Chapter 4
“No! Absolutely not! You’ll be in big trouble if you touch it carelessly.”
Thump!
As soon as Junmo heard the sound, he turned around as if he knew it would happen.
Sure enough, the flower beggar who had been kicked out of the restaurant was rolling on the ground. Apparently, his outstanding looks hadn’t worked.
A few thousand-won bills fluttered effectively in front of the melancholic flower beggar. Seeing that he was kicked out despite having money, it must have been because of his appearance.
At that moment, Junmo, feeling pity, clicked his tongue.
“They’re so heartless.”
“Don’t go! I said don’t go! He’s not someone you can handle.”
Junmo, unable to hear the ghost’s words, quickly arrived in front of the fallen flower beggar.
“Hey. Are you okay?”
Junmo supported him as he staggered to his feet, even dusting off his clothes. The flower beggar, shaking off his hand, looked at him with an unpleasant gaze.
“None of your business.”
It was a chillingly deep, low voice.
‘Look at this young punk talking down to me.’
An ordinary person would have flinched at his sharpness, but to Junmo, he was just a flower beggar. For a guardian of the people to let a hopeless case pass by was dereliction of duty.
Junmo picked up the fallen bills. Only 5,000 won in total.
If he spent this, he would surely starve until he gathered that much money again. The fact that he only had this much money meant he was a homeless person, not someone begging for money.
His appearance, unbecoming of his beauty, was truly a mystery.
“Are you hungry? I’ll buy you food, let’s go.”
‘First, I need to feed him. A person needs a full stomach to be docile.’
“Mind your own business.”
This flower beggar had not only run away from home but also from his mind.
However, Junmo had a reason why he couldn’t mind his own business. It wasn’t just because he was a police officer.
He was naturally unable to pass by people who were pitiful or wronged. Since his school days, he couldn’t stand seeing anyone being bullied, and it was common for him to give away his clothes to those in need.
“I’m trying to help you, man. Tell me what you want to eat. I’m not a bad guy.”
The flower beggar snatched the money and, half annoyed and half ignoring him, turned and started walking. The cold wind was so fierce that it felt like December, not May.
That guy, resembling December, walked away like that.
Afraid that he would be uncomfortable if he knew he was a police officer, Junmo shouted without revealing his identity.
“Hey! You’ll regret it if you just leave!”
“Just stay still and don’t make things for him to regret. You’re such a busybody, just like a detective.”
The virgin ghost, who had appeared again, glared at the flower beggar as he walked away.
“You’d be shocked if you knew who that guy is.”
“Phew, it’s finally a bit quiet.”
It was past three in the afternoon when the cafe became quiet.
Running a cafe, Seungri felt like customers who didn’t even know each other were secretly making appointments without the owner’s knowledge. They came in droves and left in droves.
Sungjae came and plopped down in front of Seungri, who was sitting alone in the corner.
She liked how diligent he had become. Well, even during his delinquent days, he was endlessly cute and pretty in Seungri’s eyes.
“Not bad. I heard you’ve improved a lot?”
“I was always good. I told you to go upstairs and rest, but you never listen.”
“It was busy.”
“It’s not busy now, so go upstairs.”
“I like it, it feels like I’m living.”
“If you don’t want to be an exorcist, then don’t. What’s the problem?”
Sungjae didn’t know about what happened four years ago.
He only knew that she had switched from being a doctor to an exorcist.
That’s why he hated her traveling around the country and kept telling her to quit.
‘If only it were that easy.’
She smiled and ignored his words.
“You’re nagging.”
“Dealing with ghosts can’t be good. It’s just tiring.”
“I wish you wouldn’t make me tired.”
“What did I do? I haven’t been causing trouble lately, why?”
Even just a year ago, Sungjae was a famous troublemaker at school. It was rebellion with a reason, but he had made a name for himself as a person of interest.
He changed after his mother passed away.
Perhaps it was an instinct to protect himself, thinking that he was truly alone in the world now.
Even though he caused some trouble, he was wise.
“I keep my promises with you, no matter what.”
Sungjae relied on her more than Seungri thought.
Seungri was the only one who protected him on the day his mother passed away.
He was able to get back on his feet because of her, and he wanted to live because of her.
“You.”
Seungri, finding Sungjae’s deep gaze cute, simply smiled.
She was proud of him for wanting to become an adult man. It meant he was growing up normally.
She was so glad that Yuri was by his side.
Honestly, Seungri was always traveling and rarely home, so it was no exaggeration to say that Yuri was the one who took her mother’s place.
“About the person moving into the third floor.”
Sungjae suddenly brought up the move, reminding Seungri of Junmo, whom she had temporarily forgotten.
It was okay now since it was daytime, but at night, the ghosts would be rampant.
