23:21 – Nicco's Study

  The figure was still there.

  Smiling.

  Motionless.

  Inhuman.

  Kali and Dahlia couldn't stop staring at it, though Nicco couldn't see a thing. But still, he believed them—not because of logic, but because of how their hands trembled.

  "Hey... look at me," Nicco said gently, walking over to the curtains. "It's okay. You don't have to keep looking at it."

  Without another word, he drew the heavy velvet curtains shut. The room fell into a warm dimness, shielding them from the shadows outside. Then he approached and took both of their hands.

  "It's done. It can't hurt you from out there," he said with a calm smile. "And if it gets in... we zap it like the last one. Easy."

  Kali let out a soft laugh. Dahlia, too, though more timidly.

  "How about we eat something?" he added. "No monster can kill my craving for pasta."

  00:07 – Dining Room

  Dinner was simple: pasta with homemade sauce, garlic bread, fresh lemonade. Enrique, as always, came and went without much noise, but missed nothing.

  Nicco kept the mood light. He told a ridiculous story about the time he tried to sneak into an old library dressed as a priest to avoid a fine. Dahlia nearly spit out her water. Kali couldn't stop laughing.

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  "And did it work?" she asked, still giggling.

  "No! They ended up blessing me and kicking me out at the same time," he said, mimicking an exorcism—"'Out, demon of cardless knowledge!'"

  Little by little, the tension faded. Laughter swept away what fear had left behind. At last, the weight of the past few days began to lift.

  01:22 – Bedrooms

  Night had fully fallen.

  Kali went with Nicco without saying a word. They only exchanged glances, and he offered his hand. She took it.

  Dahlia locked herself in her room, still thinking about the figure at the window, though exhaustion weighed heavier than fear. She took off her boots, slid into bed, and closed her eyes.

  But the rest would not be true rest.

  Only the body slept. The mind... went elsewhere.

  Kali's Dream

  Darkness. Ash in the air.

  And her, standing in the middle of a battlefield.

  She didn't scream. She didn't run. She just walked.

  All around her, men, beings, shadows hurled themselves at her. And all it took was a touch. A brush. A caress—and they fell dead. As if her mere presence carried death.

  But she felt no rage. Only... duty.

  As if she knew exactly what she was doing. As if this was what she was meant to do.

  Then, through the fog... she saw Dahlia.

  Dahlia's Dream

  Shadows. Thousands.

  And she, at the front of them. Tall, commanding, like a queen of the impossible.

  Her army was dark, silent, obedient. She didn't need to speak. Just think.

  And when she did, they moved—like a wave.

  The battle wasn't chaos. It was art. And amid the storm... she saw her.

  Kali.

  Their eyes met. Neither was surprised. It was as if they had always known they were on the same side. In the same war.

  Allies. Companions. Reflections.

  They took each other's hand.

  And in that moment, their powers fused.

  Dahlia's army grew more deadly. Denser. The shadows took on a red glow, like ancient blood. Every creature they touched... collapsed without a scream.

  It was perfect.

  It was terrifying.

  And it was only the beginning.

  Meanwhile, in the mansion...

  The night remained still.

  But a cold draft passed through the hallways. A breeze that came from no window, no door. As if something... was feeling them.

  Because now that they had dreamed together, something had been activated.

  Something was watching them.

  And there was no turning back.