The ghost exploded.
Well, sort of. It mostly imploded in a puff of glitter, smoke, and what looked suspiciously like broken chopsticks. Yui staggered back, coughing, while Baek Woo-jin casually wiped ectoplasm off his shoulder like it was lint.
"That," Baek muttered, "was not in the mission file."
"Nope," Yui wheezed, "but it was in my nightmares."
They'd barely survived the evil spirit in the abandoned noodle shop, and now, they were walking back to Yui's house like nothing happened—except they both smelled like haunted miso soup, and Baek had a glowing claw mark on his arm.
"So…" Yui said, glancing at the mark, "that's not infected with ghost rabies or anything, right?"
"Ghosts don't carry rabies."
"Yeah, well, neither do vending machines, and those attacked us last week."
As they reached her house, Yui opened the door expecting peace, quiet, and possibly leftover curry. Instead, she was greeted by an incense cloud so thick it punched her in the nose.
"Grandma?" she called out.
From inside, a voice responded, clear and eerie: "The spirits say… your aura smells like regret."
Baek blinked. "Should I be concerned?"
"Not yet," Yui muttered, leading him inside. "But soon."
In the center of the living room sat Obaa-chan, her grandmother—or possibly the ghost of her grandmother, depending on the day. Today, she wore a yukata, held a rice cracker like a microphone, and had four lit candles balanced on her tea tray.
"I was speaking with the spirit of Elvis," she said cheerfully. "He wants you to hydrate more."
Baek tilted his head. "She's your…?"
"Don't ask," Yui whispered. "Just accept."
Suddenly, a loud sneeze echoed from behind the couch.
Baek pulled out his scythe instantly. "Intruder."
"No, no, no—WAIT—!" a familiar voice shouted, and Han Jae-min, a classmate from school, popped up like a startled prairie dog.
"Why are you in my house?" Yui snapped.
Jae-min held up his hands. "I came to return your notebook and then your grandma gave me tea and then I blacked out for like twenty minutes and now I think I'm cursed?"
Baek sniffed the air. "He reeks of spiritual contamination."
"I REEK OF STRESS SWEAT," Jae-min cried.
Obaa-chan just smiled and sipped her tea. "He has potential. And he's cute in a nervous-ghost-magnet way."
"Please don't adopt him," Yui groaned.
Suddenly, the lights flickered.
The mirror in the hallway rippled.
A chill ran through the room like someone opened a portal to a haunted freezer.
From the mirror, a shape emerged—pale, long-haired, red ribbon tied neatly in place. It was a girl, her face hidden by her hair, footsteps soft and wet-sounding.
Jae-min screamed. Loudly.
"Oh no," Yui muttered. "It's her. Red Ribbon Girl."
Baek summoned his scythe again, already moving. "Low-level, but fast. Everyone stay back."
"THIS IS NOT A NORMAL TUESDAY," Jae-min wailed, clutching a houseplant for dear life.
Obaa-chan threw a cracker at the ghost. It passed right through.
"That usually works," she said, disappointed.
The ghost stopped and pointed—at Yui.
"You," it whispered, voice like wind scraping glass. "You laughed at my TikTok."
Yui blinked. "That's what this is about?!"
"I practiced for weeks."
"You slipped and hit a locker! It was kind of funny!"
Baek groaned. "You angered a vengeful spirit with online mockery?"
Jae-min fainted behind the couch.
Yui sighed, stepped forward, and said, "Fine. Red Ribbon Girl, I'm sorry. You were scary and had rhythm. I should've appreciated your craft."
The ghost hovered… then slowly nodded. And vanished into the mirror with a whoosh.
Baek lowered his weapon. "She wanted closure. Not revenge."
Obaa-chan nodded wisely. "Validation is stronger than exorcism."
Yui turned just in time to see a puff of black smoke appear in the hallway.
Enter: Mr. Lee, a demon in a very pressed suit, holding a clipboard that radiated evil and tax form energy.
"Yui Nakamura," he deadpanned, "you are charged with unauthorized mirror negotiations, spiritual endangerment of a civilian"—he pointed to Jae-min, who was still unconscious—"and allowing your undead grandmother to run a séance unsupervised."
Yui sighed. "Mr. Lee, I literally just saved a TikTok ghost from emotional implosion."
"The Council is not impressed," he said, checking off boxes.
Baek stared. "Do you live to ruin her life?"
"I'm in middle management," Mr. Lee replied. "So yes."
End of Chapter Nine.