1 First Meeting. He's a Byoukidere, She's a Monster

In the golden autumn of October, as the silver pinecones began falling onto the ground of the pocket-sized residential area, the only thing that reminded anyone of autumn's presence was the bright red leaves sparsely decorating the photinia bushes.

Two old ladies, with one walking behind the other, held shopping bags in their hands as they walked in the direction of the small residential block.

Conversation and laughter could be heard along the way before they turned onto a small pathway lined by greenery. The old lady with a head of short curly hair stopped in her tracks as if something had popped into her mind before saying, "Let's go the other way round."

Her companion then asked, "What's the matter?"

The curly-haired lady then took her confused friend by the hand and set forth on their little detour. Along the way, she explained the rumor that had spread around the tiny community.

"I heard there's a monster living in the seventeenth block."

"A monster? What kind?"

The curly-haired lady had a booming voice, and she replied, "'Tis a little girl. One who would cover herself up in clothes all day long, revealing nothing but her eyes. I remember Old Wang once told me that her eyes were bright red, and they were glowing too! Now isn't that scary!"

"No way, then who would dare to remain in that block!?"

Feeling a tingling sensation, the old lady looked back as a gust of wind blew softly against her back. She grabbed her coat and wrapped it tighter around her body.

"There really isn't anyone else living there. Apart from that little girl, there's no one else."

"I just can't believe that such a strange thing could happen so close to us. Wouldn't that mean that the little girl is virtually renting the entire building? She isn't buying the entire place, is she?"

"Who knows?"

"..."

The voices soon faded into the distance. The shadows of people shuffling about on the cobblestone path grew longer, indicating that the Sun was about to set. The seventeenth apartment block stood seventeen stories-tall into the sky, it's exterior reflecting the warm, golden glow of the setting autumn sun.

A delivery boy carrying a bag of food walked hurriedly before arriving at his destination. He checked the number painted on the side of the building a few times before making a call on his phone.

"Hello?"

"Good evening."

It was a young girl's voice. It sounded clear, almost hollow, with a hint of clumsiness. Either way, her tone was as cold as ice.

'Still, her voice sounds soothing', thought the delivery boy.

"Your delivery has arrived." The young man had a good attitude and gave a rather polite reply. "I'm right below block seventeen. Which floor do you live on?"

"Please wait for a moment, I'll be coming down."

The sound of rustling could be heard over the phone, followed by the sound of a door shutting.

The delivery boy had originally wanted to offer to send the food straight to her room, however, it wasn't long after the phone call that the door of block seventeen's main stairway was pushed open from the inside. The young man shifted his gaze upward from the ground, only to see a single hand reaching out from behind the door.

The girl had long, slender fingers, with skin as pure as white porcelain. Her fingernails were noticeably well-kept too. 

Moving further up, his eyes came across a face with a pale, almost sickly complexion, as if she had never once seen the light of day. Somehow, he felt that this girl was not in her healthiest state after seeing her for mere seconds. She had a high nose bridge and overturned lips that puckered oh-so-slightly. Her expression remained emotionless, almost alienating.

At first glance, he concluded that her beauty was something that just couldn't be described by mere words.

Looking at her once again, the young man became trapped in a maze within her almond eyes. Eyes where the corners were bent slightly upward. She had lashes so long that it protruded out into the air before her, and what's more, her gaze was like the starry night sky in the middle of a desert during summer, deep and cold. It seemed as though her pupils were painted on with the darkest ink. 

And yet, her eyes shone as bright as a star. He couldn't help but peer into it, but it was like staring at the sun, and it hurt to stare for too long.

She was so young, so how could she be so desolate? Why were her eyes full of emptiness, just like the sky after a bitter-cold blizzard?

The young man froze where he stood, staring at that face.

Creak...

The door was pushed halfway open as the girl placed one foot out from behind the door. She was wearing a skin-tight pair of black pants that ended right around her pale ankles. On top, she wore a complimenting black-and-white long shirt that hung lower than her knees, and beneath that was a gray sweater that revealed her collarbones. Sitting atop her head casually was a hat, underneath which, two short and slightly curly strands of hair poked out. Not an ounce of warmth radiated from the girl's outfit except for the plush, pink-colored rabbit slippers she was wearing. 

"Yunji Noodle House?" She asked. Her voice was just like what he had heard over the phone, clear as crystal, yet slightly cold.

The delivery boy snapped out of his reverie before quickly handing over the bag of food.

"Here's your delivery."

