-PRESENT DAY 2-
The next morning.
6:00 AM.
The council alarm rang.
A giant ghost bell echoed everywhere.
DONGGGGGG.
Every ghost woke up immediately.
Except— Lily and Meena.
Still dead asleep.
If laziness had a competition…
Lily and Meena would win gold, silver, bronze, and probably steal the trophy too.
The Ghost Council had seen many souls over the centuries.
Crying souls.
Angry souls.
Souls who begged for another chance.
But these two?
These two slept as the world owed them rent money.
Morning sunlight poured through the giant windows of the Ghost Council dormitory.
Birds chirped peacefully outside.
Inside?
Two corpses disguised as humans were spread across the bed like victims of a natural disaster.
Meena was hugging three pillows, one blanket, and somehow Kim’s jacket.
Lily had fallen halfway off the bed with one leg hanging dramatically like a dying movie character.
And both of them were snoring like ancient demons awakening from a cursed seal.
“…Are they dead again?” Rosy asked carefully.
“They were already dead,” Tikku replied.
“…Right.”
Kim politely shook Lily, “Lily… wake up…”
Nothing.
Tikku jumped on the bed, nothing.
Rosy threw water, nothing.
Mr Johnson yelled, “GET UP!” Nothing.
Meena rolled over dramatically and slapped Mr Johnson in the face.
“Five more minutes, Mom…”
Mr Johnson: “I HAVE BEEN DISRESPECTED.”
Five minutes later— Failure.
They tried calling their names again.
Nothing.
They shook them again.
Nothing.
Tikku then blasted loud music near Lily’s ear.
The only response he got was Lily mumbling
“Five more hours, please…”
Meena was worse.
At one point, Rosy genuinely checked her pulse out of concern before remembering—
“Oh, right. Ghost.”
Finally, after thirty minutes of suffering, everyone gave up.
The room became silent.
The Minister entered.
And everyone immediately straightened up.
Long white robes, Cold expression, Wise aura.
And in his hand…a gigantic bronze dong.
Tikku blinked, “…Why does he even own that?”
“No one knows,” Kim whispered seriously.
“There are rumours he once used it to wake sleeping dragons.”
The Minister walked toward the bed silently.
Lifted the dong.
And— DOOOOOOOOOONGGGGGGGGG
The sound exploded through the room like divine judgment.
“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!”
Lily and Meena flew out of bed.
“EARTHQUAKE!”
“WE’RE DYING!”
“WE’RE ALREADY DEAD!”
“OH, RIGHT!”
Meena was crushing Rosy like a terrified koala.
Meanwhile Lily— for reasons nobody in history would ever understand, grabbed the bedsheet dramatically like a microphone.
“It hits me like an earthquake— Uh-huh, uh-huh—”
Tikku’s soul almost left his body.
“NO! NOT THE JISOO SONG AGAIN!”
But Lily had already entered concert mode.
“바로 날 덮친 earthquake— Uh-huh, uh-huh—”
Rosy nearly dropped to the floor laughing.
Meena suddenly pointed dramatically at Kim.
“Oppa… stop her jeballllllll….”
Kim already looked spiritually exhausted.
Then both girls together, “It hits me like an earthquake— Uh-huh, uh-huh—”
“PLEASE STOP!” Tikku cried.
“YOUR SINGING IS WORSE THAN THE DONG!”
Even the windows looked emotionally damaged.
Kim closed his eyes like a man who had suffered enough for ten lifetimes.
“Yes. Yes. Earthquake. Very nice. Wonderful performance. Please stop before the Ghost Council bans music forever.”
Silence.
Finally.
The Minister inhaled deeply.
“You two,” he said slowly, “need to start contributing to society.”
Lily blinked, “…Society?”
“Yes.”
“Like… taxes?”
“No.”
“Because if it’s taxes, I’d rather disappear forever.”
Tikku collapsed laughing.
The Minister ignored him.
“You cannot stay here doing nothing. Every resident works.”
Meena looked horrified.
“Work? In the morning?”
