VIII | Primary School Ghost Hauntings (2)

"Heh, you're right."

Cathy scoffed as she and her lackies settled down on her seat in front, near the door. Her lackies, pleased with their boot-licking, took it into another notch as another lackie scurried beside her and said, "Miss Cathy, my Sister Two in the sixth grade said that there's a general meeting at the last period this afternoon so we would be dismissed earlier, why not we do the plan at that time?"

Cathy looked thoughtfully at Alice, the lacky who spoke earlier, then nodded, satisfaction gleaming in her brown eyes.

"The sooner, the better." Cathy said, a sinister smile crumpling her small and delicate face into something monstrous—worse than Shadows.

It was never known that humans have an even more complex mind than those of Shadows, constantly seeking for power, overthrowing one-another in a steep hill, not minding filial ties or intimate emotions such as love—they are greedy. Claiming that entities unknown, or rather, a hindrance to them are all monsters, like what happened when the rule of the Shadows where overtaken by humans.

More often than not, humans bring destruction upon their kin more than Shadows taking human lives. And this was an unfair point that remained hidden until several years later, when a wounded heart of a Shadow decided to declare that the charade is enough.

As for now, that certain Shadow was trying to make herself as small as possible into everyone's eyes, failing miserably. And as the center of attention both figuratively and literally, Lauriel has no choice but to stand out.

Unfortunately, her attempts at concealing herself are always misunderstood for her being a snob and arrogant brat because of her outstanding prowess.

Lauriel sat quietly on her spot and tried to immerse herself in the world of the ebook she's reading, but her heightened senses due to her peculiar bloodline didn't let her have a peace of mind, letting her hear, feel, smell, and almost taste the usual hate and jealousy thrown on her way. It is making her wallow in despair.

'Why do I have to be left alone here in fourth grade anyway?' she grumbled to herself, wishing hopelessly for their teacher to come already. But in reality, she's the one who left her only companion in school, heh.

Soon, their adviser entered and started the classes. Lauriel internally sighed in relief and whole-heartedly listened to the lesson—which is history by the way.

The lesson for that day is about the Medieval Night that happened exactly 145 years ago, in the capital city of Siphiro, Reverend Sea City just a two-hour drive from Clear Jade City. It was a city-wide massacre that the Shadows instigated at the twenty-fifth day of the third month—the birthday of the head of Reverend Sea City.

Almost everyone in the city was annihilated that day, leaving the whole continent in horror. Every person, no matter what age or sex, was killed brutally.

The victims are either beheaded and mutilated, or their internal organs were stolen, only to be found a few feet away from their bodies, shredded into bits and some have bite marks on it.

Lauriel wracked her brains for more information about this certain massacre, not minding the fact that her classmates are either too grossed out with the lesson or thrilled to listen.

She remembered something she read from a book in her parents' study, an event similar with the Medieval Night Massacre, but was coined in a different term—Fallacy of the Sacred Sea. The events are as what it is described on their lesson, but the difference is the cause—it was not the Shadows who committed the crime, or so it was humanity believed.

For some reason, the governor of Reverend Sea City sold his people to the Order for them to slaughter. Believing he and his family would be spared from the massacre, jokes on him though, he was the first person who was killed at the start of the Medieval Night.

It was not known to the populace that it was not the Shadows who slaughtered every person alive in Reverend Sea. And in all actuality, it was done by the human guinea pigs of the Order as an "experiment" to the effectiveness of their devious research.

The objective of the Order is obviously masked as an experiment, but the fact that it was concealed and was instead dumped into the shoulders of the Shadows who were the arch nemesis of humanity.

One event lead to another, and once again, the Shadows were put under the blade of accusatory glances of the people, wanting them (Shadows) to be eradicated.

Lauriel was in daze when the morning classes ended, walking mindlessly on the corridor. Some students would occasionally bump into her and then snicker afterwards, but she seemed to not mind it much.

That's how Jacqueline found Lauriel in front of the first grade building. The brunette snapped her fingers on Lauriel's face but she didn't noticed it, so Jacqueline has no choice but to slap her friend's face.

-Pa!-

"Ouch! Jacque! Why did you do that?!"

Jacqueline scrunched her nose and crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at Lauriel.

"Your mind is flying in space again! Good thing you didn't bumped into that white lotus!"

Lauriel frowned but did not say another word, sighing at her carelessness. 'It seemed that my old habits did not die along my old body.'

"Sorry." she pouted then gestured for Jacqueline to follow her. The brunette complied and happily chattered away like the small banter didn not happen, earning strange gazes from the people around them.

The ravenette listened intently at what her best friend is saying, but in her mind, she's already planning how to counter the scheme that second rank[2] made against her.

Hah.

As if a mere ten-year old brat could go against Lauriel's three decades of knowledge. What that brat planned was literally a child's play, and while ordinary students would fall for it and panic, she might just fall asleep in boredom while it happens.

'Tch. I escaped many schemes those fourth-grade brats made before. If not because of that thing I wanna check, hell would freeze over for me to fall against that petty scheme.' Lauriel thought disdainfully, but her face did not give any of her thoughts away, staying as stoic as it could for a seven-year old.

"By the way, Jacque. You can go home first this afternoon, I'm going to play with that white lotus."