Soon after, the two female flight attendants came into view through the door the jiangshi had smashed.
"No, their faces......"
"......"
One of them looked stiff, as if her body had hardened. Moments later, she collapsed to the floor, her entire body locked in place.
The other had blue mold blooming like flowers in patches across her cheeks, hands, and legs.
"Ghk, ghhk, cough cough cough, ghhk!"
She clawed endlessly at her throat as though she couldn't breathe, coughing the whole time.
Looking more closely, both of them had shattered bells on their ankles.
'They got caught by the jiangshi...!'
THUD, THUD, THUD, THUD, THUD, THUD.
Behind the struggling flight attendant, the jiangshi leisurely emerged from the shop.
It was still hopping up and down as before.
"Cough, cough cough, h-help, ghk, cough!"
Rolling across the floor, the flight attendant's hair came undone in wild tangles. She kept glancing around the deserted street, desperately calling for help.
We couldn't just keep hiding either.
All we had was a brush and cinnabar ink.
"The problem is how to steal the talisman."
"The talisman? Easy, just go grab it."
"...Excuse me?"
Jeong Siun replied simply.
When I asked again like an idiot, thinking I'd misheard, Jeong Siun crouched low and spoke again in a hushed voice.
"You know about jiangshi too, Cheongho. They show up all the time in Chinese movies. And look over there—its body's completely stiff and rigid. So there's your answer."
"You're not... serious, right?"
"Not a frontal charge—a rear approach. It might be fast, but with a body like that, there's no way it can pivot a hundred eighty degrees."
I thought he was joking, but his expression looked ready to attempt it at any moment. I was briefly dumbfounded.
I thought it over, then spoke calmly.
"Even so, that thing isn't a Chinese monster—it's a 'ghost story.' Couldn't it be different?"
"The talisman was sent directly by a Chinese pharmaceutical company, so I think there's a high chance it follows the traditional monster. I'm not just saying this randomly—I overheard something."
'An object directly becoming a ghost story... It's been a while since a case like this.'
'The last time was about a year ago, right? A wrapping cloth turned into a Mangtae Hallabeom and everyone passed out cold.'
'That's how ghost stories usually go. Then this talisman ghost story must be China-related. Since it says yāo (夭), meaning "to die young," it'd be something like a grim reaper or a jiangshi.'
"I heard it firsthand in the break room not long ago. If everyone was speculating to that extent, and it even matches a jiangshi perfectly, then the information we know should be nearly identical."
Jeong Siun said confidently, recalling the memory.
"You mean the information we know from movies and traditional stories would be the same?"
"Exactly."
"...Then we need to be even more careful. See over there?"
I continued, looking out through the window.
"The talisman on the jiangshi's forehead. Different sources might say different things, but originally, a talisman affixed to the forehead is meant to keep a jiangshi immobilized... a type of protective seal."
And yet that jiangshi ghost story had the talisman firmly stuck on while it hopped around without a care.
Of course, what's shown across various media is the image of a talisman on the forehead, but that's mostly marketing or decoration at this point. Even Halloween costumes are sold that way.
Jeong Siun looked visibly flustered, as if he hadn't known any of that.
"We can guess it's a jiangshi because of the Chinese talisman, but since it's a ghost story, the information we know could be different."
"Haah, we can't just keep hiding like this...... huh?"
Jeong Siun scratched his head in frustration, then his pupils trembled at the sight of something.
'Hm? What did he see—'
I turned my head in the direction Jeong Siun was staring.
'......Shit.'
They say when you're shocked enough, no sound comes out. So this is what that feels like.
Something had silently crawled up to the second floor of the inn where we were hiding.
The thing was roughly twice my height and wore a white mask that looked like something straight out of Chinese opera.
The mask's eyes were curved in a grin, with red gauze fabric wrapped around its head. Its cheeks and lips were reddish, painted with heavy makeup.
On its forehead—!
Dead center, instead of a floral motif, the character for "to die young" was written small.
〖CREAK, CREEEAK, CREAK.〗
It made a broken, stuttering noise, like machinery being forced to run.
The masked figure's torso was nothing but pitch black, only its silhouette visible.
"Think that thing's a monster too?"
Jeong Siun said, shrinking back.
The masked figure's legs and fingers were long and spindly, which explained how it had been able to climb straight up to the second floor without a sound.
〖CREEEAK, CRK, CREEEAAK.〗
The masked figure's head jerked with a grinding noise, then locked onto me and Jeong Siun.
'Hahaha... Honestly, Naviq's smiling mask was a little unsettling, but compared to that thing, it was downright cute.'
〖CREEEK, CREAK, CREEEEEAAK.〗
If we made noise trying to run, the jiangshi—the seeker—would find us, but if we stayed still, there was no telling what that masked thing would do.
"It'd be ideal if the jiangshi and that masked bastard fought each other."
"I'd love that too, but judging by the Chinese character on its forehead, it's clearly a subordinate of the jiangshi, or on equal footing."
