Chapter 10 She's Not Dead Yet
I should've figured it out sooner. The white jade cup Alicia's holding is Beneware, so the black jade cup must be Malifact.
How did Cedric know about Malifact?
"Do you know about Malifact?" Cedric asked when he saw I wasn't responding.
I replied, "I've heard Mr. Williams mention it. And right after you left the café yesterday, a woman came in asking to buy Malifact. What is it exactly?"
"Everything in the world has two sides. The counterpart to Malifact is called Beneware," Cedric said seriously. "In essence, these items assist individuals in achieving their desires. However, Malifact achieves this through malevolent methods, whereas Beneware does so through benevolent means."
Hearing his explanation, I felt a bit relieved. "Got it. When I was at the welfare, I watched some documentaries about shamans and wizards. The tools they showed must be Malifact, right?"
Cedric waved his hand. "Not exactly. I don't fully get the concepts of Malifact and Beneware either. But the main reason I'm telling you this is to inform you of something."
"What is it?"
Cedric leaned in closer. "Only a few people can touch Beneware and Malifact without any issues, especially Malifact. If I and those four ghosts could use those coffee cups ourselves, we would've bought them already."
I frowned, not quite getting Cedric's point.
Cedric paused for a moment and then smiled. "I can't quite put it into words either. I just wanted to warn you that being able to touch these things without any issues might not be a good thing."
I smiled bitterly. "I feel the same way. What happened to you before?"
Cedric stood up, stretched, and waved at me. "You should head back! Destiny governs all. What concerns do we, ordinary folks, truly have?"
Sensing his reluctance to divulge more, I rose and made my way back to the café. The rest of the night passed uneventfully.
Three days later, Lorenzo came back to the café, looking travel-worn.
After a simple dinner, I filled him in on the events of the past few days.
Lorenzo didn't say much, like he had expected it.
The following Monday, the four strange people still came for coffee, but Lorenzo personally attended to them.
On the night of February 24th, around 10:30 PM, I got a call from an unknown number while I was lying in bed, half-asleep.
My phone number was arranged by Lorenzo, and only a few people, including him, knew it.
After hesitating for a moment, I answered the call. "Hello, who is this?"
A familiar yet old voice came from the other end. "It's me, Cedric."
Hearing Cedric's voice, I immediately sat up in bed. "Do you need Worry-Free Coffee?"
"Yes."
"Mr. Williams is back. He can deliver it to you."
"I haven't contacted him."
"Why not?"
"I've got no money left."
I was stunned. Alicia had told me before that the coffee Lorenzo sold to these ghosts was super expensive. Like, Worry-Free Coffee could drain an average family's savings in two years.
And Cedric had been drinking it for over a decade.
"If you're broke, you can owe it first!" I got anxious. "Tell Mr. Williams, and he'll definitely help you."
Cedric laughed. "It's complicated. He won't help me."
I was speechless for a moment, then it hit me. "You want me to deliver it to you?"
Cedric chuckled bitterly on the other end. "I didn't call you to save me. I want you to meet someone."
"Who?"
"You'll know when you get here. She was brought in this afternoon and is now lying in a glass coffin. No one has come to see her. Please come and see her."
I fell silent. The person Cedric called me about must be someone I knew.
Who could it be?
I glanced at the time and decided to go.
After getting dressed and preparing to go downstairs, I remembered the black jade cup.
I hesitated for a moment, then picked up my phone and called Cedric.
A few seconds later, he answered. "What's wrong?"
His voice sounded tired.
I spoke softly. "Can you tell me why you ended up like this, needing to drink Worry-Free Coffee to return to normal?"
Cedric was silent for a while before saying, "Years back, I snagged a Malifact from Mr. Williams to rake in some serious cash. I didn't expect to be backfired. As soon as I come into contact with the most sinister of corpses, or other items corrupted by evil forces, my bodily functions will quickly deteriorate until death."
"Only Worry-Free Coffee brewed with the black jade cup can save me."
I sighed. The old adage held true: wretched souls must harbor something abhorrent within.
"Do you regret it?" I asked.
Cedric was silent for a while again. "No, even if I didn't do it, someone else would have. Besides, I saved a person. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been backfired."
I said "Okay" and hung up the phone. After thinking for a moment, I decided to save him once.
In the dark, I went downstairs, found the black jade cup in the bar's safe, and headed straight to the crematorium.
At 11:30 PM, I opened the door to the crematorium's mourning hall.
It was still lit by candlelight and adorned with flowers.
Cedric, draped in a black trench coat, sat on a small stool, hunching over, looking very much like a grieving family member coming to pay their respects.
Suddenly, I thought of the four strange people. Would they come tonight?
As I turned to look outside, Cedric, with his back to me, mumbled, "Don't worry, those four ghosts won't come."
I was taken aback. "Why not?"
Cedric pointed to the person in the glass coffin. "I was deceived by her. She isn't dead yet."