FILE 8: HOT SPRINGS PART 3

Mars sat before me, once again explaining, this time about SHADOW. "It can be used as a fight or flight ability. In your case, I recommend starting flight at the beginning until we train you more. Now, think of how a large tiger, when hunting, can make itself vanish. Same concept."

"Okay, I get the idea. But why call this SHADOW instead of HUNT?"

"Don't ask me. Your grandfather came up with the names," he grumbled ashamedly. Grandad, you're so bad at naming! I facepalmed inside. Mars coughed and went on;

"Now, it's not as if you'll suddenly turn into a tiger or anything. Instead, SHADOW lets you become part of the background, making it feel like you have disappeared from those around you."

"But I'm not invisible?"

"No. Just like a chameleon is visible to someone who looks very closely, if said, a strong spirit is searching for you specifically, you will be visible to them. But no matter how weak spirits look for you, you won't be found."

"So what use is this ability, then?" I growled. Mars swiped at my leg. "Don't underestimate it. Say, for instance, that you are back in that prison, and you use SHADOW. None of those female spirits would've found you.

You could have just walked through them without them noticing," he gazed at me scrutinising. All right, you win. "Is it difficult to learn? Because learning CLAW was horrible," I asked hesitatingly. Mars grinned.

"It won't hurt as much. But for your temperament, it might be more frustrating." My life sucked.

So until dinner, I practised how to activate SHADOW. He was right, it was maddening. Meditate, and meditate, and meditate! It was so boring!

I was thankful when dinner came around. I ordered chicken and rice, with some salmon for Mars. We heard a commotion as several dogs began barking. Mars patted me and whispered, "She's here." 

"You can see her?" Without SENSE I couldn't even sense her, but Mars stared fiercely into the corner of the restaurant.

"Clear as day. She's laughing at them now. Hmm. Good, she's leaving. I hate noisy dogs. Hurry and finish your supper. We need to get rid of her as quickly as possible," he urged.

"Why are you in such a hurry? We still have three days left," I inquired curiously. He sniffed irritably. "We still have souvenirs to buy, a festival to attend, and I also want to take a bath in peace."

I just chuckled as I finished my meal. I guess we're taking care of the girl tonight.

I sat cross-legged outside by the hot spring. Mars had already drawn the spell circle, which looked pretty perplexing to me. Even if he tried to teach this to me, I probably wouldn't have been able to outline it. I activated SENSE and waited. 

Hizuki had yet to appear. I was about to give up when the water turned bloody. She finally came. I watched as a naked woman struggled to climb out of the pool, water splashing as she fell onto the floor. I am so glad I am used to this, or else I might have screamed.

She lay on her stomach as blood streamed down her back. After a while, she spoke. [Why aren't you reacting? Are you drunk?] She sounded dismayed. I cleared my throat.

"Sorry for not appreciating your performance. Should I clap or shout? Will that make you happy?" She floated upward, glowered, and started to disappear. Oh no, you don't. 

I began to make gestures that Mars had drilled into me after dinner. Good thing I'm smart and learn very quickly.

I drowned out my surroundings as well as her cries as I swung my hands, and chanted;

Hagyd, hogy az idő megálljon,

és semmivé váljon.

Hadd álljon meg az idő annak, akit akarok.

I was getting cold, but I continued. I can't stop, or else I will be trapped in time forever. [Stop! What are you doing? It's cold. No!] she cried. I didn't pay attention.

The spell was ice blue as the light wrapped around both of us. It didn't discriminate like other spells. I had to direct it, unlike other spells that automatically go for ghosts. 

If I stop or lose concentration, it will trap us both. The girl tried to run, but her legs were already frozen. She fell backwards, and I nearly choked.

She was very bouncy. It took everything I had to continue, but I gotta say, I was proud of myself that I didn't waver from the spell.

I deserve an award for that. She cried bloodily as the ice slowly covered her entire body, freezing her in place. Sorry, lady, but we can't have you vanish.

I breathed hard as the final icicles closed over her head. I flopped on the floor as Mars came out and inspected the ice block. 

"Well done. You did an excellent job for your first time. Now I'll send her on her way, so you can go take a break. I'll meet you when you come back," he instructed.

I didn't answer. I was very cold and wanted to soak in hot water. Even though the bath returned to its original colour, I wasn't in the mood for the hot spring.

So I went to the indoor baths instead. There weren't many people, and, after smiling broadly at an employee who looked bewildered by the icicles on my hair and eyebrows, I sank into a bathtub. It felt like heaven. 

For the next two days, both of us spent our holidays like we wanted. There were no interruptions from ghosts, and we played around a lot.

George came around and spoke to us, but he and his wife were booked out on our fourth day. He annoyed me, as I don't like obnoxious people.

