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iii

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iii. the MAYHEM
(大混乱、破滅)
ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ ㅤㅤㅤ⠀ ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ ㅤㅤㅤ
                "THE rest of you—with me," claudia said, low and sharp, like a blade sliding into its sheath. no one hesitated. not one of them questioned her. they fell in behind her like wolves behind their alpha, moving fast but measured, every eye peeled open wide, scanning the dense, godless woods that surrounded them. the trees loomed like silent sentinels, branches whispering secrets above their heads. the air was thick not just with mist and leaves, but with the weight of what none of them said aloud: they were no longer in their world.

claudia led with purpose. the others followed in silence. after a while though none of them could say how long—the trees thinned, and a strange shape emerged through the veil of green. it was a building. a hotel, if the crooked sign and cracked awning could be trusted. the place looked like it had been abandoned and rebuilt a dozen times over, like it didn't quite belong here either. but claudia didn't care. shelter was shelter. time was running like blood from a slit throat.

without breaking stride, she walked through the front doors and stared the owner dead in the face.














"we need a room," she said. calm. deadly. "you have five minutes to give it to us. or we take it. and you lose more than the key." there was no shouting. no guns. just that voice—soft as ash, firm as faith.

the man didn't argue. he didn't even blink. some part of him knew better. maybe it was her eyes. maybe it was the air around her heavy and absolute. he handed over the key with trembling fingers and backed away like a man who'd seen something holy and horrifying.

the troupe entered the lobby like they owned the place and, truthfully, now they did. they moved through the halls without a word, climbing to the top floor with steady boots and quiet breath. when they reached their room, they found it exactly as needed—wide, clean, defensible. it would do.














inside, the air was cooler. the walls thick enough to muffle noise. the windows high enough to see danger coming. and that was what mattered now—control. clarity. coordination.

𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐋 | c. lucilfer, the phantom troupeWhere stories live. Discover now