Everyone instantly froze—shocked upon hearing the shrilling scream that echoed through the abandoned halls of the hospital...!
"W-what was that?!" Sophia gasped, eyes darting instinctively toward the dark abyss outside the room...!
"...Damnit...!" Noah cursed under his breath, a grim realization dawning on him, "Don't tell me 'it' actually appeared...?!"
"J-Junior...?" she called out to her underclassman, voice trembling with confusion. "W-what's wrong...? W-what do you mean by 'it'...?"
...But she received no answer.
Instead, Noah turned his gaze—not toward her—but toward the empty space beside him...!
"Eva! Is this the 'entity' that we're looking for...?!" he inquired urgently to the vacant air before him.
"'E-Eva'...?" Sophia echoed with disbelief, finally witnessing the rumored oddity of her underclassman and what could only be his...
"Imaginary friend."
She was stunned—completely blindsided by his sudden behavior.
She'd heard rumors about him being "crazy" because of this exact reason—this talking to himself—and she always assumed it was exaggerated nonsense...
But witnessing it firsthand—seeing him speak so seriously to 'nothing'—it almost dawned on her that her underclassman might truly be—
Insane.
However—
"—Then what about those three...? Is there a chance we could still save them...?!"
—through this strange, imaginative conversation with his supposed "imaginary friend," his expression only grew grimmer by the second...!
As if...
'...Does he know something about this...?!' she thought, seeing his face that tightened with urgency and dread.
Whatever the case was, she swallowed her rising fear and stepped closer, "N-Noah, is there something wrong—"
"—HELP!!! SOMEBODY...!!! PLEASE...!!!"
Another scream—louder, closer, desperate enough to make their hearts drop—
And it was getting closer to them!
"...Shit, it is heading toward us...!" he lamented dreadfully, realizing that the source of the scream was heading toward their location...!
And they all had a pretty good guess who it belonged to.
With a clenched fist, Noah steeled his resolve... and turned toward Sophia.
His sudden, determined gaze toward her startled her...!
"N-Noah...? W-what's going on...?"
"...Sophia, please stay put," he urged firmly... a voice that clearly cared for her wellbeing.
"H-huh...? W-what are you saying, Noah...?"
She tried once again to gain answers—anything that would explain not just his behavior but what was going on... yet he still would not give her one.
Instead, he turned toward the abyss outside the room and then... he bolted!
"W-wha—Noah?!?"
He ran toward it and disappeared into the void darkness!
"W-wait! Don't just run off!"
She stumbled forward, trying to chase after him—
"Ah—!?"
—only for her foot to suddenly catch on something buried beneath scattered papers!
Sophia crashed onto her knees, wincing as dust puffed around her...
"Ow... what the...?"
Annoyed, flustered, but mostly confused, she pushed herself up—
But...
"...Huh?"
As her fingers brushed across the dusty floor, her hand grazed upon something flat—something rigid, something out of place...
"What the...?"
And when she picked up the object and shone her flashlight toward it, what she found was—
"...An ID Card...?"
But soon her eyes widened—she recognized it.
This... was the official hospital ID card belonging to this very abandoned facility.
And as she wiped away the grime of dirt and few strands of spiderweb clinging to its edges...
"...! Isn't this...!?"
She recognized the printed face on the ID card—
"...The hospital director...!"
< | X | >
They sprinted through the dark corridor with only a single flashlight guiding their path—Noah and Evangeline rushing toward the source of the scream—!
"—HELP...! ANYONE...?!! SAVE ME...!!!"
And the screaming became more frantic the closer they were...!
But... that wasn't the only thing that grew nearer.
RUMBLING...!!!
"What the...?!"
A deep, unsettling tremor reverberated through the whole corridor...!
"...Ah shit," Noah cursed under his breath, "it's also heading straight toward us...!"
He realized all too quickly that they would not only find the source of the scream—but also the cause of it...!
He quickly skidded to a halt, before turning toward his ghost companion with a firm request. "Eva! Can I borrow your power again?!"
"...I suppose it is inevitable," she replied, voice calm... yet laced with knowing anticipation, "Very well, mortal."
"Alright! Then..."
He planted his feet, bracing himself both physically and mentally...
"Let's do it, Eva...!"
He prepared himself to willingly receive her strength—! For the second time, at that!
Even if he didn't fully understand how it happened the first time—revived and suddenly wielding her power—it didn't matter now—
He would take the risk either way!
However, unlike Noah's determined attitude, Evangeline was... oddly reserved, which confused him.
"...Uh, Eva...?"
She didn't answer—her expression a strange mix of hesitation and something almost... flustered.
His soul-bonded ghost companion then floated closer... turning herself to face him directly...
"Uh... what are you—"
Suddenly, she leaned in—closing the distance between them—! Bringing her face dangerously close to his!
"E-Eva—?!"
And then... her forehead gently pressed against his—!
FWOOOM—!!!
A blinding light burst forth from their point of contact, swallowing the entire dark corridor in a radiant glow...!
Noah's eyes widened—shocked!
He was frozen on the spot, unable to comprehend what was unfolding before him...!
But then... Evangeline's form began to dissolve!
Her ghostly body slowly turning into swirling ebony spiritual energy...!
Slowly... gracefully... before it then began to flow into him like liquid ink—!
And the last thing he saw... was her gentle smile, before she completely dissolved into energy and disappeared into him...!
He gasped as the darkness coiled and wrapped around him in a tight spiral, lifting him off the ground—his feet hovering inches above the dusty floor...!
The same black, ethereal energy spiraled around him violently—like a raging, uncontrolled tornado...!
But then... it began to change! The once-ebony aura gradually shifted...!
It slowly brightened—purifying itself—from a chaotic, shadowy mass into a luminous, almost divine glow.
And when he finally opened his eyes... his once-blue irises now glowed with a deep, scarlet red!
"...Huh?"
After the blinding radiance faded, Noah finally gained some semblance of awareness again. He could even see in the darkness now...!
And eventually, he realized that he was once again—
"Wow...! I can float again...?!"
Floating in mid-air!
But not only that, he could feel the tremendous spiritual energy coursing within him...!
His mouth curled into a grin—he couldn't hold back his excitement. After all, it wasn't just the sensation of freedom that he enjoyed but...
"I feel damn strong—"
'HEY, mortal!!!'
"Whoah—!?"
The voice of his ghost companion suddenly echoed inside his ear, startling him!
'Quit gawking like an idiot, you dummy!'Evangeline snapped, scolding him inside his head. 'Are you not going to save those mortal friends of yours?!'
"A-ah! Yeah! You're right!"
Positioning his body in mid-air just like yesterday, he prepared himself...
"...Let's go!!!"
And with a burst of spiritual force, Noah shot forward into the darkness!