TOIGC 48

“No, I mean I see a different ghost besides you. The one sitting right on the stomach of that guy groaning over on the bed.”

<There’s another besides ghost me?>

Deokbae hovered around Yoongi with a startled look. If Yoongi hadn’t mentioned the bed and the sleeping man, Deokbae would have assumed he was just messing around. But since Yoongi was specifically talking about spotting a ghost’s signature bluish aura, he couldn’t just brush it off.

<It’s I a able anyone be but didn’t expect here, me. other see spirit than there’s to true you>

<That’s There’s Western around. bastard hanging right. some spirit>

Hearing Deokbae confirm it, Yoongi recalled past conversations they’d shared and sudden realization hit him.

<You ’em? Every down see single street? the time walk wanna you>

<Just A a and because blessing. can doesn’t every find, ghost is know. like me me, mean no other out rare real see seeing spirits there, trust you>

Yoongi bit back the phrase ‘act your age, old man’ with great difficulty.

<Hey, at curse did head? in just me you your>

Deokbae looked a bit suspicious, watching Yoongi maintain a completely poker face, before finally shaking his head.

<As I If a an by can closer even evil had head. in isn’t it’s it, label looking, on over probably put right spirit spirit. tell the there to you>

<You A able and be bunch but can coincidences conditions. feel influence like might not of out piled right see spirits, still the their things this. to turned under up, you>

<Anyway, aren’t fellow? here talk that to you>

Deokbae shook his head as if the whole idea displeased him.

<The 100 If a and door freak from going got gun guy’s he’s him. knock next now, on out paranoia percent right shoot straight that the through to wood. you>

<What Time do earn keep. my think? to you>

Deokbae phased straight through the log cabin’s wall and vanished inside, instantly charging straight at the Western spirit sitting on Fernandez’s stomach.

To Yoongi’s shock, Deokbae was literally beating the living daylights out of a white spirit towering a full 190 centimeters over him. The Western spirit tried to fight back, unwilling to just take a beating, but that ‘minor rebellion’ was suppressed in no time flat. Within seconds, Deokbae had pinned the spirit to the floor and parked himself right on top of its chest.

<This Get Heungseon! Hey, I It’s alongside are around brawling den for? gambling go here in inside. is now. picked right safe standing style the to up what you>

Nodding internally at Deokbae’s cue, Yoongi turned to the sergeant standing beside him.

“I can’t see a thing inside. Should we try knocking at least?”

They couldn’t just stand out here forever. At Yoongi’s prompt, the sergeant nodded, while the corporal instinctively drew his pistol from his pocket and motioned for Yoongi to step back.

The sharp rap of the sergeant’s knuckles echoed through the quiet night. About twenty seconds later, a faint sliver of light began leaking from the cabin’s windows.

“Who is it…?”

The voice was thick with exhaustion.

The sergeant answered carefully.

“Sorry for the late hour. We were sent by Lianna. Could we take a moment to talk?”

Perhaps the name Lianna carried some weight, because the cabin door slowly creaked open, revealing Fernandez in the flesh.

Late twenties at most? Considering the career history Lianna had mentioned, he must have started working at Gensler practically the moment he became an adult. Then again, that was assuming one ignored the facial hair; Fernandez’s wild, overgrown beard made him look at least a decade older.

“Lianna sent you…? But what’s with the gun…”

Fernandez was drenched in sweat, a bizarre sight given the chilly alpine air at the base of the mountain.

“Ah, apologies. The lights were out, and we didn’t know what to expect out here…”

The sergeant and corporal quickly slipped their pistols back into their pockets. Fernandez exhaled a heavy sigh, looking thoroughly worn out, and shook his friends’ heads—er, his own head.

“Nah, you did the right thing. As it happens, I didn’t have my gun on me tonight, but on any normal day, the second you knocked, I would’ve blasted right through the door.”

“Er… well, I suppose that makes us lucky, in a twisted sort of way.”

At the sergeant’s remark, Fernandez nodded and pulled the door open a bit wider.

“Anyway… come on in.”

A bare bulb hanging from the center of the cabin’s ceiling flickered to life, casting a harsh, bright light across the modest interior.

“Running a generator, I see?”

The corporal asked, and Fernandez nodded.

“I told ’em I didn’t need it, but my friends hooked it up for me anyway. Didn’t even properly thank them at the time, and look at it actually coming in handy.”

“Do you really manage to live out here like this?”

“My nerves were completely fried for a while. Back in the city, I almost shot an innocent person walking down the apartment hallway because I was trapped in a panic loop. So I had no choice but to hole up out here. As for food, my buddies bring me canned goods and supplies…”

Hearing this, Yoongi let out a dry chuckle and cut in.

“I honestly thought you were surviving out here purely by hunting. You’ve got that rugged mountain-man vibe with the big beard and all.”

Hearing a kid express such romanticized notions compared to their harsh reality, the three men all smiled faintly.

“I wish it worked like that, but hunting isn’t nearly as easy as it sounds. Besides, I don’t even know the first thing about slaughtering an animal.”

“So you’re enduring all this hardship out here purely because your nerves are frayed?”

Fernandez let out a long sigh.

“Yeah. Though, to be honest, my head feels surprisingly clear tonight for the first time in forever. Maybe because we have a guest… though that doesn’t really track, since my friends visit sometimes and I never feel like this then…”

Lost in thought for a moment, Fernandez suddenly slapped his forehead with a look of realization.

