Falk

Biodata

Background

Twenty years before the Mountain Estate incident, Falk was widely acknowledged as Loen’s “King of Mystery Novels.” His horror stories frightened a generation of readers. Although he eventually stopped writing, his reputation still carried considerable weight in literary and publishing circles 78.

Falk regularly invited writers to his estate for leisure activities and literary salons. Invitations signified his recognition, while prize money and recommendation letters made his gatherings attractive to younger authors. His original purpose was to maintain his influence rather than act purely out of generosity 78 79 93.

Altair exploited these gatherings as a feeding ground for Nois, a Randolph’s Brain that consumed human inspiration. After attending a salon, Altair arranged for Falk to apparently discover a summoning incantation by accident. Falk secretly used it and came to believe Nois was his contracted creature. In reality, he was merely its “Fosterer”; Altair remained its true master 93 99.

Appearance

Falk was over fifty, with hair that was half black and half white 79.

Personality

Falk initially presented himself as an affable senior writer. He welcomed newcomers enthusiastically, joked about his own frightening stories, and praised Raven’s storytelling ability. He also restrained Harvey’s hostility by invoking his authority within Loen’s literary circles 79 83.

Once the guests tried to leave, his manner became openly contemptuous. He laughed at their predicament, treated Kayla’s death indifferently, and visibly enjoyed Harvey and Kieran fighting. By suggesting that contestants could endanger one another through the competition’s rules, he deliberately undermined their trust 87 88.

His response to Nois’s killings focused on avoiding exposure. He proposed disguising Dylan’s death as a murder and blaming a scapegoat, then ultimately approved killing everyone in the manor and fleeing abroad with their savings. Despite his skill with words, he failed to recognize that his supposed control over Nois was a deception 90.

Abilities & Skills

Literary Expertise and Influence

• His mystery and horror writing earned him national recognition and an enduring reputation 78.
• His invitations and recommendations could improve a writer’s standing in literary and publishing circles 78 79.
• He used carefully framed explanations of the contest rules to encourage suspicion and conflict among the trapped writers 88.

Summoning and Occult Knowledge

• Falk successfully summoned Nois using an incantation secretly placed within his reach by Altair 93.
• He knew what he believed were contractual binding incantations. His command to stop appeared to immobilize Nois briefly, but the creature then revealed that Falk had never been its master 90 99.
• His laboratory contained materials Fors used for a spirit-channeling ritual 99.

Puppet State

• Nois seized control of Falk through eye contact, progressively depriving him of control over his body 90.
• As a puppet, Falk carried Nois and attacked Lorry on its orders 96 98.
• Gunshots to his chest and forehead knocked him down but did not prevent Nois from making him rise again. This endurance belonged to his puppet state, not a demonstrated independent ability 96.

Property and Resources

• Mountain Estate — His residence and salon venue in Backlund’s Eastern Southern Suburbs 78.
• Laboratory — Located in the manor’s rear courtyard and equipped with ritual materials 99.
• Household staff — A large staff with specialized duties, overseen by Butler Walker. Nois later converted servants into armed puppets 96.
• Salon prizes — Money and a recommendation letter offered to the winner 79.

Story Role

Writers’ Night

Falk accepted Miles’s recommendation to invite Lorry, who attended under the pen name Raven. Rain forced Falk to cancel a planned hunting competition on the grounds below the mountain and replace it with “Writers’ Night” 78 79.

He introduced the competition’s rules and announced the black cat Nois as Supervisor. Contestants had to tell first-person mystery-horror stories whose protagonists shared their names and died at the end. Falk announced results after consulting Nois, whose tail movements signaled approval 80 81.

Deaths and Rule Manipulation

After Gavin and Blake were found dead, Falk ordered the remaining rooms checked. Hayden and Dylan were also discovered dead. Falk initially appeared to organize a conventional response, ordering the rooms guarded and asking Walker to contact the police if the road was passable 85 86.

When the surviving guests demanded to leave, Falk invoked the prohibition on withdrawing without the Supervisor’s permission. Kayla shot Nois and attempted to escape, only to be returned supernaturally to the sitting-room entrance and compelled to shoot herself 87.

Falk then explained that Nois could interpret a story as violating the rules even when its resemblance to real events arose afterward. He also claimed that a contestant with one violation could survive by winning, deliberately creating opportunities for the writers to turn against one another. The second round ended with Chloe, Kieran, Raven, and Fors named as finalists 88 89.

Nois’s Betrayal

In private, Falk rebuked Nois for killing writers without consulting him. After considering a cover-up, he authorized a massacre and planned to leave the country. Nois instead turned its power on Falk, ignored his supposed contractual authority, and made him a puppet 90.

Lorry and Fors initially targeted Falk in the hope that killing the presumed master would end the attack. Lorry shot him, but Falk rose again, exposing that he was already under Nois’s control 96.

After Lorry and Fors destroyed Randolph’s Brain, they used Falk’s laboratory to question its residual spirituality. The creature confirmed that Falk had never been its master and identified Altair as the person who had ordered it to kill Lorry 99.

Relationships

• Nois / Randolph’s Brain — Supposed contracted creature and competition Supervisor. Falk believed he controlled it, but Nois ultimately enslaved him 80 90 99.
• Altair / Brett — Hidden manipulator who arranged Falk’s discovery of the summoning incantation and used his salons to nourish Nois 93 99.
• Butler Walker — Household manager who welcomed guests, relayed road conditions, and carried out Falk’s instructions 79 80 86.
• Lorry / Raven — Guest recommended by Miles. Falk praised his stories before becoming an obstacle to his escape; Lorry later shot Falk’s puppet body 78 83 96.
• Fors — Returning salon guest who eventually worked with Lorry against Nois 79 93.
• Dylan — Fellow suspense and horror writer who was on friendly terms with Falk. Nois killed him after he discovered its true form 83 90.
• Harvey — Salon participant whom Falk initially disciplined, then had forcibly removed after he threatened to disrupt the second round 79 89.