Cold sweat dripped from my forehead.
But thinking of the importance of tonight’s spirit guiding ritual, I didn’t want to make the situation worse. I gritted my teeth and endured.
It took me a long while to steady myself.
Shakily, I bent down to pick up the scattered spirit money, explaining to them,
“When you live by the mountains, you rely on them. I work here as a guide and gather some goods, and sometimes I burn spirit money for the dead in these hills.”
Hearing that, they became even more excited.
“Then we have to go deeper. With a local leading us, this is going to be even better!” Ryan Brooks said, tossing my guide badge back to me.
My heart sank again.
I had miscalculated — I’d hoped to scare them off.
In the mountains, time slips away quickly.
The moon was already brushing the treetops, the air alive with the sound of crickets and night birds.
The moment for the ritual was almost here. Before I left, Master Daniel had warned me not to miss it — the spirits coming tonight carried particularly strong dark energy, and I’d need to burn extra offerings.
I hesitated, wondering if I should just leave them here. We were close to the foot of the mountain; they wouldn’t be in much danger.
But before I could decide, Ryan suddenly snatched the eternal lantern from my hands and headed straight toward the deeper forest.
The other three followed him, laughing.
Panic shot through me.
“That’s not something just anyone can handle — give it back, now!”
I swung the sack over my shoulder and jogged after them, trying to reclaim it.
Ryan refused, tossing it to Jake Miller, who then tossed it to Emily Carter. The four of them began throwing it back and forth like a game.
I was left running in circles between them, begging each in turn, like a dog chasing scraps.
When Ryan grew tired of playing, he threw it high into the air. The eternal lantern crashed to the ground, shattering into glowing shards.
My heart clenched in horror — this was a disaster.
Without the eternal lantern, I couldn’t break through the veil of dark energy, and they would soon be haunted by restless spirits.
The shards glimmered faintly, then began to fade.
I bit my finger and crouched, trying to gather them, but my injured left hand was useless.
I could only watch as the pieces sank into the soil and vanished.
Clenching my jaw, I glared at Ryan.
“You’ve just caused a catastrophe. Keep this up, and you’ll all die.”
Ryan raised an eyebrow, smirking.
He kicked me to the ground and gripped my chin.
“You’ve really pushed me this time. No one has ever told me ‘no’ this many times in a row, let alone threatened me.”
He gestured, and the two women closed in.
I backed away quickly, only for Jake to block my path.
“What are you doing? Get away from me! Stay back!”
The women exchanged a knowing smile.
They yanked off my shoes and socks, stripped away my jacket, and tossed it over the cliff’s edge.
Ryan crossed his arms, grinning with malice.
“Just a little punishment. Defy me again, and I’ll strip you bare and make you run down the trail like that.”
I clenched my guide badge in my fist, glancing at the moon overhead — already high in the sky. The time for the ritual was nearly here, and my chest felt heavy with despair.
Jake gave me a hard shove.
“Stop standing there like an idiot. When you had the chance to guide us properly, you didn’t. Now look — barefoot on a mountain trail. You asked for it.”
It seemed I had no choice now but to take them along while I worked.
The deeper we went, the quieter it became, until even the sound of our breathing was sharp in the still air.
Without my jacket, the chill cut deep. I gripped the sack on my back more tightly.
The forest was growing darker, and without the eternal lantern, the veil of dark energy was thickening all around us.
