Chapter 154: Ghost Story Hunter (4)

Ahinal was lying on a stretcher. She tried to move her swollen ankle lightly. However, it seemed like the injury she suffered from making a distraction was quite severe as her ankle refused to move like it usually was. Well, she didn’t really mind it since the pain wasn’t that bad.

Her eyes darted towards the warehouse. Except for her, no one was paying attention towards it. Then, the corners of her lips rose slowly.

‘It’s going according to the plan.’

Ahinal recalled a certain ghost story she had read. It was a story about someone who suddenly wriggled its way to the side of people. They had studied with them, ate with them,  chatted with them, and lived their days with them, but in the end, no one remembered them.

‘A reality manipulation… it was one of the trickiest ghost story one could face, but not for me.'

Ever since she met him the second time, Ahinal had suspected that Yoo Seodam was a ghost from a ghost story. Her suspicion stemmed from his spiritual power as well as his absurd power. And once she investigated deeper about him, her suspicion turned into conviction. He certainly had an admission record, even the teachers didn't seem to think his existence was strange…

‘But, his trick was useless against me, because I can see through fabricated reality.’

A ghost story where a ghost lives among the living and pretends to be one?

It was too common to the point it was boring, Ahinal thought. Of course, Yoo Seodam's existence was a bit more extraordinary from the ghosts in the story because he was none other than a ‘ghost that summons ghost stories'.

The mysterious ghost stories started circulating in the school after his appearance. Moreover, it was ghost stories that could not be grasped by common sense and were impossible to deal with. Such as the dance room ghost story, red tissue blue tissue ghost story, doorbell ghost story, friday the 13th ghost story, and many others..

All of them were tricky…

Ahinal relaxed, she reassured herself that it was all okay now. Her plan was to destroy the ghost that summons ghost stories, Yoo Seodam, through another ghost story, and the plan had already been set into motion. She believed that soon Yoo Seodam would cease to exist since ‘closed room ghost stories' and ‘selfie ghost stories' were very powerful ghost stories with the ability to manipulate reality itself.

‘Ghost Yoo Seodam, you’ve worked hard. You’ve been helpful in the past, but you could be a hindrance when I confront the [Great Ghost Story] in the future, so I need to deal with you beforehand.'

Ahinal smiled. Her gaze hadn’t left the warehouse’s door.

But then, the wall around the door cracked and the door burst open. Ahinal’s face turned stiff and her smile crumbled as her eyes met with Yoo Seodam’s who walked out confidently from the open door.

‘Whaaaattt?’

How?

* * *

“Ahinal. Are you okay?”

"Get some rest. Don’t mind the performance… your health is more important.”

Some students come to the infirmary to visit Ahinal. Beverages and fruits in hand was the basic gift they brought. Most of these students owed their lives to Ahinal since she saved them from a ghost story.

It was really ironic. It was Ahinal who set the ghosts free, but the victims were unaware of that fact, and even thanked Ahinal for saving them.

Ahinal, who was gloomy, originally didn’t talk much to her friends. She had nothing special under her name and had no one around her since childhood. And just like any other human being, she also suffered from loneliness. She always waited for the day someone would come to her, but very few reached out towards Ahinal whose presence was so thin.

However, after she met ghost stories, her life completely changed.

As a result of absorbing ghost powers for herself while solving the ghost story, she became someone who was good at everything.

When she sealed the singing ghost, she gained the ability to sing well. After she got rid of the shoe ghost that danced all day, she was able to dance well. In addition to those two, she had absorbed the power of numerous other ghosts, and she had now become more powerful than any teachers in this school.

‘If only the great ghost stories are dealt with…'

With the abilities she had collected so far, only a bright future awaited her.

However, an anomaly suddenly appeared.

‘Yoo Seodam, just what is he?”

He was someone who suddenly appeared in the school and naturally integrated with the environment. A very unusual man who spreads ghost stories that did not exist in this world. Moreover, he could inflict physical damage to ghosts. Ahinal could feel a very special and powerful energy from him. It was an energy that only Ahinal, who could feel the ‘soul’ itself, could sense it.

‘I don’t think he is an ordinary ghost, but why did he come out to reality with a sword?’

It was ridiculous. In the first place, there was no such thing as a ‘swordsman’ in this world, so the weapon called sword had long since disappeared from the world.

