As Syd pondered which abilities to enhance next, the sound of an approaching vehicle broke his concentration.
A large, old-fashioned bus emerged from the darkness, its headlights cutting through the foggy night.
Syd's brow furrowed, and a look of curiosity crossed his face.
There was something odd about this bus—perhaps the mere presence of a bus at such a late hour was unusual.
The bus gradually pulled up to the bus stop right in front of him, which seemed oddly out of place with the dim street lighting and dense fog that had settled around the area.
Syd's gaze fixed on the peculiar bus.
It was hard to see through the windows, which were either tinted or simply too dark to reveal anything inside. He couldn't make out who or what was onboard.
The bus door creaked open, and Syd glanced inside. At the driver's seat, he saw a bus driver wearing a standard uniform.
However, the driver's face was obscured by shadows, even with Syd's sharp vision.
At that moment, a distressed male voice called out from within the bus.
"Don't get on the bus! Get out of here, this bus isn't meant for you!"
Syd raised an eyebrow at the warning. His curiosity was piqued, and he decided to board the bus despite the apparent danger.
After all, it was just an old bus. He wasn't about to be intimidated by something so mundane.
Determined, he stepped onto the bus and made his way to the back.
As he passed by the other passengers, he noted a middle-aged man in a suit sitting in the fifth row. The man's expression was one of frustration and disbelief, as if Syd had done something terribly foolish.
Syd noticed that the man was flanked by a couple—another man and a woman—both of whom also looked troubled.
Other than these three, the rest of the bus appeared empty.
Just then, the bus door slammed shut, and the vehicle began to move.
Syd, unfazed, strolled down to the last row and took a seat, intending to observe what was so unusual about this bus.
Seeing his nonchalance, the middle-aged man, whose name was Kiro, sighed in exasperation.
Kiro, along with two other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, had been dispatched to investigate the area due to a series of mysterious disappearances.
According to their records, people had been vanishing from this street every few days, and so far, over a dozen people had gone missing.
Witnesses claimed that one of the missing individuals had last been seen boarding a strange bus.
Such events were not unheard of in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secret archives—there had been similar cases involving disappearing trains and planes.
Suspecting a connection, the agency had sent Kiro and his team to investigate.
Unfortunately, they had just found the bus when this impudent bystander decided to board.
Kiro and his colleagues were dismayed. This stranger was making the same mistake as the other missing individuals—boarding a suspicious bus late at night.
They could almost envision the young man meeting a grim fate.
Ignoring their warnings, the young man seemed determined to ignore the obvious danger.
Kiro was growing more frustrated. "Kid, I'm not kidding. This bus is dangerous. You shouldn't be here!"
Kiro's warning was met with indifference by the young man, who seemed more interested in observing his surroundings.
Isabella, with her flaxen hair and striking features, tugged at Kiro's sleeve. "Let him be, Kiro. If he wants to walk into danger, then let him."
Kiro frowned, clearly displeased with the young man's arrogance and lack of common sense.
"If he wants to die, there's nothing we can do about it," he muttered, shaking his head in resignation.
As the bus continued its journey, it gradually approached a stop. Syd looked out the window, which had previously been shrouded in fog but was now clearing.
An old-fashioned bus station came into view, with a few passengers waiting.
The first new passenger to board was a tall, thin man dressed in black, his appearance somewhat ghostly.
As the man stepped onto the bus, his gaze swept over the four passengers—Syd and the three S.H.I.E.L.D. agents.
He sniffed the air around them, his eyes reflecting a mixture of curiosity and greed.
"Living people?" he mused aloud.
Kiro and his team felt a chill.
"A ghost?"
"Is this a ghost bus?"
In an instant, they realized the connection to the missing persons.
As the ghostly figure's gaze shifted from them to the back of the bus, a look of excitement appeared in his eyes.
He moved toward the last row with an ethereal grace.
Panic gripped Kiro and his team. They exchanged worried glances.
Even though they had anticipated the possibility of the young man falling victim to the situation, witnessing it in real-time was distressing.
If they didn't act quickly, the young man was in grave danger!
(End of Chapter)