A strange disappearance

[This story does not reflect any real events. It is set in a fictional world. Any resemblance is purely coincidental.]

[I'm a domineering CEO! I'm on my knees begging you to read five chapters (┳◇┳) I'm really good at writing!! I really am a good writer aaaaah please!! Give me a chance]

[Enjoy the read, everyone („• ֊ •„)੭]

[A summary of the abilities introduced so far has been posted at the end of volume two. Read it if you don't mind moderate spoilers.]

At two in the morning, a boy woke with an urgent need to relieve himself.

"...What time is it?"

The school dormitory was silent at night. His five roommates were all fast asleep. The workload in their second year of high school had already begun to intensify, and after a day of academic torment, the students snored softly in the quiet night.

When nobody answered, he stopped talking, slowly felt his way down from his bunk, pushed the door open, and stepped into the hallway, heading for the restroom in the building.

There was no sound in the hallway except his footsteps. His slippers slapped against the hard floor, sending harsh echoes through the empty corridor.

His room was next to the stairs, while the restroom was at the far end of the floor. He walked inside, bleary-eyed, and squatted over a toilet, noisily unloading his bowels. He had been sleeping soundly when the urge woke him, and wished he could finish in one go and fly back to bed.

"Bzzz-bzzz-"

The restroom light suddenly began to buzz with an unsteady electric current, its pallid glow flickering along with the sound.

The boy's heart clenched. He wasn't very brave, and the sudden anomaly startled him a little more awake.

Fortunately, the flickering didn't last long. After a few seconds, the light returned to normal.

"Unstable current? They ought to fix this crappy restroom light."

Seeing the light steady again, the boy reassured himself, thinking:

I've definitely been reading too many horror novels. I'll have to ask Shi Yu if he has any other books.

Finished, he tossed the paper into the bin, stood up, turned around, and pressed the flush button.

But as he turned, he suddenly glimpsed something.

Glimpsed... what?

The thought inexplicably flashed through his mind, and then he slowly pressed the flush button.

Did I... see... something?

The boy suddenly felt that something was strange. He seemed to have forgotten something. He vaguely remembered seeing something, but hadn't been able to make out what it was.

It was like leaving home and being unable to remember whether you had turned off the bedroom light.

Frowning, he stood up and looked around, but still found nothing. Then he pressed the flush button.

...? Didn't I just stand up? Didn't I just flush...?

His confusion deepened. He looked at the toilet he was squatting over. It was spotless.

"Why did my stomach stop hurting once I got here? Seriously, this had to happen when I was sleeping so well."

Irritated, the boy pulled up his pants and stepped forward.

An icy sensation suddenly covered his foot, accompanied by a splash.

"Ah! Fuck!"

He hastily pulled his foot out of the toilet. It was autumn, and the water in the bowl was bitingly cold. More importantly, besides being cold, it was disgusting.

"Shit, I'm half asleep! That's so gross."

Cursing, he shook his foot and tried to turn back toward the washroom outside to wash it.

As he hopped and tried to turn, he abruptly plunged his face into cold liquid.

"?!! Gah!! Urgh, cough, cough!!"

The sudden suffocation sent him into a panic. He didn't know what had happened-he had somehow fallen face-first into the toilet! Had he slipped because he was still too groggy??

He hurriedly struggled to prop himself up with his hands. His palms pressed against the floor, but the moment he pushed, his elbows struck something hard and cold.

What's happening?!

He panicked. It wasn't just his elbows; something was pressing against his legs and waist too, as though-a slab of flooring was pinning him down.

Frantically, he tried to lift his head. The back of his head suddenly turned cold, and there was the sound of something plunging into water.

A terrifying possibility suddenly occurred to him.

Could there be... another toilet behind me?

But he seemed to have no time left to think. He couldn't lift his head, and all four limbs were pinned firmly down. He couldn't raise the back of his head far enough to lift his mouth and nose out of the toilet. The cold floor behind him clamped his body tightly in place, and the toilet fitted over the back of his head like a helmet. The poor boy was now like a living sacrifice sealed inside a coffin fitted to his body!

