Volume One, Chapter Ten: My Family Is Rather Strange

“Don’t worry about it. We’ve seen all kinds of things—we won’t be upset,” Sun Yueyue said nonchalantly, waving her hand.

“Alright then, follow me,” Montage finally agreed, seeing their insistence.

The three of them weaved through the dim alleyways, twisting and turning through countless narrow lanes before finally arriving at Montage’s home.

It was a dilapidated little courtyard, so rundown it didn’t even have a proper front gate. Most of the low mud wall had collapsed, and someone had blocked the breach with tree branches.

“This… is your house?” Sun Yueyue asked in astonishment as she took in the scene.

She simply couldn’t imagine that in this day and age, such rundown homes still existed.

“It’s a bit shabby, but please don’t mind. Come in,” Montage called them inside.

“My family might already be asleep, so let’s keep our voices down. Have a seat, I’ll get you some water.”

“No need, really. We’ll just sit for a moment and leave,” Sun Yueyue hurriedly declined.

Montage was about to say something else when his gaze suddenly shifted to the space behind Sun Yueyue. “Tiantian, why aren’t you asleep yet?”

Sun Yueyue and Wang Meng quickly turned around, looking behind themselves—there was nothing there.

They turned back to Montage with puzzled eyes, waiting for him to explain.

“Mom, Dad, you’re still up? Grandpa, why are you burrowing into the dirt again?” Montage suddenly turned to another spot in the room.

The two exchanged glances, bewilderment mirrored in their eyes.

“What’s going on?” Sun Yueyue whispered.

“I have no idea, did you see anyone?” Wang Meng was completely baffled.

“Of course not! If I’d seen someone, would I be asking you?” Sun Yueyue replied, exasperated.

As the two whispered, they saw Montage walk over to an empty patch of ground and fumble around for a while. Then, he picked up a ginseng root tied with a red string.

“You’re all dirty again, Grandpa. I’ll have to wash you—can’t you stay out of the dirt?” Montage muttered as he wiped the ginseng root clean.

“Sorry, my grandpa has a bit of dementia. He’s always burrowing into the soil. I need to clean him up first,” Montage said apologetically to the two.

“What?”

“Oh, it’s fine. You take care of that—we’ll head out now that you’re home,” Wang Meng was about to say more but was quickly pulled away by Sun Yueyue.

“Why are you dragging me? Is there something wrong with him?” Wang Meng tapped his temple meaningfully.

“What a sweet kid—he was fine earlier, but as soon as he got home he lost it,” Sun Yueyue sighed.

“Honestly, that look he had just now, I almost thought we’d seen a ghost.”

“Don’t say that, it’s giving me the creeps.”

“Let’s go. When we’re back, let’s tell the captain that the kid might have mental issues. Best hold off on bringing him in for now,” Wang Meng said, grabbing Sun Yueyue’s shoulder and instantly returning them both to their car.

After the two left, five silhouettes appeared on the rooftop of an abandoned building.

“Should we kill them?” asked a pair of lovers, hand in hand.

“No need to complicate things. We’ll wait until after the full moon. By the way, have you finished investigating the cathedral? Did something happen to Nine-Face?” The pregnant old lady turned and asked.

“Most likely dead—not even a trace of spiritual resonance left,” said a pink-haired girl, casually flicking her black nails.

“Nine-Face was strong. For someone to kill it silently—could there be some new powerful being here?” asked a small old man with a red scarf, trembling.

“I don’t think so. There’s only us in this place. If some higher being had come, they wouldn’t have killed Nine-Face and left us alone,” the pink-haired girl shook her head.

“That’s enough. Everyone, be careful and don’t cause any more trouble. We’ll wait until after the full moon,” said the old lady, her figure vanishing instantly.

The others followed suit, fading away. Only the pink-haired girl lingered, a mocking smile on her lips as she gazed in their direction, before melting into the darkness herself.

Back at the little courtyard, the group from the rooftop appeared out of thin air.

“Snap!” The pink-haired girl flicked her fingers, and the scenery around them rippled and warped slightly.

“You brat! You finally decide to come home? Do you know what time it is?” The small old man with the red scarf grabbed Montage by the ear, scolding him furiously.

“Ow! Grandpa, let go—let go! It hurts!” Montage pleaded, clutching his ear.

“Hee hee! Brother, back so late—were you out on a date? When will you bring her home for us to meet?” The pink-haired girl bounced over, looping her arm around Montage’s.

“Hmph! More and more unruly. Have you forgotten what I always tell you?” The pregnant old lady tapped her cane forcefully, snorting coldly.

“Grandma, I know I was wrong. You don’t know—the mist came early this time, I almost couldn’t make it back,” Montage hurried to Grandma’s side, playing up his hardship. He knew she was the only one whose words carried weight, so whenever he got in trouble, he’d always seek her protection.

“You got caught in the mist?” The family exchanged glances, concern in their eyes.

“When the mist first rose, I tried to get to the shelter, but on the way I ran into a monster. It was pitch black, faceless. I just locked eyes with it and blacked out. When I woke up—guess what I saw? Ouch…” Montage was about to leave them hanging when Grandma knocked him on the head with her cane.

“Is this the time for suspense? Tell me everything that happened tonight, and if you dare hide anything, I’ll break your legs,” she warned coldly.

“Alright, after I woke up I found myself in the cathedral—the one on the next street. I was about to run when I saw the murals move, and a monster with nine faces crawled out. What’s more, I saw Uncle Wang and Aunt Wang’s faces on it. The monster made them bite me—it scared me to death,” Montage complained.

“How did you escape?” Grandma grabbed his arm, pressing him for details.

“I…” Montage nearly mentioned the Demon Tree but caught himself—his family were just ordinary people, best not to worry them. He changed his story on the spot.

“When the monster bit me, I passed out. I think it was the Guardians who rescued me—the two you saw earlier were their members,” Montage recounted, omitting the crucial details.

Anyway, his family was unlikely to cross-check with the Guardians, so he wasn’t worried about being exposed.

“The Guardians, huh?” Grandma murmured, eyes glinting.

“Ahem, it’s late. You should get some sleep—you have exams tomorrow,” Montage’s father coughed, quickly changing the subject.

“Oh…” Montage replied, disgruntled. He felt his family was acting strangely tonight. Not a single person asked if he was hurt—he was the only one left feeling wounded.