"Oh, you're right. Cheongho, are you a genius?"
Jeong Siun let out a hollow laugh, then squeezed his eyes shut. He exhaled deeply, then picked up a small lantern sitting nearby.
"Cheongho, it's come to this—head-on fight."
"Haha...."
Right, it's not like we can jump from the second floor.
I, too, picked up a wooden utensil holder from the table. Then Jeong Siun and I exchanged a brief glance.
CRASH—!
We hurled the lantern and the utensil holder at the masked figure with everything we had.
〖CREEEK, CREEEK, CREEEAAAK!!〗
Hit dead-on, the mask cracked with a splintering sound.
It seemed to be in considerable pain, thrashing and spinning wildly. The mask's face was smiling, but murderous intent radiated from it.
Jingle jingle jingle jingle jingle!
Dodging the masked figure, Jeong Siun and I bolted for the staircase.
The masked figure swung its long fingers in a wide arc.
Its razor-sharp nails nearly grazed my neck, but just barely missed.
CRASH—!
The wall that took the hit instead of me was torn to pieces in an instant.
If those fingers had been just a little longer, that would have been me.
WHOOSH—
Just before heading down the stairs, Jeong Siun grabbed a nearby vase and hurled it again.
The white glass vase struck the masked figure square in the chest, and glass shards along with the water inside burst out.
〖CRE— CREEEEEEEAK! CREEEK, CREEEEEEEEEEEEAK, CREEEEEEEEEAK! CREEEEEEEAK, CREEEEEEEAK!!〗
As if it had gone berserk, the masked figure lashed its elongated arms and legs around wildly like whips.
Because of that, holes were punched through the second floor and sections collapsed with tremendous noise.
"Why the hell's that thing freaking out again!?"
"I'd be pissed off too, so just run!"
Then a sudden question crossed my mind.
We'd made every kind of commotion imaginable, and yet...
'Why can't I hear any hopping?'
"Waaaahh!"
The moment we rounded the staircase curve and descended to the first floor, the jiangshi was already standing there like a stone statue.
GRIIIND.
Its eyes were hidden behind the talisman, but its blackened teeth ground together.
THUD, THU-THUD, THUD THUD THUD!
〖CREEEAK! CREEEK, CREEEAAK!〗
From the second-floor staircase came the sounds of the masked figure stomping its way down.
"This is...."
Surrounded on all sides.......
THUD,
THUD THUD,
THUD THUD,
THUD THUD THUD THUD.
The jiangshi, which had been grinding its teeth, began hopping in place.
It hopped so hard that the building trembled faintly.
'!!'
I hurriedly checked all over my body.
To see whether my body had stiffened or blue bruises had appeared, like the two flight attendants who'd already been caught.
Nothing.
Just because it's hide-and-seek doesn't mean being found triggers the change.
〖CREAK, CREEEEEAK.〗
THUD—!
Just then, the masked figure that had just reached the first floor launched itself.
It cleared a distance no human could possibly jump, leaping with ease.
The masked figure's vicious nails were aimed straight at Jeong Siun.
CRASH—!
Jeong Siun quickly rolled to the left, and the nails missed him.
Because Jeong Siun dodged, the masked figure tumbled forward and drove itself firmly into the floor.
The wooden floor crumbled like styrofoam, sending clouds of dust into the air.
〖CRE, CREEK... CREEEEEAK....〗
Half of the masked figure's body was stuck in the hole, flailing helplessly.
Perhaps because of its long arms, the thrashing resembled a flipped insect—revolting.
"Cheongho!"
While my attention was stolen by the masked figure, Jeong Siun shouted from behind me.
'When did it—!?'
About five steps away—an extremely close distance—the jiangshi was standing there.
The sound of the floor caving in had overlapped with the jiangshi's noise, and I'd failed to notice what mattered.
THUD, THUD,
THUD,
THUD THUD THUD.
As it hopped, the talisman stuck to the jiangshi's forehead fluttered.
Above its purple-bluish lips, both eyes were stitched shut with black thread, the stitching crooked and uneven.
'Ugh.'
I can handle watching late-night horror movies alone just fine, but seeing it for real, right in front of me—that's a first!
『...捉迷藏。』
『...捉迷藏。』
『...捉迷藏。』
The jiangshi repeated it in a very low voice. I could see its body coiling slightly, as if preparing to leap again.
"Hide-and-seek...."
Earlier, the jiangshi had entered the shop where the flight attendants were, and the sound of bells had been deafening.
'Since they weren't taken out immediately and managed to run, the condition for being fully eliminated in this hide-and-seek must be physical contact....'
As long as it doesn't touch me, I'm fine.
I moved only my eyes, fixing my gaze on the round table right next to me.
THUD—
"Hrngh!"
Timing it precisely to the moment the jiangshi leaped, I grabbed the table firmly and shoved it straight into its path.