"Thank you."

As soon as the girl grabbed hold of the bag, she retreated back behind the door which was then shut, disappearing from the delivery boy's view.

Her hands were as cold as ice.

The young man remained in a dazed state. On his hand where the girl's fingers had touched, there was still a lingering feeling of coldness. He scratched his head before walking away from block seventeen. As he did so, he couldn't help but look back again at the building. With the arrival of night, darkness had already begun to set in. As if running on automatic sensors, the windows of the building, from the first up to the seventh floor, lit up instantaneously at the same time.

A breeze blew softly as goosebumps popped up all over the delivery boy's body, prompting him to walk away faster.

Slam!

The door was slammed shut, followed by a pair of pink rabbit slippers kicked off by the entrance. She pulled off her sweater and hat and hung them near the door of her room before proceeding further with the takeout box in hand.

Her name was Zhou Xufang, the lone occupant of this room.

She was the only one living in block seventeen. However, she wasn't a tenant. In actual fact, she was the legal owner of the entire building. This was because she was different from ordinary humans, and so, there was little choice other than to live in isolation.

Her dwelling was on the seventh floor, occupying two separate but connected apartment rooms which gave her a total floor space of two hundred square meters filled with nothing but emptiness. On the left side of the entrance to her room was a closet in which a large number of clothes hung. Yet, despite the number of outfits, they were virtually all-black, reflecting the monotony of the room. A bathroom was located on the other side of the entrance and similarly, it was separated by a one-way view glass door. Even if one were to peer through the door's cracks, the only thing visible would be the corner of the oversized bathtub inside.

Moving further in, one would meet a raised platform, three steps above the floor, covering the rest of the room. On the right side was a bed with completely black bed sheets, lacking any sense of freshness. Littering the floor at the end of the bed were a few, probably worn shirts, waiting to be picked up and tossed into the washer. On the other side of the room were four computers set on a table and right next to it was a black lacquered dresser. Smack dab in the middle of the room was a beanbag and a glass coffee table on which sat a projector in the corner as well as a beautifully-crafted glass box, filled to the brim with marshmallows.

The room's ivory white walls contrasted with the pitch-black floorboards. It's two hundred square meters was an entirely open space with no partitioning. Other than that pair of pink slippers from before, nothing else in this room offered a sense of warmth—it was devoid of all things living.

She placed the takeout dinner down onto the coffee table and stood barefoot on the black plush carpet in the middle of the room. Next, she bent down and picked a pink-colored marshmallow candy from the glass container which she then popped into her mouth. Using her teeth, she tore open the plastic wrapping of the disposable chopsticks which came with the delivered meal while waiting for her computer to boot up.

On the screen, the bright-yellow cartoon character, Spongebob, jumped out from the corner and covered the entire screen.

Code name, Shuang Jiang. Her real name was inauspicious, her age was inauspicious, her family history and address? Inauspicious. She was Zhou Yufang's partner. Despite that fact, Zhou Yufang had never heard of her voice before nor seen how she looked. The only thing she knew was that the person on the other side was a young girl.

"Has it started?"

Three words, bold and in a bright shade of red, popped up on the bottom half of the computer screen.

Zhou Yufang tore open the takeout bag as she replied, "Yeah."

"Get a new job."

"I'm on vacation."

Zhou Yufang didn't bother looking up. Her hair had grown past her ears and her bangs had started to cover part of her eyes. Quietly, she sat there eating the box of noodles with surprisingly good table manners. She ate in small bites, making sure to chew through thoroughly before swallowing and moving onto the next one.

"This one seems promising." After a while, new words came popping up onto the screen again. 

"It's a female client. She wants us to capture a single individual. Said it's a person she admires and wants to play the role of a heroine saving the prince."

"The pay, fifty thousand yuan," Shuang Jiang added.

Zhou Yufang put down her chopsticks. Her eyelashes hung downward as she lowered her head, perhaps in contemplation about the opportunity. The outline of her head seemed much softer whenever she looked down on the ground like that.

Moments later, Spongebob jumped twice on the screen before Shuang Jiang's two-word question appeared. "Accept it?"

She took another bite of the noodles.

"Accept."

As long as there was no deliberate killing or harming of regular civilians, if the pay was lucrative enough, the jobs would all be accepted.

Tonight was coincidentally the fifteenth day of the lunar calendar. The moon which was surrounded by a veil of stars was a perfect circle in the sky, its soft glow embraced the cityscape which, by itself, was glowing brightly under the night sky, filled with hustle and bustle.

