51

Capítulo 16

By the time I realized this, it was too late for regrets.

From that time on, I have harbored a strange fear of people who are highly accomplished.

(The expert finished)

The Twelfth and Seventeenth Days of Rain in the Famine

I grew up in the north. Taipei is a damp city; whenever the mood strikes, it pours down rain with all its might.

But since I came to the south for university, it's almost always sunny and clear. Occasionally there's a cloudy day, which is considered bad weather. Even if it rains, it only lasts for half a day. A day and a night of rain feels too long, unless it's the rainy season.

But it's summer vacation now, very close to the seventh month of the lunar calendar, and the plum rain season has long since passed.

But this rain, which started yesterday afternoon, was still pouring down this morning. There was no sign of a typhoon or low-pressure system, making the whole thing extremely strange.

Tang Chen and I shared an umbrella and walked to the car. We were less than ten meters away, and we were already half-wet.

I scrambled into the car, and looking out the windshield, all I could see was a blinding white haze; visibility was extremely low. I began to wonder if this kind of weather was really a good time to drive...?

"It won't take an hour to get to Shuo's place, don't worry." Tang Chen smiled and started the car.

At that moment, we had no idea that this hour would really be one hour after another, without end.

It wasn't until noon that we realized something was wrong. It's true that driving slows down in the rain, but not this slow. When we stopped to eat, we asked around and discovered we'd arrived in Taichung.

Why would someone pass by their own home without going in? We're not Yu the Great!

My unease grew deeper and deeper, and with the passage of time, my anxiety intensified. I carefully checked the signs to make sure we were heading south... but after a few turns, we became increasingly lost. When we finally stopped to ask for directions, we realized we had arrived in Hsinchu.

This... isn't this just heading further north?

Finally, we decided to take the highway. Even though it was the southbound lane, what came into our view was a huge sign for Taoyuan.

“…Impossible.” Tang Chen murmured.

All day long, we were struggling, going north and south, unable to find our way home. By eleven o'clock, we were exhausted, and Tang Chen, who was driving, was even more tired, with faint dark circles under his eyes.

We're now in some desolate wilderness, somewhere north of Taoyuan. After getting off the interchange, we're completely lost; the GPS simply stopped working.

I looked at Huang'e, and Huang'e looked back at me with confusion. I knew that monsters weren't omniscient, but they certainly knew more than we did. Even she was puzzled, so I felt even more lost.

Most importantly, we're now far from the old man's jurisdiction, and nobody's protecting us anymore.

Although I was terrified of being tortured by the lioness, I didn't want anything to happen because the driver was too tired. When a large motel appeared in this desolate area, Tang Chen asked me somewhat awkwardly, "...How about we stay the night before leaving?"

The friendly receptionist said there was only one room left and handed the key to Tang Chen.

…I feel like I've walked into an elaborate trap. Of course, the trap doesn't refer to Tang Chen.

I've never been to a motel before... I never expected that the bathroom wouldn't even have a door. This is no joke when it comes to saving on building materials.

We weren't too embarrassed, though. One of us went to take a shower, while the other leaned against the window watching the rain. Aside from Huang'e getting excited and nagging me about how this was a good opportunity, I threw Tang Chenyu's wet backpack at her and then ignored her.

Bored, she wandered around for a couple of minutes, then started visiting other people's houses to peek at their gossip. After looking around a couple of rooms, she returned with a puzzled look in her eyes: "They're not here to have an affair. They're just like us, lost."

"...Huh?" That caught my attention.

"I'll go check again." She flew off excitedly. But after she left, by the time Tang Chen finished showering and it was my turn to shower, and I had dried my hair, she was still nowhere to be seen.

This motel is quite large... but how could someone just disappear and never return?

“Wilderness, come back!” I shouted.

She suddenly appeared on my left shoulder, her face covered in tears and snot, her whole body trembling, and even her upper and lower teeth were chattering.

"…What's wrong?"

"Th-th-th-th-that-that..." She trembled like a leaf, "Sword-sword-sword...sword dragon..."

For a moment I didn't expect it, but as I peered out the window, my eyes met those of a beautiful and spirited girl.

This person... looks so familiar...

"The ghost keeper!" "Arlene?"

As they say, enemies always meet on the narrow road. How did I end up running into that crazy lunatic who's obsessed with saving the world again?

Even though I ducked down quickly, the long-horned snake still managed to cut a few strands of my hair. Without time to pull out my slingshot, I grabbed Tang Chen's backpack and hurled the snake away, then slammed the window shut.

She was still shouting in the heavy rain, but her voice had become much softer through the window.

"Get out of here!" I yelled back, "Or I'll call the police!"

“…Police?” Huang E looked at me with squinted eyes. “Why don’t you deal with it yourself and call the police?”

I was speechless for a moment. "...This is a place where the law prevails."

Hearing the commotion, Tang Chen leaned closer, "...Do you know her? What a tiny dragon..."

Tang Chen has been deeply influenced by me; he can even see those kinds of things now. A sense of unease crept over me. Right now, he mostly sees monsters (or demons), but he doesn't seem to see ghosts yet.

But compared to ghosts, there are far fewer monsters. I worry that he might start to go too deep into the underworld; I have no hope that he will truly enter the inner world.

Arlene started kicking the iron door to our room quite rudely, interrupting my thoughts.

"I think we should call the police," I muttered as I reached for the phone.

"Don't be like this, what misunderstanding can't be cleared up?" Tang Chen put on his coat. "I'll go talk to her."

"She's a crazy woman!" I chased after her.

He firmly pushed me into the room. "I'll talk to her. You two are angry with each other, and if you talk now, won't you just start arguing again? People can be reasonable, don't say things in the heat of the moment."

