01

  We usually have two free study classes, one in the morning, one in the afternoon.

  Right now, we’re going through the afternoon’s free study class. Since there’s nothing for me to worry about with Two being in an excellent mood, I decided to use the free study time exactly for what it’s for; Studying.

  At least, that’s what I thought I was supposed to do. But then I noticed something going on in the corner of my eye.

  It’s Three. Instead of studying like he’s supposed to do, he appears to be making something on his seat. I took a closer look and as far as I can tell, he seemed to be making something that I can only describe as paper balls.

  I somewhat have a bad feeling looking at him and I tried my best to ignore him and focused on doing my own thing. But unfortunately, I’m a nosy lady. And whatever my friends are doing, I feel like I have to get involved too.

  So I got up from my seat and checked up with Three. “What are you doing?” I asked him.

  “Wah!” He was suddenly spooked by my question and almost dropped the paper ball he was making. But he managed to catch it before it hits the ground. “One! You scared me there.”

  “Yeah…sorry about that. So, what are you making?”

  “Salt bombs,” He answered curtly.

  “Salt bombs?” Bombs made of salt…what could they be for… “Ah! That’s clever. They’re for the ghost, right?” I heard from Two that salt can be used to ward of ghost.

  “Nope. It’s for Two.”

  I almost dropped to the ground when he said that. “Two?!”

  “Yup.”

  “Why?!”

  He placed the salt bomb back in the table. “Two hasn’t said anything yet but I’m damn sure she’s planning on dragging me into her nightly adventures even without my consent. So, if she tries anything funny, I can just stop her with the salt bomb.

  “I…I see.” Unlike Two who is head over heels in love with the occult, Three on the other hand couldn’t stand anything related to the supernatural. Which usually put him at odds against Two whenever she gets an idea.

  “I see.” Well, to prevent a war that would occur when you do that. “I’ll be sure to tell her not to get you involved.”

  “Thank you…but…what am I supposed to do with these then?” He showed me all the bombs he made on the table. I counted about 5 of them.

  “Well, like I said, maybe we can use them on our ghost hunting trip?

  02

  Usually, if we’re lucky, our classes ended at 5. And since the cafeteria doesn’t starts serving dinner until 6. We usually use the free time we have to do whatever we want. And right now, everyone decided that they want to visit our dorm room.

  Yup. Everyone. Not just me and Two but Three, Four, and Five. All of us sat on the ground, getting ourselves comfortable for the time being.

  “I don’t like that look on your face,” Four said as he glared at Two. A young boy who’s a little younger than us. With his long blonde hair tied to a braid, a lot of people mistook him for a girl. The only thing stopping them from mistaking him to be a girl is his voice. “It looks like you’re up to some prime mischief.”

  “Hm? Whatever you’re talking about? We’re not up to any mischief,” Two said with a smile on her face. She then turned her head to face me. “Should we tell them?”

  “Why not?” I told everyone who were not present the story we heard from one of the students and the ghost hunt we planned to do later tonight.

  “That’s exactly what a mischief is!” Four said with exasperation. Despite being one of the younger ones, he has taken upon himself to be the straight-man of the group. “One! You’re our leader! Do something!”

  “I’m not going to do anything,” I said outright.

  “Why?”

  “Because it sounds fun.”

  “Of course, you would say something like that.” Another deep sigh got out of his lips. I kind of felt bad for him. Better make it up to him later.

  “But it’s a bit strange, don’t you think?” Someone threw their bone into the conversation. It’s Five, the youngest member of our little friend group. She’s been getting popcorn from Three’s bowl without him noticing. They were getting hungry by the time class ended so they were eating popcorn to satiate their hunger. “Our school is a bit too new to develop any ghost stories.”

  “Maybe they’re remnants from the old school building?” I joined in the conversation.

  “I don’t think I’ve heard anything about a ghost transferring haunts when they’re old one disappeared.”

  “Maybe they were able to do so because the new building was only built a few feet away?”

  “Probably?”

  South City Secondary Educational Facility, also known by many as South2nd. It is the school we’re in. It is also one of the few public schools in South City.

  If you ask an adult and if you ask a student what does South2nd look like then you are going to get two wildly different answers. Simply because the school we’re studying on is something that many called the new campus. I don’t remember the exact reason why they build a new school but I think it had something to do with the old building being too dangerous for learning.

  “Were there any horror stories involving the library in the old school building?” Four asked.

  “I…don’t think so.” If Two, a horror expert said that she doesn’t remember hearing any ghost stories about the old building’s library, then maybe there wasn’t one to begin with.

  “For all we know, that ghost that they saw might just be a trick in the eyes,” I told everyone in the room.

  “But even if it just a trick in the eyes, it’s still something worth investigating, right?”

  “Yeah, of course. If it’s a ghost then it’s something we’ll think about when it happens, and if it’s not? Well, that’s also something we also have to think about when it happens.

