Chương 19: Yes, It's Burning Bridges
Outside the familiar safehouse, two familiar figures crouched together, huddling close and trembling as if they were each other's only support.
Jason didn't think he had lost his mind just by going out for a while, but Roy definitely seemed to have lost his.
"Hey, what are you guys doing outside?" Jason suppressed his amusement and walked over briskly.
At the familiar voice, the two forlorn figures outside the door brightened up. Tearfully, Jantice rushed over and hugged his waist tightly. "Jason, I missed you so much. You're finally back."
Jason didn't stop her, but he did block the enthusiastic Roy. He patted the little girl's back gently, his voice soft, "I'm back. Now can you tell me why you're both outside the door?"
When Jason returned, it was already late at night. He hadn't intended to wake the kids up, but seeing the two of them still outside at this hour puzzled him greatly.
Roy, who didn't get a hug, cried tearfully, his tone filled with relief, "Jay! You're finally back!"
Jason: ???
He really wanted to know what could make Roy, of all people, so emotional.
Jantice said softly, "He's scared of ghosts."
Her tone was flat as she stated a fact, without any hint of mockery, but Roy didn't see it that way.
Jason: I see.
"I'm not!" Roy retorted, lacking confidence, "I just wasn't prepared."
Jason sneered, "Scared of ghosts is scared of ghosts. Why bother finding excuses for yourself?"
Roy: ...
Jantice and Roy had formed a strong bond of revolutionary friendship during these days. She comforted him by patting his arm, indicating that he shouldn't be upset, it's just fear of ghosts.
Roy felt even more defeated.
It wasn't a big deal for them to stand outside for a while, but Jason was about to open the door when Jantice suddenly grabbed his hand, expressionless, and said, "Wait."
Jason: ???
"Hey girl, do you know you're at the age where you need enough sleep to grow?" Jason didn't take their obstruction to heart, resolutely opening the door.
Jantice and Roy exchanged a glance, both stepping back a few steps and even moving away from the door, quickly covering their ears, as if that would make them hear nothing.
Ever experienced a 360-degree surround sound ghostly roar?
In the instant Jason opened the door, he experienced it. His expression stiffened, and he quickly closed the door, blocking out the sounds from inside the room.
"Why didn't you guys say anything?" Jason's expression was bewildered.
Roy carefully explained, afraid of touching Jason's fragile nerves, "I tried to stop her, but you didn't listen."
Jason: ...
Jantice blinked blankly at him, not thinking there was anything wrong with her futile attempt to stop them.
Jason, helpless, rubbed his forehead. In just a few seconds, he had seen everything that was happening inside the room clearly. But it was precisely because of this that he felt even more overwhelmed.
Jason vividly remembered that when he left, his safehouse was clean and tidy. There wouldn't be any random people or things coming in because he didn't allow it, and neither would Jantice.
But now, it was a mess inside, and there were even two things inside that shouldn't be in the safehouse. He couldn't even bring himself to call those two brawling figures inside people.
Two fighting female ghosts. In that brief moment, Jason saw clearly that one of the furious howling figures was the ghost Jantice named Cinderella. The other one looked very similar to the protagonist of the recent ghost incidents.
Why were they here? Jason rubbed his temples, not expecting to encounter such strange things right after his return.
Jason looked at Roy with undisguised disappointment, his angry gaze making Roy extremely guilty. He tried to make up for himself, "You should have seen them, they were really scary."
Roy's attempt at justification fell flat.
Jantice nodded along from the side.
Jason patted the girl's head and mocked Roy, "Don't tell me you're afraid of this too. Not only did you let them in, but you also allowed them to fight inside?"
Roy instantly shut his mouth, feeling guilty.
Jason motioned for Jantice to step aside, needing to deal with the two troublemakers fighting inside the safehouse. He drew his large blade and quickly pushed open the door, then closed it behind him.
Roy immediately pressed his ear against the door to listen for any movement inside, but the soundproofing was good, and he heard nothing. However, it seemed like something had bumped into the door, causing it to vibrate.
