Author's Note: So we go check in on Germany this week. Plus, we take another visit to the Dark Circus. I am still working out what I am going to do with the circus. It's going to unfold as the season goes along. Also, I'm not sure if Italy wants his soul back. I am going to have to see where that story goes too. I like how this match turned out. The ideas came out and it just wrote itself. As a result, we have this. Next week, we're going to check back in with Yao and Ju with their problems. I have the next two weeks planned as well. You will have to see where we go. For now, enjoy this week's match.

Match Four: Dunkler Zirkus:

The rumors of the Dark Circus keep spreading everywhere. It keeps popping up everywhere in Europe. But what exactly is it? No one has a straight answer. They just had speculation and stories. Those who went to the Dark Circus were more likely to be never seen again. Those that do come back never speak of it again. Now, something like this would be chalked up to made-up creepypasta if not for the rising number of missing persons all across Europe.

None of the victims have anything in common. The disappearances were happening at random times of the day. The police had no leads. They had no clues either. Some people are trying to tell them about the Dark Circus. The police refuse to believe it.

"There is no Dark Circus!" they announced to the public. "Stop scaring the public with made-up stories. If anyone calls in about this circus, we will hang up on you. That is all." However, they didn't sound too convincing. Could it be that some of them are starting to believe the stories? If they did, they wouldn't fess up to it.

Meanwhile, Ludwig had his doubts. However, there was going else on his mind. He saw Feliciano around town. But they never spoke. The Italian man wouldn't even look at him. Still, Ludwig felt his heart ache for him. He wanted his dear friend back but didn't know how. Some of the other countries had already written him off.

"You have to let him go," Gilbert said. "He's not your Italy anymore."

"I can't," the German man said. No matter how right his brother was, Ludwig still held out hope. There had to be a way to get the Italian man's soul back. There had to be.

The question was did Feliciano even want his soul back?

Ludwig spent his nights looking up how to recuse a soul from the Devil. It had to have been done before. He was positive about that. Gilbert and the others didn't bother to sway him. Maybe this could help him cope. The German man had to weed out what he thought was a scam. He couldn't help but feel disgusted at those looking to make a quick buck off of the desperate. Those people needed to be put in jail for the rest of their lives. Ludwig refused to settle for any cheap advice. He was only going to get the best.

One night, Ludwig was on a site for necromancy when a message popped up on his screen. The German noticed it at the bottom corner.

"Hm? What is this?" he asked. The words "New Message" flashed across the screen. Like a moth to a flame, Ludwig clicked on the link. Another window popped up on his screen. The German man narrowed his eyes.

"What the hell is this?" he asked. There was only one link with just random letters in blue. Ludwig usually would've closed out of the message as fast as he would. But it was like his hand was moving on its own. One click and he was pulled into the world that everyone was talking about online.

The 3-D image of a black ticket flew up onto the screen. Gold letters wrote themselves on the surface. Ludwig put on his glasses for a better read.

"You. Are. Invited. To. A. Spectacular. Event," he read aloud. The German man had a confused look on his face. What did that mean? Suddenly, there was a tapping on the glass. Ludwig looked up and saw something that had him scratching his head.

A black and white clown was floating in front of the window outside. His grin was bigger than his head. The beady little eyes stayed locked onto a stunned Ludwig. The clown honked a black horn before twirling around. The goofy face was unsettling. Germany stood there was a blank stare on his face. He should've reached out and closed the curtains or done something. But Ludwig found himself unable to move. Something seemed off about that clown.

Suddenly, the creepy visitor froze. He and Ludwig locked eyes with each other. The German man didn't move. He tried to will himself to go for his gun, but his hand wouldn't move. The clown broke into a huge grin. He pressed his hand against the window. A vibrating pulse touched the surface. There was a loud crash and then…

Nothing.

When Ludwig opened his eyes, he found himself in the middle of an abandoned field. How did it get so dark out here so fast? This was the kind of dark that happened around midnight. It felt so cold out here. What did that clown do to him? The German man looked around. He felt along his pockets. Of course he didn't have his gun with him. Now what?

