Chapater 6: Where the Neck Lies
The dark figure was Lee Hwaseo.
Yoo Kishin and I, cautiously approaching, blinked in confusion.
‘So that’s what’s going on.’
I knew she wouldn’t let the ghost story slide, but I didn’t expect this.
Unlike me, who got it, Yoo Kishin was still dumbfounded.
“L-Lee Hwaseo…?”
“…Yeah. Uh, hi?”
“Hi…? What are you doing here??”
She fidgeted, holding a black plastic bag.
“Well… uh…”
In the dark, with a black bag over her head, it really looked headless.
No negative energy, so even I was briefly startled.
A simple yet creative idea.
But she hadn’t prepared an excuse.
“I forgot something and came back to school…”
“Came back and?”
“The wind blew the bag onto my head… haha…”
“…”
Yoo Kishin’s face screamed disbelief.
No amount of cute dodging would work.
‘Should I help?’
I had no ill feelings toward her.
If anything, I liked her.
I’d seen her often in Spirit Exorcism.
Meeting a main character felt like meeting a celebrity.
More importantly, peace at Paradise High mattered to me.
My traits were deeply tied to this place.
‘With the events to come, exorcists’ roles are crucial.’
For them to function, distractions like their identities being exposed must be avoided.
“Class president, you were curious about the ghost story too?”
“Huh?”
“Trying to scare us, right? Pretending to be a ghost.”
“Oh, that’s it…?”
Unlike the puzzled Lee Hwaseo, Yoo Kishin muttered.
She quickly jumped in.
“Y-Yeah, that’s it! I was curious about the ghost story… uh, sorry for scaring you!”
“Nah, it’s fine. I wasn’t scared.”
My casual reply visibly relieved her.
Awkward, but we could let it slide.
Instead of doubting, Yoo Kishin clutched his head.
“Ugh, I really thought it was a ghost! Well, guess it wouldn’t be found so easily…”
He was clearly disappointed.
“Human eyes are so easily fooled. The janitor’s sighting probably wasn’t real either. At night, alone, psychological Gestalt effects kick in…”
Mumbling, he slumped his shoulders.
“Another bust. Guess the headless ghost doesn’t exist.”
“Looks like it. Shame. I came just in case.”
“Not really. Most ghost stories are mistakes or made up. Happens a lot. Still, when the lightning flashed, I got my hopes up seeing that headless figure.”
“…Ehehe, sorry.”
“Didn’t think it’d be the class president. Top students are weird.”
“W-Weird…?”
Lee Hwaseo flinched, unused to the comment.
I helped her out but decided to tease a bit too.
“Yeah. Who thinks to wear a plastic bag? So random.”
“A mask or costume would’ve made more sense.”
“Ugh…”
Her face turned beet red.
We headed to the first floor.
“Guess the ghost story was fake, as expected.”
“Let’s tell the kids tomorrow so they don’t worry.”
“I… don’t have anyone to tell. You guys do it.”
“Oh.”
Lee Hwaseo and I glanced at Yoo Kishin with pity.
Before leaving, she spoke.
“Today was fun! It’s dark, so you guys head home quick!”
Embarrassed, she scurried off.
“I’m off too. Be careful, vice president.”
“Yeah, see you tomorrow.”
“Night’s the time for spirits. Scared? Want my peach branch?”
“…Pass. You use it.”
“It’s super rare, you know.”
Grumbling, Yoo Kishin left.
As I stepped forward—
“…Hm.”
I felt something and turned back.
Re-entering the school, I climbed the stairs.
I’d sensed faint negative energy, thinking it was a fluke.
But now, following a clear sensation, I heard footsteps.
“Janitor?”
A dark figure stopped and slowly turned its head.
No head.
To be sure, I flashed my phone’s light.
“Found you.”
Its upper head was gone, not a plastic bag—purely absent.
Leather pants, a loose jacket.
The ghost, likely male, had pale skin and tattered clothes.
It lunged, claws raised.
– Raaaar!
“No mouth, so where’s the sound coming from?”
That contradiction was what made a ghost.
Attacking without warning, though.
‘It thinks I’m human.’
My perfect disguise fooled even other ghosts.
Proven by experience.
Whoosh!
Sharp, fast claws.
I dodged easily, pulling my chin back.
– Grrr!
The enraged ghost charged faster.
Beyond human speed and strength.
– Neck…!
I saw it all clearly.
Minimal movements dodged everything.
– Give me my neck…!
“Why ask me for your neck?”
A wall was behind me.
As I dodged again, its fist slammed into it.
Boom!
“Oof.”
Debris crumbled lightly.
More noise would be trouble.
“Gotta think about what to do with you.”
I grabbed both its attacking hands.
It scoffed, trying to break free.
– Grr… grrr…?
No use. I forced it to its knees.
Confused, it froze as I placed a hand on its head, releasing spiritual energy.
“Let’s see how you died.”
My consciousness drifted somewhere.
Sometime in the past.
A dim dawn.
A rough-looking man in leather pants and a jacket sped on a motorcycle.
No cars around.
Yet, as if chased, the bike roared at breakneck speed.
“Fck… fcking…”
He spat curses.
Running a hand through his helmetless hair, he sighed or gritted his teeth.
Like someone who’d seen something unbelievable.
Or didn’t want to believe.
Beep—
A red light signaled a stop, but he sped up.
“No… no way…!”
Muttering, he swerved the handle.
Entering a rural road, trees lined both sides, narrowing the path.
The slick road made the tires screech, but his mind was elsewhere.
“Yeah, no way! Must be a mistake… I… I’m…!”
Glancing back repeatedly.
He missed a speed bump ahead.
His eyes widened as he looked forward.
He yanked the brakes, but too late.
“Aaagh—!”
His body flew.
Unluckily, he landed beyond the guardrail, down a steep cliff.
Screaming, his neck twisted grotesquely.
And then…
“Talk about bad luck.”
One of my abilities: psychometry.
Measuring an object’s soul, I saw his death and clicked my tongue.
“Falling there? And your neck snapping off? Geez.”
– Grrr…
“Wear a helmet on a bike, man. What was so urgent you sped like that? Trying to die?”
A ghost lecturing a ghost… like a person.
Normally, it wouldn’t listen, but it only whimpered, unable to argue.
“Don’t cross the river Styx so young, huh?”
– …?
The headless ghost seemed to stare, like, what’s this kid saying?
No head, so my interpretation.
It knelt before me.
It knew it was no match.
“Wandering for your neck but ended up in the wrong place. Go quietly. This is my turf. Don’t cause a scene.”
– You… who are you…
“Me? Just an ordinary ghost.”
– No… way…
The ghost trembled.
Its pale skin turned paler.
“Leave, or I’ll make you. You don’t want that.”
– Neck… my neck…
“I said it’s not here. Look elsewhere.”
– My neck… my neck…
Repeating itself, not listening.
I sighed deeply.
“Find your neck, and you’ll leave?”
Exorcising it would be cleanest.
But after years as a ghost, they weren’t mysteries like in my past life.
They were like me.
Wandering souls with their own pains and stories.
If possible, I preferred resolving things peacefully or helping them ascend.
Like at the entrance ceremony.
‘I’ve helped plenty before.’
Called “ghost gods,” but they’re not gods.
They’re flawed, struggling with problems.
Sometimes, I solved issues for them if I could.
– …!
No head, but it seemed to nod.
– You… know where…
“Roughly, yeah.”
It’s awkward to say, but I’m pretty versatile.
With psychometry, finding it wasn’t hard.
“Get it back, and you’ll cross over?”