Seeing Jason enter, Jantice's eyes widened, and she tried to get past Roy to follow him inside. But Roy firmly stopped her. "Aren't you afraid? Why would you, a little girl, want to go inside? Be careful not to hurt yourself."
"But..."
"I know you're worried about Jay, but he's not that weak." Roy was very confident. He wouldn't go inside; those two looked like they could unleash some serious mental attacks!
As Jantice persisted in wanting to go inside and Roy tried to listen for any sounds, the door was suddenly opened from the inside.
Roy almost fell in, scanning the chaotic room but failing to see the two troublemakers. He breathed a sigh of relief.
"Useless guy," Jason glared at Roy before turning to Jantice and inviting her to go sleep.
But Jantice didn't listen to him; instead, she carefully examined Jason, finding no injuries, and then began to tidy up the messy living room.
The sofa had irreparable damage from the fight between the two female ghosts, and Jason decided it needed to be replaced. Even the walls had many scratches, indicating the strength of the ghosts. Surprisingly, the succulents on the windowsill were unharmed.
"Gwen is fine." Jantice checked and confirmed that not a single leaf had fallen, relieved. "I didn't take her out. Is she scared?"
"No, she's a tough girl," Jason reassured skillfully.
After a few seconds of silence, Roy asked Jason softly, "What cute things did you teach her? Like talking to plants?"
That characteristic of talking to plants was also learned from Jason, ten out of ten.
Jason smiled, "She learned it all by herself."
Roy: I can tell! I can tell! You're so proud!
After tidying up the living room, Jason inspected the damage, thinking they could repair it and change some furniture.
Sitting on the broken sofa, Jason thought they needed to figure out what happened. His expression serious, he asked, "What exactly happened?"
Those guys wouldn't have come in before he left, so what happened during those days he was away that allowed them to come in?
Scratching his head, Roy said, puzzled, "We're not sure either. You know that little boy? He scared both Janny and me. I just wanted to chase him out."
Roy's shot hit the little boy, whose piercing scream brought, perhaps, his mother. The woman was furious, and just as she was about to strike, another woman appeared, and then this happened.
Jason listened numbly, unable to imagine the chaos of the situation.
"So what are those two things?" Roy looked perplexed. "Are they really ghosts? Jay, didn't you feel like that big-small combination was familiar?"
"No, not at all," Jason replied coldly. He had never encountered such ghosts before!
"Send them both to star in horror movies; they'd be perfect for it," Roy said, trying to find humor in the situation.
Jantice remained silent, hugging a pillow beside them, still processing what had happened tonight.
Jason absentmindedly patted her head, also contemplating the events of the day, but there was too little information to make sense of it all.
He recalled one of the purposes of his recent departure, taking out a seemingly ordinary dagger and handing it to the absent-minded girl. "This is an enchanted dagger that can harm magical beings."
Though not on the level of the Greater Name Blade, it was still quite useful. He had already tested it, and the magic of the Greater Name could indeed cause more damage to these beings than ordinary weapons.
Roy: ???
After seeing those ghosts, he was also a bit envious, but of course, he wouldn't snatch anything from his "difficult brother and sister." He grinned and drawled, "Jay, I've been taking care of Janny. No work, no credit, right? What about mine?"
Jason raised an eyebrow. "Where's your face?"
Roy explained that if he had something to kill ghosts, he wouldn't be afraid.
Jason smiled. "But you're not afraid, right?"
Roy's face immediately flashed with embarrassment.
As Jantice looked at the dagger handed to her, she hadn't yet encountered anything from the magical side. However, she could faintly sense some power surging through the simple and unadorned dagger.
She took it, holding it tightly, not because it could kill ghosts, but because she felt Jason's care for her. Her eyes moistened, but before Jason could speak, she wiped away her tears.
"Thank you, Jason. I love you so much."
Jason chuckled. Amidst Roy's protests of "What about me? What about me? I've been taking care of you these days! I even stayed up with you when you were scared!" Jason gently rubbed her head. "Alright, go to bed. Staying up late isn't good for little kids."
Roy looked at Jason resentfully, muttering, "What about me? What about me?!"
Jason frowned. "What?"
Roy was exasperated; this guy was pretending not to understand! What a jerk!
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