Eunha’s house had not changed much compared to the last time he had visited. It was still simple, and a moon-shaped mood lamp glittered in the corner, casting light across the living room.
Ian flinched for no reason when he saw the light from that mood lamp.
It was a kind of post-traumatic stress disorder. The condition commonly called PTSD.
Perhaps it was because of his memories of fighting that giant egg-shaped moon, but whenever he saw a round moon like that, his mood would become strangely unsettled.
Still, it was not severe enough to be a real problem, so he soon managed to collect himself. Ian hung his coat on the rack, sat down on the warm floor, and accepted the cocoa Eunha handed him. Heat traveled through the cup into his palms.
“Thank you.”
“Not at all. Here, Yuna, you have some too.”
“Uh, yeah……”
Yuna and Eunha had already introduced themselves at some point. Thanks to that, they had started calling each other by name, but the awkward atmosphere still remained. Since neither of them was the type to take the lead in dispelling awkwardness, the heavy air seemed likely to persist for a while.
Ian had no intention of stepping in to help the two of them interact, either.
Human relationships were originally something people had to handle on their own. Even if someone else took the initiative to help, it rarely led to any major progress.
Therefore, Ian simply sat still and drank his cocoa.
Perhaps it was because she had learned nothing but how to brew tea without ever leaving the house, but the cocoa Eunha made was quite delicious. The sweetness was exquisitely balanced, suiting Ian’s tastes better than any hot chocolate he had ever had.
“This is good.”
“I like it too. Personally, I prefer tea with a slightly bitter taste, but sweet things are nice once in a while.”
Eunha smiled faintly and sat down beside Ian.
A low table for sitting on the floor and drinking tea.
Around the square table, Yuna, Ian, and Eunha sat in a circle.
Thanks to the heating, it was not particularly cold. In the first place, it was spring, so the temperature was not that chilly to begin with.
“Ian, about the items……”
“Ah.”
As he was quietly sipping his cocoa, Eunha asked him in passing. Ian immediately set down his cup, then took the items he had brought from his bag and placed them on the table.
A female goat’s heart inside a transparent glass bowl, a pure white, slender thread, and a fully bloomed lily with a faint reddish hue.
Eunha carefully checked the three items laid out on the table one by one, then nodded in satisfaction.
“They’re all of excellent quality. Thank you so much, Ian. With these, I think I’ll be able to contract with a demon safely.”
The corners of her lips drew a small smile. Ian smiled back.
“It was nothing. I’m glad you like them.”
“……Hehe, you’re very good with words.”
Clink.
Eunha lightly brushed the teacup as she continued.
“Please tell me the cost right here and now. Honestly, without hiding anything.”
“Hmm…… Understood. All three together came out to about ninety million.”
“Ninety million…… That’s a fairly reasonable price. Could you give me your account number?”
He did.
Eunha immediately sent money to Ian’s account.
A total of one hundred million won.
It was the basic material cost with an extra ten million won added on top. Ian, who had expected at most a few hundred thousand to a few million won, let out a hollow laugh.
“Didn’t you give me too much? This makes me feel even more apologetic.”
“I used a magician as an errand boy, so it’s only right that I pay enough. And your value isn’t just a few million won, Ian.”
Eunha spoke as if it were nothing. Ian’s face was reflected clearly in her mint-colored eyes.
“Please accept it comfortably.”
“……Understood. Then I will.”
“Yes.”
Eunha smiled faintly and took a sip of tea. Ian also set down his bag and settled into a comfortable posture.
As he did, Yuna, sitting across from him, began tapping his shin with her toes. At the sudden touch, Ian frowned slightly.
“What?”
“……”
Yuna did not answer. Instead, she stuck out her lips and tapped his shin even faster with both feet. It was an obvious expression of dissatisfaction.
Ian could not understand what on earth she was dissatisfied about. Had she been shot in the head while he was unaware?
He let out a deep sigh and simply left her alone. If it had hurt or been unpleasant, he would have pushed her away appropriately, but it was not particularly either. Getting angry out of nowhere in someone else’s house would have looked strange too.
“……Hehe.”
Perhaps taking Ian’s lack of resistance as permission, Yuna began moving her toes a little more rhythmically. Then she went so far as to play a tune, as if she were playing the piano.
Finding that impudent, Ian lightly pinched the sole of her foot.
“Hieeek!”
At the unexpected counterattack, she sprang up. In the process of hastily withdrawing her leg, her knee struck the table hard, and the snacks and drinks on top of it came crashing down like a row of dominoes.
Fortunately, the heart, thread, and flower had been set aside separately, so they were fine, but the teacup in front of Eunha tipped over and completely soaked her clothes.
“Ughhh……! O-ow……!”
Regardless, Yuna clutched her throbbing knee and rolled around on the floor. Eunha, unwillingly feeling the lukewarm sensation of tea, turned to look at Yuna. Her head moved with a bleak, creaking motion.
