NOVEL WEB Chapter 5: Everything is never as it seems
Diary 12
[Some of you might know me, some of you might not. I'm Seventh, the holder of the diary who survived the ramen. I noticed something wrong with the diary—I really did. I didn't write it, but my thoughts kept appearing in it, as if it was pulling them straight from my mind. I hated that feeling, that loss of control, so I did what any normal person would do—I threw my phone in the trash, along with the cursed Future Diary app.]
[Then, I regretted it...]
[There's something... eerie, something darker lurking behind the diary. I saw it. She is...]
When I read the diary, an unsettling calm settled over my room.
It wasn't peace—it was the kind of stillness that made my skin crawl, like the silence before a predator strikes.
My heartbeat quickened, each thud hammering in my chest as though someone—or something—was watching me, their unseen gaze stripping me bare.
Not just my body, but my thoughts felt exposed, as if every secret I ever had was laid out for them to see.
Then the diary changed.
The black ink of its font shifted, morphing into deep, dripping red—blood fonts. The words seemed to bleed into the screen, staining it with malice.
For the fate of Seventh? Or should I call him Twelve? I didn't know. The diary didn't state it explicitly, but something told me it wouldn't end well for him—or me.
The knock at my door made me jump, a sharp jolt that sent my heart racing faster.
"Brother, wake up. It's morning. I've prepared breakfast for you," came my sister's voice, sweet and cheerful as always.
Her tone was light, playful even, but instead of comfort, it filled me with a creeping dread.
Morning...?
I glanced at the clock, and the glowing numbers mocked me. It wasn't morning. It was the dead of night.
There was something wrong with her. I could feel it in my bones, in the way every hair on my body stood on end.
Should I answer her? Or should I stay silent, pretending to be asleep, hoping she'd go away?
"Brother... wake up," she called again, her voice just as sugary. But then she added, "If you don't wake up, you'll be bitten by the mouse. You don't want to be bitten by the mouse, do you?"
Her words echoed in my ears, the knock on the door growing louder, more insistent.
To anyone else, it might've sounded like a harmless joke, something a loving sister would say to tease her sibling. But not to me.
I knew better.
She wasn't joking.
The mouse...
If I didn't respond, would I really be bitten by it?
This wasn't just some ordinary anime world. This was an Eldritch Horror masquerading in the guise of something familiar, something safe.
And now, I had to decide.
Diary 13
[Yes, I answered my sister's call. I really did. But I made the worst decision of my life. I pretended she was still my sister—my cute little sister. But no, I only wanted to pretend. She wasn't playing along anymore. She knew, Diary. She knew what was wrong with me. She knew everything.]
[And then I...]
The entry stopped abruptly, cutting off with no explanation. No clear fate, no conclusion to what happened to the 13th Diary Holder. The vague and cryptic nature of it only made it worse—it was unnerving.
Why were the fates of the diary holders becoming so unclear now? They were detailed before, almost like instructions or warnings. But now? Nothing. Was it because I was starting to understand the truth?
There were no answers, only an oppressive, eerie silence that filled the room, weighing on me like a curse. I didn't know what to do.
Facing her felt like a mistake. But not facing her? That might be worse.
Wait a minute...
The diary didn't give me a hint for survival this time, but there was one thing I noticed, one important detail buried in the twisted mess of my fear. She didn't want to play the game anymore. She flipped the table, refused to follow the rules. If she could do that...
Why couldn't I?
My eyes darted to the open window in my room. The faint breeze teased the golden curtain, beckoning me to take the leap. This was a gamble—a desperate, insane gamble. But it was my only shot.
As the banging on the door grew louder, more frantic, I grabbed the curtain with trembling hands.
My heart raced as I climbed out, the cold wall scraping against my skin as I hurried down toward the ground.
The sound of the door shaking in its frame made me almost lose my grip, but I kept moving, desperate to escape.
The night was unnervingly calm, the silence pressing against my ears like a warning.
I didn't stop, though. I couldn't.
My feet hit the ground, and I broke into a run, the chilled air burning my lungs with each breath.
"Brother... where are you?"
Her voice sliced through the quiet, sweet and sickening all at once.
"Don't you want breakfast?"
Fuck...!
My heart nearly exploded. No matter how fast I ran, her voice followed me, echoing through the still night like a phantom chasing me down.
It felt like the end. Despair clawed at me as the sound of her footsteps got closer and closer.
Is this it? Is this my end?
And then, like a cruel joke, the sound of my wall clock echoed faintly in my ears.
Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.
"Brother, wake up! Breakfast is ready!"
Her cheerful voice pierced through the haze of my panic.
I jolted upright, my breath ragged and uneven. Sunlight spilled into the room.
The faint scent of breakfast wafted through the air, and everything around me looked normal—safe, even.
There was no banging on the door.
No eerie silence. No voice haunting me through the night.
But my body told a different story. My heart was racing like I'd run a marathon.
Cold sweat clung to my skin, dripping down my temples.
My limbs felt like lead, every muscle trembling with exhaustion.
Was it all just a dream?
But no. The rapid thudding of my heartbeat, the chill of my sweat, and the ache in my legs told me the truth.
It wasn't just a dream. It was real. All of it.
But then... why was I still alive?
Diary 14
[When the knocking on the door grew louder and more frantic, I knew I should stop playing games with whatever monster was lurking behind my sister's face.]
[The sound wasn't just noise anymore—it was alive, crawling into my skull with every pound. Panic surged through me. Without thinking twice, I bolted for the window and threw myself out, the cold night air cutting against my skin as I ran for my life.]
[But no, I didn't escape. I didn't survive. She chased me. I remember the cold, clawing presence at my back, her twisted form moving faster than it should.]
[Then, nothing. Darkness swallowed me whole, and I fell.]
The diary declared me dead. The words stared back at me, cold and final.
But if I was supposed to be dead, why was I still breathing? Why was I here?
The soft knock on the door snapped me out of my thoughts. It wasn't like last night. This time, the sound was gentle. Concerned.
"Brother… Are you really okay?" Yuki's voice came through, trembling slightly.
"I'm fine, Yuki. You can go first," I replied, forcing my voice to sound soft, calm.
"Okay…" She didn't press further.
Her footsteps faded as she walked away, leaving me alone with the suffocating silence.
I stared blankly at the wall, my thoughts racing but going nowhere.
One thing became painfully clear to me in that moment.
Everything in my life is never as it seems.
How could I trust anyone in a world where everything lies, deceives, and betrays?
Who could I believe when even the diary—the one thing that was supposed to guide me—turned out to be just another lie?
How much of what it told me was ever true?
Did the parallel versions of me really exist? Did they truly die, one after another? Or were their supposed deaths just a fabricated story to manipulate me? What if they weren't even real?
But one thing I couldn't deny, no matter how much I questioned everything else.
The eldritch presence last night was real. I saw it. I felt it.
Its very essence clawed at my mind, leaving a scar I couldn't ignore.
The monster wasn't just a shadow or a trick of the mind.
It was real.
And it's still out there.