Chapter 28: Borrowing Money
This novel is translated and hosted on bcatranslation
Flyer and his crew, hearts pounding in their chests, sprinted with a desperation only known to those who believe they’re moments away from death. The fear on their faces was unmistakable, and the look in their eyes spoke of an unspeakable terror they’d just witnessed. It felt as if they’d come face to face with a horror beyond human comprehension.
It was like they had stumbled upon something so terrifying, it could only be compared to a ghostly apparition.
As they ran, their bodies started to betray them. The adrenaline-fueled rush was wearing off, and the fatigue was setting in. They bent over, gasping for air, each breath a reminder of the terror they’d just encountered.
“What on earth did we just see?” one of the crew members managed to ask, his voice shaking with fear.
Flyer, trying to regain his composure, responded, “It has to be some sort of malevolent spirit. We need to visit a temple to get ourselves protected. Our luck’s rotten today; exploring those abandoned places was a mistake. We thought we’d find easy targets, but instead, we met… that.”
Interrupting him, another crew member, hand trembling, pointed ahead, uttering, “Look! There! Do you see it?”
They all looked up, and the terror that had been slowly receding surged back in full force.
In front of them stood a public restroom, the very place where they’d had their chilling encounter. And right there, glowing with a mysterious red hue, stood a man. His eyes, unblinking, were locked onto theirs. It was Miles.
It seemed their frenzied escape had cruelly brought them full circle, right back to where the horror had begun.
The sheer shock of this realization caused some of them to collapse in fear, paralyzed and unable to think of fleeing again.
Yet, despite his exhaustion, Flyer shouted, “Run!” He knew that standing still wasn’t an option, especially with Miles, the embodiment of their terror, standing just meters away. Without pausing to wonder how they ended up back at the restroom, all he could think of was getting as far away from Miles as possible.
Miles, however, seemed pensive, “This ghost domain feels different from the old man’s. He can make everyone in a building lose their way, even change the very structure of the place. But I can only create confusion?”
He pondered for a moment, “If the realm stays the same, then perhaps I haven’t yet perfected its use. Ghosts are not like humans.”
With that, he took a step forward, and in a blink, disappeared. But, to Flyer’s horror, he reappeared right in the path where they were running, seemingly having covered the distance in mere seconds.
Miles began to piece things together. “So, within this ghost domain, I have the ability to appear anywhere I desire,” he mused. “That does make sense and would also explain why the old man could silently emerge close by without anyone noticing after knocking on the door.”
Suddenly, before Flyer could react, Miles manifested right before him. The shocking appearance forced Flyer to swerve abruptly, seeking another escape route.
Miles, intrigued by his newfound powers, pondered aloud, “If I have the ability to change my position at will, can I also manipulate my surroundings?” A glint of wicked curiosity sparkled in his eyes. He reached out and effortlessly grabbed one of the terrified gang members who was frozen in place. With an unnatural strength, Miles hurled him against the restroom’s exterior.
With the eerie red glow surrounding him, it seemed as if Miles had dominion over everything in this realm.
A scream of pure pain and terror echoed as the gang member found his head grotesquely forced into a ventilation hole in the restroom door – a space far too small to accommodate a human head. Yet, in this warped reality, the impossible was made possible. The gang member’s neck was wedged tightly, his head protruding from the opposite side of the door.
Miles nodded thoughtfully. “Ah, I’m beginning to understand the mechanics of this ghostly domain.”
In this bizarre realm, the conventional laws of physics and logic didn’t apply. Distances could shift, objects could morph, and perceptions were constantly manipulated. The environment was both tangible and intangible, existing yet not. It was as though this entire realm was a projection of the ghost’s consciousness.
And Miles was quick to experiment, using the unfortunate gang members as his subjects. Through them, he began to grasp the awe-inspiring, terrifying power this realm held.
It was beyond human comprehension.
Such a power that could distort and reshape reality on a whim was unfathomable. It’s no wonder that even the most potent explosives were rendered useless in this ghost domain.
For how could something as mundane as a bomb, designed to destroy in the physical world, affect a realm that oscillated between the real and the surreal?
Miles contemplated, “If the scope of this ghost domain is limited, just surrounding me, then I exist at the intersection of the real and the unreal.” He decided to retract the ghost domain’s influence.
Instantly, the all-consuming red hue began to recede. The streetlights returned to their normal brightness, neon signs from distant buildings flickered back to life, and the familiar sounds of urban life, like car horns, once again permeated the air.
Still, a faint red glow enveloped Miles.
With a sense of purpose, he advanced and easily passed through a solid wall, finding himself inside a nearby apartment. The room was dim, illuminated only by a bedside lamp, revealing a couple engrossed in an intimate moment, oblivious to his sudden intrusion.
