Chapter 8: What do you mean to live with a ghost story?

The next morning.

The city greeted the sun as always.

Until yesterday, this place was a disaster site where a Doom-level ghost had appeared.

Many had died, and even more had fallen into despair.

But the world had not yet collapsed.

Sunlight poured through broken windows, and footsteps continued on the streets where grey dust had settled.

Despair was deep, yet life continued on.

Everyone tried to survive, adapt, and carry on with their daily lives somehow.

“……Did you see it?”

“Of course I saw it. Wasn’t it crazy?”

“The Doom-level Ghost Collector. And even Phantom.”

“……What on earth is that being, Phantom?”

From morning, the city was filled with talk about Phantom.

News channels continuously covered the ‘Bosingak Ghost Terror,’ and media outlets clamored about ‘the worst ghost appearance in history.’

The Ghost Response Headquarters was scheduled to announce an emergency briefing.

Everyone’s attention was focused on a single being.

The being who appeared before countless people last night and suppressed a Doom-level ghost.

Phantom.

Or ‘something’ akin to a Doom-level ghost.

****

[Breaking News] Bosingak Terror, Doom-level Ghost ‘Collector’ Appears… Numerous Casualties

[Special Feature] The Shocking Being, Phantom. Who is He?

[Controversy] Is it a new Doom-level Ghost? Or a being that stops ghosts?

****

The internet and news outlets were scrambling to report on the Bosingak incident.

“……Did a fight break out among the ghosts?”

“No, but the strange thing is, did you hear what Phantom said at the end?”

“……Was it, ‘I am not your enemy’?”

“Yes, that’s the real problem.”

People formed countless theories.

‘A confrontation between Doom-level ghosts.’

‘Perhaps a civil war broke out among the ghosts?’

‘Perhaps Phantom is a ghost that protects humans.’

But no one could be sure.

Because nothing was known about Phantom.

****

At that time, at the Ghost Response Headquarters.

“……Let’s each state our opinions.”

High-ranking officials and key agents were seated in the central conference room, reviewing documents.

The table was densely covered with photos and reports containing images of Phantom.

The being standing in the middle of the plaza, shrouded in black aura.

The Doom-level Ghost Collector embracing him.

Even the sight of him raising his hand and telling the girl ‘stop.’

“……No matter how you look at it, isn’t it strange?”

“Anyone can only see this as the same kind of ghost.”

“But there isn’t just one or two strange things.”

“First, when the Doom-level ghost tried to reveal its killing intent to humans, Phantom stopped it with a single word.”

“And the words he left at the end.”

[I am not your enemy.]

The meaning of that single statement is immense.

“……Does a ghost need to say something like that?”

“If it were truly a ghost, there would be no reason to say such a thing.”

“So it’s not a ghost?”

“That’s the problem, because we don’t know.”

A strange silence enveloped the conference room.

An atmosphere where no one could easily open their mouth.

Then, Seo Jihun, the Head of the Response Headquarters, quietly opened his mouth.

“……One thing is certain, Phantom is not human.

He didn’t even flinch under that immense pressure.

A human could never do that.”

The moment his words fell, the air in the conference room grew even heavier.

“That is clearly a being like a ghost.”

“……Or, it’s a third entity, neither ghost nor human.”

He quietly looked at the photo.

“……Phantom.”

‘What on earth are you?’

No one could easily answer that question.

But what was clear was that they needed to figure out ‘what’ he was.

****

Meanwhile, in a small studio apartment in Seoul, a man was suffering.

“Aaaargh!”

Who else could it be? It was Yoon Sihyun, me!

“Ah, are you serious? What is this?!”

I scoured the news and internet all night.

My actions at Bosingak.

Every single word I left for people.

And how people were seeing me.

‘I woke up and became the protagonist of the world, but?’

‘If you title a novel like this, you’ll get flamed!’

“……”

The scene etched in my mind resurfaced.

The Collector.

What that small, young girl had said while hugging me tightly.

– “……I’ve been waiting.”

– “I won’t lose you now.”

And how, with just those words, the world began to regard me as a strange being.

