Ch 7 - Murder!!!

Suddenly, Spectra felt like half his body was ice and the other half fire. Dizziness overwhelmed him as if someone hammered his head.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

His heartbeat pounded like a war drum, merging the streams of ice and fire with each thud.

The freezing and scorching blood intertwined but remained distinct, forming a delicate spiral inside Spectra. Moonlight scattered through the training hall, casting a white cloak over him.

Flushed like a cooked shrimp, he stood before the sandbag, steam rising from his body. Time passed unnoticed.

Ka!

Joints emitted loud sounds, echoing in the room like popping popcorn. Spectra regained consciousness, walking to the sandbag.

Peng!

The sandbag flew, passing the qualification line. Spectra examined his crystallized palm, feeling no pain.

His Strength grew from 0.52 to 0.53, and Vitality from 0.31 to 0.33.

Combining this with Bomber Touch Arts, Spectra felt his skin's durability increase. He approached a rack filled with weapons.

Grabbing a silver dagger, he lightly slashed his hand, feeling like slicing hard leather.

Indeed, the Bomber Touch Arts increased its durability. Spectra tested the force, revealing a small cut at 20 pounds.

Placing the dagger back, he noticed blood emerging from his arm, quickly clotting.

Observing the 24% remaining Potential, Spectra left the training hall.

No one was on the street as he jogged, accustomed to the routine. At almost 10 o'clock, the peaceful street was dimly lit.

Beep! A loud noise came from a dark street. Spectra saw a black antique vehicle approach.

His Potential Bar increased from 23% to 45% as he turned around.

Desperate to stop the car, he dashed in front, arms wide open.

"Fk!" Sidestepping, Spectra chased the vehicle.

"Finish him," a woman’s voice whispered from the car.

Bang! The car door hit him, a black dagger aimed at his stomach.

Grabbing the arm behind the dagger, Spectra punched the door window.

The arm snapped, blood spilling. Simultaneously, he punched the passenger’s head, its face caving in.

Spectra was shocked. So was the person driving.

Wrenching open the door, Spectra saw a young woman's body fall out, disfigured.

Feeling a mix of fear and shock, Spectra stared at the body and the distant car.

"I just killed somebody…" he mumbled.

Scanning the surroundings, he took off running, footsteps echoing.

Rushing home, he dashed into his room without a word.

"Brother, I’ll leave your allowance for next week on the dinner table..." Mira walked out, startled by Spectra's appearance.

The bedroom door shut.

"Spectra’s back? He didn’t shower after his jog?" their mother Betty asked.

"Yeah Spectra, did you exercise again?" Spectra’s stepfather’s voice came from the bedroom.

"Mhm, he seems to be rushed today for some reason. I didn’t even see him before he got back to his room," his mother complained before closing the door again.

Breathing heavily, Spectra tried to calm down. Changing into his bathrobe, he grabbed his uniform, careful not to expose the blood, before walking out.

Boo! Mira stood in front of the door.

Reflexively, Spectra wanted to close the door, but Mira blocked it. In a rush, he threw his bloody clothes under the mattress and sat on the bed.

The room's door shut behind Spectra. Mira entered, her eyes red with suspicion scanning the room.

"What mischief are you up to now?"

"What mischief? I hadn't pulled up my trousers, and I didn't expect you at the door, so I blocked it for a bit." Spectra ran his hands through his hair, massaging his numb scalp.

"That's not true! What's under your bed?" Mira spotted something suspicious and moved closer to Spectra. "Move, I want to see what you're hiding!"

"What are you doing? It's late, stop playing," Spectra frowned.

"Move!" Mira's voice hardened, her suspicion growing.

"Stop it!"

"I said, move!" Mira's voice turned icy. "Looks like you haven't learned from last time…"

Spectra's expression changed slightly. "Last time" referred to a previous incident where Spectra, or rather his past self, had hidden a collection of dirty magazines from Mira, who then found them and punished him. Even though it wasn't him directly, the memory was enough to make him feel ashamed.

But he couldn't let Mira find the clothes under his bed!

Seeing Spectra's silence, Mira's expression darkened further.

"Seems like I'll have to teach you a lesson this time too!" She cracked her knuckles.

"It's not what you think, trust me!" Spectra looked into Mira's eyes. Having just killed someone accidentally, the last thing he wanted was to fight his sister. He feared he might lose control again...

Mira stared back, noticing sincerity in Spectra's eyes instead of embarrassment or anger.

They held each other's gaze for a moment.

Mira breathed a sigh of relief. "Are you sure?"

"I'm sure!" Spectra hurriedly replied. "Apart from this, I'll agree to anything you ask."

