Chapter 60: Capture
Sifting through a store filled to the brim with lifeless bodies to locate the one real ghost was no easy feat. The stakes were high, and their time was limited; every attempt at harnessing the power of an enraged spirit would trim a piece off their own life expectancy.
In such times, bravery and unshakeable resolve were paramount. Miles was known for his courageous demeanor, while Ethan was the embodiment of determination. They decided to face the threat head-on, choosing action over retreat.
As Ethan pressed his bleeding hand onto the body of a middle-aged woman in business attire, the eerily animated corpses suddenly froze, stiffening into stillness. The room fell silent, and all eyes were on the woman’s body, where Ethan’s blood continued to seep in.
This sudden calmness hinted they might have found its hideout in this particular corpse. But could the two of them really be certain?
Neither Miles nor Ethan was convinced. As Miles squinted at the corpse, Ethan responded to his skeptical query with grave uncertainty, “Is this the one? I can’t say for sure. My blood can subdue the ghost but can’t confirm its presence.”
The shop fell eerily silent, save for the subtle sounds of blood soaking into the corpse Ethan held. The stillness was suffocating, especially as Ethan wrestled with the uncertainty of whether he was holding a mere corpse or the actual spirit. If they were wrong, he would undoubtedly pay the ultimate price.
As the seconds slipped away, their uncertainty grew, giving the spirit more time to drain their life force. Ethan, his forehead slick with nervous sweat, pleaded, “Miles, we need to confirm if this is the ghost, and if so, trap it in the box.”
He could feel his blood flow spiraling out of control as he spoke. Miles, meanwhile, was scrambling to piece together the clues, trying to make sense of the dire situation.
If the woman wasn’t the ghost, then the real spirit was likely still lurking in the room, probably standing idle and allowing Ethan to burn out his strength – a form of indirect murder. However, if this corpse was indeed the ghost, the rigid stillness of the other bodies made little sense.