In the elegantly-decorated clubhouse, ancient paintings as well as intricate handmade carvings plastered the wall. On the Corinthian Roman columns standing guard along the pathway, flowers of different varieties were placed, filling the corridor with a light but pleasant scent of floral fragrance.

While the flowers were supposed to be gazed at and its smell to be enjoyed, this was not the time for that.

The manager of the clubhouse jogged hurriedly along the corridor, issuing orders to the waiters.

"Quick, put away all the roses!"

The head waiter, hearing the ruckus, walked over with a confused look.

"Manager, these flowers are in pristine condition. Why the abrupt order for us to put them away?"

The manager's brows furrowed from sheer anxiety as he tugged at his necktie for a bit more breathing room. He then retrieved a handkerchief from his pocket to wipe off the beads of sweat that dotted his forehead.

"There's a little heir that's about to arrive. That person does not enjoy the smell of roses in particular."

Heir?

Only nobles could step foot into this high-class establishment. It was unacceptable for the head waiter to be clueless about the person he was about to serve, hence, he couldn't help but ask the manager, "Who might that be?"

The manager squatted down to pick up the remaining rose petals that had fallen on the ground.

"It's the heir of the Jiang family."

Those words alone answered the head waiter's question.

There was only one person in the imperial capital who could proclaim to be the ancestor of the Jiang family. The beauty from the Jiang family that no one in the city denied knowledge about…

The manager urged. "Hurry up, the guest is already here. Make sure to search thoroughly with your fingers, I do not want to see a single petal remaining on the floor."

After approximately ten minutes had elapsed, the manager received a call—a signal for him and a few other deputy managers to rush over to the elevator to greet the guest.

Ding!

The elevator door slowly rolled open. However, the sound of coughing came before the sight of the guest himself. One cough came after another. They could hear their Master Jiang attempting to suppress the coughing fit but to no avail. 

 Finally, the slender figure within became illuminated by the glazed lamps shining brightly from the walls of the corridor when the elevator door slid completely open. That person was revealed to be leaning against the left wall of the elevator. He wore a long, black trench coat that went past his knees, and wrapped around his feet was a pair of top-quality leather shoes. Beneath the trench coat was a white button-up shirt with no tie and a pair of casual pants. The shirt itself was unbuttoned at the top, showing off the person's slender neck. Parts of the shirt near the neck including the collar, however, were covered with patches of red which presumably was the blood that he coughed up.

He lowered his head, still wheezing away as he applied pressure with his hands against his collarbone. Because of how violent his coughing was, even his fingernails were dyed red with blood.

The manager greeted him from the side and called out in respect, "Master Jiang."

There were too many young masters on the in-law side of the Jiang family, but only this particular man was referred to as Master Jiang. The rest had to be referred to by their name, highlighting the difference in the level of respect commanded as well as differences in their standing.

The man in the elevator raised his head in response to being greeted. His hair was obviously trimmed casually with subtle contours added tastefully to the relatively neutral hairstyle. The bone structure on his face seemed as if it had been carved by God's hand himself, with skin as pale as the moon. Just as his coughing fit had ended temporarily, one could finally see that his lips were a shade of bright pink. The cheeks on both sides of his face while pale, had a slight tint of red to them. If words describing him were assigned with points with ten being the maximum, he would have three points for sickness, three for the word delicate, another three for charming, and finally, one point for clumsiness.

He was blessed with a pair of sensual eyes which its shape resembled that of a cherry blossom's petal, with corners that were slightly curved. The surface of his watery eyes was smooth like that of a glass bead. Even though the separation between the black and white portions of his eyes was less distinct, giving off a feeling as if he was half-sober all the time, his looks, his smile, everything about him was perfect to a tee. 

This was the most senior member of the Jiang family, Jiang Zhi. The number one beauty of the imperial capital. Three steps were enough for him to pant as if he had just completed a full marathon, and five steps would trigger an unstoppable coughing fit. Thus, despite his looks, this sick prince was extremely fragile to the touch. As beautiful as he may be, there was not an ounce of femininity in his overall composure; he was a man through and through. Those cherry blossom eyes peered up, accidentally revealing a sliver of clumsiness amidst the air of indifference he had established around him. This was precisely the air given off by a typical young aristocrat raised up by a noble family.

The manager was a middle-aged man, clearly over his forties. It wasn't the first time he had laid eyes on the man before him, and yet, the manager was captured by his beauty every time they met. It took quite a while before the manager came to his senses and continued, "I... I will be escorting you over."

