Supernatural World Chapter 21: Embrace

Translated by Vivian of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Addis

 

When he thought about what situation he might confront, Finch didn’t care that Cesar had been self-asserting at all, he even thought that it was good that Cesar did that! He wanted to give him a round of applause! He cautiously glanced at Cesar and cleared his throat before saying, “When did you realize something was wrong?”

Wait… hadn’t Chen Jia called the police just then? How could he have made the call? Or were things fine at that time?

Finch hesitated and said, “Was it after Chen Jia made the call?”

Cesar raised an eyebrow and said lightly, “Who knows? Maybe things went wrong after he made the call, or maybe he didn’t make that call at all.”

Finch was terrified and thought, You saying that makes me even more scared! You’re so calm and awesome, but I’m so unnerved when I think about the possibility that there’s a ghost in the same room as me…

Cesar suddenly consoled, “It’s okay, we’re probably not the main target. Moreover… wasn’t it you who wanted to come here to shelter from the rain?”

An arrow seemed to pierce Finch’s heart!

Finch nearly coughed out blood and thought, If you didn’t say that, I would’ve forgotten that it was me who wanted to come. He looked at Cesar, aggrieved, as he had said what should remain unsaid. But then again, he had originally thought that this was some drama between two rich families; Mr. Qi had been killed by a person, but now it seemed that that wasn’t so? He might’ve been killed by a ghost?

Finch asked, “Um… Could it be that a ghost killed Mr. Qi?”

Cesar shook his head.

Finch’s spirits lifted. “It wasn’t a ghost?”

Cesar’s mouth parted in what seemed like a smile but also not. “I meant that I don’t know either.”

Finch was speechless.

Well, that was reassuring.

Finch finally gave up on communicating with Cesar, because his sixth sense told him that he probably won’t be able to get the answers he wanted. On the contrary, he would just be irritated. Finch looked at the only bed in the room and thought that he was going to depend on Cesar to survive, so naturally, he couldn’t let Cesar sleep on the couch. But Finch didn’t want to sleep on the couch either…

He decided to just go lay down on the side of the bed closer to a wall. He then calmly patted the spot on the bed next to him and said as platonically as he could, “You can rest, I promise I won’t bother you.”

Cesar glanced at him in indifference.

Finch’s face heated up at the glance and felt nervous. He had actually thought it through and purposely took the spot next to the wall. Thus, Cesar would sleep on the more exposed side, which made Finch feel especially safe…

But he didn’t want to look too cowardly, so he looked directly at Cesar, his expression as calm as he could make it. After a while, just when Finch thought that Cesar didn’t plan on sleeping on the bed, Cesar suddenly laid down next to him.

He could feel the bed sink slightly next to him, and Finch sighed quietly in relief.

There were suspicious strangers outside, a corpse downstairs, and there might even be a hidden ghost in the room… Finch really wanted to rest, but once he closed his eyes, he felt chilly and couldn’t sleep at all.

Finch shut his eyes tightly, and his arms were placed at his sides.

Even though his eyes were closed, his mind was extremely active, so he couldn’t fall asleep. Finch thought that he might have to go through the entire night like this, but suddenly… Cesar rolled over and his strong arms pulled Finch into his embrace.

A wave of aggression washed over Finch, nearly making his heart stop, but the next instant, it dispersed his uneasiness and fear.

It made him no longer afraid.

“Sleep, I’m here.” Cesar’s deep, magnetic voice sounded from above him.

Finch’s breathing quickened at once, but he did his best to slow it down, pretending that he was already asleep and that he hadn’t heard anything.

This way, he wouldn’t have to confront such a difficult decision.

Finch suddenly fell into a daze, and he didn’t understand why Cesar would do this. While Cesar was always cold and rejected Finch, he still gave him everything in times of need and would protect him and make him feel at ease.

So did Cesar like him or not?

If Cesar did, then why wouldn’t he just accept Finch and forgive him? If he didn’t… then why would he still treat him well and make him hesitating and indecisive?

Finch suddenly realized that he didn’t understand anything.

Finch thought that he wouldn’t be able to fall asleep because of his nervousness and the conflicting emotions in his heart. However, Cesar’s embrace was too warm and too reliable, and it dispersed Finch’s unease… so much so that he ended up falling into a deep sleep.

Not only did he fall asleep, he also slept very soundly.

The next day, when the sunbeams shone into the room, Finch opened his eyes blearily and discovered that his foot was on top of Cesar’s leg, and one of his hands was draped over Cesar’s waist. This position was so intimate… Finch blushed fiercely.

Finch suddenly let go of Cesar in embarrassment.

Cesar’s eyes had been closed, and he slowly opened them. He glanced at Finch calmly, so calm that Finch thought that his own embarrassment was quite ridiculous. Finch coughed awkwardly.

