Eternal Beloved

Chapter 2

Yu Qi heaves a heavy pant, crashing her battered body to the floor as she mentally notes the stabbing pain all over her body. Being a spirit suck. Humans can’t do her harm in her spirit form but mangling with another spirit could harm her and her depleting qi is not exactly in her favours.

 She was lost in her train of thought when she heard a set of steps ascending the floor in a trained formation.

“I took the liberty to call the cop and EMT. Someone looks like she’s far too battered to move. Not that you can call them anyway. I thought you could use some help.” a familiar voice said from somewhere nearby but Yu Qi doesn’t even have the energy to roll up and search for the person.

“Geez, I thought you’re dead already, I mean again,” Jiao muttered, laughing at her own joke as she peeks into her eyes. Yu Qi rolled her eyes at the lousy joke, forcing herself to sit up as a team of police burst through the door, arms ready.

A quizzical look crosses their face as the assessed the situations, two bodies lying haphazardly on the floor, pictures and document scattering all over the floor. What they can’t see is the presence of a beaten up spirit and two faes watching them collecting the unconscious body with feigning interest.

“What do you mean dead?” Lien , the floral fae that Yu Qi has encountered a couple of times before asked in a surprised tone, staring at her incredulously

“What did I said? Just thought that she had died again.”

“I thought she’s a fae.”

Jiao laughs hard at Lien surprised expression as the flora fae hastily put a distance between her and Yu Qi. “But she’s been around for so long. The first time I saw her like five years ago. I thought spirit become an evil spirit after their third death anniversary.”

Great, she could never get sick repeating the same old story.

“Well, I’m…” Yu Qi started but interrupted by Jiao who keep a lingering mischievous smile on her lips.

“Usually, that’s the case. With her, it just doesn’t work that way. Why? Don’t ask me, I’ve no idea regarding this matter, and so does she. Just thought her as a freak ass spirit who love to go around sticking her nose into others matter and exorcist some evil spirit.” Jiao tactlessly as if she’s invisible, cackling as Lien muddled expression turn to suspicion as she scanned her with a distrustful gaze.

“Are you sure she’s not some kind of evil spirit?” Lien asked. That question actually stung regardless how many time she had heard it before.

“Her? Nope, no way. Though she may be a criminal in her life that now she has to atone for her sin by eliminating other evil spirits.”

“I’m right here guys. Right here.” Yu Qi said, waving her hand tiredly in Jiao’s face. She had known the eccentric fae a decade back and despite her fragile-looking appearance, her ability to annoy people is on another level.

Ignoring her, Jiao continues to chastise her. “Instead of spending time helping others and everything, it’s better to invest your time resolving your debt or revenge and pass over. That’s hardly professional you know, for a spirit to meddle in other’s revenge.”

If only the reality is that simple. It’s been a decade since she died but for a reason, she still tied to the world of the living with no recollection of her previous life. Except for her name, she remembered nothing else, not even the reason of her death that kept her wandering among human. Her body remembers the pain though, the searing pain of hot, white iron through her heart even she can’t recall who and how it happened. The same way every cell in her body remember how to annihilate evil spirits though she can’t recollect why she has the knowledge. It just feels like the right thing to be done. Besides, that’s the only ties left that she can hold onto from her forgotten past. Jiao speculated before that she is part of the immortal hunter families who inherited the ability to see and eliminate spirits and demon alike, which is total bullshit for her.

She’s been inquiring left and right if they ever encounter the same situation before, the reason she’s become acquaintance with the faes. Some of them have walked the world for thousands of years but no one can give her a definitive answer. Nothing but a bunch of rumours.

“Where are you going?” Jiao called out, staring after Yu Qi as she headed toward the exit door and descend the flight of stairs.

“Somewhere quiet where I can rest without listening to you babbling incessantly,” she muttered, wishing she could disaparate her way out of the building but she is drained from the fight. The never-ending stair is a torment but she can’t exactly summon an elevator herself with her limited ability to physical contact within the living realm and to ask help from Jiao is not an option. She’s not so keen on spending the next few hours listening to Jiao in-depth explanation of herself.

A sudden sharp pain shoot through her spine causes her to lost her balance that she finish the final few steps rolling on her back. She crash land on the hard floor, adding a blow to her battered body but she can’t help but grateful no other soul that can actually see her is around except for a human who stares emptily at the ground. Embarrassment is far worse than the pain itself.   

Groaning painfully, she rolled into a more comfortable position as she summons the strength to sit up when she saw her hand becoming transparent for a second before it reappears. This is the third times it happens. Maybe she is vanishing after all.

She should be glad, this is the end she has been waiting for the last ten years. There’s no attachment left for her here, at least not the one that she can remember. Maybe she really has no one in her life, a lonely orphan with no friend as much as a cat and no one to mourned her untimely death in her twenties. Maybe her life is too pathetic and mundane that those memories are gone after her passing but still, she quailed at the thought of perishing from this world. She still can’t shake off the feeling of regret for something or someone that she can’t be sure of. Whatever it is, it’s strong enough to hold her back in this world for years.

Her train of thought interrupted by the sound of approaching steps. Having one side of her head pressed to the ground causes all the surrounding sound amplified, the rhythm of the steps vibrated through her bones. A small part of her brain tells her to roll off, to avoid from being trampled by the ignorant human but her joint unknowingly relaxed as if it’s expected no immediate danger.

She could hear the steps halted a few meters from her as the man drops onto his knees, peering into her face. A beautiful face came into her view, a myriad of expression crosses his face as his dark eyes transfixed on her.

“It’s really you.”