Chapter 8 Rui
Rui
“What do you think you’re doing?” Rui asked the tall boy who was kicking the offerings left on the sidewalk near the Night
Market. She had taken a shortcut on her way to the meeting place for her patrol and was passing through the neighborhood.
She didn’t expect to encounter a vandal.
The boy shot her an irritated glare, his dark brown eyes flashing. He reminded her of someone, but she couldn’t put her finger
on it.
“Mind your own business, Darcy.”
“My name isn’t Darcy. Those are offerings. Don’t you have any respect for the dead?”
The boy laughed derisively. “They’re dead. Why would they care about stale rice and old oranges? Don’t tell me you believe in wandering spirits and ghosts and all
that nonsense?”
Rui opened her mouth, decided he wasn’t worth her time, and closed it.
He jerked his chin up at an angle, the corner of his lips curling into an almost sneer. “Go on, run along.”
His expression reminded Rui of another pompous jerk. “You’re Ash’s brother,” she realized.
The boy recoiled. Whether it was out of surprise or something else, Rui wasn’t sure. Song Yiran. That was his name.
Now that she knew who he was, it was clear that Yiran’s resemblance to Ash was more impressionistic than technical. One of
his ears stuck out. Just a fraction. It ruined the symmetry of his face. Still, like Ash, Yiran was remarkably good-looking.
But unlike Ash, who had golden boy written all over him, there was something about Yiran that felt . . . missing. Like a painting left unfinished because the
artist had gotten distracted by a grander idea, or a bonsai tree pruned by an inexpert hand. Whatever it was, it made him
a lesser copy of his older brother.
But both the Song grandsons possessed the air of having been born into money.
Yiran’s blue jeans were carefully constructed to look worn at the knees, and a weathered black leather jacket hung over his light gray hoodie.
Nothing too fancy. But she knew if she turned everything inside out, the tags would be designer.
Yiran wrinkled his nose like he smelled something foul. “How do you know my brother? Are you one of them?”
It took Rui a moment to realize he meant Exorcist. “Not yet. I’m a cadet at Xingshan.”
“Same thing, Darcy.”
Rui had heard stories about the younger grandson of the Head of the Exorcist Guild. Most of them were unpleasant. If this
current attitude was anything to go by, she wouldn’t be surprised if all the rumors were true.
“First of all, my name is Rui. Second, I’d rather be one of them out here protecting people than an arrogant brat disrespecting the dead.” Was it wise
to insult a Song? Probably not. But Rui wasn’t in the mood to care. The visit to her father’s had left her out of sorts, and
the failed simulation test chipped away at her temper.
Yiran rolled his eyes. “Whatever, Darcy.”
Hackles rising, Rui readied another insult.
A deafening siren blared.
Yiran covered his ears.
“It’s a Night Hunt. The Exorcists are hunting Revenants,” Rui shouted above the noise.
“I know what a Night Hunt is,” Yiran said with unconcealed scorn. He walked off without another word.
Jerk. Rui jogged in the other direction. She couldn’t wait to complain to Ada about Ash’s bratty kid brother. Hopefully, she’d never
have to set eyes on him again.
The siren continued for another minute before silencing.
It was weird that a Night Hunt would be held so close to the cadets’ patrol route.
Since the cadets were still in training, the two routes never crossed.
But the sirens covered a large area. Maybe the Hunt wasn’t taking place anywhere near the route itself.
Rui checked her weapons and talismans, making sure they were secured and within easy reach. Zizi’s special talisman was tucked
inside the inner pocket of her coat. A secret, much like everything else they shared. She hadn’t thought about how to successfully
test it, but it was something for future Rui to figure out. She had told Zizi she would do it, and she needed the money for
her father’s debts.
The meeting place was empty, the row of eateries were closed, and the area was deserted. Rui stared at a sign outside Gojo’s
Café listing the many flavors of bubble tea, wondering if her father had eaten the simple dinner she’d cooked for him before
leaving the apartment.
Pacing down the street, she buttoned her coat, wishing she’d thought to bring a scarf. The night was unusually chilly for
autumn, and the sounds of the Night Market seemed far away. The disquiet she had been feeling all day grew.
Four years. Four. Si. It sounded like death.
Gods. She shook her head. She was being superstitious.
Ten minutes went by, and no cadet showed up. There was no sign of the Exorcist mentor assigned to the team tonight either.
Rui pulled out her phone and tapped the screen. “Pick up, Ada,” she groaned after the tenth ring.
Finally, a voice groggy with sleep mumbled, “Hello?”
“You’re sleeping? Why aren’t you here for the patrol?”
“I was taking a nap. The patrol’s been called off—didn’t you know? I thought you’d come back to campus from your dad’s.” Ada
sounded wide awake now. “They called a Night Hunt out of the blue, and the territory extends to Tangren Quarter, so they ordered
our patrol group to stay back on campus. Some strange Revenant is running wild. Didn’t you get the message?”
Rui’s heart skipped a beat. “Strange Revenant? Is it a Hybrid?”
There was a slight pause on Ada’s side. “I think they meant it was a stronger Revenant or something. You’re not thinking of going after it yourself, are you?”
Rui didn’t reply.
“You have to come back,” Ada said. “All cadets must be inside the dorms. You can’t defy orders. What time is it—we’ve roll call in less than an hour.”
Rui cursed. “I’m on my way.”
She hung up and opened Apparition—the Academy’s app for communication. With everything that was happening at her father’s,
she’d forgotten to check it. Sure enough, there was a message repeating what Ada had said.
There was also a text from Zizi.
Sushi was great but I ordered waaaay too much as usual. Wish you stayed to help.
The text ended with a GIF of a ghost bearing a resemblance to the earrings she’d gifted him. A tiny word bubble appeared at
its mouth with one word: boo. Zizi must have meant it when he said he enjoyed her cantankerous company.
Or maybe he’s just weird, her brain pointed out. Both could be true, her heart argued. Stop thinking about him, she chided herself. This was no time to ponder what Zizi might or might not have meant. She had to get back to the Academy.
As she turned, a distinctive smell wafted in the air, like flowery perfume mixed with something rotting. Her hands went to
her sword bag.
A Revenant was in the area.
Miasma pressed down, growing heavier by the second. Rui knew she had to leave, but her feet moved toward the scent. The Revenant
was too near to the Night Market where the crowd was, and she didn’t know if they’d evacuated yet. There was no sign of the
Exorcists. What if they were late?
Some strange Revenant is running wild. . . .
What if it really was a Hybrid? What if it was him? She was near the scene of her mother’s murder exactly four years ago. . . . It felt like too much of a coincidence.
Rui made up her mind. She had her talismans and her weapons. She would get to the Revenant first, she would kill it before—
A scream ripped the night apart.