While Alfred slept at the inn near Police Station 19 on Sylvester Street, the night was calm. There was no noise. Officers patrolled as usual.
Alfred tossed and turned in his bed, clearly disturbed by something.
Suddenly, his eyes shot open—and he was engulfed in pale yellow fog.
"I hate yellow," Alfred grumbled, frowning as he walked through the hazy darkness.
Out of nowhere, an image began to form in front of him.
"Captain! Captain!" It was Lilly, cheerful as ever.
"Lilly? That's... strange."
"Captain, do you know what I'm thinking about?" she asked sweetly.
He answered on autopilot, "No, I don't."
"Hehe, guess~" Her smile was so pure, Alfred felt like he'd give up everything just to protect it.
"Hmm… you're thinking about a movie you watched," he guessed, smiling.
"Wrong! Try again~ hehe!" Her soft voice calmed Alfred more and more with each word.
"Alright... You're thinking about ice cream! I know you love it!" he said, pointing at her like he had just won a game.
Lilly giggled, covering her mouth with her hand. "I do love it! But that's not it either. Last chance, Captain~"
Alfred gave in with a playful sigh.
"You're thinking about your future boyfriend! Girls do that a lot, right?" he said hopefully.
"Heyyy~ we're not that hopeless!" she puffed her cheeks in mock offense.
'She's too cute…' Alfred thought, enchanted.
Lilly smiled even brighter, brushing aside her fake disappointment.
"What I'm thinking about is…"
"Yes?"
"What I'm thinking about is…"
"Go ahead, I won't tell anyone," Alfred smiled warmly to encourage her.
'Wait—this is just a dream! What am I even doing?'
"What I'm thinking about is…"
Suddenly, her expression turned dark—her sweet smile forced.
"How did it feel when you killed them all?"
"...Huh?" Alfred's own expression darkened.
"How did it feel to kill my parents? Did you enjoy it?"
"I..." Alfred's mind began spiraling into memories.
In the dream, he saw it all again—swinging his sword, cutting through the crowds.
Fathers being stabbed.
Mothers screaming.
Children slaughtered.
The concrete ground painted red.
The stench of decay and yellow rot from the corpses filled the air.
Lilly's tears as she confessed what happened to her parents.
Alfred—lying to her. Promising to help her find the killer. The killer he was.
"Did it feel good? Hiding the truth?"
"No… I…"
Alfred's lips trembled. His mind began to collapse again.
He felt as if he was drowning in a dark, yellow sea. A mask slowly formed on his face.
A yellow mask, adorned with glowing black stars. Narrow eyes. A twisted grin.
Alfred sank deeper, the mask tightening its grip—as if claiming him forever.
Then suddenly, something struck his chest like a bolt of lightning.
He opened his eyes—his body rising—as though a rope was pulling him from the ocean's depths.
His frozen arms reached for the mask.
He struggled violently to rip it off.
From the edges of the mask, dark yellow fluid oozed with every second he fought it.
He broke through the dark ocean surface, ripped the mask off, and looked around.
The sky was veiled like a curtain. Stars glowed with dark light. A strange moon loomed over the ruins of an ancient kingdom.
"…Carcosa," Alfred whispered.
Then everything spun around him—he was trapped in a wheel, endlessly turning.
His right eye began to burn. Strange symbols and unreadable words formed inside it.
He felt his blood vessels peeling open like worms crawling through his body—though nothing was inside, the blood boiled in his veins.
Alfred screamed in agony. His eye glowed brighter.
From the spinning sky, a yellow silhouette began to take shape.
A tall man with pale white skin. Lifeless yellow hair. A golden sword in one hand. A yellow cloak wrapped around him.
That's… not the King…
Then Alfred felt his body about to explode—he snapped awake to find Lilly stabbing him in the throat.
"…!"
A blue flash filled his vision—Lilly stood over him, knife raised again.
Her face was covered by a yellow mask adorned with stars, narrow eyes, and that twisted smile!
THUD.
Alfred knocked her off the bed and jumped up, moving faster than he thought possible. His entire body trembled like a man in his nineties.
Lilly stood back up, still holding the knife, and charged again.
She pounced on Alfred and pinned him to the ground.
He fought back, trying to keep the blade from reaching his neck while she pushed with all her might.
Realizing she couldn't overpower him physically, Lilly escaped by leaping through the window.
CRASH!
She shattered the glass and climbed down the pipe.
Alfred followed, just in time to see her jump into a night carriage.
Luckily, another carriage was nearby. Alfred jumped in and gave chase.
It was a once-in-a-lifetime coincidence.
He followed her carriage for an hour—until he noticed something.
She's trying to leave the city!
Then his heart skipped a beat.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
The carriage ahead kept going. Then—a body tumbled out onto the road.
"LILLY!!"
Alfred stopped his carriage and rushed out, gathering her wounded body in his arms.
"Lilly! Lilly!" He couldn't hold back the tears anymore.
She had stabbed her own heart—controlled by the mask.
Lilly weakly opened her eyes, looking up at Alfred.
Her lips moved slowly, trying to speak.
Alfred leaned in close to hear her final words.
"…It was… you… wasn't it?" she asked, tears falling from her eyes—waiting for the truth.
Alfred froze. His face went blank.
He turned his head slightly… and then nodded—tears flooding down his cheeks.
Lilly raised her hand slowly, placing it on his cheek.
Alfred looked into her eyes as she whispered:
"No… it wasn't… you…"
Her arm fell. The light faded from her eyes. But her smile remained.