Moreover, a virgin ghost was not easy to get rid of.
“So?”
“Don’t tell me it’s that detective?”
As expected, Sungjae’s intuition was as good as a detective’s.
“What if it is?”
“Oh, come on! That guy is so annoying. Why him of all people?”
‘To find my lifeline.’
“Absolutely not. No way. No, that guy won’t want to come, will he?”
“Will he really?”
“Oh my, the house is cleaner than I thought. I thought a man living alone would be a mess.”
The virgin ghost looked around the 20-pyeong officetel and pouted her lips as if surprised.
“Well, there has to be luggage to make it messy.”
All there was a large bed, TV, and refrigerator, so it couldn’t be messy even if she tried.
To Junmo, his house was just a place to sleep, so there was no interior design, let alone a warm atmosphere.
A bachelor living alone in such a cold house was perfect for a virgin ghost.
“I’m going to live here with you from today. I love it so much. You like it too, right?”
He walked straight through the smiling virgin ghost to the refrigerator.
“Where’s the leftover soju?”
Opening the refrigerator, it was full of soju and canned beer.
Junmo tore off a piece of stir-fried kimchi that he had bought on the way and placed it on the floor with the half-empty bottle of soju.
He turned on the TV and leaned against the bed, drinking the soju straight from the bottle. The bitter taste made him cringe.
“Oh, is our oppa lonely? Don’t worry now. I’m here.”
Darkness was falling outside the window.
The virgin ghost sat with her legs together, swaying gently, and looked at him watching TV with adoring eyes.
“How can oppa be so sexy even when he’s watching TV? It’s such a waste for him to be stuck as a police officer.”
Junmo was watching TV but lost in thought. It was because of Seungri, whom he had seen at the cafe.
He kept seeing her face.
He belatedly realized that her unusually pale face was not only due to the accident but also to her clean, white skin.
‘She’s strangely bothering me.’
She clearly gave off the impression of a “tough girl,” but her eyes were strangely filled with sadness.
Junmo kept thinking about that.
Even though she didn’t have a look that aroused his protective instincts, why did he feel a sense of duty and responsibility to protect her?
A feeling as a man, not as a police officer, an emotion clearly different from guilt.
This feeling, as if the love hormone oxytocin was being released!
‘Hey, don’t do this. Don’t be interested.’
He shook his head as if to scold himself. He couldn’t be interested because she was too unusual.
“Oh my. The sun has completely set.”
As the sun set, the virgin ghost suddenly lay down in a seductive pose, as if to begin her seduction in earnest, and approached him.
She went right up to his face and gently stroked his cheek with her hand.
Junmo scratched his face with the back of his hand because it felt itchy.
“Hehe.”
This time, the virgin ghost gently caressed his long, stretched-out thigh.
Junmo, scratching his thigh, felt a strange energy and looked around the room.
“Are there bugs?”
“Oppa, aren’t you hot? Why don’t you take off some clothes?”
“Ugh, why is it so cold all of a sudden? I need to turn on the boiler.”
“Oppa, aren’t you sleeping? Aren’t you sleepy?”
“Oh! I missed that drama. They’re replaying it all night.”
“Oppa, let’s turn off the lights, huh?”
Due to the nature of ghosts, they exerted their power in the dark. The virgin ghost desperately wanted him to turn off the lights.
However, the indifferent Junmo had no intention of doing so.
Rather, he stayed up all night with the lights on, engrossed in watching the drama, and fell fast asleep around dawn.
Moreover, Junmo tossed and turned so much in his sleep.
Thanks to that, the virgin ghost, who was trying to get into his arms, had to roll off the bed several times.
And so, he, who had inflicted all sorts of humiliation on the virgin ghost, slept soundly until the sun was high in the sky.
“Heuk, Oppa!”
As soon as the virgin ghost saw Junmo, who had just come out of the shower, she ran to him in excitement.
“Oh my god, oh my god.”
The virgin ghost had seen the bodies of countless men, but such an amazing man’s body was extremely rare.
Especially, the artistically well-defined iliac crest! Even the scars here and there were overflowing with masculinity!
“Look at these muscles, packed in here.”
The virgin ghost’s eyes widened as she lowered her gaze, and she finally raised both arms and cheered.
Jackpot!
“If this man were my man, I would have no regrets.”
Junmo, who had no idea that the virgin ghost was admiring his body, looked around at his warm, steaming body.
“It’s really strange. How come there aren’t any bruises?”
Even though he had been in a car accident, he was fine except for the stitches on his forehead.
Thinking again, it was like a miracle, so he stroked his body, feeling proud of himself.
And he smacked his butt.
“You’re the best!”
“That hand should be my hand!”
The virgin ghost walked over and gently hugged Junmo from behind.
