One day, everyone gathered at Ryan Anderson's place. Of course, Lily Cooper was there too.
"Gary Johnson has been killed. If you want to survive, you have to follow our instructions. Um... listen carefully. First of all, during this period, try not to get close to mirrors and elevators as much as possible. When taking a bath, take a shower if possible, because if you take a bath in a tub, there might be a ghost emerging from the water. Absolutely do not enter dimly - lit places and try to stay in public places."
These precautions were quite similar to the previous ones, and the three of them listened attentively. Lily didn't believe this at first, but when Zachary told her that Gary was dead, and both he and Ryan said they had seen that female ghost, she had to believe it was true. At the same time, she also had high hopes for Orion and Jane.
"There's no need to be too nervous until the death deadline arrives," Jane comforted them first, and then continued, "Well... once the death date arrives, we can carry out my plan. First, stay in a public place, and then we'll be responsible for arranging the escape route. If Orion releases his supernatural ability, it will create some obstacles for the female ghost, and that will be our best chance to escape!" Once the pointer crosses midnight, no, at the very moment of midnight, when the death date begins, the life of the cursed person is no longer guaranteed at all. It wouldn't be surprising if they died the next second. Well, only Orion's supernatural ability can create some obstacles for the female ghost. Judging from the situation where he dispelled the ghosts, it is likely that he can keep the female ghost from approaching the cursed person temporarily.
Within twenty - four hours, the most critical moment is midnight, which is a crucial point from death to life. And Orion must reserve his supernatural ability before that moment and exert all his strength to deal with it at that time. As long as it passes midnight, it enters a safe period, and then they can survive.
Within twenty - four hours, there are too many variables. And the female ghost will definitely not just stand in front of you conspicuously for you to deal with. She will surely hide in an invisible place, become invisible directly, and then launch a sudden attack to kill people. Sometimes, she may even make people disappear directly. Considering this, they need to be protected in an area without blind spots. Well, first of all, people must be arranged to monitor all around the cursed person, so that no matter where the female ghost comes out, they can notice it immediately. This was the best arrangement at present... Jane was well aware that even if Orion's supernatural ability improved, the possibility of saving them was still very small. So, at the very least, she had to use this opportunity to increase Orion's combat experience and let him face the ghosts directly.
In addition, there was another problem. That was Violet. After careful consideration, Jane decided to let Violet come in person. After all, the determination of the death date was a matter of life and death, and she couldn't be careless. It had to be confirmed by Violet herself. At present, Orion should be able to tell whether it was his real sister. This way, it would be a bit safer. Of course, it took some time to persuade Orion.
"I promise you that she will only provide time data and definitely not participate in the mission. Is that okay? I admit that I have expectations for her supernatural ability, but this is the premise of our cooperation. I won't sacrifice the greater good for a small gain."
Since she said so, Orion indeed understood the importance of Violet. After weighing the pros and cons, he agreed.
However, Jane didn't expect at that time that she had seriously underestimated the horror of the female ghost in that painting. Although Gary was already dead, because he lived alone, his body hadn't been discovered yet, and this matter hadn't been told to others. According to Jane's idea, they couldn't call the police, so they had to let his body stay there until it was found. After all, the conversation between Orion and Zachary in their internship unit that day might have been heard by others. If they told the police about the part related to Gary at that time, they would surely be taken to the police station for investigation. Once that happened to be during the death date, staying in the police station would definitely be unfavorable for the plan.
So the best way was... to make sure Gary's body wasn't discovered as long as possible. Of course, this couldn't last long. If he didn't go to work all the time, the people in the internship unit might contact his family. But after all, he was just an intern. If he kept absent from work, the worst - case scenario was being fired, so there was no need to worry too much. The school also didn't care too much and wouldn't pay too much attention. In addition, Jane had sprinkled a kind of potion she prepared alone on his body, which could delay the time for the body to rot and stink by about a week. In this way, the neighbors wouldn't call the police because of the stench of the body. Since he still owed rent, the landlord might come to collect it at that time. So Zachary paid the landlord all the rent in arrears with his own money. Because the two were friends, no one would suspect them afterwards. Later, Orion admired Jane's careful thinking. He also didn't expect that she could actually make that kind of potion. It seemed that there were a lot of treasures in the laboratory underground in her house. She really seemed to be carrying a lot of good things.
