Face to face.
The forest fell silent.
"Sir…" the clown said, bowing exaggeratedly. "My deepest apologies for interrupting your hunt. But this place is far too gloomy… I came to give it the color it deserves."
Invisible applause.
Excited whistles.
"The show… has begun."
The boss did not smile.
"So you're the one who touched the Skinless."
The clown let out a cheerful little giggle.
"Hehe… of course."
"The house of that girl… Ana. That was you too?"
The clown raised his thumb.
"Correct."
Vivian and Madeleine looked at each other.
They had heard about that case.
Men breaking into a house to kidnap a girl.
Deaths.
And a clown mark left on the wall.
The flowers hanging from their necks activated again.
Cold water burst out, soaking their faces.
Laughter echoed through the forest.
"You interfered with my plans in that county," the boss growled. "But now I can kill you."
"You thought I wanted territory," the clown replied lightly. "That's why I stopped acting there… I even eliminated the men who were following that girl."
The boss clenched his jaw.
"Damn clown… are you mocking me?"
The clown tilted his head.
"You could say that."
Another laugh.
"My duty is to make people laugh. To bring color. Look at those two soaked ladies… they're not afraid anymore. Just incredulous. Isn't that better?"
Vivian didn't know if she was trembling from cold or terror.
The boss released his aura.
Dark. Heavy. Monstrous.
The axe wrapped itself in supernatural energy and came down violently.
The clown didn't move.
A green balloon enveloped him just before the impact.
The strike collided.
The balloon deflated.
But the clown was no longer inside.
"Ta-da! What did you think of the trick, ladies?"
Vivian and Madeleine turned their heads.
The clown was behind them.
Sitting on a chair that hadn't been there before.
He applauded.
"Magnificent, Axe Boss. Magnificent!"
Confetti rained from above.
Huge letter-shaped balloons floated in front of the boss:
"Keep trying, champ."
Everyone saw them.
The boss roared.
"You've crossed the line!"
Snap.
A dog-shaped balloon appeared above him.
The inflated dog bit down on the axe.
The boss released more power.
He tried to destroy it.
But the balloon didn't burst.
The dog opened its mouth.
Inside were blades.
It bit into the boss's arm.
Blood sprayed.
Whistles.
Applause.
"Ladies, look! A brave little puppy fighting the villain!"
The flowers soaked Vivian and Madeleine again.
Laughter.
They couldn't comprehend it.
A balloon… was injuring that monster.
Vivian felt her mind cracking.
That night she had seen things that should not exist.
Madeleine, with the arrow still lodged in her thigh, could barely stay conscious.
But one thing was clear.
That clown was not a savior.
The boss screamed as the balloon dog bit him again.
"It's time…" the clown whispered.
He pulled out a pistol.
Aimed.
Fired.
Bang.
It wasn't a real shot.
A little flag popped out of the barrel that read "BANG."
The boss stared at him.
Humiliated.
Enraged.
He released all his power.
The pressure carved a crater beneath his feet.
He destroyed the balloon dog.
Pointed his axe at the clown.
The clown fired again.
This time the "BANG" flag shot out like a projectile.
It struck the boss in the forehead.
Silence.
Then…
Invisible boos.
"Why don't you show your true power now?" the clown said.
But his voice was no longer cheerful.
It was elegant.
Cold.
Dark.
Vivian and Madeleine trembled.
The boss fell.
Motionless.
Dead.
But his body began to rise.
Unnaturally.
His skin started peeling away.
The axe fell from his hand.
A grotesque laugh escaped his mouth.
He spat.
And what hit the ground wasn't blood.
It was skin.
Human skin.
Women's skin.
Torn from their bodies.
The smell of rotten flesh spread through the air.
Vivian felt nausea rising.
She understood.
That was what was going to happen to them.
Madeleine screamed.
"No… no… no! Why did you do that to them?!"
She cried hysterically.
Vivian vomited.
She couldn't bear it.
The Skinless made the flayed skins levitate.
He spread them out in the air.
Like trophies.
He looked at the clown.
"When I kill you… I'll wear your skin."
Then he turned his gaze toward Vivian and Madeleine.
"Wait. When I finish with him… you'll join them."
The clown began to laugh.
But this time…
It wasn't cheerful.
It sounded… excited.
The entire forest seemed to lean toward the true spectacle about to begin.