Ahinal furrowed her brows as her thoughts became more complicated.

‘Can ghosts assimilated into reality in the first place?’

All the ghosts that had assimilated into society she had encountered so far had a very distinct characteristic. It was the fact that no one remembered the details of the ghost. When being asked for the ghost’s name, people would answer with, ‘Of course I know! Uh… I suddenly don't remember?' or when asked if they know what the ghost looks like, ‘I see him every day but I don't know? Huh? Why can’t I remember him?’

It means that, no matter how powerful the ghost is, there are limits to their ability to alter reality.

But…

‘Yoo Seodam didn’t have that limitation.’

It was Ahinal's conclusion after spending time with him for the last two months. He was too powerful. To the point where even the common sense of Ahinal, who had hunted down countless ghost stories so far, could not comprehend what he is.

Ahinal sighed. If so, there was only one conclusion left.

‘That man, Yoo Seodam is a great ghost story.’

[The ending episode ‘The Last Ghost Story (1)’ begins.]

* * *

[The episode of the world approaches the ending.]

[The target ‘Yoo Seodam’ has been designated as a Great Ghost Story.]

[Episode ‘The Last Ghost Story (1)’ supports the Great Ghost Story.]

I burst out laughing at the notice. In the past I had similar experiences a few times. However, at that time, I only played the villain without having any role in the episode.

‘I’m a great ghost story, you say?’

It's a ridiculous notion, but it's not like I don't understand where it comes from.

First of all, what is a ghost story? It was a story with a creepy and bizarre content, a story that had been passed down from generation to generation, bizarre stories that spread through rumors, etc…

This world was simply a very unusual world, where a ‘ghost story’ would gain power as they spread.

And, what about the ghosts that are often associated with ghost stories? The subject of the ghost story was usually a ghost, but there were many cases where it was not. Ghosts….are just a bonus for ‘ghost stories'.

It's a really ironic situation.

Ghosts had existed from the very beginning. They draw their power from ghost story. But the subject itself was not a ghost, but a ghost story. From the moment a ghost was written in a ghost story, it became a part of the ghost story.

(E/N: It is like, ghosts have always existed but it is the story that gives them a form which allows them to materialize. You could say, a ghost story to a ghost is what a physical body is to the living being, we exist in this world and move about because of our bodies.)

And I had become a ghost from a ghost story.

It's not impossible. In fact, in this world, ghost stories become real simply based on rumours.. So it was only natural that I become a ghost story once the one carrying the most probability in the world deemed me as a ‘ghost story’.

‘Ahinal…. You think that I am a ghost story.’

The ghost, which was supposed to be the ‘great ghost story’ in the original story, is probably still wandering around the school without having gained the power of the story. Well, now that the ghost is no longer gaining power, I don't have to worry about it anymore.

From now on, I would welcome the ghost story hunter as a ghost story.

By now, Ahinal is probably busy digging through her diary looking for a way to seal me. However, unlike other ghosts she had hunted so far, she wouldn’t find my story in the diary. And, the ghost stories that I would soon create were things that Ahinal did not know about either.

Laughter erupted from my mouth.

It was ridiculous, but it felt so good.

I had pondered over and over again about how I should kill her. As a result, I managed to devise a way to lure Ahinal and kill her with reasonable odds.

However, I made a mistake. I fell into the trap clumsily created by Ahinal.

My previous plan was in shambles. However, there’s no need to make another one. Because now, I had the power of ‘episode' in my hand. It was not the perfect plan to kill her because if it was the original ‘Great Ghost Story Episode', the ghost would have been defeated by the protagonist.

However, protagonist correction doesn't work for me.

The chilly autumn wind blew noisily. The fallen leaves fluttered on the ground, and the sobs of a ghost crying could be heard from somewhere. The playground I would invite Ahinal to was the abandoned building that had been abandoned for more than half a century.

Now all I had to do was wait for Ahinal to bite the bait.

* * *

Student Yoo Seodam had disappeared.

But no one really cared about it. It was because Yoo Seodam didn't have many friends in the first place. However, for Ahinal who knew his identity, his disappearance was suspicious.

“Yoo Seodam? Ummm… was there a student like that?”

