***

Thinking about his brothers and Jae-noona really gave him the strength and courage that he needed to keep going. The trick was not to let his brain fully process what he had experienced so far, then things would be fine.

For example, if Tao allowed the craziness he was witnessing at this very moment to be fully processed and registered by his brain, he would have never had the guts to walk inside the next chamber. A green light pulsated from this room and he found the source to be a large crystal ball, standing in the middle of a round table that floated in midair. He heard the soft playing of an accordion in the distance, like creepy circus music that did nothing for his nerves. He knew one thing for sure though; he’d find the gypsy the bride ghost mentioned right in this chamber, of that he was certain.

He shook his head as that sentence did register in his brain, but Tao had the wit to shake it off. Tao did his very best not to jump at each and every movement around him. Next to the floating table, the books in the room seemed to have a mind of their own as well, flipping through pages randomly or shifting themselves in different orders in the bookcase. There were things stored in mysterious-looking jars that moved on their own as well and Tao couldn’t help but yelp when he saw a severed hand waving at him from a shelf on the wall.

Everything in this chamber seemed to be alive. Or well, seemed sentient in one way or another and he didn’t like it one bit. He blinked his eyes rapidly when he caught sight of a few shrunken heads chattering unintelligibly amongst each other and he made sure to steer clear from those things. Tao felt increasingly uneasy in this weird chamber of insanity, and he felt even more anxious when there was no sign of the supposed gypsy the bride had mentioned. There was no way that the ghost had lied to him, was there? She had seemed so sincere and so grateful after he freed her, she had no reason to lie to him.

It was then that Tao considered leaving the chamber, to walk towards another room perhaps, when he caught a glimpse of strange-looking doll on one of the shelves. The puppet seemed to have been caught by its own sets of strings, but to his surprise, the doll was gagged, a piece of cloth wrapped tightly around its mouth. The doll wriggled uncomfortably around, its movements even more alarming and wild when it had seen Tao.

The young man couldn’t be sure, but there was something off about this strange object, something about the hairstyle and the eyes that made him believe he had seen this doll before–which was of course, ridiculous, considering that he wasn’t familiar with any kind of doll. Slightly intrigued, Tao took a closer look at the frantic doll, almost feeling sorry for it and wanting to help it with untangling its strings, except that his feeling of uneasiness wouldn’t let him go. He carefully touched the clothes the doll wore, wondering where he had seen it before.

“If you break it, you buy it,” an old voice suddenly croaked, making Tao jump out of his skin. He quickly turned around, and let out another shriek when he saw an old gypsy woman sitting behind the floating table.

Her gaze was piercing, the green light only adding to her intimidation. Her hair was black and thick, falling in wavy locks over her back, but she wasn’t beautiful. Her face was sunken, her eyes harsh and unfeeling and she smiled a most gruesome grin, showing off her rotten teeth. She looked more like a witch than a gypsy, but it wasn’t Tao’s place to judge, now was it?

“A-are you the gypsy?” he asked for good measure, shuffling forward towards the table.

“You know of me?” she asked, her long, sharp nails trailing over the crystal ball in front of her. “I see the bleeding bride told you about me. She was driven mad, too, you know. Waiting for someone to talk to does that to a person,” she cackled shortly, staring intently at Tao. “How may I help you?”

Tao scraped his throat, wishing he had some water to drink. “The bride told me that you had information,” he tried to sound tough, but he could hear the subtle quiver in his own voice. The moving objects in the room weren’t helping him in trying to focus, especially with that strange doll making muffled noises. How could something so small be so loud?

“Did she? What a treacherous witch, I have no information for you at all,” the gypsy replied, an eerie glow shining from her eyes.

“Y-you don’t? N-no! No! That’s not possible,” Tao said with a bit more vigor. “She said that you would know where I could find Jae-noona! Please, you have to tell me where I can find her!”

The gypsy watched him in sadistic amusement before she cackled again, the sound of it annoying. “My, how passionate, how sincere! You didn’t let me finish, however,” she spoke deviously, “I said that I have no information for you at all, if you have no means to pay me,” she finished, her cackling reverberating in the air before she clasped her bony hands together and gestured Tao to come closer.

“I can answer any question you have as long as the price you pay me is right,” she hissed softly, but Tao didn’t trust the gypsy. He didn’t like how undead she looked, how treacherous she seemed. Maybe she was more of a witch than she was a gypsy. He felt a certain air of darkness and malice ebbing from her.

“And what does the doctor think of your practices?” he boldly asked and with good reason. The reaction of the gypsy told him enough. She was frightened of the doctor, and she didn’t seem to appreciate him mentioning the owner of this insane haunted house.

“He has no say in this room,” she breathed, the green light in the crystal slowly turning a deep, aggressive red. “And you would do well not to mention him again in my presence, Huang Zitao.”

Startled, Tao nearly stumbled back after her outburst. “How do you know my name?”

“You think this ornament to be no more but illumination? Fool,” she spat, the crystal ball. “You’re a lucky fool, too. That answer to your question was free. But I will not help you unless you are aware of the price that must be paid.”

“Then explain to me, I don’t have much time, I must find Jae-noona,” Tao spoke valiantly, the gypsy waving her hand as a floating chair swooped him off his feet and sat him down behind the table. He was stuck there, unable to move away despite his best struggles.

“W-what are you doing!” he asked in alarm, “Release me!”

“Do you wish my aid?” the gypsy asked in a calm voice, tinged only with the slightest hint of madness. When Tao nodded, she scoffed. “Then you shall do as I command. If you wish to know the location of your precious noona, you must answer my question. If you fail to answer it, I am paid. If you answer it correctly, I will tell you where you can find her and meet your doom.”

Tao huffed out some air at hearing her terms, momentarily distracted when the doll on the shelf became loud and frantic again. He squinted his eyes at it before he chose to ignore it and turned to the gypsy.

“What is the price I have to pay if I answer the question wrong?”

The gypsy smiled her crooked smile, leaning forward so Tao could see the sores on her skin, the scars on her hands and wrists.

“Your soul you will forfeit to me,” she grinned.

Tao swallowed, a chill running up and down his spine. “And if I win?”

“Then you win it all, I shall not ask for your soul as your soul shall be forfeit to the monster that holds your noona captive this very moment,” the gypsy laughed evilly as though she knew that the little piece of information would rile him Tao, and she was right.

“The doctor has Jae-noona?” Tao gasped. “Yah, then what are you waiting for, I don’t have much time! Tell me where she is!”

“Answer my question first, handsome, or you’ll never see her, nor your foolish brothers, ever again!” the gypsy hissed, the lights dimming as bursts of candles started to ignite on their own in this enchanted room of hell.

“Fine, tell me your question and I’ll answer it! I won’t stop until I find Jae-noona!” Tao yelled at the gypsy.

“Your determination is delicious,” she mocked, her lips obnoxiously that Tao almost gagged. “Tell me then, hero, the correct answer to my question: What does time teach us?”

>>> THAT LIFE IS SHORT AND RUNS OUT FOR EVERYONE <<<
>>> THAT LIFE IS ETERNAL, EVEN WHEN OUR TIME ON EARTH IS BRIEF <<<