The farther Alexei walked into this part of campus, the quieter it became.
Not the peaceful kind of quiet, but the wrong kind.
The kind straight out of a horror flick, where the ghost jumps out, eats your face, and the credits roll.
The pelting rain against the high windows and the rumbling thunder in the dark sky didn't help the situation either.
If only that pretty priest had stayed put.
Goddammit. Once I find you, I swear...
He cursed under his breath and strode forward, scanning the empty hall.
The fluorescent lights above flickered just enough to be as unsettling as the rest of the theology department.
A passing student looked like a hero in his eyes, so he stopped her and asked, "Do you know where Elijah is?"
The girl froze, eyes darting around like someone had just asked where the bodies were buried.
"The pretty priestling, you know. Black hair, grey eyes, in a white sweater, looks like a saint on a worldly tour?" While he was at it, he even flashed her his perfect, charming smile.
That flicked the switch in her mind.
"Y-yes. There," stuttering, she raised a trembling hand and pointed toward the farthest, darkest corridor.
"Thanks, darling," he said, making her blush even more.
His smile always worked on others, so why did it have zero effect on Elijah? Pondering over the world's most difficult mystery, he followed the direction she pointed.
It was dark.
He started walking only for the overhead light to flicker violently before it went dead.
"…The fuck is this?" he muttered under his breath, "A live demon-hunting ground? Does the dean know there's a goddamn ghost Disneyland here?"
No matter how nonchalant he was acting, he did not like this horror vibe of the department.
This was the perfect setup for how one ends up dead in a B-grade horror.
I bet this is the reason why no one wants to come here. Just then, thunder rumbled lowly in the sky, rattling the windows.
Okay, maybe… maybe he was a little shaken.
After all, he had seen Nikolai possessed, screaming in some old man's guttural voice, spitting blood like water from a fountain.
Not to mention all that thrashing he had to keep in under control.
Dropping Niko and his family off, he had gone home, taken the fastest shower of his life, and rushed to the club.
Alcohol, as someone wise had said, is mankind's greatest invention, right after guns.
So, he had drowned a few glasses. Even after that, the screams seemed to linger. So, he ended up staying the night with the girl, whose name he still didn't know.
That wasn't fear, though, just a bit shaken up. Yeah, totally not fear.
The more he walked, the more his thoughts wandered in a completely different direction.
It was all those demons' fault. Come to think of it, there were seven main types of demons.
Lust — don't ask why he thought of that one first. He just did.
Then came wrath, greed, pride, sloth, gluttony—
He rounded a corner and stopped in his tracks. His lungs stopped breathing with his legs as well.
Standing there was a fat man.
The man blinked at him. Alexei blinked back.
Thunder cracked violently, zipping in the sky so fast that it left gleaming silver in its wake.
A slow, creepy smile spread over the man's face.
"Oh, hell nah."
Before rational thought even had a chance to kick in, Alexei's foot did. Right into the man's bloated stomach.
The "fatty" went sliding backward across the slick floor until his back hit the wall with a heavy thud.
The noise was enough for the few wandering students to rush forward.
Elijah was among them, looking at his professor sprawled over the floor and then at the young man who calmly lowered his leg back.
Two students helped Professor Resse to his feet.
However, Alexei's attention wasn't on them. The moment he saw his target, his blue eyes lit up like fireworks in the sky.
He watched Elijah bend down and start gathering the professor's papers like a good little schoolboy. He even handed them over politely.
Alright, even his ass was fine, just like everything else.
Only his stiff face was a bit bothersome. Perhaps a drink or two would fix that, too.
"What are you doing?!" Prof. Resse fumed after steadying his body. There was a dark footprint on his white shirt, looking like a personal stamp.
"Ah." Alexei finally realized what had happened. Or rather the stupid mistake he made. "Thought you were the demon of gluttony. My bad, dude."
Professor Resse's face turned crimson, right on the spot.
"You're suspended for a week!"
Alexei's grin widened. "Thanks, old man!"
Who wouldn't like extra holidays? With this suspension falling in his lap like a divine gift, even his father wouldn't be able to scold him.
The professor sputtered. "You insolent brat!"
"I'm not insolent. I'm just naturally disrespectful."
Then, without giving Professor Resse any chance to scold him, he waved at Elijah, "Hey, I was looking for you everywhere in this hellhole."
Elijah sighed. There was no winning against this boy.
Maybe if he followed him quietly, Alexei would stop bothering him.
But... he glanced up at the female ghost dangling upside-down from the ceiling right above Alexei.
One wrong move and she'd be in his face.
Suddenly, kicking the professor didn't seem like the worst thing Alexei could have done today.
Considering the knack of giving bad luck to her victims, even this whole thing seemed to be due to her presence.
He nodded to the professor before walking toward Alexei.