Mu-ryeong's Spirit-Chapter 32: What Must Be Protected (5)

Why hadn’t he exorcised the vengeful spirit?

Why did he always sit in the classroom after school, waiting for someone?

Why had he chosen Mu-ryeong, of all people?

A flood of questions raced through Mu-ryeong’s mind like a panoramic reel, all leading to a single realization.

“...Did he know I could purify it?”

The thought struck him like a bolt of lightning.

Maybe Ki Hwan-young had known from the very beginning.

Just as Mu-ryeong had hidden what he knew, perhaps Hwan-young had been testing him all along.

And as expected, Hwan-young hesitated slightly before speaking.

“...The day of the entrance ceremony,”

That one sentence was exactly like what Mu-ryeong had said on the rooftop before.

A small confession, revealing that he had known everything all along but pretended otherwise.

A quiet, reluctant admission of a long-kept secret.

“I realized I dropped my name tag and went back for it.”

Mu-ryeong’s mind drifted back to that day in March—the day the warm sunlight had barely begun to melt away winter’s chill.

That was when he had seen Ki Hwan-young standing completely still, his face eerily expressionless.

That was when the restless, lingering spirit had attacked him.

And that was when Mu-ryeong had felt the suffocating weight of its presence.

“I saw it.”

There was no need to ask what he had seen.

Hwan-young answered before Mu-ryeong could even wonder.

“I saw you catch that weird ghost.”

“...”

So he had seen it.

That day, Hwan-young had left first, while Mu-ryeong had stayed behind, frozen in place.

And the moment he snapped back to his senses, he had rushed to where the ghost had been, determined to purify it before it could fully lose itself.

“Even if I don’t know much about this stuff, I know you did something.”

Mu-ryeong had been born on a leap month, granting him an unusual ability.

Unlike regular exorcists, he could purify vengeful spirits, returning them to their original souls rather than destroying them.

It was a rare and peaceful method, one that only he could perform.

And that was why he avoided erasing spirits whenever possible.

“That’s why I made the request.”

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That was where Hwan-young’s explanation ended.

Even after he fell silent, Mu-ryeong remained deep in thought.

There was too much information to process at once.

Eventually, one thing stood out—one thing he couldn’t understand at all.

“...Then why did you try to cancel the request?”

Unfortunately, Hwan-young didn’t answer.

Instead, he turned away and pulled his blanket over himself, making it clear that the conversation was over.

So Mu-ryeong didn’t press further and lay down on his own bedding.

They fell asleep side by side that night.

The Next Morning

At dawn, they set off for school.

As they walked the long, endless road, Mu-ryeong thought to himself—Hwan-young’s life was like a gear in a machine.

Constantly spinning in a fixed, predetermined cycle, never stopping, never changing.

Unless someone pulled out the broken part, it would just keep turning in the same place forever.

As they neared the school gates, Hwan-young spoke up.

“So, what’s the plan?”

He had been walking on the side of the road but suddenly hesitated, as if second-guessing himself.

“If you’re planning to use talismans again...”

“I won’t.”

There was no point in using them anymore.

They had only been a temporary measure—a way to hide Hwan-young from the vengeful spirit.

Originally, the goal had been to separate the spirit from Hwan-young.

But now, the goal had changed—Hwan-hee needed to pass on.

“I need to come up with a new plan.”

At that moment, Mu-ryeong looked up at the sky, which was still covered in dark storm clouds.

The rainy season had arrived sooner than expected, and while that felt inconvenient, it was also a blessing in disguise.

“For now... let’s wait until the rain stops.”

They needed time—time to adjust the plan, time to experiment.

And besides, rainy days were too dangerous for exorcisms.

“Things get riskier when it rains.”

Hwan-young nodded without questioning it, as if he had already known.

“You know more about this than I do. If you need anything, just let me know.”

His cooperative attitude was a relief—so much so that Mu-ryeong found himself smiling, despite the circumstances.

“See you at lunch.”

That was their last exchange before parting ways.

And that meant Hwan-young was expecting him to show up.

No more avoiding him, no more secrets.

Just knowing that felt like gaining an entire army of reinforcements.

“This has to work.”

Mu-ryeong took a deep breath, focusing on the steady rhythm of his heartbeat.

His father had once taught him this to clear his mind when he was anxious.

Thump. Thump.

As the tension eased, his thoughts became clearer.

He needed to figure out how to help Hwan-hee pass on peacefully.

