"You...you...you..." Aiden was too spooked to speak coherently and kept staring at the man dangling on the door with his eyes wide.
"Interesting," the man muttered and vanished before appearing in front of Aiden.
The unexpected action and the sudden proximity with the stranger scared the crap out of Aiden and he screamed at the top of his voice, alarming not just the people inside the castle, but the ones outside as well.
"Are you nuts?" A woman, who was nearby, rebuked once she got out of his fright. "Why did you scream like a retard?"
Aiden didn't hear a word she said. Instead, his gaze was fixed on the man who was smiling creepily at him.
"Why are you looking at me as if you have seen a ghost?" the man questioned, amusement swirling in his eyes.
Aiden's face lost all its color and he stepped away from him. "You-you- who are you?"
"Calm down, kid. It's no use getting scared." The man tried to calm him down, but Aiden was too mortified to accept his words of comfort, so his words only served the opposite purpose.
Aiden turned on his heels and sprinted towards the door. He didn't want to stay inside the library even for a second more.
Seeing his prey run away, the man's smile vanished, and he appeared before Aiden out of thin air, forcing him to put a break to his run. Aiden almost lost his footing due to the impact.
"You..."
"Calm down, kid. I mean you no harm."
"But..."
"You are hyperventilating. Take a deep breath first," the man ordered.
Even though Aiden wanted to run away from the place, he still followed his instructions and took deep breaths a few times.
"Good. Now, slowly breathe out," the man continued once Aiden had done as he said. Breathe in, breathe out."
Aiden eventually calmed down and he wasn't hyperventilating anymore. But that didn't mean he wasn't scared by any means. He was shit scared, alright.
"Kid, there is no use in being agitated," the man said when he saw Aiden's wary eyes.
"What do you mean?" Aiden squinted as he observed the man who seemed to be like nothing from this world.
"I mean I am just the beginning. You have a lot to deal with," he replied mysteriously, igniting Aiden's confusion and curiosity.
"I don't understand." Aiden shook his head and his blank look made the man smile.
"Would you mind having a walk with me?" The man tilted his head, giving Aiden a friendly attitude. Seeing Aiden hesitate, he continued, "Don't worry. I won't harm you."
Aiden wasn't convinced. But he still decided to entertain the man. From his body language, it was certain the strange man wouldn't allow him to leave the place until he had a chat with him.
"Fine." Aiden agreed begrudgingly.
"Let's go somewhere secluded." The man glanced at the undesirable people around him before leading Aiden away from them.
"Wait! Can others see you?" Aiden questioned, not forgetting to memorize the path they were going on. What if the man tried to silence him and he had to trace his footsteps back while escaping? He couldn't afford to lower his guards before the strange man.
The man stopped walking and gave him a cryptic look. "What do you think?"
Aiden didn't have a positive response to it. The man was dressed strangely as if he had stepped out of a historical movie. If the others could see him, they would have reacted by now.
The man clasped his hands behind his back and smirked as he began walking again, prompting Aiden to walk behind him.
Aiden was on high alert. He wasn't in the mood to admire the place and splendor around him. Instead, he was focused on keeping himself attentive. Since the others couldn't see the man, didn't that mean he wasn't a human?
Just the mere thought was enough to make his legs weak and he was just short of collapsing. Only he knew how much strength he had used to remain standing.
The man didn't speak and Aiden didn't ask as they continued walking until they reached a grand staircase.
"Let's go up. The others might not come there. We can converse in peace."
Aiden didn't object. He realized his words had no value. The man would do as he wanted and force him to follow his words as well.
The man didn't stop until they reached the third floor. The library had an open atrium structure. The lower levels, especially the main hall were visible from the top floors.
"I know you're suspicious about my intentions. So, let's speak here." The man finally stopped and Aiden let out a sigh of relief discreetly and nodded.
"You must have a lot of questions you want to ask me. Before we proceed, it's a basic courtesy to know each other's names. I'm Darius Valkorin. May I know your name?"
"I'm Aiden Valkorin."
"Valkorin?" Darius quirked his brows, his eyes lighting up with obvious delight. "You are my descendant then."
Aiden didn't reply. His mind was still trying to digest all that was happening.
Was he speaking to a ghost? Did they even exist?
"Aiden, ask your questions?"
"What are you?" Aiden's words left his lips before he could control himself.
"You must have an inkling by now." Darius didn't reply directly.
"You're a ghost," Aiden declared. Even though he was certain, it still spooked him when he spoke about it. He had never heard about ghosts. None of the sects had spoken about encountering one ever.
"I wouldn't call myself a ghost. You can say I'm a spirit," Darius corrected.
"Is there a difference?" Aiden wasn't sure why he wasn't running for his life yet. Why was he here chit-chatting with a ghost or 'spirit' in Darius' words?
"There is, son. I mean you no harm." Darius smiled mysteriously at him.
"Why am I able to see you? Why can't the others?" Aiden still couldn't fathom what was happening. Why weren't the others as terrified as he was?
"That's because you have awakened your power which makes us visible to you." Darius looked at him as if he was staring at a gullible boy.
"Don't tell me!" Aiden's mind exploded in realization and his jaw dropped.
"It looks like you caught onto it."
"I can see ghosts. Is that my power?" Aiden was horrified. He was already blown out of his mind from meeting one ghost. He wasn't keen on meeting a lot more.
"Well, that could be one of them." The man tapped his chin and studied Aiden who looked like a lost lamb before him.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean you are incredibly blessed. You are the first person I know who can see spirits - a first in my entire existence. And know this—I have existed for eons beyond your feeble comprehension."
"What the fuck!" Aiden cursed, unable to believe his ears.
"Language, kid," the man chided him. But Aiden was in no mood to heed his scolding. His mind was reeling from what he had just heard.
"You have got to be kidding me!"
"Not at all. I'm one hundred percent serious." Darius raised his chin as if to show how serious he was.
"Unbelievable. I'm a what?" Aiden lost his composure at the end and glowered at Darius as if it was all his fault.
"Kid, you're scaring me now. Calm down." Darius moved forward and tried to touch Aiden. But his transparent hands ended up grabbing air.
"I won't accept it. This is not what I want. I can't be seeing ghosts. This is not the power I wanted."
"Well...." Darius scratched his head helplessly. "I don't think you have a choice, kid."
"What do you mean?" Aiden narrowed his eyes and gave him a look, forgetting that that man before him was a spirit.
"You cannot extricate yourself from the power you awakened. You're stuck with it for life."