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墨書 Inktalez
The alarm clock was definitely fine. It was brand new, with the tags still attached.
Sister Sun checked the alarm clock and confirmed there were no issues before continuing toward the nursery.
The nursery was eerily quiet, devoid of even a hint of breath, as if no one were inside.
With her heart racing, Sister Sun entered the room with familiarity and turned on the light—she saw the child peacefully sleeping in the crib with a pacifier in their mouth, while the nanny, Wang Ce, was sound asleep as well.
Everything seemed fine!
Wang Ce, the child, the alarm clock, and all the doors and windows were securely closed. So where did that sound come from? How was that noise produced? Could it be that there really was a ghost in the house?
Thinking of ghosts and recalling the moment Coral had died sent a shiver down Sister Sun's spine. She hurriedly ran to the master bedroom, closed the door behind her, and jumped onto the bed next to Xu Lei as if escaping.
After a while, without hearing any sounds, drowsiness slowly overtook her.
Finally, Sister Sun fell asleep.
When various noises from the street woke her up, she sat up abruptly and realized Xu Lei had already left for work.
Wang Ce was making porridge.
Seeing her looking weary, he cautiously greeted her, "Sister Sun, you're awake?"
"Mm."
Sister Sun went to the washroom to wash her face and rinse her mouth before looking in the mirror.
After a night’s rest, she noticed her complexion looked poor—not pale or sickly but dull and lackluster. Especially her dark circles under her eyes, resembling those of a raccoon.
Wang Ce was very young, and no matter how simply she dressed, it couldn't hide her youthful beauty.
Sister Sun dared to bet that if Wang Ce put in a little effort to dress up, she could outshine the coral of her youth.
Unintentionally, Sister Sun felt a twinge of caution; she realized she had to be wary of Wang Ce. Xu Lei was someone she had risked her life for. If he could forget his feelings for Coral and move on to new love, then he could easily cast her aside as well.
"Sister Sun, hurry and eat your porridge before it cools down!" Wang Ce suddenly appeared at the door and called out, startling Sister Sun so much that she jumped. She then looked at Wang Ce in the mirror and replied, "Got it."
Wang Ce came from the countryside and wasn't very skilled at dressing up. Her hair was always messy and dry, never properly styled. Her skin was decent; she didn't use any beauty cream, but it still looked smooth and supple. However, the clothes she wore were too big for her.
They were almost like maternity clothes.
Sister Sun suddenly felt a pang of compassion. She remembered that her wardrobe was filled with outdated clothes that she rarely wore. It would be better to give them to Wang Ce; this way, Wang Ce would feel grateful and take good care of her child. She would also respect herself more and wouldn't need to spend extra money on raising her salary.
Having made up her mind, she picked up a comb to tidy her hair but noticed a white strand near her ear. Sister Sun was most anxious about white hair; seeing it made her heart tremble slightly, and without hesitation, she yanked it out.
Oh! This comb is quite special?
Sister Sun recalled that she didn't own a comb like this one. It was shiny and heavy in her hand, and when she used it on her hair, it felt different. Originally, she hadn't slept well last night and had woken up feeling groggy, but after using this comb, the drowsiness vanished.
"Wang Ce."
Wang Ce was focused on mopping the floor while the child slept. She needed to clean the house before the child woke up. She valued this job highly and feared that if the homeowners were displeased for any reason, they might fire her. So she worked particularly diligently.
When she heard Sister Sun calling her, she responded and set the mop against the wall before running to the door to ask, "Sister Sun, what is it?"
Sister Sun held the comb in her hand and smiled, "Is this comb yours?"
"No, mine isn't as nice as this one."
"Oh. It's not yours?" Sister Sun examined the comb closely, growing fonder of it with each glance. She wondered if it was something Xu Lei had brought back from a business trip.
Sister Sun tucked the comb away and stepped out of the washroom, saying to Wang Ce, "You mop the floor, and I'll find you some clothes that fit later. They may not be in style, but they'll still be wearable."
Hearing that Sister Sun was going to get him clothes made Wang Ce overjoyed, and he repeatedly thanked her while mopping the floor with even more enthusiasm, as if he could express his gratitude by scrubbing the floor clean.
Sure enough, after lunch, Sister Sun brought out a neatly folded stack of various clothes and pants that smelled nice.
Wang Ce looked at each piece and loved them all, his face breaking into a wide grin as he happily carried them all away.
With Wang Ce taking care of the child, Sister Sun had some leisure time to play cards.
Most of her card friends were tenants.
The tenants greeted Sister Sun warmly from afar as they saw her approach.
After some casual conversation and settling down, someone noticed that Sister Sun looked unwell.
She then recounted the strange noises she had heard the previous night.
Someone suggested she consult a fortune teller, saying there might be something sinister in her home.
However, Xu Lei was skeptical and did not believe in such things.
Sister Sun was half-convinced but didn't dare to openly invite a fortune teller into her home. Instead, with the tenants' encouragement, she decided to visit one.
The fortune teller was an old man who, upon hearing Sister Sun's purpose for visiting, pretended to calculate something with his fingers. He then dramatically produced a piece of yellow paper and a bowl, placing the paper into water. Miraculously, the yellow paper revealed incantations written on it.
