Chapter 5: The Price of Truth: “Every truth uncovered brings you one step closer to the abyss.”
The morning light did little to soothe Praew's troubled mind. She had barely slept, her mind replaying the chilling conversation with the doll, *Kanya*. The words echoed in her head, haunting her thoughts, and no matter how hard she tried to distract herself, they wouldn't leave.
*Find the truth...*
Praew stared at her reflection in the bathroom mirror. Her eyes were bloodshot, dark circles lingering beneath them. The exhaustion was evident, but it wasn't the lack of sleep that made her look so worn—it was the weight of the curse pressing down on her chest, the relentless whispering that gnawed at the edges of her sanity.
She splashed cold water on her face, hoping it would clear her mind, but when she looked up again, she found the doll's eyes staring back at her from the countertop. She hadn't left it there, but there it was, perched on the edge of the sink as though it had moved on its own. The porcelain face was cracked now, the smile distorted, mocking her.
*Find the truth, Praew… You must find the ones who wronged me…*
She couldn't ignore it any longer. The whispers had grown louder over the past few days, a constant reminder that something was lurking in the shadows, just beyond her reach, waiting to be uncovered.
"Where do I even begin?" Praew whispered to her reflection, her voice trembling.
She grabbed the doll, its cold, lifeless form sending a shiver down her spine. The heat from her hand seemed to make it pulse, as though it were alive, feeding on her fear. The truth was out there, hidden somewhere in the tangled web of Kanya's past. But what if finding it meant digging into places she wasn't prepared to explore?
She needed answers.
The bell rang, signaling the start of her school day. Praew shoved the doll into her bag, trying to push the unease from her thoughts. She couldn't afford to let anyone see how much it had consumed her. Not yet.
As she walked through the school halls, her eyes darted nervously around her, her mind still focused on Kanya's cryptic words. *Find the truth...*
A sudden, unexpected voice broke her from her thoughts.
"Praew!" It was Meen, her best friend, rushing toward her with an excited grin.
"Hey, are you okay? You look like you haven't slept in days," Meen asked, concern evident in her voice.
"I'm fine," Praew lied, forcing a weak smile. "Just… you know, school stuff."
Meen raised an eyebrow. "Uh-huh. If you say so. But if you need to talk about anything, I'm here, you know?"
"Thanks, Meen," Praew replied softly, her gaze drifting to the door of the classroom. She didn't have the energy to explain, not now. Not when she had so many secrets weighing on her.
As the day wore on, Praew's mind never left the puzzle she had to solve. The truth that would set her free. But it was elusive—like chasing shadows in the dark. Her thoughts were consumed with the idea that the truth might be buried in the school's history, hidden from everyone's eyes for a reason.
After school, she didn't go home right away. Instead, she found herself standing outside the school's library, staring at the grand, old building as if the answers were hiding within its walls.
*The truth is here,* Praew thought. *I know it is.*
She walked inside, the smell of old books hitting her like a wave. She made her way to the back, where a dusty shelf of forgotten volumes stood, tucked away behind stacks of newer, more popular texts. She ran her fingers along the spines of the books, feeling the weight of history pressing against her.
Her eyes landed on a thick, leather-bound book, its cover worn and faded. She pulled it out and blew off the dust, revealing the title in faded gold lettering: *The History of the Forgotten Souls.* Her heart skipped a beat. This had to be it.
Praew opened the book carefully, each page crackling with age as she flipped through them. She wasn't sure what she was looking for, but she felt a pull, an undeniable urge to keep reading. The words blurred at first, but then she saw something—a mention of a girl named Kanya, a girl who had once attended this school, years before Praew's time.
She read on, her heart pounding in her chest. Kanya had been an orphan, abandoned by her family at a young age. She had come to the school in the hopes of starting over, but her story took a dark turn. She had been involved in a forbidden ritual—a pact made with an ancient spirit to gain power and escape her tragic fate. But the price was too high. The spirit betrayed her, trapping her soul in the form of the very doll that now haunted Praew.
As Praew continued to read, the chilling details of Kanya's betrayal unfolded. She had been promised freedom, but instead, she was cursed to live forever in the doll, forced to feed off the energy of those who touched it.
Her breath caught as she read the final sentence of the entry.
*"The curse can only be broken when the soul of the one who wronged her is bound to the doll, forced to give up what they hold most dear."*
Praew's blood ran cold. She knew what this meant. The truth she had been seeking had found her, but now it came with a terrible price. The curse was not just about Kanya's freedom—it was about her own.
She slammed the book shut, panic rising in her chest. She had to find a way to break the curse before it consumed her. But the deeper she went, the more entangled she became in Kanya's tragic past. Praew could feel the darkness closing in around her, suffocating her with each passing moment.
And with each whisper that grew louder, she knew that finding the truth was only the beginning. The real challenge was surviving it.
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The evening sky outside the library window darkened as Praew stood in the silence, feeling the weight of the curse heavy upon her. The truth had been uncovered—but now, she was no longer just searching for answers. She was fighting for her life.