He closed the door gently. Even though you know he's a gentle person, sometimes a kind of authority would suddenly emerge, making you have to obey him.

I listened intently to the sounds, while Huang E pressed himself against the window with me. We didn't hear any shouting or yelling, only Tang Chen's gentle and patient voice.

After a while, Tang Chen came in, looking quite pleased. "Her little dragon is truly remarkable. It's said to be 'gathering spirits and transforming them into divine energy,' meaning it was originally a sword spirit that transformed into dragon energy. Isn't that amazing?"

My hair was practically standing on end. This kind of method is heavily guarded; how could a lunatic like Arlene go around talking about it? I was getting confused. "...What else did she say?"

"It's nothing, just a misunderstanding. Huang'e is wonderful, adorable, and she even saved me. I assured her you're all good people, and the misunderstanding is cleared up. She even showed me the little dragon; the feeling of the little dragon resting on my hand was truly magical..."

Huang E almost immediately rushed into his arms, rubbing and nuzzling against him, "Mine, mine, all of you are mine~ Hmm~"

But I just felt dizzy and lightheaded.

I thought I knew Tang Chen, but I don't. Maybe there's some strange power I can't sense...?

"How did she get here?" I still wanted to figure it out.

"Just like us, we got lost, and our GPS stopped working." Tang Chen shrugged.

Although we were full of questions, we were exhausted from the whole day, so we quickly settled down to sleep. I gave him the blanket, and he wrapped himself up on the carpet like a silkworm, which made me laugh.

Lying on the bed, face to face with Tang Chen on the floor, we chatted idly. First, we talked about our unbelievable past disasters and exchanged some life-saving remedies. Later, we talked about the books we had read, and when I learned that he was the kind of person who read *Guwen Guanzhi* (a collection of classical Chinese prose) as a novel, I felt even closer to him.

"Hengzhi, what do you want to be when you grow up?" he asked, his eyes still blurry.

"what you up to?"

“Fund management brokers or something like that,” he said with a kind and gentle smile. “I enjoy interacting with people and helping them live better lives.”

…This kind of aspiration is quite down-to-earth.

"I... well..." I thought for a moment, "I'll probably work as an accountant or administrator at some religious institution." I said tactfully.

Spending time with the old man made me realize that I rely on people for protection. But I can't make a living by communicating with spirits; it's wrong to use a talent to earn money, especially this kind of talent. But being close by and helping people within my capabilities is alright.

"Maybe I should go to Lukang and find a job," I said.

“It’s quite suitable.” He chuckled, his voice as clear as water. “It just so happens that the city where I’m destined to be at peace is Taichung. We’re close by, so we can go back and forth for meals and tea.”

If your lioness girlfriend won't tear me to pieces... well, I'm willing to take that risk.

In the end, we fell asleep.

Then, I had a very strange dream.

I was in a small but deep puddle.

It was small enough that I could touch the rock walls on either side with my arms outstretched. It was deep enough that I couldn't see the exit even when I looked up. The water was cold and carried a decaying, lifeless aura.

Let me out! Let me out!

But the desperate voice did not come from my mouth. From the filthy, moss-covered mud, a pair of golden eyes stared at me, mad and disordered.

Suddenly, he closed in very, very close, his anger erupting like molten lava, overwhelming me. "Let me out!"

I screamed too. A torrent of emotions poured down, scalding hot. I desperately tried to build up the wall, only to find it crumbling. Meaningless screaming offered no escape from this agonizing torment.

Until that thing turned its head, opened its blood-red maw, and turned its target toward a person bathed in sunlight.

…It's Tang Chen.

"Stop!" I roared, flapping my wings and claws repeatedly striking at the enormous creature that had terrified me to the point of near death. "Stop! Stop! Stop! Stop! That's mine! It's all mine! Stop!"

Hot blood splattered, but I felt nothing; rage took over my heart.

“Huang’e…Hengzhi!” Tang Chen suddenly reached out and hugged me.

I looked down and saw that my feet were gone, replaced by a pair of sharp claws. I had become one with the Desolate One.

"This is a dream!" Tang Chen urged me, "Wake up!"

***

The three of us woke up almost at the same time.

Tang Chen threw off the covers and pounced on the bed, shaking me and turning on the light. Looking at the fear in his eyes, I swallowed hard and carefully touched my slightly sore face. Huang E squeezed in, his face contorted in a grimace.

Blisters began to appear on her toes, as if she had been burned. "Waaah...waaaah..." She was always straightforward and would cry easily, "It's so scary..."

Before long, small, burn-like blisters appeared on the painful areas of my face. No one dared to sleep; we wrapped ourselves in blankets, huddled together, holding hands tightly. Huang E squeezed between us.

Huang E said she had never dreamed before; this was the first time.

We huddled together, trembling like frightened little animals, and only managed to doze off just before dawn. But we were then shaken awake by a powerful earthquake.

The earthquake was very short, less than a minute, but it was enough to shake us so badly we couldn't stand up. We also heard faint explosions.

At this point, all we wanted was to escape this awful place as quickly as possible. After a quick wash, we went downstairs and heard a commotion outside.

I heard that the main roads collapsed due to the earthquake, and even the bridges on the industrial roads were destroyed. We're trapped here, unable to advance or retreat.

The travelers started making a fuss, and the motel owner came out to appease them, inviting us to dinner and promising a discount on room rates. Some of the skeptical travelers dejectedly drove back, saying there was truly no other way to go.

Surprisingly, this motel had a fairly large restaurant, where dejected travelers ate breakfast while grumbling. Tang Chen's amiable personality shone through in this disaster; he quickly became familiar with strangers, and the previously unsettled hearts calmed down, even though he himself was quite uneasy.