"Brother, brother, wake up..."
Drip, drip... I felt something cold and wet fall onto my cheek. I opened my eyes—it was Snowy, crying. Her icy tears landed on my face one after another, and somehow, their chill soothed me.
I reached out and wiped the tears from her face, smiling.
"It's okay, it's all right now."
I looked up at the sky—it was already night, and the moon had risen.
I didn't expect I'd slept for so long.
I got up. I was still at the Octagonal Tower; Snowy hadn't taken me away from here.
"Looks like I need to find everyone first."
And I seemed to understand now: this game couldn't be completed alone. I had to gather everyone. I also realized what Mia Lin meant about the potential of people.
"Brother, where are we going now?"
I heard that the human woman is right in front of Rakshasa Hall. Heh, she's quite pretty—really beautiful.
I could finally understand what it meant to rely on everyone. Hugh Thompson and the others had told me this more than once.
"Let's go, let's get moving."
As I spoke, Snowy followed. As for why she could enter my body, maybe only the Sevenfold Ghost Sovereigns or some powerful people knew. I'd have to ask them when we got back.
The streets at night were lively. I bought some food for Snowy.
"Brother, you should eat something too."
Snowy handed me a small bun as she spoke. I shook my head.
"Oh right, I almost forgot, brother you're..." Suddenly, I reacted quickly and covered her mouth before she could say I was human.
I was startled—there were ghosts everywhere. I glared at her. Snowy stuck out her tongue, and we kept wandering the streets.
Meanwhile, I was thinking about how to find the others. The best way was to find Hugh Thompson.
"I heard that human woman is right in front of Rakshasa Hall. Heh, she's quite attractive—really beautiful."
Suddenly, I stopped in my tracks and stared blankly at the two ghosts nearby, listening to their conversation. My eyes widened in surprise.
I rushed over and started asking questions.
"You don't know? Lately, a lot of ghosts have gone to see her. She really is beautiful. I heard Lord Rakshasa plans to be the first to enjoy her—on the wedding day in three days."
I immediately grabbed Snowy and sprinted south. I couldn't believe my luck—I'd learned about Rachel Lan so easily.
It would take several hours to get there, since we were in the northernmost part of the city.
I wanted to find some transportation, but realized there was none in Lord Rakshasa’s city—not even a single horse. It made sense; most ghosts here could probably fly.
I'd heard that lower-level ghosts couldn't fly very far, but I was getting anxious. After running for a while, I got too tired and sat down at a doorway to rest.
"Brother Qingyuan, let me fly you part of the way, if there aren't many people around."
I responded, my determination to see Rachel Lan giving me strength. After a while, night deepened and there were fewer ghosts on the street.
Snowy took me up into the air. After flying a few dozen meters, she looked exhausted but kept going.
"If you're tired, let's go down—I'll walk the rest of the way myself."
Snowy nodded. Once I landed, I picked up the pace. After a while, I found a road that led straight to the main wedding avenue and hurried along it.
When I got tired, Snowy flew me part of the way. When she was exhausted, I continued walking. Checking the time, it was already 4 a.m.
We finally reached the long staircase leading up to Rakshasa Hall. The steps seemed endless. Snowy flew me up again, but halfway, she ran out of strength and set me down.
I started climbing the stairs, step by step. Gradually, I could see the top.
Excitement drove me onward, my steps quickening as I got closer. My nerves tightened, a bittersweet ache rising in my chest. Gasping for breath, I finally reached the last step and collapsed, panting heavily.
My legs couldn't move another inch. Sweat poured down in heavy drops.
"Brother, is that the sister you're looking for?"
Just as Snowy spoke, I looked up—it was Rachel Lan, sitting quietly on a Ceremonial Chair, dressed in red. I was sure I wasn't mistaken; she was only about ten meters away, but her gaze was vacant.