> "You won't be able to move freely anymore. Tell me what you want. I can give it to you—but before that… you must bind a vow with me."
Enver's voice was barely audible, a whisper brushing Medusa's ear. Yet beneath its softness lay an undeniable threat of death. He stared into her eyes—so close their breaths mingled in the haze of blood and smoke.
Medusa's body trembled violently. From the cracks in her pale white scales, thousands of baby serpents slithered out, trying to flee in every direction. But as soon as they reached the jasmine circle surrounding Enver's home, they hissed—then vanished into dust, devoured by the sacred petals.
Enver didn't break eye contact. He pressed a single finger under Medusa's chin, forcing the immortal creature to raise her head and look at him.
> "If you stay silent, I'll make sure your existence vanishes forever. There will be no more Medusa in this world—only rotting fragments of a curse scattered across my garden."
His words were icy, yet they scorched her mind. For the first time in hundreds of years as a living legend, Medusa was truly afraid. Her body collapsed, falling to her knees before Enver. Black blood dripped onto the marble tiles, staining them dark.
> "F-fine… I'll bind the vow with you…!"
Her voice was hoarse, broken, caught in her throat. Behind her forked tongue, she held back sobs. Enver's aura crushed her spirit, making her knees feel like spun thread.
Enver inhaled slowly. His eyes flickered with something like disgust—perhaps for Medusa, or perhaps for the unending desperation of humans and astral beings who always demanded something from him.
> "Obedient creature…" he muttered.
With one swift motion, he grabbed the black dagger hanging at his belt. The blade gleamed as a brief incantation passed his lips.
The dagger pierced Medusa's back as she bowed. Fresh blood gushed forth. The hissing of thousands of baby snakes silenced instantly. Her body thrashed for a fraction of a second before black mist swallowed her—her form dissolving, absorbed into Enver's bloodstream, becoming a new burden of darkness within him.
---
Within Xelix's subconscious, his nightmare had just begun.
He stood in a dark corridor with no walls, only foul mist and puddles of cold blood beneath his feet. In front of him stood two children in tattered clothes, staring at him. Their eyes were hollow—like shattered glass reflecting every sin Xelix had ever committed.
Suddenly, a monstrous figure—tall and wide as a sumo wrestler—appeared behind the children. Both his hands wrapped around their tiny bodies. The sound of bones snapping echoed between soft, heartbreaking sobs. Xelix screamed, staggering forward to pull the children away—but his hands passed through them, as if he were just a powerless ghost.
The massive creature stared at Xelix, its eyes glowing red.
> "Want to atone for your sins? Bury their corpses with your own hands…
If not, you will witness this… a thousand times…"
The monster's grip tightened. The children's heads bent backward—spines snapped. Their screams smashed into Xelix's ears like iron hammers. As their blood soaked the dream's soil, their bodies returned to wholeness—only to be broken again. A hellish loop, born of Xelix's own guilt.
In tears, he could only crawl—begging for a forgiveness that never came.
---
Meanwhile, in the real world…
Xelix's body lay on the floor, his temple cold, his breath shallow. Marva stood at the doorway, gazing at him with weary eyes. She hoisted his limp form as if lifting a sack of rice, then laid him on a clean white-sheeted bed on the second floor of Enver's house.
Downstairs, Enver, who had just absorbed Medusa's curse, staggered down the stairs and opened the front door. The morning air pinched his skin. His eyes landed on an unusual sight: dozens of red ki-ki birds crowding the yard, pecking at the jasmine circle—a sacred astral prison—trying to claim the remnants of Medusa's trapped darkness.
Enver only scoffed. His knees buckled, and he collapsed onto the long sofa in the living room. On the table beside him, a pile of business cards—symbols of dark-souled clients—vibrated, then began to float one by one out the window, searching for the next sinner.
His body was broken. His eyelids shut, leaving only heavy, ragged breaths. He knew another Purificazione ritual awaited him. But for now, he needed just one thing:
Thirteen hours of undisturbed sleep.
---
The next morning...
Xelix woke up. Sunlight filtered through the curtains, warming his now brighter face. His body felt light—no longer like fleshless bone. Beside the bed, Marva stood with a tray of warm bread, hot soup, and a glass of water.
> "Your body's back to normal. Today, I'm taking you somewhere."
Her voice was flat, emotion held tight beneath the surface. Xelix looked at her in confusion, then tried to rise, though his knees wobbled.
> "Somewhere? If you're taking me home, don't bother. I have things to—"
His voice barely rose above a whisper. He reached for the door, hands trembling from weakness. Marva chuckled darkly, then turned around to face him directly.
> "Do you know where the holiest ground is… to bury children without a single sin?"
The question cracked something inside Xelix. Their eyes locked—like twin poles connected by a rotting secret.
> "You… you know where…?"
> "You should've died that night. But he—Enver—let you live. Even though you didn't deserve to."
Xelix shook his head. Tears welled up. Marva's voice now stung like a whip, peeling back the filth he tried so hard to bury.
> "He saved you. He cleansed the filth you buried yourself in. The spirits of those two children begged him—to stop you before you committed more sins. He took on their curse so you could live. Even though you weren't worthy… never were."
Xelix sank into a chair, staring at the bread on the tray. His eyes glistened. His hand reached out, trembling—but couldn't grasp a single piece.
> "Take me there… to that sacred ground…
But… I don't know where their bodies are…"
Marva let out a long sigh. In her gaze, hatred and pity swirled like storm clouds.
> "Still at the hospital. After the accident, the police never found their parents. I investigated myself.
Their parents dumped them like dogs, then started new lives—as if they never had children."
Silence settled between them. The morning breeze stirred the curtains, bringing the scent of jasmine. Outside, the world still worshiped money and sin. But in this house, only redemption remained.