uncomfortable chill on the back of the neck—the classic biochemical cocktail of "I've been caught."
BEHAVIOR AND ECOLOGY:
It's a parasite of group dynamics. It's attracted to groups of people (three or more) who share an enclosed space and a history of unresolved tensions. Once present, it acts as a catalyst. It doesn't create conflicts; it amplifies existing ones. It projects subliminal whispers that sound like a companion's voice, insinuating betrayals or lies. It distorts perceptions so that a neutral glance seems judgmental. Its goal is to bring secrets to light in the most destructive way possible so it can feed on the explosion of psychic energy (guilt, anger, sadness). If the group reconciles or the tension is broken with humor, the creature "starves" and vanishes.
☣️ PROTOCOLS
RECOMMENDED ENCOUNTER PROTOCOL:
DO:
Foster open and honest communication.
Resolve conflicts as soon as they arise.
Use humor to break the tension.
If its presence is suspected, perform a "forced catharsis": put all the cards on the table.
DON'T:
Keep secrets.
Let grudges fester.
Isolate yourself from the group.
Start whispering or forming factions.
Accuse others without proof.
FIELD REPORT (Recovered from a mobile phone in a cabin in Mérida):
"There were five of us, trapped by the rain for two days. No one could sleep. Out of nowhere, Marcos confessed that he had stolen the gasoline we were missing. Then, Elena started screaming at him for a lie from months ago. The shadows on the wall seemed to move and writhe with every word. I'd swear I saw my brother's face in the reflection on the window. Within hours, we all hated each other. When the sun came up, the feeling was gone... but no one was talking to anyone anymore."
🎤 ASTRAD'S NOTES (THE ONLY SHIT THAT MATTERS):
At first, I thought this thing was a simple parasite, a cosmic gossip that fed on drama. But I was wrong. It's much worse. The most fucked-up part of all is that I think, deep down in its being... the thing is actually trying to help.
It has that Light affinity, that impulse to 'heal' and force catharsis so you can get all the shit you're carrying out. But it's like asking a jackhammer to remove a pimple. It doesn't have a scalpel; it only has the brute force of Darkness and zero empathy. Its therapy is honesty, but an honesty so absolute and unfiltered that it becomes a weapon.
It 'cures' you of your secrets by destroying every relationship you have. It 'frees' you from your guilt by pushing you to suicide. It's the ultimate shitty therapist, one that achieves the goal of healing but makes sure there's no one left to enjoy the result. Thanks for the help, doc. Next time, I'll take the sickness.
Conclusion: This thing is basically your psychologist, but without a diploma and with zero empathy.
......…
💬 Chat - Rat Kid Network –
NR7: LOL I remember that critter, the "free confessor." On the creepypasta server, they called it the secret-spiller.
NR3: Wasn't that the one that made you confess shit you didn't mean to? Like when one of my buddies said on Discord that he was still stalking his ex's profile. We were all like: "bro, why are you saying that here?"
NR8: Confirmed, something similar happened in my neighborhood. We were in a makeshift shelter, locked in for two days… and suddenly everyone started yelling at each other. One guy confessed to stealing beers from the old man, another that he had a crush on a buddy's sister. We ended up in a brawl.
NR2: That's because the Umbrae doesn't need claws. It just enables the toxic atmosphere DLC and that's it: gg, the group self-destructs.
NR1: I saw a clip on the deepweb… five kids recording themselves in a cabin. At first, everything was chill, but by dawn, they were already crying and arguing. One was screaming that he had killed the neighbor's dog, another that he screwed his friend's girlfriend. In the end, screen went black. xd
NR7: Better to fight with zombies than with your own team, man. At least zombies don't remind you that you stole your cousin's Fortnite skin.
NR3: Conclusion: the Umbrae doesn't kill. It just leaves you with no buddies, no girlfriend, no clan. The true final boss of relationships.