  03

  Not surprising to anyone at all, the main school building is completely closed off to students and teachers after 8 PM. The front and back door are sealed shut with a lock and all the windows were checked before the school closed shut.

  The library is located on the 2nd floor of the campus. In this 5-floor building, getting inside it was simple enough. With a metal needle and a little bit of intuition, you’ll be able to get anywhere in this school. It may sound like we’re using our skills for nefarious deeds but let me assure you that we have done nothing of the sorts. We only use our skills for the people of this school.

  Two and I stepped inside the library. Naturally, it’s dark. We can turn it on, but it will draw the attention of the guards who are patrolling the main school building.

  But we won’t be able to see or find any traces of the ghost like this so we turned on the flashlights that we brought with us.

  “See anything?” I asked Two whose right behind me.

  “No, I don’t see any—Ah!”

  “Ah!”

  Suddenly, something flashed our eyes. It took about 5 seconds for my eyes to adjust to the sudden brightness. When I do, I realized that someone must’ve turned on the light switch of the library.

  This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  I turned my eyes to the light switch, only to find that there was no one there. Who was it that turned on the light then?”

  “Two. I think something weird is going on.” We’ve only stepped into this library for 10 second at best and something is already happening.

  “So, her name is Two, huh? What a strange name to give to a girl,” said…Two? That’s definitely her voice.

  I immediately turned my eyes to Two, and I found her playing with her hair. She’s playing with it as if it’s her first time experiencing having hair.

  “Two? What are you doing?”

  “Sorry, but Two is not here at the moment. She’s taking a nap,” said Two for some reason.

  I thought Two is trying to pull my leg but I can feel something different from her. Something that doesn’t belong to Two at all. Which means that whoever it is right now is telling the truth.

  But if it’s not Two then who is it? Could it be the ghost of the library? If so, then there’s one thing I have to do.

  I pulled out the salt bombs that Three made and threw it at Two.

  But the salt bombs never reached their destination, as before they could even hit her, the salt bombs were sliced in half. How were they sliced in half? By her own hand.

  “What was that?” Two? said as she stared at the dismantled bombs on the floor.

  “Salt bombs. I heard salt is quite effective against ghosts.”

  “So you think of me as a ghost?”

  “Are you?”

  She shook her head. “I’m much more than a ghost. I was going to properly introduce myself but you rudely interrupted me.”

  “Okay? I’m sorry about that. So, who are you? and how long do you plan on staying in Two’s body?”

  Two? huffed, and then she grinned. “You may call me Zero. And I’m here to pass on message to you and your friends. And don’t worry about your friend. You have my word that no harm will be inflicted upon her…as long as you hear my message.”

  So, Zero is named after a number just like us. That’s interesting. And what do you mean you have a message for me and my friends? Do they know about the Numbers? I’m curious about their message but I’m getting a bad feeling from it. But I’m also worried about Two. “What’s this message you want to tell us?”

  Zero pointed at themselves. “I, Zero will destroy the world on the 1st of October. If you don’t want such a thing to happen then gather 8 heroes and stop me before then.”

  “…”

  “What’s wrong? Your body’s stiff as a statue,” Zero said with confusion in their face. With this thing occupying Two’s body, they’re making a lot of faces that I didn’t know she could make.

  “I’m sorry if I have no choice but to be as stiff as a statue because everything you’re telling me right now sounds like something you would hear in a novel.”

  “Haha.” Zero laughed. Hearing such a laugh come out of Two’s mouth is quite unnerving. “That makes sense. But isn’t my presence proof enough that what you’re experiencing is no mere fiction?”

  “Not really.”

  “Hm. Guess I have no choice but to force it on you myself.” Zero said as she stretched her hands towards me.

  “Wait a minute! What are you doing?!” I had no time to dodge as Zero grabbed my face with her hand.

  “I’m going to give you a little taste of the future,” Zero said…as images invaded my mind.

  South City, the city where me and everyone I know lived, is being swallowed up by a whirlpool of violence. Friends, neighbors, colleagues, and lovers. They’re all attacking each other as if they’re wild beasts. It is a world dominated by blood.

  My eyes snapped back into reality. At least, I think this is reality. “What was that?” I said as I try to catch my breath. it almost felt like I was living in that world of violence,

  Zero pulled their hand out of my head. “What you saw was the future. A possible future if you don’t stop me before October 1st.”

  Sweat continued to drip from my back. “I…have a lot of questions.”

  “Go ahead,” Zero shrugged. “My time is burning but I think I have enough to answer your questions.”

  “How…do we beat you?”

  Zero smiled. It’s a smile that I couldn’t tell if it’s a mocking smile, or a comforting smile. “Haven’t I already answered that question before? You need to gather eight heroes here in this school. Once you’ve done that, everything will make sense.”

