episode_0160

“20 years ago, it was a rainy day. A friend of mine who had been with me since the academy and also joined the Hunter Association… was found dead one day.”

An old car.

A middle-aged man resting his body helplessly in the passenger seat.

Director Ko Young-in shared a bit of his personal story with the beautiful woman in the backseat.

“They said it was suicide. They say he froze in the [Artifact Incinerator] in the basement of the association… The cause of the freeze was not revealed until the end. Only that friend knows the truth.”

“… … .”

“That friend appeared as a ghost. Yes and now, you probably wanted to kill me because I couldn’t do anything.”

Go Young-in looked out the car window with deep eyes.

I close my mouth while admiring the setting sun.

“… … When did you start seeing it?”

A beautiful voice came from the backseat.

Go Young-in swallowed heavily, holding back from turning his head involuntarily.

D-class hunter Eunha.

[Rare Hunter Protection-Kill Department] ‘Rare Hunter’ protected by Team 1.

Ingredients for [Galaxy Potion].

and…

When he encounters a ‘ghost’, he meets for the first time… someone who sees the same thing.

‘It’s strange. I definitely came here to check whether or not Miss Eunha was killed. ‘I never thought I would tell you my worries.’

Nothing happens.

Go Young-in looked back on his absurd life and burst into laughter.

I don’t know why.

How did she know about the existence of a ‘ghost’ that was not recognized by shamans, churches, or anywhere else?

But Go Young-in did not think deeply.

What does that matter to a person who is drying up and dying every day?

Now, the pain that I just kept buried in my heart,

I’m just happy that I met someone with whom I can share a little bit.

The urge to release all of the anger in oneself to that beautiful woman.

Go Young-in felt a strange attraction to Eun-ha.

“Hmm… There was an uproar in May when one of the association’s employees committed suicide. At that time, while checking the CCTV at the scene of the incident, I encountered a ‘ghost’.”

“What is the date?”

“I remember it as May 4th, but do you know anything?”

And, Eunha picked up Go Young-in’s story one by one in her head.

She was ruminating on her memories and massaging the sore back of her neck.

As Go Young-in explains ‘since when’, I feel the hairs on my entire body stand up.

‘May 4th… when I took [The Black Book] to the Hunter Association. I took it to the [Artifact Management Department] to check if it was an artifact.’

One of the things I did when I didn’t know how dangerous the [Black Book] was.

Eunha gently pressed her throbbing temple.

Have you been causing trouble without your knowledge?

There are more reasons to solve Go Young-in’s problem.

‘Never… Even if I die soon, I won’t show [The Black Book] to anyone. You live only with me.’

It worked out better.

There is another [Black Book] somewhere, and Go Young-in discovers it and is tormented by ‘that’… It’s not because of his own carelessness.

Eunha patted the carrier on her lap.

Rustling…

Is it because I have someone to share my concerns with?

Director Go Young-in, who looked more relaxed than before, took out white chocolate and a ‘torn piece of paper’ from the inside pocket of his suit.

‘Black paper’ that looks like it was roughly torn by hand.

A ‘rule’ as bright as blood engraved there.

“It was on the floor when the ghost first started attacking. I didn’t die because I followed the ‘rules’ written here… but I didn’t think I could win in a fight.”

I was handed chocolate and a ‘piece of paper’.

Eunha put sweet chocolate in her mouth and looked at the piece of paper.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

– Keep your mouth shut. Don’t open your eyes.

– Hide and crouch under the desk.

– Only tell people you know.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Not a guide or standardized rules,

Something half-baked.

However, the material of the paper is the same as that of the [Black Book].

“Every time a ghost came, I hid under the desk and closed my eyes.”

“… … .”

“I had trouble sleeping every day, and even though people at the association were worried about my physical condition… I kept quiet and didn’t say anything. This is the same reason why I just turned off the black box.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

“And today. I finally met Eunha… ‘someone I know’.”

Go Young-in seemed to find great relief in the fact that there were others going through the same hardships as her.

You are not alone.