The manager struggled to speak coherently as his eyes darted around nervously. For this young master, there were no other feelings except fear and respect. Everyone around here knew that this ancestor had quite the short fuse and nothing good ever came out of stirring up his anger.

Jiang Zhi vaguely gave a reply as he lazily rubbed his eyes. It seemed as though he had just woken up. That, or that he was sleep-deprived to the limit. He moved his legs and followed the manager who led the way, but despite his long, slender legs, he moved at an extremely leisurely pace.

"Cough, cough, cough."

He bent over slightly when he coughed, his hands covering his nose and mouth. He wore a slight frown, and the hair atop his head shook with each cough, growing ever so slightly messier. These small details all added to his sickliness.

In front of him, the manager who was leading the way slowed down his pace to the point where it took literal minutes to cover a relatively short distance. The manager, feeling the tension in the air, had already soaked his suit with cold sweat.

Pushing the door open, a face with a pair of distinctively straight eyebrows soon came into view, prompting the manager to call out respectfully, "Master Xue."

Xue Baoyi, the second-eldest member of the Xue family.

His mother had given birth to a child with the face of your typical "tough guy" which was in stark contrast to his given name—a graceful name that would generally be reserved for females only. Apparently, his mother had had a dream when she was pregnant, one in which she gave birth to a little princess, hence, the out-of-place name. Xue Baoyi sat on a poker table, the dim lighting shining just enough to reveal his purple-dyed hair which was complemented by a pair of dazzling eyes. His frame was distinctly outlined against the background. With a cigarette hanging out from the corner of his mouth, he yelled out, "Brother Zhi's here!"

Jiang Zhi's great-grandmother was known widely as the maiden of the Jiang family. An interesting thing to note was that habits from her time, from days of old, remained relevant amongst the nobility of today. An example of this being that male children of the nobility would refer to each other as brothers, and female children as sisters. Thus, a foundation would be laid for the young heirs and heiresses to grow closer than your run-of-the-mill friends.

Since way back when Xue Baoyi and Jiang Zhi were still children, their families would often engage in business deals with one another, and that was how they came to befriend each other, right when they had just started learning how to wear belts.

Tonight's event was hosted by Xue Baoyi's group. To begin with, the circle of nobility within the imperial capital wasn't very, but they were distinguished by classes of three, six, nine, and so on. Jiang Zhi was considered to be a member of the upper echelons of all nobility; if it were not for Xue Baoyi's fraternal relationship with the main star of the event, it would have been near impossible for him alone to have been able to successfully invite Jiang Zhi.

A number of voices shouted greetings following Xue Baoyi's announcement of Jiang Zhi's arrival, but these were mostly to curry favor with the representative of the Jiang family.

Jiang Zhi lifted his eyelids lazily, locking gazes with Xue Baoyi.

"Hurry up and finish your cigarette. All this smoke is making me sick."

Xue Baoyi laughed heartily at Jiang Zhi's response.

"Alright, alright, your wish is my command." 

He urged the rest of his brethren to hurry up and finish their cigarettes before throwing a deck of playing cards over to Jiang Zhi.

"Wanna play a game or two?

As the smoke had yet to clear away within the room, Jiang Zhi coughed twice before picking a clean spot to nestle himself in.

"Have you not lost enough the last time we played?"

Xue Baoyi's fingers caressed a card he was holding and he flashed a carefree smile in his brother's direction.

"I'm just reverting to my old habits, I guess."

Jiang Zhi ignored the man and instead, rested in a half-reclined position, squinting his listless eyes at the ceiling. His face was of a sickly complexion, so it was hard to tell if he was actually awake or sound asleep. As Xue Baoyi knew just how short-tempered his counterpart could be, he decided not to further provoke him, opting to order a tall glass of fresh milk for the latter instead.

Alas, there was always someone here that wasn't sensible.

For example, that little son from the Deng family. To everyone's astonishment, he had brought a woman over tonight. As if that wasn't disrespectful enough, her eyes had been glued to Jiang Zhi ever since he had stepped into the room. The roaring waves contained within his chest almost spilled out at the sight of her deliberately bending over in order to seduce him.

Jiang Zhi clasped the crystal goblet tightly and sipped his milk patiently.

That woman, with a glass of red wine in hand, walked over flirtatiously and sat down on a sofa across Jiang Zhi. Her lips curled into an enticing smile as she and Jiang Zhi locked gazes.

