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墨書 Inktalez
Song Bunan leaned against his brother's shoulder and fell asleep as soon as he got into the car, remaining oblivious until the vehicle came to a stop. Xin Yi, glancing at the two brothers through the rearview mirror, noted their striking resemblance. However, his long-time friend appeared more mature and composed than Song Bunan, with a more rugged appearance; the younger brother had a rounder face with a bit of baby fat, and combined with his light weight and skinny frame, it was easy to understand why Song Buxian often joked that his brother could deceive people with just his looks.
"His personality is a bit better than yours," Xin Yi remarked casually.
Song Buxian took a moment to process this seemingly random comment. Unable to reach over to hit Xin Yi from across the seat, he shot back, "You've known him for just a few minutes and you're already biased! Are your elbows rotating?" Noticing that Xin Yi remained unfazed by his retort, Song Buxian reached out to check the temperature of Song Bunan's small head, relieved to find that he was beginning to cool down from his fever.
He pulled out a water bottle from his bag, attempting to wake Song Bunan so he could drink some water before heading home for more sleep. The car had come to a stop in the garage, and Xin Yi had turned on the lights to brighten the interior. Turning back to see the dazed Song Bunan, who seemed ready to drift off again with half-closed eyes, he noticed the child clutching the bottle tightly, struggling to sip from it. With his cheeks puffed out from holding water and a dazed expression complemented by his cartoon cat hoodie, Song Bunan inexplicably brought a smile to Xin Yi's face.
"We're home; time to go upstairs and sleep," Song Buxian said as he gently shook his brother's head. Hearing the sloshing sound of water inside the bottle made him quip, "I can hear the water in your head! Were you messing around in that abandoned house last night?"
Song Bunan pulled away with a grunt, now fully awake. "I'm not scared! It was just really dusty in there, which made me uncomfortable. I even met Xiao Mei, who manages that place. He said I can go play there anytime."
A dangerous building still had management? Both Song Buxian and Xin Yi frowned at this thought. After getting out of the car, Xin Yi followed Song Buxian upstairs. During this time, Song Bunan leaned against him in an awkward manner due to his bandaged body. Xin Yi asked, "Does it hurt?"
The question made the shorter boy look up at him with wide eyes and a smile. "I've gotten used to it! Besides, it didn't split open much this time, so it doesn't hurt." From this angle, he appeared quite young; the elevator lights reflected in his eyes beautifully.
Watching this scene from the side, Song Buxian immediately took out his phone and snapped several pictures without hesitation. No matter the reason behind it, these photos would serve as excellent material for teasing Xin Yi later on. Once they reached home, Song Bunan scampered back to his room to change clothes while Xin Yi and Song Buxian sat outside drinking water. Glancing at the time revealed it was nearly eight in the evening.
"Weren't you supposed to have moved out?" Xin Yi asked while holding onto his bottle and watching Song Buxian, who seemed engrossed in whatever was on his phone screen.
Not bothering to look up from his device, Song Buxian replied while tapping away at it, "I temporarily moved back in to keep him company after our parents went out. I was worried about leaving this little guy alone at home; I might get called back by the police if something happened."
"Your brother doesn't seem like that kind of person," Xin Yi pointed out, finally drawing Song Buxian's attention away from his phone. A mysterious smile spread across his face just as Song Bunan interrupted them.
"I'm not that stupid! Last time you and our parents went out, I stayed home alone for over half a month without any problems!"
When he emerged from his room dressed in a new outfit featuring a cartoon Shiba Inu instead of a cat hoodie, Song Buxian playfully twisted one of his brother's ears and pulled him over to the sofa. After releasing him with a light smack on the head, he said teasingly, "How can you say that? Who was it that didn't realize their wound had reopened during that half-month and went swimming only to end up fainting at school?"
Defeated, Song Bunan pouted pitifully on the sofa without further protest; he merely rubbed his ear while making soft sounds of discontent. To Xin Yi, this child resembled the Shiba Inu on his shirt—adorable with a soft personality—more like a Samoyed. He handed over a cup of water from the table and received an instant smile along with a sticky-sweet "thank you" in return.
Just like a little puppy.
