A saintess? She's just a bad woman.

Page 168

Now, please open the bookshelf, go to the second-to-last shelf from the top, and open the book "Paradise Lost."

"understood."

Following the instructions in the black book, she found the designated book in the bookshelf and discovered a pale blue envelope tucked inside. Inside was a letter, and a faint, almost imperceptible, smell of blood lingered in the air.

The envelope looked familiar, very much like a love letter I received about two weeks ago. The letter wasn't signed; all that was known was that it was written by a woman. The letter was passionate, expressing a desire to be with Saint Karina forever.

If the love letter hadn't been written in blood, she would have taken it in stride.

In modern times, someone who writes a letter in blood is either a madman or a psychopath. Tucked inside the envelope was a wisp of smooth, black hair, roughly estimated to be the length of which reached his back.

Hair is an important indicator of sex.

At that moment, Santa Karina had no desire to delve any deeper, and she threw the love letter, brimming with a frenzied energy, into the trash can. Getting entangled with abnormal people only leads to more trouble; sometimes, not responding is a form of rejection.

After throwing away the love letter, Santa Karina never received a second one, thinking the matter was over. Now, seeing the delicate, blood-red handwriting, the forgotten memories instantly resurfaced.

"So it was like that back then..."

A few minutes before throwing away the love letter, my finger was pricked by a strand of hair, so it must have been more than a coincidence.

Fate had already secretly arranged everything, whether she wanted it or not.

Is there any way to get rid of her?

No. You've already formed a contract, unless you die. The Love Letter Ghost is the most loyal and hardest to get rid of among the contracted ghosts. Instead of thinking about how to get rid of her, you should develop a closer relationship with her.

"I wish everything that happened today was just a dream."

Santa Karina lay in bed, her hands behind her head, pondering the topic of the relationship between humans and ghosts. She still found it hard to believe what the female ghost and the black book had said. As if sensing her doubts, the black book wrote the name of a website on one of its blank pages.

An unfamiliar webpage; it's suspicious.

Perhaps you should go here to verify whether what I and that girl said is true.

After speaking, the black book closed its cover and lay quietly on the table, seemingly dormant. It had revealed enough information today; Saint Karina didn't press further. She turned on her computer and entered the website address mentioned in the black book. The website was called "Supernatural Revival," and its sections were rather crude, resembling a forum.

This was her first time logging into such a website.

The website shares content entirely related to paranormal events; articles, photos, videos, and other materials all revolve around the word "ghost." Clicking on any article reveals chilling phrases like "ghost killing" and "mysterious death."

Words aren't as convincing as pictures, and Saint Karina, being the kind of person who doesn't believe in superstitions, found an image gallery marked "Horror Level 5" and clicked on it. She used to find videos explaining bizarre murder cases to eat with when she was bored, which earned her the nickname "weirdo" from her classmates.

I've maintained the good habit of watching electronic pickled vegetables to this day, and there's never a day when I feel that the food doesn't taste good.

The five-star photo album opens with an uncensored, bloody scene. Several people, their skin peeled off, are hung upside down under a locust tree, their wrists and ankles chained together.

Blood dripped from the skinned flesh, revealing clearly visible muscle fibers, and pools of blood formed on the ground. The ripped human skin was draped over several plastic mannequins, escalating the level of horror.

"That's scary."

The advantage of high-resolution photos is that they are clear, but the disadvantage is that they are too clear. Compared to the kind of "food-themed" content I've seen before, this set of photos is even more disgusting.

The caption accompanying the image introduces the creator of this "work"—a red-clad ghost with a strong artistic flair. Speaking of red-clad ghosts, the guy who stole my first kiss also seems to have worn a red dress.

Could it be that she did it?

A bone-chilling cold swept over me again, spreading throughout my body.

"I'm sorry, I didn't do those things."

The voice of a female ghost came from behind, flirtatious yet alluring. She was dressed in the clothes prepared by Saint Karina, looking no different from the most beautiful young girls on the streets of Tianying City.

“I just woke up at your school and found you to be quite good-looking. I fell in love with you at first sight and thought I might as well go home with you. As long as you touch that clump of hair, no matter where you run off to, I will be able to find you.”

"Don't talk like you're a perverted stalker..."

The female ghost was in the room just now and watched the entire conversation between Saint Karina and the Black Book. Invisibility and concealing one's presence are among her abilities, and they are very useful.

The first step in surrendering is to introduce yourself. She tossed a lock of black hair aside and recalled the name that no one had called her in a long time.

"First of all, I'm not a pervert. Secondly, I haven't told you my name yet."

The female ghost thought about it carefully for a while before she determined which words it was.

"Ye Shiyu, Ye as in leaf, Shi as in time, Yu as in rain. The day I was born happened to be a rainy day. My father wasn't very educated, so he could only think of a line from a Tang Dynasty poem, 'Good rain knows its season,' and took two characters from it to name me."