“……Ah.”

No matter how much I thought about it, this was truly irreversible.

Lying on the bed, I stared silently at the ceiling for a while.

“System Window…”

[Please end the story of the Doom-level Ghost.]

Last night, after returning home, I yelled countless times, but there was no response in this state.

Are you going to push me into a death trap and then ignore me?!

Are you really going to pretend you don’t know me all of a sudden?!

“What do I do now?”

My mind was complicated.

No, “complicated” isn’t enough.

This is just a total mess.

I slowly closed and opened my eyes, letting out a deep sigh.

Suddenly, feeling a distinct gaze from somewhere, I looked into the corner of the room,

And there was another being besides me.

“……”

Slowly, I turned my head to face the girl who was there.

The Collector, sitting quietly on the floor a little distance away, staring at me silently.

Her golden eyes were still sparkling, and with her small hands placed on her knees, the girl was simply waiting.

As if she naturally belonged there.

“……Hey, how long have you been there?”

The girl tilted her small head and replied briefly.

“……Always.”

“…?”

‘She’s been here the whole time?’

‘So, not only last night, but she’s been watching me screaming and having a mental breakdown in bed this whole time?!’

My face instantly flushed, but,

That’s not what’s important right now!

“No, no. How did you follow me all the way here?”

The Collector was quiet for a moment, then slowly moved her lips.

“……I followed.”

“?”

“……Together.”

“Haa.”

Let’s recall yesterday’s situation.

The Collector must have followed me when I used shadow-like spatial movement.

‘Damn System Window. What do you expect me to do if you bring her along?’

‘Then my attempt to disappear from there in the first place was useless!’

‘……What a proper jinx to start the new year.’

I couldn’t help but grab the back of my neck.

How should I accept this situation?

“……So, what exactly are you?”

The girl quietly met my gaze.

“……Collector.”

A short, firm answer.

“No, I know that.”

“Why are you clinging to me like this? As I said yesterday, I’m not the person you miss.”

Only then did the Collector blink her eyes.

Then,

“……I don’t know. But. I miss you. It’s familiar.”

She merely repeated the same words as yesterday, once again.

“……”

I was speechless at the girl’s answer.

The exact same words she said yesterday at Bosingak.

Back then, I was too mentally broken to think deeply, but hearing it again now, the feeling is somehow different.

‘Familiar…?’

A voice as if saying, ‘it was always meant to be this way, and it has always been this way.’

“…Me?”

“Yes.”

“…Why?”

The Collector tilted her head slightly and muttered briefly in a tone as if stating an obvious fact.

“……I don’t know. That’s why I need to be. By your side.”

“By my side?”

The girl quietly nodded her head.

“I lost it.”

“What did you lose?”

“……Something precious.”

Is it just my imagination that my head hurts every time I hear her answer?

‘Ah, please, I don’t understand what she’s saying.’

The girl was still calm.

Rather, her face was filled with even more conviction.

She certainly seemed to have something she was convinced of.

But right now, more than that, I just can’t understand what she means by ‘something precious.’

“……I’m the precious thing?”

“Yes. Probably.”

“No, what on earth do you mean by—”

—Gurgle.

“Huh…?”

“……”

A short silence.

What? Where’s that sound coming from?

The girl bowed her head slightly and placed a hand on her stomach.

“……I’m hungry.”

“You’re hungry?”

“……Food.”

Ghosts get hungry too?

Oh, whatever. I’m not thinking about it anymore.

Now, questions or anything else, I need to feed her first.

“Alright, let’s eat first.”

I got up from my seat and headed to the kitchen.

The girl remained quietly seated, moving her gaze to follow me as if it were natural.

Seeing that, a deep sigh naturally escaped me.

This whole situation itself was absurd.

My normal daily life had fallen apart half a year ago, but there’s a limit to how much!

Now I’m making breakfast for a Doom-level ghost who says I’m precious to her?

‘I’m seriously going crazy.’

I briefly ran a hand through my hair, recalling the ultimate culprit behind this situation.

‘System Window, I’ll really get you later.’