Foul stench, cold, suffocation.

He began to struggle wildly. His nails split, and tender red flesh and blood traced twisted patterns across the floor. But soon his struggles weakened, until only his limbs twitched faintly.

Someone... save me...

That was the boy's last thought before he died.

He died.

Did I... see... something?

Before dying, the boy seemed to remember what he had seen.

"Whoooosh-"

The toilet flushed. As though stripped of bones and solid form, the boy's corpse was flushed away like noodles being slurped up, along with every bloodstain and mark of injury, leaving nothing behind.

"Riiing-"

As the alarm rang at 6:20 in the morning, Hu Zihao opened his eyes.

"Ugh, so annoying. I was sleeping so well."

The other occupants of room 225 woke one after another, but soon noticed something wrong.

"Where's Liu Zunfu?"

Hu Zihao's bunk faced the boy who had gotten up during the night. He looked up at the empty bed. Liu Zunfu's quilt lay in a tangled heap, and his clothes were piled beside the bed's safety rail.

"Did he go to the restroom?"

The other roommates also noticed that someone was missing and offered their guess.

Hu Zihao didn't know what was going on either, but remembering that Liu Zunfu never got up early, he said:

"He's up this early? I heard Sun get up to use the restroom earlier, but would he really go without putting on any clothes in weather this cold?"

Another roommate checked the time and said as he pulled on his socks under the covers:

"Didn't he say yesterday that he wanted to grab some beef pies from the cafeteria? Maybe he got up early especially for that and is in the restroom now. He'll probably be back if we wait a bit."

Hu Zihao thought that made sense and started getting dressed too, determined to get some of the first pies out of the pan.

Twenty minutes passed quickly. Even the last roommate to get up was awake.

"What the hell is he doing? Does using the restroom take this long?"

Hu Zihao was getting a little anxious. He felt the piping-hot pies slipping farther and farther away.

"You guys haven't left yet? Didn't you say you wanted beef pies today? In another five minutes, there won't even be any crust left."

The dorm room door opened, and the roommate who had just gone out to wash up walked in carrying a basin as he spoke.

"You're back, Sun. Where's Liu Zunfu? Isn't he in the restroom?"

Hu Zihao hurriedly asked when he saw his roommate enter.

His roommate paused at the question, then said:

"Huh? Liu Zunfu isn't in the restroom. Every stall was occupied when I went, so I specifically went to the one at the very back. He wasn't there."

"Not in the restroom?"

Hu Zihao was stunned too.

One roommate looked at the clothes on Liu Zunfu's bed and asked in confusion:

"Where could he go without getting dressed? Both sets of clothes in his locker are still there too."

But another roommate wasn't particularly concerned. He yawned and said:

"Maybe he went to hang out in another room. Whatever, I'll see you in class."

With that, he left the room. Seeing this, Hu Zihao and the others could do nothing else and left too, thinking they might find Liu Zunfu in the classroom later.

But there was no sign of Liu Zunfu in the classroom either.

By 7:20, their classmates had arrived one after another, yet Liu Zunfu was still nowhere to be seen.

The five boys from room 225 exchanged looks. They had all asked the people around them, but every classmate said they hadn't seen Liu Zunfu.

Hu Zihao was the first to lose patience.

"No, I'm going to tell our homeroom teacher. Something's definitely wrong. A grown guy doesn't get dressed or come to class? Where could he possibly go in this school?"

The others thought it over and agreed. There was nothing else they could do now. A roommate had suddenly disappeared; they had to do something.

"Liu Zunfu is missing?"

Their homeroom teacher frowned at the boy before him and asked:

"He was gone when you woke up this morning? Could he have gone to breakfast before you woke up?"

Mr. Liu closed the lesson plan in his hands as he questioned him. He didn't believe a student could disappear from this school for no reason. Yishi No. 12 Middle School was a closed campus, and students could only leave during the scheduled opening once every two weeks. There had been cases of truancy, but those students had secretly run off by failing to return after the campus opened. The school's security measures were comprehensive; no student had ever managed to sneak out while the campus was closed.

