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墨書 Inktalez
Ziya looked at the strange white mist, as if she were in a dream. Severe Cold had his hands on the steering wheel, feeling helpless. The breath they exhaled condensed into a thin layer of fog on the car's windows. Ziya wiped the mist away with her hand, gazing out at the vast expanse of white. She took out her phone to check the time; it read 3:50. If they were in City A, it would be a sunny day, and people would be wandering about, sitting in sunny spots to soak up the warmth.
"Why does it look like a winter fog here? I've never seen such a strange natural phenomenon in City A," Ziya wondered aloud.
"This is also a local oddity. According to the elders, it's due to the rivers. This phenomenon occurs mostly every spring, and after every rain, this thick fog is sure to appear. The child of the Villa Owner got lost in this fog and disappeared near the Silt by the Riverbank."
"Ah... could one of those graves in the Moso Bamboo Forest belong to their child?" Ziya felt a pang of sorrow; how tragic for such a young life to perish in this Mist Veil.
"If only they had found the body. Because they didn’t, the family made a false grave. Strange things started happening afterward—the lady of the house mysteriously hanged herself, and six months ago, the man swallowed a large amount of caustic chemicals, leading to his death from internal corrosion."
"That's horrifying! How could this happen?" As Severe Cold spoke, Ziya suddenly felt very cold all over. Yet there was no breeze coming into the car; how could it be so chilly? She hugged her arms tightly, but her body continued to tremble.
"Are you cold?" Severe Cold noticed and quickly took off his jacket, draping it over Ziya, who was sitting in the passenger seat.
"You take it! Aren't you cold? You'll catch a cold like this," Ziya said, her teeth chattering as she struggled to speak clearly.
"It's fine; this early spring weather is just unpredictable," Severe Cold replied, his gaze fixed outside, hoping the Mist Veil would clear soon so they could get home before nightfall and still have time for dinner.
Seeing Ziya's face turn purple from the cold made Severe Cold want to pull her into his embrace, but he feared she might misunderstand his intentions. He tentatively leaned closer until his hand accidentally brushed against hers.
"What's wrong? Your hands are so cold," he exclaimed without thinking, quickly grasping her icy hands and rubbing them vigorously. The electric sensation and long-lost warmth made their eyes meet; Severe Cold felt an overwhelming desire...
"I'm fine, really." Ziya avoided his intense gaze, her face flushing red as panic surged within her. She hurriedly withdrew her hand and stammered incoherently. Yet her thoughts drifted far away... Once upon a winter, he had held her hands just like this; the scene felt so familiar—only now everything had changed...
Severe Cold watched as the other person resolutely withdrew their hand, the flicker of hope that had just ignited was abruptly extinguished by a cold gaze, leaving a sense of disappointment. It felt inappropriate to press further; after all, they had only known each other for a few days, and it was natural for someone to have reservations. The two sat in the car, struggling to find another topic to divert from the awkwardness of those few seconds, enveloped in silence.
Ziya pressed her face against the window, eager to see what was happening outside. Just as she leaned closer, a pale face with dark hollow eyes and a gaping mouth appeared… “Ah… ah…” Ziya screamed, quickly pulling her face away from the glass and burying her head low, too frightened to look at the window again.
“What’s wrong? What did you see?” Severe Cold asked in surprise, hurriedly glancing at the spot where she had been looking. Through the somewhat foggy glass, he thought he saw a Black Figure vanish into the white mist in an instant.
“Stay put; I’ll go take a look.” Severe Cold felt something was off. Villagers shouldn’t be out in this thick fog; who could it be? With that thought, he decided to step outside and investigate.
“Maybe you shouldn’t go; what if…” Ziya anxiously protested. She feared that Severe Cold might also get lost in the mist, which would complicate matters even more.
“It’s fine. Just stay in the car and don’t go anywhere. I’ll be back soon.” Given the earlier awkwardness, Severe Cold thought it best to step outside for a moment to clear his mind and check what had been lurking around the car.
After some time had passed, Ziya grew increasingly restless inside the car. She didn’t know where he had gone, and the temperature inside felt like it was plummeting into an ice cellar. Not to mention that he was only wearing a thin shirt; his jacket was still with her, something she had forgotten to return in her haste.
Minutes ticked by without any sign of Severe Cold, while the fog continued to swirl around the vehicle. When she finally opened the car door, a wave of Leng Qin hit her like winter frost.
Ziya’s hands were freezing cold; signs of frostbite appeared as red bumps erupted on her skin. She cupped her hands like a trumpet and shouted into the Mist Veil, “Severe Cold… where are you? Come back!”
Her voice echoed like a fragile note against the thick fog barrier, sounding pale and powerless. Leaving the car behind, she stepped into the swirling Mist Veil. She had no idea where her feet were landing; all she felt was water seeping into her shoes.
Before her lay clusters of bushes that flickered in and out of visibility within the Mist Veil, far from the imagined stone Riverbank. As she stepped over the bushes, she felt soft black Silt beneath her feet, with white mist enveloping the Riverbank formed by it. The scene felt surreal and hazy; Ziya reached out as if to tear apart this barrier obstructing her view of reality, but her fingers met only intangible air.
Still unable to recall where she had parked the car or how she ended up in this increasingly soft black Silt, she spotted a child laughing as they ran toward the dark ground.
"Don't go over there..." Ziya mouthed, loudly trying to stop the child who was rushing toward the center of the Riverbank. But the child seemed indifferent to her cries, resolutely stepping into the Silt, one step, two steps... Ziya could hear the Silt swallowing the child's gurgling sounds, black Silt bubbling up white froth as it pulled the child down into its depths...
"Please, no..." Ziya cried out, stepping forward in an attempt to chase after them. She watched helplessly as the child raised their hands to grasp something, only to be instantly buried without a trace by the black Silt.
"Ziya..." Severe Cold returned to the car, and as he opened the door, he was stunned. Ziya was gone. He stumbled toward the Riverbank and saw Ziya trapped in the Silt from a distance, her body half-exposed above the surface.
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