"So… we're gonna sleep together? Here? On the same bed?" Bruno asked right after he and Deathstalker entered their room. His tone grew more annoyed with every word.
Deathstalker grinned. "If you want to," he teased, making Bruno visibly cringe.
"No way!" Bruno immediately refused.
Deathstalker laughed, ending it with a sigh. "No. You go ahead and take the whole bed."
"Then you?"
"I found a better place to rest," Deathstalker said, opening the window and starting to climb out.
"Where are you going?" Bruno halted him with a question.
"Outside," Deathstalker answered without giving any further hint before disappearing from Bruno's sight.
Once outside, Deathstalker snuck toward an abandoned structure about half a mile from the hotel.
When he had passed it earlier, the crystal stone hanging around his neck had burned hot against his chest. He had already sensed high chi energy across the land, but this structure triggered the most intense reaction. Nearly painful.
Now, standing before the building again, the stone burned just as fiercely. Deathstalker took it out. It was glowing blood red and radiating heat.
It took him a while to find an entrance. He finally spotted a small, window-like hole three feet above the ground. With a quick hop, he jumped inside.
As expected, the structure was empty and truly abandoned. Visually, it didn't seem sturdy—crumbled stones scattered the floor, holes gaped in the ceiling—but the trusses above remained intact.
Deathstalker walked toward the center of the room. He cleared an area on the floor and sat cross-legged.
Taking a meditative position, he placed the crystal on top of his head. Closing his eyes, he regulated his breathing and began chanting softly.
Not long after, a surge of energy rushed toward him, flowing into his body not just through the stone, but through every pore—even the ones covered by his clothes.
The energy filled every blood vessel in his body. The sensation was indescribable—painful yet addictive.
As the energy overwhelmed him, Deathstalker panicked. It felt like his body would explode.
He opened his eyes to stop the meditation, but the energy kept coming.
"Shit!" he hissed, terrified. What should he do?
Before he could act, a bolt of lightning shot through a hole in the ceiling and struck his chest.
"Aaargh!!" Deathstalker screamed in pain. His body stiffened from the electric shock.
But as suddenly as it came, the lightning vanished—leaving no trace. No burns, no wounds. Nothing.
Something definitely happened, though. The overwhelming energy was gone. Or rather, absorbed. Deathstalker could feel it within him now.
"Cool…" he murmured.
With the night still long, he decided to continue.
Once more, he closed his eyes, slowed his breath, and began chanting. Again, the energy came. But this time, he wasn't instantly overwhelmed. His body seemed more prepared, more adaptable.
Hours passed before the sensation surged again. His veins pulsed, overloaded with energy, but he remained calm.
Then—two strikes of lightning hit him directly in the chest. The pain doubled. Deathstalker bit his lip to endure it.
When it was over, he opened his eyes. A red mark burned on his chest, and his clothes had a hole scorched through them.
So the attack increased with each session.
Hesitating, he finally stood. He decided to stop here. First, because he didn't want to walk back naked—his clothes were too damaged. Second, because the night time was about to end. His mission awaited.
After ensuring no one was nearby, Deathstalker exited the structure. On the main road, he spotted a group of local creatures walking together, chatting. He followed at a distance, pretending to be lost in thought while carefully eavesdropping.
They were workers, just off shift from their respective employers. But what caught Deathstalker's interest was their excitement—not about finishing work, but about heading to their next job. They seemed thrilled about it, as if it wasn't work at all. Yet, these creatures don't have fun.
So why the excitement?
What kind of job was it?
Was it the same mysterious side job the two guards had mentioned?
"Kāishǐ Yītiān, kāishǐ gōngzuò jiù le. (The work starts when the day begins)," one of them said.
"Chángshì yīxià nǐ yīnggāi. Kāifàng zhāomù tāmen réng zài. (You should try. They're still openly recruiting)," another replied.
Just then, one of them glanced over his shoulder, frowning. He whispered something, and the group's chatter instantly died.
Deathstalker casually kept on walking through passed them, as if he heard nothing abouth their conversation.
Behind him, the group quickened their pace, voices low and cautious now.
He smirked faintly.
They knew. Or at least, they suspected.
What more important was, from the way they acted, whatever extra job they had was meant to be a secret. Perhaps even illegal on this universe.