2025-01-07 02:48:56“Sir, give me five minutes, and I’ll prepare the list for you,” Hendrix said. True to his word, he returned a few moments later with a sheet of paper in hand.
“Based on the criteria you mentioned, all these places are in rural areas along the border of Cammont,” the butler said as he handed the paper over with both hands. “Thanks, man,” Marc replied, his eyes quickly scanning the names on the list. As he did, the butler spoke again. “Sir, if you’re looking for accommodations, I can arrange a room at the finest hotel for you.” The Richmond family had partnerships with the owners of the best hotels in the city. Finding a place for Marc was hardly a challenge for Hendrix, even if the young man intended to stay for an extended period. Marc shook his head weakly and smiled without taking his eyes off the paper. From his relaxed expression, it seemed he wasn’t particularly interested in the listed locations. “Sir, forgive me for including the last location. I should have removed it,” Hendrix said, noticing that Marc had lingered on the last name on the list longer than the others. “No, actually, I wouldn’t have remembered this place if you hadn’t included it,” Marc replied, looking up with a bright expression. “But, sir…” Hendrix hesitated, realizing Marc might not be aware of the true nature of the place. “If I may suggest, you’d be better off choosing another location.” Marc smiled faintly and turned away. “I’ll choose this one.” Hendrix watched Marc’s back as he walked away, a worried expression on his face. While Marc was highly skilled in medicine and inner strength, the place he was heading to was something else entirely. “May you be protected, Sir,” Hendrix prayed silently. If it weren’t Marc, he would never have allowed anyone to venture into the haunted area. *** Marc had been walking for nearly two hours when he looked up and saw a large sign at the crossroads ahead of him. It read: Greencliff. “It should be just past this forest, right?” Marc muttered to himself as he continued walking with enthusiasm. Following the unpaved road, he saw many pine trees on either side, just as he remembered from before. Greencliff was a small, quiet village. Most of its inhabitants were farmers and ranchers. Ten years ago, before Marc was sent to Helma’s place, he had visited this village once. Unlike Cammont, Greencliff had clean, fresh air, and the river water flowing in front of the houses was crystal clear. Back then, Marc was so captivated by the village’s atmosphere that he thought about living there someday. Unexpectedly, his childhood dream seemed on the verge of coming true today. Ten minutes later, Marc reached the edge of the forest. But the smile on his lips quickly faded, replaced by shock. “What?” Marc walked faster, glancing to his left and right. He saw the same houses and buildings he remembered, but all of them were abandoned. The sight was the same throughout the village. He hadn’t seen or encountered a single person, as if the entire village had been deliberately deserted. Marc kept walking, disbelief etched on his face. In just ten years, everything looked so different. Now he understood why Hendrix had been so insistent that he choose another place. Unknowingly, Marc had reached the edge of the village. Beyond this point, there would be nothing but a large forest. That’s when his gaze fell on a large four-story apartment building not far ahead. In stark contrast to its surroundings, the building looked clean and well-maintained, even from a distance. Marc frowned. Did that mean someone was living there? Driven by suspicion and curiosity, Marc continued walking. But before he reached the building, the gate in front of it creaked and swung open on its own. As he stepped into the lobby, he saw no vehicles in the parking lot and no people around. “Excuse me, is there anyone here I can speak to?” Marc called out, standing by the front desk, hoping for a response. “What are you thinking, coming here?” suddenly spoke the cold voice of a girl from behind him. When he turned, he saw a girl with long black hair wearing a white robe. She was beautiful, but her expression was icy. “Leave. This isn’t a place where you’ll find what you’re looking for.” “I saw this apartment was available, so I came here,” Marc replied calmly. Yet, beneath his composed demeanor, the girl’s sudden appearance only heightened his suspicions. If everyone had left the village, why was this girl still here? That alone convinced Marc that something must have happened to this village, and he needed to find out what. “All the apartments have been rented. There’s nothing available,” the girl said curtly. Marc smirked. “Then what about that?” He pointed at a cluster of keys hanging on a large board next to the front desk. It should have been empty if all the apartments were occupied. “Are you stupid or deaf? Leave now before you regret it.” The girl crossed her arms, her icy face growing angry. “You expect me to come all this way just to leave empty-handed?” Marc walked over to the board and grabbed a key. “No way.” He placed three hundred-dollar bills on the desk and walked off casually, ignoring the girl. “You…” The girl clenched her fists in frustration as Marc disregarded her. “You’ll regret this decision!” Moments later, Marc was inside the apartment. He removed the sling bag from his shoulder. Aside from an old black cloth pouch, he hadn’t brought anything else. “I wonder what Helma left for me,” he murmured. Ever since the master healer had given him the pouch two months ago, Marc had never opened it. With swift hands, he untied the pouch and pulled out a wooden box with intricate carvings. Inside, he found an old phone and a pink card. “You could’ve gotten me a better phone,” he said, brushing past the phone and picking up the pink card instead. At first glance, there was nothing special about the card except its slightly odd color for a man Marc’s age. He flipped it over and found nothing remarkable until he brought it closer. An ordinary person wouldn’t have noticed, but Marc, with his heightened vision, could see faint transparent digits on the back of the card. “Eleven… twelve!” Marc’s face tensed. It was a number one followed by twelve zeroes. That was one trillion dollars! With that amount, Marc could buy anything he wanted.“Helma, you’re incredibly generous!” Marc exclaimed, unable to contain his excitement. He hadn’t expected the woman to leave all her wealth to him.
His gaze shifted to the old phone. With this much money, getting a better one wouldn’t be an issue, right?
After powering it on, the screen looked like any ordinary phone. But a folder named “For Marc” caught his attention.
He opened the folder, and a voice recording played.
"Hey, lazy boy, listen carefully." The voice of a young woman—melodious yet stern—echoed through the speaker.
"I'm too busy to continue my duties as a healer. By the time you hear this message, I will have already left this village."
Marc’s face turned somber. Now he understood why his master had suddenly disappeared two months ago.
"From now on, you’ll be my heir, finishing the small tasks I left behind. Stop whining and do a good job for me."
Although Helma sounded harsh, she had treated Marc like her own family.
When Marc opened the memo containing all the tasks, his eyes widened. There was a long list of patients he needed to treat.
“Helma, you call this ‘a few small tasks’?!” he muttered in frustration. As per Helma’s instructions, he had to visit everyone on the list. “You really know how to make my life difficult.”
The earliest appointment was three days away. “Well, at least I’ve got some time to rest,” he said. Having soaked in a waterfall for seven days straight, Marc felt exhausted. He lay on the bed, his thoughts momentarily distracted from the mystery surrounding the village. But at midnight, precisely when the clock struck twelve, a disheveled man with a horrifying face and long hair covering his features stood at Marc’s apartment door, his filthy hand reaching for the doorknob.
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