Zilong was puzzled.
He pointed to himself.
"I did it?" he asked.
The old man looked at him, then shook his head. "Not you, but him," he said, pointing toward Jacob.
Jacob, who had seemingly regained his color, raised an eyebrow. "Me?"
It was true that Jacob had dealt the final blow to the Oni, but how did the old man know? Did the girls tell him? The group looked at the old man in confusion.
To Zilong, this man was shrouded in mystery. The unknown—that was what people feared most, perhaps the only thing humans truly feared.
The old man turned to Jacob. "Yes," he confirmed.
"But how did you know?" Jacob asked. Zilong also wanted to know; he was just as confused.
"Because of your rune…"
"Rune?" Ava asked, bewildered. "What is a rune, Mr. Haruki?"
Zilong was equally puzzled. 'What does this guy mean by rune?' he thought.
"Ah, must I explain everything to you?" the old man said with a sigh.
"There are the Tsuchigumo, or Oni. They are the lost souls of humans who have merged with their shadows. To become one, they must have endured an experience that left them thirsting for eternal vengeance or burdened with eternal loneliness," he continued. "That is what turns them into wraiths.
"And then there are the Seekers, or Emissaries—those who hunt down the Oni. These Seekers have distinct runes that mark their characteristics."
Mr. Haruki, as Ava had called him, took a cup of water beside him and sipped it slowly.
"Do you mean to tell me that I have awakened a Mark that every Seeker has? Does that make me a Seeker?" Jacob asked.
"Well, not exactly a Seeker, but a potential Seeker," the old man shrugged.
"What do you mean, a potential Seeker?" Zilong leaned in, intrigued.
"This means he has the rune—the potential, the power—but cannot use it. There are many like that in this world," Mr. Haruki explained with a heavy sigh.
"So, that's that," he concluded.
---
That night, Zilong returned to his quarters. Meanwhile, the old man, Haruki, stood in his dimly lit room, recalling when he had been tending to Zilong's wounds.
While cleaning Zilong's wounds with a cloth, he had noticed a strange symbol on the back of Zilong's neck. At first, he thought it was a rune, but when he touched it, his finger seemed to stick to it. Slowly, the rune turned red. He had to yank his finger away with force, and what he saw next genuinely surprised—if not terrified—him.
His finger was bleeding, and all the blood began to flow toward the rune as if it were thirsting for it. Haruki had heard of such a thing before, and it wasn't pretty.
"The Cursed…" he thought. "I have to inform my clan about this!" He quickly took out a book and ink, drew a brush, and started scribbling on the paper.
---
The next day, Zilong woke up feeling refreshed. He got out of bed and walked out of the hut, looking around. "Huh, no one else is awake?" he murmured, resting his head in his hands. A sweet fragrance wafted past his nose—sweet and unfamiliar.
He didn't know the exact time, but he guessed it must have been around 6 a.m. He followed the scent, which led him to a space behind the batch of huts. He walked over and saw a small waterfall.
Mist surrounded the base of the waterfall, making it difficult for Zilong to see clearly. He walked closer, squinting his eyes. His eyes widened in surprise.
There, under the waterfall, was a woman with smooth, fair skin and a curvy figure, water cascading down her body as her hair stuck to her back.
'Wait, what…?' he thought, looking harder. There was no mistaking it—it was Emma. The realization made him flinch and take a step back, causing Emma to startle, her body tensing as if she were about to turn around.
'Oh, shit…' Zilong darted behind a stone pillar.
"God, please, don't let her see me," he muttered, panicking. Was that where the fragrance was coming from? She must have mixed something into the spring water to give it such a scent.
"I'm such an idiot," Zilong mumbled, just as a voice echoed behind him, "Who's there?"
Zilong didn't answer; he just stood there like a buffoon.
"Damn, I hope she doesn't see me. That would be really weird," he grimaced.
A few moments of silence passed. Zilong didn't hear anything. Was it safe? Could he make a run for it? Any wrong or miscalculated move, and Emma might see him. And the fact that he was shaking would add another layer to the misunderstanding. He had to be careful.
He peeked out from behind the rock. She was still there.
"Phew…"
"Big brother, what are you doing?"
A sudden chill ran down Zilong's spine. He turned to see Ava staring at him with an incredulous gaze. Zilong's mind went into a state of panic.
'What can I say? What should I say? Quick, act as if nothing happened,' Zilong thought, scratching the back of his head and forcing a smile.
"I was just looking for the bathroom," he said.
'Damn, looking for the bathroom? Really?' Zilong cursed himself internally.
"Hmm, you were looking for the bathroom while hiding behind a rock and watching Emma take a bath?" Ava grinned.
"Oh boy…"
Just when Zilong thought the situation couldn't get any worse, a voice called out, "Ava, is that you?"
"Yes," she replied, shouting to be heard over the noise of the waterfall.
"Umm, Emma, you see… the truth is… umm…" Zilong stammered, quickly trying to think of the most reasonable lie.