My Unconventional Lover: Seeing A Different World

250 Once Upon A Time in A Hot Spring

(Jane’s PoV)

There was no trace of malicious emotion in the air. It was hard to track the portal if I didn’t know what kind of devil coming out from the weakened borderline. The last time it happened in Merapi Mountain, the thick bloodlust as the part of negative aura was easy to detect. This time, however, I couldn’t detect anything.

What was it?

Hm, my eyes felt heavy. I felt sleepy. Was it possible for a spirit to feel sleepy? Maybe it was because I worked too much. I might have been using too much spiritual energy to deal with the portals and the devils which caused my lethargic feeling right now.

Maybe, laying down for a bit would be okay. Just for a while. But, what was this nagging feeling I felt? It was like... I had something important to do. What was it?

...

...

Ah, right. I needed to find the portal.

But... maybe later. I could do it later. For now, I should take a rest. Everything could be done after I had my nap.

.....

Yes.

With that thought in mind, I did lay down on the couch in the lobby. I forgot that I was just a spirit and everything I felt was actually unreal. Still, I closed my eyes and felt into a sleep.

It was not a deep sleep, since I could still hear my surroundings. It was just my consciousness was drifting away.

Was it even possible?

I heard some movement around me. Whispers entered my ears but I couldn’t catch what they were saying. It was not all foreign to me yet not so familiar either, which might not be a good sign for me. I couldn’t say that I understood Japanese wholly, but I unconsciously heard them mentioning about ‘that girl, that girl’. I also heard something sounded like ‘sleep’ in their conversation.

What were they talking about?

Amidst those whispering around me, I heard someone was calling out my name, shouting at me to wake up. I told myself to wake up, to obey that urgent voice, but my eyelids felt so heavy.

“....WAKE UP!”

I was jolted awake from that voice. My eyes wide opened and my drowsy mind became clear. The images of countless ghosts and shadows, peeking from every corner of the resort, entered my sight. Even their forms were various, totally different from what I saw in my own country. It was not because of any important reason, but it was because most of them shaped themselves according to the images in human’s mind. Since every person had different imagination, countless forms of astral creatures were inevitable.

Seeing them looking at me with bizarre expression on their unique faces, I thought that I was a rare-type animal which was being shown in an auction. I blinked my eyes, feeling a bit stupefied with the situation I was in as my mind started to process the whole situation I was in.

A wave of unfamiliar aura crawled on my skin. I could feel it but somehow it was easy to dismiss it as well. It was like a fleeting feeling yet so powerful to leave an after effect. My mind went hazy and I had the need to sleep again.

It was weird yet at the same time so right. At that time, I was wakened up from my stupor. Since something felt weird, then there must be something wrong.

Right. The portal!

This strange aura must be coming from the opened portal. Even if I were lazy by nature, there was no way I could feel sleepy that fast after a good nap. Also, combined with the ghosts and shadows around me, there was no way this situation was normal. Jumping down from the couch I was laying on, I ignored those ghosts and shadows and ran through the hallway. As my mind became clearer, the aura felt even stronger. It might be because I became sensitive now that I knew the cause.

There were many people in the resort, it was just... they were all asleep as if they had just taken sleeping drugs. Some people were seen with their eyes opened, yet it looked misty, as if they were in deep trance, imagining something so good.

Yeah, that... and those stupid smiles on their faces.

Who knows what they were thinking about?

I had been running for several minutes already, passing many rooms and even witnessing some embarrassing situations in some rooms, but I still couldn’t find the portal.

Where was it?

I knew that I was getting closer to it, but where was it?

I pulled open the door where I felt the aura became especially denser without thinking. What I found in front of me left me stunned and red with embarrassment.

Yes, the portal was there. I could see it and sense it. But, how could it appear in a male’s hot spring bath?!

The picture of several naked men sprawling around here and there in the bath really made my head almost go dizzy. I was stopped at the door for several good minutes, contemplating whether I should go inside or not. Brainwashing myself repeatedly that I had seen naked men before seemed to not affect me so much.

Still, I knew that I needed to step forward and closed that damn portal!

Come on, Jane, you can do this! I encouraged myself. Just pretend they are dolls. They are all sleeping, so there is nothing for you to worry about.

With that thought in mind, I braved myself and stepped forward. I was aware that my face was flushing red, but still I took another step.

They are sleeping, they are sleeping, they are sleeping...

I chanted that in mind repeatedly as I was getting closer to the portal. Wait! Now that I had a better view of the location of the portal, I realized that the portal was not placed vertically like a door. Instead, it looked like a hole in the middle of the hot spring!

Ugh, should I go down there? I pinched the bridge of my nose in frustration. Who made this bath this spacious? One could easily put one hundred people inside and there would still be room for this stupid hole without obstructing anything.

“Uugh...” My ears caught a small grunt in this quiet place. Despite it was very soft, I could still hear it. Somehow, there was a trace of sexiness in it. I was quiet familiar with it.

Was it my imagination? Was anyone awake?