The German froze when he heard footsteps walking through the grass. Against his better judgment, he slowly turned his head. He couldn't see them at first. However, there were several people in the field. They were all getting closer.

"Stay back. Stay back," Ludwig said in a loud whisper. The footsteps kept getting closer. The German shielded himself. However, he slowly lowered his arms. Shadowlike figures the color of mud walked on either side of him. They kept their heads down as they kept walking. Ludwig looked around.

"Hello?" he tried to ask. However, no words came out of his mouth. Ludwig couldn't even open his mouth. Instead, he found himself turning around and facing the direction of where the crowd was heading. It was then he noticed the quiet around him. It felt like everything got sucked into a vacuum. Still, he and the shadowy figures kept walking. They walked through the darkness. Not a single word was said. But where were they going?

A giant red tent stood in the middle of the field. The shadows started walking toward the giant opening. The bright red lights led the way. Ludwig couldn't help but follow the crowd. The lights were bright enough to drown out the darkness. Distorted carnival music floated through the air. Ludwig reluctantly lifted his eyes. That same black and white clown who was at his window was waiting for him. He held out his arms with a huge grin on his face. Turning and running away wasn't an option. Ludwig felt himself getting closer and closer. The music sounded like it was underwater. The rest of the sounds started to warp and fade away. Everything went black as everything went quiet.

So many lights everywhere. Balls of fiery light danced in the air. Ludwig's vision cleared to see the shadowy figures all sitting down in many chairs facing an open stage. The room was so quiet he could hear pins dropping. A feeling of dread washed over him. He tried to stand up but found his body being forced down. He looked down at his body. Nothing was holding him down. However, that became the least of his worries.

Ludwig looked up when he heard footsteps walking to the front.

A person walked into the center of the room. The large black and red top hat was the first thing the audience noticed. The black platform-heeled boots killed the silence. It could be a man or it could be a woman. Ludwig couldn't tell from where he was sitting. The ringmaster had to pull up their blood-red coattails. They looked around at the ground for a moment. A small smile came across their face.

"Perfect," they said to themselves. The ringmaster turned to the silent crowd and cleared their throat.

"Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to the show!" they said. The mindless crowd clapped. The ringmaster held up a black-gloved hand.

"You are all in for a treat tonight," they said. A smirk came across their face. Ludwig tried to stay calm. He would not give into panic. The best way out of this was to keep himself in check. The German lifted his head. Meanwhile, the ringmaster held back a chuckle.

"Have you all heard of the Angel of Music?" they asked. The audience didn't answer. They didn't get a chance to. The ringmaster raised their chin with pride.

"Well, I am going to tell you," they said. Suddenly, the room became dark. Only a single spotlight turned on, putting the focus on the ringmaster.

"What is an Angel of Music?" they asked. "I picture a feminine-looking figure. Could be a woman or it could be a man. You don't know." Ludwig noticed a figure hanging from the ceiling in the darkness.

"This feminine-looking figure has long dark hair and floats off of the ground dressed in all white," the ringmaster said. "You can tell that presence is near. Just look to the sky." Another spotlight turned on over the hanging figure. The long white flowing dress was hard to ignore. They had their head down with long wavy black hair covering their face.

"She is so pure and out of your reach," the ringmaster said. "You can try and touch her but you will never reach her. She is so pure that Heaven pales in comparison to her. Does she sing? Of course, she sings. Her voice rings out to the world. Gaze upon her beauty." More lights focused on the figure as faint angelic music filled the room. A giant pair of ripped-up white wings sprouted from her back.

"Her wings will block out the sky," the ringmaster said. "When she sings, you will be moved to tears. Each note will wake up something inside of you. Many seek to possess her; none can claim her. Something inside of your heart will beg her to give you a chance. However, you will only see her for a moment and then she is gone."

The angelic figure was slowly lowered down. Ludwig was horrified by the mere sight of her. This poor woman looked so pale with her skin covered in scratches and deep cuts. Her long black hair was tangled up. Her dress was torn and strained with dried blood. It looked like a wire halo was forced onto her head. The wings sewn into her back looked mangled and worn out. Some of the feathers were falling off, revealing some of the ruined frames. When she lifted her head, the nightmares looked even worse. Bloody tears ran down her pale cheeks. She had two red pits where her eyes used to be. A permanent smile had been stitched into her face.

