Daniel Oliveira was known throughout the community as the exemplary man. His good nature, kindness, and constant willingness to help others had made him a respected figure in the eyes of all. As a literature teacher, he was a role model: his sincere smile and wise advice seemed to be all that mattered in his public life. No one—not a single soul—suspected the darkness that lurked behind his flawless facade.

  Vanesa Inketta, a sixteen-year-old student, was among his favorite pupils. Outgoing and brilliant, she stood out at school, always smiling, radiating an energy that seemed inexhaustible. Professor Oliveira had been watching her for weeks—her gestures, the way she walked, the laughter that lit up her face. Somehow, everything about her stirred a sickening need within him. He had waited for the right moment to execute his plan, and tonight would be the culmination of it all.

  He knew Vanesa’s parents wouldn’t be home. The opportunity was perfect. She would be the fifth.

  Vanesa’s house was quiet and still when he arrived. It wasn’t the first time he had been there, but something in the air that night made him feel uneasy. The atmosphere felt heavier, as if something were watching from the shadows. Daniel quickly dismissed the thought, convinced it was just his nerves. When Vanesa opened the door, she offered him a warm smile and invited him inside.

  Their first words were trivial—harmless talk about literature class and a few book recommendations. Yet, the air inside the house was beginning to feel... oppressive. Daniel kept glancing toward the dark hallway, a growing pressure building in his chest. Something felt wrong, but he forced himself to ignore it. It didn’t matter. His plan had to proceed without interruptions.

  When their conversation finally came to an end, he stood up, saying there was something he wanted to show her. Vanesa, as always, suspected nothing and followed him to her room, trusting in his presence. It wasn’t the first time Daniel had been there.

  But something strange happened as he led her down the hallway. As they passed by the shadowed corridor, he heard a faint sound—barely audible—like something dragging itself behind the wall. He blinked, but when he looked around, there was nothing. His mind snapped back to the task at hand. Still, the whisper he had just heard left an unsettling chill crawling down his spine.

  When they reached Vanesa’s bedroom, the air grew heavy, as if something were waiting. The professor sensed it, but tried to mask his unease. As she turned her back to him, Daniel saw his chance. With a swift motion, he pulled a small handkerchief from his pocket. It was a technique he had learned years ago—a cloth soaked in a sedative, its subtle and persistent fragrance giving him a few precious minutes to act before she could resist.

  Vanesa barely had time to react before the cloth touched her face. The contact was quick, almost imperceptible, and before she could process what was happening, her eyes began to close slowly. A wave of dizziness swept over her, and she collapsed onto the bed, completely unconscious.

  Daniel approached her, satisfied with how easily she had succumbed. But what happened next was something he had never anticipated.

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  As he began to strip away her clothes, a deep, guttural sound—like a distant roar—echoed through the room. The floor trembled slightly. Daniel froze, staring toward the darkest corner of the room, where something was beginning to stir. From beneath the bed and inside the wardrobe, two monstrous figures began to emerge.

  The creature from the wardrobe was terrifying. Its form was vaguely human, but its body was covered in pale blue feathers and crowned by massive wings. Its face was a haunting fusion of lion and wolf, with glowing blue eyes. Its disproportionately large hands ended in long fingers tipped with immense, black, razor-sharp claws. Its gaze was feral and menacing, and the growl that escaped its throat resembled no known beast.

  The monster lurking beneath the bed was entirely different. It resembled a young woman with long, pink hair and unnaturally long fingers tipped with sharp claws. As she crawled out from her hiding place, she wore a childish, sweet smile—but the fa?ade quickly shattered. Her expression twisted into a disturbing grin, revealing long, jagged, protruding upper teeth. Her once-pink eyes began to glow with a sickly, yellow hue. As she slithered further out from under the bed, her true size became horrifyingly clear: she was massive.

  Daniel tried to step back, but it was already too late. The monsters lunged at him with overwhelming speed, and within seconds, they had surrounded him. With brutal force, they began tearing his body apart, ripping chunks of flesh from his bones as he screamed in vain. The room filled with blood, torn flesh, and the sickening sound of bones being crushed. The violence of the scene was indescribable, as though the creatures were exacting vengeance for something far beyond human understanding.

  Vanesa, still unconscious, could not comprehend what was happening. In her mind, the scene unfolded like a nightmare—something surreal, impossible to process. The monsters did not stop until Daniel had been completely dismembered, his body reduced to unrecognizable fragments.

  But what happened next was... radically different.

  Instead of continuing the carnage, the monsters suddenly became calm. They approached the bed slowly, where Vanesa lay motionless. With great care, one of them—she—lifted Vanesa gently, wiping away the few spots of blood on her skin, and laid her back down again, making sure she was comfortable. Then, with tenderness, she pulled the sheets over her, changed her terrifying face into that of a beautiful, gentle woman, and placed a kiss on Vanesa’s forehead. She looked to her companion and raised a bloodstained index finger to her lips, signaling him to be quiet. The other monster nodded silently and resumed cleaning.

  Then, unhurriedly, they began to tidy up the room. With their claws, they swept up the blood and the remains of the massacre, cleaning every corner with unsettling precision. The room, once drenched in chaos, returned to its original state. The blood vanished without a trace, as if it had never existed. Satisfied with their work, the monsters slowly retreated to their hiding places—beneath the bed and inside the wardrobe—as if nothing unusual had happened.

  When Vanesa awoke, the first thing she noticed was the silence. Sunlight had begun to filter through the windows, and the room was calm, as if nothing had occurred. She sat up slowly, confused, glancing around. There was a strange feeling in the air, something she couldn’t quite name, but the memory of the night before was gone—just a fog.

  That was when she turned on the television.

  The news was reporting on the disappearance of Daniel Oliveira. “The teacher, known for his integrity and dedication, has mysteriously vanished. Authorities are investigating his whereabouts, but no relevant clues have been found so far.”

  Vanesa stared at the screen, her mind still trying to grasp what had happened. There was something in the air, an odd feeling she couldn’t decipher. She looked toward the window and whispered, her voice uncertain:

  “I hope he’s okay.”