Previously on Horror Game Developer: My games aren't that scary!...
Osvald pushes himself to his limits, enduring excruciating pain as his nodes crack in a desperate attempt to slow down the Butcher. Though he only manages to impede its attack, he urges the Team Leader to proceed toward the Conductor. As the Team Leader closes in, the Conductor seems to watch with amusement, and the Butcher's attack continues relentlessly.
The instant the melody permeated the air, a transformation occurred. The Butcher's relentless assault began to falter, its movements growing sluggish once more.
A violin now cradled in his hands, the Conductor’s haunting tune started to weave its way through the atmosphere.
Osvald experienced an immediate sense of liberation in his own nodes, finding he could finally draw a proper breath. Yet, he understood the need for continued vigilance. Retreating several paces, he maintained his intense focus on the myriad eyes that encircled the entire chamber, each pair blinking in eerie synchronicity, accompanied by a wet, guttural sound with every open and close.
"Haa... Haa..."
Osvald's breathing remained ragged as he fixated on the completely immobilized Butcher. He could sense, alongside the Conductor's music and his actions, that the Butcher was battling against an unseen force.
Adding to the unsettling atmosphere was a soft, disembodied giggling that echoed through the space.
A surge of thought coursed through Osvald as he glanced toward the Team Leader, whose complexion had turned alarmingly pale. It was evident that exerting control over such an anomaly was taxing his nodes severely. Nevertheless, through their combined efforts, they had succeeded in fully immobilizing the Butcher, preventing any further actions.
Observing the precarious situation, a flicker of avarice briefly crossed Osvald's eyes as he contemplated the subdued Butcher. Now that it was restrained, could they eliminate it? Could they exploit this opportunity...?
Osvald forcefully banished these thoughts, redirecting his complete attention to the Butcher before him. Tipping his head back slightly, his gaze drifted upwards, drawn to the delicate fissures beginning to materialize in the very fabric of space.
Without hesitation, Osvald reached into his pocket, retrieving a communicator. He swiftly sent a message, confident that the rupture in the Gate would ensure its transmission. And indeed, his confidence was soon rewarded...
*Click!*
The message traversed the void the instant it was dispatched.
His eyes gleamed with renewed energy as he redirected his focus back to the Butcher. Having successfully sent the message, a significant weight lifted from him. The moment the dungeon breached, he was absolutely certain...
This Butcher...
It was finished.
***
Just as Osvald had foreseen, his prediction held true.
From the very instant the fissures began to manifest around the Gate, the entirety of Malia Island felt the tremor.
*Rumble! Rumble!*
"What is occurring?"
"What’s happening? I'm receiving incredibly alarming readings from a distance. What on earth is going on?"
One by one, individuals began emerging from their quarters. All gazes converged in a single direction as a terrifying power started to emanate from that point, potent enough to raise the hairs on their skin.
"Everyone, please proceed downstairs! Please move to the lower levels!"
It wasn't until a commanding voice boomed out that the collective movement began, people heading downstairs where several Section Chiefs awaited. Their countenances were etched with profound solemnity as they stared intently towards the source of the escalating energy.
"Is everyone present?"
Velrik stood before the assembled group, his imposing stature dominating the space. His normally immaculate beard appeared somewhat disheveled, a likely consequence of the situation's abruptness. He wore an expression of uncharacteristic seriousness as his gaze swept across the surroundings.
"I apologize for the hasty summons, but I trust everyone comprehends the gravity of the circumstances, correct?" His gaze briefly flickered towards the origin of the energy before returning to the group. "I have already alerted the BUA, but given the critical urgency, we have no alternative but to act immediately. Our primary objective is to ascertain the cause of this pressure and to evacuate the surrounding vicinity until reinforcements arrive. We are under strict orders not to engage with whatever is occurring until its nature is understood."
After delivering a few more concise instructions, he dismissed the assembly, each member then proceeding towards their respective Section Chiefs.
As Zoey approached Section Chief and Team Leader Soran, her eyes actively searched the vicinity for Seth, but he was nowhere to be found.
Eventually, her attention settled upon her sister, Catherine. She stood attentively before the Section Chief and the Team Leader. As if sensing Zoey's scrutiny, Catherine slowly turned her head, met her sister's gaze, and offered a gentle smile.
"What troubles you, Zoey?"
"...I was merely wondering about Seth's whereabouts. Have you happened to see him?"
"Seth...?"
Catherine's expression shifted almost imperceptibly. The change was so fleeting, lasting only a fraction of a second, yet it was enough for Zoey to notice, prompting her to raise an eyebrow.
A suspicion began to form in Zoey's mind, her own expression subtly altering. However, observing her sister, she quickly dismissed the thought, shaking her head.
"To be perfectly honest, I'm not certain. I haven't seen him either."
"So, he's gone then."
Zoey's lips pressed into a thin line. This felt rather suspicious. How could he have vanished so suddenly, only for a crisis of this magnitude to erupt? Was it mere coincidence? Zoey harbored doubts, but she logged the thought away for later consideration, especially as the Section Chief also appeared to have noted Seth's absence.
"Where is Seth? Did something befall him? Is he perhaps still in his room? Could someone check for me, please?"
"There is no necessity for that."
Unexpectedly, it was the Team Leader who interjected.
Her phone was then presented to the Section Chief.
"He sent a message earlier. Apparently, he went out with a member of the Cloud Reverence Guild and a Team Leader. From what I’ve gathered, they were investigating a certain lead, and..." The Team Leader’s gaze drifted toward the source of the energy before returning to the Section Chief. "I believe this might be related to what they discovered."
"Agh."
The Section Chief ran a hand through his hair, his eyes locked onto Soran’s phone as he grumbled, "I should have anticipated this... naturally, it’s connected to him. That fellow... he possesses the same talent for creating chaos as he does for resolving it."
Zoey pondered as the Section Chief let out a few more curses.
Eventually, however, he nodded and gestured for the group to follow.
"Let’s move. If the situation genuinely involves Seth, we must act swiftly before it escalates."
He set off immediately, the others close on his heels, their boots echoing on the pavement in a hurried cadence. The other teams mirrored this urgency, streaming into the streets and cutting through the night beneath the wavering lamplight.
The atmosphere intensified the nearer they approached, an intangible pressure bearing down on their skin and minds. They didn't have to travel far before a colossal building materialized before them, its darkened form subtly pulsing with that disquieting energy.
Coming to an abrupt halt, Velrik’s expression remained taut as he fixated on the structure. The other Section Chiefs shared his sentiment, each observing the edifice with profound unease. Now in close proximity, the sheer terrifying magnitude of the energy emanating from within was palpable.
A constricting force that seemed to penetrate their very cores.
"...This is approaching <A> rank."
A voice murmured, strained, as a small flashlight was produced and aimed at the building.
"Approaching <S> rank, it’s⎯"
Their words, and all other sounds, abruptly ceased as the countenances of everyone present transformed in an instant, the moment the light illuminated the structure. Delicate, warped fissures began to spiderweb across its surface, distorting it unnaturally as if an internal force was pushing outwards.
A faint, almost imperceptible creaking sound followed, the air growing heavier with each passing second as the fractures widened.
Gazing at the distant edifice, Velrik retrieved his phone and raised it to his ear.
"Dispatch more personnel. This situation... It’s more severe than I had anticipated."
