Tom and Roy were on their way home, accompanied by the sound of crickets mixed with their footsteps. Roy, looking a bit drunk, staggered as he walked. Concerned about his friend’s condition, Tom put Roy’s arm around his shoulders to help him walk more steadily.

On the way home, Tom suddenly felt a cold wind brush the back of his neck. He quickly looked back but saw only the dark night. An uneasiness crept over him as he remembered the strange incident he had just experienced. He glanced at his friend, but Roy, looking sleepy and calm, seemed lost in another world. Tom tried to settle his mind, convincing himself it was nothing serious.

Suddenly, the unsettling memory from the bar resurfaced. Earlier, Tom had kept glancing at the door, not because he was expecting someone but because he was watching an old woman standing still at the entrance. At first, he dismissed her presence, assuming she had come to spend some quiet time alone. But what puzzled him was why she remained rooted in the same spot, never entering.

The first time he looked at her, her face seemed calm. Yet each time he stole another glance, her expression had grown angrier, and what truly unnerved him was her gaze, fixed on him, as though she were staring directly at him.

Recalling the unpleasant encounter, he took a deep breath to steady himself. He began walking again, but an inexplicable sense of dread crept over him. Suddenly, a streetlight shattered, the sound piercing the silence and making his heart race. Darkness fell around them, engulfing them both.

Roy was awakened by the sound, feeling confused. "What's going on? What was that sound?"

In a dazed state, he looked at his friend and saw him standing stiffly beside him, as if possessed, with his body trembling. Roy rubbed his eyes, feeling as if a bright light was shining in front of them. He looked toward the light and saw, beneath the lamp, a figure of an unknown person. He squinted to see more clearly, and when he finally did, he was shocked by what he saw.

What shocked Roy most when he looked at the old woman was her grotesque face, which didn’t resemble a normal human at all. Her long nose stretched down to her mouth, and her skin was dull, wrinkled, and covered in spots, sagging around her cheeks.

When she smiled, revealing yellowed and decayed teeth, Roy felt even more disturbed, sobering up quickly from his drunkenness. She then opened her mouth slowly and closed it with a sharp 'clack,' repeating the motion several times. With each clack, Roy grew more uneasy and uncomfortable.

“Tom, I don’t feel right. Should we run?”

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But there was no response from his friend, who seemed frozen, unable to react. This only deepened the confusion and fear growing in Roy’s heart.

“Shrieeeeeeeek!”

Her sudden shriek startled Roy, causing him to fall backward onto the ground. "Fuck! Wh-what?"

She smiled, and then tentacles burst from her hand, with thick green ooze dripping from the same spot. The tentacles writhed and wriggled, looking disturbingly alive. Witnessing this grotesque transformation, Roy felt a wave of nausea rise within him, threatening to empty the contents of his stomach.

A tentacle, which had been writhing like a living thing, suddenly stopped, becoming stiff. It then spiraled around her hand, forming a conical shape that grew thinner and transformed into a sickle. Upon closer look, the sickle appeared razor-sharp, as if capable of slicing any being in half with a single touch.

Seeing this, Roy’s stomach churned, and fear surged within him. He felt as if he were rooted to the spot, frozen and unable to move despite his efforts.

“Why can’t I move!?” he cried, alarmed by the sudden paralysis gripping his body. Then he realized why his friend, Tom, hadn’t moved earlier—the same thing must have happened to him. This sudden realization sent Roy’s mind racing as he feared for what might happen to both of them now.

The old woman bowed forward slightly, assuming a stance ready for attack. She stuck out her tongue, with green saliva dripping from her mouth, making a grotesque sight. Smiling mockingly, she dashed toward the two friends, who remained unable to move.As she closed in, she raised her sickle, aiming to slash Tom, who was directly in front of her.

Tom trembled violently, as though straining with all his might to break free from his invisible restraints. Meanwhile, the old woman charged toward him, laughing sinisterly. “Keh keh keh keh!”

When the sickle was only an inch from Tom's eyes, he felt certain his end had come. Tears flowed from the corners of his eyes.

“Tsk, what an ugly sight. Restraining Chains!”

Suddenly, silver chains burst from the ground, writhing like serpents, and wrapped around the old woman, immobilizing her completely.

She gasped in surprise. “Who’s there!?”

From the darkness, a man appeared with a calm smile, leaning on a wooden cane. It was Eric, the same man from the bar. He exuded a composed demeanor, as if the grotesque scene before him was nothing but a trivial affair.

“Good evening, gentlemen. What a splendid night to witness... except for the hideous creature ruining it.” Eric’s smile faded, replaced by a serious expression as he stared at the old woman like one would at a pest.

“Who are you, human!?” she snarled, struggling against the chains binding her.

Eric scoffed. “Me? Just a passerby helping two men in distress. Tell me, aren’t you ashamed? At your age, preying on helpless mortals like this.”

The chains snapped, and the old woman leapt back. “Foolish human! Do you think such feeble chains can bind me? I've decided—you'll be my first meal tonight!”

Eric stepped forward elegantly, raising his cane in front of him. “O wretched spirit, forsaken and astray, I summon thee now by the ancient decree. Hearken unto me! By the sacred light, I bid thee return to thy rightful path and be cleansed of thy plight!”

From his fingertips, a small blue flame flickered to life. He touched the flame to the cane, which burned away to reveal a gleaming blade that shone under the moonlight.

“Ah, before I forget...” Eric snapped his fingers.