Seeing that the teacher didn't believe him, Hu Zihao hurriedly added:

"No way. Liu Zunfu usually gets up really late, and last night we agreed to eat at the cafeteria together this morning. When we didn't see him after waking up, we waited a while, but he never came back to the room. He wasn't in the classroom either... And... his usual clothes are still on his bed... Where could he go without getting dressed?"

"He didn't even get dressed?"

Mr. Liu grew a little alarmed at this too. Even if he wanted to hide and skip class, surely he would get dressed first. High school students at a closed-campus school only had a few sets of clothes, and it was obvious at a glance whether any were missing. Hu Zihao probably wasn't lying about that.

"...All right, Hu Zihao, go to class first. I'll contact the surveillance room right away. Don't worry too much. Our school's cameras have hardly any blind spots. Maybe something came up, or it's... a prank. I'll find him soon."

Hu Zihao nodded. There was no better option, and they still didn't know what had happened to Liu Zunfu. He said goodbye to Mr. Liu and returned to class.

The last lesson of the morning was physics. Second-year high school physics was becoming obscure and difficult to understand, but the students, who had only just been assigned to their new classes, still had their initial burst of enthusiasm. They dreamed of persevering and working hard, earning good grades, and getting into a good school. So very few dozed off; everyone worked hard to follow the lesson.

Forty minutes passed quickly. The instant the bell rang, the physics teacher closed his textbook. The veteran teacher was widely praised for never running overtime. After dismissing the class, he quickly left the classroom.

The other students swarmed out too, heading straight for the cafeteria, determined to get the freshest food.

Hu Zihao wasn't as carefree as his classmates. He had barely absorbed anything from the lesson. Since starting high school, he had been closest to Liu Zunfu. Now that his friend had inexplicably disappeared, he was still very worried about him. An entire morning had passed without a word. He planned to wait until his classmates had left, then ask Mr. Liu again.

After a while, almost everyone had left the classroom.

"Hu Zihao."

Just as Hu Zihao stood up, he heard someone behind him call his name.

He turned and saw Shi Yu, who sat diagonally behind him, beckoning.

"Shi Yu? What's up?"

Hu Zihao was a little puzzled. He and Shi Yu had been assigned to the same class after the division into arts and science tracks in their second year.

All he knew was that Shi Yu often brought lots of novels back to school after breaks and lent them to others. Hu Zihao wasn't interested in novels, so he rarely spoke to Shi Yu and had only heard a few things from Liu Zunfu. He didn't know what Shi Yu suddenly wanted with him.

But since Shi Yu had called him over, he ought to hear what he wanted.

Hu Zihao got up, walked over to Shi Yu, and asked again:

"What's up? I've got something to do. If it's not urgent, can we talk later?"

Shi Yu didn't speak right away. Instead, he stared fixedly at him before finally saying:

"I heard Liu Zunfu... disappeared?"

The stare made Hu Zihao a little uncomfortable, but he answered:

"Yeah. We didn't see him when we woke up this morning. He didn't even get dressed. No idea where he went."

Looking at the boy he barely knew, Hu Zihao asked in confusion:

"Why are you suddenly asking? Did you see him?"

Shi Yu paused slightly, as though hesitating over something, but soon spoke anyway.

"Hu Zihao, what I'm about to say might sound strange. I know you won't believe me right away... but I hope you'll listen. This is my warning.

I have a feeling..."

Shi Yu didn't look well. He unconsciously frowned, as though recalling something that frightened him.

He said hesitantly:

"I've had this inexplicable feeling these past two days, especially when Liu Zunfu came near me... I felt something very... frightening? Or dangerous about him.

I couldn't help wanting to stay away from him... But after I got to the classroom this morning, I heard Liu Zunfu was missing. When you were talking about him... I... felt..."

Shi Yu looked at Hu Zihao's rather unpleasant expression, hesitated, then continued anyway.

