Chapter 8: Prank
As the door slid open, Zain stepped out, leaving Riry standing there frozen. Riry almost fell onto her knees.
"So he knew..." she whispered to herself, feeling a mixture of fear and embarrassment wash over her. She took a deep breath, trying to compose herself as she watched Zain walk away.
Zain strode out of the infirmary with purpose and quickly exited the building. Without a second glance, he began to make his way off the campus and towards his home.
"Tsk," Zain muttered to himself, "This school is nothing but a trashy place. It's hard to believe that humans can be so similar to the divine angels of the heavens."
As he walked, Zain couldn't shake the feeling that everyone around him was rotten to the core. But just as he began to sink deeper into his thoughts, he was jolted back to reality as the faces of the infirmary doctor and his mother flashed before his eyes.
He remembered the kindness and compassion they had shown him, and how they had gone out of their way to help him in his time of need. The memory of their selflessness gave him a glimmer of hope, and he realized that perhaps not everyone was as bad as he had thought.
"Maybe," he thought to himself, "there is still hope for humanity after all." The thought brought him a small sense of comfort and he picked up his pace, eager to reach the familiar surroundings of his home.
Zain had only taken a few steps when he suddenly felt a strange sensation wash over him.
Zain felt a strange energy emanating from a place not far from where he stood, only a hundred meters away. Without a moment's hesitation,
he broke into a sprint towards the source of the energy.
But to his surprise, he found himself standing in an empty grass field, devoid of any visible signs of what had caused the strange energy.
'That's weird...'
"Something felt off, but now that sensation has vanished..."
Zain searched the empty grass field with a puzzled expression, but all he saw were blades of grass swaying in the wind. After a moment, he shrugged off the strange energy and started to walk towards his home. Just as he had taken a few steps, his phone began to ring, interrupting his thoughts.
*Ring Ring*
*Ring Ring*
As Zain answered the phone, he noticed that the caller ID read "Unknown." He hesitated for a moment, wondering if he should answer the call, but curiosity got the better of him and he picked up the phone.
Zain was surprised to hear an unfamiliar voice on the other end of the line as he answered the phone. "Hello?" he said tentatively, unsure of who could be calling him.
But when he spoke, there was no response from the other end of the line. He waited for a few moments before trying again. "Hello, who is this?" he asked, but still, there was no reply.
Zain looked at the number on his phone once more, trying to recognize it, but it was still an unknown number. He thought it could be a prank call, so he was about to hang up when suddenly he heard a faint voice on the other end of the line.
"Your mom..."
As soon as Zain heard the word, he froze. He had been about to hang up on the unknown caller and had even moved the phone away from his ear, but the moment the word came through the line, his senses went on high alert.
Even though the phone was no longer pressed to his ear, Zain's keen hearing picked up the word clearly.
Zain's child-like voice vanished almost instantly, replaced by a chilly, cold, deep and emotionless tone. "What about her!?" he demanded, his voice ringing out with an intensity that surprised even himself.
"She will die anytime soon..."
"Huh?"
The voice on the other end of the line didn't answer his question, instead, they continued speaking in an urgent tone. "It's better if you climb The Tower of Angels!" they repeated, their voice now sounding almost desperate.
Zain's confusion was evident in his voice as he tried to make sense of the stranger's words. "Wait a minute. What the heck are you talking about?" he asked, his tone laced with frustration and disbelief.
Zain's heart raced with unease as he tried to comprehend the meaning behind the stranger's words.
"Okay fine, keep on pretending. I'm getting tired of having to kidnap people like your sister and mom.."
Zain's eyes widened in horror at the stranger's words.
Zain did indeed have a younger sister, who was two years his junior. Despite her tendency to bully and tease him, Zain still loved her deeply. He knew that she only teased him for fun, and he didn't hold it against her.
Though they had their fair share of sibling squabbles, Zain cherished his sister and couldn't bear the thought of something happening to her.
