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I'm agreeing totally with Calluna's analysis. I just wonder who really the old man was and why he cried for the kids if, in the end, he was a sort of a carrier of the hellish box. I loved the supernatural and surreal halo throughout the story.

Apparently the creepy old man has built the booby-trapped box in order to teach something important to curious children... The mutilations are a painful necessity, to ensure the lesson sticks. He might be out of his mind (probably) or actually onto something. We'll never know!

I keep thinking about hellraiser 🤔 We should write a prompt with that taste!