Prophecy

"Whoa... Black Cocoon. Very fitting name," Ji Minghuan teased, baring his teeth. "It suits this weirdo's bizarre appearance too. He looks like a Big Moth."

"When I saw his photograph, you were the first person I thought of," Instructor suddenly said.

The moment those casually spoken words fell, the air in the confinement room fell silent for a second.

You've got to be kidding... He saw through me already? Does that mean we're skipping straight to the dismemberment part?

Ji Minghuan was secretly startled, but he revealed nothing on the surface. His face wore an expression somewhere between confusion and irritation.

He asked, "Why? Do I look even remotely similar to that ugly thing?"

"You..."

Resting his chin on his hand, Ji Minghuan interrupted Instructor in a listless tone. "Instructor, if you want to call me ugly, just say it. There's no need to beat around the bush. I can take this level of personal attack."

"I mentioned your childhood yesterday as well. Back then, you wrapped yourself up tightly in bathroom tissue, and a Nurse from the Welfare Home even took a photograph to document it."

As he spoke, Instructor pulled another photograph from his white coat pocket and laid it over the photograph of "Black Cocoon."

Ji Minghuan silently lowered his gaze.

In the photograph, his younger self had locked himself in a bathroom and used roll after roll of toilet paper to wrap up his entire body. Like a white mummy, his shape vaguely resembled the black insect cocoon in the previous photograph, though it was only a rudimentary resemblance.

The two photographs were stacked together, with Instructor deliberately leaving a corner of the lower photograph exposed. The cocoon formed from toilet paper was on the left, while the cocoon formed from Restraint Bands was on the right, creating a stark contrast in color.

Ji Minghuan stared for a moment, then clicked his tongue and defended himself. "Come on... I already explained this before. It was really just something stupid I did when I was young and ignorant."

As he recalled it, he said carelessly, "At least I don't have a habit of dressing up as a Big Moth to scare people in public... When the Welfare Home celebrated Halloween, the scariest thing I ever dressed up as was Ghost Dog. The kind that goes woof woof, trick or treat. Totally harmless."

"Actually, I only meant to say... once your ability awakens, perhaps its actual manifestation will resemble his," Instructor said with a smile.

"That's way too freaky. What normal person likes tying themselves up like a mummy for no reason?" Ji Minghuan sighed. "I suggest that after you catch this ability user, you take him to neurology first and check whether there's something wrong with his brain."

Instructor put away the photographs and asked with a smile, "So? Are you a little more interested in abilities now?"

"I know my own limits. A Muggle is a Muggle; being interested won't change anything." Ji Minghuan paused. "Besides, even if I really were as powerful as you say, I'd have found a way to escape this dump long ago. Why would I still be here taking your crap?"

"But if you really were just an ordinary person, there would be no need for us to go to such lengths to keep you locked up here," Instructor said, not taking his words seriously.

"I still don't understand. Why exactly did you arrest me? Hasn't this past month proven that I'm an ordinary person?"

"Someone prophesied that you would destroy the world."

"Ha. Ha." Ji Minghuan gave two humorless laughs, then asked, "Has that person been watching too many United States blockbusters?" He sighed. "It's always destroying the world this and destroying the world that. If the world were really that easy to destroy, that'd be great. Besides, I can't even destroy myself. Whenever I try to hurt myself, I get electrocuted unconscious."

"Who knows?"

"So who exactly is the person spreading rumors about me?" Ji Minghuan asked probingly. "Can't you bring him here to meet me? Let us confront each other face-to-face."

"No," Instructor cut in. "More accurately, we can't."

"Why? Is the old man in outer space?"

"No. We've never met him. We don't even know his identity."

"Huh?" Ji Minghuan raised his brows in stunned disbelief. After a long while, he asked, "So you captured me and locked me up for more than a month just because of some bullshit from someone you've never met?"

"He has foretold many major events that would have a significant impact on the world, and every single one unfolded exactly as he predicted," Instructor said slowly. "But... although he helped us avoid many major disasters, we have never directly contacted him. Or rather, he never gave us the opportunity."

He paused. "And after informing us about you, he vanished without a trace."

"If you're making up a story, you could at least put a little more effort into it."

Instructor merely smiled unconcernedly. "In any case, we have never seen him. No one knows his background. He is like a ghost, merely watching this world from afar. No matter how severe the events he foretold were—even when an entire country was razed to the ground—his tone in his letters was always so calm, as though he were describing some trivial matter."

He paused. "But..."

"But?"

"But when he mentioned you to us, he was extremely serious. He said we had to keep you under control, or the consequences would be severe."

Ji Minghuan's vision went dark. Hanging his head in dejection, he said, "I get it. This guy must have a grudge against me... Could he be the director of our Welfare Home? I loved causing trouble ever since I was little. I watched the director's hairline get pushed from his forehead to the top of his head because of me. Oh, no—he doesn't even have a hairline anymore. All that's left is a bald egg."

"Unfortunately, your director is merely an ordinary person."

"If this Prophet you mentioned shows up again someday, could you let me know?"

"Of course. If he truly appears again, perhaps I will tell you."

"Fine." Ji Minghuan fell silent for a while, then suddenly brought it up. "Oh, right. Didn't you tell me yesterday..." He knew that Instructor would most likely break his promise again.

"Yes, I came today for that very matter." Having learned his lesson from yesterday, Instructor included her name this time. "In five minutes, Kong Youling will come here to see you. I'll excuse myself and leave the two of you alone. You can talk about whatever you want without worrying about anyone."

"Really?"

"Of course it's true." Instructor smiled calmly. "I'll leave now. Wait here."

With that, he rose from his chair and walked out of the monitoring room. As the descending isolation door swallowed his retreating figure, rows of cold-colored fluorescent tubes dimmed, and the entire world plunged into darkness.