Cover Description

The journal is bound in worn leather, its corners scuffed and edges darkened with age. The initials "N.K." are faintly embossed on the cover, barely visible through the layers of grime and time. The pages within are yellowed and brittle, the ink faded but still legible.

Entry 1: The New Position

Master Valthrus’s trust in me is a great honor. The others whisper of his eccentricities, but I see only genius. He has tasked me with overseeing the construction of his "observation room." It is a curious request, a chamber meant for watching without being seen, but I do not question the master's intent. The pay is good, and his vision is...compelling.

Entry 5: Unease Among the Staff

The servants grow restless. They speak of strange sounds from the lower levels, whispers that do not belong to any living soul. I’ve heard them too, faint murmurs that creep into the edges of the mind. I told the master, but he dismissed my concerns, claiming the work below is "delicate" and must not be interrupted. I’ve decided to move into the observation room to better focus on my duties and avoid the prattle of the others.

Entry 12: Watching Shadows

The peephole provides a vantage unlike any other. I see all that happens in the ballroom. They do not know I am watching. It is…unsettling how often their movements seem deliberate, as though they know I am there. Paranoia, Valthrus says. Perhaps he is right, but I have started keeping the drill close by. It feels...comforting.

Entry 18: The Whispers Grow Louder

They are in my head now. Not just whispers but thoughts, not my own, crawling through my mind like worms burrowing in soil. The servants have turned against me; I see it in their eyes. Even when they smile, they hide their betrayal behind their teeth. They’re plotting something. I can’t leave the room anymore. The peephole is my only safety.

Entry 24:Valthrus’s Experiment

Something happened below. A blast of…I don’t know what. It wasn’t fire, nor light. It was…thoughts. An explosion of thoughts. I felt them tear through my mind. The pain was unbearable. It’s quieter now, but the whispers haven’t left. They’re louder. Clearer. They’re telling me what they’ll do to me. They’ll tear me apart.

Final Entry: Drilling Out the Noise

I can’t take it anymore. The drill…It will stop the noise. I’ll let it out, all of it. Just a little hole, and they’ll be free. I’ll be free. The peephole isn’t enough. They’re still watching me, still crawling in my mind. I see them even when I close my eyes.

This is the only way. I’ll be whole again. They won’t…they can’t…I seen what ye did. I seen it all.