“……”
Unlike her turning head, her lips remained still, but Ian felt he could roughly tell what she wanted to say.
Since there was a high chance it was nothing pleasant, Ian sprang to his feet and brought over some wet wipes nearby.
“Please wipe yourself with these for now. It wasn’t hot, was it?”
“……No. Fortunately, it’s lukewarm.”
Eunha answered while keeping her gaze fixed on Yuna. Yuna whined from the floor.
“I-I’m hurt too, Ian…… H-how could you pinch me there like that……”
“I didn’t do anything. Your foot must have cramped on its own.”
Since she had dared to attempt the water-ghost tactic of the “You did something wrong too!” move, Ian quickly executed an evasive maneuver and began picking up the scattered snacks. Eunha also let out a deep sigh and cleaned up the crumbs.
“You move too. This is your doing.”
“……Uuung……”
Yuna joined in as well.
The three of them ended their cheerful conversation and, bent over like the women in Millet’s The Gleaners, cleaned up the lumps of flour scattered here and there. They picked up the larger pieces by hand and gathered them in one place, then vacuumed up the remaining small bits.
Fortunately, the cleanup ended quickly. Eunha placed a small handheld vacuum cleaner in the corner, then pointed at her wet clothes and spoke.
“I’ll go change. Please wait a moment.”
“Ah, yes. Take your time.”
“G-go ahead…… I’m sorry……”
“It’s all right.”
Click.
Eunha entered the dressing room. Only then did Ian let out a long breath and turn to Yuna.
“Why did you have a seizure there?”
“Y-you……! You……!”
“Are your feet sensitive?”
“They a-are on the sensitive side, but…… N-no! Still, if you hadn’t pinched me, th-this wouldn’t have happened……!”
Yuna hugged her knee, her pupils trembling violently. Her enormous chest was pressed flat.
“Wh-what if my disliked stack builds up and I get blocked again……?”
“Farewell. I won’t see you off.”
“I-I’m going to protest. I’ll unleash a bunch of mysterious anonymous users demanding that you be blocked too……!”
“Let’s settle this.”
At the greatest threat a community ghost could make, Ian lowered his tail. Yuna let out a small, pfft-like laugh.
“Then y-you’ll defend me……?”
“……I’ll try. But Eunha isn’t that narrow-minded, so she won’t block you just because you did something a little off-putting.”
“R-really……? You must be pretty close.”
Yuna murmured in a slightly lowered voice.
“D-do you maybe like that type……? Like, pure and quiet……?”
“……I don’t know why the conversation suddenly developed in this direction, but I don’t have any particular ideal type. I’ve been too busy making a living.”
“R-really……? Then that’s a relief……”
Before he could ask what exactly was a relief, Yuna edged slightly closer to Ian’s side. A faint scent like sweet milk drifted from her.
“By the way, y-you speak politely to the Godmother, huh. Why……?”
“I’ve always preferred polite speech over casual speech. Eunha and I just decided to speak politely to each other.”
“……Th-then what about me……? Sh-should we speak politely to each other now too……? Sir……?”
“……I’m truly sorry, but I don’t particularly feel like speaking politely to you.”
“What.”
As they exchanged such pointless banter, Eunha came out after changing clothes. She glanced slightly at the two, who had grown closer than before, then noisily closed the door to divert their attention. The click rang out clearly.
Ian’s head turned toward her on its own.
“Ah, Eunha.”
“I’m done changing. Fortunately, it doesn’t seem like the clothes will stain. More importantly, what were you two talking about?”
“Just small talk.”
Ian gave a vague answer and rose to his feet. Yuna also stood up after him.
“Then, since our business is done, we’ll be heading back soon. If there’s another chance next time……”
“Ah, wait a moment. If you have time, may I make one proposal?”
Eunha stopped Ian as he was about to leave. He tilted his head slightly.
“Uh…… yes. What kind of proposal?”
“Did you see the post I wrote on the community? It was about the mirror world.”
“Ah, I saw it. You were looking for someone to go with you……”
“Yes, that’s right. So I was wondering if you could go with me. I’m thinking of crossing over to that side to make the demon contract.”
That was quite an interesting thing to say. Ian’s eyes naturally narrowed slightly.
“May I hear a detailed explanation?”
“Of course. Yuna, you listen too.”
“Ah, aah……! Okay……!”
Yuna, who had thought she alone would be left out, brightened up at once.
Eunha led the two of them to her dressing room.
Perhaps she usually managed the scent, because the fragrance of a diffuser lingered faintly in the room. But something far more eye-catching than a mere fragrance sat all alone inside.
A full-length mirror. However, it was not in very good condition. No, rather, it was close to the worst possible state.
What was there to hide?
The mirror was completely shattered, covered in countless cracks.
And from within it.
A faint sound came from between the cracks of the broken mirror.
[Hiss hiss!]
It resembled the cry of a lizard.