Forcibly ejected, the female ghost hovered above their heads. She gnawed her lip in frustration, then shot towards Peter, who, among the group, looked the most harmless.
Peter felt a wave of dizziness, his body gradually becoming unresponsive to his commands.
After successfully entering Peter's body, the ghost was just about to take control when she looked up—and saw dense swarms of spiders staring right back at her in unison.
The Ghost: "..."
Why are there so many spiders inside this man's body? My trypophobia is kicking in!
As the spiders slowly advanced towards her, the ghost let out a terrified shriek and practically scrambled head over heels out of Peter's body.
Peter stumbled, about to fall, but Wanda, quick as always, caught him and held him steady.
Undeterred by this failure, the ghost dodged Ryan's attempt to grab her and zipped straight into Pietro's body.
To Pietro's perception, the ghost moved with the speed of a crawling turtle. The only reason he hadn't stopped her from entering his body was simple curiosity.
He wanted to see what being possessed felt like.
To his disappointment, however, the ghost didn't even last a full second inside him.
In Pietro's consciousness, everything seemed to move in slow motion. He was accustomed to this perspective, but the ghost certainly wasn't.
The moment she registered the bizarre, slow-motion reality within him, she immediately fled Pietro's body.
Her gaze then shifted to Wanda. Steadying Peter, Wanda noticed the ghost's attention, looked up, and offered her a slight, knowing smile.
The ghost instantly shivered.
Her intuition screamed: This woman is not to be messed with.
Finally, her eyes landed on the only remaining target who looked about as naive and harmless as Peter: Abel.
She lunged fiercely at the unprepared Abel, and this time, she succeeded.
A cold smirk spread across Abel's face. The ghost snatched the dagger from Ryan's hand and pressed it to Abel's own neck.
"Don't move!" she threatened coldly. "Take me to that woman, or else I'll—"
Ryan, still reeling from the bombshell Abel had dropped earlier, heard the threat and responded without a shred of hesitation. "It's fine. Go ahead and kill him."
The Ghost: "..."
Apparently worried the ghost might botch the job, Ryan even helpfully pointed to Abel's neck. "Stab right here. Quick, clean kill. Very convenient."
"..." The ghost felt her composure cracking. These people are all complete psychopaths!
Suddenly, Ryan seemed to realize something and quickly shouted, "Wait! Don't do it yet!"
The ghost thought he'd had a change of heart, her spirits lifting.
But Ryan continued, "Let me just step back first so I don't get splattered with blood."
"..." The ghost was done. She didn't want to play this game anymore.
Just as she decided to abandon Abel's body and go find the person herself, Peter spoke up, his expression suddenly serious. "Alright, playtime's over." He frowned. "We need to head back, quickly. Kusuo just sent a message. Something happened back at the lounge."
Instantly, the casual, almost careless expressions vanished from their faces. As one, they turned and started running back towards the hotel.
Since the ghost needed to find someone anyway, she decided to remain in Abel's body and follow along.
Halfway back, Wanda suddenly posed a question that brought everyone to a stunned halt.
"Speaking of which... why did we come out here in the first place?"
The Group: "..."
The Ghost (in Abel): "???"
(Scene change: Back with Saiki Kusuo in the lounge)
While Saiki had been mentally communicating with Wanda, he'd missed the specifics of Joan and Julian's conversation, only noticing when Lin abruptly inserted herself between them.
Lin was the type who bullied those she perceived as weak but whimpered pitifully before anyone intimidating. Towards Joan and Julian, fellow women she didn't fear, she came out swinging.
"Joan," she called out, cutting off their conversation. "Whether you want to play the loyal companion or just overestimate yourself and get killed is your business. But let me give you a piece of advice: leave me out of it. I have zero interest in your attempts at heroics."
(It turned out Joan had been expressing concern that Pietro's group had been gone too long and might be in danger, trying to convince the others to go look for them—though her true objective was something else entirely. Lin, wanting to stay put, had naturally objected and issued her warning.)
Normally, Joan might have laughed off Lin's comments or perhaps complained mildly later, always avoiding direct confrontation. But now, apparently believing anyone who posed a real threat to her was gone, Joan felt no further need for pretense.
She crossed her arms, a cold smirk playing on her lips. "I'm afraid that's not up to you. We have to go out now."
"Go out?" Lin scoffed, still oblivious to the shift in Joan and the imminent danger. "In your dreams!"
Her haughty arrogance evaporated the very next second. Joan, from seemingly nowhere, produced a handgun and aimed it squarely at Lin.
Joan chambered a round, her smile turning provocative. "You think I'm dreaming?"
Though terrified and visibly shaking, Lin tried desperately to maintain her dignity, bluffing, "Who do you think you're scaring with a toy gun?" She couldn't believe the timid, mouse-like Joan she knew would possess such a dangerous weapon.
Her disbelief lasted only until Joan fired a single shot towards the ceiling. The loud BANG terrified the rapper and Julian, and sent Lin collapsing onto the floor in shock.
Looking down at Lin, who had gone limp where she sat, Joan smirked again. "Still think I'm bluffing?"
Lin's lips trembled, too scared to utter a word.
Joan then turned her vicious glare on the others. "All of you, get up! Single file, line up and head out the door. Anyone tries any funny business or makes a run for it, I'll kill you!"
Under Joan's armed threat, the four captives—Saiki, the rapper, Lin, and Julian—shuffled out of the lounge one by one.
Saiki took the opportunity to discreetly contact Peter, then resumed his facade of being coerced, following the route Joan dictated.
They descended to the hotel's first floor and approached the reception desk. Joan ran her hand along the counter's surface. With a low rumble, a section slid open, revealing a dark opening. A secret door.
Joan gestured with the gun. "Everyone inside."
The passage was pitch black, its depths hidden. No one knew what lay within. The group hesitated. The rapper started to say something but was instantly silenced by Joan's sharp, warning glare.
"Cut the crap," Joan snapped at him. "Get in there now, or I'll shoot off your 'third leg'."
The rapper clutched frantically at his groin, stumbling into the darkness in panic. Julian followed nervously, then Lin, then Saiki, with Joan bringing up the rear.
It was utterly dark inside, and it took a few moments for their eyes to adjust. Fear kept everyone subdued; no one dared attempt escape or resistance. Prodded by Joan's threats, they walked slowly forward into the passage. After about five minutes, the rapper, leading the way, felt his hands touch a solid surface – a door.
Joan seemed very familiar with the layout. As soon as the rapper stopped, she instructed, "Your hand, slightly to the right. There's a switch there. Press it."
The rapper obeyed. The door clicked open.
Blinding light flooded the passage, forcing everyone to squint or shield their eyes. Saiki, half-closing his eyes, adjusted quickly.
He saw that they had entered a vast, empty secret room. And in the far corner, bound tightly to chairs, sat a middle-aged couple.
Based on the information Saiki instantly read from their minds, this couple was precisely who he suspected: the owners of the hotel.