William regained consciousness as if dragged from a watery grave.
Air returned to his lungs in small, painful bursts, and the cold water splashed on his face seeped into his bones like needles.
The first thing he saw…
The subordinate's face.
A face devoid of features, like a mask—lifeless, yet holding something terrifying in its eyes:
Pity.
In a quiet, almost casual voice, the man spoke:
"Listen, boy… you've chosen the worst possible ending. Unfortunately."
His words were a slow dagger.
He wasn't trying to frighten William—he was telling the truth.
Then the entire atmosphere warped into sound and echo when another voice reached him:
"Oh, how tender… how kind of you. Shall we share the pain with him, in honor of your feelings?"
Kaite emerged from the shadows.
He didn't walk forward; he slid into the light like a creature that didn't belong to this world.
His steps made no sound.
His smile carried no soul.
And his eyes… deep as coffee, staring straight into hell itself.
He stood above William, eyes hungry, tense, consuming the boy's fear before his blood.
That gaze alone could snap a child's bones from terror.
Kaite began dragging a table full of instruments.
The scraping sound of metal against stone shrieked like a faint human scream—as if the table itself knew what awaited it.
William's hand trembled.
His chest rose and fell at a terrifying speed.
Kaite bent down, his face so close that the warmth of his breath struck William's skin.
"Do you want to choose?"
He said it softly… inhumanly soft.
"Or… shall I choose for you? You have the right to know what all these nice little tools do."
William tried to summon courage:
"Who are you?!! What do you want from me, you bastard?!"
Kaite didn't frown at William's words…
They made him smile wider.
A smile with no meaning other than sadistic delight.
"I am your nightmare, boy."
He grabbed William's chin roughly, lifting it.
"My name is Kaite… and I will make you wish for death with every cell in your body. And you will not find it."
Then the demonstration began.
Instrument One: The Silver Harish
He lifted a slender, metallic creature that moved with a grotesque wriggle, as if seeking a hole to enter.
"This beauty enters your ear… chews a tiny piece of your brain… lays its eggs… and in two years, eats everything."
The creature bowed, almost as if greeting William.
Instrument Two: Skin-Eating Fish
He opened a box filled with scratches and rapid, jerky movements.
Something thrashed against the walls from the inside.
"This set attaches to everything… skin, flesh, bone… it doesn't matter. Every step is agony. Then it lives inside you… and emerges when nothing else is left to eat."
The box shifted slightly from a blow inside.
William shuddered.
Instrument Three: The Herb
The herb looked like a dry twig—but its thorns moved slowly, as if breathing.
"This one will make you hypersensitive… every touch—even the air—will flay you alive."
Kaite lifted his gaze and asked with a twisted grin:
"Is that enough?"
William could only whisper:
"You're… sick…"
The air between them dried up.
One word—enough.
A subordinate stepped forward:
"Sir, what about the girl? We captured the boy a day ago… surely they have her now."
William's heart stopped.
His limbs froze.
Cold knives pierced his chest.
He screamed with all his strength:
"Leave my sister alone, you dogs!!"
But fate did not allow him to finish his scream.
A punch.
The sound of something breaking inside him.
Blood exploded from his mouth.
Kaite advanced slowly, savoring every second.
He forced William's mouth open…
And thrust the herb in all at once.
Its thorns tore his throat from the inside.
The taste of blood mixed with pain.
Kaite pushed his jaw to close it.
"Swallow."
William tried to resist, but the pain forced him.
He swallowed blood… thorns… torn flesh.
Kaite sat before him, observing like a scientist watching a new lab experiment:
"We'll see soon… if your tongue remains as sharp as it was."
Then he sat, waiting for the herb's effect.
And William…
he knew.
What was coming would not be ordinary pain.
It would be torture on a level humanity could never comprehend.