Ryan, because he had resigned, could only wander around the street. It could be considered as staying in a "public place". Since it wasn't his "turn" yet, his life was safe for now.
That is, from this day on, he noticed something.
Opposite the apartment where he lived, there was another apartment, less than ten meters away. And the window of the room in the opposite apartment, which was directly facing the window of his study, seemed to be an empty room. He hadn't paid much attention to it before, but... when he came home at night and stood in front of the window of his study, he was surprised to find that there was a light in that window. Had someone moved in? Originally, this wasn't a strange thing. But now, being alone at home, he couldn't help but let his imagination run wild. Driven by curiosity, he stood by the window and watched.
Because the distance was not far, and his eyesight was good, he could see quite clearly. It seemed that there was also a study in the window. There was a desk in front of the window, and a bookshelf on the left. And what caught Ryan's attention was...
Looking from that window, it seemed that there was a row of windows on the right. And the curtains of that row of windows were drawn. This was a very ordinary scene, but... he always felt that there was something behind the curtains because the curtains seemed to be bulging. Because the view below the curtains was blocked by the desk, he couldn't see clearly. If there was a person behind the curtains, it wouldn't be a big deal. But in this special period, Ryan felt a little uneasy.
He opened the fourth drawer of the desk and took out a telescope. This telescope had a high - frequency resolution and could adjust the distance. The scene in a window less than ten meters away could be seen as clearly as if it were right in front of him.
From the scene he could see through that window, he clearly saw... the curtains were indeed bulging! And the outline of the bulge was clearly human! His hand holding the telescope trembled slightly, and he had to comfort himself: Maybe it was just the owner's strange habit of hiding behind the curtains. That was all. This explanation made perfect sense. And even if it was really "her"... she could appear behind the curtains of his own house. Why would she go to the opposite apartment?
That must be it, right? Thinking like this, he put down the telescope and went to sleep.
However, the scene he saw through the telescope lingered in his mind. And he also thought that by leaving Gary's body in his house without asking, would his ghost also bear a grudge against him? But there was no other way. It was for the sake of survival... I hope he could understand him in the afterlife...
The next day, when he woke up at about six o'clock in the morning. Jane suggested that he live his normal life as usual and not be too anxious. For example, he could consider sending resumes to other units for internship. After all, this was also a good opportunity to continue staying in public places. After making the decision, he planned to first search the Internet for units recruiting interns and then send resumes. Just at this time, as if possessed, he took out that telescope again and looked at that room.
It seemed that... as long as the person behind the curtains disappeared, he could explain all this as the owner's strange habit.
But... The bulging figure on the curtains was still there! And the position was exactly the same as yesterday!
The telescope in his hand fell to the ground instantly, and he didn't even react when it hit his foot. Could the person behind the curtains have been standing there since last night until now? No matter how strange the habit was, it couldn't be that exaggerated, right?
No... there was another explanation. The owner really liked doing such meaningless things, so he got up early and hid behind the curtains again in the same position. This possibility couldn't be ruled out. But... was it really like this? Even he himself felt it was a bit far - fetched.
So, without thinking anything, he got dressed and ran out, deciding to ignore everything and send his resume first. When going out, he deliberately looked back at the window of the opposite apartment and then left.
On the way, he specially called Jane.
"You said you saw someone behind the curtains? I see. Do you know which room it is? I have a master key and can help you take a look."
Hearing Jane say this, Ryan was extremely grateful. He completely forgot about the incident when she had held a knife to his neck before and thanked her repeatedly.
Violet was going to come in the afternoon, so Orion and Jane had come to the apartment first.
"By the way, don't you need to work? I remember you said you were an illustrator, right?" "Yes, I've illustrated novels for Zoey. Since she doesn't have any new works recently, I don't have any work for the time being. I've always had the habit of saving money, and I've also said that I'm not interested in investing, so I never trade stocks. Basically, I have enough money. And even if I'm short of money, I can help some pharmaceutical factories formulate drugs to get remuneration. After all, I've spent a lot of time learning to make drugs in the past three years."
"How did you learn the chemical knowledge about drugs, like formulas and such?"
"It's not that complicated. Most of it is by collecting some plants, studying their structures and components, and then conducting experiments on various animals. After choosing an appropriate formula, I also need to pay attention to the ingredients and determine the chemical properties. Of course, this requires time and money. I don't care much about time, but the funds were a problem at first. Fortunately, later my father sent me a sum of money as my initial budget. As for how to allocate the funds, I think he wanted me to decide by myself. I can roughly figure out how his money came. After all, for a predictor like my father, there are so many ways to make money."
