Demons Beside You

Normally there are two types of sprinters. The first type is short sprinters who are no taller than 1.8 meters. Their leg muscles are stronger and their running pace is faster.

The other type is tall sprinters whose limbs are also longer. Their pace is slower, but every step they take will cover significantly more distance than short sprinters.

Chen Zhao clearly did not belong to either of these two types. He was quite tall, over 1.8 meters to be precise, but his limbs were shorter than normal athletes. Even if his body was as strong as an athlete, he would still be unable to take part in track and field, especially sprinting.

Of course, he had never thought of becoming an athlete anyway.

Chen Zhao liked his current life; it was fruitful but also filled with free time.

On the other hand, athletes had to be serious and train themselves until exhaustion every single day.

Furthermore, Chen Zhao’s age was no longer suitable for an athlete.

He was only interested in the prize, nothing more.

“How about international competition? Like the star invitational you talked about.”

“The prize for the star invitational actually isn’t that high. At most two hundred thousand. In fact, the prize for some star invitationals is not even as high as those first-class national competitions. The main purpose of taking part in star invitationals is to gain points in IAAF and increase our popularity. Only then will we have the chance to be supported by national sponsors, or get more money.”

“Then how about Diamond League and Golden League?”

“Diamond League... I can’t take part in that even if I’m in my best condition. I don’t have enough points and my national ranking isn’t high enough, so I can’t qualify. I can of course buy an entry quota, but I can’t afford it. As for Golden League, that’s the final goal of every runner. Its importance even exceeds the Olympics.”

“If you win Golden League, how much will you get?”

“Stop joking. I wouldn’t be able to enter Golden League in my entire life, let alone getting first. My best timing for 100 meters so far is only 9.95 seconds. I’m not confident of getting first even in first- or second-class national competitions, not to mention Golden League, unless you break the legs of every other participant. With my current record, even if I enter Golden League, I wouldn’t be able to promote.”

“I’m asking about the prize.”

“I’m not sure. Golden League is not a single competition, but rather many rounds. The prize for getting first in any one of them is at least hundreds of thousands. This is only the prize for the competition. If you include money from the sponsor and advertisers, I think it can even reach two million.”

“If I heal your legs and help you get back to your best condition, maybe even stronger, and at the same time sponsor you for various competitions, will you give me some of your prize money?”

“What do you mean?”

“What the words mean. I’m investing in you,” Chen Zhao replied.

“You’re a doctor and I believe you can heal my legs, but are you sure you know what investing in me means? Even after I recover, I still have to rent a training ground, hire a coach, train myself, and eat nutritious meals, which sum to at least twenty thousand dollars every month. Moreover, you wouldn’t be able to see any results in just one or two months. Before we even talk about the prize money, your own money will probably be wasted.”

“Although it’s an investment, I believe that your results will be good. I’m placing a bet on your future. What do you think? I’ll cover all your costs over the next two years, and I want 40% of all your income in these two years.”

“Fine. Even if you’re being serious, 40% is too high. It’s impossible. You’re only like my health consultant. I can give you at most 10%, nothing more.”

“10%? I’ll spend twenty thousand on you every month. Can you promise that your monthly income will exceed two hundred thousand? Let me see... Two years. I need to invest 480 thousand dollars, which means you need to earn at least four million and eight hundred thousand in two years for me to not make a loss. Do you think I’m a fool?”

“40% is too high. Even if I find a club, it’ll take at most 20%, maybe even less. Moreover, it’ll only take that percentage of my prize, not my total income, but you want 40% of my total income.”

“Fine. I you reject my offer, you can just pretend that I’ve said nothing.”

“25%. I’ll give you 25% of my total income.”

“30%. Anything less and you can forget it.”

“Provided you can make my results better. If you can make me qualify for Golden League, I’ll accept this percentage.”

“Of course. I have a way to boost your performance.”

“You mean drugs?” Rufford’s expression changed.

“Of course... Not. Don’t worry. I’ll just make you stronger.”

“Deal. When do we sign the contract?”

“We don’t need one.”

“Are you not afraid that I’ll go back on my words?”

“I don’t like to sign any forms of contract, but I believe that we’re both men of our words... Am I right?”

“How long do I need before I can stand on the track again?”

“I need to perform a more comprehensive check-up on you, and then decide on your treatment plan before we can talk about recovering.”

...

“Mr. Bord, I’m not kidding. In fact, I’m telling you this with a very serious attitude. It’s not a prank, not a joke, and not a story.” David stared at Bord with a serious expression.

“Wait, so you mean my daughter will be attacked by an evil spirit?” The smile on Bord’s face slowly disappeared.

“Yes, and not just one. Perhaps ten, or more,” David said.

“Also, the hospital will definitely not be our main battlefield.” Standing beside David, Sienna continued, “Maybe there’s many souls hiding in this hospital already. They’ll be affected by your daughter’s soul and become evil spirits.”

“Why?” Bord was still somewhat suspicious. “Did Aisha do something wrong?”

“No, she’s done nothing wrong. It’s just that she’s born extraordinary and she needs to face the Trials of Life and Death. She’s already passed Death Trial and is about to face Life Trial. If she passes it, she’ll obtain unimaginable powers, but if she doesn’t, she’ll never wake up.”

“It’s not a joke?”

“No.”

“I still trust Chen more. Mr. Police, can you call him? I want to ask him myself.”

Compared to Sienna, Bord was more willing to believe in the man who had found his wife and daughter.

“Mr. Bord, I tried calling him just now, but his phone was off.”

“I need to think about it.”

Sienna glanced at the clock hanging on the wall. “We don’t have much longer. It’s almost 10 p.m. After ten, evil spirits might start appearing, and this will continue until one in the morning.”

“Ms. Sienna, are you sure they’ll appear tonight?”

“Absolutely, and it might be more dangerous than anything I’ve seen before,” Sienna said with a serious tone.