*CHAPTER 19: Don't Even Trust Your Eyes*

*CHAPTER 19: Don't Even Trust Your Eyes*
Silence fell like a heavy curtain.
All eyes turned back to Ömer. Not with curiosity anymore. With suspicion. With fear. As if he was the enemy.
The air in that wide, rotten-smelling university corridor became unbreathable.
Aslıhan stepped forward. Her hands were shaking, but her voice was sharp with anger and betrayal.
"You're the monster, aren't you, Ömer? You told us he only uses the sealed ones to disguise himself. But if he needs one of the sealed to do these paranormal things..."
Ömer cut her off. He didn't shout. That was the scariest part.
His eyes were bloodshot, but not from anger. From nights without sleep. Dark circles, cracked lips. He looked exhausted, like a man who had been thinking for days without stopping.
"Stop, Aslıhan. Just think."
His voice was calm. Too calm. Cold-blooded.
"If this bastard wanted to kill us, he would have killed us on the first day," he said, looking at her without blinking. "An entity that can open a portal to bring us all here... can't it drop a statue on us? Can't it drive a bus over us? Why play games?"
He slowly scanned the class, looking into their eyes one by one. Buğra swallowed hard. Beyza held Hasan's arm. No one could answer.
"His purpose isn't to kill. It's to have fun," Ömer whispered. "He did those paranormal events with his own power. It has nothing to do with the sealed ones. He wanted us all to believe they were cursed. And he succeeded."
He took a step closer to Aslıhan. His shadow fell on her.
"Remember what you said... 'What if he's doing these events through the sealed ones?' Remember. Remember the power of that portal. Someone with that much power, can't he do these little tricks? The seal is just a story. A story he told us so we would fear each other."
The class fell silent. The logic was terrifyingly perfect. Heads started to lower. Doubt was now poison in everyone's mind.
But Gizem didn't lower her head. Her arms were still crossed, her eyes locked on Ömer like a hawk. Her paranoid mind was working at full speed.
"Then how will you prove to us that the sealed ones are not cursed?" she asked, her voice like ice.
Ömer didn't lose his composure at all. He even smiled faintly. A tired, hopeless smile.
"Simple. We will split into two."
Everyone was shocked. A murmur rose.
"Buğra will lead one group, Abdülkadir the other. Both are sealed," Ömer said, pointing at them. Buğra froze, Abdülkadir's face turned pale. "If paranormal events happen in both groups at the same time, you are right, Gizem. Then the curse is contagious."
He paused for a moment, letting the fear sink in.
"But if it only happens to one of us... Then all of this is his game. Because even he can't be in two places at once."
He took a deep, shaky breath. For the first time, his calm voice cracked.
"One group will search for clues in our school in Denizli. The other group will stay here in Aydın. He can't manipulate two groups at the same time. He will have to choose. And when he chooses, we will see who the real monster is."
*On The Roof*
The wind was howling.
Ahmet was lying flat on the cold concrete of the roof, watching and hearing everything from the edge. The wind carried Ömer's every word to him.
He got angry after hearing Ömer's plan. His nails dug into the concrete. He clenched his hand into a fist until his knuckles turned white.
He spoke inside his mind, his inner voice full of panic and rage:
_"Damn Ömer... He cornered me. That bastard is smarter than I thought. No matter what, I can't let them reach the school. If they go to Denizli, they will find the bodies. Damn it... I can't even kill him right now."_
As he thought this, he felt a great, searing pain in his chest. As if a hot iron was pressed on his skin. He flinched and arched his back. The seal was burning. The mark on his forehead, the tongueless devil, was glowing faintly under his skin.
_"The moment I leave here, they will understand the truth. What should I do? Should I kidnap Ömer too? No, it's too late now. Look what a moment of distraction has brought me to. Why didn't I silence Ömer when I had the chance?"_
*Down Below*
Ömer continued to speak, his voice now carrying a new, desperate hope. He knew he had convinced them.
"The moment we feel something paranormal, we will run in two groups just as we agreed. This way he can't harm us all at the same time."
Buğra looked at Abdülkadir. Two sealed ones. Two leaders. Two targets.
And somewhere above them, Ahmet was bleeding, powerless, and for the first time in a long time... truly afraid.