"Sing for us, angel!" the ringmaster commanded. "Sing! Sing! Sing! Sing!" They started clapping as they chanted. More bloody tears ran down the angel's cheeks as she opened her mouth. Ludwig expected to hear a horrible sound. Instead, a beautiful sound filled the air. No angels or music could compare. Not even his favorite music could match. The "angel" was singing from her soul. Her body started lighting up. The audience was in tears. Ludwig could feel himself crying as well.

Run!

Ludwig froze. He knew where that voice was coming from. Those cherry pits were focused directly on him. Even through her singing, she spoke to him.

How are you talking to me?

You have to leave! You can't stay here! Get out quick or you will be pulled into this hell! You have to go!

How can you still talk? Who are you? How do I get you out of here too?

You can't! Save yourself!

Suddenly, Ludwig bolted out of his seat. It amazed him that he could move again. He didn't get time to think about that. The German man turned and ran out toward the exit. No one in the audience noticed him. They were captivated by the tormented angel's singing. Ludwig ran all the way to the back. He fought not to be drawn back in from the singing. He closed his eyes and kept running.

Ludwig found himself in a narrow hallway. Everything was a deep red. Even in the darkness, it stood out. The feeling of dread hadn't left his throat. Ludwig gulped. He couldn't dwell on that now. All he had to go down the hall and get to safety.

The click of a lighter told him that he wasn't alone. Ludwig slowly looked to his left.

"What's a fine-looking man like you doing in a place like this?" a gruff voice with an Italian accent asked. Ludwig froze. It couldn't be…

"Feliciano?" he asked.

"No," the dark Italian man said. "My name is Luciano." He clicked his lighter again. The German man stared at him blankly.

"You saw it too, didn't you?" Luciano asked. Ludwig closed his mouth and nodded.

"She's right, you know?" the dark Italian man said. "You can't stay here."

"So what are you doing here?" Ludwig asked. Luciano smiled at him.

"Does there have to be a reason?" he asked. Was it possible for him to be worse than the clown? Ludwig couldn't help but wonder.

"How do I get out of here?" the German man asked. The dark Italian man perked up.

"Delighted you asked!" he said. "All you have to do is to go down the hall and you will be taken outside." Ludwig stared at him with narrowed eyes.

"Come on," he said. "I'm not trying to trick you. I just want to help you. You can go if you or go back to the show." That was all the German man needed to hear.

"Thank you," he said softly. He bowed his head and walked down the hall. Luciano twirled the knife in his hand as another thought entered his brain.

"Oh, Ludwig!" he spoke up. The German man looked over his shoulder but said nothing. The dark Italian man gave him a little smile.

"Are you sure that you are saving your dear friend?" he asked. Ludwig at first looked confused.

"What do you mean?" he asked. Luciano shrugged.

"Nothing," he said. "I just hope that he really wants his soul back."

"Of course he does!" Ludwig shouted.

"You sure about that?" the dark Italian man asked. Ludwig didn't answer as he forced himself to keep walking. Luciano walked as the German man disappeared down the hall.

"We will see each other again, Bambolotto," he said to himself. He turned and walked back to the show in the tent.

Ludwig wound up back on the streets around three in the morning. There was nothing or no one on the road. The emptiness gave him a creepy feel. He knew that he couldn't be here. Ludwig pushed himself to go home. Once he made it back to his house, the German locked the door and went to bed.

In the morning, Ludwig dove back into looking for ways to get Feliciano's soul back. He didn't care if his friend wanted it back or not. He was just going to have to try.

The TV was on in the background. There was a press conference on. A German man and a Japanese woman pleaded for the safe return of their missing daughter. He was the dean of a prestigious university in Berlin and was well-known in the lecture circuits. She was an idol with a strong career in her belt. The mother held a picture of the girl in question. Ludwig happened to look up and see the picture. He noticed that the missing girl looked just like the Angel of Music from the Dark Circus. He dreaded the moment they would find out the truth.

There are several messages on online forums about tales of the Dark Circus. The stories would just keep piling and the circus would get worse.