Moreover, she pressed her cheek against his back, closed her eyes, and even caressed his chest with both hands.
“Oh my, look at the shape.”
“Ugh, it’s cold. I feel a chill.”
Junmo went to the closet, took out underwear and outerwear, threw the clothes on the bed, and started putting on his underwear.
The virgin ghost looked at the passionate red underwear, which was gradually climbing up his legs, with tears in her eyes and pleaded.
“No, no. Just ten minutes. No, five minutes. Three minutes! Okay, one minute!”
But soon her dream was shattered, and she slumped down in disappointment.
“They grant the wishes of the dead, but why don’t they grant the wishes of ghosts?”
“Why do I keep feeling like someone is watching me?”
Junmo, who had felt something strange since yesterday, tilted his head. The virgin ghost, raising her head, glared at him resentfully.
“If you had just turned off the lights yesterday, you would have been my man.”
“Why did you have to say things like ghosts and stuff? Tsk.”
Junmo, who had finished putting on his outerwear, grabbed his phone and wallet, which were lying on the bed.
“What should I eat for lunch? If I had known, I would have asked Hyung to have lunch with me.”
He had fallen asleep in the early morning while watching a drama, so it was already lunchtime.
He was hesitant to go far, but then the phone rang.
It was that woman, Seungri.
“Hello?”
[Are you okay?]
He thought she was asking about his physical condition and answered cheerfully.
“I’m fine. How about you, miss?”
[Come and see for yourself.]
“Where should we meet?”
[Come to the cafe. Let’s have lunch.]
It was the best news he had heard all day.
He would go this time and finish it properly. That way, he wouldn’t have to worry about it anymore!
‘Wow! She’s pretty.’
That was the first thought that came to Junmo’s mind when he saw Seungri sitting in the cafe.
It was the aftermath of being tormented by thoughts of her while watching dramas all night.
The aftermath was quite large, so he had no choice but to quickly control his image.
“Don’t forget, you psycho. See you again, you psycho.”
She was a potential psycho who could change at any moment.
The best thing to do was to quickly buy her a car and cut ties.
“Let’s go.”
Seungri looked up at Junmo with a puzzled expression as he spoke without even sitting down.
“Are you busy?”
“It’s the lighting.”
“Pardon?”
‘The lighting makes you look too pretty, miss.’
Junmo blamed the innocent lighting again and grabbed her wrist, pulling her up.
“Let’s get up.”
‘Is this guy always like this? How can people not say he’s flirting? Grabbing so casually. And why the wrist? Does having long fingers give him the right?’
Seungri, suddenly grabbed by the wrist, couldn’t help but show her displeasure.
“H-hey.”
“I said let’s go.”
She couldn’t hide her embarrassment as she was forcibly dragged away by his hand.
But as soon as they got out of the cafe, she shook off his hand.
‘He picked the wrong person to flirt with!’
She frowned deeply and demanded.
“What are you doing?”
“Ah, damn it.”
It wasn’t the lighting.
She was still pretty. Too pretty. Dazzlingly pretty. Pretty enough to make his heart pound… pretty.
No matter how much he wanted to deny it, his wildly beating heart couldn’t lie.
Junmo stared at her, annoyed and glaring, and then abruptly asked.
“You know how to eat blood stew, right?”
“Nothing happened?”
At a blood stew restaurant near the cafe.
Junmo, casually cutting the blood clots with a spoon, was completely at ease.
“Do I look like I wanted something to happen?”
‘Something should have happened. It should have.’
He was a bachelor, and a virgin ghost wouldn’t leave a perfectly good bachelor alone, would she?
But he seemed like nothing had happened at all.
Seungri thought about why Junmo was still okay.
“Did you sleep with the lights on?”
He flinched.
“How did you know that?”
‘So that’s why.’
Seungri nodded slightly.
“Tonight, if you sleep with the lights off, you’ll understand what I mean.”
Junmo sighed, thinking she was just spouting strange nonsense again.
He thought she might look less pretty at the blood stew restaurant. But she looked even prettier eating the blood stew so nonchalantly.
Fortunately, what completely shattered his fantasy was the kind of language that only a crazy person would use.
Junmo’s face quickly turned sour, and he sneered.
“Is a ghost going to appear or something?”
“If you don’t believe me, try it yourself.”
At Seungri’s confident attitude, he let out a dumbfounded laugh.
“If a real ghost appears, I’ll move like you said. But what if it doesn’t?”
“I’ll forget about the accident. I’ll buy the car with my own money.”
‘Why would she go this far? What’s so important about some ghost?’
Junmo couldn’t understand her, but since it wasn’t a losing proposition, he readily agreed.
“Okay. Deal. I mean, what kind of world is this where ghosts… geez. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not disparaging your profession.”
