A small figure slowly began to turn around.
And then—
Boom!
A blinding flash of lightning tore across the sky, lighting up the entire hallway in an instant!
It also illuminated the "child."
The thing on its neck wasn't a head—it was a blood-red ball with black hair growing out of it!
In its arms, it cradled a real human head, caked with dirt, blood oozing from its eyes, nose, and mouth!
That head's eyes snapped open—its pupils dead white!
"Eeeek—ahhhh!!!" Lucy's scream caught in her throat, coming out as a strangled gasp.
Her hand shot instinctively toward her waist—only to grab at nothing.
"My keys?! Where are my Celestial Spirit keys?!"
Then Mira's words hit her like a bolt—
She couldn't use magic here. She was just an ordinary person! There was no way to summon her spirits!
When she looked up again, the "child" holding the head was right in front of her—soundless and close enough for her to see every knife-like scar carved across its face. The head it carried opened its bloody mouth, eyes rolling mechanically.
"Big sister… don't abandon me."
The head suddenly floated up, rising to meet her at eye level. Its mouth tore open unnaturally wide, revealing rows of sharp teeth.
"If you abandon me—" the monstrous voice echoed through the corridor, "—then I'll eat you!"
From deep inside that pitch-black throat, Lucy saw another girl—lifeless, her eyes dull. Suddenly, those eyes moved, locking onto Lucy. Her mouth twisted into a crooked smile.
"Come on—take my place—be the one it eats!"
The background music shifted—dark, heavy, and pounding.
Lucy's hair stood on end. Her heart hammered wildly, ready to burst out of her chest.
She jerked backward, barely dodging the snapping jaws, then turned and bolted.
"Big sister! Come play with me!!"
The voice chased after her, echoing endlessly. Lucy's soul nearly left her body. She threw her hands up, tears flying from her eyes.
"You said it wouldn't be scary! This isn't the kind of nursery I imagined at all!!!"
She ran blindly, turning a corner, her eyes darting everywhere—until she spotted a slightly open door ahead.
The footsteps behind her grew louder. Without thinking, she dove inside and slammed the door shut, pressing her whole body against it as she slid weakly to the floor.
Only after the sounds faded did she dare to breathe again. Her back was drenched in cold sweat.
"Haaah… haaah… I'm gonna die of fright—what the heck was all that…" she whimpered between breaths.
"This is on a whole other level from ghost stories! Mira totally lied to me!"
"The ghosts I've heard of before were way friendlier than this!"
"Are you one of the new children?" a stern female voice suddenly said from behind.
Lucy froze. Her neck creaked like a rusted hinge as she turned around.
A strict-looking middle-aged woman, dressed in bright clothes, stood glaring at her.
"It's mealtime. Who told you to wander off on your own? I'll let it go this time since you're new, but next time…" Her tone dropped, cold and threatening. "Next time, you'll be sent to solitary confinement. Understood?"
Lucy: "=3="
Children? she thought incredulously. Do I look like a child to you?!
She forced a smile and pointed nervously toward the door. "Uh—I, um, dropped something outside. I'll just grab it real quick and come right back to eat—"
The woman's expression darkened, like a storm rolling in. "Rules are rules. It's mealtime now!"
"When the time comes, you follow the schedule!"
Afraid to make a scene and risk drawing that thing back, Lucy quickly nodded like a bobblehead.
"Okay, okay! I'll eat! Right away!"
The woman's face eased slightly, and she pointed toward an empty seat at the far corner of the long dining table. "Sit there. Your food will be served shortly."
Lucy obeyed, keeping her head down as she walked past rows of silent children, each one eating in eerie stillness.
She glanced at their plates—steak and meatball soup? It actually looked… decent? Totally different from the decrepit place outside.
She sat in the corner, exhaling in relief. At least she could rest a bit—though the creepy background music made her feel like something could jump out from under the table any second.
A tray was placed in front of her: a bowl of thick soup with an oily sheen, a piece of grilled meat, and a small bread roll.
"Thanks—" Lucy began, turning to smile—only to see the man serving her had completely empty eyes. After setting down the tray, he stiffly turned and walked away.
"So creepy…" she muttered, goosebumps rising. She poked the meat cautiously. It was off-white, but didn't smell bad.
Under the woman's watchful stare, she forced herself to pick up a piece with her fork.
Then—something pale floated to the surface of her soup.
"Huh? What's that?"
Curious, she scooped it up—her fork nudged it upright.
It was an eyeball.
A bloodshot human eyeball staring straight at her.
"Blergh!!" Lucy nearly vomited on the spot.
Her horrified gaze darted to the other children's bowls and plates—identical dishes. The same meat. The same soup.
Could it be…?
The girl sitting beside her trembled under Lucy's stare, tears welling in her eyes. She didn't say a word—just buried her face in her bowl and swallowed spoonfuls of the soup, as if desperate to finish quickly.
They're being forced…? Lucy's heart clenched. She pushed back her chair, ready to stand—
But the boy beside her tugged at her sleeve, shaking his head ever so slightly. His eyes were wide with terror, silently warning her not to move.
"You two! What are you whispering about? Eat!" the woman's voice barked from across the room.
Though not loud, it made every child at the table flinch. The boy shrank back immediately, not daring to move again.
Lucy stared down at the eyeball soup, fighting her gag reflex.