A pillar on which a person’s heart can lean and rest.

Go Young-in’s heart enjoyed its first two-month rest.

“Thank you so much…listen to my story.”

“It’s natural.”

“Haha, Eunha must be going through a lot… Is there one ‘ghost’ per person? It reminds me of a comic book I enjoyed as a child. The main character defeating the villain with a ghost appearing behind his back was really cool.”

“The main character died.”

Eunha quietly munched on her chocolate while listening to Go Young-in’s complaints.

Leave it to me to be mistaken.

Wouldn’t allowing Go Young-in to be ‘perceived’ incorrectly like that be a way to increase his reputation?

But it can’t be a fundamental solution, so we have to find a way somehow.

Eunha recalled the ‘wise old man’ watching the sunset in the park.

‘… No, that’s a last resort. ‘If you went there without thinking, you could have been in big trouble.’

She shook her head and without thinking, turned to look at the window next to her.

『… … .』

I made eye contact with Eunha, whose mouth was itching to talk.

Was Go Young-in able to appear because he was a ‘visible person’?

I glanced at Go Young-in, who was breathing comfortably in the passenger seat.

Eunha frowned and glared at ‘Eunha’, and ‘Eunha’ pretended to giggle and started pretending to be an ordinary mirror.

My heart feels chewy.

Eunha looked at herself reflected in the window and pulled her cheek.

However, ‘Eunha’ stops while trying to pull her own cheek, and bursts into silent laughter while pointing a finger at Eunha.

I feel resentful.

“Ha… Thank you so much. Please listen to the complaints of people like me.”

Dalkak-.

At that time, Go Young-in, who was telling a story, picked up the heavy money bag left at his feet and held it out to Eunha.

Eunha, who was having a snowball fight with Eunha, was startled and adjusted her posture to sit down.

“Yes? What is this?”

“The share that would have been distributed to Miss Eunha when [Galaxy Potion] was ‘officially’ sold.”

Words as heavy as the weight of the bag.

Soon, a heavy rock lands on Eunha’s heart.

“We did not prepare to be forgiven, and Miss Eunha should not forgive us. Because I did something like that… Still, this is all I can do for Eunha, so what can I do?”

“… … Are you serious?”

“No problem. Even this junk car runs better than I expected.”

Bang bang… Go Young-in lightly knocked on the ceiling of an old car and smiled kindly.

… … .

… … .

“Cat Director. You seem to be in a pretty good mood.”

“Are you going to call me that too?”

“Sounds good.”

After a while.

On the way back to the Hunter Association.

Go Young-in, who received the ‘black piece of paper’ back from Eunha, took a deep breath and looked up at the setting evening sky.

The bright yellow sunset falls on my stuffy chest.

Even when Eunha offered to give her a ride to the ‘Saetstar Apartment’, she refused.

An image of her bowing her head, holding a black suitcase in one hand and a heavy money bag in the other, flashes before my eyes.

“I’m glad the story turned out well… Have you decided whether to kill him or not?”

“You wouldn’t know it if you looked at it. I’ll tell Team Leader Ban Harin well.”

Feeling more relieved than usual, I took out a piece of white chocolate from my suit pocket.

Then, he tried to eat the chocolate as usual… but burst into laughter and handed the chocolate to his secretary.

It was a strange encounter.

The relationship I found in an unexpected place was as dazzling as the Milky Way, and I couldn’t be more satisfied with the fact that I met someone who could deal with the worries that were consuming my mind.

‘There’s a lot to take in return… Since Eunha, who is in the same situation, is living so energetically, should I try to live a little longer too?’

A little motivation.

Headquarters Director Go Young-in controlled his stomach churning at the rattle of the old car.

The work of ‘ghosts’ is okay.

Today I came to Eunha for a different reason.

For some reason, it seemed like Eunha was planning to help him… but decided to just accept his heart.

What would a D-class hunter do against a monster that even the A-class hunter had to hide under the desk in fear without being able to do anything about?

Just listening to their complaints is enough.

