A gust of wind swept through, sending the spirit money drifting higher, some turning into points of golden light, others falling back to the ground.
I quickly knelt and bowed.
It seemed I had missed the optimal moment for guiding the spirits, and they were displeased.
After three bows, I repeated the ritual — but this time, all the spirit money fell straight to the ground.
I didn’t understand.
This was a sign of anger… but why? What were they demanding?
If I still had the eternal lantern, the process wouldn’t be so difficult.
Gritting my teeth, I bit my finger and drew symbols in the air.
The wind grew stronger, rattling the branches overhead.
I bowed three more times, certain this would work.
But as I scattered the spirit money, a sudden gust carried it straight toward the four of them, sticking to their clothes.
Ryan’s eyes went wide, staring in disbelief at the offerings clinging to him.
Jake looked just as stunned. “What’s your deal? Are you just messing with us on purpose?”
Truthfully, I was as shocked as they were — I’d never seen anything like this.
I glanced at Emily, her face twisted with fear, and the other woman clinging to Jake, pale as a sheet.
Could it be… the spirits were tied to them?
The two masses of black mist still hovered, now curling around their waists.
The guide badge in my hand blinked faintly — Master Daniel urging me on. According to the plan, I should have finished the ritual by now.
I was about to explain the problem when Ryan suddenly kicked me hard, knocking me to the ground.
“You lunatic! You’ve been playing us this whole time!”
“This is all some ghost trick you cooked up!”
He dumped the rest of the spirit money from my sack onto the dirt and stomped on it, grinding it into the soil.
“Let’s see you fake it now!”
Jake, caught up in his frenzy, ripped apart the rest.
When I tried to stop them, they turned on me with fists and kicks until I spat blood.
When Ryan finally stopped, he grabbed me by the throat, his bloodshot eyes looking almost inhuman.
“Take us down the mountain right now, or I’ll kill you.”
I shook my head, staring at the black mist surrounding them.
“No. It’s not time yet.”
If I led them down before sending the spirits away, their families would be dragged into the curse.
With a snarl, Ryan threw me aside.
“Fine. Rot here and die!”
Jake kicked me. “He’s already called home. He’s got a tracker on him — the chopper will be here soon.”
Curled on the ground, I waited out the stabbing pain before struggling to my feet.
That’s when a sharp cry came from ahead.
Dragging my injured body forward, I found Ryan hanging from the edge of a pit.
He must have been in too much of a hurry to watch his step.
Jake screamed for me to help pull him up.
But no matter how hard we tried, we couldn’t haul him over the edge.
In the struggle, I was pulled down with him.
The moment I hit the bottom, pain exploded in my leg — I couldn’t move it at all. One glance at the rock beneath me told me it was likely broken.
Above, Jake kept shouting Ryan’s name.
By the beam of my flashlight, I saw him scrambling upward, but this pit wasn’t deep.
Even so, after several attempts, he still couldn’t quite reach the top.
