145 Mortal World 11

"Omg, omg! I felt something slimy on my leg! Effing hell, guys I felt something! There are really ghosts!" the guy shouted as Lia was able to pull him back to his mates.

But the catalyst has been started and several ghosts came flying to them.

"Really dude? Lemme-"

"Stop," Lia grabbed both of the clowns and threw them behind her. The remaining three remaining ones whistled at the sight, "I'm into strong chicks."

Lia also kicked him behind her. She looked at the other two, "Scram."

They instantly ran to the other guys but remained on the spot to see Lia pulling out two white, smoke-like knives to fight with the air.

They tilted their heads in question. Lia was busy taking care of the ghosts, so she didn't notice that the group was still behind her and consequently let a few ghosts slip past her.

But then she heard a shout and coughing, "I… I can't," the younger boy choked out as he was held in the air and tears dropped from the corner of his eyes.

He couldn't see the saliva-ridden mouth that opened to eat a piece of his flesh. Lia in an instant turned around and threw her knife towards the young boy.

"Are you crazy? You're killing hi-" the first guy shouted but saw that the knife was stuck in the air.

"Fuck!'' The other guys shouted and scrambled around only to fall to the ground and desperately crawl but they couldn't move further than a metre as other ghosts pulled them back.

"No! Something's! Something's grabbing me!"

Not wasting any more time, Lia ran back to them. The ghost who had her knife stuck in his head perished and the knife fell to the ground only for it to be-

Lia widened her eyes and stopped in an instant. She and another ghost, who let go of the tall guy, looked at each other. Lia wasn't sure if he could understand her but seeing he seemed to have a conscious of his own, she threatened in a cold voice, "Drop the knife."

The ghost held the knife in his hands and looked at it before his gaze fell on Lia. Then he looked at the knife again.

How was the ghost able to hold the knife? How was it even able to think? The knife was made out of pure lifeforce, shouldn't a touch instantly evaporate them?

"Drop the knife," Lia repeated, but this time, the ghost opened his mouth into a wide grin and soundlessly laughed.

"Damn," Lia cursed. She hadn't anticipated this. A loud boom rang behind her, it seemed like Yano was doing his work. Lia had to do hers.

Calmly, Lia assessed the situation. The important priority were the mortals as the ghosts were about to eat them.

But what bugged Lia was the fact the ghost knew what it could do with the knife and could potentially hurt her.

Lia took the gamble and disregarded the ghost with his knife. Her feet flew across the ground and halted before one of the guys. She used the other dagger to purge the ghosts before spinning in a small circle while holding the tall guy by the collar and flung him away.

The ghost with the knife flew to her still with the wide, open grin. Lia felt disgust welling up. She evaded him by a hair before taking two other mortals and also flung them away.

As Lia held the last two mortals, she felt the knife stabbing her in the back. In less than a second, Lia threw the guys away, spun around and stabbed the knife into the ghost's throat.

It vanished. Lia huffed and reached for her back yet she couldn't take the knife.

"I-It vanished!" the young boy shouted as he understood what Lia was doing.

"Vanished? You mean the knife vanished once it was stuck in my back?"

The boy nodded. Then was Yano's lifeforce now inside Lia? Since it accepted Lia, did it mean she could regard it as her own? So, it also wouldn't hurt her?

As Lia thought another scream appeared. her eyes flickered to the group and she saw another batch of ghosts grabbing them. Lia wanted to rush to them when she realized the other knife had also disappeared.

Confused about it, Lia was one step too late as a ghost took a bite of the first guy. His agony was mirrored by the gaping hole in his shoulder and his whole body shivered.

Sweat formed on his forehead and dripped.

"I-It hurts!" he wailed and scared the other guys to scatter away only to be pulled back by the ghosts.

"No p-please! I want to live! No!" their cries reached heaven and Lia was helpless. She had no weapons, nothing. Except for her lifeforce.

As a last effort, Lia poured out her lifeforce through the ring. It spread like white smoke around the ghosts. But it did more harm than good.

"It burns! Bur-" more anguished wails appeared and Lia realised her lifeforce harmed the mortals but the ghosts were more or less intact. There was nothing Lia could do. Panic finally rose.

She's endangered the mortals and even hurt them. Lia's eyes darted around until she felt a big, warm hand on her shoulder and comforting words whisking past her.

"It's alright. Leave it to me."

In an instant, the ghosts were purged and the scared to insanity mortals froze on the ground.

Lia looked at Yano who drew another circle and said, "Mil, Skyla come quickly here."

After the circle disappeared, Yano drew another one, this time on the bitten mortal's shoulder. The blood loss immediately stopped and his wound was healing.

Then Yano approached Lia with a gentle smile while on Lia's face was nothing but desperation.

This was the difference in their skills and talents. This was their difference of being favoured by heaven and hell.

Lia has never so crushingly experienced what it meant to be forsaken when the man in front of her was so blessed, so loved by heavens.

It wasn't fair. It just wasn't.

"It's ok," Yano coaxed her as he pulled her into a hug, "You've done well holding up until now. Don't beat yourself up, ok?" he stroked her hair and tears threatened to fall out of Lia's eyes.

But she didn't want to cry. She didn't want to be comforted by him. Yet his embrace felt so warm. His words were like a lullaby lulling her to sleep.

Lia has held everything in until now, being powerless for so long to almost losing her soul with no way to recover her power, to not even being able to purge a few ghosts and saving mortals, she has held it all in.

But the sight of Yano handling everything with ease just broke her. This could've been her. She could've lived a life like this. Uncaring, free and strong.

But it wasn't hers.

Finally, tears ran down her face and Lia was embarrassed. She buried her face into Yano's chest and silently sobbed as Mil and Skyla arrived.

"What's going on?" Mil questioned the scene, he could see Lia in Yano's arms and the hurt mortals. Yano shielded Lia from Mil's and Skyla's curious eyes and said, "Bring the mortals back to the base. I applied first aid but it still needs to be treated, also they've witnessed everything. So their memories need to be erased."

Skyla and Mil did as Yano said. With one last glance at them, they raced with the mortals away. As they were gone, Yano looked at Lia, "They're now-" but Lia has fallen asleep in Yano's arms.

He chuckled as he carried her in his arms and slowly made his way back home.