"How about I pour a glass for Master Jiang?"

Jiang Zhi didn't even bother to raise his eyelids before shutting her approach down with a simple sentence.

"My body is weak, I don't drink alcohol."

It was well-known across the nation that the heir of the Jiang family was constantly bed-ridden and faced health issues throughout his entire life. What they didn't know was that he would often move around the country instead of being confined to a top-tier hospital ward.

The lady was spurned by Jiang Zhi's words, but in the face of this sick beauty, how could she stay angry for long? She put down her glass of wine and instead, produced a dart in her hands which she pushed toward him.

"Master Jiang, wanna try a round of darts? I've heard rumors that you're the King of Darts around here."

In the same manner, Jiang Zhi shot her down.

"My body is weak, can't lift up my arm."

After successfully turning her down, Jiang Zhi coughed twice, his cheeks growing noticeably flushed.

His beauty was such that the scene of him merely sitting there resembled an artisan's painting. As he lay there weakly with a slightly frowning expression, it reminded those around him just how delicate a person could be. The lady rushed over in an attempt to comfort him only to be blocked by a slender arm holding a crystal goblet of milk.

The person that was nestled into the comfy sofa suddenly raised his eyebrows. It was then that the air of laziness around him faded away. All that remained was an indifferent face and words that sounded as cold as winter.

"I am allergic to roses."

The woman's hand froze mid-air.

The perfume she had sprayed on for tonight was the scent of roses.

A look of disgust surfaced quickly as he threw the goblet on the floor.

"Stay away from me."

The woman withdrew her arm awkwardly and backed off in embarrassment.

Xue Baoyi hopped down from the poker table and gave the young master Deng a nasty glare. That should be enough to sear the rules into his mind. With beads of cold sweat pouring out from his facial pores, he hurriedly led the woman out of the room. How could he forget the cardinal rule laid down by Master Xue? No women were allowed in this room.

Knowing that Jiang Zhi had an obsession with cleanliness, Xue Baoyi quickly poured milk into a clean glass before walking over to coax the young master who much preferred a tall glass of moo juice1 over any alcoholic drinks.

Jiang Zhi's eyes glared back at Xue Baoyi.

"Piss off, you have the scent of a woman."

"..."

Well, technically, he had been in close contact with a woman earlier that afternoon, but he had made sure to clean himself up before coming.

The eyes of this young master were so mesmerizing at first glance but a slight shift in mood was enough for the cherry blossom petals to turn into a hailstorm of fury.

Xue Baoyi now knew that he had angered the young master and hence, he refrained from pouring more fuel over the burning fire. Despite Jiang Zhi's temper, these people had no choice but to put up with it. How could they, a bunch of regular guys, possibly resist the allure of the imperial capital's most beautiful man. They would often have conflicting emotions whenever Jiang Zhi was mentioned, but in the end, these guys would end up pampering the man, granting him all that he wished for.

This group of men knew that there were two things that this young master despised the most in his life—roses and women. Hence, before organizing this event, Xue Baoyi had explicitly warned the invitees not to bring any women over.

Xue Baoyi chuckled at Jiang Zhi's statement before apologizing.

Jiang Zhi then got up from the sofa.

"I'm leaving."

"So soon?" Xue Baoyi pulled lightly at the tail of his shirt to stop him. "But the main man hasn't arrived yet."

Jiang Zhi yanked his shirt back and stared coldly at Xue Baoyi.

"My body is weak, I can't stay up too late."

"..."

The hell? Was 8 PM even remotely bedtime?

Jiang Zhi walked out the door without looking back, paying no heed to the room of trembling heirs. The man coughed as he walked, lowering his head to contain his fit. His face had become flushed, not from any alcohol but a result of his underlying health condition.

Xue Baoyi's heart writhed in pain at the sight of his friend. It was fine, let him go. Fragile beauties like him were sent down by God solely for the purpose of being spoiled by the people around him.

He couldn't help but exclaim, "This young master, I wonder who's going to be the lucky one to accept him in the future."

Oh, right. It was during Jiang Zhi's coming-of-age ceremony on his eighteenth birthday that he announced to a group of ladies, hand-picked for their beauty, all of whom had tried to entice him, that he was only attracted to men. 

After that incident, the hottest topic around the imperial capital revolved around Jiang Zhi's beauty as well as his sassy attitude. The strange thing about the whole matter was that not only did women desire him more, there were even some men who openly declared their love for the young master.