“A guest shows up and I’m not offering a single thing… Care for a shot of vodka? I’d love to brew some tea, but I’m fresh out.”

The sergeant and corporal exchanged glances, trying to read Yoongi’s expression and ready to refuse, but Yoongi gave a subtle nod.

“You’ve been working hard all day, a single drink won’t hurt.”

Thus, the sergeant and corporal found themselves awkwardly handed large mugs filled with vodka. They clinked glasses with Fernandez over a handful of peanuts for snacks, and a surprisingly warm atmosphere settled over the cabin. The soldiers were exhausted from hours of driving and welcomed the alcohol, while Fernandez was simply thrilled to have a visitor on a rare day when his mind was actually cooperating.

After a while, Yoongi casually broached the subject.

“If you don’t mind, could you step outside for about thirty minutes?”

At Yoongi’s well-timed request, the sergeant and corporal looked hesitant.

“I’m afraid we can’t do that… We received very strict orders regarding your safety.”

“You can take your guns and any self-defense gear with you outside. If you’re worried, you can just keep watch through the window, right?”

“Well…”

“Please.”

Perhaps swayed by the condition that they could keep watch through the window, the sergeant and corporal debated for a moment before nodding. They grabbed their gear and stepped outside into the night air. The fact that one set of footsteps lingered right outside the door made it clear they intended to bust back in the instant anything went sideways.

“Why’d you suddenly send your babysitters outside?”

Judging by the way those two bodyguards behaved, Fernandez finally realized that the Asian kid standing before him must carry some serious, high-ranking status.

“Because I want to talk about things those guys wouldn’t believe. I’m guessing you’ve already had enough experiences of being treated like a lunatic when you tried speaking honestly.”

“Huh…?”

Fernandez stared at Yoongi’s face, hardly daring to believe what he was hearing.

“You keep seeing things that aren’t there, moving objects inside your house, and suffering from recurring nightmares, right?”

“How on earth do you…?”

A second later, Fernandez let out a hollow, cynical laugh.

“Ah, right. You heard about it from Lianna. Figures she’d have a sick sense of humor.”

But Yoongi’s next words froze the smile right off his face.

“Let’s see… Exactly 87 days ago, the third plate down from the top shelf on your wall crashed to the floor, and a few seconds later, the fifth plate from the bottom shelf did the exact same thing, right?”

“H-How do you…?”

He had never mentioned details like that to anyone else, leaving Fernandez entirely rattled. Just to be sure, he grabbed his journal to check the date 87 days ago; sure enough, his handwritten diary entry matched the events word for word.

Right at that moment, Deokbae was sitting in a textbook mount position over the white spirit, raining punches down on its face.

<You Besides, bet, better no reliever stress than there’s this. welcome. you’re>

While Yoongi and Deokbae chatted mentally, Fernandez finished verifying his journal, looking at Yoongi with a mixture of half-suspicion and sheer terror.

“Who… Who the hell are you…?”

“Well, I’m Choi Yoongi from Korea. Everyone else, including Lianna, just calls me Yoongi.”

“Right, Yoongi. What brings you all the way out here to see me?”

“I want to hire you.”

Fernandez shook his head firmly.

“I’d love nothing more than to work right now, but I’m in no condition to do anything. You can see the state of this place, can’t you?”

Inside the log cabin, stacks of paper prepared for architectural designs lay scattered everywhere. But since most of the sheets were completely blank, it was obvious his mental state had paralyzed his ability to produce anything.

“Besides, if I’m ever well enough to work again, naturally I’d go back to Gensler. Why on earth would I travel to some country called Korea I’ve barely even heard of?”

“You’re going to end up following me whether you want to or not.”

“What’s that supposed to mean…?”

Fernandez furrowed his brow, just as a soft tap sounded against the window pane. Yoongi raised a palm toward the window with a reassuring gesture, then looked straight back at Fernandez.

“You know what Japan is, right?”

“Japan? Of course I’ve heard of it.”

“And you’ve probably heard stories about Japanese people having strange, mystical abilities, right?”

“Like ninjas or samurai? Sure.”

Knowing full well how Japan marketed its exotic image to the West, Yoongi decided to lean into the trope.

“Korea is no different. Among them, I happen to have the ability to see and control ghosts. Well, keep that between us, though.”

For a split second, Fernandez burst into laughter.

“Ahahaha! Oh, that’s a masterpiece. If you’re gonna lie, shouldn’t you at least make it sound believable?”

Yoongi shrugged nonchalantly.

“If I’m just making things up, how did I know what happened 87 days ago? Want me to tell you more?”

Yoongi began reciting details he’d learned straight from Deokbae, and with every sentence, Fernandez’s expression grew dead serious as he cross-referenced his journal.

“You… you can really see them?”

“I’m telling you the truth. You’ve been seeing what you assume are hallucinations in your dreams, haven’t you? As long as I’m around, spirits won’t be able to torment you anymore. Though, of course, you’d have to be employed by me for that. In fact, aren’t you feeling remarkably calm right now?”

Even as he registered that undeniable fact, Fernandez shook his head.

“Look, even so, I can’t just up and work in some country I’ve never even heard of.”

“Well, that settles it then. Guess you’ll just live out your days in this log cabin.”

Yoongi offered a bright, cheerful smile and stood up as if the conversation was completely over.