The Eldritch Files

Han Su was escorted by a group of armed personnel. They left the Public Security Bureau and took him in a windowless vehicle to a gloomy and oppressive-looking building complex. He was then placed in a room made entirely of black metal.

He was very cooperative throughout the entire process. After all, when you’re surrounded by so many people with guns, it’s best to keep your temper in check.

But his mind hadn’t stopped for a moment. ’What exactly does this so-called Abnormal Disaster Assessment and Management Bureau do?’

’And what’s the identity of the person who made the final call on this? Why could his single word make the Disaster Management Bureau ignore our kidnapping case from all those years ago, ignore all the children who have gone missing since?’

’Among the missing children, many of their parents were influential. Are they being kept in the dark, or have some of them already taken on a certain role in all this?’

...

He couldn’t find any immediate answers, but Han Su felt a faint sense of joy and excitement. This was a feeling he’d never had during his many fruitless investigations in the past.

For the first time, he felt like he was getting close to something.

Another thing was that he couldn’t help but reach up and touch his right eye. The sensation he’d felt when facing the Ghost Truck was both novel and thrilling. The strange feeling of Spiritual Power flowing from his right eye was like opening the door to a new world.

Even though Black Rose had warned him that using this power seemed to come at a price, he still wanted to try it again.

’Setting aside her lack of professionalism, my life is already such a wreck. What else is there to lose?’

He was more concerned with how to use this Mysterious Power, how to harness it, and whether it was possible to use it to accomplish something when he returned to the Ancient Castle...

Of course, those were just thoughts. With two glaring camera lenses staring down at him from the ceiling, he had to restrain himself for the time being.

Another point was that when Song Chushi had first given him the Spell, Han Su had actually wanted to use it to prove to the disbelievers that he had indeed come into contact with those mysterious things.

But Zhang Chiguo’s words had reminded him that since ”someone” had made a final call on the matter, proving himself was no longer important.

Their disbelief probably wasn’t because they had doubts, but because they were intentionally choosing not to believe him.

In this situation, hiding himself was the wisest course of action.

Having spent so long playing hide-and-seek with those behemoths in the Ancient Castle, he understood all too well the importance of staying in the shadows.

Even after carefully analyzing the current situation, he knew he was more or less under the spotlight, so hiding was out of the question. Still, being able to keep a part of himself in the dark was a good thing.

’Forget it. I should get some proper sleep first...’

Heaving a long sigh, he lay down on the mattress of the small bed.

Although it was a metal room, and although it was small with a locked door, making it look a bit like a prison cell, the furnishings were surprisingly nice. There was even a full set of toiletries.

So much had happened in one day that, for the first time since his escape, Han Su felt like he could actually get a peaceful night’s sleep.

’I just hope this step I’ve taken can help me get more important intel. I hope I can get some information that will give me a better chance the next time I have to go back to the Ancient Castle and face those monsters...’

The next day, when Han Su opened his eyes, he saw that the metal door to his room was already open.

The woman in the black suit was standing at the door, holding a file. She said flatly, ”Get up and wash. I’ll arrange for someone to bring you breakfast. At nine in the morning, someone will take you to a location. As long as you pass the test there, you can enter the training program.”

Without waiting for a reply, she turned and walked away, the sound of her high heels CLICK-CLACKING on the floor, leaving the newly awakened Han Su staring blankly.

All he could say was, the breakfast was good. There was sausage, eggs, and milk.

After breakfast, two armed guards came and took Han Su to a spacious room. The walls were covered in black sound-absorbing foam, making it look like a professional recording studio.

And yet, several very expensive speakers were mounted on the walls.

Han Su was sure the speakers were expensive because he had seen them in one of Xu Ji’s houses.

There was nothing on the bare floor except for a single chair placed in the very center. The people who brought Han Su over led him to the chair, had him sit down, and then left the room.

”In a moment, you will hear some sounds.”

Suddenly, the voice of the woman in the black suit came from the speakers. ”I need you to listen carefully. Listen intently.”

”It doesn’t matter if you don’t understand. But you must try your best to comprehend the meaning behind the words.”

”You need to try to both understand the meaning of the words and see if you can remember some of the syllables. Try to repeat those syllables.”

”If you experience any discomfort, raise your hand immediately!”