Miles studied the couple, the soft, eerie red glow emanating from him reflecting in their wide, terrified eyes. They stared back at him, their faces a mixture of utter shock and disbelief. The appearance of such a ghostly figure was beyond anything they could have imagined.
“My apologies for intruding on your private moment,” Miles said with a slight nod, his voice dripping with faux politeness. As he spoke, he effortlessly began merging with the wall, leaving the scene as abruptly as he’d entered.
The room was filled with the terrified screams of the couple, their voices piercing the otherwise silent apartment. “It’s a ghost! A real ghost!”
Miles, while phasing through the wall, pondered over the couple’s reaction and his own changing state. With his increasing mastery over ghostly powers and the more pronounced ghostly attributes he was manifesting, was he becoming more ghost than human?
He could feel a familiar tug inside him, a yearning from the ghostly eye concealed by the red paper. While the power it granted him was undeniable, the strain of maintaining the ghost domain for prolonged periods was starting to wear on him. The energy within him felt unstable, like a caged beast yearning for release.
Glancing down at his phone, he noted the time. “Five minutes. That’s the maximum I can maintain this ghostly state before reaching my limit,” Miles mused aloud, deciding to release the ghost domain’s hold on the environment.
Around him, the world returned to its mundane state. Flyer and his gang were scattered, some hiding behind refuse bins, some clutching their heads in abject terror, and others muttering incomprehensibly. These were the so-called tough gangsters of the streets?
Miles approached one, a playful smirk on his face. “My friend, you seem to be in a state of distress. In tough times, we should help one another, shouldn’t we? And, as it happens, I’m a tad short on cash.”
The irony of the situation wasn’t lost on him. Miles, with barely two hundred dollars to his name and no home to return to, was resorting to extorting those who once sought to extort others.
In a frenzy, Flyer scrambled to pull out his wallet, his hands shaking violently. “Take it! Take all of it! Just promise not to come after me. Don’t torment me! I’ll even make offerings for you, just spare me!”
Chuckling, Miles replied, “Think of this as a loan. I’ll return it when we meet again.”
Visibly trembling, Flyer whispered, eyes downcast, “No need for repayment, consider it a gift. Just… stay away from me.”
Miles couldn’t help but laugh at the irony. “Make sure to gather more money in the future. I might drop by for another ‘loan’,” he teased, his voice carrying a mockingly sinister undertone.
Reduced to a sobbing mess, Flyer could only whimper in fear. The terror Miles instilled in him was palpable, and it was clear he’d never forget this encounter.
The weight of the bizarre events weighed heavily on Flyer’s shoulders. “Why is this happening? He’s only a child!” he thought, baffled by the power Miles wielded. In that moment, a deep realization settled within him. He decided to forsake his criminal life, vowing to never again resort to extortion or any other illicit activity. In his determination to change, he even promised himself that from the next day onward, he’d assist elderly women in crossing the streets, a small gesture to start amending his wrongs.
Meanwhile, Miles continued to wield his newfound powers over the remaining gang members. Using his intimidating presence, he persuaded, or more accurately, coerced them into parting with a few hundred more dollars. Deep down, he hoped that the day’s supernatural experiences would serve as a deterrent, prompting these thugs to re-evaluate their life decisions. After all, the next time they choose a victim, they might not be as lucky; they might come face to face with a genuine ghost.
Having had his fun, Miles finally decided to conclude the day’s antics. “Enough of this charade. I have more pressing matters to address,” he declared, scanning his surroundings. However, he couldn’t contain a chuckle upon noticing the gang member still lodged awkwardly in the ventilation duct, struggling to free himself. “He ought to contact someone to tear down that wall tomorrow,” Miles mused, amused. “Drawing a blade on me was his mistake. Lucky for him, he hasn’t encountered an actual ghost. This should teach him a valuable lesson.”
Despite the satisfaction Miles derived from the day’s events and his burgeoning abilities, his spirits dampened as he approached his apartment. The front door stood slightly open, revealing a dimly lit interior. The ominous red papers that had previously littered the floor, signifying the ghost’s presence, were now conspicuously absent. It was clear: the ghost had departed.
A chill ran down Miles’s spine. “Has the ghost abandoned this place?” he wondered, his brow furrowing. He had mentally prepared himself for a showdown with the ghostly entity. Instead, he was greeted by unsettling emptiness.
The questions swirled in his mind. “Did the power of my ghost eye scare the entity away? Or, has it set its sights on a new victim?” Miles knew that he had a mission at hand. “I must track down that ghost,” he resolved, his determination stronger than ever.
He went to buy some milk.
Hmm, I think I read that the “father” took his appearance, what will he do with it?