Cesar stood up and changed. He opened the window and glanced outside, frowning. “It’s the next day.”

Finch rubbed his bleary eyes and said in confusion, “So?”

Cesar was silent for a moment and didn’t explain.

An entire night had passed and they were still trapped here, which meant that it was a projection field of at least grade D. If it was just like the type at Wang Feng’s restaurant, then it would usually disappear and return to normal after a few hours.

But for now, the danger was still hidden, making it hard to judge the danger level. If they didn’t get rid of the danger, then none of them could leave.

Cesar looked back at Finch and said one word at a time, “Don’t trust anyone here.”

Finch said earnestly, “I understand!”

Although Finch was only a weak sidekick, he was very self-aware! He would definitely follow the expert closely and listen to what he said. Finch wouldn’t add to the chaos nor would he die; after all, his desire to live was very strong!

Cesar glanced at Finch, was silent for a moment, and suddenly said softly, “I won’t let anything happen to you.”

Finch was surprised. Was Cesar promising him something?

Finch was very touched!

Cesar looked cold, just like a cold-blooded animal, but he actually had a sense of responsibility and would also protect others! The more critical the situation was, the more reliable he seemed, and when Finch recalled what had happened on the cruise ship, he said gratefully, “Thank you.”

Cesar averted his gaze and seemed a little uneasy. After a while, he said, “Let’s go downstairs.”

They had just gone downstairs when they saw Chen Jia walk in from the front door. His expression was of disbelief, no longer calm and steady as he had been before.

He hastily found Qi Zhen and said some things to him in a low voice.

Qi Zhen also looked disbelieving and walked outside with Chen Jia.

Ten minutes later, the two of them returned and gathered everyone. They announced, “We seem to have encountered a strange situation and won’t be able to get out temporarily.”

Ding Xue frowned. “What do you mean we can’t get out?”

Qi Zhen said, “Chen Jia and I have tried already. The gateway can’t be opened, and if we climb over the walls, we get sent back from another place. In other words, we’re trapped here.”

Ling Bai scowled and thought that this was pretty inconceivable, but he didn’t doubt Qi Zhen; after all, who would say such absurd lies?

But Ding Xue didn’t believe him. She glared at Qi Zhen and walked outside, bent on trying it herself.

Soon afterwards, Ding Xue came back with a dark expression, confirming what Qi Zhen had said. She and her mother, Ding Rong, sat down and they both looked worried.

Qi Zhen was clearly also uneasy and didn’t know why something like this would happen. Now, not only couldn’t they get out, they had lost contact with the outside world. He said to Finch, “My apologies… I didn’t think that we would encounter something like this. If I had known earlier, then I wouldn’t have kept you two here last night.”

Finch felt that he was right and thought, Yeah, if you haven’t kept me here then I probably would’ve been able to leave. But in the end, he merely sighed and said, “This isn’t your fault.”

Qi Zhen paused and said in surprise, “You two believe what I said? Why don’t you go out and take a look yourselves?”

Finch thought, What’s there to take a look at? I’ve seen it already just a few days ago! I’m upset, I don’t want to go look!

Soon, Mrs. Qi came downstairs. Qi Zhen whispered some things to her, but her behavior was relatively calm. Her face was still pale and drained of color as she stared directly at Ding Rong, who was in the corner of the room.

Ding Rong was uneasy because of her stare, and her expression was dark.

Ding Xue looked at Mrs. Qi angrily and felt that she was being a little excessive; Mrs. Qi didn’t have any evidence, but she treated Ding Xue’s mother like she was a murderer, and it was impossible to be in the same room as her. Ding Xue said in a low voice to her mother, “Mom, why don’t you go upstairs and rest? I’ll go outside to check on the situation, I refuse to believe that we can’t leave.”

Ding Rong nodded reluctantly.

Ding Xue sent her upstairs and went outside again.

Chen Jia thought for a moment before saying to Qi Zhen, “We can’t just sit here and do nothing… I’ll also go outside and see if there’s any other way to leave.”

Chen Jia followed Ding Xue and left the main hall.

Mrs. Qi sat down for a while, but she was in poor health, she went back upstairs to rest. Only Ling Bai and Qi Zhen were still there. Ling Bai was comforting Qi Zhen by telling him that everything was fine.

Finch said to Cesar, “Should we also go outside and take a look?”

Finch felt that Cesar was like a super bodyguard, and he wasn’t scared no matter where they went. The room was stifling, and Finch couldn’t stay here any longer, so it was probably better to go outside and walk around. They didn’t have any way to leave, but maybe Cesar did.

Cesar nodded and said casually, “Okay.”

Thus, they also headed outside, and right before they passed the front door, Finch’s gaze inadvertently swept past the wall clock. The hands had stopped at eight, and it didn’t move. Finch was taken aback and thought that this was just too big of a coincidence. 