Go Young-in closed his heavy eyelids, thinking that he would finally be punished for turning his back on his friend.

I continued to be haunted by my friend’s ghost like this,

After ignoring his friend’s body, he collapses from overwork and dies at the head of the headquarters.

A fitting end for someone who couldn’t do anything.

This is enough.

He was satisfied.

… … .

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“How do I close my eyes again.”

That evening.

After returning home, Eunha looked down at the money bag she had placed on the living room table and muttered.

There are many things I want to do.

But there is nothing you can do.

It may be vague, but what should we do with ‘that’ that is almost bizarre?

The meeting with Director Go Young-in left Eunha uneasy.

I felt responsible.

This problem arose because he brought the [Black Book] to the association.

Eunha worked her soft brain hard to find a plausible solution.

(『Hunter… please help me…』)

It reminded me of an ‘amorphous thing’ I encountered one day.

‘Something’ encountered at the blood donation center, pointed its finger at the young man who killed him, and then disappeared.

Unlike strange monsters who are full of resentment, do half-hearted people disappear when their regrets disappear?

What is certain is that it has not appeared since then.

There is a high possibility that ‘that thing’ that clings to Go Young-in will also disappear on its own once its work is done.

I’ll have to meet you in person to find out the details.

Palakㅡ.

Eunha opened the [Black Book] with a complicated face.

As I turn the pages one by one… I sigh when I find a page with a torn corner.

I don’t even remember when it was torn.

This too must have been torn apart around May.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

– Keep your mouth shut. Don’t open your eyes.

– Hide and crouch under the desk.

– Only tell people you know.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A ‘piece of paper’ that Director Koh Young-in had.

It was probably written by a ‘ghost’ who possessed him.

What was ‘that’ thinking when it passed these rules on to Go Young-in?

It seems as if consideration was taken to prevent other victims.

Something half-hearted, closer to regret than resentment.

What do you want to convey?

『Sloppy. Never mind.”

‘Eunha’ reflected on the TV said.

The TV, turned off, reflects the galaxy like a mirror.

『Anyway, open your eyes. Sooner or later.』

“… … Even if I cooperate, I will take a bath when I want to.”

『If the absurdity disappears, you will only open your eyes.』

I closed the [Black Book].

I squeezed my hard head today.

I want to save it if possible. This is a problem caused by one’s own carelessness.

I even received the unexpected money bag, and I felt pity as Go Young-in’s haggard face flashed before my eyes.

I became a hunter. There is still a lot missing, and most things are at a standstill.

He didn’t want to turn his attention away from a problem that only he could solve.

“Hmm… Or should I just make it unrecognizable?”

『What should I do?』

“There are many ways. Anything is better than dying.”

I thought it was easy.

I’m not very smart anyway.

It was obvious that if I tried to think about it alone, I would only get strange answers, so I decided to just do whatever I felt like.

The goal is to save Go Young-in.

Bury the ‘ghosts’ that are attached to him in a sunny place, and make him not be able to see ‘things’, even if it means poking his eyes.

It will work if you do it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

4. Cognition is the connection of existence.​

– Have you heard the saying, ‘Knowledge is power’?

– With every action you take to recognize and get to know each other, ‘they’ will become closer to you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Grumbling…

Eunha came out to the veranda.

The cloudy night sky sweeps over Euncheon-gu.

A stray cat walks along the streetlight, and office workers who finished working overtime cross the crosswalk with tired steps.

Eunha took a deep breath in the chilly air even though it was July.

『… … .』

Today again, ‘something’ poked its head out from the veranda railing.

A woman with no lower body who carries painful memories with her every night.

I remembered the freshness of the morning.

Eunha approached ‘that’ with her usual smiling face.

“Do you take any painful memories with you? In what way?”

『… … ?』

“Not the pain, but like I don’t remember that face. Can you even suck out my memories?”

I try anything.

Eunha rolled her head and prepared to save Go Young-in.

“If you help me, I’ll lend you my lower body. Or even something else.”

It is a night when stray cats walking between streetlights hide in the shadows.