"I feel like he might already be... gone."

Hu Zihao wasn't stupid. Though Shi Yu had said "gone," it was no different from saying he was dead.

Shi Yu's claim was very abrupt. When a classmate you barely knew suddenly said your missing friend was dead, anger was an instinctive response.

But besides his anger, Hu Zihao couldn't rule out that terrifying possibility. In autumn, at a closed-campus school, where could someone hide without getting dressed? There were cameras throughout the school. If their homeroom teacher had found him, he would certainly have let them know. The entire morning had passed, and their teacher hadn't even come by once. What exactly had happened?

Hu Zihao frowned. A little agitated, he stepped forward, looked at Shi Yu, and said:

"Enough! You have no basis for that, do you? Maybe Liu Zunfu is just playing a prank. Maybe he'll come back later."

Hu Zihao didn't believe that himself, but at that moment, he still forced the words out stiffly.

But Shi Yu didn't drop the subject. He moved quickly, retreating slightly, his chair scraping against the classroom floor with a short, sharp sound.

Shi Yu stepped back, immediately putting distance between himself and Hu Zihao. He held out a hand to stop him from approaching and said quickly:

"Don't come any closer!"

Shi Yu's reaction baffled Hu Zihao. He might have seemed a little agitated just now, but surely not enough to frighten Shi Yu like this.

He had never heard that Shi Yu was timid. On the contrary, Liu Zunfu often said some of the horror novels Shi Yu read were terrifying. He ought to be quite brave. Hu Zihao was about to apologize when he heard something that made his hair stand on end.

Shi Yu looked awful. He seemed to be experiencing immense terror, and his words practically squeezed out through clenched teeth.

"You feel even more terrifying to me now than Liu Zunfu did. I have a feeling something might have its sights on you too. You'd better leave school."

Shi Yu backed away as he spoke, saying:

"I know you might not believe me, but I've experienced this three times since I was little. Liu Zunfu was the fourth."

Hu Zihao was shocked by Shi Yu's words. They made no sense, yet he found himself strangely concerned. Listening to Shi Yu, he felt as though he had plunged into an ice cellar.

"The first three times, as far as I know, every person who gave me that feeling died. Without exception."

"Believe me... You'll believe me."

Shi Yu stared at Hu Zihao. As he spoke, an invisible force spread outward with his gaze.

At that moment, his voice pierced Hu Zihao's spine like an icy spike, inexplicably making him feel as though the world were spinning.

There were many things in the world that happened through the sheerest coincidence.

Like suddenly tripping, or suddenly getting an itchy leg... or, for instance-

Suddenly believing someone's words.

In short, Hu Zihao did not know why, but he felt that what Shi Yu said made a great deal-a very, very great deal-of sense.

It was a strange feeling.

As if they had known each other all along, some of the doubts in Hu Zihao's mind strangely faded as he looked at Shi Yu.

Watching Hu Zihao gradually lower his guard, Shi Yu knew he had achieved his goal.

Hu Zihao had believed him.

So Shi Yu continued:

"And Liu Zunfu has disappeared. You're next... I don't think it'll stop. My instincts... have always been accurate!"

Shi Yu backed up to the classroom's rear door. The other students had gone to the cafeteria to scramble for lunch as soon as class ended. The other roommates were not actually very close to Liu Zunfu, and now only Shi Yu and Hu Zihao remained in the classroom.

Shi Yu opened the rear door. Perhaps the distance between them now and the door he could escape through gave him some sense of security. He let out a breath, collected himself, and said:

"That's all I wanted to say. Anyway, I hope Liu Zunfu is all right too. Maybe that would prove that all those feelings I've had in the past were just my imagination, and I wouldn't have to get scared by them from time to time anymore.

But right now, you'd better protect yourself too. Don't be alone. I won't leave right away. I saw that the class next door still has students on cleaning duty. You can go to the cafeteria with someone accompanying you."

