Chapter 18: The Death of Ye Han

But now isn’t the time for me to dwell on that—I need to hurry to the Student Council building. Perhaps I’ll discover something there! At the same time, I started to send a message to Li Moran. Yet, just as I was about to do so, a thought struck me: if Xinran Ye has left this place, would Li Moran still be here? Hesitating, I decided against sending the message. If Xinran Ye is gone, perhaps the so-called Student Council has vanished as well.

I put away my phone and glanced back at where Han Ye had stood. “Something unclean… a formidable presence.” Remembering Han Ye’s words, could it truly be because of something unclean? When I reached the Student Council building, I found the front doors locked, confirming my suspicions—the Student Council was gone.

Lost in thought, a sudden click came from the door. The door opened! At the sound, my heart skipped a beat. I couldn’t help recalling Han Ye’s talk of something unclean—could it be that the one opening the door was…?

The door creaked open by itself, the noise piercing in the broad daylight, sending chills down my spine. The wider the door swung, the faster my heart pounded. With a bang, the door slammed against the wall, making me flinch. Blinding sunlight illuminated only half the doorway; beyond, there was only darkness.

Suddenly, from within, I heard the sound of footsteps—clack, clack, clack—growing steadily closer. My fear grew with each step, and without realizing it, I started to move backward. Terror clouded my mind, screaming at me to flee, but curiosity rooted me to the spot.

As the footsteps drew nearer, I saw a long, shapely, porcelain-white leg step into the sunlight—and I instantly breathed a sigh of relief. Even from just the leg, I knew who it was. I let out a shaky breath and realized my palms were slick with cold sweat.

Its owner, Ms. Bing Chen, glanced at me with disdain. “Coward,” she scoffed.

I grumbled, “Really, Ms. Chen, must you pretend to be a ghost in broad daylight?”

“I wasn’t pretending to be anything. The only ghost here is in your mind,” she retorted, arms crossed, though her gaze drifted toward the Student Council building.

“I see no ghosts in my heart. But think about it—every door is locked, you walk out from inside… isn’t that enough to frighten anyone?”

“I came down from the roof,” she replied.

That left me momentarily speechless. Forget it, I wouldn’t argue. Instead, I asked, “So, there was nothing inside?”

“Nothing at all,” she said, though a flicker of doubt crossed her face.

“Then… how did you jump down from such a height and stay unscathed?” I couldn’t help but ask.

“Do you really want to know?”

At her question, I nodded.

“All right, I wasn’t supposed to tell you, but since you’re so eager…” She leaned close, her breath warm in my ear, and whispered, “Ninth Division, Ninth Bureau of the National Security Bureau’s Paranormal Affairs Office.”

I stared at her, bewildered. “What’s that?”

“It’s… well, a secret government unit that investigates extraordinary incidents. Like this one,” she explained.

“Sounds impressive,” I muttered.

Ms. Chen arched her brows. “There are far more mysterious organizations out there than you realize. Take what’s happening in this school, for example. We suspect a connection to some secret society, so I was sent to investigate.”

“Why not investigate earlier?”

“You mean six years ago?” I nodded.

Her expression grew grave. “At first, we thought there was nothing serious, so it wasn’t prioritized. Three years ago, we sent two agents, but both vanished without a trace. Just as we started to investigate, the opposition disappeared into thin air. Only when the events resumed this year did we take action again.”

“What have you found so far?” I asked nervously, hoping for good news.

She shook her head. “Nothing significant. But we do have a lead, of sorts.”

“What kind of lead?” I pressed.

“It’s not much, really. But haven’t you noticed? I’ve reviewed what happened here—the previous deaths were all accidental. Only Han Ye’s death was strange. That’s one reason I checked the scene of his death.”

Her words made me realize that I’d paid little attention to Han Ye’s death, distracted by the previous fatalities. As Ms. Chen said, all the others died by accident—except Han Ye.

Why was Han Ye’s death an exception? Could it be that whoever sent the messages couldn’t stage his death as an accident, so they used some other means, some power or unknown factor, to kill him?

No, given the earlier incidents, it’s clear the sender is confident and never acts without certainty. Arrogant, without question.

So, Han Ye died because he discovered something—a discovery that threatened their existence.

Suddenly, I widened my eyes. Ms. Chen must have noticed my shock, for she asked, “Have you figured it out?”

I shook my head. “Not really. I have two questions.”

“Let’s hear them.”

“First, what did Han Ye discover? Second, how did he discover it?”

Ms. Chen nodded. “Those are my questions as well. But to get those answers, we’d need to ask Han Ye himself.”

“No, maybe we don’t need to ask him.” I suddenly remembered everything Han Ye had done on the rooftop—a compass, a cellphone, and an online acquaintance who’d helped him. The compass was smashed—I’d seen it. But that online friend… Han Ye’s phone. Yes, if we checked his phone, perhaps we could find out who that online friend was, or how Han Ye managed to see what he shouldn’t have. Most importantly, maybe his phone captured something crucial.

But where was Han Ye’s phone? If I recalled correctly, Xinran Ye had taken it. That meant…

I quickly pulled out my phone and texted Xinran Ye. Then, thinking texting was too slow, I decided to call her directly.

Just as I was about to dial, a slender, elegant hand pressed my phone down.

“Don’t call.”

“What’s wrong?” I looked at Ms. Chen in confusion.

She shook her head. “It’s gone. Think about it—if you were the culprit, and someone found you out and you killed them, would you be foolish enough to leave the phone behind?”

“But I saw the phone was still there, and Xinran Ye…” I stopped, suddenly recalling that I’d left first, while Xinran Ye had stayed. If the perpetrator wanted to destroy the phone, Xinran Ye would have been in danger!

“I was supposed to meet Xinran Ye last night to hand over the evidence, but I haven’t been able to reach her since last night. The same goes for Li Moran. That’s partly why I went to Han Ye’s death site today.”

This sudden news made me even more anxious. Xinran Ye might really be in trouble!

“To be precise, Xinran Ye is missing. We’ve contacted her superiors, but both Xinran Ye and Li Moran are unreachable.”

I slumped to the ground. If both Xinran Ye and Li Moran disappeared, then Han Ye’s phone must really contain vital clues. Because of this, Xinran Ye and Li Moran were also eliminated?

The thought left me heavy-hearted. Not just because the trail had gone cold, but because over these past few days, I’d come to realize that I had feelings for Xinran Ye.

“But don’t worry. Based on what we know of this secret organization, Xinran Ye and the others are probably still alive. They don’t kill recklessly. Maybe Xinran Ye and Li Moran discovered something and are now in hiding. We’ll keep searching for them.”

She was right. Judging from the pattern of previous deaths, the one who sent the messages never claimed more than one life at a time. I’m certain, too, that this sender isn’t part of some organization, but a force beyond explanation. Even Ms. Chen and her colleagues, formidable as they are, can’t threaten it.

Maybe that’s why I could reassure myself about Xinran Ye’s safety. Even if Han Ye’s phone held crucial evidence, it wouldn’t end this game. At best, it would reveal their presence, not stop what’s happening.

In the end, I realized, the only one who could put an end to this was me. Only by surviving this damned game could I discover the truth.

With that thought, I remembered today’s game. Checking the time, I saw I’d been out long enough and should return to class.

Before going back, I asked Ms. Chen for a favor—something that should be easy for her. She didn’t refuse, perhaps because she recognized my importance in these incidents. Yet, they couldn’t force me to give up any clues. All they could do was assist me while continuing their own investigation into these deaths.