Everyone turned their heads toward the man who had stopped the entire celebration with his presence alone.
No one spoke.
Until—
"Dad! You actually came!" Ilya said with excitement and enthusiasm.
Several servants exchanged uneasy glances.
They could all tell just by looking at Ian.
That man was not here to celebrate.
"Dad, look at this cake! It's so bi—"
"Ilya."
His deep, serious voice cut her off instantly.
Gerald and Clarisse tensed at the same time.
"What are you doing?" Ian asked.
"Huh… what do you mean, Dad?" Ilya replied, her excitement beginning to fade.
"I asked," Ian repeated, his voice dropping lower, "what are you all doing here?"
"Sir Ian, we are just cele—"
"I asked Ilya, not you, Gerald."
"But—"
"Ilya, what is this supposed to be?"
"T-Today i-is my birthday… so we were just celebrating it…" Ilya answered, her voice trembling.
"And who gave you permission to do that?"
"Sir, it's a mis—"
"Gerald."
Ian's tone hardened.
"When I tell you to be quiet, you should stay quiet."
Gerald lowered his head in silence.
The entire hall fell quiet.
"CAN'T I EVEN CELEBRATE MY OWN BIRTHDAY!?" Ilya suddenly shouted, unable to contain her anger any longer. Tears streamed down her cheeks. "What is wrong with you? Are you just here to ruin everything!?"
"Ruin everything?" Ian replied coldly. "I'm here to ruin everything?"
His voice filled with anger.
"Haven't you already ruined everything by taking your own mother's life?"
Noctis watched the scene unfold silently, a deep frown forming on his face.
'What kind of man is this? Maybe he loved his wife… but does that give him the right to treat his own child like this? His only remaining blood family?
An accident is called an accident for a reason.But this man speaks as if Ilya stabbed Celina with her own hands.
You are a sinner, Ian Vexwood. There's no doubt about it.'
Noctis shifted his gaze toward Ilya.
The child stood there trembling, tightly gripping the hem of her skirt.
"If you have nothing more to say," Ian continued coldly, "then end this circus. And don't ever try something like this again without my permission."
He turned his back and began walking away.
Silence filled the hall.
No one objected.
No one dared to question him.
But—
"Dad! Wait—!"
A single voice echoed throughout the hall.
Despite hearing his daughter's desperate call, Ian did not stop.
He didn't even turn around.
"Please wait, Dad!"
Ilya kept pleading for him to stop.
But he ignored her again.
And again.
Noctis watched the entire scene with pure disgust.
But then—
His gaze shifted upward.
Toward the chandelier.
'No way.'
Noctis ran toward Ilya.
But after only a few steps he realized the truth.
It was useless.
He was only a spectator.
No one in the hall seemed to notice the chandelier trembling above them.
The metal chain strained.
Slowly.
Gradually.
It began to come loose.
And then—
A heavy metallic snap echoed through the hall.
Followed by a thunderous crash.
The chandelier slammed violently into the floor, glass shattering everywhere like a storm of ringing bells.
Ian finally stopped.
But only when he had already lost everything.
He turned toward the source of the sound.
Horror struck his face.
Pure terror filled his expression.
For a moment he simply stood there, as if unable to comprehend what he was seeing.
Then he rushed toward the fallen chandelier.
Crimson blood poured out from beneath it.
Endlessly.
It wasn't only Ilya.
Gerald and Clarisse had been caught in the crash as well.
Panic spread throughout the hall.
Servants rushed forward, desperately trying to lift the chandelier.
And all Noctis could do…
Was watch.
Watch as the people he had spent time with—
The people whose stories he had heard—
The people he had even managed to bring some small moments of happiness—
Slowly lost their lives.
A single tear rolled down his cheek.
But he knew better.
These people might never have been real to begin with.
They may have only been fragments of something that once existed.
Noctis waited.
Then—
It came.
A sharp pain suddenly pierced his head.
"Agh—dammit! Is it necessary to knock me out every five seconds!?" Noctis shouted as his vision began to fade again.
Darkness swallowed everything.
***
Noctis opened his eyes again.
This time he was lying in his own bed.
He looked at the clock.
"10 PM?" he muttered.
Noctis sat up and quickly put on his coat. He tucked the revolver behind his back before heading toward the door.
He checked the clock again.
Still 10 PM.
"So now time is stuck at ten… huh."
Noctis opened the door and stepped outside.
The moment he entered the hallway, he immediately felt it.
Something was wrong.
The atmosphere of the mansion had completely changed.
He slowly began walking through the corridors.
The mansion was empty.
Not a single person could be seen anywhere.
Worst of all—
The mansion was barely lit anymore.
The hallways were drowned in darkness, illuminated only by a few dim wall lamps and faint moonlight leaking through the windows.
Noctis searched through most of the mansion.
But he found no one.
It was as if everyone had disappeared all at once.
No.
It felt more like—
No one had ever existed here in the first place.
Noctis eventually made his way to the garden, hoping at least to find Silas.
But after searching for some time and finding no one, he headed toward Silas's cottage.
He knocked on the door.
There was no response.
He tried turning the handle.
But strangely enough, it refused to open.
It was the only door in the entire mansion that would not open since he had woken up.
With no other ideas left, Noctis turned and began heading back toward the main hall.
He had intentionally avoided that place until now.
Because he didn't know what might be waiting for him there.
Entering through the main entrance, Noctis stopped in his tracks.
Someone was standing in the center of the hall.
Right beneath that wretched chandelier.
"Ian Vexwood…?" Noctis muttered, instinctively stepping back.
For a brief moment, silence filled the hall.
Then—
Ian slowly turned around.
Toward Noctis.
Or at least…
What seemed to be him.
Noctis stood frozen in place.
His eyes widened with terror.
And in that moment—
He realized the truth.
There were no humans in this mansion.