Hu Zihao nodded after listening. His feelings were a complete mess. He did not know why he felt this strange trust in the words of Shi Yu, someone he had barely interacted with. He calmed himself down, and once he had collected himself, he nodded at Shi Yu and said:

"I... am willing to believe you..."

Shi Yu waved a hand and said:

"It's fine. I'm just saying what I think I should say. Like I said, I'd rather be wrong, so everyone can be safe...

I didn't say it when there were lots of people around because... they'd probably think I was crazy... Anyway, let's get going. There are still people from other classes leaving. From now on, you'd better have someone with you. Don't stay anywhere by yourself.

Liu Zunfu's disappearance is very suspicious, but at least the lack of eyewitnesses confirms that he was alone when he... disappeared... Now we just have to wait for the teacher's answer. Hopefully... he's just playing a prank."

As he spoke, Shi Yu walked out of the classroom, never taking his eyes off Hu Zihao. He kept his hand on the door handle, ruling out every possibility. He looked paranoid.

If anyone else were here to see him like this, they'd really think he was mentally ill...

Thinking this, Hu Zihao walked toward the front door. Fortunately, nothing strange happened. When he reached the corridor, a few students who had been cleaning the classroom next door happened to come out, heading downstairs as they chatted and laughed. Hu Zihao gestured to Shi Yu and followed them downstairs.

"...Sigh... Why am I sticking my nose into this...?"

Watching Hu Zihao leave safely, Shi Yu sighed, finally letting go of his anxiety. He gently closed the classroom's rear door, but just as he turned around, he suddenly bumped into something solid.

"Fuck!"

Startled, Shi Yu jerked backward and looked up at what he had just bumped into.

Shi Yu's heart pounded wildly from the fright. That sense of terror had never eased while he was facing Hu Zihao alone in the classroom. He had only just relaxed when another scare hit him, and he felt as if his heart was about to burst.

Only after getting a clear look at what he had bumped into did Shi Yu recover a little.

"What the hell... Han He, when did you get there?"

The "thing" he had just bumped into was his deskmate, Han He.

His classmates' assessment of Han He was:

"A handsome guy you couldn't get a peep out of no matter how hard you tried, with a frighteningly fit body."

Although they were deskmates, Shi Yu only spoke with Han He a tiny bit more than he did with his other classmates. Han He was simply too quiet, and they had only started sitting together after the split into arts and science classes, so they had shared a desk for less than a month.

Fortunately, neither of them had a bad personality, so there had been no friction, and their relationship could probably be considered decent.

Just as Shi Yu thought Han He would brush him off with a few words as usual, Han He spoke:

"I heard everything. From when you called Hu Zihao over."

Shi Yu was a little surprised, but he suppressed it and asked:

"...So?"

Han He looked at him with dark eyes, his tone very level:

"You're not crazy. You're just very special."

"Huh?"

Shi Yu had not expected that response. Honestly, if those words had come from anyone other than Han He, he would definitely have thought they were mocking him.

"Aren't you going to the cafeteria?"

Rather than answer Shi Yu's question, Han He asked a question of his own for the first time ever.

Shi Yu really felt he had been hit with a few too many shocks today. Before he could react, he saw that Han He was still staring at him.

Han He was very tall and had a frighteningly impressive build. Being stared at by him felt oppressive. Helpless, Shi Yu nodded and walked toward him. Han He turned to head downstairs too, and the two went to the cafeteria, one behind the other.

On the way, at the cafeteria, and after they finished eating, Han He did not say another word to Shi Yu except for "See you this afternoon" when they parted to return to their dorm rooms. Yet Shi Yu could feel Han He's gaze on him; he seemed to be sizing him up.

The Han He who had said those two things that morning seemed like an illusion. In any case, the morning that Shi Yu considered a "bloodbath" was over.

What he did not know, however, was that today was the last "ordinary" day of his life.

The world was about to reveal a more hidden side of itself to Shi Yu.

"A hidden atmosphere.

Ordinary people see nothing unusual, but certain apprentices with exceptional powers of observation can faintly sense the power."