It seemed that Jane's father was testing her. He wanted her to learn to survive independently without relying on others and mature as quickly as possible when she was alone. "My father only provided me with materials, and I had to make the efforts to turn them into finished products. I don't dislike his way. Maybe this is the best for me. He has been carrying the fate of an unlucky child since he was a child, so he has always been very independent. He also wanted me to grow up in the same way. Although I was very lonely in these three years, just thinking that my father was watching me somewhere, expecting my growth, I could persevere. All of this was just to survive."
At this moment, Orion deeply understood why Jane gave him a unique feeling. Her perseverance also greatly inspired Orion.
Anyway, he must survive!
The two of them first asked the apartment administrator about that room. According to the administrator, it had been vacant since three years ago and no one had moved in yet.
Hearing this, the two of them naturally understood what was going on.
Of course, they couldn't take the elevator, otherwise it would be like inviting the ghost to meet them. But when walking up the stairs, they also felt very nervous. Although it was daytime, the empty corridor still gave people unlimited room for imagination. Orion and Jane walked up the stairs cautiously, one step at a time. Orion's palms were already soaked with sweat. After all, this was his first time directly facing a ghost. What would the situation be like when they went in... "Listen... our purpose isn't to kill 'her'... Not to mention you, even my father couldn't do that," Jane was also very nervous at this moment, but she still pretended to be calm on the surface and instructed Orion, "Our purpose is to test the other side's strength. After all, knowing yourself and your enemy ensures victory in every battle. If we don't understand the enemy, it will be very disadvantageous to us."
The study with problems was in room 401. It took them about twenty minutes to walk up the four - story stairs. Not only did they walk very slowly, but also because every time they reached a new floor, they would stay in place for a long time before daring to continue.
Finally, they came to the door of 401.
"Orion... listen, when I insert the key into the lock hole, don't release your supernatural ability first, otherwise it will alert the enemy. After entering, we must be vigilant at all times. When facing 'her' directly, don't be afraid, because she isn't the ghost that will kill you in your curse. What you have to do is to release your supernatural ability as much as possible. If the situation is not right, run away immediately. Don't worry, I have plenty of ways to ensure that we can escape."
Ways? Could she have some kind of potion that could make them run fast? That wasn't impossible. Hearing her say this, Orion felt much more at ease. Then, Jane took out the master key and opened the door. As the administrator said, as soon as they entered, they could tell that the place had been abandoned for a long time. Not to mention the dust and spider - webs all over the wall, the empty room alone could prove this. Then, the two of them leaned closely together, always vigilant about the surroundings.
According to Jane's instructions, Orion didn't release his supernatural ability outside his body, but he could clearly feel that there was definitely something in this room. Although the sun was shining brightly outside at the moment, the sense of fear didn't decrease at all. If Jane hadn't been with him, he really couldn't have stayed any longer.
The two of them almost walked shoulder - to - shoulder, moving step by step towards the room facing the opposite apartment. To be honest, although both of them were prepared, the suffocating atmosphere was really too oppressive. It was as if the female ghost would jump out of the door at any moment. In fact, if she really came out, they might not be so afraid. But the current situation was even more terrifying. An invisible enemy was far more terrifying than a visible one.
The road that could have been walked in just five or six steps took them nearly a minute and a half to reach the door of that room. When they walked in, they saw the drawn coffee - colored curtains right in front of them, but there was no bookshelf or desk in this room! And obviously, there was no one behind the curtains.
"Could Ryan have misseen?" Relieved, Orion walked over and drew the curtains. Sure enough, there was only a window behind, and nothing else. This window led to another smaller room. Overall... it seemed that the female ghost wasn't here.
But what was that feeling just now? Could it be an illusion?
However, at this moment... outside this room, there was a slight sound of footsteps. Then, with a loud bang, the door of the entrance was closed!
Jane immediately rushed out. There was still no one outside. She ran to the entrance and tried to open the door again, but found that the master key couldn't open it.
What was that sound of footsteps just now...
Just then, Jane suddenly noticed that on the floor of the entrance... there were a few strands of hair! Judging from the length, they were definitely a woman's!