At that moment, Sister Sun was so astonished that she couldn't find her voice.
Keen Observer could tell at a glance that this was a common trick used by Fake Mediums. The yellow paper had been prepared by the charlatan using Alum. To the naked eye, it looked like an ordinary blank sheet of yellow paper, but once submerged in water, the writing would appear.
Sister Sun had spent quite a bit this time; buying peace of mind was worth it.
Following the charlatan's instructions, she sprinkled Divine Talisman Water in every corner of the house.
The charlatan assured her that as long as she sprinkled the Divine Talisman Water inside, everything would be fine.
The second night had quietly arrived.
Sister Sun had sprinkled the Divine Talisman Water and felt at ease, no longer afraid.
With her child already asleep early and not likely to cry at eleven o'clock, she decided to rest after a poor night's sleep the previous evening.
Lying down, Sister Sun calculated Xu Lei's travel time—when he would reach his destination and when he would return, considering any delays on the road. Soon, her eyes began to droop, and she fell into a drowsy sleep.
The house was very quiet.
The ticking of the Alarm Clock was clear; Sister Sun was in a deep slumber. She didn't hear the ticking of the Alarm Clock nor the sound of her child crying. For a moment, she recalled that her child was no longer crying, which made her sleep even more soundly.
In her dreams, Sister Sun sensed something. Suddenly awakened, she perked up her ears to listen for a moment; it seemed like nothing was amiss. She lay back down to sleep again.
This time, before she could fully drift off, she felt a chilling sensation at the back of her head, as if strands of hair were moving—
She abruptly opened her eyes. What met her gaze was the dark, lightless night. She hurriedly sat up and turned on the light.
As the light flickered on, the room became bright.
The closet door was tightly shut.
The ticking of the alarm clock echoed in the room.
The floor was smooth and shiny.
All that remained was the satin quilt covering her.
Everything seemed normal, yet somehow not. Sister Sun rubbed her temples, sighed, and forced herself to go back to sleep.
After tossing and turning for a long time, Sister Sun finally drifted off into dreamland.
Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock.
The clear sound pierced through her eardrums. Startled, Sister Sun bolted upright, realizing she had forgotten to turn off the light. But strangely, the light was on, and there was still a sound?
She looked at the floor and imagined that if there were really a ghost, there would be bloody footprints left behind.
The floor was clean and devoid of any bloodstains, and she let out a sigh of relief. Yet still uneasy, she wondered if someone had quietly entered the master bathroom.
The master bathroom was right in her room; she only needed to get up and take a few steps to see it.
Sister Sun stood up, her throat felt constricted as if someone was choking her, making it hard to breathe. She told herself, "There are no ghosts; it's just daydreaming." Then she quickly walked a few steps and pushed open the door to the master bathroom.
Ding-dong! Ding-dong!
The bathroom faucet wasn't turned off properly and was dripping. To be honest, that dripping sound could scare someone half to death in the dead of night.
Sister Sun enjoyed watching horror movies.
She had seen Hollywood blockbusters like "Extreme Fear" and "Extreme Cold," along with others that left an impression—watching horror films was thrilling and exciting, keeping one in a constant state of tension and fear. This was her way of passing time when she felt lonely.
But now, she was completely immersed in the horror films she had watched before, thinking of various things, ultimately scaring herself.
Everything in the room was fine.
With the Divine Talisman Water, what problems could there be?
The sound she heard earlier was just the dripping of water.
Reassured by this self-comfort, Sister Sun lay down and turned off the light to sleep.
Without those thoughts swirling in her mind, she fell asleep easily.
She could feel her consciousness sinking, sensing that strange chill creeping back in, yet she couldn't break free or wake up immediately.
It seemed she heard a sneaky whisper: "I’m coming."
The voice came from the back of her head, as if a hand were gently parting her hair at the nape, slowly emerging from the roots and revealing its entire form.
A weight unlike anything she had ever felt pressed down on her. Sister Sun felt as if she were suffocating, her breathing becoming rapid. She wanted to scream Wang Ce's name but couldn't make a sound.
Her head began to throb.
It felt like labor pains; her head was giving birth to a "person." This person had a pale complexion, long hair, covered in blood, with fierce eyes and a gaping mouth that seemed to say: "I’m coming."
It must be a nightmare.
In nightmares, there was always a terrifying "person," who was Sister Sun's heartache.
When Coral died, Sister Sun thought she could handle everything on her own, confidently taking over Coral's life—her child, husband, and love. Yet she never anticipated that Coral would claim everything from her, including her very soul.
Coral was not dead; she was very much alive deep within Sister Sun's heart.
Sister Sun felt a fear she had never experienced before.
The fear pierced her heart like a sharp sword.
I am going to die—Sister Sun told herself, unable to shake off the pain radiating from the back of her head.
Clack, clack, clack.
A strange sound echoed in her ears. What she had thought was the sound of a mouse now revealed itself to be a noise coming from her own mind.
Sister Sun began to fear the person inside her body. She feared that this person would replace her and become her.
She tried to see the face of the person hidden within her body. But no matter how hard she looked, she could not see that face.
The headache intensified, as if a steel saw were cutting through her skull. Only by cutting open her head could the person hidden inside emerge.
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