HH Chapter 22

‘While I’m out here, I should just find the library key and go to bed…’

Entertaining such lazy thoughts, I found a… half-naked man in front of the very mirror in question.

‘What is this, a late-night nude show?’

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I thought I was seeing things.

‘Who is he? I’ve never seen him before….’

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It was too dark in the hallway to make out his features clearly, but the man had a hair color I had never seen among the servants.

Pure white silver hair and pale skin. And he was quite tall. There’s no way I would have missed him if he was from here.

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‘…Huh?’

I froze, a thought striking me.

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The first rule of the mansion. The servants live in the annex, and anything wandering around after midnight is…

‘A ghost?’

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Thud.

My hand went limp without me realizing it, and the lamp fell to the floor, rolling away. The sound startled the man’s silhouette. The white cloth that had been covering half of the ghostly figure’s upper body fluttered.

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The red light of the fallen lamp illuminated a slanted glow on his face, casting a shadow across his high nose bridge. The ghost turned his head towards me.

Our eyes met.

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“A ghost!”

My mind went blank. I immediately turned and ran without a second thought, forgetting all about the key. My slippers came off, and I almost tripped a couple of times, but each time I managed to regain my balance with incredible sense of agility…

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‘Wait a minute.’

My body tilted precariously. I thought my sense of balance was on par with an athlete, but apparently not.

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“…….”

“…….”

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I stiffly turned my head to look back, and the ghost was staring down at me impassively, holding the back of my shirt.

‘I’m in trouble.’

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If a ghost catches you, it’s instant death. The ghost stared at my terrified face with an emotionless expression, then pulled out a piece of paper sticking out of my clothes with his free hand. At the rustling sound, I snapped back to reality and yelled,

“No, stop!”

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My armor! 

I couldn’t help but let out a groan. That was a handmade talisman to protect me from ghosts.

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Of course, it wasn’t a real talisman; I didn’t have any spiritual abilities or anything. I had meticulously drawn the magic circle on the paper myself, referring to a book titled <Mastering the Basics of Defensive Scroll Creation>. I had stuffed my clothes with these talismans before leaving my room.

‘Is it ineffective against ghosts because it’s drawn with pencil?’

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I had read somewhere that drawing with blood might make it work against ghosts, and I seriously considered it.

The ghost mercilessly crumpled my handmade talisman and threw it on the floor. I despaired.

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‘It doesn’t work….’

I trembled, remembering the scene where a ghost pounces on the player, turning them into human tomato paste. The thought that my body might be the next thing to get crumpled, not just the defensive scroll, made me unable to even scream properly.

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“S-Spare me!”

“What?”

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“Spare me!”

The ghost stared at me blankly, then frowned. 

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Please, just spare me this once. Just once.

It’s too much to be caught on the first day when I haven’t even done anything yet. As I squeezed my eyes shut and begged for my life, the ghost gently released his grip on my shirt.

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“Aaack!”

The floor was getting closer. I screamed involuntarily, holding my breath. I couldn’t even brace myself properly. My body tumbled across the floor. I looked up, sprawled on the ground.

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“…You said to let you go?”

The ghost crouched down in front of me, meeting my gaze.

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“Aaah! G-G-Ghost! Aaaaaah!”

“What are you babbling about….?”

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His expression remained unchanged. The man rested his chin on his hand, looking down at my panicked state with disdain.

“Calm down, stop making such a fuss. You’re annoying.”

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“…….”

His chilling tone, as if he would kill me if I didn’t shut up, brought me back to my senses.

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“……You calmed down that quickly?”

The man in front of me looked at me, tilted his head slightly, and chuckled in disbelief. Only then did his appearance register in my mind.

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Seeing him up close felt different. The ghosts in this game were usually translucent and formless. Weren’t they supposed to be insidious beings that approached soundlessly and sucked out my soul in an instant?

I was momentarily flustered. I wasn’t sure if it was rude to say this to a male ghost, but….

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‘He’s incredibly beautiful.’

Why is he so needlessly handsome? 