Now wasn't this a spell for disaster!

The penthouse of the clubhouse was reserved entirely by Xue Baoyi for tonight's event. The corridor outside the room from which Jiang Zhi had just exited was devoid of human presence. Due to the good sound-proofing work done to the walls of the place, the only sound echoing down the hallway was Jiang Zhi's inconsistent footsteps that were accompanied by the intermittent sound of his coughing.

Suddenly, the lights of the corridor flickered.

Jiang Zhi halted his footsteps. His eyes met a long shadow cast on the floor that came from behind. Slowly, he turned back, but just then, a shadow came flying over, knocking him off his feet. It all happened so quickly that he wasn't able to confirm just what the "thing" he saw was. All he could see was a wave of pure darkness overwhelming him.

Jiang Zhi stepped back to dodge the unexpected assailant but as soon as a wave of numbness spread from his neck, he collapsed limply onto the ground, knocked out by a little pocket knife.

The dark shadow jumped over him and crawled up the wall.

Thud!

The sound of the security camera being smashed reverberated down the hallway. The dark shadow then crept down the wall as a strong wind blew unnaturally inside the building. Suddenly, a person materialized amidst the blowing wind. He had a tall and slender physique. Covered in an all-black outfit, the person wore a black hooded sweatshirt. As if that wasn't obscure enough, he made sure to wear a baseball cap over the hood which he had pulled over his head. Still, one could see that he had hair that grew down till his collarbone. Half of his face was covered by a face mask, revealing only a pair of almond eyes, as deep and mysterious as an ocean.

The person's legs were long and straight, but the size of shoes was relatively small, giving off clues that the assailant was in fact, a female.

She walked over, and with a gloved hand, she lifted the unconscious man up onto her shoulders. Stepping forward, she then vanished into thin air alongside her target, disappearing from the corridor like a phantom.

With the moon hanging brightly in the sky, the neon-colored city was bathed in a mystifying blend of colors, both artificial and natural.

The sea breeze blew, bringing with it a slight saltiness, adding to the serenity of the autumn night.

The sound of waves crashing against the rocky shore could be heard. The briny water spraying up from these collisions soaked the shirt of the man who was lying there unconscious. Then, his lashes started trembling before his cherry blossom eyes slowly opened. The moonlight filled his eyes, but apart from that, a blurry silhouette could be seen reflected off his dark, watery pupils.

The silhouette was thin and wispy. 

Jiang Zhi suddenly raised his hand, grabbing the figure by its clothes, but as he did so, he accidentally made contact with skin that was ice-cold.

"What are you?"

His voice was hoarse, but it was covered by the sound of the whistling sea breeze.

The figure turned around and replied, "A professional runner."

It was the voice of a young woman. While slightly distorted by the wind, one could clearly make out how crisp, yet indifferent her tone was.

The moonlight was dim, and a layer of mist had formed around the sea's edge where they were. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't see the outline of the person. Her all-black outfit allowed her to fade into the darkness of the night seamlessly. Suddenly, she pulled her hand back, and without hesitation, she jumped into the icy water.

Jiang Zhi was frozen in place.

That woman was dead for sure…

As dawn broke, the light started reaching the corners of the sky. Soon after, the sky was tinted red by the rising sun.

By then, the fishermen were already reeling in fishnets containing the catch of the day that had been laid out the previous night. Various types of fish and shrimp that littered the sand were loaded into baskets which hung off these fishermen's backs. One of these fishermen spotted from afar, a hand clinging onto a shore rock from underwater while he was slowly making progress along the shoreline. Not long after, a head popped up from the water.

It was a person!

The fisherman, thinking that there was a drowning person, rushed over to save the presumed victim.

That person, however, stood up abruptly, fixing her gaze on the approaching fisherman. Jet-black short hair, a pale white face and blood-red eyes…

The fisherman's legs gave way and as he trembled on the sand, he yelled out, "Gh-ghost!"

The figure slowly crept toward the fisherman.

Out of fear, the fisherman fainted.

Then, the first, red-tinged rays of dawn lit up the figure, revealing a pair of cold, yet stunningly beautiful eyes that glowed as red as the rising sun itself. Her cold white lips moved ever so slightly as she murmured, "I'm not a ghost."

She lowered her head and looked at the wound on the palm of her hand that was from being cut by the jagged edges of the shore rock she had clung to moments ago. The wound was regenerating at such a speed that it was noticeable even when viewed by the naked eye.

She was not a ghost, but a monster.