He remembered it clearly, something that definitely defied the laws of physics.
He wasn't hit by a truck.
Zach was attacked by his friend who morphed into some sort of monsters, and those monsters were killed by humans wielding otherworldly powers.
_What..?_
Zach tried to stand, but he couldn't move his legs.
With a trembling hand, he raised the sheets, revealing legs that were limp as noodles.
"The doctor said it's nothing short of a miracle you're still able to move your arms… you could have been paralyzed."
She gently brushed his hair back.
Zach's thoughts were on other things currently.
Why haven't police officers swarmed in to ask him questions? He was the only survivor of his friend group; the others had all died tragic deaths.
"Mom.." Zach called out softly.
"What about the others.."
His mother's gaze turned from caring to confused.
"What do you mean?"
"Anne... Kolon, where are they?" he asked innocently.
His mother looked at him with confusion and worry.
"Honey, who are these people you're mentioning?"
Zach couldn't believe his ears.
When they were younger, she always invited them over to eat brunch after a long day of playing. She treated them like they were her own children, and now she was asking who these people were.
....
The next few days were spent with his mother; she refused to leave his side despite the doctor's pleas.
Zach stood opposite a full-body mirror, revealing his fair skin, black hair, and grey eyes. An easily forgotten appearance if you don't pay attention.
In these past few days, Zach had attempted to visit the family of the deceased, but...
He recalled the event.
"I'm sorry, do I know you?"
They all couldn't remember who Zach was, or who their children were.
It was as if their existence had been erased... totally.
Zach just sat there, staring at himself.
"What do I do now?"
_Do I just forget I had seven friends and just move on_
Zach's thoughts trailed off.
He recalled what the red-veiled woman said.
"We brought it on ourselves?.. Tch." Zach gritted his teeth.
He was afraid.
Should he try and find these people in red dresses? His intuition told him it would be dangerous.
Then, what do he do?
#$π¢¥£√π§∆
As Zach looked into the mirror, some strange voices echoed.
Zach jolted as he looked behind, not finding anything strange with the environment.
His room was still the gloomy place he once despised.
#$&£¢€¥π√¶∆¥↑
Zach wasn't imagining it; something was really wrong with him.
Floating symbols flashed through his field of vision, stunning him.
Zach looked into the mirror to see words flashing through his retina.
"What is that.. wh- who are you?" Zach asked.
No response
Zach stared at himself in the wheelchair for a bit, feeling pity for his scrawny physique, but ultimately decided to head downstairs.
Zach was the only son of Rudolf Steiner, a German aristocrat who moved to Austria in his early days to study business.
He used his amassed wealth to buy a reserved, unexplored gold mine back in the early 1920s, as the private company was going bankrupt because of the ongoing war.
In the later years, demand for gold skyrocketed, as export and import relied on it. The government could only use gold to trade, as the other companies did not trust Germany.
Zach reached the bottom of the stairs with great difficulty... heh heh, I guess having a mansion isn't always a good thing.
His father used his little gold mine to get a lifelong settlement from the government because, five years later, gold was established as the main export and import currency, urging the government to buy gold mines from all private companies, including 95% of Rudolf's gold firm.
Amassing him billions of new currency groschens in gold pounds.
And now, he's living the life of a lord because he made good decisions when he was younger. He was famous among the aristocrats as the 'gold merchant'.
Zach chatted with his father over dinner, talking about politics and the ban of the German Nazi parties in Austria.
Austria had instigated the exchange control this time, huh.
_It wasn't like us to do so, but I guess the Great Depression has really increased our desperation._
As they chatted, night quickly came, and Rudolf offered their servant to carry Zach upstairs.
Due to Zach's 'accident', he was crippled for life, so Zach had to have a maid everywhere he went.
Zach went to his room that night, and he showered with the help of the maid. It felt weird now that he couldn't wash certain areas by himself.
Well, now he knew at least one thing in his lower body was functioning.
He was set on his bed and tucked in, and his mind began drifting asleep some time later.
--------
Zach woke up in a panic, still on his bed. He felt some sort of inexplicable fear that he couldn't identify the cause.
Suddenly, a shadow moved at the corner of his eyes. Zach sat up in reflex. He was stunned. His legs, which were practically useless, were functioning.
As his mind was drawn to his now functioning limbs, his soul rattled in fear.
His body was locked in a posture as slimy black tentacles infused with maggots the size of a grown man's fingers inched closer towards him from the shadows at the corner of the room.
_w-w-what's h-happen-... Arghh_blood gushed out from his eyes, fingernails, ears, and the skin pores on his neck.
It felt like his soul was being clogged.
-------
Ahh
Zach gasped... waking up from that horrible dream.
His body felt sticky, most likely from his sweat despite it being 13° outside.
Zach tried to call for the maid to turn on the lights, but what came out of his mouth was a hoarse cough.
Zach hurriedly turned on the lamp by the side of the bed, and his pupils constricted.
In his hands was blood, blood and huge maggots squirming. The realization hit him that this disgusting substance came from within him.
Zach, at this point, was full-on panicking. He rolled off the bed with great difficulty; his legs moved on impulse, but he couldn't think about that. He staggered to the light switch and turned it on.
What he saw made the fact that he coughed up maggots the least of his worries.
Surrounding his bed were identical symbols, written all over the room in blood. It looked like it was written frantically.
Zach looked at his hands and discovered that the tips of his fingers were ripped open, and the pain seemed to tell him something.
He was the one that did all this in his sleep.
He must've used a lot of force, as his nails were ground down, and white pus gathered where his fingernails were supposed to be.
#$£¢€¥£¥£¶∆≠
He heard those strange words again.
"No... no.. no no no"
He clutched his scalp.
"T-this isn't real"
He shut his eyes.
"I.. I am not crazy"
"Am I?"
Zach began to question reality.
Maybe he's in a dream; that could be the case, but the pain in his fingertips told him a different story.
"I'm.. I'm truly.... "
He glanced at his palm.
"..Crazy"