"I didn't expect you to be from ancient times."

Saint Karina memorized the name and reinforced her memory by reciting it silently.

So far, the female ghost named Ye Shiyu has not taken any extreme actions other than kissing, which is consistent with the impression her name gives.

The drizzling rain silently nourishes the night, just as she always sneaks out at night to finish all the chores around the house and even cook a big meal.

She wondered if she would receive such treatment again in the future.

A series of ringtones, primarily featuring the percussion of a marimba, interrupted her thoughts; her phone rang in her pocket. The caller ID showed her friend Su Han's name, and Santa Karina swiped to answer.

"Is something wrong?"

"Did you oversleep? You have two Marxist philosophy classes this afternoon. Although they're easy classes, the teacher always takes attendance. I can't call your name for you."

"I'm going to school right away. I'll save you a seat first, and I'll treat you to a Coke after school."

"Then hurry up."

"Ah."

After hanging up the phone, Santa Karina went to the bathroom to wash her face.

The person in the mirror looked terrible, with faint black outlines around their eyes and bloodshot eyes, like a thirsty girl who had been rewarded too many times.

The body temperature dropped slightly, and the skin became a bit lighter than before.

Is it because of the contractual relationship he formed with Ye Shigure?

That possibility cannot be ruled out. It's possible that after he fainted, she did many unspeakable things to him.

Before leaving home, Santa Karina repeatedly checked her private area in the bathroom, and only after finding no damage did she feel relieved enough to go to school. There was a bus stop at the entrance of the residential area, and it only took fifteen minutes to get to the university town.

Although the subway is faster, it takes more time to enter the station, go through security, buy tickets, and wait for the train, making it less convenient than the bus.

Ye Shiyu also got up, but didn't reveal her true form. She had a strange premonition that she had to bring the love letter and the black book. A person's sixth sense can avoid a lot of trouble; she should trust it.

The horrifying scenes depicted in the photos on the mysterious website lingered in his mind. It's always better to be cautious; with the contract in place, Ye Shiyu probably wouldn't harm him.

To avoid being late for class, she rushed downstairs and ran towards the bus stop in the sweltering heat. Just then, bus number 514 pulled into the station, and Santa Karina took out her bus card and tapped it on the card reader.

"There's still time."

There are forty minutes left before class, and a fifteen-minute ride.

At the school gate, a shared bicycle can easily take you to Building 3 in two minutes. As long as the ride takes no more than two minutes, you don't need to pay after returning the bicycle.

Although it was a bit shameful to do this, when she thought about how she was a poor person who had no parents, no relatives to help her, and relied on part-time work to make a living, Saint Karina finally felt no guilt.

Having mentally rehearsed the plan to avoid being late, I simply sat and waited for my stop.

A push notification popped up on the forum app, and my finger just happened to tap on it. The content was a popular post in the paranormal section, published by a user named "10 or even 9 parts scared," who recounted recent paranormal events in Tianying in a very serious tone.

The post was very recent, this morning.

"Just last Sunday night around 10 p.m., a friend of mine finished his part-time job at a late-night snack shop and waited for a long time at the bus stop. The last bus usually comes around 10:50 p.m., but there were no taxis around and he couldn't call a ride-hailing service either."

She asked if I could drive over and pick her up, offering to treat her to a late-night snack. I was celebrating my crush's birthday with my dorm mates at the time, singing karaoke, and couldn't leave immediately, so I politely declined. After sharing a dorm with her for so long, and finally winning her over, how could I let her spend time alone with another woman?

The comments section below the post was filled with complaints that the poster had forgotten her friends because of a pretty face. Some people even analyzed the post and found that the poster was actually a girl, leaving comments like "May you have a long and happy marriage" or "The lilies in my hometown are in full bloom."

The replies were interesting, but not very informative. She continued browsing the posts, trying to avoid irrelevant content.

"My friend complained that I wasn't being a good friend, so I sent her a red envelope as an apology and promised to make time for her tomorrow night. Turns out, that promise turned out to be a curse."

The teacher and parents reported him missing to the police, but he hasn't been found yet.

Several netizens replied asking "What happened?", but the original poster did not reply individually and instead started a new thread to provide further explanation.

"Around 10:30 that night, my friend said he finally got on the bus. I was so happy, and my crush said she wanted to spend the night out with me, so I couldn't control myself and drank a few more drinks. Later, my phone died, and I didn't even check my messages."

Later, the goddess took me to a hotel, and we spent the entire night there—a night I cannot describe. When I woke up, it was already noon the next day.

Saint Karina looked disgusted, suspecting that this person wasn't genuinely interested in sharing paranormal events, but rather wanted to show off their relationship on the forum and boast about having a girlfriend.

This is just as shameful as showing off your European cards.

If this person doesn't post something interesting next, I'll block the post and look at something else. The original poster seemed to realize they shouldn't ramble on about too much irrelevant content, and sure enough, they stopped showing off and finally posted something related to paranormal events.

