8mi Chapter 1 The Church
Chapter 1 The Church
The sky was dim, covered by dark clouds.
A misty fog blanketed the desolate land, stretching as far as the eye could see.
A massive, ancient, and weathered black stone monument stands.
—"Beep beep! Beep beep!"—
The alarm clock vibrated in his ear with short, sharp sounds, and Lin Ye, lying in bed, gradually became conscious.
He propped himself up and rubbed his head, which was feeling a bit throbbing.
"Was that just a dream?"
I sat down on the edge of the bed, casually pressed the alarm switch that showed 20:00, and looked around the unfamiliar room in front of me.
The room was small, with a grid-like ceiling, and the aisle beside the bed was only wide enough for two people to stand in at the same time.
To the right, next to the bed, under the window, there is a desk with an old, yellowed CRT computer screen that is black.
The door at the foot of the bed was tightly closed, with the old-fashioned round brass handle worn smooth and shiny.
"Am I not challenging Ozaki's ultimate trust in the Eight Principles?"
As he regained some clarity, he recalled the moment he sank to the bottom of the water.
The azure sky filled his eyes, a sense of vastness and relaxation he had never experienced before, as if everything was drifting away from him.
The thought had barely crossed my mind when, as if a switch had been flipped, a dull ache shot through the back of my head, and blurry fragments of memory flooded my mind.
After a while, he gently massaged his temples.
"So, it turns out they just hit the jackpot."
He looked up and gazed out the window.
"The Liya Federation's planet is more than three times larger."
"The technological level is already equivalent to the 21st century, but the various provinces within the federation tend to be quite independent and self-reliant."
With a "whoosh," the desk drawer was pulled open, and a student ID was taken out.
Coastal University, Department of Pharmacy – Lin Ye.
The one-inch photo in the upper right corner shows a handsome young man.
"A twenty-year-old's body is so full of energy."
"You've just lost a bit of weight."
I put my student ID back, got up and sat down at my desk. Next to the large computer was a calendar.
Friday, June 30, 2028 (Federal Calendar).
The last day before the summer vacation of my junior year.
His fingers tapped unconsciously on the table; his thoughts were a bit jumbled. Moonlight streamed in through the window, casting a layer of dappled light.
Just then, he suddenly looked up and focused his attention on the door, where he could faintly hear a young woman's voice.
"Mom, so many people are eyeing this trainee opportunity at the Tieqin Group, just waiting for me to fail!"
"I don't want to take Ono's 60,000 yen tuition fee, but how can I turn things around if I miss this opportunity?"
"I'm not unaware! I'm perfectly clear-headed!"
"How many opportunities like this do ordinary families like ours have in a lifetime?"
"Mom, that's the Tieqin Group! So many people would kill for that!"
"I won't be satisfied until I try!"
"And then there's Ono. Getting a job at the company costs money, getting married costs money, buying a car and a house costs money. Even if we get through this semester, what about next semester? And what about after that?"
"Do we really have to wait until Ono is thirty to talk about marriage? Is that too late?"
"But if I'm selected this time, then I won't have to worry. Even if Ono doesn't work in the future, I can make arrangements for her."
"Mom, to tell you the truth, I've already taken out a loan of 100,000."
"I have no way out, and I don't want to retreat any further!"
After he finished speaking, silence fell outside the door.
Lin Ye couldn't help but look up as he listened to what his "older sister" Lin Yu said.
This world is different from the previous one; university expenses are extremely high.
The family was supporting two college students. The compensation money from the death of the father at sea had long been used up, and the family relied entirely on the mother's savings from her early years.
Moreover, his older sister was a top student at Tieqin University, and her expenses were even greater than his. He only managed to catch his breath after graduating this year.
However, his tuition for the first semester of his senior year was raised by his mother selling her wedding jewelry.
"Iron Piano Group..."
He recalled the relevant information; it seemed to be a leading enterprise group in Tieqin City, a nearby first-tier city.
Its power is immense; the fact that even the city is named after the group speaks volumes.
If I can become an internal trainee at Tieqin Group, I will most likely become a senior executive in the group in the future.
Compared to now, it's definitely a leap across social classes; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it changed one's fate.
The assessment for internal trainees is very difficult, extremely difficult.
During the three-month internship, you must achieve outstanding results.
"Knock knock knock!"
The sound of hurried footsteps faded into the distance, followed by the sound of the door opening.
"Mom, don't worry, even if it doesn't work out, I'll get some more money before school starts!"
"This money is enough for you and Ono to live comfortably!"
"Bang!"
The loud slam of the door slammed so hard that even Lin Ye, sitting in the room, felt the room shake.
After a moment of silence, he stood up, went to the door, and grasped the brass handle.
The slightly cool and sticky sensation told him that everything happening before his eyes was real.
Suddenly, he felt somewhat lost and at a loss.
"Mother...Sister..."
"Click—"
With a click of the handle turning, the door opened.
The moment the door opened, the surrounding noise suddenly fell silent, and the faint candlelight shone in from outside.
A jolt of surprise shot through me, and the confusion in my eyes quickly faded, replaced by caution and aggression as I became aware of my surroundings.
In front of him, the dilapidated medieval church appeared extremely empty, and he seemed to be on the second floor.
The church dome features paintings made of agate.
It depicts angels falling to earth and the fires of hell burning towards heaven.
Although it was mostly damaged, there were marks everywhere from being chopped by sharp weapons.
But one can still sense the former luxury from those broken gemstone materials.
"Bang."
With a push of his arm, he closed the dark brown wooden door.
"Click—"
The door opened again, but the surrounding environment remained unchanged; there was not even a slight sense of air movement.
A row of brass candlesticks hangs along the corridor outside the door, and at the far left end of the corridor is a large wooden spiral staircase leading down to the first floor.
Looking back, the original room had disappeared, replaced by an old-fashioned Western-style bedroom with a musty smell.
The layout was similar to his room, only much larger.
The furniture, along with the flooring, is made of a golden-brown wood with a subtle, luxurious, yet somewhat cold appearance.
The most eye-catching thing is an oil painting above the headboard, about a meter long, with extremely vibrant colors.
Before he could take a closer look, he heard a faint noise coming from outside the door.
Looking back at the staircase, the moment I saw it clearly, a tingling, cool sensation ran from the top of my tailbone to my scalp.
He turned his head, his throat bobbed, his eyelashes trembled slightly, and his black pupils were fully exposed.
He glanced around, then suddenly lunged forward, swiftly and gently crawling under the bed. The air currents stirred up dust, and a strong musty smell filled his nostrils.
"Pat-pat," "Pat-pat."
A dull thud, like a hand slapping against a wooden crate, gradually approached from the corridor.
Each thud resonated with my heartbeat, creating a strange sense of pressure.
"Squeak~"
The door rattled slightly, making a grating sound, accompanied by a rustling friction, as something crawled inside.
Lin Ye remained motionless, pressed close to the bottom of the bed, his eyes fixed on the seam outside.
"Clatter!"
A withered, black arm suddenly fell outside the crack in the bed, stirring up a thin stream of air, carrying with it the smell of decay.
Lin Ye's pupils contracted slightly; this was definitely not a human hand!