The yellow light from the old lamp illuminated the corridor that had changed. All the peeling parts immediately disappeared like dust blown away by the wind. There was no sense of danger approaching, and Haidar and Henry relaxed a bit, realizing that the gap behind where they entered had vanished, replaced by a solid wall. Henry was no longer surprised by the strangeness; he just walked up to the wall and lightly tapped it to confirm what he was seeing was real.
"We just exited the border," Haidar said.
"Then what about Helena?" Henry asked in panic.
Haidar placed his glow stick back into his holster pocket, then approached Henry and handed him the border compass, still closed.
"Picture your wife, focus your thoughts, and then open the compass," Haidar instructed.
Henry held the compass tightly while thinking of Helena, then, when he was ready, he opened the compass. The blue needle on the compass barely moved and immediately pointed straight ahead, in the same direction as the corridor.
"The same direction as when I held it, but more stable," Haidar said.
"Helena isn't inside the border?" Henry asked, a little calmer.
"Yes, whatever that creature is planning, it seems the one who took Madam Helena only passed through the border to bring her here," Haidar explained.
Haidar then asked for the border compass back, but Henry refused.
"Wouldn't it be better if I hold onto the compass? You said it works more steadily for me," Henry said.
"Oh, of course, but also pay attention if you feel the compass vibrate and the red needle starts to activate, because as you know, that's a danger sign," Haidar said.
"Yes, good, it's even easier for you, right? So you don't have to check the compass all the time," Henry replied, then began walking in the direction indicated by the compass.
Haidar stopped Henry from walking further.
"It's also important to know that the compass has blind spots, like when something appears right above or below you, Mr. Henry," Haidar explained.
Henry looked at Haidar seriously.
"What remains is that the compass will vibrate as a sign of a threat, but I wonder if you can react accurately, Mr. Henry?" Haidar continued, ending with a rhetorical question.
Henry began to feel hesitant.
"You're not ready, Mr. Henry. Meanwhile, I'm confident I can react and fight back if there's a threat. Plus, if you're caught like Madam Helena while carrying the compass, I won't be able to find you later, and you won't be able to get out on your own even if you know which way to go," Haidar explained seriously.
"Sigh..." Henry sighed and handed the border compass back to Haidar.
Haidar took the compass back and tucked it into his pocket. The two of them continued their journey. Throughout the corridor, nothing unexpected happened, but their vigilance didn't decrease, especially Henry, who looked restless, often checking behind him.
"The path splits," Henry said.
They found two different paths: one was a straight corridor continuing from the one they had been walking through, while the other turned left. Haidar then walked to the center of the two paths and pulled out the border compass. When Haidar opened the compass, the blue needle pointed to the left-turning corridor. He closed the compass and put it back in his pocket, then pointed to the left corridor, signaling to Henry which path to take.
They both walked down the chosen path, not far after they turned, they found a closed iron door on the left. Haidar ignored the door and kept walking straight, making Henry stop to confirm something.
"Doesn't your compass need to check that door?" Henry asked, pointing to the iron door.
"No, the needle is pointing straight ahead," Haidar replied while continuing to walk.
After they had distanced themselves enough from the iron door, Haidar and Henry felt a soft gust of wind coming from the front. The wind didn't feel like it was coming from one direction, but rather as if something was breathing. Haidar and Henry continued walking cautiously. At the end of the corridor, they found a large staircase leading underground. The gust of wind they felt came from the bottom of the staircase.
"What's waiting for us down there?" Henry asked Haidar, looking anxious.
"We'll find out soon," Haidar answered, gripping his axe tightly.
"Fwoosh!" Suddenly, from deep below, from the end of the stairs and its sides, torches lit up one after another, all the way to the top of the stairs where Haidar and Henry were standing. The torchlight provided dim illumination, revealing a vast space beyond the entrance of the stairs, with a mystical atmosphere added by the scent of incense in the air.
It was as if something was inviting Haidar and Henry to step deeper inside. With few choices to find Helena, they both proceeded with great caution, descending the wide and long staircase leading to the bottom of the room. They were stunned when they saw how far down the stairs went, giving the impression of a massive space. Deep inside, they wondered what kind of place they had entered.
At the bottom of the room, two corridors stretched in different directions. Haidar immediately opened his compass, and the blue needle pointed to himself. Haidar tried to change his position, and the needle still pointed toward the stairs, which confused him. Meanwhile, Henry felt familiar with both paths, particularly the one on the right.
"I saw that corridor in my dream earlier," Henry said.
Haidar then looked at the right corridor Henry mentioned.
"You mean the memory from the victim's residue?" Haidar asked.
"Yes, don't you feel familiar with it?" Henry replied.
"I see the similarities, but the memory I saw had walls that looked like wet earth, not as good as this. I mean, the entire room here doesn't seem very old, and if you look at the size of the bricks in the walls, they're huge." Haidar explained.
Henry approached the wall and the right corridor.
"Yeah, you're right. Now that I pay attention, these walls are better than what I saw in the memory." Henry said while feeling the wall.
"Haidar, we're not underneath my mansion, are we?" Henry continued, asking.
"Maybe this is the true form of your mansion, Mr. Henry." Haidar replied.
Haidar then approached the corridor while looking at his compass. When he reached the entrance of the corridor, Haidar realized that the blue needle of the compass didn't point to the stairs, but to something behind it, specifically to a room that might be hidden behind the large wall where the stairs leaned, supporting its foundation.
"If we go by what we saw in the memory, then at the end of this corridor is where the ritual took place," Haidar said.
"The red jar, the hanging creature, and the woman—" Henry said, as if realizing something.