And at the same time, how to ease Hwan-young’s heart.

Somewhere along the way, without realizing it—

He fell asleep.

Waking Up in the Classroom

Mu-ryeong was dragged back to reality by the sound of applause.

Still groggy, he lifted his head, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

The first thing he heard was—

“Teacher! Tell us a scary story!”

He blinked a few times.

Still half-asleep, he stretched his arms out with a groan.

All around him, his classmates were cheering and begging for a ghost story.

“Haaahm...”

Mu-ryeong stifled a yawn, rubbing his eyes lazily with the back of his hand. A few sleepy tears clung to his lashes, but he wiped them away carelessly. His vision still hazy from sleep, he glanced around the classroom—his classmates hadn't even bothered to open their textbooks.

“...Are we not having class?”

“Oh, you’re up.”

Seung-joo barely looked at him before gesturing at Mu-ryeong’s forehead with his pen.

“You’ve got a mark there.”

Mu-ryeong sighed and ran his fingers through his messy bangs, trying to smooth them down. Seung-joo twirled his pen between his fingers and added casually:

“Our class is ahead of schedule, so we’re skipping the lesson today. You missed it—while you were sleeping, the teacher even told us a story about his first love.”

“Ahh...”

That was probably good news for everyone else, but Mu-ryeong didn’t care.

Whether they had a lesson or listened to a love story, it made no difference—he had been asleep either way.

He glanced at the clock. Thirty minutes left until the period ended.

“Ugh... My arm’s numb.”

“You’re not going back to sleep?”

“No, I’m awake now.”

Despite yawning again, he really had no intention of sleeping more.

Lunch wasn’t far off, so he figured he’d just sit through whatever ghost story the teacher had in store.

Of course, he was fully prepared not to be scared in the slightest.

“You guys think rain means it’s time for scary stories—Oh? Kim Mu-ryeong, when did you wake up?”

At their homeroom teacher’s voice, the entire class turned to look at him.

Mu-ryeong scratched the back of his head sheepishly, letting out a small, awkward laugh.

“Always sleeping in class, huh?”

The teacher’s scolding had no real bite to it.

If anything, it sounded more like a teasing remark.

Mu-ryeong slept in class all the time, but since he had told them he was studying to take over his family’s practice, he rarely got into trouble for it.

Besides, his naturally cheerful personality probably helped.

“Since you were sleeping, why don’t you get up and tell us a scary story?”

“...A scary story?”

“Yeah, something spooky.”

The class erupted into cheers.

Of course, it was Kim Mu-ryeong they were talking about—the guy rumored to actually see ghosts.

Everyone was excited, wondering what kind of story he’d tell.

“Ugh, this is the worst...”

Seung-joo, on the other hand, grimaced silently.

A ghost story from Kim Mu-ryeong?

No way.

That was the last thing he wanted to hear.

Since Mu-ryeong actually saw spirits, whether the story was real or fake, it was going to be unsettling either way.

Seung-joo quickly raised his hand.

“Teacher, can I tell the story instead?”

“You, Seung-joo? Hmm... Okay, then. You can go after Mu-ryeong.”

“...Never mind, I’m out.”

Seung-joo dropped his hand immediately, shaking his head in defeat.

He turned to Mu-ryeong, giving him a look of resignation.

There was no stopping this now—he might as well get it over with.

“Hmm...”

Mu-ryeong let out a small hum, glancing around the classroom.

He had plenty of stories to tell, but most of them weren’t things he should share.

He couldn’t just talk about actual hauntings, but if he made something up, how scary should he make it?

“Can’t think of anything? Then you can clean the classroom after school.”

At those words, Mu-ryeong immediately stood up.

It was bad enough that he had been called on—but now he was being forced into it.

“Ohhh, Kim Mu-ryeong!”

“...Now the pressure’s on.”

Mu-ryeong let out a small chuckle and waved at his classmates as they chanted his name.

Seung-joo gave him a look of pure exasperation, as if he were completely fed up with his antics.

Mu-ryeong rubbed the reddish mark on his forehead and turned to the teacher.

“Can I speak casually?”

“Of course, go ahead.”

The class atmosphere was buzzing with anticipation.

Even the teacher, looking intrigued, nodded eagerly.

With his permission granted, Mu-ryeong let out a playful grin, his thoughts settling into place.

And then, in his soft yet steady voice, he began—

“This is a story that happened at a certain high school...”