Chapter 2The Ghost of Vengeance

I used to watch horror movies where people died, became ghosts, and suddenly had all these incredible, terrifying powers.

They weren't afraid of anything.

They could scare people to death.

But after my own accidental death, I realized I wasn't one of them.

I had absolutely no powers.

Except for Arthur, I couldn't make anyone else see me.

In the very beginning, I felt like I could dissipate at any given moment.

Because my body would randomly fade into transparency.

Whenever Arthur noticed and cried, begging me not to leave him, the fading would stop, and I would solidify again.

But today, he probably didn't notice.

I huddled in the corner, laughing bitterly.

I wasn't the only wandering spirit in this area; there were plenty of other strange, dark things lurking around.

Right now, I couldn't even maintain a solid form.

I had no idea how I was going to survive the night.

When did things between Arthur and me get this bad?

Probably starting shortly before he began staying out all night.

Before, I could follow him anywhere. But that night, I suddenly found an invisible barrier blocking me.

Maybe it was because right before he left, he had said, "Don't follow me today."

I remembered his friends tricking him into going to the psychiatric ward at the hospital that day.

His friends thought my death had caused a psychotic break, because he was constantly talking to thin air.

Later, paparazzi caught him—Arthur Sterling, CEO of Sterling Group—leaving the psychiatric ward. The rumor was that he had developed severe schizophrenia.

It caused a massive scandal. For days, Arthur felt like everyone was secretly laughing at him.

I still remember his absolute devastation when I died, and his hysterical joy when he first realized he could see me. He was practically out of his mind with happiness.

He said the heavens were so moved by our love that they granted us this miracle so we could stay together forever.

Looking back now, that "heaven-moving" love had clearly become a burden to him.

He didn't want the world to view him as a mentally ill freak anymore.

So he aggressively minimized the amount of time we spent together outside, and eventually, our conversations dwindled to almost nothing.

Soon after, he brought Chloe home.

I had no idea who she was.

All I knew was that she sweetly called him "Mr. Sterling," and they could interact openly and normally.

And I couldn't.

Long before she fell ill, it had been ages since Arthur and I had a real conversation.

"Well, well, isn't it the little canary from the big mansion?"

"What, got kicked out?"

"I told you a long time ago, the living and the dead don't mix. Why don't you come play with me—"

There weren't many wandering spirits in this area, but the few that existed were incredibly vicious.

I had personally witnessed one of them tear another spirit into literal shreds.

I stood up in terror and screamed for Arthur.

"Arthur! I'm so scared..."

A pale, rotting hand reached out to grab me.

"Aren't your man and his new toy madly in love right now? I saw them making out in his car just the other day. Tsk, the guy has no balls, having to act all proper as soon as he steps out of the car."

"You're already dead. Why are you still bothering him? Let him find his true love!"

I refused to believe it.

I only knew that Arthur had sworn he would never, ever betray me.

But the harder I pounded on the door, the louder the romantic music inside played.

They were dancing to the music, and Chloe was laughing brightly in his arms.

Maybe he would post about it on social media.

Maybe his friends would congratulate him on finally moving on from the grief of losing his wife.

Then he would become a normal person again, instead of a lunatic haunted by the stubborn ghost of his dead wife.