A fingers appeared right on Olivia’s left shoulder. She flinched. Even without turning her head, it was enough to tell her that the touch was not an illusion.

In an instant, the atmosphere in the room changed. Cold spread slowly into every corner, seeping deep into her bones. The dim light began to flicker.

Once... twice... as if it was about to go out completely. Olivia did not dare to turn back. In her mind, a terrifying face had already begun to form. Her own face turned pale. Both of her hands felt numb and cold, as if they no longer belonged to her. She tried to move her fingers slightly, just to confirm, but even that felt distant.

Olivia~

A voice whispered right into her ear. Her body reacted quickly. She immediately rubbed her ear, almost screaming, but her voice got stuck in her throat. Not a single sound came out.

Sweat began to flow down her face quickly, her breathing became uneven, her whole body felt weak. She tried to cover her ears and eyes, but the grip on her shoulder tightened even more.

Fast. Her breathing became uneven, like she couldn’t control it anymore. Inhale... exhale... but nothing felt stable. Her chest tightened. Her whole body felt weak, like she might collapse any second.

Cold. Strong. As if it never intended to let go.

Oh God... please!

She cried out in her heart. Her whole body trembled, the fear tightening around her chest.

Fear was not just in her mind anymore, it was spreading through her entire body, making everything feel harder to control.

Then... she heard it.The sound of footsteps...began to echo, slow... circling around her...

Tap tap tap

Slow at first. Soft. Almost like something walk carefull. But they were everywhere. Not just in one direction. It sounded like the footsteps were circling around her. Around and around. Like something was watching her from every side.

...getting closer, clearer,

Each step felt like it was getting inside her head.Then suddenly...It stopped.

Silence.

A deep, heavy silence filled the room. It was worse than the sound.

Slowly, Olivia opened her eyes. Darkness. Complete darkness. There was no light at all to help her see anything around her. She couldn’t see anything in front of her, not even her own hands clearly.

Yet, her heartbeat was still racing... not because of the darkness, but because the touch on her shoulder was still there. Still there. Cold and firm. As if it refused to let go.

"Why... does bad luck always choose me...?" she whispered softly, almost giving up. Her voice was weak, barely there.

She wanted to scream, to make everything end. But her heart felt heavy. She did not want to leave. Not until she made sure everything was okay.

In that anxious state, she forced herself to look at the owner of the hand gripping her shoulder. Slowly, she tried to move her neck. Slowly and carefully. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

But for a moment, she remembered the pressure she felt when the masked man was there, as if something had been controlling her.

Her breath alowly become unstable again. That felt, controlled by someone make her anxiety up.

"I hate that feeling" she whispered slowly.

Then,..

Slowly... her head began to turn.

"Oh..." she whispered, almost inaudible.

"I... can move..." she whispered.

Then, she slowly turned her head. Not because she wanted to, but because something was making her.

Inch by inch, her gaze was dragged to the back, her body stiff... unresponsive...It didn’t respond like normal anymore. It like it no longer belonged to her. As if something was controlling her without her realizing it.

At that moment, the flickering light suddenly stabilized. The room was filled with light again. Olivia wiped her eyes. Trying to adjust her eyes and slowly looked behind her. Her breath stopped.

Javien...

The fear had not completely disappeared... but when she saw Javien, she froze. He was there. Standing right behind her. Close enough that

She could see him clearly now.

Isn’t that ...Him?

She whispered in her heart while observing him from head to toe. Still the same. Nothing had changed at all. But... something felt wrong. Javien looked at her, then smiled. That smile made her breath hitch.

A faint smile almost formed on her lips... but it died before it could even exist. It was as if her own body refused to believe it. She realized it instantly. Something was wrong. The way Javien smiled... was not like him. The Javien she knew had never smiled like that. Not like that. She shook her head several time.

Impossible.....that Javien?

She realized something was wrong. The way Javien smiled at her... empty. Unanchored. Like he was looking through her instead of at her. The Javien she knew rarely smiled.

That smile...

was not a happy smile...

but a terrifying one...

She said it in her heart. Olivia stared straight into his eyes, her body freezing. His eyes... were wrong. Not just his eyes, but his entire presence. That smile was not normal. His eyes were not purple either. Something about them was wrong. Not just different... she was stunned. Olivia swallowed hard.

Her hand slowly clenched. She turned her face slightly, trying to calm herself.

"Are you okay... Javien?"

She asked softly without looking at him.

"Yes, why are you asking, Olivia?" he replied calmly.

Olivia smiled, but deep down, she rejected it.

The Javien in front of her stared at her sharply.

"Olivia? Are you okay?" he said softly, but behind his long hair, a smile formed at the corner of his lips. A smile that carried a deeper meaning.

Olivia stayed silent. Her eyes wandered around, searching for something.

Is that man still here?

She whispered in her heart.

Why isn’t he moving?

Without thinking, she stood up and walked toward the masked man to see his real face.

This time, you can’t run.

She said softly with a faint smirk.

One step.

Two steps.

Three steps.

Until she stood right in front of him. Olivia quickly pulled off the black covering on his head. But...

"Empty?"

She whispered softly, frowning. Suddenly, the clothes the masked man was wearing dropped gently to the floor... as if there had never been a body inside it.

Her breathing became faster. She turned her head left and right. Silent. Empty. No one. Her legs weakened, and she slowly dropped to the floor, holding her forehead.

Then, Javien spoke from behind her.

"Who are you looking for?" he asked softly, staring at her with one eye visible beneath his long hair. Her head throbbed thinking about the masked man’s existence.

Haish.

She stood up and turned toward Javien. She looked at him seriously and stepped forward until she stood right in front of him. She said nothing. She just stared at him. But something was wrong.

Her breath stopped.

Behind Javien... there was a shadow. Faint. Unclear. She narrowed her eyes, trying to focus. Trying to analyze the figure.

Slowly, the image became clearer. A face covered in wounds. Blood. Burnt black clothes. A body that... she knew. Not just knew, but someone important to her. Her eyes widened.

"Javien...?"

She whispered. But the one in front of her only smiled. The wrong smile. As if he was testing her.

The body behind him was in a terrible state. His head rested against the cold floor. At the corner of his lips, there was dried blood.

For a moment, Olivia could no longer hear anything. She fell silent. She could not say a single word. She only looked back and forth between the man in front of her and the one lying behind him.

She knew. The one in front of her was not the real Javien. But her emotions took over. No tears came out. She no longer felt like crying. She had cried too much already.

She stared at the man who looked exactly like Javien. Every detail was identical. But there was one difference. One was injured... broken. The one in front of her looked untouched.

Olivia lowered her gaze to the floor, unable to understand the situation.

"Why are there two of him? What does all of this mean?"

She whispered in her heart. Her mind was in chaos. But her gaze returned to the body lying on the floor. Her chest felt heavy. Painful.

At that moment, she saw something. The lips of that body moved slowly... as if trying to say something. She realized it was the same words he tried to say during her awakening before.

Olivia focused, trying to understand. Slowly... she caught it. And at that moment, her eyes widened. A heavy pressure filled her chest.

Wa... terr...?

Oh... Water!

She jolted.

Eh..Did I read it wrong?

She whispered in her heart. Her lips pressed tightly. Her mind went blank, unable to process anything.

Kuff kuff

Javien coughed hard. Blood came out of his mouth. But then, a whisper came... very close to her ear.

"Ah... so you’ve finally noticed..."

Suddenly, everything become darkness.