The tension broke suddenly when Vic's voice rang out, shattering the cold silence.
"What the fuckkkk?!"
He pointed at the man's grotesque face and sneered, "From which parlor did you get that manicure?!"
There was a beat of stunned silence, then the lipless man chuckled, the sound wheezing and raw.
"Insolent fool," he spat. "An illiterate parasite, clinging to vanity, dares mock the voice of the Goddess?"
He laughed again—high, twisted, inhuman.
Behind him stood four women, each more terrifying than the next. They wore long tattered robes, blindfolds made from iron rings nailed into their skulls, blood dripping slowly down their cheeks. Their mouths were carved into horrifying smiles, stretched grotesquely from ear to ear.
Ariana's expression turned sharp. She recognized them.
"Everyone be careful!" she shouted, drawing her blade. "They control minds with songs! Cover your ears—NOW!"
