Chapter 133: Splitting Up!

Chapter 133: Splitting Up!

Within the hotel building, a young woman behind the reception desk gazed listlessly at the entrance.

Their training mentioned that using mobile phones during work hours was forbidden, leaving her no choice but to daydream.

Overwhelmed by boredom, she sifted through some items at the desk and found the rulebook handed out during her training.

She hadn't been working there for very long, having joined just two months ago. Being a local, she took the job because of its proximity, making it easy to return home and help with farm chores.

Flipping through the rulebook, she found some regulations odd, like how the hot spring restaurant was exclusively for guests and ordinary employees couldn't dine there, or how staff had to leave the hotel within half an hour of their shift ending.

But she was merely a worker; if the rules stated something, she'd follow. Moreover, her home was nearby, so she had no reason to dine at the hot spring restaurant. She was always eager to finish her shift and head home. Why would she linger in the hotel?

Perhaps these rules were in place to enhance the guests' experience?

As she pondered, she flipped another page of the rulebook.

The page read: "Employees are prohibited from using the hotel's hot springs."

"Typical capitalists," she murmured disdainfully, then shut the rulebook.

Suddenly, she felt an itch on her neck. Scratching it, she found blood under her fingernails.

Another cut.

I should be more careful next time.

With that thought, she took a tissue, wiping away the blood on her neck, then adjusted her uniform collar to sit higher.

It's just a mosquito bite scratched open by her own nails. She can't afford to alarm the guests.

Outdoor hot spring area.

The two male students had retreated to the periphery of the hot spring area.

Although it was a fog-shrouded hot spring, the chill grew more pronounced with each step they took. The mist rising from the water carried with it an icy bite. The cold seemed to flow with their breath, seeping into their very bones, making them feel as though their insides were freezing.

This biting cold instinctively made them yearn for warmth.

One of the students glanced at a nearby hot spring pool. Steam rose from where the spring's water welled up and spread out, creating a warm mist. Merely observing it, one could sense its inviting warmth.

His teeth chattered, fearing that if he didn't warm up soon, he might perish right there.

He halted for a moment and started walking towards the inviting pool.

Right now, nothing seemed more alluring than a warm refuge.

"What are you doing?!"

His friend's voice suddenly erupted, jolting the boy from his trance. He hesitated, then looked back, "Aren't you cold?"

His friend wrapped his arms around himself, vigorously rubbing them for warmth. The words came out in visible puffs of breath, his voice shaky, "Cold? Of course, I am! But you think jumping into the hot spring dressed like this is a good idea? Could you even climb out?"

Saying this, the friend gave a tug on his clothing.

He looked down, realizing their predicament. In the heart of winter, both wore padded jackets and layers underneath. If they jumped into the hot spring, the weight of their soaked clothes would make it nearly impossible to get out.

And once out, the icy wind would be intolerable, driving them to leap back in.

But standing still wasn't an option, either. An unseen ghostly presence was in pursuit. To linger was to court death.

The boy's eyes lingered on the hot spring pool. For reasons unknown, a profound longing overtook him, a belief that its depths offered safety.

Urged by his friend, he snapped back to reality and they both sprinted towards the opposite end of the hot spring area.

But they hadn't run far before both of them halted in their tracks.

The hot spring area was expansive, yet it had an end in sight—a fence. To the two male students, this fence wasn't daunting. After all, the walls of their school were much tougher to scale. But beyond that fence lay a river.

Originally, to capitalize on the beautiful scenery, the East Mountain Hot Spring Resort was deliberately built alongside this river. There were even rooms that hung over the river. Although the river wasn't wide, swimming across it in the dead of winter wasn't feasible for the two.

"What do we do now?" one of the boys started to panic.

The other boy closed his eyes momentarily, gritted his teeth, and said, "We swim across!"

Without hesitation, he reached for the fence. As he extended his hand, he felt as if it was frozen stiff. Grasping the cold bars felt like ice against metal, giving him the sensation that his hands had turned to ice.

But that didn't deter him. Gritting his teeth, he exerted force with both hands and stepped onto the fence. Just as he was about to climb over, a voice interrupted him.

"What are you two doing?"

It was a man's voice, grating to the ears—or rather, quite unpleasant. The voice came from behind them, filled with curiosity and a hint of amusement.

Though the voice was unsettling, the mere presence of another human being was enough to bring tears of relief to their eyes.

Both climbers turned their heads simultaneously.

Behind them stood a man with long, unkempt hair, looking up at them. He wore white garments that looked like they'd been borrowed from a drama set, resembling ancient attire. The clothes were tattered, with edges fluttering in the cold wind.

Add to that his pale face, wet hair and clothes dripping water, his appearance was nothing short of terrifying.

Seeing this, the boy who was contemplating climbing took a step back, unintentionally hitting his head with a "thud" against the metal bars. The other student, who had just started to climb over, slipped and was about to fall into the river.

"Ah—huh?"

The student on the fence thought he would plummet, but to his surprise, he found himself suspended on the railing. The one who had grabbed them was the pale-faced man in white.

Up close, the man seemed rather normal, and most importantly, the hand that held him was warm—a great relief to both students.

"Are you alright?" the man in white pulled them down from the fence and inquired.

"Y-yes, we're fine," one of the students responded. "Thank you, really."

Although neither had a clear view of how the man had suddenly rushed over or grabbed them, they were grateful to him for saving them.

The other boy felt as though his soul had almost left his body. With wide, terrified eyes, he looked at the man in white and stammered, "Are you... human or a ghost?"

The man in white seemed to ponder the question for a moment before responding, "Have you ever seen a ghost as handsome as me?"

As they spoke, one boy urgently gestured to the other to look at the man in white's feet. It took a moment, but he realized the emphasis was on the fact that the man was barefoot.

Barefoot meant no shoes, and the ghost that had been chasing them had left shoeprints.

Realizing this wasn't the ghost, both breathed a sigh of relief. They turned to the man in white, "We were chased here by... a trail of footprints. Didn't you see them?"

"Footprints?" The man in white looked around. All he saw was the wet trail from his own path. If there had been any footprints, they might have been wiped away by his trailing robe. Naturally, he hadn't noticed anything.

The two boys looked behind him, both slightly puzzled, "Gone?"

"Something does seem off here," said the man in white. "Let's get moving."

With someone else by their side, the boys seemed a tad less frightened. They rubbed their arms and asked him, "Aren't you cold?"

Another boy inquired, "That outfit... are you filming something here?"

"Ah, yes," the man in white replied promptly. "You saw the girl in the bridal dress at noon, didn't you? We were taking couple photos. Red and white—don't we look good together?"

The two boys examined him for a moment, murmuring among themselves, "He does look good, but why take photos so far out here? Is it because this place is haunted and sets the mood?"

Elsewhere, the girl in the red dress and Bai Wan stood at the entrance of a restaurant.

The girl in red curiously asked, "Our mission is to protect Ji Xingchen?"

Bai Wan nodded, "Yes."

The girl in red held her own head, suggesting, "Should we split up?"