章 12: Hide and Seek

It was a wretched night outside, starless sky and moonless darkness. It was either the goddess was shy or in hiding from the malicious atmosphere. The air was strangely freezing for an early autumn day and the stench of blood was somewhat distinct, but thinned out as the rain washed over it.

Last night had been gruesome but tonight, the silence never felt serene. If one had to choose, perhaps the 'fireworks' was better than this ominous stillness that triggered a sense of danger, driving them to watch over their back every now and then.

And even walking on the hallway with friends felt strenuous as though someone was watching somewhere invisible to their eyes.

"We should hurry," A female student pulled her classmate's sleeve, urging him to walk faster.

"Relax. The curfew is still two hours away," said the male student.

"It's not the curfew…" the female student didn't know how to explain it. She just felt iffy all of the sudden. Small beads of sweat had secretly crept down her spine and wet her clenched fists.

The male student raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Thomas, I think we should listen to Pen. I don't feel right for some reason," the other male student agreed with Pen and begged Thomas to make haste. Meanwhile, the last two students looked at each other and noticed the same worry in their eyes.

Perhaps it was due to last night's incident that made the students rather wary. The shock was still evident in their heart and somewhere in the back of their mind, the thought of narrowly escaping death last night lingered like a stigma. It still haunted them even in daylight.

Nobody talked about it today. If they didn't, then maybe it would go away. Nevertheless, they felt unsafe. So, went Thomas' mind, thinking it was because of Kalliope.

Quite simple-minded indeed. Such bravery came from his ignorance. Because all that mattered was he was still alive, right?

"Heh...there's nothing to worry about, really. Our academy is completely protected by Principal Helliot's spell and even though she's currently unavailable, we still have Vice Principal Nox," Thomas prided Slidora's prestige conceitedly since he was a student of such a powerful academy.

Then, he continued with his last sentence, "Besides, the only troublemaker here is locked up in the dungeon. There's nothing to worry--"

"Yes… there's nothing to be scared of," a low breathy voice, sounding slightly distorted, interrupted Thomas, greeting everyone's ears in a friendly manner.

Thomas jerked his head right away to the front and his eyes directly met those rose-colored ones stained with the black color of dead mana. In that second, time seemed to have stopped as the students stood petrified, staring at the spine-chilling figure standing right in front of Thomas. Her face stopped a mere five centimeters from his.

"...." Thomas parted his lips slightly but not a word escaped him. Not a peep of his voice.

Even his breath felt impeded as though something was gripping on his lungs, sending a lump stuck in his throat. He could neither scream nor escape. The hairs on his body stood in horror. His blood freezing and heart pounding erratically.

He couldn't take his eyes off the woman's pale complexion that was laden with black veins crawling up her slender neck and painting her face a haunting sight. Blobs of dark liquid dripped down her fingers and the hem of her dress, dying the ground a lovely shade of death.

Neither Thomas nor his classmates were able to move a muscle. They felt their legs weak and trembling out of control. The wind encased them in fear and the grumbling flash of thunder sang a captivating jolt to their soul, rendering them incapable of speech.

"A...Ah...Ah…" Pen squeezed the books in her arms tightly. Large beads of cold sweat drenched her quivering body, while the other female student had melted onto the floor.

A sinister grin split the woman's dreadful countenance, teeth gleaming in the lamplight. Mirth danced in her eyes as she ran her forefinger over Thomas' face.

"Eyes...nose...lips…" her finger continued to run down his neck towards his chest. Heaps of giggle escaped her lips. "Hehehe….what a loud heartbeat."

"P-Ph...Pl…" Thomas struggled to get the word out.

Kalliope leered at the stammering boy before her and the smile on her face vanished. Her hand moved swiftly to strangle his neck. "I told you...there's nothing to be scared of. So, why do you stutter, hmm?"

Thomas didn't even have a breath to answer her as he struggled to free himself from her grip. However, his feet soon left the ground. The pressure tightened around his neck from the loss of footing and white foam soon began to form in his mouth.

Pen was shocked out of her wits. With tears streaming down her face, she finally screamed, "Stop!! Please... stop it!"

"Don't kill him…" she wailed, falling down on her knees as she continued to beg, "Please...let us go…"

And just like that, Kalliope let go of Thomas. His body collapsed onto the ground with a loud thud. The cruel sound gave everyone a jolt. However, Pen didn't get to sigh in relief when she felt a cold touch on her chin and she was forced to look up at Kalliope.

"Great job, Pen." The smile returned on her face again. Then, Kalliope's figure faded into a wisp of black smoke tinged with flickering roseate lights and floated back to her original position before materializing once again in front of them.

She opened her arms wide as dark aura flared out of her body, raging like a vengeful spirit around her. "You save my appetite." Her voice grew distorted with echoes of a distinct voice - low and magnetic, hiding an allure charm that enticed them. "Now, run. I'll give you a head start."

Right then, the black aura surrounding Kalliope combusted. The students saw a menacing black shadow shot up and steadily hovering at her back. A pair of ferocious violet eyes stared through the veil of shadow right at them.

"AAAAAHHH!!!" A female student who stood at the very back of the group finally couldn't hold back her fear as she let out a blood-curdling scream.

Her voice knocked everyone out of their reverie and they immediately scrambled to their feet. Pen and another male student hurriedly grabbed Thomas and dragged him in their escape. As they ran, the lights dimmed out one by one, catching up to their position as if the darkness was alive and in pursuit to devour them.

The devil broke out in a string of joyful chuckles as his body slowly materialized. His beautiful ice-cold hand caressed Kalliope's cheek every so gently. Then, he leaned to her ear, "Wait for me, My Lady. I'll be back to your side shortly."

His lips brushed the edge of her lips before he disappeared into the game of hide and seek.

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