“You think this is a profession?”
“Then what is it?”
“It just happened against my will.”
Just like you and I are destined to die on the same day.
‘Do you even know how disgusting this feels?’
“Anyway. A promise is a promise, so I’ll keep it.”
“If I win, you’ll believe me too, right?”
“You’re saying I’m holding your lifeline? Sure, why not.”
Since she wasn’t in her right mind anyway and it was just nonsense, Junmo had nothing to lose.
Only after getting the promise did Seungri finally smile faintly.
Not only was there a fragrant scent constantly tickling his chest, but that smile that drove people crazy also caught his eye.
Suddenly, Junmo, who was staring blankly as if possessed, asked.
“How did you become one? An exorcist.”
Would he believe her if she told him since he was a detective?
‘No. Why tell someone who doesn’t even believe in ghosts?’
Even so, as a detective, he might be interested in the case.
Although she didn’t trust the police, Seungri revealed her inner thoughts, hoping for the best.
He might not remember, but if they had gone to heaven together and were holding the same lifeline, wouldn’t there be something different about him?
“I had a bad experience four years ago.”
“What happened?”
“I was almost strangled to death by a stranger.”
“……!”
“I went to heaven then. Just like during the car accident the other day.”
Her tone was so calm for such a shocking story that it was hard to believe it was true.
But the look in her eyes was as vivid as if she were still in that day’s events.
Junmo told himself not to get caught up in Seungri’s serious expression, but he couldn’t help but become interested in the case.
“Was the culprit caught?”
“No. He ran away. There are no suspects either. But I think I’ll recognize him if I see him. I saw the ghost possessing him.”
That was probably the moment her spiritual eye opened wide.
It was the same principle as when people develop superpowers when they are in extreme situations.
She shuddered as she recalled that time, feeling a chill.
A man wearing a sleeveless hoodie pulled down low, a black pattern on his shoulder that was visible every time lightning flashed…
The pattern was clearly the same shape, although the size and color were different from the pattern on Seungri’s own neck.
And she vaguely remembered a man suddenly picking her up and running through the rain just before she lost consciousness.
She had died in his arms.
It wasn’t clear whether that man was the one who tried to kill her or the one who tried to save her.
It was also unclear whether the two people were the same person or completely different people.
All she clearly remembered was the pattern on his shoulder.
“You’re going to catch the culprit by seeing ghosts? Is that possible?”
“I think it’s possible for me.”
‘No wonder. There was a reason why her condition deteriorated.’
It was obvious that it was a case that had been buried without indictment because there were no suspects.
Junmo could tell just by the fact that Seungri had been looking for the culprit alone as a woman for four years.
What made him feel the most helpless was exactly this kind of situation. When it was a case that couldn’t even be investigated.
Junmo put down his spoon. He completely lost his appetite.
“Detective Pee.”
“Yes.”
“Could you help me?”
“You’re asking me to catch the culprit?”
“No. I’m asking you to hold onto my lifeline tightly and not let go. Your body is not just your own anymore.”
“Are you saying we’re one body? We’re not even married.”
“I wouldn’t feel so wronged if we were married. If Detective Pee lives, I live too. You have to live until I catch that guy. How do we know what he’ll do again?”
It wasn’t that he didn’t understand her desperation.
But… in his eyes, it was like finding Kim in Seoul.
In a word, impossible.
“I understand, so eat your food quickly. It’s getting cold.”
Junmo ate without really tasting anything, feeling complicated.
He thought that just buying her a car would be the end of it, but things had strangely gone awry, and it was already too late.
“Where was the location?”
“My house. I thought it was a thief, but it wasn’t.”
“So the purpose was to kill you from the start?”
“I don’t know.”
“Did your parents have anyone they resented?”
“No.”
“Do you remember where the house was?”
“Of course. I even remember the address. It was in Jongno.”
“Jongno?”
“I moved as soon as that incident happened because I was scared. My parents and I lived together for about two years, then my parents went to the countryside, and Yuri and I came here.”
“Do you remember the date?”
“July 26th. It was the day before my birthday. It was during the rainy season, so it was pouring.”
“Can you describe the culprit’s appearance?”
“I couldn’t see his face because he was wearing a hoodie pulled down low. It was night and it was raining. He was a bit thin, and his grip was incredibly strong.”
“Is there anything else you remember besides that?”
“……A pattern.”
“A pattern?”
“Yes.”
“Can you draw what it looked like?”
She quietly unfastened her necklace.
The purple pattern hidden by the black strap of the necklace was revealed.
It was a pattern engraved along the necklace strap, about the length of a finger.
Junmo’s face hardened with shock as he checked the pattern.
The events of that day, which he had buried in a corner of his memory, vividly resurfaced.
‘That pattern is…!’
