The special circumstances of a mansion possessed by an evil spirit.
A blonde girl descended the stairs, humming a tune, at the scene of an accident where someone had died.
Any sane person would have realized by now that Emily was not in her right mind.
And then there was Smith’s disciple, stepping forward to speak.
“E-Emily!
Dressed in such a thin nightgown… without even wearing shoes… your legs are completely exposed!”
At Kim Suhyeon’s actions, my face immediately twisted into a grimace.
Damn it, so there was someone among us who wasn’t in his right mind.
He seemed terribly displeased by the thought of another man seeing Emily’s bare skin.
Was this really the time to be worrying about something like that…?
At Suhyeon’s trembling gaze, Emily lifted her snow-white leg slightly and wiggled it as if she found the whole thing amusing.
“Why?
You like my legs, don’t you?
You sneak peeks at them all the time when Grandpa isn’t looking~.”
“N-no, I don’t!
I—!”
“Did you really think I hadn’t noticed?
That’s disgusting.”
Kim Suhyeon tried to deny it.
However, his gaze remained fixed on Emily’s tiny toes as they moved delicately.
Witnessing the scene, Smith let out a distressed groan.
“…E-Emily.”
Everyone had their own fetishes, and I didn’t care about whatever history Emily, Smith, and Suhyeon had together, so that was fine.
But letting the situation continue to spiral out of control wasn’t a good idea.
To change the subject, I gestured toward the chandelier with my eyes and spoke.
Besides, it was something that needed to be done.
“Everyone, even if the police can’t get here, let’s cover the corpse with a tablecloth or some other fabric for now.
We can’t just leave it lying there like that.”
“….”
At Yohan’s words, Emily smiled mockingly before gently hiding behind Suhyeon’s back.
“…I’m tired.
I think I need some rest.”
Suhyeon then spoke in a trembling voice.
“Seeing the corpse must have… left Emily confused.
I think I’ll take her away so she can rest.”
Smith approached Emily unsteadily.
“Mr.
Yohan, I’m sorry.
I’m worried about Emily, so I’ll stay with her as well.”
Well, even if she was possessed by an evil spirit, I suppose he was worried about leaving his granddaughter alone with a disciple who, as it turned out, got excited by her legs.
Pastor Go Juwon hesitated for a moment, glanced at the corpse beneath the chandelier, then fiddled with his cross and moved closer to Smith.
“I-I am also worried about Mr.
Smith and Miss Emily, so I’ll go with you.”
I blinked as I watched them take Emily away.
No, how many people did it take to escort someone to the infirmary?
Was the corpse supposed to be cleaned up by our ancestors or something?
The words almost rose to my throat, but I decided against saying them. This chapter was copied from g.com without permission.
There was no point.
I raised my head and looked at the sticky, unpleasant atmosphere that I could now feel with certainty.
The shaman had simply been the first to be affected.
The others were already no longer themselves, either.
…Not all of them, at least.
I lowered my gaze toward Ellie, who was kneeling in front of the chandelier and praying for the dead shaman.
“Lord, remember the dead and help them find peace and rest.”
Her beautiful black hair was fully exposed.
She was a fake nun who didn’t even wear a veil, but her voice was solemn, mournful, and gentle.
After finishing her prayer, Ellie rose to her feet.
“I want to help Emily.
It’s obvious that something is wrong with her right now.”
She addressed Yohan in a resolute voice.
“That’s why I want to get help from an expert.
Please help us, Mr.
Ghostbuster.”
At the unexpected title, the tension in my face momentarily dissolved.
“Pardon?”
The maid, who had been watching the situation carefully, joined in as well.
“Th-the others laughed, but… I-I believe you too.
Um… you seem to be the calmest and most familiar with this sort of thing… so…”
I sighed inwardly at the mention of Ghostbuster, a casual remark I’d made earlier in the kitchen to lighten the mood.
…No, why would you actually believe that?
Still, there was no need to throw away the trust I’d managed to gain, so I decided to make use of it.
After all, I’d come here to exorcise an evil spirit and earn thirty million won.
I turned to Ellie and the maid.
“What’s your name?”
“Ah, I’m Kim Sora.”
I spoke to Ellie and Sora.
“First, bring something to cover the corpse… Is there anything we can use as a brazier?”
Holding the Grimoire, I gazed at the blizzard raging outside the window.
It seemed like they’d prepared a few things.
But cheap horror movies weren’t my taste.
Their plots were contrived and downright lousy.
***
After covering the corpse with an extra bedsheet draped over the fallen chandelier, the new maid, Kim Sora, mentioned that Smith had received some artwork and antiques from his friends, including something that looked like a brazier.
Ellie and Sora went to fetch it.
“Since any further delay could be dangerous, I’ll go to my room and get the bag containing the tools we need.”
I stopped by my room and collected the bag containing my Robe and Holy Water.
And now that I was alone, I decided to try using the Grimoire’s search function, just as I had when it taught me black magic.
I had no idea whether it would contain any information about the evil spirit, but there was no harm in trying.
I wondered how to use it, but the moment I concentrated on it, the Grimoire’s pages opened on their own.
『A terrifying thing.
A dark entity that hides in closets, beneath beds, and in narrow crevices.
It grows stronger by feeding on human fear.』 This chapter was taken from g.com without permission.
“The evil spirit under the bed… Is it the Boogeyman?”
Though it was inside Emily now rather than under a bed.
Having gathered what I needed, I climbed the stairs to the second floor to rejoin the others.
“…”
Sensing the eerie presence, I slowly turned my head toward the dark corridor where Emily’s room was.
And there came Smith’s disciple, Kim Suhyeon… walking out with a kitchen knife in one hand.
Whatever the possessed Emily had told him during that short time, he was glaring at me with eyes full of hostility.
Well, it was just something that evil-spirit bastard had said.
I wasn’t particularly curious.
Besides, Suhyeon probably wasn’t in his right mind at the moment anyway.
She had probably promised to sleep with him if he killed me.
Still, out of basic courtesy, I spoke to Suhyeon in a calm voice.
“Mr.
Suhyeon, get a hold of yourself.
If you care about Emily, then more than anyone else, you should know that she isn’t herself right now—”
“Shut up, shut up, shut up!
Emily is mine!
I’ve hated that lecherous look in your eyes from the very beginning!
I’ll kill you!
Damn old man!
Emily is mine!
Every last bit between her toes belongs to me!
Who the hell actually respects a washed-up relic like you?
Give me Emily!”
…Apparently, it wasn’t Emily herself he liked.
It was her body and her toes.
“This is insane.”
I never expected to find myself in a situation where I would simultaneously discover someone else’s sexual preferences—which I had absolutely no desire to know—and face the prospect of being stabbed.
“DIEEEEE!”
Kim Suhyeon charged at me with the knife thrust forward.
To protect its master, Grizzly emerged from the Grimoire and slapped the charging Suhyeon with its palm, as if swatting a fly.
Following its master’s prior command, it intended to subdue him without going too far.
Unfortunately, the direction of the blow was off.
WHAM—CRACK!
The blow sent Suhyeon crashing into the railing.
The railing shattered, and he fell to the first floor.
And perhaps he had landed at a bad angle—
CRUNCH!!
His neck twisted sharply, killing him on the spot.
Smith’s disciple, Kim Suhyeon, was dead.
“…”
Grizzly and I cautiously poked our heads over the broken railing and looked down at Suhyeon’s corpse.
“…Fuck.”
“…Gyaa.”