The cool breeze was blowing again, and those clear eyes seemed to plunge her into boundless darkness.

The stark contrast of the black and white eyes clearly reflected the moon and stars, and a deathly pale, twisted face.

Second Turner wanted to scream, but his voice was stuck in his throat.

Because a man had appeared behind Hannah.

Enshrouded in darkness, his face was indiscernible, yet he emanated an extreme sense of danger and oppression.

Like dark clouds rolling toward the shore, blocking out the sun, leaving no sign of life.

Second Turner’s body trembled as if he were truly seeing a ghost, his gaze fixed behind Hannah, "He, he, he..."

He raised his hand to point, but Hannah slapped it with a branch.

As if oblivious, Hannah tapped Second Turner’s face with the branch, her voice sweet, "Apologize."

"Apologize to me, not to him."

Second Turner’s lips turned pale as he shivered, "I’m... I’m sorry."

The alley was still very quiet.

There were many villains in District Nine, and Second Turner was one of the most despicable.

He had done many bad things, but he hadn’t been punished and still lived a good life.

It was just that today, he had encountered Hannah, and the man "behind" her.

Shrill screams echoed through the alley, nearly cutting through the night.

Soon after, a creature resembling a bruised and swollen human scampered out of the alley, still shouting, "Ghosts, there are ghosts!"

Ghosts?

The people in the market took him for a madman.

In the First Year of Stellar, there were still people who believed in such things.

If he wasn’t a madman, then what was he?

The market went on bustling as usual, cheers and applause ringing out from the crowd.

The boy who had been performing acrobatics was getting ready to pack up when he looked down and saw his purse on the ground, paused, then opened it.

Inside wasn’t gold coins.

It was a beautiful blue gemstone.

He scratched his head, recalling an image.

"Did someone lose something?"

*

Hannah walked out of the alley, with an additional "shadow" behind her.

Only when she stepped into the light did she see the "shadow’s" face clearly again.

Handsome and delicate, with deep-set features, it was a strikingly attractive face, and especially those slightly drooping peach blossom eyes held an innately indifferent charm that was nonetheless captivating.

Hannah stared at him for a while, her fingertips twitching slightly.

Compared to just seeing the pair of eyes, she now wanted more.

But she was restrained.

She didn’t speak, and neither did the man, who looked down at her, somehow appearing docile, like a large pet whose fur had been smoothed down.

He had retracted his fangs and claws.

Nothing like when he had taken action moments earlier.

With a wild, untamed rebelliousness, fervent and flamboyant.

"Why do you always follow me?"

She asked bluntly, her eyes filled with the colorful lights of the lanterns.

Gazing at them for too long could dazzle one’s eyes and also confuse the heart.

The man slightly averted his gaze.

His silence didn’t seem like inherent shyness or lack of eloquence, but more like a sense of helplessness and caution.

Hannah patiently watched him, tilting her head to catch a better glimpse of his beautiful eyes, "If you don’t speak, I’ll leave."

As she said it, she really did take two steps back.

Behind her was the crowd, a lively crowd that would make it difficult to find anyone once merged into it.

Finally, the man moved his gaze back and looked at the girl in front of him.

His thin lips parted slightly, and after a few seconds, he spoke again, "I’m worried about you, so I’ve been following you."