“Ah, ah! I remember. A high schooler, right? But.. I've never seen him.”

"Uh. He was my junior in middle school. That's right… He suddenly stopped coming to school. Well, he must be sick.”

It's weird no matter how Ahinal thought about it. A student had suddenly appeared and then suddenly disappeared, how could people be so indifferent? Unlike other ghosts, Ahinal knew that Yoo Seodam was not an ordinary ghost. So, even though he disappeared, his existence should still exist in people’s memory. 

Whooosshhh!!

A cold wind blew past her. Ahinal could see the clouds rushing wildly across the red sky. A sudden change in the weather, a stagnation of atmosphere, and a chilling aura. There had never been a sign that a ghost would appear… on such a huge scale.

‘Just what is Yoo Seodam?’

Ahinal had read the diary from cover to cover countless times since her plan failed the other day to find out who he is.

‘Black hair and white eyes. He has an oriental name and uses a sword…'

It was quite common for ghosts to use a knife, but there were few ghosts who used a long sword like Yoo Seodam. So, in the diary, the ghosts which used swords were categorized differently from others, and there were more than 10 of such stories.

‘What age is it now, Why are you using a sword…!’

Ahinal’s stomach churned. It was a stressful endeavour for her.

‘There must be a reason why he hid his identity and approached me.’ Ahinal thought.

‘First, why didn’t he attack me even though he knew I was hunting ghost stories?’

Was it because he wasn’t able to do it?

‘If so, why couldn’t he attack me?’

Was it because he still hadn’t recovered enough strength to attack me, yet? Or because he couldn't hurt humans directly? Or, are there any restrictions?

‘There must be a story. A story.’

In the diary, there were quite a bit of details written on every ghost, and Ahinal carefully read them one by one with her bloodshot eyes as if she was going to eat them.

One day passed, two days passed, another week passed.

Around that time, strange things began to happen in the academy. And, most of it took place around Ahinal. They were all ghost stories whose identity and causes were unknown to her.

One night, when she turned her head to the wall, she saw dozens of faces of men with terrible expressions looking at her. It was a ghost story from hell in the wall.

And one day, while she was doing her business in the bathroom, she kept hearing a voice in a language she didn't know. She was extremely annoyed, but when she searched the dictionary later, she was terribly surprised to find out that it meant ‘look up' in a classical language. It was a ghost story that says that if you look up because of the voice, you will meet a ghost.

In addition to that, numerous ghost stories that Ahinal could not seal had started to become active once again. She vaguely guessed the reason.

“It was because of the great ghost story…….”

However, no one was seriously harmed by the ghost stories that appeared recently. There were no missing or casualties. As if someone had intended it, The ghost only came looking for Ahinal.

She was too afraid to even fall asleep at night. She had never been directly victimized by a ghost story, so she had no idea that it would be this terrifying.

There was only one way for her to get out of this hell. She had to get rid of the great ghost story.

But, how? Ahinal didn’t know what to do.

‘I need to prepare a little more thoroughly…'

Then, Ahinal felt something tugging her mind. Out of instinct, Ahinal turned her head.

And then she saw it. Across the window, Yoo Seodam was looking towards her with a hideous smile.

“AHHHHHH!!!”

Ahinal closed her eyes out of reflex. Then, after ages, when she felt that she was ready, Ahinal looked at the window once again. However, Yoo Seodam had disappeared.

She was certain that it was neither a hallucination nor an illusion. It was really Yoo Seodam, However, by the way…

‘This is the 17th floor…!'

What the hell?

* * *

Ahinal didn't come to see me, so I secretly came to spy on her, and then when our eyes met, I spooked her out of spite.

I scratched my cheek while clinging to the wall with my feet. Standing on top of a high-rise building was something that could be done so easily as an S rank superhuman who had mastered footwork. Besides, since I became a ghost story, people couldn't even sense my presence well. Even when they looked at me, they only saw a blurry figure and screamed in surprise, as if they were looking at the shape of a ‘ghost'.

This seems to be the influence of being a ghost story.

I wanted to look through the window again, but I stopped myself. In the first place, it seemed that the ghost story that stuck to me could influence the school every time I got close.

Still, it was nothing bad. I’d rather say that it was working to my favour.

After sensing Ahinal’s presence, who was still trembling, I smiled and left.