Francois was nice, though. I liked him. He would come by and brush Mars, sit, and play games with me, but otherwise leave us alone. He was more of a listener than a speaker. Likewise, he's leaving on the same day I was.

The Costa Rican refused to speak to anyone, though. Mars and I witnessed him sitting by himself at the bar as we returned from shopping. He kept sneaking glances at another person who was drunkenly laughing at the bar.

Was he annoyed by the drunk? He sounded very boisterous. It might end up in a brawl if someone doesn't shut him up. Ah, there he goes. The man threw his glass onto the floor and started to yell nonsense.

"What are you waiting for? Let's go to our room!" Mars hissed. I nodded and shuffled to avoid onlookers when I heard tables being overturned and more shouting. People gasped, and someone yelled, "He has a gun!" Ah (censor)!

Mars' claws dug into my shoulder. Dude, watch the skin. Don't you dare scratch this flawless skin! "Look!" He gasped. Surprised, I turned.

Wow, who could have expected that? Bruce held the drunkard's hands cuffed behind his back firmly, a gun stuffed in a holster on his hip.

Another man held a badge in the air and spoke in another language to the drunk. Probably Portuguese. Bruce looked up, saw me, and winked.

"I can't believe this. So he was a policeman the whole time," I breathed in disbelief. We were back in our room, tired and shocked. I threw the bags onto the floor while Mars jumped from my shoulder and lay down on his cat bed.

"Don't judge a book by its cover. You never know what may lie underneath," he said in his infinite wisdom.

"I can't help but judge. He looked so sketchy the whole time. I thought he was a drug dealer or the Mafia. I bet he knew I thought it too!" I objected. The way he winked at the end confirmed it. Mars looked unconcerned.

"Let it go. It has nothing to do with you. And isn't it time for another treatment?" I glanced at my newly bought watch. "Oh, right. I'll get ready, then we'll get going."

The next two days passed like any other day in the spa after that incident. After a nice bath and breakfast, Mars would train me in my room.

After lunch, we played around, and at dinner, we got a surprise guest. Francois. He joined us after the fiasco. He seemed lonely by himself, so I allowed him to join our table.

Mars didn't mind either, as Francois kept petting and spoon-feeding him. 

Our last day was the festival. We invited the South African to go with us, and he looked very grateful to join us. "Such a nice boy. You should take some notes," Mars said in a teasing tone.

My impression of Francois dropped a notch. "Well, if you think he's so great, why not join him for the festival? I'll wait for you," I said sulkily. 

"Don't be foolish. I was kidding. Come on, cheer up. We've been waiting for this for over a week. Let's go have fun," he soothed me with an amused gaze.

Yeah. I was a lot better than that Southerner. No way could he compare to me. Feeling better, we went to meet Francois to celebrate the festival.

 *

YunHee and her two compatriots paused in front of a cheerful house in the city of Seoul. The yard was small and overgrown, and a small Honda stood in the driveway.

Looking at the place, you never would have guessed that a prominent scientist lived here. Determined, she rapped on the door. 

A young woman opened it a few moments later. Not what YunHee expected, but she smiled nonetheless. "Good day, Miss. We're from the Research Institute for Disease and Bacteria. May I speak to Mr. Kang Haneul?" she introduced politely as she held up her tag.

The woman didn't acknowledge her and shut the door in her face, frustrating YunHee. Her cohorts were outraged by the insult, but quieted down when they heard footsteps.

The door swung open as a young man with messy hair and glasses gazed at them apologetically.

"I'm so terribly sorry, guys. I'm Kang Haneul. She's my assistant, and she's very shy. She didn't mean any harm. Say, you're from a research centre?"

He was quite friendly and seemed sincere, so no one held a grudge. "Yes. I'm Park YunHee. Here's my business card. We heard about you and would like to have you work for us," she proposed.

He scratched his head as he twirled her card, looking disinterested. "I already have a good job and a comfortable work environment with good benefits." 

He returned her card. "I'm afraid I'll have to decline," he refused. YunHee panicked. Mind racing, she blurted, "We'll pay double your current salary plus added benefits. And, Mr. Kang, let me ask you, have you ever been interested in immortality?"

She took a gamble. He snorted. "What scientist hasn't? But the closest creature on earth to immortality is the jellyfish. No matter how hard humans try, we can't become immortal. Why do you want to know?"

She grabbed his arm, drew him closer, and whispered, "My boss is taking a gamble. And with your help, we may get a winning number." He tugged himself loose, straightening his spectacles. 

He stared at them before returning to the house without a word, closing the door behind him. "What now? Do we kidnap him?" Her assistant asked grimly.

"No," she answered. "We'll wait and come back in three hours. Let's give him time to think it over. Let's go." They returned to their black SUV and departed.