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Even though the surroundings were dark, the moment I saw him, I was captivated by his face, having an illusion as if he was radiating light.

He had an elegant aura. Pale purple eyes shone amidst his dazzling silver hair, as if it was spun from moonlight. His nose was high and straight, and every line of his face was delicate.

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‘No. Don’t be bewitched.’

I shook my head vigorously, trying to regain my composure. The problem wasn’t that the man was beautiful, but that he was frowning and seemed about to kill me!

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“Who are you?”

“I’m just a passerby?”

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I answered, trembling. The man chuckled at my reflexive answer, furrowing his brow slightly. Despite my fear, I asked him back,

“Who are you?”

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Actually, I wasn’t that curious about who he was. Of course, I had no intention of exchanging names either. It was just that the ghost, surprisingly, hadn’t tried to kill me right away and seemed somewhat willing to talk… so maybe I could stall for time?

“The owner of this house.”

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…Huh? “…You’re the owner of this house?”

I was doubtful.

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‘Does this man… not realize he’s dead?’

Crazy, no wonder he looked extraordinary. Does a ghost even have a backstory? I was shocked, trying not to show it. Was he so sensitive to intruders because he had a sense of ownership as a ghost…?

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I sat up properly and asked the man politely,

“You… you do realize you’re dead, right?”

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“……What?”

“So, you really don’t know.”

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Haa, I knew it.

I sighed once and briefly explained the situation to the dumbfounded ghost. It seemed like the house had been put on the market after he died, and the current owner had bought it and was living in it, so he shouldn’t worry and should just move on to the afterlife.

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“But….”

I continued, glancing at the man’s exposed shoulder. He wasn’t wearing anything other than that white cloth.

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“Is it part of your culture to not wear anything under the cloth?”

“…….”

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I just asked out of respect, in case it was ghost culture, but after a brief silence, the man’s face contorted slightly. He clutched the cloth covering his body and snapped at me,

“Stop changing the subject and answer me. What were you looking for, wandering around my house at this hour?”

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I almost blurted out, “The library key.” Humans are naturally drawn to beauty. So it was normal for me to be momentarily mesmerized by the man’s appearance.

“I was sleepwalking.”

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I just blurted out whatever came to mind, saying I found myself in the hallway when I came to my senses. Even I was embarrassed by how ridiculous it sounded. The ghost looked at me and seemed to be thinking for a moment. So, that’s the expression he makes when he’s deciding how to tear me apart.

“I’m sorry. I lied.”

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I wasn’t sleepwalking…. Panicking, I readily confessed to the lie. As expected, the ghost stared at me, then scoffed and replied,

“……I figured….”

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He looked at me with an incredulous expression.

But unlike the ghosts I knew, the man in front of me seemed somewhat… manageable.

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‘Should I run?’

I discreetly reached into my back pocket and pulled out the scroll I’d stashed there.

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‘Yes. Let’s run!’

I watched for an opening and tore the scroll containing the Binding Magic Circle. A faint light flickered along the lines drawn in pencil as the binding magic activated. A pale yellow circle appeared beneath the man’s feet, binding them.

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“……?”

I saw him stumble as he tried to stand up abruptly. I quickly got up and backed away before the ghost could grab me.

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‘It works! It works even though it’s drawn in pencil!’

But why didn’t the defensive scroll work? 

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I had hesitated, unsure if the binding magic would work on a ghost with no physical form or mass, but thankfully, it did.

“Wait…!”

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I heard a voice calling out to me from behind, but I didn’t look back and ran as fast as I could to the safety of my room.

Run awaaaaaaaaaay!

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By the time I reached my room, I was drenched in cold sweat. The thought of finding the library key was long gone.

‘Ugh…’

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Scary, scary, scary, scary! 

Even though he could talk, he was still dead, which made him more terrifying than any monster.

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The hand that gripped the back of my neck had been as cold as marble. The mere thought of the brief touch sent shivers down my spine.

I hate ghosts. I hate horror games. 

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I slammed the door shut, buried myself under the covers, and shivered all night before finally falling asleep.