Const Orphanage 27

"Zzz—Zzz—Zzz—"

The grating, irritating noise was crystal clear to him, the sound of fingernails fumbling on the wooden door. They were outside—the Georgewills! Elvira cautiously pressed his eye to the crack in the door, spying on the activity outside.

Through the slim gap, he was shocked to see two small eyes staring back at him! The eyes moved agilely, the pupils full and glossy as if dancing in their sockets!

Elvira quickly averted his gaze, breathing rapidly. He felt like a toy being mocked, threatened, and played with on the other side of the door. His eyes landed on the masks in the display case, sparking an idea.

Recalling Altair's silver half-face mask, adorned with two diamonds at the eye corners that had once commanded respect from the Georgewills, perhaps now he could use this mask to assume the identity of a more distinguished guest.

"Zzz—Zzz—Zzz—"

The spine-chilling noise continued, the Georgewills' taunting not yet over.

Elvira took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves. He pressed his body tightly against the door crack, intentionally making weak whimpering sounds, pretending to be scared.

Under the dim light of his phone, he carefully examined the masks before him, looking for the one adorned with two diamonds at the corners.

......

Altair gazed at the staircase before him, each step narrow and sinister, with its spiraling structure hiding the end in thick darkness, making it impossible to see what lay beyond.

He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath, trying to discern more clues from the air. The distinct scent of birch trees emanating from Elvira was recognizable, along with two identical, foul, fishy odors, indicating they had entered the stairwell one after the other.

One of these smells was left by Georgewill, who entered the stairwell later. The other, equally bizarre and nauseating scent, had entered before Georgewill. It must have been tracking Elvira. But who could it be?

Altair slowly stepped into the dark stairwell.

...

Found it!

Elvira abruptly reached out, grasping the mask firmly, just about to place it on his face—

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Loud knocking sounds, almost deafening, as if countless hammers were furiously pounding on the wood.

Bang—

The wooden panel could no longer withstand the force, breaking apart to reveal large holes. Through these gaps, four long arms snaked into the storage room, writhing in the air like giant pythons. They spread out, attempting to capture Elvira in one swift motion.

Leaning against the door crack, Elvira tried to block Georgewill's line of sight. However, the cramped space of the storage room made his movements difficult. Soon, the room was filled with Georgewill's arms.

Elvira gripped the mask tightly, bowing his head to put it on.

Three inches, two inches, one inch—

Just as Elvira was about to place the silver half-face mask on his face, a hand shot out towards him, forcefully grabbing his wrist. Another hand swiped the mask away.

The mask traced an arc in the air before falling to the floor.

At this moment, the wooden board, under the violent force of Georgewill's strike, broke in half and scattered on the ground. Two creatures struggled through the narrow door crack, their bodies so close they almost fused into one.

They looked down at Elvira, like two massive worms crawling in from the door, a sight chilling to the bone. They stared at Elvira, mouths twisted into a grin, emitting a deep, ominous laugh.

"Join us!"

"Join us!"

"Join us!"

Elvira sat on the ground, inching backward. With the dim light from his phone, he saw their eerie and frightening appearances and gazes. He quickly pulled out a flying knife, pressing it against his carotid artery, and coldly threatened, "Back off! Or I'll kill myself!"

"You'll lose the chance to learn to read!"

"Back off! Now!" Elvira shouted with authority.

"We'll back off, but you have to agree to our terms," the two Georgewills said, shaking their heads.

"If you don't leave, I'll kill myself right now!" Elvira stated without hesitation. After speaking, the flying knives moved an inch closer to his carotid artery, the sharp blade nicking his neck, and hot blood began to flow.

The two Georgewills didn't move; they just stared fixedly at Elvira's face, trying to discern a trace of fear or vulnerability.

However, Elvira's gaze was as hard as iron, showing no sign of fear. His eyes blazed with a fire that seemed capable of burning away all demons and ghosts. In that moment, a silent, tense standoff ensued.

Suddenly, the two Georgewills leaned forward abruptly, almost pressing their faces against Elvira's. They wriggled like millions of worms across his face, closely observing every muscle, not missing any slight expression.

After a moment of deadlock, the two Georgewills stepped back. The dim light shone through the gap they left.

Seizing the moment, Elvira sat up and crawled forward a step.

"Back off!" he shouted commandingly.

He fumbled for the mask that had fallen to the ground, never taking his eyes off the Georgewills. Carefully, he reached behind with his other hand, swiftly swapping the mask in his pocket with the one on the ground while they were distracted.

Their efforts to prevent him from donning the diamond-studded mask surely meant it was advantageous to him! They must be bound by rules as well!

The Georgewills slowly backed away, very reluctantly. They grumbled internally as they retreated, as if protesting.

Elvira slowly stood up from the ground, boldly facing the Georgewills. He needed to devise a way to divert their attention to have a chance to wear the mask. His mind raced with ideas.

At that moment, a cold and stern voice broke the deadlock.

"What are you doing?"

The two Georgewills sharply turned their heads, their bodies creating a step's distance between them.

Elvira seized their moment of distraction, quickly pulling out the silver half-face mask from his pocket and deftly placing it on his face with one hand!

As he looked up, through the gap between the Georgewills, he saw Altair standing not far away:

He stood amidst the bizarre creatures, his gaze deep and serene.

Like the ice of the far north, it was his crown under the moonlit night, frosty yet dazzling.