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"IN THE NAME OF the father, the son, and the holy spirit. Amen," father Laurence prays before closing the bible that he was holding. He turned around to look at the people standing behind him, but he stopped and stared at a man who was staring at dirt being dumped inside the hole where a dead body could be found.

     Krimson, who had his face blank the entire time, has said nothing since the death of patient 01: Wednesday.

     Wednesday died last week, and they were only able to bury her today because Krimson wasn't letting them touch her. But after a couple of days, when they finally took her, Marcelino and the others were surprised to see that Wednesday looked better. Compared to the other patients who have died, Wednesday looked the most alive. It was unsettling and sad at the same time, but they could say anything about it because they were afraid that Krimson would start throwing a fit again and start biting people like a madman.

     Everyone waited as the hole was completely covered. When the nurses all went back to the manor, Laurence grabbed the wooden cross on the floor and stabbed it into the soil. Afterward, he stepped back and joined Marcelino, Adeline, Giovanni, and Krimson, staring at the number of graves that were now in front of them.

     "That was the last patient," Marcelino says in a soft tone. There was something about the way he said it that felt regretful. Despite not showing it, Marcelino felt something about those patients. Whether it was sadness or pity, having them buried six feet deep altered something inside him that would never be the same again.

     "It's over. This was the last one," Laurence then adds.

     Adeline, who has been holding onto an oil lamp, looks up at the sky and stares at the moon before letting a tear fall. Wednesday reminded Adeline of her mother, Valentina. Valentina was a beautiful woman but was eventually destroyed by his own father.

     Adeline was the sick product of that destruction, and when she was about nine years old, his grandfather started molesting her too. If Dr. Giovanni didn't find her, if he didn't take her away and brought her here, would she be the one buried six feet underneath now?

     "I'm sorry," Adeline suddenly whispers, making Marcelino and the others turn their heads to her.

     Adeline looks away from the moon and looks at the men standing beside her. As the tears stream down her face, she tells them, "I'm sorry...for being born."

     The moment Adeline says those words, Marcelino grabs the little girl and gives her a tight embrace. The anger he had for her had disappeared in an instant. Marcelino was reminded that Adeline was just a little girl who had experienced things too early. She experienced things that a child shouldn't have experienced at all.

     "It's okay," Marcelino comforts, holding onto Adeline as she starts sobbing loudly.

     Laurence takes a deep breath and reaches out to pat Adeline's head. "You're still a little brat, but you're just a kid. We're not cruel enough to hate on a kid, so stop crying," Laurence then says.

     While the three of them were making amends with each other, Krimson continued to stare at the graves in front of him. These graves contained people they interacted with. They were people who committed crimes that were born from hatred and anger. They were people just like them, but there they were now, in a completely different position than Krimson and the others were in.

    "Come with me, Dr. Giovanni," Krimson suddenly says, finally making Adeline and the others stop to look at them.

     Giovanni, who has been quiet since earlier, doesn't say anything and just nods his head. But before he could even follow Krimson, Adeline suddenly grabbed his hand to stop him.

     "Master...no..." Adeline begs, holding onto Giovanni's hand tight, almost as if she knew exactly what Krimson was planning. She wanted to stop him from leaving, but she knew well that holding onto him wouldn't be enough at all.

     So Giovanni smiles at the little one and then pats her head before pulling his hand away and following Krimson.

     Adeline tries to follow him, but Marcelino and Laurence grab onto her, stopping her from following the doctor who is getting ready to face his final fate.

...

"Hop in," Krimson says with a playful grin while holding the car door open for Giovanni.

     Giovanni stares at the car with an expressionless face before looking back at Krimson. "And where on earth are you bringing me at this hour? If you're planning to murder me at the forest, I'd rather walk."

     Krimson laughs but doesn't reply to what the doctor said, so Giovanni has no other choice but to sigh and head inside the car, sitting on the passenger seat as Krimson shut the door for him like the proper butler that he is.

     After grabbing the car keys from Marcelino earlier, Krimson headed inside the car as well and sat in the driver's seat. He adjusted the rearview mirror and then glanced back at Giovanni. "Sit tight," he says to him before turning the engine on and driving away.

     Giovanni wasn't sure where Krimson would bring him. In fact, he wouldn't even be surprised if Krimson decided to crash the car and kill both of them. But as Krimson continues driving away from the manor, Giovanni notices the route. He furrows his brows in confusion, unsure of what Krimson is planning to do. But when Krimson made a turn on a familiar street, he finally realized where they were going. Giovanni just couldn't help but be surprised that Krimson remembers all this despite being hidden away by Bishop.

     Now knowing where the alter is bringing him, Giovanni takes a deep breath and leans his head on his seat before looking out of the window. "The night is cold," he says before closing his eyes. "Just like last time."

     Krimson glances at the doctor but remains silent until they finally arrive at their destination. 