"Fine. I'll ask a few questions. If you answer truthfully, I won't bother you about this," Mira paused.

"No problem!"

"Do you like dad?"

"Of course. Easy."

"Do you like mom?"

"Of course."

"Do you like uncle?"

"I do."

"Do you like Ai Fei?"

"I do... Wait, who's Ai Fei?"

Spectra took a deep breath. "Thank goodness I reacted quickly..."

The suppressed palpitations resurfaced. Seeing Mira's expression brighten again, he felt like he had narrowly escaped a disaster. He never expected her to know Ai Fei, the prettiest girl around him.

"Alright... I'll let it go this time. But if you bring those things in here again, don't blame me..." Mira smiled satisfactorily. "Okay, I'll leave now. Get some rest."

"I know, I know. You rest too..." Spectra sighed in relief. "See you tomorrow."

"Yeah, see you tomorrow... or not!" Mira teased, pouncing under the bed in a flash.

Spectra quickly crouched down, reaching for his bundle of clothes.

Mira's vigorous movements pushed the bloodied clothes deeper under the bed, making them harder to reach.

"What's in there? Tell me!" Mira squeezed further under the bed, trying to grab the clothes.

"It's nothing!"

"If I catch you, you're in big trouble!" Spectra held onto Mira's legs as she crawled forward, trying to break free.

Spectra put some weight on her from behind, but he didn't dare to use too much force, just enough to hold her back. Unfortunately, he underestimated her strength; Mira managed to free herself and lunged forward.

Bang!

"Ouch! That hurt..."

Mira hit her forehead on the underside of the bed, recoiling.

Behind her, Spectra suddenly felt stuffy—he was under his sister's skirt.

He found himself inches from round buttocks covered by black pantyhose, even catching a glimpse of white underneath. The fragrance of perfume mixed with sweat wafted into his nose, and he instinctively inhaled.

Both froze.

Mira didn't dare to move, her face flushed red. She could feel Spectra's face against her bottom—he must have seen everything under her skirt.

Spectra's mind was in chaos. The most attractive part of a girl's body was suddenly right in front of him, and he didn't know how to react.

Knock knock knock.

"Are you two done playing? Time to wash up and go to bed! You have class tomorrow!" their father, Eisen, called from the doorway.

Their hearts skipped a beat. If their father saw them like this...

"Yup, almost done!" Spectra snapped out of it and quickly replied.

They waited until their father's footsteps faded before Spectra leaped out from under the bed.

Mira followed, hands covering her buttocks, her face red as she avoided Spectra's gaze.

"I'm going to bed," she mumbled softly before quickly leaving.

Spectra sat on his bed, taking a deep breath. The tension from the earlier encounter oddly calmed his anxiety from the recent event of accidentally killing someone.

There was still a faint scent of Mira in the room. Spectra sat there until the lights in Mira's room went out. He then found a clothes-drying pole and used it to retrieve the bloodied clothes from under the bed, sneaking into the bathroom to wash them.

---

A week later.

"Hey, old man, got anything new? Any good stuff?" Spectra sat by the table, playing with a golden button that supposedly came from the clothes of the famous Agate Queen who lived three hundred years ago.

"New stuff? What new stuff? That burglary wiped me out!" The old man rummaged through the bookshelf. "But I have a book here you might like. Think of it as a reward for helping me through that ordeal."

"What book?"

"You'll see."

The old man continued searching until he found a large black hardcover book at the top of the shelf.

"Here, take it." He handed the book to Spectra.

Spectra wiped the dust off the cover, revealing unknown black text.

He opened the book.

In an instant, Spectra felt a surge of energy flow into him.

"Potential! So much of it!"

He flipped through the pages, absorbing Potential with each turn.

Half an hour later...

Spectra closed the book, sighing.

"Finished?" The old man looked at the cover, a hint of disappointment in his eyes.

"Yeah, done. This is a precious antique!"

"You don't say." The old man seemed relieved. "Alright, I'm closing up early today. You go ahead, I have something to take care of."

Spectra glanced at the sky outside. The sun had set, leaving only a trace of red in the clouds.

"Alright, I'll leave first then. See you tomorrow."

"Beat it, kid!"

"Oh, how's Detective Silvers doing?" Spectra asked before leaving.

"He got injured in an explosion outside the city and is in the hospital now."

"That's too bad. But he's tough, he'll bounce back," Spectra said optimistically.

"Thanks. Now get going, I need to close up."

"Okay." Spectra left the store, carrying his bag.

He checked his Potential: 179%. It had increased significantly, thanks to the book and the encounter with the car that night.

"That book..." Spectra couldn't shake off the feeling that something was off, despite his delight at the increase in Potential.