Chapter 1: The Third Bell Rumor

Part 5: The Hanged Man

               Maaya's frantic sprint continued until her legs burned with fatigue and her breaths turned into choking gasps. She couldn't shake the feeling that whatever had started chasing them would not give up. In this dire moment, she held onto Yui's hand with a vice-like grip, propelling herself forward with every ounce of energy left. Yui, her presence a silent reassurance, followed without question. They both understood the grim reality that whatever they had accidentally awakened could spell their doom. 

               It was unmistakable; the ominous presence pursued them relentlessly. They could hear the jumbled footsteps and eerie, scraping sounds echoing through the school's dimly lit hallways. Maaya had no choice but to maintain her breakneck pace, even though the seemingly endless corridors left her disoriented, with no clear destination in sight. Their frantic sprint came to an abrupt halt as the labyrinthine hallways led them right back to where they had started, the all-too-familiar Class 3C. 

               "The path … it looped around," Maaya gasped, clinging to any shred of air. 

               Yui, panting heavily, chimed in, "It's getting closer, Maaya-san. We need to hide." 

               Maaya nodded, her thoughts racing as she scanned the classroom for a potential hiding place. It seemed as though nothing had shifted in the room since they had left, except for the unsettling hole in the ceiling where the grotesque creature had previously hung. The windows might work but breaking them would clearly alarm the pursuiter. How about behind the desks? No use, all of them were sliced and diced even before the chase. Clearly red zones. "Oh God, am I going to die?"

               Before Maaya could decide on her next move, she felt the sharp chilling touch of hair strands descending onto her shoulder.  

               “It’s here,” Yui whispered as she glanced towards the ceiling of the endless hallways. 

               Accompanied by the echos of the bone cracking sounds, a grotesque figure unnaturally descended from the ceiling. It bore a twisted, nightmarish semblance of a man. Its skin, ashen and desiccated, clung tightly to its skeletal frame. Its arms were grotesquely contorted, resembling wings sprouting from its shoulders, each ending in claws that dwarfed the armchair they gripped. A mass of long, matted hair flowed continuously from its broken neck. The creature was completely unclothed, its flesh marred by numerous claw-like scars, akin to the cryptic symbols etched on the classroom's whiteboard and the walls. 

               Despite the creature appearing to gaze at the girls, it possessed no eyes, leaving only a chilling void where they should have been. The only discernible feature on its face was a drooling mouth & endless grim, emitting the foul stench of decaying wood. Then, its arms ascended, accompanied by the disturbing sound of bones snapping, as it prepared to strike a menacing blow towards the little girl. 

               In her state of abject terror, Maaya instinctively positioned herself in front, attempting to shield the young girl from the impending attack. Just as the creature's claws were poised to slice into Maaya's flesh, a familiar sound reverberated through the eerie hallways. 

               Imagine the distorted sound of a bell, as if heard through waterlogged ears. Maaya immediately recognized that sound as soon as it reached her ears—the first bell had chimed. Strangely, she wasn't the only one who remembered; the creature also paused in its tracks, as if compelled to listen to the eerie sound. Then, it ceased its aggression, gliding past the girls and positioning itself in an empty space near the classroom. There it waited, its hands remaining still as its lifeless head stared blankly at the wall. 

               A moment later, another sound echoed through the hallways, much like the first but clearer this time. The second bell had served its purpose. Yui and Maaya remained in silence, their expressions mirroring the profound shock they had just experienced. Yui appeared frozen, caught in a state of disbelief, while Maaya couldn't bring herself to close her eyes. The memory of those menacing claws around her neck and the sickening stench of rotting flesh still clung to her. 

               Despite the urgency of the situation, despite the imminent danger that awaited them if they stayed, Maaya couldn't bring herself to move. Deep down, buried beneath her fear and denial of the chilling truth, she now felt an inexplicable pull towards it. It whispered her name, tempting her with the promise of something much more profound if she answered. Maaya knew she shouldn’t. Maaya knew that opening the door to such truth came with many sleepless nights. Yet, her pounding heart yearned for it — even for a fleeting glimpse of it. In that moment, Maaya wanted nothing but the truth, no matter the cost. 

               A chilling silence was the only word to describe what happened during that time. Only rugged breaths and a pair of heartbeats could be heard. Yui’s hands haven’t let go of Maaya’s and Maaya hasn’t moved an inch. They held their positions, suspended in anticipation of the impending truth. And then, at last, it arrived. 

               Before them, the walls seemed to transform into a nightmarish tableau of twitching horrors, gradually taking on a shape that Maaya recognized all too well. It was the unmistakable form of a crimson bell. Then, the creature's arms twitched, each movement deliberate and measured, as it made a concerted effort to tap on the bell. It tapped, over and over, until the repetitive sound of taps seamlessly melded into the familiar tolling of that one sound. The sound of the third bell. 

               A smile formed on Maaya's lips, and in an instant, everything fell into place. With her newly opened eyes, the enigmatic symbols etched onto the whiteboard and adorning the monstrous creature before her, began to unveil their true meaning. These symbols, though initially cryptic, turned out to be nothing more than echoes of a single, straightforward word. And that word was none other than

               "Ryo." 

               In the heart of the unsettling mystery, a truth more disturbing than any nightmare emerged. The lost boy, Ryo Kiyosaki hadn't been taken by the third bell; he was the third bell. All along, it was he who had been ringing it. Was it a desperate plea? Maybe a haunting descent into the abyss of madness, or perhaps an inexplicable yearning for others to join him in his suffering? Only he would know. 

               Before Maaya could complete her deduction, the ringing abruptly ceased. It wasn't because Ryo had stopped tapping; rather, the walls seemed to have devoured the bell, leaving behind only a void. In that moment, a bone-chilling realization gripped Maaya as she watched what was left of Ryo, twitched his broken neck back in their direction. And before she could react, he sprinted.  

Part 5: End