     Krimson steps out of the car first and opens the door for Giovanni. Giovanni opens his eyes and looks at Krimson before stepping out of the car as well. He takes a deep breath and then turns around to face the white mansion where his deceased parents once resided.

     "Why did you bring me here?" Giovanni asks.

    "You told Bishop that when you're both here, your relationship is more than master and butler, correct? Then let us talk here as equals. There is something I wish to tell you," Krimson explains, heading towards the mansion first and opening the door.

     Giovanni continues to stare at the mansion, not moving a single inch. Tomorrow was the town's anniversary, which also marks his mother's death anniversary. In this house, where he was forced to live by the Romanos, was where his mother was defiled and killed. Giovanni purposely avoids this place whenever the town's anniversary comes, so Krimson forcing him to come here is torture enough.

     "Come now," Krimson calls out as he enters the mansion, making Giovanni sigh and follow behind him.

     Like the first time Bishop came here, the mansion was empty and quiet. Krimson walks further inside, and then he turns around and asks him, "In the kitchen, that's where you fucked Bishop, correct?"

      "Why did you bring me here?" Giovanni asks instead, making Krimson grin.

     "Well, as this may be the last time where we can properly talk, I wanted to bring you to the place that started it all. I feel as though it would be very symbolic, don't you agree?" Krimson says before turning back to look at the doctor. "Now, where did they kill your mother?" He then asks.

     Giovanni clenches his fist and tries his best not to slap Krimson for asking such a question. But instead of doing such a thing, Giovanni takes another deep breath and walks towards a hallway that leads to a double door.

     Krimson was following behind him as Giovanni grabs the doorknob. He takes one last heavy breath before finally opening the door. He enters the room first, and then Krimson. Krimson was expecting to see a small clinic like what Giovanni described in his story, but when they got there, the room was completely empty.

     "William, my step-father, took all the items here to hide the evidence of their crime," Giovanni explains as if he was able to read what Krimson was thinking.

     Krimson looks around the room in silence before looking back at Giovanni.

     "It's strange how places like these remain while the people involved in it don't," Krimson explains as he walks towards the large window in the room that was covered with thick red curtains. When Krimson pulled the curtain, he was surprised to see that it was not a window at all, but a painting.

     It was a painting of Capo di Monte, similar to what Adeline drew at the manor.

     "My father bought that from a local painter in town. I placed it here as a reminder that my mother died because of his foolish love for what killed her," Giovanni explains, showing little to no emotions—emotions that Krimson was able to see through.

     While staring at the painting, Krimson says, "You say you want to destroy the town because it's something that your father loved. But let me ask you a question, Giovanni de Vincenzo. Do you not love anything?"

     "I am not capable of such a useless feeling," Giovanni answers with no hint of hesitation, making Krimson chuckle.

     "You know that's a lie, don't you?" Krimson asks, turning away from the painting to look back at Giovanni. "You say you are not capable, yet here we are. You didn't abandon the manor you grew up in. You didn't abandon the people your grandfather took as refugees. And you even took us in, giving us certain roles as if mimicking the past."

     "What are you implying?" Giovanni asks back, now clenching his fist because he wasn't pleased at where this conversation was going.

     "You say you hate your father, but the only reason you hate him is because you know that you are similar in more ways than one. Because like him...you love this town too. And it pains you that the town you love had betrayed you like this," Krimson reveals, leaving the doctor dumbfounded.

     "Are you saying these rediculous claims in hopes that I will back out from this plague?" Giovanni then asks, and this time, Krimson didn't laugh. He had this serious expression on him; an expression that was almost unrecognizable.

     "No, but I am giving you a choice," Krimson explains, making Giovanni furrow his brows in confusion.

    "You see Giovanni, in the past, we were given a choice too..." Krimson says as he turns away from him so he could look back at the painting again. "On Winter's tenth birthday, he was shown three items to choose from. A goblet, a knife, and a ring. I believe you're already familiar with this story, but I'll still share it with you," Krimson says, looking down at his hands this time.

     "Winter didn't know what they meant, so he chose the prettiest one, which was the golden goblet. And that choice...it was the worse choice he could ever choose," Krimson explains, his eyes starting to water as memories start flashing in front of him.

     "You see, Winter had a sister. They were twins, and in their family, twins were bad luck. But Winter was different. His unique eyes saved his life and people made him into a god. The items presented to him...were items that would determine his sister's fate. The ring was to marry her off, the knife was to kill her, and the goblet..." Krimson immediately pauses, closing his eyes and trying not to lose focus.

     When he opened his eyes back, a tear streamed down his cheek, making him chuckle.

     "I grew up in a cult," Krimson finally reveals before turning back to Giovanni who was surprised to hear the sudden confession.

