There was a young man named Vidente, seventeen years old.He was fired from his job as a sword cleaner in one of the samurai institutes, after a false accusation of stabbing a son of a prestigious family.
Vidente returned home shattered, heartbroken, breathing anger and sorrow.
He opened the door to his little sister's room and saw a tiny angel sleeping peacefully.An involuntary smile appeared on his lips, but pain quickly swallowed it.
He quietly closed the door, then sat on the couch and let his tears fall without shame.
Vidente's parents had died in a car accident, and the only thing he had left in this world was that little girl.He worked day and night for her, lived like a pauper to make her feel like a little princess…
It was enough for him to see her smile to forget life's cruelty.But on that rainy night, he felt helpless.
Helpless to defend his name, his dignity, his income, her dream.He looked at his trembling hands, then noticed a small fruit-cutting knife on the table.
He picked it up with a hand trembling from collapse, and whispered to himself in a hoarse voice:
"What's the point of this life… if all it feeds us is pain?I'll kill myself… so she can live a better life with the insurance money."
His fingers clenched around the knife's handle.He gasped, as if suffocating from the weight of the entire world.He wiped his tears with his sleeve, then said:
"I love you, Lulia… Forgive me for failing you."
He raised the knife to his neck — but froze in place.A cold hand grabbed his wrist firmly, stopping the knife from completing its path.Vidente slowly opened his eyes and saw in front of him a tall man — with no face.He wore a European-style hat, a long black coat, and a pure white shirt underneath.The knife slipped from Vidente's hand, and he clung to the edge of the couch, trembling in fear, his lips quivering:
"W-who… who are you?!"
The faceless man sat on the opposite couch, crossed one leg over the other, slowly removed his hat, and spoke in a deep voice, calm as death:
"I am your savior… Mr.Vidente."
Thoughts froze in his mind — how did he know his name?How did he enter the house?Who is this being with no face?He stammered in a trembling voice:
"How… do you know my name?And how did you get in here?!"
The faceless man smiled — as if his smile could be seen despite the lack of features — and said:
"Calm down, Mr.Vidente.As I said… I'm here to save you.And without boring introductions — how would you like to become a Nightmare Thrall?"
Vidente's eyes widened in shock:
"A slave… to nightmares?What do you mean?"
The faceless man exhaled his cigarette smoke slowly, every movement of his feeling like it had been written since the dawn of time:
"As I said.You'll become a hunter who hunts monsters inside nightmares… and a servant to the nightmares themselves."
Vidente swallowed hard, his heart pounding violently.A strange, terrifying idea — but it held a promise of something he never dared to dream.He muttered to himself, trying to appear composed:
'I don't know who this faceless man is… but if this is a real chance, I'd be a fool to reject it.'
He lifted his head and stared at the faceless one:
"Let's say I agree… what do I get in return?"
The faceless man placed his hat on his knee, then spoke in a lower, yet heavier voice:
"You'll get two things you've long dreamed of: money… and a life worthy of your little princess.Once you accept becoming a Nightmare Thrall, your sister will move from this filthy house to a palace fit for her… servants, a garden, private education… she'll lack nothing."
Vidente felt his mind boiling.A deal with the devil?Or an illusion before death?He bowed his head, buried his face in his hands:
"If this is a real chance… I'll sell my soul without hesitation."
He slowly raised his head:
"I want proof you're telling the truth."
The faceless man snapped his fingers — and a crimson moon shattered the ceiling.Vidente looked up, unable to speak at the sight of the impossible scene.
A moment later, another snap — the moon vanished, the ceiling restored as if nothing had happened.
The door to the room slowly opened, and little Lulia appeared.Her hair was long and blonde, her eyes green, her skin white as snow, and she wore a white nightgown.
She rubbed her eyes and said with innocent drowsiness:
"I didn't expect you to come home so early… shall I make you dinner?"
She walked closer and sat beside him, smiling at his miserable face — a smile that brought his tears back against his will.He gently patted her hair and whispered:
"I already ate on the way… go back to sleep.Tomorrow's your first day of school, I don't want you to be late."
She stood and stretched lazily, then said softly:
"Yes, yes… good night, handsome."
He replied, lips trembling:
"Good night, beautiful."
'Strange… didn't Lulia notice the faceless man?!' Vidente muttered to himself in worry.She quietly closed the door to her room, and Vidente turned to the faceless visitor and said in a firm tone:
"I accept your offer… but on one condition: no harm must ever come to my sister, no matter what."
The faceless man tossed a coin into the air, caught it in his fingers without looking:
"Anyone who comes near your princess… has dug his own grave.Your little beauty is under my protection."
Then he leaned forward, stared at him with his featureless face:
"And now… Mr.Vidente… do you wish to become a Nightmare Thrall?"
Vidente gripped the edge of his pants tightly, raised his head and looked at that abyss between reality and nightmares, and said with a firm voice:
"I accept… I will become a Nightmare Thrall."
The faceless man exhaled his smoke and slowly lifted his hat:
"Excellent… then let us begin, servant of the nightmare."