The jiangshi, momentarily weightless in midair, was knocked back by the heavy table and sent flying high.
It then tumbled headfirst into the flower pots below.
"Siun! Get out!"
The moment I confirmed the jiangshi was thrashing among the broken pots, I sprinted out of the shop.
THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD.
Then the masked figure, which had been stuck in the floor hole, had apparently freed itself at some point and came charging with long strides.
"Gah!?"
Right as I was about to pass through the shop entrance, I stepped on a piece of wooden debris wrong and pitched forward.
I knew a hundred times over that I needed to twist my body like Jeong Siun had done.
But my head was already about to high-five the ground, making any dodge impossible.
No way out—for an instant, I couldn't breathe.
'It's going to catch me......!'
PWOOOF—!
Right then, white powder cascaded over my head out of nowhere.
In one second, it was as though a blizzard had hit—I couldn't see a thing. What the hell just happened?
All I could tell by sound alone was that the masked figure had slammed into something hard and tumbled sideways.
"Cough cough, ghk, cough, what the?"
The white powder surged mercilessly into my nose and mouth, choking me.
"Quit spacing out and get on your feet!"
My arm was grabbed in an instant.
As I coughed and ran, I caught three insults per stride.
"...Senior Gam Doyeong!?"
"Shut up and run!"
Jingle jingle jingle jingle jingle!
Whether the bells rang deafeningly or not, Gam Doyeong and I ran as far from the shop as possible.
With every stride, the white powder caked on my hair and shirt came fluttering off.
Jingle jingle jingle jingle jingle.
We quickly passed six shops and ducked into a side alley.
There was a small room that looked like a storage shed, so we slipped in silently and barricaded the door.
'I hope Siun got away safely.'
"Cough, cou, cough, by the way, what did you throw?"
It was partly from running, but it still felt like clumps of hazy powder were lodged in my airway.
"A sack. Be grateful it was flour instead of red pepper powder."
"We split into pairs, right? What about the other person you were with?"
"The second those masked things showed up, we scattered. Seriously almost died."
"Huh? You mean there are more of those things besides the one we saw?"
At that, Gam Doyeong abruptly showed me the back of his hand.
Two long, bright-red lines ran across his left hand, and the blood had spread to the cuff of his shirt.
"The smiling masks—there are more of them than what we saw. They're silent but fast, and unlike the jiangshi, they're flexible. One of us already got taken out."
"When you say 'taken out,' you mean caught?"
"Yeah. They knock you unconscious with a swing of their arm, then drag you away. I got scratched by those nails. Getting touched by the masks doesn't seem to change you or anything, though."
Even though there was a clear method to resolve the ghost story, the fact that we couldn't even attempt it made this feel twice as difficult as the Moving Walkway Ghost Story, where we'd had nothing at all.
"You remember the time limit from the briefing report."
"Yes. Five hours."
"We can't afford to waste any more time here. Your head works fast. Got any ideas?"
That kind of comment from Gam Doyeong was genuinely unexpected.
"Earlier, when the masked figure got hit, the jiangshi ground its teeth. Like it was extremely displeased."
"So they're close."
"We're badly outnumbered. Our objective isn't the masks but the jiangshi, so one person will have to draw attention and lure the masks into one spot while the other handles the jiangshi."
Just then, I noticed some sharply whittled wooden stakes in one corner of the shed.
"...How about we use those? When the jiangshi jumped, I shoved a table into it and it got launched, completely helpless."
"So when it jumps, you want to skewer it with those. You really don't hold back, do you?"
I nodded. With absolutely nothing that could serve as a proper weapon, this reckless approach was the best option.
Gam Doyeong felt the stakes, then picked the sharpest one and tossed it to me.
"I'll handle luring the masks."
"You want me to take on the jiangshi?"
"What, you're going to lure a swarm of masks? With those feet?"
"My feet?"
I looked down at my feet immediately.
My dress shoes were coated in dust from running wildly on the dirt roads.
When I took them off, my white socks were stained red in several spots—the little toe and the heel had been bleeding.
I hadn't even realized it hurt.
"How'd you know I was bleeding?"
"Tsk tsk. How are you going to keep running in dress shoes? You should've worn sneakers like me. Kid can't even manage the basics but sure has plenty to say."
"Ah... I thought you just didn't want to face the jiangshi yourself."
"Well, that too."
"That was a jo— ahem, right, lives are precious."
Who could argue with a self-serving old-school senior?
Luring just requires making noise, so I'd need to set up a trap.
"Since I'll be handling the jiangshi, help me build something."
"Build what?"
"I need at least one proper weapon."
I looked toward the corner of the shed, still gripping a wooden stake.
There sat a cart piled high with cobwebs and straw. And beside it, worn rope, wooden nails, and a large tarp.
Honestly, I wasn't sure if it'd work, but a single wooden stake wasn't going to cut it.
I wound the rope tightly around the base of the stake.