The 4th Floor Knock

[Page 1] Panel 1 (Large Panel): High-angle shot of a run-down dormitory near a university. Heavy rain pours down in the gloomy atmosphere, with the entrance light flickering dimly. Text Box: "Preda Dormitory... a popular budget dorm for college students. But everyone knows the golden rule..." Panel 2: View from inside the building, looking toward the staircase where an old warning sign is posted. SFX: Patter... Patter... (Heavy rain) Text Box: "Rule #1: Never stay on the 4th floor after midnight." [Page 2] Panel 1: "Ren," an exhausted student wearing thick glasses, carries a large cardboard box in front of Room 404. Ren: "(Sighs) I'm lucky to even find a place at this price... Who would actually believe in cheap ghost stories anyway?" Panel 2: Ren unlocks the door and steps inside. The room is cramped and dusty. Panel 3: Shot of an old wall clock showing 11:45 PM. Ren: "Phew... Time to unpack quickly and get some sleep. I have an early class tomorrow." [Page 3] Panel 1: Ren focuses on arranging books onto a shelf. Panel 2: Close-up of the wall clock. The minute and hour hands align straight up at 12:00 AM. SFX: Tick... Tock... Panel 3: The room falls dead silent. The rain outside abruptly stops in an unsettling way. Ren: "Huh... Did the rain really clear up that fast?" [Page 4] Panel 1 (Large Panel): A sound comes from the hallway outside the door of Room 404. SFX: Knock... Knock... Knock... Panel 2: Ren freezes and turns toward the door in confusion. Ren: "Who's knocking at this hour? Is it one of the neighbors?" [Page 5] Panel 1: Ren walks closer to the door and leans in to look through the peephole. Panel 2: Peephole view (fisheye lens distortion). The hallway outside is dimly lit and completely empty. Ren: "Nobody's there... Must be imagining things." Panel 3: Ren turns back to walk to his bed. [Page 6] Panel 1 (Large Panel): The knocking rings out again, but this time, it isn't coming from the door! SFX: BAM! BAM! BAM! Panel 2: Ren jumps in shock, spinning around toward the source of the noise. Ren: "W-Where is that coming from?!" Panel 3: The knocking sound resonates from right under the floorboards, beneath his feet! SFX: THUD! THUD! THUD! [Page 7] Panel 1: Ren staggers back in terror, sweat pooling on his forehead. Ren: "Th-The floor below? Why is Room 304 pounding on their ceiling?" Panel 2: Ren leans down and speaks toward the floorboards. Ren: "I'm sorry! Am I making too much noise?!" Panel 3: The knocking stops instantly... Dead silence. [Page 8] Panel 1: Ren lets out a long breath and lets out a dry chuckle. Ren: "Phew... Thought it was a ghost. Just a neighbor getting annoyed." Panel 2: Ren walks to the wardrobe to grab his pajamas. Panel 3: As he reaches for a shirt, his phone vibrates. SFX: Buzz... Buzz... [Page 9] Panel 1: Ren checks his phone screen. It's a text from the "Landlady." Screen Text: "New kid in 404, right? I forgot to mention..." Panel 2: Ren frowns as he reads the rest of the text. Screen Text: "The 3rd floor has been closed for renovations—no one's lived there for 3 years. Don't go messing around down there." Panel 3 (Large Panel): The relief fades from Ren's face instantly. He turns deathly pale, his eyes trembling. [Page 10] Panel 1: Ren slowly turns his gaze back to the center of the floor. Ren: "(Thinking) If the floor below is empty... then who... who was knocking?" Panel 2 (Large Panel): SFX: SCRATCHHHHH... Image: Loud scratching noises echo from directly beneath his bed! [Page 11] Panel 1: Ren turns rigid, barely daring to breathe. Panel 2: He slowly lowers his head to peek into the narrow gap between the bed frame and the floor. Panel 3: Pitch darkness beneath the bed... Nothing is there. Ren: "Th-There's nothing..." [Page 12] Panel 1: Ren begins to lift his head back up. Panel 2 (Full Page): A shadowy figure of a woman with long hair dragging on the floor hangs upside down from the ceiling, her face dangling right in front of Ren's! Shadow Creature: "Looking for... me...?" [Page 13] Panel 1 (Large Panel): Extreme close-up of the ghost woman's face—hollow eye sockets and a torn mouth filled with needle-like teeth. SFX: SCREEEAAAAM! (Ren screaming) Panel 2: Ren collapses to the floor, scrambling frantically toward the door. Ren: "Help! Somebody help me!" [Page 14] Panel 1: Ren wrenches the door open and sprints out into the 4th-floor hallway. Panel 2: The hallway is pitch black, with the overhead lights flickering wildly. SFX: BZZZT... FLICKER... FLICKER... Panel 3: Ren runs at full speed toward the stairwell. [Page 15] Panel 1: Ren dashes down the stairs in a frenzy. Ren: "Got to reach the 1st floor! Got to get out of here!" Panel 2: He glances at the floor sign on the stair landing... "4th Floor." Ren: "Huh? Didn't I just run down from the 4th floor?" Panel 3: He pushes himself harder, rushing down the next flight of stairs. [Page 16] Panel 1: He reaches the next landing. The sign reads... "4th Floor." Panel 2: He runs down another flight. The sign still reads... "4th Floor." Ren: "Why... Why can't I reach the 3rd floor?! Am I stuck in a loop?!" Panel 3 (Large Panel): Knocking sounds erupt simultaneously from all directions around the stairwell. SFX: KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK! THUD! THUD! THUD! [Page 17] Panel 1: Ren collapses onto the stairs, completely exhausted and gasping for air. Ren: "Haa... Haa... I give up... Please just let me go..." Panel 2: The woman's figure creeps down the stairwell wall at a contorted, unnatural angle, limbs bent unnaturally. SFX: CRACK... SNAP... [Page 18] Panel 1: The ghost stops right before Ren, mere inches away. Panel 2: She slowly reaches out a skeletal, blood-stained hand toward Ren's face. Ghost: "Do you know... why... no one stays... after midnight...?" Panel 3: Ren squeezes his eyes shut in sheer terror, tears streaming down his face. [Page 19] Panel 1 (Large Panel): The ghost gently places an index finger against Ren's lips. Ghost: "Because... it's time to play 'Hide and Seek'..." Panel 2: The ghost whispers into Ren's ear. Ghost: "And this time... you're 'IT'..." Panel 3: The ghost's figure vanishes into the darkness, leaving behind total silence. [Page 20] Panel 1: Morning sunlight streams through the stairwell window as birds chirp outside. Panel 2: The landlady walks up the stairs with an electrician. Landlady: "Listen, electrician, the lights on the 4th floor are out again... Huh?" Panel 3: The landlady pauses, looking at the 4th-floor landing. The door to Room 404 sits half-open, with half-unpacked boxes left abandoned inside. Panel 4 (Final Panel - Cliffhanger): Deep inside the dark wardrobe of Room 404, a pair of blood-red eyes snaps wide open in the shadows... Ending Caption: "Stay quiet... Don't let the seeker find you..."