”And remember, do not try any clever tricks. This determines whether you can join the Disaster Management Bureau... or, to put it another way, whether you can ever return to normal society.”

...

’If I can’t understand them, how am I supposed to comprehend their meaning?’

Han Su was actually filled with questions, but he was facing a sheet of black glass on the wall. From inside the room, he couldn’t see out at all, yet he had the faint feeling that many people were watching him from behind it.

So he just nodded calmly and said, ”Understood.”

Meanwhile, on the other side of the one-way glass, Zhang Chiguo was also watching Han Su inside the room, feeling an inexplicable sense of worry.

The armed security personnel next to him were technically there to protect him, but now, he found them somewhat dangerous.

But things had already come this far, and there was nothing he could do. He could only let out a soft sigh and say:

”Start the playback.”

After the staff outside initiated the procedure, Han Su heard a CRACKLE of static from the surrounding speakers. Immediately after, an ancient and mysterious sound began to fill the room.

It was supposed to be a language, possessing the unique intonation, cadence, and rhythm of speech.

But to the ear, it sounded more like noise, because it induced a strange sense of irritation and discomfort.

Crucially, the sounds were very unclear, accompanied by some kind of moaning and screaming, the sound of splattering flesh and blood, and even the sounds of distant collisions and shouts.

With such expensive audio equipment, the realism was overwhelming. For a moment, he thought he had been transported to another world, as if he were surrounded by a crazed and bizarre environment.

Even the thoughts in his mind began to run wild, and it was as if a scene flashed before his eyes.

It was the scene of the Pale Giant appearing in the world, the one he saw the first time he recited the Spell.

It was the scene of tattered people using rusty car chassis, abandoned oil drums, and naked women, gathered around a telephone pole wrapped in barbed wire, making a sacrifice to some God...

’What is this?’

Han Su suddenly furrowed his brow, feeling waves of discomfort wash over him.

This kind of sound triggered a subconscious instinct to get away. By listening so intently, he felt he had drawn too close to it, and the feeling was extremely uncomfortable.

But the sound wouldn’t let him go. It grew from a low hum to a roar, as if coming from far away to right beside him, slowly engulfing him from all directions.

Han Su hadn’t yet discerned any specific words or understood any of the sounds within, but as the noise grew louder, he was suddenly struck by a sense of familiarity.

He waited patiently, and when that particular sound appeared again, his heart trembled slightly. He was instantly certain:

’That’s it!’

It was a sound he had heard before, many times. Even if he didn’t know its meaning, he could tell from its style that it was the language spoken by one of the monsters involved in the kidnapping in the Dark Bunker.

’How could the Disaster Management Bureau have a recording of a language spoken by a monster from the Dark Bunker?’

”Hm?”

Outside the one-way window, Zhang Chiguo, who had been staring at his expression, suddenly grew tense.

’Did I make the right choice coming here?’

Inside the room, just as Han Su was finding his own impulse hard to believe, his vision suddenly went black. It was followed by two instances of Flashing, then returned to normal.

But Han Su intuitively felt that something around him had changed.

His eyes flew open, and he stared intently. Three seconds, six seconds, ten seconds...

The Flashing happened again, like a faulty light bulb.

At that moment, a chill ran down Han Su’s spine, but it was overshadowed by a sense of disbelief. ’It’s happening again?’

’There was about half a month between the last kidnapping and the one before, but this time? It’s only been a day since I escaped. Not even twenty-four fucking hours, and I’m going to be kidnapped again?’

’How can this be?’

’Did the interval really just drop to zero?’

’It shouldn’t be this fast...’

...

Around him, the strange, irritating sounds were fading away rapidly, as if separated from him by a thick barrier.

Han Su could feel the temperature behind him suddenly plummet.

It was as if a giant void had opened up behind him.

Distant, deep, and icy cold.

Like a person in space, gazing at the star-filled cosmos, only to have a vast, endless black hole at their back.

Everything real around him—the carpet, the chair, the walls, the speakers—seemed to be losing its solidity, twisting and blurring into indistinct halos of light.

TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK

Accompanied by the clear and intricate sound of an old clock’s mechanical gears turning, Han Su felt as if he could see a gaze from a distant place drawing ever closer. Whispers filled with conspiracy and a sense of glee surrounded him, and his heart sank.

’It’s really fucking here...’