Fear flowed through Rio's veins like a cold poison, paralyzing his being. Each breath seemed to open a door to past nightmares—nightmares in which X, the faceless god with his terrifying hexagonal eyes, emerged from the shadows and threatened to kill his father. Rio was terrified that if he spoke a word, if he lost control for a moment, X would appear again and this time destroy not only him but everyone. Before Valentina's focused eyes, which searched his being like two icy blades, he had no choice but silence.
The bloodstained knife in Valentina's hand, still gleaming in the faint light, seemed to slice not just the boar but the truth itself. Rio closed his mouth, held his breath, and stared at Valentina with eyes full of terror.
Valentina looked at him for a moment, her turquoise eyes like a deep, deadly lake, as if trying to extract Rio's hidden secrets.
But without a word, she sat back on the low stool and plunged the knife into the boar's flesh. The sound of cutting skin and bone echoed in the cold, frozen room like a sinister wail tearing through the silence. She was silent for a while until, without raising her head, she said in a sarcastic tone:
"Conscience? Dreams? Mercy? fool William didn't teach you anything!"
Her words hit Rio's face like a slap. His heart pounded with fear and anger, but his legs, as if knowing they had to flee, pulled him back. With trembling steps and a pale face, he left the cold, blood-soaked room and sought refuge in the castle's dark corridors. He gripped his wounded hand tightly, as if trying to keep himself from collapsing. He didn't know his destination—he just wanted to escape this eerie castle, Valentina's gazes, and the shadow of X. He had to reach his family, to make sure they were alive. That was the only thought swirling in his chaotic mind.
Minutes later, in the middle of a dark corridor with cracked stone walls and cobwebs hanging like gray curtains, he ran into Ayhan. Ayhan, half-naked and sweating, his body still panting from morning training, looked at him with surprise.
"Rio you're awake? How are you?"
Rio tried to gather his thoughts, but his mind was consumed with fear. He was certain Valentina knew something—maybe not everything, but an idea of X had formed in her mind of the secret Rio was hiding with all his being. Valentina's gaze, those cold eyes, had seemed to pull the truth from the depths of his soul. Without responding, he hurried past Ayhan with quick steps, as if he hadn't seen him. He had to find Nadia. He had to get out of this cursed castle.
In the twisting corridors, the smell of dampness and decay followed him like a shadow. But suddenly, Nadia's familiar voice reached his ears from the kitchen. He rushed toward the sound and entered the kitchen, where the strange blue light of the furnace cast eerie shadows on the stone walls.
Nadia stood beside Zelina with a cold, focused expression, while Zelina, with her shining blue eyes and an enthusiastic smile, was talking. Upon seeing Rio, Zelina's face lit up with excitement, and she shouted loudly:
"Rio why didn't you tell me you weren't alone? This is awesome!"
At that moment the sound of Ayhan's heavy footsteps, who had now run through the corridors to reach the kitchen echoed.
In a voice full of concern, he said:
"Rio what happened back there? Why aren't you answering me?"
Zelina seeing Ayhan, grew even more excited and shouted: "Why didn't that damn old woman tell me everything?"
Some time later, the kitchen with its old wooden table and the smell of fried meat, became filled with noise for a moment. They all sat around the table, and Zelina, as if unable to contain her excitement, placed plates full of eggs and fried meat in front of them. Rio, with eyes full of anxiety, looked around. The presence of so many strangers, from the passionate Zelina to Ayhan, seemed to stir a storm in his mind. He couldn't focus—not on the food, not on the conversations, not on Zelina's smiles. He could only think of Valentina, that icy gaze, the question that had pierced his heart like a dagger.
Rio's chaotic thoughts had reached their peak when the sound of Valentina's quiet footsteps echoed in the corridor. She entered the kitchen, with a tired face and eyes that seemed to hide something dark, sat on a wooden chair by the table, and while staring at Rio, said in a soft voice:
"Have you kids met my apprentice?"
Before anyone could respond, Zelina shouted loudly:
"I'm thrilled to meet you! I'm Zelina, a hundred and ninety-five years old, I love roasted chicken, and my favorite color is white!"
Her childlike and strange enthusiasm, like an unexpected breeze, briefly broke the heavy atmosphere. Nadia and Ayhan looked at each other, as if unsure how to handle this energy. Nadia, in a cold and indifferent tone, said:
"I'm Nadia."
Ayhan with a kind smile added:
"I'm Ayhan. My favorite color is black."
A strange atmosphere prevailed for a moment. They all began eating breakfast, but silence returned like a sinister shadow. Zelina was eager to talk, but Valentina's focused and mysterious gaze, as if something dark was swirling in her mind, kept her quiet. Valentina, while tapping her fingers on the table with a slow, threatening rhythm, stared at Rio.
Her gaze, like a cold chain, pinned Rio to the chair. Her silence lasted so long that even Zelina, with her mouth full, couldn't bear it.
"Master is something wrong?"
Valentina without taking her eyes off Rio, said in a voice that seemed to come from the depths of an icy cave:
"These kids are tired. Take them to the hot spring. I think a bath would do them good."
Zelina, excited again, nodded and said with a wide smile:
"Absolutely!"
Some time later breakfast ended. Ayhan followed Zelina out of the kitchen, and Nadia stood up as well. But the heavy atmosphere between Rio and Valentina, like a silent storm, caught Nadia's attention. In a cautious tone, she asked:
"Is something wrong?"
Valentina turned her head and stared at Nadia. Her eyes, for a moment, were like a dark mirror with no emotion visible in them.
"I don't think so."
Nadia as if unconvinced by this response, hesitated for a moment, but then followed Zelina. Rio looked at Nadia. In his heart, he screamed that he needed her help, that they had to escape this castle, that Valentina knew something—maybe not everything, but enough to be dangerous. But Nadia, with that cold look and the distance she always kept, seemed to have built a wall between them. Rio remained silent because he knew Nadia would never reach out to him. This truth was etched in his mind like an old wound.
Now only he and Valentina remained in the kitchen. The sound of Valentina's fingers tapping on the table filled the space like a sinister heartbeat. Rio, with a heart trembling with fear, didn't dare raise his head. Valentina suddenly said in a soft but threatening voice:
"I think you could use a bath too, don't you?"
Rio caught off guard by this remark, said in a trembling voice:
"What?"
Valentina stood up, her stature in the blue light of the furnace seeming more immense. A smile appeared on her lips, but it was not kind—rather, like the smile of a wolf that had cornered its prey. She extended her hands toward Rio.
"Come. I promise it'll be worth it."
The air was heavy, like the moment before thunder. Valentina's gaze, now like two black holes sucking Rio's soul, paralyzed him. The howling of the storm from the windows, like the scream of a forgotten world, echoed in the background. Rio, with eyes full of terror and a trembling body, didn't know where his next step would lead—to salvation or into the depths of the nightmare he was fleeing.