Northern Grand Duke (5)

,I can see your panties.”

I immediately found the ghost girl’s weakness.

,Hieeeek! You-you-you can see me?”

Misty, who was floating in mid-air, blushed. She clutched the hem of her skirt tightly with both hands.

,What do I do… you can really see me? No, I mean…”

Her translucent body moved back and forth. One moment she had substance, then she disappeared, only to reappear and vanish again.

Then, she suddenly stopped and stared at me.

,Are you… someone who can see ghosts?”

,Looks like it. You and I are the only ones here, and we can communicate.”

,Wow! Finally… finally, I have someone to talk to!”

Misty smiled brightly. Unlike her bright expression, a faint moisture formed in her eyes.

,How long… how long have I waited…”

Her voice trembled for a moment. But she quickly regained her bright expression.

,If I had known this would happen, I would have dressed up nicely! Ah, but I always wear the same clothes…? I want to wear something different, but I guess I can’t since I’m a ghost! I used to have so many pretty clothes!”

,Your clothes are fine as they are. They suit you well.”

,Really? Hehe, I’m still a little embarrassed…”

Misty floated around in the air.

,But who are you? I’ve never seen you in this graveyard before?”

She suddenly came right up to my face and asked. Her translucent face peered closely at me.

,I’m Haru.”

,Haru…? Hmm, that’s a nice name! I’m Misty! I’m the ghost of this graveyard, and I’ve been here for a very long time…”

,How long has it been?”

,Uh… I don’t really…”

Misty tilted her head. The way she scratched her head was cute.

,I don’t really remember. I just… think it’s been a really long time.”

A moment of silence passed. But soon, she smiled brightly.

,Ah! That’s right. I should give a tour of the graveyard to someone who’s here for the first time!”

Misty spun around me.

,This place is… the Necromancer’s graveyard! Scary, right? Super scary, right? But what is a Necromancer?”

She spread her arms wide and pointed around. The black marble tombs glowed faintly.

,It’s not scary though?”

,Hey, that’s disappointing to hear… I was working so hard to create a scary atmosphere.”

Misty puffed out her cheeks.

,But all the tombs here are my friends! Ah, that skeleton over there is Rosetta. Pretty name, right? I gave it to her!”

She smiled brightly and pointed to a skull.

,That’s Frederick. He looks a bit gruff, but he’s a kind skeleton. And over there…”

Misty flew around haphazardly, lost her balance, and bumped into a tombstone.

,Ouch…! No, wait. I don’t feel pain. Because I’m a ghost…”

She grumbled in the air and pretended to dust herself off.

,I’ll… I’ll show you something else!”

She hurriedly flew to another tombstone.

,You’re a really fun ghost. And harmless.”

Which meant she was a pushover.

,I… is that so? Hehe, thank you.”

Misty smiled shyly. Her translucent cheeks turned slightly pink. The graveyard, which should have been scary, seemed to brighten up thanks to her.

,Usually, ghosts are scary and spooky… I don’t like that kind of thing. I just… like talking to someone like this.”

,You must have been very lonely all this time.”

,Yeah… No, it’s okay! I play with the skeletons too… and I have fun by myself…”

She tried to speak brightly, but her voice gradually grew smaller. Her translucent eyes became moist.

,Sorry… I’m okay… but the tears keep coming…”

She curled up into a ball in the air. Her small shoulders trembled.

In that moment, my hand moved on its own. Just as I was about to stroke Misty’s head.

Whoosh-

My hand passed right through her. A cold sensation brushed against my palm.

,Ah…”

Misty looked up, startled.

,Sorry… I can’t touch you. Because I’m a ghost…”

A lonely voice. But she soon smiled brightly.

,Wait a minute…’

I remembered the times I fought against ghost-type monsters. I was able to inflict damage with gray aura. And it was quite fatal too.

I suddenly looked at my palm. A faint gray energy rising.

,If I adjust the intensity of the aura…’

It was worth a try.

I reached out my hand again. This time, I infused it with only the minimum amount of aura.

,Huh?”

I gathered the gray aura at my fingertips and held out my hand to Misty.

,Do you want to hold my hand?”

,Huh? I told you I’m a ghost…?”

Misty hesitated. But she cautiously reached out her hand.

It was that moment.

,Huh?”

It was as I expected. Misty’s small hand touched my palm. A cold but distinct sensation.

,Kyaa!”

Misty was so surprised that she jumped into the air. Or rather, she tried to jump, but she was caught by me and struggled.

,This, right now… how…?”

She looked at her hand with a trembling voice.

,All this time… no one could touch me…”

Tears welled up in Misty’s eyes. Her small shoulders trembled.

I reached out my hand again. This time, Misty took my hand without hesitation.

,It’s warm…”

Her voice trembled. A cold but soft sensation was transmitted to my palm.

,It’s really amazing. After so long… to feel someone’s warmth…”

We stood there like that for a while.

In the moonlight-drenched graveyard, the hands of the living and the dead touched.

,…Pervert! How long are you going to hold my hand!”

Misty suddenly shouted. She quickly let go of my hand and fled into the air.

,Holding a girl’s hand for this long… you were definitely thinking something dirty!”

,I wasn’t.”

,Liar! All men are like that. I’ve heard a lot about it from the skeletons!”

What kind of stories did she hear from the skeletons, this innocent ghost.

,Anyway…”

Misty came back to me. She shyly tapped the air with her toes.

,You’re… coming again tomorrow, right?”

Her eyes, full of anticipation, turned to me. They were clearer than the moonlight.

