章 176: Chapter 176
In a small town deep in Russia's frozen heart, a quiet fear crept over the people. Not from anything they could see during the long, endless winter nights, but from something they could feel—a presence that took root in their dreams. And the moment someone closed their eyes, that presence came to claim them.
The townspeople called it the Demon, though it wasn't much of a demon in the usual sense. It was an axe-wielding monstrosity that only appeared in sleep, stalking its victims through the twisted roads of their dreams. The creature was always the same—large, hulking, eyes that never blinked. And it carried an axe. The townspeople, every single one of them, knew the rules: once you fell asleep, you never woke up again. The Demon would make sure of that.
And so, for weeks, even months, they struggled to stay awake. They drank coffee, chewed on bark, slapped themselves until their faces bled. But the demon came to everyone, no matter how hard they fought. It was always just a matter of time.
Maksim had lived here all his life, his family running the small store by the town's only road. The snow seemed to never stop falling. He couldn't remember the last time the sun had broken through the thick, gray clouds. His face was drawn tight, the skin almost as pale as the snow outside. He'd been awake for three days straight, pacing the floors of his family's house, eyes wide and red. His parents were long gone, swept away in the demon's wrath. He could still hear his mother's scream echoing through the empty hallways of his mind.
But he couldn't stop. If he slept, if he let himself slip for even a second, the Demon would come for him, too. He had already lost so much. He wasn't about to lose his life too.
The others in town weren't doing much better. They huddled in the dim, flickering lights of their homes, barely able to keep their eyes open. Some had already gone mad, talking to themselves in hushed whispers, pacing endlessly like Maksim.
Others sat in silence, staring at walls, too afraid to blink. A few families had packed up their things, hoping to escape, but no one had made it out of town alive. The roads were blocked, covered in thick snow and ice, and even if they could leave, where would they go? The whole region was in a chokehold of winter, and there was no safe place.
There were rumors that the Demon had come from the very depths of hell, born from the dark energy that surrounded the dead, crawling out of the earth to claim the living. Others said it was a curse from the past, a punishment for something the town had done. The stories didn't matter. All that mattered was that it was real, and it was coming for them.
Maksim had heard the stories, too. They were told in whispers, a murmur of desperation in the corners of the fire-lit rooms. And even though the Demon didn't show itself until sleep took hold, Maksim could feel it—the presence, always just behind his thoughts, pressing against his mind. He couldn't even remember when it had started, when it first visited his dreams. He only knew that it had been there for too long.
He went to the store early one morning. The wind howled like a beast outside, and snow whipped through the cracks in the old wood. It was quiet—too quiet. Only the sound of his boots echoed in the empty space. The shelves were stocked, but no one had bought anything in days. There was no money, no reason to buy food. Everyone had given up, trying to survive on what little they had.
Maksim sat down behind the counter, trying to fight the fatigue pulling at his eyelids. It was the same battle every day now—staying awake was like holding back the tide. But he had to keep fighting. He couldn't sleep. Not yet.
It was nearly dusk when he heard the knock at the door. He froze, his heart jumping in his chest. No one ever knocked anymore.
"Come in," he croaked, his voice dry.
The door creaked open. Standing in the doorway was a man, tall and gaunt, his face pale from the cold. His eyes were sunken, his mouth twisted into a grimace of fear.
"Maksim… you're still here?" The man's voice trembled.
Maksim blinked, trying to focus. "Viktor? What are you doing here?"
Viktor stepped inside, closing the door quickly behind him. "We can't stay here," he said, his breath coming in shallow gasps. "I thought I could survive it, but it's… it's worse. The dreams, they're… they're getting stronger."
Maksim swallowed hard. He knew what Viktor meant. The Demon hadn't just been in his dreams—it had started to haunt his waking moments. Every time he closed his eyes for even a fraction of a second, he felt it—the crushing weight of it, the axe's cold blade against his neck. He couldn't escape it.
"We can't leave," Maksim muttered, rubbing his eyes. "The roads are blocked. There's nowhere to go."
Viktor's face twisted in despair. "We're all gonna die if we stay here. If we don't leave, we'll die like the others."
The words hit Maksim like a punch to the gut. He wanted to argue, wanted to tell Viktor that they couldn't give up, but the truth was too clear. They were already dead. It was just a matter of time.
But Maksim wasn't ready. Not yet. There had to be something they could do.
"I'm not leaving," he said, voice cracking. "I'll fight. I'll find a way."
Viktor turned and walked toward the door. "There is no way. The Demon will come for us all."
Before Maksim could stop him, Viktor opened the door and stepped out into the snow, disappearing into the darkness. Maksim felt a pang of guilt, but it was overshadowed by the gnawing fear that had taken root in his chest. He couldn't leave. He had to stay awake.
The hours crawled by. Maksim moved around the store, tried to busy himself with tasks, but nothing worked. His mind kept slipping, his eyes fluttering, and the Demon was always there, lurking just behind the darkness. He could feel it, hear it breathing in the back of his skull.
It wasn't long before he could take it no longer.
He stumbled into the back room and collapsed onto the floor, his body shaking with exhaustion. His eyes fluttered, and his vision blurred. Just one quick nap. Just a second. He told himself it would be okay, just a moment of rest.
But when his eyes closed, the Demon was already there.
He stood in the middle of the room, the axe in his hands. His face was a twisted mask of rage, eyes wide and unblinking. Maksim tried to scream, but his voice was caught in his throat. The Demon's lips curled into something like a grin, and then it raised the axe high.
The room filled with a loud, sickening crack. And Maksim's body hit the floor with a sickening thud.
Maksim never woke up.
The Demon's axe had already claimed him.
The snow continued to fall outside, coating the town in a thick blanket of white. And as each day passed, another life was lost to the Demon's unrelenting grasp. The town, once full of people, grew emptier and emptier, until only a few remained.
They were the lucky ones.
For now.
週次パワーステータス
-- 推薦
ランキング 
-- 推薦
チケット