A white-gray moon hung high in the western sky, its gentle moonlight casting soft shadows on a quiet city. As usual, black clouds drifted across, making the peaceful city black and white. But today, another hue would be added—the color of blood.
"Tick… tock… tick… tock." On a corner of the city, the pendulum's swings echoed from an ancient building. An antique one-meter-radius clock hung on its wall. It was 1 a.m.
Below the building, "Creeeak." A sudden gust of wind pushed one of its rusty windows open. When moonlight slipped through the window, two glowing red eyes stared back at the moon.
Moments later, the black clouds wafted away, revealing the moon.
Now the red eyes were much clearer. No, those weren't eyes; they were glowing cards like those sold in any shop. The only difference was that they were floating in the air.
"Finally." A dry, scraping laugh echoed… then one of them shot a red light toward the sky. Instantly, the sky was covered with dark clouds. "Crack!" Lightning flashed.
"I never thought we'd also need to play trickery one day," a low, distorted voice whispered.
They shifted their position toward a circus tent.
"Hey… the show was amazing, right?" A youth, slapping his friend's shoulder, spoke with a smile.
"Yeah… but that joker… something felt off about him." While answering, his friend hit him back with much more force.
But the youth acted like he didn't notice it. Remembering the joker's performance, both of them burst out laughing.
The two stepped out of the circus tent, followed by a crowd laughing and talking about the joker.
This show wasn't that famous, but recently its business was booming because of the joker's funny performance.
In the crowd, a short, yellow-toothed man whispered, "Big brother, wasn't I right?"
A muscular, scar-faced man replied with a nod. "It seems he earns well," he thought to himself.
"So… big brother, should we make a move… hehe?"
The muscular man looked at his younger brother's silly smile and nodded again.
But who would have thought the place that had been full of life a moment ago would now turn into a living hell?
Inside the circus tent,
"Manager… isn't this too little?"
Looking at the small amount of money, a skinny youth with a painted white face, a stretched red smile, and a round red nose complained to a fat man.
"Ouch!" With a stick, the fat manager struck the famous joker. "So, the dog finally learned to bark?" he shouted.
The joker's body started shaking from anger and pain. Zi Fan forced a smile—out of habit, not courage.
"Hah, isn't it my kindness that keeps you alive?" The manager paused. "How could you question me!" he spoke softly, as if he were the victim and the joker was slandering him, but
"Smack! Smack!" his stick never stopped hitting.
Something shifted inside the joker.
Still, he didn't scream.
Some of Manager Chen's bodyguards were surrounding them. A few watched with pity, while others enjoyed the show.
Some time later, the beating stopped.
On the joker's body, many red lines were visible. The joker's name was Zi Fan. He grew up in an orphanage without any family.
So he tried to fill the gap by making friends. That's why, from childhood to adulthood, if people mocked or ridiculed him, he never responded. This often led to him being tormented in the orphanage.
After coming of age, he thought he had finally broken free from that torture and, with many dreams, stepped outside. But it seemed like his luck was very poor.
Not long after coming out, he met this manager and signed a contract without knowing anything.
From that day on, he stepped into this hell.
After the beating, he collapsed to the ground. But Manager Chen couldn't let him rest even a little.
"Throw him out," Manager Chen ordered his men.
Two men came forward. One grabbed his arms, the other his legs, and carried him out.
"Tomorrow, come at the same time; otherwise… hehe… live the rest of your life in prison." Behind him, Manager Chen's warning came.
Those two bodyguards threw him like a dead dog in front of the tent entrance.
"What's wrong with Manager Chen today? Usually, he beats this bastard much longer," a bodyguard murmured and kicked Zi Fan in the abdomen.
"Pfft!" Some blood came out of Zi Fan's mouth as he grabbed his stomach.
The bodyguard lifted his leg again to hit him, but another stopped him, saying,
"Don't waste your time on him. Let's go. I don't want to miss tonight's entertainment."
"Yes." The bodyguard who had been beating Zi Fan paused and said excitedly, "Manager Chen caught some new girls again. Let's go have some fun… hehe."
The two of them went inside.
On this side, Zi Fan, who was half-conscious, shivered all over after hearing those words.
A chill ran down his spine… he didn't dare imagine their fate. "Should I call the police?" he murmured. "No, no, if Manager Chen somehow manages to deceive the police, then…" Cold sweat fell from his forehead.
Outside, two fat and muscular men were waiting under a tree.
"Hey, big brother, why isn't that joker coming out?" the fat man asked.
"Who knows," his brother replied.
"Then should we leave?"
"No, wait a little more," his brother answered after some silence.
Ten minutes later, Zi Fan recovered a little and stood up to go home. When he stepped outside, he noticed the gloomy sky.
"Wasn't the sky supposed to be clear today?"
Feeling the pain across his body, he decided to take the shortcut toward the tower. His house was behind it.
He usually avoided that road because of the haunted rumors about the clock tower.
Behind him,
"Brother, he is going toward the tower." The fat man paused a little. "Should we continue, brother?" he asked with some fear.
His brother looked at him from a distance and said, "Of course. And now that road will be deserted. It's good for us." With that, they followed him silently.
As Zi Fan came closer, his eyes darted here and there. He didn't know why his body was trembling—was it because of the beating or the rumors?
Suddenly, a pot-bellied figure appeared before him.
He flinched violently. "W–what—?"
"Crack!" Lightning flashed. The brief light made his vision clear, and he realized it was a human, so he took a deep breath.
"Hah, it's a normal human." He opened his mouth to speak again, but… the pot-bellied man took out a knife with a grin.
Seeing the knife, Zi Fan immediately understood his situation. He turned to run, but a muscular man blocked his path.
"W–wait… what do you want?" He tried to speak with a forced smile, but his words stuck in his throat.
One step, two steps. The two of them came closer, and he stepped back until he was cornered against a wall.
"Hand over all your money," the fat man demanded.
"Of course, here, take it. Don't hurt me." Zi Fan reached into his pocket and took out all his money.
But midway, he stopped; a whisper like a devil echoed from all directions in his mind.
"Do you want to continue living in fear? Don't you have any shame?"
In his mind, a flashback appeared. A thin and pale-looking little kid was trying to sleep, but hunger and the cool weather wouldn't let him.
He had food and a blanket, but another kid forcefully took them away. And he was too cowardly to take them back, so he suffered.
The memory ended, but it didn't stop. Every bad memory of his life began to replay.
The voice whispered again, "Do you?"
"No," he answered.
"Then… hehehe… fight back, don't be a coward," the whispers kept repeating again and again.
Zi Fan's eyes turned red. His body was being taken over by some unknown being.
To be continued...