Finch paused before pushing open the front door and going outside.

But everything appeared normal, and everything was quiet.

There were no ghosts that suddenly popped out.

This made Finch gradually relax, and as he walked, he secretly looked at Cesar, who was walking next to him. Finch was filled with curiosity as well as a little trepidation. Just as Finch’s mind began to wander, Cesar suddenly placed his index finger on his lips, motioning for Finch to be quiet.

Finch was taken aback. Then, he heard voices come from near the flowerbed in front of them.

A boy wearing gold-rimmed glasses was standing there, and he was looking helplessly and pamperingly at the pretty girl in front of him. He explained patiently, “That’s not what I meant.”

They were Chen Jia and Ding Xue.

But at this moment, Chen Jia’s pampering expression and bearing, along with Ding Xue’s uneasiness and anxiousness, made it clear that their relationship wasn’t simple. Before, they had clearly seemed to not have anything to do with each other when they were in front of everyone else, but now, they looked like a couple.

Ding Xue was frowning, and she looked angry as she complained, “Do you also suspect that my mom poisoned the food?”

Chen Jia hugged Ding Xue and consoled her, saying gently, “I said that that’s not what I meant. Mrs. Qi was just too sad, which is why she’s having wild thoughts. It was only because Aunt Ding prepared dinner that she would say that.”

Ding Xue accused, “Does that mean that you also think that my mom is the most suspicious?”

Chen Jia said, “This is only a surface level inference, but I believe that Aunt Ding wouldn’t do such an obvious thing. When the police come, they’ll uncover the truth.”

Ding Xue seemed to be a little placated, but she was still a little mad. She kicked a pebble that was next to her feet and said uneasily, “We’re trapped here right now, so when will the police come? Trust me… my mom definitely wouldn’t kill anyone! Especially Uncle Qi, she definitely couldn’t have killed him!”

Chen Jia nodded, “Yes, yes, I believe you.”

However, Ding Xue thought that he was being perfunctory, but she didn’t know what else she could say. She bit her lip and said, “Never mind, I’m going back inside. You can continue searching.”

As she said this, she pushed Chen Jia away and stormed off.

Chen Jia looked at Ding Xue’s receding back and shook his head lightly. Then, he was about to leave, but he suddenly saw Finch and Cesar. He seemed to be surprised, but he calmed down quickly and smiled calmly. “You guys saw that? My apologies.”

Finch was tense. Just then, he had been prepared to quietly slip away, but Cesar had stood there, unmoving.

Since they had already been seen, Finch didn’t move.

He had originally thought that Chen Jia’s reaction would be stronger. After all, he had seemed distant from Ding Xue earlier, so the two of them clearly didn’t want other people knowing about their relationship. However, even after being exposed, Chen Jia was a lot calmer than Finch had expected for him to be, and he wasn’t panicked at all.

This confused Finch, and he realized that he couldn’t see through Chen Jia at all.

Chen Jia smiled. “Ding Xue and I got together not too long ago, so we haven’t told everyone yet. It’s only because we both wanted to be low-profile.”

Cesar smiled thinly and nodded. “You two are a good match.”

Finch was speechless. Now, the thing he admired most about Cesar was his calmness instead of his strength. He seemed like he was just casually talking about the weather.

Was this how shrewd people have conversations?

Compared to them, Finch was practically like a clear stream…

Chen Jia smiled again. “Ding Xue is a really good girl, it’s just that she’s a little too sensitive, and she’s not very good at communicating with others. If she did anything wrong, I hope you two will be a little more understanding about it.”

 Cesar replied, “I understand.”

Chen Jia paused and laughed bitterly. “Say… what do you think about the current situation?”

*****

Ding Xue returned to the villa.

This place with nowhere to go made her feel stifled. Her mother was weak and hard to rely on, and although Chen Jia was her boyfriend, they hadn’t told everyone about their relationship, so it was hard for her to directly rely on Chen Jia in front of others.

She and her mother were only guests here, but now, she felt targeted by Mrs. Qi’s groundless accusations. Even though she pretended she didn’t care, her heart still prickled and was uneasy. She could only rely on her mother here; everyone else was on Qi Zhen’s side! Including those two strangers.

Ding Xue bit her lip and walked into the villa absent-mindedly. Suddenly, she heard a shriek that sounded like Mrs. Qi…

What happened?

Just when Ding Xue rushed into the main hall, she heard some thuds and then a crack. A woman rolled down the stairs and just happened to land at Ding Xue’s feet.

Ding Rong’s right hand was tightly clutching a knife, and she was lying on the floor. Her head was bent at an unnatural ninety-degree angle, and her eyes were still open, her face still covered with fear that had not yet faded.

Ding Xue stood there, stunned.

She looked at her mother’s corpse.

No…

Her pupils suddenly dilated, and she pulled at her hair, screaming!