That evening, another friend told me that my friend had gone missing. I checked her messages and found that she had boarded an old-fashioned bus without a card reader, and although it was late, most of the seats were occupied.

The missing person's friend thought it might be because it was the last bus, and there were a lot of people taking it. There are many companies nearby, and office workers who work the night shift often take this bus home.

Since the day she disappeared, I've received a phone call every night at midnight. The person on the other end cries in a strange voice, "I'm so cold, it's so dark here, can you come and take me back to school?"

That concludes the post for now. The latest post from the original poster is about getting ready for class; more updates will follow later.

The bus arrived at the stop outside the university town, and Santa Karina quickly got off, bought two bottles of Coke at the nearest convenience store, rode a shared Bluegogo bike to Building 3, and returned the bike with just ten seconds left in the two-minute time limit.

Marxist philosophy is a university general education course. In order to save teachers and time, Tianying University usually arranges several classes to be taught at the same time. The large classroom can accommodate four classes of students at the same time. In addition to two classes from the Department of Foreign Languages, there are also two classes from the Department of Chinese Literature.

My best friend Su Han always sits in the last row so he can easily play on his phone during class. Saint Karina also dislikes the front row, as it's easy to make eye contact with the teacher. Sitting in the back, she feels no guilt about not paying attention; she can just scroll through her phone and the class is over.

She really wasn't in the mood to listen to the lectures; she just wanted to get roll call and use the remaining two class periods to clear her mind.

"Here you go, the Coke I promised you."

After putting down her drink and textbooks, Saint Karina sat down next to Su Han and rubbed her temples.

The sun was blazing today; just two minutes outside made me dizzy and lightheaded. I didn't treat myself before bed, and I theoretically got enough sleep, but I just couldn't muster any energy.

Why do you look so sickly? Are you ill?

Su Han touched Saint Karina's forehead with his hand.

Today she was wearing a fitted tank top, shorts, and a loose white shirt. Her short, brown hair, just above her ears, was neatly combed, and she wore ankle boots that cost more than the average college student's monthly food allowance. The clothes looked ordinary, but each item cost a four-figure sum.

She's another little princess spoiled by her parents.

Fortunately, the little princess is a good person. She never discriminates against any class and can be friends with anyone, even getting along with Saint Karina, who is considered an oddball by many.

Saint Karina had a very good impression of her. On the first day of military training, she fainted from heatstroke, and before she collapsed, the first person she saw rushing to help was Su Han. The principle of seeing true friendship in times of trouble applies to any era, and the two became friends from then on.

But some things can't be said too openly, for fear of dragging friends down with them. It's best not to let Su Han know about my affair with Ye Shiyu, the "love letter devil," for now. The more people involved, the harder it is to extricate oneself unscathed.

"No... I stayed up too late last night."

"Are you staying up all night watching those kinds of movies? Last time I found your Edge browser history, it had tons of Asian movies viewed. If you're so lonely, why don't you find a girlfriend?"

"If you think it's me, there's nothing I can do."

Su Han's guess was half right; Saint Karina couldn't think of an excuse. Humans are inherently lustful creatures; it's normal to like looking at beautiful women without clothes.

The remaining half is related to ghosts, which I cannot disclose.

"Class starts in ten minutes, hurry up and drink your beverage!"

She unscrewed the soda bottle to hide her guilty conscience.

A very pretty girl bypassed the first few rows and went specifically to the last row.

Is this seat taken?

The girl spotted the empty seat next to Saint Karina. Saint Karina didn't know how to answer, but Su Han was more proactive, smiling and saying, "No, no, please sit down."

Unsolicited kindness always seems suspicious. The pretty girl had barely sat down when she remembered that the other woman was the Chinese Literature major in the swimsuit from the photos last night.

She is female, and her hobbies are also female. She is considered a top-tier girl in her circle, and female students in school who like the same sex often discuss behind her back how to win her over.

Saint Karina disliked remembering the names of unfamiliar people, and after thinking for a long time, she still couldn't recall her name.

"Hurry up and say hello to them..."

Su Han nudged her back with his elbow, like a matchmaker eager to set up a blind date.

"Hello."

A pretty girl reached out her hand to her.

"I am Xuan Fan from Class 2306 of the Department of Chinese Literature."

"Hello, I am Saint Karina from room 2307 of the Foreign Languages ​​Department."

Introducing herself is a matter of courtesy upon first meeting, and out of consideration for her friend Su Han, she had to muster her energy and enthusiasm. Unplanned socializing offers no benefit; it only increases mental strain.

If it's just two classes... well, I'll just treat it as a chance to see some pretty girls.

After the self-introductions, there was a period of silence. Saint Karina didn't know what to talk about, but luckily class started a few minutes later, saving her from further trouble.

Not talking in class is a basic requirement. Students who want to chat immediately switch to chat software, and those who want to play games play games. There are very few people listening.