Feeling the woman's oppressive stare, Lucy grabbed her stomach dramatically, groaning. "M-my stomach hurts! I can't eat another bite—"
The woman's face hardened. "Eat. Even if you die from it, you'll finish your meal! Otherwise—" she sneered, "—you'll spend all tomorrow in solitary with no food!"
It's just an illusion anyway, Lucy thought grimly. Maybe it won't even last that long.
She straightened up, defiant. "Fine. Lock me up, then."
Every child at the table froze, their faces going pale. They trembled uncontrollably, staring at her with wide, terrified eyes.
"Very well." The woman's lips twisted into a grotesque smile. "Since you insist—let's go now."
She grabbed Lucy's arm with inhuman strength and dragged her out of the dining hall.
But the moment they crossed the threshold—
The hand clutching Lucy vanished.
"Huh?" Lucy blinked, spinning around. Inside, the woman still sat at the table, sternly watching the children, as if nothing had happened.
"So… everything inside that room was just part of the illusion?" she murmured, her chest heavy with unease. Her mind went to the frightened boy and the crying girl.
Did they… know?
A shiver suddenly crawled up her spine.
Lucy turned stiffly—and found that same monstrous head, grinning wide, inches from her face.
"Big sister! Don't leave me~!"
Snap!
Lucy jumped back, feeling a chill on her head. Golden strands of her hair fluttered to the ground—it had bitten them off!
"My hair!!!" she cried, clutching the uneven ends.
Without another thought, she turned and sprinted.
"Why won't you just go away?!" she shouted, half crying. "When does this illusion end already?!"
Then—her shoulder grew ice-cold. A small, dark-blue baby had crawled onto her, its face corpse-pale, eyes pitch-black and lifeless.
It grinned, voice soft and eerie: "Fifteen minutes left. Time's running out."
Lucy's pupils shrank. Her blood turned to ice.
"Eeeeeeeeeeeek!!"
She swung her fist back instinctively—felt something cold fly off—and ran even faster, tears streaming down her face.
"Couldn't you just say it normally instead of scaring me half to death?!" she wailed.
Snap!
The sound of teeth clashing echoed behind her. She dove forward, barely dodging another bite.
"It's getting faster?! That's not fair!"
Her lungs burned; she could hardly breathe. A terrifying thought crossed her mind.
"What happens if I die here?!"
From the darkness behind came a child's chilling laugh. "Then you'll stay here forever—with us—until it all ends!"
"Come on! Take my place! Let it eat you instead!"
"Never!!!" Lucy roared, pushing her body past its limits.
The corridor stretched endlessly ahead, looping like a nightmare with no exit.
Her legs grew heavy; her chest throbbed with pain. Just when she thought she'd collapse, a corner appeared ahead.
She stumbled around it, nearly falling, and came to a stop.
The chasing sounds—vanished.
Lucy gasped, panting heavily. She leaned on the wall for support, trembling all over.
"Haaah… haaah… I-I can't anymore… my legs… are gonna fall off…" she groaned, voice hoarse. "I must've run for twenty minutes already! Why isn't it over yet?!"
She crouched, rubbing her aching calves and ankles, utterly exhausted.
"Running without being able to fight back is the worst…!" she muttered between breaths. "But… why didn't it keep chasing me?"
She raised her head cautiously, scanning the corner—then froze.
Her hand was pressed against a wall-mounted oil painting—of a little girl holding a ragged doll, sitting quietly in a chair.
"Was this painting here before…?" Lucy whispered. An uneasy feeling crawled over her.
She tried to pull away—but her body wouldn't move.
"What the—?! I'm stuck?!"
It was like invisible glue held her in place, half-crouched, palm on the wall.
"Again?! What now?!" Lucy cried in frustration.
Then she noticed something—the girl in the painting was no longer sitting.
"Wait—she was sitting before, right?! Why is she standing now?!"
The background music deepened, distorting until each note pulsed in time with Lucy's terrified heartbeat.
"Why can't I look away?!" she whimpered. Her eyelids fluttered uncontrollably.
Every blink made the painting change—becoming darker, bloodier, more twisted.
The girl's white dress was now soaked in red.
Her doll's neck cracked and turned on its own, its hollow eyes staring straight at Lucy.
Its mouth tore open into a hideous grin, glowing faint red inside its sockets.
"This is bad—really bad—" Lucy's scalp prickled, her heart pounding like crazy.
She couldn't move—just watched as the image grew clearer, closer—
Until the frame was empty.
Her heart dropped.
At that exact moment, the invisible force holding her vanished.
"Run!!"
She spun around—
And came face-to-face with the girl from the painting.
The child stood right there, staring up at her with lifeless, jerking eyes. Half her lips were gone, showing teeth and shredded flesh.
"Now…" she rasped, voice like sandpaper, "it's my turn to eat you."
Lucy's heart froze solid. She didn't even have time to scream before the girl's jaw began to open—
Wider and wider, until it was impossibly large—larger than Lucy's entire head, a black pit lined with blood and torn flesh.
"Wait—no!!!" Lucy screamed, eyes squeezed shut, arms raised to block her face, bracing for pain—
But it never came.
The air twisted—and the crushing pressure, the stench, all vanished.
Instead, she smelled something familiar.
Food. Ale. And… home.
The noisy, cheerful sound of Fairy Tail's guild hall burst into her ears.
—belamy20