Chapter 88: Strange Things and Stranger Events
Yu Sheng leaned in close, pressing his face just inches from the surface of the mirror. He was trying to get a better look at that curious, faint “second reflection” hovering there. The mirror’s image was doubled somehow, as if he were staring through a window on a winter’s night. Inside it, the reflection of his own room seemed to blend with a distant, snowy cave scene beyond. The whole thing reminded him of looking through glass at two worlds at once—his familiar room and a strange, snow-covered world far away. Yet the second scene was blurry, as if it were only half-real, slipping just beyond his grasp.
Just then, Irene clambered up onto Yu Sheng’s shoulder. She wrapped her tiny doll arms around his head, peering intently at the strange vision in the mirror. For a while, she stayed silent, her eyes fixed on the curious sight. Finally, she spoke, her soft voice filled with wonder. “Do you think that snow is actually blowing over from the other side of the mirror?” she asked.
Yu Sheng turned his head slightly, surprised by her question. “You can see it too?” he said.
Irene sounded baffled by his surprise. “Of course I can. What’s so shocking about that?” she replied. “I’m not blind, you know.” Next to them, Foxy—his companion with the foxlike features—nodded as well, before Yu Sheng could say anything else.
“Benefactor, I see it too,” Foxy said quietly.
Yu Sheng scratched his head, feeling just a bit awkward. “It’s only that, after dealing with Little Red Riding Hood and Li Lin, I’ve been worrying that not everyone sees what I do. I was starting to think I might be imagining things.” He shrugged, embarrassed by his own caution.
As he mulled over these thoughts, Yu Sheng took a careful step forward. He reached out toward the mirror’s surface, wanting to test it somehow. The last time he had touched this mirror, it had shown him a strange wasteland where a broken doll and a dark, shadowy monster had both been destroyed. What would happen now if he touched it again? Would it show him something even stranger?
Irene, nervous at the idea, grabbed at Yu Sheng’s hair, clinging tightly. He could feel her body trembling a bit. “Hey, be careful!” she squeaked. “What if something weird—”
“Ouch, ouch! Irene, let go of my hair!” Yu Sheng yelped, startled by the sharp tug.