Just then, as I secretly dreamed of revenge, a question suddenly popped into my mind.

By the way, what should I call that kid?

The Collector?

No matter what, calling her ‘Hey, Collector’ doesn’t feel right, does it?

Isn’t there… something like a name?

“…Hey.”

The Collector quietly raised her head and stared at me intently.

“What’s your name?”

The girl hesitated for a moment, then,

“……Collector.”

She replied in a small voice.

“No, not that.”

“…?”

“I mean, a name. Don’t you have a name?”

Then the Collector simply shook her head quietly.

“Name… I don’t know.”

“…?”

This is truly absurd.

‘She… doesn’t know her name?’

I looked at the girl in front of me again.

This small ghost is one of the most powerful ghosts in the world.

A being with the terrifying title of Doom-level.

Such a being is now simply looking up at me, eyes sparkling.

“……”

The Collector’s name never appeared in the novel either.

The author ended the novel before the background story was even revealed.

‘Maybe giving her a name is a way to save her… It’s worth a shot anyway.’

The girl who was still just sitting quietly.

Clear and serene golden eyes.

Her light silver hair gently swayed as she simply gazed quietly in this direction.

A soft color, somehow like moonlight.

Then, strange memories suddenly began to surface in my mind.

****

– “Your name is really pretty. It suits your silver hair well.”

– “Do you also think I resemble the moon?”

– “No, the moon resembles you. Because you’re so pretty, haha!”

– “Hmph, you always have a way with words……”

– “It’s true, Lu—”

****

A word that surfaced in my mind flowed from my lips unconsciously.

“……Luna.”

I mumbled it inadvertently.

Someone’s name from a suddenly appearing unfamiliar scene.

Was it a misconception that a strange pang went through my chest the moment I spoke that name?

‘What are these memories? Whose memories are they…?’

The unfamiliar scenes that appeared in my mind vanished like a mirage.

Did the System Window do something again?

I couldn’t understand why these memories suddenly appeared.

‘Could it be something like the Collector’s background story?’

As I thought that and looked at the Collector, she was staring intently at me, her eyes wide.

“……”

As if surprised, her small lips slowly parted.

“Luna…?”

The girl mumbled with her small lips, repeating it once more in her own voice.

“……Luna.”

Again and again.

“Luna……”

The girl repeated her name as if confirming it.

That sight somehow gave me a strange feeling.

Why did it seem as if this name was always meant for her…?

That thought was fleeting,

*Thud.*

“Huh!?”

Luna suddenly rushed and hugged me with her small body.

The distance closed in an instant.

Small arms tightly embraced my waist.

An action so natural, so self-evident.

‘Stop rushing at me without a word!’

No matter how pretty she looks on the outside, she’s a ghost, honestly, it’s scary.

“…Hey, wait.”

Although I was flustered by the sudden situation, Luna still whispered softly with her face buried in my chest.

“……I like it.”

A quiet voice.

But a word full of emotion.

“……Luna, I like it.”

It was such a simple statement, but it seemed to contain countless emotions.

Her small hand tightly gripped my back.

The moment she received her name, the girl definitely felt closer to me.

I saw Luna’s silver hair as she slightly lowered her head.

The small warmth around my waist was so light and delicate that I couldn’t possibly push her away forcefully.

With her small hand, she held my lapel tightly.

As if she would never lose it.

As if she had been waiting for this name for a very long time.

That sight, somehow, didn’t seem like just a ghost.

She clearly bears the name of ‘Doom,’ the most powerful among ghosts, so why does she feel like an ordinary girl right now?

I couldn’t bring myself to shake off Luna’s touch and could only remain still.

‘Wait, if she likes it this much, then maybe?’

With a glimmer of hope, I looked at the System Window, but,

[Please end the story of the Doom-level Ghost.]

[Stories Solved: 0]

Of course. It couldn’t be that easy.

“……Seriously, how am I supposed to live now?”

It’s clear that worrying more now won’t lead to any brilliant solutions.

So what do I do?

I have to accept it, what else can I do?

Day 1 of cohabitation with a Doom-level ghost begins.