Xiao Mei stood on the second floor and felt a pang in her heart as she looked at the dusty corridor on her right. She raised her hand to sweep down a cobweb and gazed at the sunlight streaming through the window at the end of the hallway. Trembling slightly, she spoke softly: "Master, it's been three years; why would you rather meet a stranger than see me?"
In the empty house, only her voice echoed back at her while outside birds chirped faintly in an indistinct melody. Putting away her cleaning tools, she slowly descended the stairs and paused before a moon painting hanging by the floor-to-ceiling window. Reaching out, Xiao Mei touched several black smudges drawn with crayon along its edge.
Song Bunan was the first person targeted by the house ghost within these walls; he was also the one who called upon her master for help. His arrival had awakened dormant powers within this long-dead house. Why could someone fresh out of school who knew nothing about this place bring it back to life? Xiao Mei couldn't articulate why but felt deep down that Song Bunan held the key to uncovering what she sought.
The message she sent out that morning received no reply until nightfall; whoever was on the other end always seemed busy and could only send back brief responses like "I'll be back soon."
Realizing she couldn't wait for him any longer before taking action made her anxious. Although involving an innocent party in her plans felt wrong, he was currently her only lead. After all she'd done wrong herself, she decided she might as well embrace being bad this time around.
Grabbing her backpack and putting on her hat, Xiao Mei left her small second-floor apartment. After sending a message for someone to pick her up at the doorsteps, she headed straight for the third floor of the big house.
Now she needed to confirm whether that note Song Bunan mentioned still existed. The paper adorned with Dragon Garden insignia lay atop a round table; it could either be left by her master or placed there by someone from years ago. Finding this note would reveal what areas of this villa remained uninvestigated.
The side of this house shown to Song Bunan would never be revealed to him—the flashlight hidden in a study drawer, shadows that closed doors behind them, black mist lurking in second-floor corridors—all these things he had never encountered during his three years here.
Standing in front of the open door on the third floor, he saw the blue house ghost sitting on the rocking chair, swaying back and forth in a rhythmic motion. The old rocking chair creaked loudly, echoing through the room. Just as he stepped inside, the house ghost vanished in an instant, leaving only the chair to slowly come to a stop.
On the table lay a piece of paper, yellowed and brittle. However, there was nothing written on it, just a single drop of ink that had bled into a stain. He attempted to pick up the paper, but as soon as it left the table, it crumbled into fragments. All he held was a corner, its golden embellishment now dulled by dust.
In his eyes, this house contained only those ghosts that hid from him out of fear, while the house ghost still seemed to possess some semblance of life. The house itself, which should have been alive, disdainfully refused to reveal anything to him.
Why was it that here, where he should feel more familiar, both his master and the house kept him at arm's length? Xiao Mei stood at the table, gritting his teeth and clenching his fists in frustration. Yet, his anger dissipated within moments. Deep down, he understood that all of this was self-inflicted.
Time was running short; Xiao Mei left the place and made sure to close all the doors behind him as he walked outside. Once he stood completely outside the decaying Corroded Iron Gate, it slowly closed shut, and the entire courtyard faded into darkness under the moonlight, merging with the shadows.
The people in the car saw him emerge from the path and laughed, saying, "Hey, you actually decided to come out. What’s up? Not practicing inside anymore?"
He nodded in response and immediately showed them a photo of Song Bunan from his phone. Xiao Mei didn’t say much; he directly stated his purpose for coming to the city: "To investigate him."
Once they hit the highway where streetlights illuminated their way, Xiao Mei gazed at the road stretching out towards the bustling city in the distance. He realized it had been nearly two years since he last returned to this place.
The driver cranked up the music so loud that even the car windows vibrated with the beat. Xiao Mei heard many questions but waited until the driver fell silent before explaining why he had come out.
He recounted all that had happened with Song Bunan. The driver chuckled and said, "This guy named Song is impressive! I bet our big brother will definitely like him. Xiao Mei, you’re really lucky; just yesterday big brother said this matter couldn’t be delayed any longer—he even mentioned bringing that old man back quickly—and today a benefactor shows up to help you. Do you have his contact information? If you do, reach out first thing tomorrow morning and bring him home to explain what’s at stake so he can help you out; time is running short."
Just then, he received information about Song Bunan on his phone. During a moment of decompressing from stress, Xiao Mei replied, "Yeah, time is indeed running short."
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