The 8th Ocular

Finally, we arrive at the Ocular's house. Given that her rank is higher than Mirayuki's, I expected a grand mansion—a towering estate adorned with gothic spires, perhaps. But instead, before us stands a modest wooden cabin, nestled within a small clearing in the forest.

The place looks both unassuming and eerie. Thorny ivy coils around the walls, its dark vines creeping like grasping fingers. A stone chimney releases a thin wisp of smoke, the only sign of life in this otherwise unsettling landscape. The real spectacle, however, lies in the garden—if it can even be called that. Mutated vegetables twist and writhe as though alive: giant carrots with blinking eyes and jagged teeth, while bulbous tomatoes gurgle and ooze red, slimy substance from grotesque mouths. The sight alone makes me question whether these things are truly edible—or if they might bite back.