    "His parents believed that we would regain immortality through cannibalism. Winter was forced to eat people he used to talk to. People he would play with. And even people who took care of him. His father forced the meat in his mouth every day, and because of it, I was created. Krimson, the alter who willingly participated in the act so that Winter doesn't have to be subjected to it again," Krimson explains, his hands now trembling as the memory becomes clear to him.

     "I chewed, I tasted, and I swallowed. It was I who did it all so that Winter wouldn't have to. But on his tenth birthday, this boy...this foolish boy...he chose the goblet. Out of everything that was presented to him, he fucking chose the goblet."

     Krimson starts hitting his chest as more tears pour out of his eyes.

     "We ate her..." Krimson finally confesses, the memories vivid as it has been playing in his head every night.

     "Finish that food on your plate, and then open your presents right after."

     "Mommy, where's Mathilda?"

     "Who?"

     "Mathilda. Where is she?"

     "Oh, don't worry. She's right here, son."

     "What?"

     "She's right here."

     Krimson stares at his hands and drops to the floor, kneeling in front of Giovanni as his tears fall to the ground. "That's when Tomorrow was born, and everything just fell apart. A couple of months after that incident, their mansion was raided by the townspeople, who found out about the sinister act. They wanted to kill Winter as he was the next leader of the cult, but Alexandra Lancaster, one of the maids, took him, and they both ran away."

     "And that's how you got here..." Giovanni says, finally understanding the entire story. He knew some parts of it because it was disclosed back at the Hope Garden Asylum, but he didn't know the entire detail of such a sinister event.

     Krimson takes a deep breath and wipes the tears from his eyes before standing back up. He walks closer to Giovanni and then holds onto his face, staring at him with desperation. "We have made mistakes in the past, mistakes that we will never be able to fix. But you...you can still have a choice," he says as he slowly reaches out for something inside the pockets of his coat.

     "You say you are not capable. Then let us see if there really is no love left in you at all," Krimson continues, leaning close and suddenly pressing his lips on the doctor's.

    Giovanni was surprised, but he didn't push Krimson away. Krimson kisses him, tasting him for one last time as a farewell gift. But as he was about to pull away, Giovanni suddenly felt something sharp pierce his arm, immediately making him push the alter away.

     Giovanni looks at his arm, and then he looks back at Krimson's hand, his eyes widening in an instant when he noticed that Krimson is actually holding an empty syringe.

     "I finished your plague, and as promised, you are the first to taste it," Krimson explains.

     Giovanni stared at his arm again, waiting for a reaction and expecting he'd drop to the floor and die, but he didn't. "What have you done?" He finally asks the alter.

     "You have until tomorrow before the poison inevitably kills you," Krimson explains to him. Soon after, he pulls out another syringe from his pocket and hands it over to Giovanni. Giovanni stares at the syringe before looking back at Krimson with a confused expression.

     "Is this..."

     "It's a cure," Krimson reveals, surprising Giovanni even more. "There is only one of that, and if you're planning to recreate it, it would still be too late for you."

     Krimson reaches out to touch Giovanni's face again. With their eyes locked together, he tells him, "There is only one cure. You may use it to save yourself, or you may hand it over to proper authorities so that they can mass produce it. I've written detailed instructions on how to easily make it, which will be enough to save the town."

      "What are you talking about?"

     "Tomorrow, when the gas is released, it will spread in a large area, affecting hundreds of people. Unlike what I injected on you, I lessened the effects of the gas, so if you decide to hand them the cure, they will have more time to recreate it. But you won't," Krimson explains, and in an instant, Giovanni grabs him by the neck and starts strangling him.

     "So you lied to me. How dare you double-cross me, Krimson!" Giovanni angrily shouts.

     "This is...h-his last...w-wish..." Krimson struggled to say, not even trying to push the doctor off him.

     When Giovanni finally lets go of him, Krimson falls to the ground and immediately tries to catch his breath.

     "I t-tried...but my time...my time is up. Tomorrow and I...we no longer belong here. We are remnants of the broken past. We can no longer stay in a future where everyone is trying to forget. So as my parting gift to the only alter who wished to cure us, I will gamble," Krimson says, holding onto his neck, looking straight at Giovanni with no ounce of fear.

    "I am no hero, so it is not my duty to save this town. But there is still one thing I wish to accomplish. There might never be a tomorrow for us...but I, along with Alice and the others, wish to give him a tomorrow. A tomorrow where he no longer has to be afraid."

     "You are a fool, Krimson! You are weaker than I expected you to be."

     "No," Krimson quickly answers, pointing at the painting of the town that was hung in the room where Adele was killed before looking back at Giovanni. "You are the fool for wasting your family's sacrifices for an act of revenge that contradicts everything they have done for you. I will watch it till the end, Giovanni de Vincenzo. I will watch your resolve till the very end. And I will judge if your life was even worth everything you have done."

to be continued...