The night was deep and the dark clouds hung low, shrouding the entire city in a thick sense of oppression. Kalle stood on the street corner, and the warmth of the photo still lingered on his fingertips. However, his heart seemed to be plunged into an ice cellar, and even his thoughts were frozen at the junction between the past and the present.
The burning city in the photo, his father's pale face, and the words "Eternity and Destruction" were like a shadow that hung over his consciousness and refused to dissipate for a long time.
Darlene walked to Kalle's side and whispered, "You don't have to bear all this alone. No matter how cruel the truth is, we will face it together."
Kalle remained silent, his eyes fixed on the distance. The towering clock tower was hidden in the darkness, as if guarding some unknown secret.
**"It's time we set off."** Lucas's voice came from the darkness. He leaned against the car, and a trace of barely noticeable anxiety flashed across his face. "The closer we get to the truth, the easier it is to lose ourselves."
"I won't lose myself," Kalle replied in a low voice, his palm slowly clenching the photo until his knuckles turned white.
They drove into the western suburbs of the city. The abandoned industrial area seemed to be a forgotten corner of the entire city, desolate and silent, with only the cold wind whining among the broken steel bars.
The car lights cut through the darkness, outlining the ruins like the bones of a beast. Anna sat in the back seat, fiddling with an old mirror. The surface of the mirror glowed with a dim luster, and the reflected image was slightly distorted, as if there was something indescribable hidden within it.
**"This mirror... Why do I feel that something is wrong with it?"** Anna frowned. Kalle's figure faintly emerged in the mirror, but his expression was slightly different from his own—the Kalle in the mirror wore a sneer that didn't belong to him.
**"Put it down."** Lucas immediately reached out and snatched the mirror, his face extremely solemn. "This is the 'Abyss Mirror'. It can only reflect the darkest part of a person's heart. If you stare at it for too long, I'm afraid..."
Lucas's voice suddenly stopped. His hand trembled slightly the moment he touched the mirror, and his gaze froze on the surface of the mirror.
Kalle keenly caught the change in Lucas's expression. He suddenly snatched the mirror back and asked in a cold voice, "What did you see?"
Lucas turned his head away, and a trace of unease flashed in his eyes. "It's nothing, just an illusion."
Kalle didn't believe it. He stared at the mirror, and his own image gradually blurred in the dim light. Instead, a black wolf's shadow appeared, with menacing fangs and blue burning in its pupils.
He abruptly withdrew his gaze, and the mirror slipped from his hand, making a clear crashing
sound. Instead of shattering, it slowly spun around, with the mirror surface facing the sky, reflecting the flowing dark clouds in the night sky.
Anna broke the silence and said in a low voice, "Perhaps... the mirror is reminding us of something. It can not only reflect the darkness but also guide us in the right direction."
Kalle picked up the mirror and stared at it intently. A thought faintly emerged in his heart: "Maybe we should go back to the place where it all began."
**"Let's go to the clock tower."** Kalle said firmly, "If the truth is hidden beneath the reflection of destiny, then let's face it head-on."
——
When they arrived at the clock tower, the time was exactly midnight. The iron gate of the clock tower was covered with rust. When they gently pushed it open, it made a dull creaking sound, as if reminding them that they were stepping into a forbidden area.
Darlene lit a torch, and the faint light cast dim and indistinct shadows on the wall. Lucas walked at the front, being cautious with every step. Anna followed closely behind, her gaze always fixed on the mirror in Kalle's hand.
They slowly ascended along the narrow spiral staircase. The interior structure of the clock tower was like a maze. At every turn, they could see strange symbols carved on the wall, and those symbols seemed to echo the mark on Kalle's neck.
**"These symbols..."** Darlene murmured softly, her fingertips brushing over the carvings on the wall, "They record some kind of ancient ritual."
Kalle stopped in his tracks, looking at the symbols on the wall, and his heart rate gradually increased. "This is... a summoning ritual."
Lucas looked up towards the top of the clock tower, and his gaze became even more solemn. "It seems that someone has awakened something here."
Before he could finish his words, a low breathing sound suddenly came from the depths of the clock tower. That sound seemed to come from another world, distant and cold.
Anna suddenly stopped in her tracks, her face turning pale: "We're not alone."
The light of the torch flickered slightly, and the shadows quietly lengthened. There were actually more than four shadows reflected on the wall... The fifth shadow was standing赫然 behind them, blurred and indistinct, as if it would approach at any moment.
**"Don't look back."** Lucas whispered, his voice tinged with a hint of unease, "Keep going up."
Kalle forced himself to suppress the discomfort, tightly gripping the torch, and quickened his pace. The sound of the shadow's footsteps seemed to be following them, as if it was stepping on every step.
Finally, they reached the top of the clock tower. In front of them was a huge bronze bell. The surface of the bell was covered with cracks, and the hands of the clock had stopped thirty years ago.
There was a figure standing beside the bell, wearing a gray cloak, with its face hidden under the hood.
**"You've finally come, Kalle."** That voice carried a strange sense of familiarity, and it was the voice that Kalle was most familiar with—the voice of his father.
Kalle's pupils suddenly constricted, and he felt as if he had fallen into a cold abyss, unable to believe his ears.
"Father...?" he asked tremblingly. The light of the torch shone on the surface of the bell, outlining his father's silhouette, but in the next second, it turned into a black shadow and quickly merged into Kalle's shadow.
The wind outside the clock tower howled past, and only the pendulum of the clock swayed slightly, making a distant echoing sound.