* * *
"Oh no. Take all of them and get out of here!" Shera's voice rang in Arion's mind, urgent and commanding.
Along with her warning, she sent a flurry of information about the ghost and how to deal with it directly into his thoughts.
With a flick of her wrist, she cast a spell that released the vow on Arion's soul, allowing him to see and hear the female ghost.
"No choice. Let's beat and capture that spirit—hope this won't drain me completely…" Shera said, feeling the weight of the whole situation.
"Alright," Arion replied briefly, steeling himself for what was to come.
Synchronizing his next action with Shera's thoughts, he felt a strange surge of electricity course through his eyes and eardrums.
Suddenly, he gained a clear vision and hearing of the spirit's location and the chilling voice it emitted.
With a sudden burst of movement, he stood up, grabbed Rhea's hand, and forcefully pulled her to his side.
Just as he did, the female ghost emerged from beneath Rhea's seat, phasing through the floor with hands outstretched, ready to snatch Rhea away.
"Aaahhhh!" Rhea screamed in surprise at Arion's sudden movement.
Arion swiftly shielded Rhea behind him as the spirit directed its attack toward her once more.
Fortunately, he and Shera were prepared.
Arion directed his palm toward the female ghost while Shera invoked a Rune Magic spell, {Expel}.
The spell hit its mark, causing the female ghost to screech in a ghastly manner as she was thrown back, phasing out of the compartment.
Nesa sat aghast, her mouth agape in shock as she witnessed the entity, its form eerily similar to a human, phasing in and out of their reality.
The ghost wore a long and plain white dress, its bulging eyes wide with malice, and its mouth opened impossibly wide, revealing a darkness that seemed to consume all light.
The horror of the image imprinted itself deeply in her mind.
On Solome's side, his face turned a ghostly shade of white as he jumped up onto his chair, leaning back against the wall with both hands pressed against it.
He had seen it, but unlike Nesa, who had a clear view, he only caught a blur this time.
Earlier, he had witnessed the female ghost because it using her own power to materialize slightly into their world, and the memory sent chills down his spine.
After securing Rhea, who was still reeling from the screech that chilled her to the core – even though she couldn't see that spirit, Arion quickly opened the door of their compartment.
"Run! Inform the guard captain that we have a huge problem. There are evil spirits targeting us. He is the only one capable of handling this. I'm trusting you three to do it!"
Arion attempted to leave the compartment, but Nesa's hand shot out, gripping his arm tightly. "Where are you going?" she asked, her voice laced with concern.
"I will catch that spirit and bring it to your side. Go now!" he urged, his tone leaving no room for argument.
Without another word, the trio hurriedly obeyed, racing out of the bus.
"Do any of you know where the guard captain is?" Nesa asked, glancing back at Solome as they ran.
"Follow me," Solome replied, his voice steady despite the urgency of the situation.
* * *
As Arion moved through the bus, he scanned each room, looking through the windows at the students inside.
"What's happening?" one student asked, opening the door to their compartment, confusion etched on their face.
The commotion from Arion's room had drawn the attention of everyone nearby, and now all heads turned curiously toward him, whispers and murmurs filling the air.
A few students exchanged uneasy glances, sensing the tension that hung thick in the atmosphere.
They recalled the earlier unease when the teachers and guards had returned from the village, their faces clouded with a frown.
Arion felt the weight of their stares, the growing anxiety palpable in the air. He could see the fear creeping into their expressions, and it only fueled his urgency.
As he continued down the aisle, he suddenly stopped, his gaze locking onto one student who stood half-exposed in the doorway.
Something was off about him. The student's eyes were wide, but not with fear – there was something else lurking behind his bearing, something unsettling.
"Hey, are you alright?" Arion asked, rather suspicious of his weird behavior.
*
Afterward, Shera's warning came just in time. "That guy in front of you is possessed by an evil spirit," she informed Arion, her tone urgent and serious.
'Is it the same one as earlier?' he thought, his heart racing.
"It's a different one. Don't worry; this spirit isn't as strong as the female one. But we need to focus on that earlier spirit quickly. It could suck someone's life away to the point of death."
'Damn it,' Arion cursed inwardly, feeling the weight of the situation pressing down on him.
He approached the possessed student, his resolve hardening.
With a swift motion, he delivered a triumphant slap to the guy's face, with his hand that already enveloped in an unseen, transparent white flame made from his Soul Essence, mirroring the Soul Flame that burned within him.
The impact expelled the spirit that had taken hold of the student, sending it screaming out of his body and out of the bus. The sound was a chilling wail that only Arion could hear, echoing in his mind.
As the spirit was expelled, a sudden draft of wind swept through the bus, materializing out of nowhere and causing the students to shiver in an unnatural cold.
Arion quickly caught the falling body of the student, who seemed unconscious from the force of the expulsion.
He laid the student down gently, leaving him in the care of his puzzled roommate.
Some of the other students looked ready to accuse Arion of being unreasonable for slapping someone without any explanation, but their words were silenced by the cold, piercing glare Arion shot their way.
"Stay here," he commanded, his voice echoing ominously in the cramped space.
"There's something dangerous targeting us. Whether you believe me or not is up to you, but don't blame me if you lose your life outside."
With that, he turned and left them all behind.
A student opened his mouth to ask what exactly was targeting them, but one of their friends quickly clamped a hand over his mouth, silencing him.
The lingering trauma from their previous attack at the academy still haunted them, and the chilling energy radiating from Arion sent goosebumps crawling over their skin.
Of course, there were always a few so-called brave souls among the students, eager to tag along with Arion, blissfully unaware of the danger they were about to face.
They couldn't just follow someone's words blindly without assessing the situation for themselves, right? Classic horror trope…
But as Arion exited the bus, the door suddenly refused to budge.
No matter how hard they pushed or pulled, it remained stubbornly shut. They banged on the windows and the door, muffled screams escaping their lips as they called out to Arion, asking what he had done to the door.
Arion, however, was already running, his mind racing as he conversed with Shera.
"Where did that female spirit go?" he asked.
"Over there in the bus on your right. I sense her. Hurry! Someone's life seems to be in the process of being sucked away!" Shera urged – her voice filled with panic.
"Okay…" Arion replied briefly.
He barged through the door of the adjacent bus, and the sight that met his eyes sent a chill down his spine.
The female ghost, the one that had attacked Rhea earlier, was there, her mouth wide open, engulfing the head of the unconscious driver responsible for the bus.
Floating nearby was a white cloth that Arion recognized – the same cloth that had cradled the baby he had glimpsed earlier. From within the folds of the cloth, dim, glowing red eyes glared at him, filled with malice.
As soon as the female ghost noticed Arion, she swiftly released her grip on the driver, phasing through the bus wall and disappearing into the dark embrace of the surrounding forest – dodging Arion's punch.
Arion's heart raced as he realized what had just happened from the knowledge Shera had shared with him.
The ghost had drained the life from the poor driver, needing the energy to materialize in this world.
As a spirit, she couldn't remain in the living world for long without a Spirit Contractor to anchor her.
...