One of the girls, dressed in a high school uniform, trembled and cowered in the corner, sobbing quietly. She was terrified. Daddy, Mommy, Grandpa, Granddad, where are you? Please save me! I don't want to stay here! The girl trembled with fear, crying out silently in her heart, but her voice was trapped in her throat, emerging only as whimpers.
The girl awoke to the chill of the silent night. The two girls beside her were fast asleep, their breathing deep and steady.
"'We've captured the girl. Should we just kill her?' the man's hoarse voice spoke up.
"'I want her to wish she were dead. You should know what to do,' the woman said, her voice low and slow. Yet, in the quiet darkness, even her softest words were clearly audible.
"'That's easy. I'll let the guys enjoy themselves.'
SMACK! A slap landed on the man.
"'Idiot! Do you have a death wish, daring to treat her like this?' the woman shouted angrily.
"'But we already have her tied up. What's there to fear? Why not let the guys have some fun with her? Guarantee she'll wish she were dead, her days filled with nothing but gray, no more sunshine. Isn't that what you want?' The man let out a lewd chuckle.
"'Fool! If you want to die, do you want to drag everyone else down with you? There are many ways to make someone wish they were dead, aren't there? Let her watch her companions die miserably. Let her feel terror, let her be consumed by fear. That's far better than simply killing her. Remember, you only have one night. You must be gone by early morning. Otherwise, no one can save you.'
With that, the woman started the car and drove away.
"'Guys, come in! Get to work.'
Five men walked to the corner. They kicked the sleeping girls awake, untied their ropes, and removed the cloths covering their faces. The five men, their faces grim and sinister, stared intently at the three 'prey' on the ground.
"'Brothers, aside from the one in the middle, you can do whatever you want with the other two,' the man cackled, his laughter as cold and ominous as a demon's in the dead of winter.
The five men, their eyes glinting with a predatory, lecherous light, pounced on the other two girls. Their clothes were quickly ripped from their bodies. The men struck them repeatedly. Two men pinned one girl's arms and legs while another forced himself upon her, ignoring her desperate struggles and cries. Her once fair skin was now covered in scratches. The girls wept, their screams tearing through the silence...
The scene unfolding before her profoundly shocked the girl in the middle. Her life had always been carefree. Her grandfather had protected her like a Princess, shielding her from any hardship. But this horrifying spectacle shattered the world she had known for fourteen years.
The girl's face turned a ghastly pale. She huddled in the corner, trembling, her lips bitten so hard they could bleed. Tears streamed unceasingly from her eyes as she squeezed them shut in despair. In that moment, she felt utterly insignificant, completely helpless. I would rather die than endure such mental torture! I don't want this! The other girls' desperate eyes pleaded with her for help, but she could only watch, powerless. She was so scared, so terribly scared.
"'Open your eyes. Watch carefully,' the man commanded, cruelly gripping her chin and forcing her eyes open. She was made to watch the brutal, shameless scene. The other girls were covered in wounds, blood flowing from between their legs. The men showed no signs of stopping; their cruelty only seemed to fuel their desires. They took out whips and mercilessly lashed the girls' bodies, finding new ways to torture them, slapping them hard across their faces. Their eyes glinted with a predatory green light, like wolves that had cornered their prey. When one girl fainted, the men only grew more excited.
Tears streamed down the girl's face as she shook her head. She didn't want to witness the depraved scene before her, but the man gripped her chin tightly, forcing her to watch the horrifying spectacle. She was terrified, utterly petrified. I don't want to be here! I have to leave this place!
No! She struggled, screamed, cried, and begged them, but the men only laughed cruelly. Their movements quickened, forcing her to see every violating act, every debased position. The girl broke. She shattered completely.
One of the men slapped her hard, sending her sprawling to the ground.
"'Look carefully. Remember this unforgettable moment.' The girl's eyes were wide with horror; she desperately wanted to close them, but she couldn't. The terrifying scene seared itself into her mind. The man released her chin, unfastened his pants, and brutally slammed one of the other girls against the wall. Her body slowly slid down, life barely clinging to her.
"'This will be your eternal nightmare,' the man sneered, kicking the witnessing girl hard in the chest. He then pulled out a gun and pressed its muzzle viciously against the chests of the two other tormented girls.
"'If you're going to hate someone, hate her. It's all her fault you've ended up like this today.' His words, like a demonic curse, echoed relentlessly in her mind.
BANG! With the deafening gunshot, the two girls stared, their eyes wide with horror, fixed on the witnessing girl. Blood erupted from their chests like grotesque fountains.
"'AHHH!' The girl's sanity finally snapped. She let out a piercing scream and collapsed, unconscious.
"'AHHH!' Shangguan You screamed, bolting upright in bed. Beads of cold sweat dripped from her forehead, and her heart hammered against her ribs as if trying to escape. She clutched her chest. This... this was the Nightmare Demon that haunted me. They tormented me, drove me to a mental breakdown, made me withdraw into myself... and ultimately led me to B City.
The woman in the dream... she was truly vicious. So cruel to a fourteen-year-old girl. What kind of family did she come from?
That woman knew exactly how to break someone psychologically, how to shatter Shangguan You's spirit. It was a more effective way to destroy a person than any overt scheme or covert machination.
The trauma of that event caused her to withdraw from the world for an entire year. When all other attempts to cure her failed, her maternal and paternal grandfathers hired the best Hypnotist they could find to seal away that horrifying memory. Though the terrifying memories were suppressed, she was irrevocably changed. The once cheerful Princess vanished, replaced by the one she was now: dull, slow-witted, clumsy, and introverted.