CHAPTER 1667: THE "GOD" OF NOCTURNHALL

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"Mom... is this the attic?" Nyx asked.

"Yes... come with me," Maria replied, gently holding her daughter’s hand.

"Ah... I can feel it. Someone’s here," Nyx whispered.

"Yes," Maria nodded. "There."

They peered into the foggy darkness of the attic, which stretched endlessly. In the distance, a white light drifted through the gloom, noticing them.

Slowly, the light began to approach—but then stopped and vanished.

"W-Who is it?" Nyx called out. "Hello?"

"..."

Maria scanned the surroundings, then stepped forward with Nyx close behind. She realized the light was hiding behind a bookshelf.

"It’s hiding from us. But why? If this is the ruler of the manor, it must be powerful... and yet, it’s afraid."

They moved carefully toward the light, illuminating the area with a small phantom flame.

Behind the bookshelf, a little head peeked out—then quickly ducked back.

Maria noticed the shelf trembling. The creature was shaking, terrified.

"Come on now, don’t be afraid. We just want to talk," Nyx said gently. "Are you the ruler of this manor? It’s amazing! You have so many rooms! Can you control all of them? Are all the Undead your friends? You can make as many as you want? That’s great!"

Nyx spoke softly, trying to coax the entity out. Slowly, it revealed its head again.

Its appearance was strange—featureless, white and black like a sketch on paper. It had long, translucent strands resembling hair, and a small childlike body, slightly smaller than Nyx.

It wore what looked like a white dress, though Maria and Nyx couldn’t tell if it was clothing or part of its body. It resembled a jellyfish, yet had arms, legs, and a humanoid form.

"I’m sorry for taking your friends," Maria said. "They didn’t seem to mind too much. I was hoping we could talk... you said you were lonely, right?"

"LoNeLy..."

The creature’s voice was distorted and painful to hear. Most would bleed from the ears after a single word. But Maria and Nyx were resilient.

"Where do you come from?" Nyx asked. "We were just passing through, but we saw portraits and photos. We got curious. Where are your mom and dad?"

"MoM... dAd... GoNe..."

Maria and Nyx sighed, watching the small figure hide behind the shelf.

"I’m sorry... you couldn’t bring them back? Your power over souls is incredible," Maria said.

"NiGhTmArE... aTe..."

Maria and Nyx’s eyes widened.

The Nightmare had devoured her parents.

Who was this Nightmare?

Could it be connected to Azure Star?

To the Haunted Manor?

They were left stunned by the implications.

"I’m... sorry," Nyx said. "We once defeated a Nightmare. A very bad one... from a world called Azure Star. Does that sound familiar?"

"AhHhH...!"

The creature clutched its head with translucent fingers, groaning in pain at the mention of the name.

"I’m so sorry! Are you alright?" Maria asked.

"...AzUrE sTaR."

"Yeah," Nyx said.

"ReMeMbEr..."

"You do? Did you come from there?" Maria asked.

"..."

The childlike figure stepped out from behind the bookshelf. Still shy, but no longer hiding.

"MeMoRiEs... FuZzY..."

"You have amnesia?" Maria asked.

The creature nodded.

"I see... that’s so sad. I’m sorry," Nyx said. "Maybe we can help you remember?"

"PaInFuL..."

"It hurts to remember," Maria murmured. "I understand. You’re a very unique little one. My name is Maria, and this is my daughter, Nyx."

"..."

The creature didn’t respond, only stared at them in silence, seemingly mesmerized by their colors.

"Can we talk?" Maria asked.

"Let’s be friends!" Nyx added. "Could you ask your friends down there to stop attacking my family?"

"..."

The small figure nodded.

Below, the entity collapsed into inert furniture.

The fighters were stunned—it had stopped moving. They had accidentally killed it again, and it had reached L Rank, becoming increasingly difficult to handle.

"Maria! It collapsed—it stopped moving!" Lucifer said through telepathy.

"Got it. That’s good," Maria replied. "We’re facing something... delicate. It’s a child, and I think it needs help. I can’t leave them alone."

"Ah... okay, take your time," Lucifer said, smiling softly. "I know you’ve always had a soft spot for children. Is Nyx doing well?"

"She’s amazing at making friends," Maria giggled.

"Alright, I’ll tell everyone to wait. Take your time," Lucifer nodded.

Maria glanced at the little entity, who was listening to Nyx speak.

"So we just went through a whole world of zombies—can you imagine?" Nyx said. "Then we met survivors and helped them at their camp. Now they have food and they’re happy..."

"..."

"Um... you don’t like talking much?" Nyx asked.

"...PaInFuL."

"Oh..."

Maria and Nyx quickly realized that speaking caused the child pain.

That explained the distorted voice.

They were forcing themselves to speak, even though they shouldn’t.

Maria grew even more curious about what this child truly was.

"You can nod or shake your head to say yes or no if speaking hurts," Maria said gently. "Is that okay?"

The child nodded, then walked back to their bed, picked up a doll, and returned.

They extended the doll toward Maria and Nyx.

"Oh, is this your friend?" Nyx asked with a smile.

The doll moved, waving at them.

"SiStEr..."

"S-Sister?" Nyx tilted her head. "You had a sister?"

The child nodded, cradling the doll like a baby and gently rocking it to sleep.

"What was her name? Do you have a photo or portrait of her?" Maria asked.

"..."

The child stopped and shook their head.

No.

"Not even the name?" Nyx asked.

Another silent shake.

No.

"...Does the name Amelia mean anything to you?" Maria asked, and Nyx realized what her mother was trying to do.

"UuUuUuhHh..."

The child clutched their head again, crying black and white tears that warped the floor beneath them.

"I-I’m so sorry!" Maria cried. "I didn’t want to hurt you... But I... I think I know where you might have come from."

"Yeah..." Nyx tried patting her shoulder, but her mother stopped her. "Mom?"

"For now don’t make direct contact... they are very unstable," Maria said. "I know you want to comfort them, but just stay a little away, okay?"

"...Ok," Nyx seemed a little sad, but understood what her mother meant.

"HoMe?"

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