  Even though it felt like Zero has been giving away a lot of hints, it still feels like they were hiding something. “But where would I find those heroes?”

  Zero laughed. “If I told you that then I would be giving you too many hints. But let me assure you about something, you’re already doing a good job. If you continue walking your path, the other heroes will gather around you.”

  “If I continue my path…what path?”

  “Whoops. My time is almost up,” Zero said as they grabbed their head. “I thought I had a bit more time but my grip on this body is slipping faster than expected.”

  So, Zero is separating themselves from her? Even though something like that should be celebrated, I still have one more question for this thing that invaded our everyday lives. “Wait! I still have one more question from you!”

  “Spit it out then!” Zero said in a voice that anyone would think to be irritation.

  “Why do you want to destroy the world?” The question I asked might be a dumb question, it might even be a na?ve question. It’s a question that any hero would ask a rampaging villain. But in order for me to understand this supernatural being before me. I have to ask them.

  Zero grinned. “Oh, One. I don’t want to destroy to the world…I was born for it.” Like a puppet with their strings cut, Two’s body limped the ground.

  I managed to grab her body before her head hit the ground. “Two? Two!” I shook her body, hoping that nothing happened to her.

  “…Hm? One?” Two groggily opened her eyes.

  “Oh, thank heavens you’re awake. Let’s get out of here before anything else happens.”

  04

  Through sheer dumb luck, we managed to get out of the main school building without anyone noticing them. And now we are walking back to the dorms.

  Even though Two said she was alright, I clung to her arm. “So…do you remember what happened at the library?”

  “Hm.” She nodded. “It was a weird experience. I can feel everything but I can’t control my body. It’s like I was stuck in an unskippable cutscene,” she said with a sigh. “So that was the ghost…or should I say spirit of the library. Quite a peculiar thing, isn’t it?”

  “Very peculiar, indeed.”

  As we continued walking, Two spoke up.

  “…One?”

  “Yeah?”

  “…Do you remember what happened this morning? About that dream that I had?”

  “Yes?” Somehow, I have a bad feeling on what she’s going to say next.

  “I actually remember what it is. But I just say that I don’t remembered because I don’t even know how to explain it. And I was satisfied with keeping it in the back of my head. But after what happened this evening, I feel like I need to tell you.” She stopped walking and faced me. “So…do you want to hear it?”

  “Before that…” I stopped her words. “Let’s get something to drink. I’m incredibly thirsty.”

  Two laughed weakly. “Sure.”

  Thankfully, the vending machine is open 24/7 so me and Two were able to get something for ourselves.

  After quenching our thirst with juice, Two spoke up. “Are you ready to hear it?”

  “Yeah…” I said as we leaned on the wall.

  Two played with her can. “In my dream, you were dead, and the murderer was me, I killed you by twisting your neck,” she explained to me the dream as if it already happened.

  “That’s…a concerning dream.”

  Two nodded.

  “Geez. What did we get ourselves into? One moment we were ghost hunting and before we knew it, we got caught in a game with the world on the line.”

  “I’m sorry,” Two said.

  “Hm? What for?”

  “You know what I mean. For getting the idea to visit the library. If I didn’t do that none of this would have happened.”

  “Hm. I don’t think it’s anything to be sorry for.”

  A bitter laugh came out of Two. “Are you trying to cheer me up? Because it’s not working.”

  “No, think about it. If we haven’t pried into the ghost in the library, we might not know that there’s a being trying to destroy the world. So, in a sense, it’s a good thing that we investigated.”

  “I don’t think it would have changed much,” Two said with a sulky expression. “Zero seemed to be looking for us in particular.”

  “…I guess you’re right. But it does bring up another question, huh?”

  “Hm. Why us?”

  “You think it’s because of our names?”

  Two turned her eyes towards me with a horrified expression. “Really?!”

  “I think? I mean, they’re name is Zero. Maybe they thought that the best people to stop them from destroying the world would be people with the same type of name as them.”

  A very deep sigh came out of Two. “Great, now we have another thing to get mad at our parents,” she said with a laugh. “So, what are we going to do now, leader?”

  “What else? We’re going to save the world,” I said with a grin. “Something like that is a fitting final mission for the Numbers, don’t you think?”

  A grim expression appeared on her face. “So you’re still going forward with that, huh?”

  The Numbers was team I made with Two and the others. A special place for us where we would go on adventures and beat up bad guys. But, we’re already in our third year in high school, and next year, we would be preparing for our future. “The Numbers can’t exist forever, sooner or later we have to become adults.” I threw my can unto the trash can. “So before I disband the Numbers, before our lives started changing next year. Why don’t we do something crazy and go beat up a world-ending ghost?”

  Two stared at me for a second…and then, a smile creeped up on her face. “Yeah, that sounds like something you would say.”