Henry immediately ran, but was stopped by Haidar, who grabbed his hand.
"Let go! You know what happened in that memory residue, don't you?" Henry said, shaking off Haidar's hand.
"I know, but the situation is different now. There might be a trap ahead," Haidar explained.
"No, Helena is in danger!" Henry said, anxious, and immediately ran down the corridor.
"Mr. Henry!" Haidar shouted as he chased Henry.
The two of them ran to the end of the corridor, which had a large double door made of wood with a palm print symbol clearly visible. Henry quickly tried to open the door. In a hurry, he pushed the door, and with minimal effort, the double doors swung open with a single push.
"GGRRREEEEAAAKK..." Henry entered the room beyond the double door, followed by Haidar. A massive room was revealed to them, with large, sturdy pillars supporting the ceiling, and dim torches illuminating the vast room that resembled a worship hall, similar to what was seen in the memory residue. In the center of the hall was a stone altar with a woman lying on top of it.
"Helena!" Henry shouted as he ran toward the altar.
Henry checked Helena, worried something might have happened, and tried to wake her up. Slowly, Helena opened her eyes and saw Henry's face, an expression mixed with both anxiety and happiness.
"Henry?" Helena said weakly.
Henry's face lit up, calmness washing over him. Helena slowly sat up with Henry's help. Unable to contain his joy, Henry hugged Helena tightly, which made her startled and slightly out of breath.
"Ah... wait, Henry... I can't breathe." Helena said, gently tapping Henry's back.
"Ah, sorry, I overdid it. Are you okay?" Henry said, releasing the hug, looking at Helena's face with a mix of relief and concern.
"Hehe, what's going on here?" Helena said, as if unaware of the situation she was facing.
"You don't remember anything?" Henry asked.
"As far as I can remember, something fell in the living room, and then in the hall—ow," Helena replied, wincing slightly from the pain in her head.
"Are you okay? Don't force yourself," Henry said, worried.
Helena calmed herself a bit and looked around.
"I'm fine, sorry. Hmm? This place..." Helena said, as if realizing something when she looked around.
Meanwhile, Haidar was very alert. He felt that something was off, and they shouldn't stay here any longer. He was about to tell Henry and Helena to leave when he suddenly felt something from his compass. He quickly took it out, and it was vibrating intensely. When he opened it, the red needle was spinning wildly in all directions, not focused at all, sometimes even spinning in the opposite direction.
"Mr. Henry," Haidar called out to Henry.
Helena and Henry turned to Haidar.
"What's wrong?" Henry asked, a bit sharply.
"We're not safe yet," Haidar said seriously, showing his compass.
Henry was startled by the compass's reaction. He immediately stood up and tried to support Helena.
"We need to leave now, Helena," Henry said, panicking.
"What's happening?" Helena's voice rose, her eyes filled with confusion and fear.
"I'll explain later—let's get out of here now!" Henry replied urgently.
Haidar tightened his grip on his axe, put the compass back into his pocket, and got into a defensive stance. Henry supported Helena as they walked away from the altar, heading towards the double doors where Haidar and Henry had entered.
"GGRRREEEEAAAKK..." suddenly, the double doors slammed shut by themselves, as if some force was moving them. Haidar sighed, bracing himself for what was to come, then turned to look at Henry. Henry's face was full of fear, and at the same time, the torches that lit the room hissed and changed color to a terrifying red flame that sent chills down their spines. This was followed by a transformation in the hall, as red roots seemed to emerge from the floor, spreading across the floor and walls, including the altar. The roots appeared alive, moving as if something was flowing inside them.
Haidar remained alert as holes in the flesh-like masses appeared at various points around the room, encircling Haidar and the others. However, these holes were not as large as the ones they had seen before. Haidar raised his axe, prepared for whatever would appear next. Henry and Helena moved closer behind Haidar, both understanding the dire situation unfolding.
From the holes, humanoid creatures emerged, covered in stitched-up wounds. Their heads were wrapped in black sacks tied with rope around their necks. The creatures moved with jerky, unsettling motions, their heads shaking constantly. Their hands bore long, sharp claws on every finger.
"Whrrrraaaaghhh..." As if the creatures emerging from the holes weren't enough, suddenly, a scream pierced the air from behind Haidar and the others. Slowly, Haidar and the others turned to look, and above the altar, on the ceiling, they saw the creature from the memory residue. It was a hairless being, its body drenched in red liquid, seemingly without skin, hanging and merged with the ceiling. With its hands in a meditative pose, the creature opened its black eyes with red dots and fixed its gaze directly on Haidar. Its mouth was twisted in a snarl, showing its teeth as if angry, and red liquid dripped from between its teeth.
The creature then used both of its hands to catch the red liquid pouring from its mouth. The liquid gathered into a grotesque ball of flesh, and when it grew large enough, the creature hurled it at Haidar and the others.
The ball of flesh flew through the air. "Bang!" Quickly, Haidar drew his revolver and shot at the mass. "SPLRRAK!" The ball exploded upon impact, the bullet tearing through it and grazing the cheek of the creature on the ceiling. Everything suddenly fell silent. "Whrrrraaaaghhh..." The creature on the ceiling appeared even angrier and thrashed about. It let out a noise that sounded like a tantrum, yelling repeatedly at the creatures emerging from the holes before pointing at Haidar and screaming loudly, the sound piercing their ears.
The creatures with their heads wrapped in black sacks immediately charged at Haidar and the others, running like wild animals, their long claws extended. Haidar braced himself with his axe and aimed at the nearest creature, the trigger almost pulled as the barrel of his revolver nearly touched the creature's head.
To be continued.