Zain had many sweet memories of his sister from their childhood. Despite being two years younger than him, she was always protective of him. She would often sacrifice her own share of food for him when they were low on resources, and would give him guidance whenever he needed it.
Zain also remembered how she took upon the responsibility to be strong for their family ever since she saw both Zain and her mother crying quite often due to pain. From the age of eight, she had made it her mission to never cry in front of them, as she saw it as her duty to be a source of strength for them.
But she had changed two years ago. Zain couldn't help but wonder what could have happened to his sister to change her behavior so drastically. He suspected that it might have something to do with the All Girls School of Angels that she had started attending after receiving a scholarship.
"W-what are you..."
Before Zain could even finish his sentence, the voice on the other end of the line abruptly cut him off, saying, "I'm exhausted. Sorry, pal. I'm killing them!"
"Ha? HEY!!"
The phone went dead, leaving Zain in shock and panic. His heart raced as he tried to make sense of what had just happened.
Zain's heart sank as he tried calling his sister's phone, but it kept ringing without anyone answering. He tried calling the landline of their home too, but no one picked up.
He began sprinting towards his home while frantically dialing the phone. He put every ounce of strength in his legs and reached home in mere minutes, which was less than one-third of the time it took to reach school in the morning.
Zain's heart started pounding heavily in his chest as he kept ringing the doorbell, but there was no answer. His mind raced with all sorts of horrible scenarios.
"Fuck!! Why!?" Zain exclaimed, completely tensed and on the verge of tears. Suddenly, he heard a voice from behind him.
"Zain? You are back already?"
Zain turned around and caught sight of his mother standing in front of him. He sprinted towards her and embraced her tightly, relieved to see her safe.
"Mom!!!", he cried in her arms while hugging her.
"Eh…?", confused yet calm, she hesitated for a moment before wrapping her arms around him in a comforting embrace. As she stroked his back soothingly with her hand, she avoided probing questions for the time being.
After a while of staying in each other's embrace, Zain's mother gently pulled away and looked at him with concern. "Did something happen, Zain? You seem troubled," she asked.
Zain shook his head, not wanting to trouble his mother. However, he couldn't shake the feeling that someone had played a cruel prank on him.
"Your sister...", she was about to say something when suddenly, Zain stood up.
"Mom... I'll be back."
He swiftly departed, determined to investigate the source of the recent vexatious and enraging incident. The thought of not knowing who could have his number and how they could use it frightened him even more. Zain couldn't let this go and decided to take matters into his own hands by tracing the number himself.
He was infuriated because he couldn't bear someone saying something like this, especially about his family. After a long time, he finally had a good family, and the thought of something happening to them made his blood boil.
Zain marched towards the central police station with an unusual confidence because he knew someone who worked there.
Zain asked, panting heavily, "Excuse me, is Uncle Sam present here?"
"Sure, let me check. Hold on a moment," the officer replied before quickly calling out for Sam.
Sam quickly arrived and ushered Zain inside the police station. After calming down a bit, Zain explained his situation and told Sam about tracing the number.
Sam agreed to help and quickly got to work, dialing the number and beginning the tracing process.
After 5-10 minutes, Sam returned with the results and said, "It appears that the call was made from a high school..."
Zain's eyes widened with surprise, his fists clenched so tightly that his uncut nails dug into his skin, drawing blood. He asked, "Was it Rein Highschool?" as he came to a realization.
Sam looked at Zain and said, "Take a deep breath and calm down. Don't do anything reckless…"
The icy chill radiating from Zain's eyes reflected his intense desire for answers. He refused to entertain any distractions or alternative explanations.
"Just tell me! Was it really from Rein High School?!"
Sam shifted his gaze away from Zain's intense stare and said, "Yes, it was from Reign Highschool and the number is registered under the name Schein Suzo."
"Zain, please listen to me! I understand you're angry, but don't let your emotions take over. Think before you act and don't do something you'll regret later," Sam pleaded with a concerned expression on his face.
Despite Sam's attempts to dissuade him, Zain left the police station with a determined and fierce expression on his face, intent on taking action.