The voice followed her home.
“Guardian… come home.”
Again.
And again.
Seo Haneul barely slept.
Whenever she closed her eyes, she saw crimson cracks spreading beneath Namsan Tower like veins beneath glass.
At dawn, the whispers finally stopped.
She stood in front of the bathroom mirror, splashed cold water on her face, and tucked her black hair behind her left ear.
The pointed tip stared back at her.
She quickly hid it again.
“Just one normal day,” she whispered.
The mirror remained silent.
That was a good sign.
Seoul National University buzzed with its usual weekday energy.
Students hurried between lectures with iced coffees in hand.
Professors argued over research.
Fresh ginkgo leaves drifted across the walkways.
Everything looked ordinary.
Haneul almost believed it was.
Until she stepped into the History Department.
A flood of whispers crashed into her mind.
“Burn the records…”
“Hide his name…”
“No one must remember…”
She staggered against the wall.
Old buildings always carried echoes.
But these…
These sounded frightened.
As if someone had erased history on purpose.
She glanced toward the university archives.
The whispers were coming from there.
Before she could investigate —
“Watch where you’re going.”
She collided with someone.
Books scattered across the hallway.
“I’m sorry,” Haneul said quickly, kneeling to pick them up.
The young man crouched at the same time.
Their hands brushed.
A sharp pulse shot through her fingertips.
He frowned.
“You…”
His dark eyes narrowed.
For the briefest moment, Haneul saw something impossible reflected in them.
A pale figure stood behind her.
Its mouth stretched into an impossible grin.
She spun around.
Nothing.
When she looked back, the young man was still staring.
“You saw it?” she asked before she could stop herself.
“Saw what?”
“The spirit.”
His expression flattened.
“I think you hit your head.”
He gathered the last of his books and stood.
“Kang Minjae.”
He wasn’t introducing himself.
He was reading the name on the student ID she’d accidentally dropped.
“You should be more careful, Seo Haneul.”
Then he walked away.
Haneul watched him disappear into the crowd.
He had seen something.
She was sure of it.
Across campus…
Kang Minjae stepped into a quiet stairwell.
Only then did he stop walking.
He leaned against the wall and rubbed his eyes.
“Damn it…”
The ghost was still there.
Not behind Haneul anymore.
Standing at the end of the hallway.
Watching him.
Most people couldn’t see spirits.
Minjae could.
Unfortunately.
Especially when he was angry.
And right now…
He was very angry.
The ghost smiled.
Then vanished.
His phone buzzed.
A single message appeared.
*Client Request*
*Location:* Namsan Mountain
*Time:* Tonight. Midnight.
*Payment:* ₩2,000,000
He frowned.
“Namsan?”
He almost declined.
Almost.
Then another message arrived.
*Emergency. Multiple spirits reported.*
Minjae sighed.
“So much for sleeping.”
That night…
Rain soaked the streets beneath Namsan Tower.
Haneul couldn’t explain why she’d come.
The mountain was calling her.
Every step toward the tower made the whispers louder.
The air grew colder.
The trees stood unnaturally still.
Then —
A scream split the night.
A young office worker stumbled onto the trail, his face drained of color.
“They’re coming!” he cried.
Behind him, shadows poured between the trees.
Dozens.
No…
Hundreds.
They weren’t wandering spirits anymore.
Their eyes glowed crimson.
Their bodies twisted into shapes that barely resembled people.
The seal was weakening.
One spirit lunged.
Haneul barely dodged.
Another grabbed her wrist with icy fingers.
She gasped.
The creature hissed.
Then —
A wooden sword slammed into its skull.
The spirit exploded into black ash.
“Move!”
It was Kang Minjae.
He stood between Haneul and the swarm, rain dripping from his dark coat, a bundle of paper talismans clenched in one hand.
“You again?” Haneul shouted.
“I was about to ask you the same thing.”
Another spirit charged.
Minjae slapped a talisman onto its forehead.
Blue fire erupted.
The creature shrieked before dissolving into smoke.
Haneul stared.
“You… you’re an exorcist?”
He gave a humorless laugh.
“Part-time.”
The ground trembled.
Both of them looked toward Namsan Tower.
A crimson crack spread farther up its base.
The mountain groaned.
Deep beneath the earth…
Something ancient opened its eyes.
And smiled.
---
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