The tormentor's eyes widened in horror as my hands moved once again, one gripping his head, the other reaching deep into his chest.
-CRUNCH!
I felt a small sensation of the heart shattering in my grip, its warmth fading instantly, blood spilling over my fingers, soaking them with it.
-CRACK!
The snap of his neck broke the silence, and then his head tore away from his body.
-Thud!
His lifeless body collapsed to the ground, a crimson pool spreading around it.
My mouth opened again, a cold, detached voice spilling out with words that weren't mine.
"How fragile you humans are, dying after just a little push. How utterly unamusing."
The voice continued, its tone tainted with a sinister satisfaction.
"But at least, something useful will come of your worthless form."
With a crazed gleam, my hands moved again, digging into the flesh of the man's leg, somewhere between his hip and knee.
-Rip.
The femur, thick and sturdy, tore free of his flesh, and a sickening red coated my hands as I pulled it out with a twisted fascination that didn't belong to me.
"Hehehe… a good harvest indeed."
The voice chuckled, an unsettling laugh that can leave anyone frozen in terror.
-SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH!
The femur twirled between my hands, my body playing with it as if it were a prize. Then, the voice began to chant, strange words dripping from my lips—a mantra I didn't recognize.
Slowly, a faint blue light glimmered in the center of the bone. It flickered at first, dim and uncertain, but gradually grew stronger, a glow of eerie power.
"This mana… so thin, barely worth noting," my mouth murmured, almost dismissively. "But it will do for now."
-Tak. Tak. Tak.
My feet moved without my will, stepping toward a door on the north-east side of the room.
-Click.
The lock turned, and the door swung open, revealing a long corridor bathed in mundane light—nothing like the stark white room I'd just left.
The walls were narrow, close enough that only two people could walk side by side, with dim bulbs casting a faint glow from the ceiling.
The endless stretch of hallway felt stifling, a sense of dread curling in my stomach with each step. But my body, moving under that twisted influence, kept walking, seemingly unaffected by the passing of time.
It had already been quite a while since my body started moving, but there seemed to be no end to this long corridor.
How long has it been? Five minutes? Ten? Longer?
Finally, a large door came into view, different from the others. It wasn't white or ordinary; it was pitch black, exuding an aura that felt almost alive.
Thick, dark tape sealed it shut, wisps of black smoke rising from it.
[What is this place?]
But even as I questioned, my body had already begun to work, trying to dismantle the seal.
"Heh… What secrets are you hiding in there? Let's find out, shall we?"
Even after trying for a while, the seal refused to yield, which seemed to irritate the thing controlling my body.
So, my hand raised the glowing femur and swung it toward the door.
-Crash!
The door, along with the seal, shattered, its pieces scattering inward.
-Tak.
I stepped inside.
Clean.
A eerily clean room with no dust and no sign of disrepair greeted me.
A large bookshelf stood against one wall, filled with thick volumes, each spine well-worn. A small, single-person table sat nearby, with a notepad resting on top. Next to it was another table, covered with strange equipment—tools, vials, something that looked like a microscope.
In the corner, a small bed lay tucked against the wall, as if someone had once used this room as a place to work... and to rest.
The aura of the room was mysterious, like that of a novel scene.
After scanning the room for a while, my body moved, its focus on the notepad, flipping through its pages with a look of slight curiosity.
While my body was flipping through the pages of the notepad, my attention was grabbed by something else.
A book.
In the air, floating just above the desk, was a book, bathed in a warm, golden light.
[The Fallen Worlds]
Its title glowed faintly.
[What is this?]
I questioned, but no answer came.
[But why isn't it shifting its attention towards it?]
My mind reeled as I realized the entity controlling my body didn't even seem aware of the book's existence. Its focus remained fixed on the notepad, oblivious to the otherworldly glow mere inches away.
[Looks like... can't see it.]
Knowing whatever entity controlling my body can't see the golden book somewhat relieved me.
[Let's try to... get the book.]
Even though I knew I couldn't move, I focused with every ounce of will I had, trying to reach out to the golden book.
Grrrnn…
A sound escaped me, a faint groan of effort, but nothing happened.
My attempts were futile; I can't move. I was imprisoned on the other side of the wall inside my own body.
[So... this is the end for me.]
Resigned, I let out a sigh of despair as my sense of self was gradually fading.
-SWOOSH!
But then, to my shock, the golden book moved, drawn to me. It flew forward and vanished into my chest, absorbed into my body.
My body didn't react at all; the entity controlling me seemed completely unaware of what had just happened.
The voice laughed suddenly, breaking the silence.
"Ahahaha! So, this is how it is! Hahaha!"
A twisted laughter echoed with a dark, menacing thrill.
"So this is how it is," it sneered, swinging the femur in the air before slamming it down onto the notepad.
-Crash!
The book tore in two, the blue light searing through the paper, leaving nothing but charred remnants that quickly dissolved into ash.
"Now... you can go to s—"
It said something, but its voice was cut off, the words dissolving into a murmur as the world around me began to fade.
My mind drifted into darkness, pulling away from reality.
And as my consciousness faded, I was left with one last, desperate question.
[Am I finally dying?]