Lily gasped dramatically.
“Minister, I’m a writer.”
“But now you are not.”
“I need thinking time.”
“You sleep sixteen hours.”
“That’s part of the creative process.”
Rosy turned around because she physically could not laugh in front of the Minister.
“If you want me to write masterpieces,” Lily continued proudly, “I need financial motivation.”
“Silence,” the Minister said instantly.
“Nobody wants your writing or your understanding.”
Tikku coughed loudly to hide his laughter.
The Minister pointed at them.
“Which one of you COOKS?”
Immediately— Lily pointed at Meena.
Meena pointed at Lily.
Then both slowly turned toward each other with betrayal in their eyes.
“…Traitor.”
“…Snake.”
The Minister sighed.
“Fine. Tonight, you two will prepare dinner.”
Both girls looked genuinely offended.
“Dinner?”
“Yes.”
“Like… actual cooking?”
“Yes.”
Meena raised her hand carefully, “Hypothetically… what if we emotionally support the kitchen instead?”
“No.no need of that”
Lily quickly jumped in, “Actually, we have important ghost business this morning.”
“Yes!”Meena nodded rapidly.
“Very spiritual. Very urgent.”
The Minister stared at them for a long moment before finally speaking.
“…Fine. But if you leave the Council grounds, you will need your password.”
Both girls instantly straightened.
“Ohhh right.”
“We remember.”
Then, together, with full confidence.
They placed their hands on their chests dramatically.
“I am a ghost.”
“I am a ghost.”
“I AM A GHOST.”
“CAN I ENTER?”
Tikku fell onto the floor laughing.
Rosy physically walked into the mirror because she couldn’t survive this anymore.
Kim covered his face.
And deep inside his mind, the Minister whispered to himself— The Ghost Council was peaceful for thousands of years.
Why these two?
WHY?
Before anyone could stop them,
_POOF_
Lily and Meena vanished.
The room became silent again.
Kim looked at the space tiredly.
“…They’re going to destroy reality one day accidentally.”
“Probably today,” Tikku answered immediately.
A few moments later.
Outside the society house.
Lily and Meena appeared dramatically through ghost portals, only to immediately crash into a flowerpot.
“OW!”
“WHY DO WE ALWAYS LAND BADLY?”
Meanwhile, inside Meena’s house…
Lucas was fully ready.
Shoes on.
Bag packed.
Hair perfect.
And one important detail— Kai was still sleeping like a man who had personally signed a contract with hibernation.
Lucas stared at the clock.
Then, to Kai’s room, from his room window upstairs.
Then back at the clock.
“…Unbelievable.”
He marched toward the kai house and knocked.
No response.
Again.
Nothing.
Third time.
Still nothing.
Finally, the door opened—
But instead of Kai— Aarav, he stood there holding a coffee mug.
Lucas immediately straightened politely.
“G-Good morning, uncle.”
“Good morning, Lucas,” Aarav said warmly.
“You’re here for Kai?”
Lucas nodded awkwardly.
“Yeah… we had some plans today.”
Aarav sighed deeply.
“Well, unfortunately, your friend is currently competing with dead people in sleeping.”
Behind Lucas, invisible to Aarav—
Lily proudly whispered to Meena, “See? Even living people sleep like us.”
Meena nodded seriously, “Inspirational.”
Lucas rubbed the back of his neck.
“He still hasn’t woken up?”
Aarav laughed.
“Not even close. You can go wake him yourself. He’s in his room.”
Lucas nodded.
“Okay, uncle.”
As Lucas walked upstairs—
Lily suddenly stopped smiling.
Her eyes moved toward the hallway wall.
Photos.
Family pictures.
Birthday pictures.
Old memories.
And in one frame— Kai.
Standing beside someone whose face had been scratched out completely.
Lily’s smile faded slowly.
Meena noticed immediately.
“…Lily?”
For the first time that morning, the air suddenly felt cold again.
And somewhere deep inside her chest… something felt wrong.
TO BE CONTINUED:
What is the plan that Lucas has?