You can make out a trail of strange footprints on the ground by the pale moonlight.
Bloody rat tracks stretch all the way to the distant House of Peace, where they finally disappear.
What awaits you is an unbelievable sight: a bizarre banquet is underway inside the House of Peace.
The hall blazes with light, but the guests are not smiling hosts and visitors. Only crowds of vacant-eyed townsfolk and countless bloated rats are attending the banquet.
Those same faces appeared before you during your first visit to the House of Peace.
But now, these people no longer wear expressions of devotion, as if their will has been seized by some unseen force.
Hearing the commotion at the entrance, the mad townsfolk at the banquet table lift their heads, but their faces remain vacant and expressionless.
Come this way...
The feast... is about... to begin...
The gaunt townsfolk move in perfect unison, performing eerie, synchronized gestures.
Everyone takes up daggers and slashes open their own hands, blood streaming down in torrents.
Warm blood flows down their bodies, pooling at their feet in crimson puddles.
Faint animal sounds emerge from the mist as countless rats with long tails appear from every direction, scrambling eagerly onto the banquet table.
The rats swarm forward, greedily lapping up the blood.
Accept... our... offering...
A familiar eerie sensation surfaces in your mind.
It was the same phenomenon you witnessed in Veronica's prophetic nightmare.
You filthy things... Get away from me!
Veronica angrily drives off the swarm of rats, but the grotesque creatures retreat into the shadows with blood still staining their muzzles, lurking and waiting.
...Why would you do such a thing?
Go home. You all have families.
Looking at the blood-soaked townsfolk, Veronica carries unmistakable compassion in her voice.
She knows the Mist has already corrupted their minds beyond salvation.
Offering... to... the Siren...
Siren... protects... us...
But they no longer recognize their sheriff, only muttering the same delirious words.
...
Long time no see, Sheriff Veronica.
A hoarse voice rings out behind you, like a phantom extending an invitation.
A slender figure emerges from the shadows, having arrived unnoticed.
Don't you have anything better to do than lurking around like a ghost, Roko?
You're still as dedicated as ever, I see. And you've got yourself a new "ally."
It's not your place to judge my actions.
And hearing that from a coward who refused to shoulder any responsibility while working for the sheriff makes me sick.
Coward! You abandoned your duty!
But the man shows no reaction to Veronica's harsh rebuke, his expression remaining unchanged.
I never deserved the faith you placed in me, Sheriff.
After all, I was nothing but an insignificant clerk under your command. Hardly someone capable of shouldering such weighty responsibilities.
I don't have your combat prowess, nor the exceptional intellect of the late Aleksei.
All I could do was dig through stacks of documents for some way to break a deadlock... I was a nobody, really.
Of course, everyone knows what happened next. If we'd actually found a way to resist the Mist, would any of these tragedies have occurred?
So... when faced with a force beyond our understanding, I chose to... fear and worship it.
As long as we show enough devotion, we can summon the Bloodthirsty Siren... and the siren will protect us from the Mist's torment.
See? My devotion has spared me from the Mist's harm. This is the gift the Bloodthirsty Siren has granted me.
As for those who lost their minds to the Mist... their devotion simply wasn't enough...
But Veronica completely dismisses his deranged ramblings, showing only disgust.
Still trying to peddle that manipulative nonsense in front of me?
I know exactly what goes through your mind... You're a coward who only cares about saving your own skin, and you abandon all principles the moment you can benefit from something.
I know how many people live in fear of those baseless rumors, and I know you exploit that fear to manipulate them.
I've thought about wiping you all out countless times... but I held myself back, refusing to harm the innocent caught up in your schemes.
They've lost their minds... but they were once people who lived in this town.
Faced with Veronica's accusations, Roko offers no defense, only responds with a calm smile.
Acting like he's the one in control, he gestures as if he is welcoming guests.
Is that so? Then by all means, try.
Veronica finally reaches her breaking point, unable to tolerate his provocations any longer. She raises her lance and strikes at the man she despises.
Yet the lance's deadly thrust strikes nothing but air.
The mortal flesh that once housed him vanishes in an instant, replaced by a vaguely humanoid shadow.
...!!
You cautiously step forward to stand beside her, raising your gun and taking aim at the shadowy figure.
The bullets pass straight through the shadow with no apparent effect, the casings clattering to the ground with sharp metallic clangs.
The "shadow" continues speaking in a calm, measured tone.
With a form no longer bound by mortal flesh, he wields power no longer bound by the mortal world.
The feast has been prepared. Why not join us?
Together, we shall offer the final sacrifice and welcome the arrival of the "Bloodthirsty Siren".
Come now, Veronica... No, I should call you by your true name... Bloodthirsty Siren.
Curtains rise at the center of the banquet hall, and candle flames dance in the shadows. The twisted "feast" is about to begin.
The guests at this banquet are mad townsfolk, vermin, and their deranged host.
And at the center of the banquet hall lies an unthinkable "sacrifice."
Eileena lies unconscious and bound, sleeping silently at the center of the hall.