,Yeah, I promise. I have something to find in the graveyard anyway.”

,Really? It’s a promise? You absolutely can’t break it!”

Misty shouted in a shrill voice.

,If you break it… if you break it… um…”

She seemed to be pondering, then suddenly smiled.

,I’ll become a ghost and stick to you for the rest of your life!”

,That’s the same as now.”

,Ah, that’s right…”

Misty puffed out her cheeks in embarrassment.

,B-but still! Next time, I’ll tell you more interesting stories. I also know some scary stories…”

She suddenly became transparent and then reappeared. Her playful voice echoed back and forth.

,Can you see me over there? What about here? Ah, you can’t see me now, right?”

I couldn’t help but laugh at her innocent playfulness. This was the first time I’d seen a ghost like this.

,Okay, I should get going now.”

,Uung… you have to come tomorrow?”

Misty’s eyes wavered anxiously. Like a child afraid of being left alone.

,Don’t worry. I’ll definitely come.”

,Okay.”

,Hehe, good!”

Her figure gradually faded and disappeared into the moonlight. But her clear laughter still lingered in the graveyard.

I left the graveyard. Misty’s bright voice came from behind me.

,See you tomorrow, Haru!”

I stopped walking and turned around. A faint silhouette was waving its hand in the moonlight.

I met a strange ghost. But it wasn’t bad. And she might be helpful in the future.

***

,Shall we look over there today?”

Looking around the graveyard like this every day had become a routine. To save Kiara’s older sister, I needed the artifact possessed by the Necromancer. I had to find the tomb where that artifact was sleeping.

Misty pointed between the black marble tombs.

,There’s a secret passage underground here! Maybe it leads to the Necromancer’s tomb…?”

The graveyard was incredibly vast, as if all the vengeful spirits killed by the Necromancer were sleeping there.

Moreover, all the black tombs looked the same. But Misty seemed to be able to distinguish them all.

,You know…”

Misty suddenly stopped walking. She pointed to one of the tombs.

,That… I think that’s my tomb.”

It was a small voice. Misty stopped in front of a tombstone with a name faintly engraved on it.

,A long time ago… I was just an ordinary girl too.”

Her voice became as faint as her appearance.

,My father was the village apothecary. Every morning, he would trim medicinal herbs…”

Misty’s eyes looked into the distance. As if she was tracing back memories from hundreds of years ago.

,Then one day… the Necromancer appeared. My father… tried to protect the villagers until the end. While treating the sick… but that was… the end of everything.”

Words that flowed out like a sigh. No further explanation was needed.

,I’m sorry.”

,It’s okay. Now it’s… just a memory.”

She tried to smile brightly, but I could see that her eyes were red.

,But I’m less lonely now.”

Misty smiled brightly at me.

,Because Haru… can see me.”

Something suddenly came to mind from my bag.

,Just a moment.”

I rummaged through my bag and took out the necromantic materials.

,What’s that…?”

,Here, take this. It’s the essence of a vengeful spirit.”

,Uh… why are you giving this to me…?”

Misty looked into the glass bottle in surprise. The black liquid sloshed ominously.

,I heard it’s good for the body. Well, you’re a ghost, so you don’t have a body.”

,Hmm… I can’t eat it anyway since I’m a ghost… Euaht!”

I lifted the bottle and brought it to her lips.

,Eueup! Eueup…!”

The black liquid soaked her translucent lips. In that moment, darkness enveloped her body.

,Ugh… uh…?”

Misty blinked in surprise. Then she smacked her lips.

,Sweet… it’s sweet?”

,That’s because you’re a ghost.”

,What, you scared me! I thought you were feeding me something weird!”

Her expression, full of pure joy, was cute.

I then took out the rare necromantic materials. A crimson shard of hatred, a crystal of despair, the sigh of the dead….

,Ah! It’s like chocolate! The outside is hard, but the inside is soft… and it’s a little spicy too! This is like cotton candy! It melts in my mouth…”

These were items filled with death energy that would drive an ordinary human crazy just by being near them, but for Misty, a ghost, they were highly nutritious snacks.

,But you know…”

Misty suddenly made a serious face.

,What if I get fat from eating this…? Oh, right! I’m a ghost?”

A moment of silence passed. And we both burst out laughing at the same time.

,Ha… Haru… um…”

The usually noisy ghost suddenly became quiet. Misty wiggled her translucent fingers.

,I… Misty, I… you…”

The way she tapped the ground with her toes in the air looked somewhat anxious.

I suddenly sensed what she was about to say. Ah, I’m familiar with this kind of situation.

,I love you!”

Misty suddenly appeared in front of me. Her usual playful demeanor was nowhere to be seen, and she had a serious expression.

,You… looked at me. You touched me… and you listened to my stories…”

Her translucent eyes turned red.

,For hundreds of years… no one could see me…”

A trembling voice. Each of her words was tinged with a long-standing loneliness.

,I’m sorry.”

,That kind of…!”

I spoke softly. But the meaning of rejection was clear.

,Hehe… no… you can’t reject a ghost….”

Misty’s expression suddenly became scary… towards me?

,Even if I have to cast a curse… I’ll make you mine!!”

She held out both hands in front of her. As if she was about to cast a terrifying spell.

A moment of silence passed.

,Ah…”

Misty’s shoulders slumped.

,Heeing… why can’t I even cast a curse?”

,What a harmless ghost.”

I handed more necromantic materials to the depressed Misty.

Misty devoured the materials as if trying to increase her power. Or maybe she just wanted to relieve her heartbreak with dessert.