I Returned, and Now I See Strange Things-Chapter 27: Dispute
The group continued their exploration.
Ayun took the lead, opening each closed door.
Then, after confirming there was nothing inside, they would all enter together and film the room—using that simple method.
The door swung open without resistance.
Ayun checked the interior with her usual indifferent expression.
“...Bathroom.”
In the corner of the surprisingly spacious bathroom was a plastic shelf.
On top of it were a toothbrush and other toiletries, all blackened with age.
The floor drain ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) was bone-dry, with no moisture at all.
Along with it... something dark, the owner of which could not be identified.
Ayun shone her flashlight on it to examine it.
‘Hair?’
After confirming there was nothing wrong, Ayun stepped into the bathroom without hesitation.
It was just a little unpleasant.
But she’d seen worse—far worse—so there was no reason to be scared.
A few moments later, Hyesung and Arin followed her in, their faces cautious.
Hyesung frowned and said,
“A bathroom. Judging by the number of toothbrushes, the last people who lived here were probably a family of four.”
“R-Right.”
As Arin replied awkwardly, Hyesung gave a bitter smile.
‘There’s really no need for all this.’
Ayun waited a moment for Hyesung to finish commenting, then resumed walking.
As Arin watched her pass, she felt something strange.
It looked like black heat haze was wavering again.
Whenever she blinked, it disappeared so quickly that she wondered if she was seeing things.
But by this point... it didn’t seem like a hallucination anymore.
‘There’s something there.’
From Ayun’s calm demeanor, it seemed she hadn’t noticed it.
Calling herself a ghost hunter without even knowing something was clinging to her?
‘As expected, only someone like me can see the real thing.’
Suppressing her creeping unease, Arin smirked inwardly.
And so the exploration continued.
Everywhere they went, the traces of someone’s life remained—there was plenty to see.
So how are you planning to prove anything?
fr tho lol how long are you just gonna show stinky rooms??
If you’d just take off the mask once, I—!
Can’t someone ban this dude already??
More and more chat messages started demanding an explanation.
Hyesung, checking the chat, leaned toward Ayun and whispered.
“Noona, so... do you think there’s something here?”
Ayun looked around with hollow eyes and answered quietly.
“...There is.”
“Eek!”
A sudden shriek from Arin.
Thud!
With a sound, Arin had collapsed to the floor, startled by something.
As Hyesung and Ayun turned to look, Arin sat on the floor, her face red.
“What’s wrong?”
“Ah... it’s just....”
At Hyesung’s question, Arin looked at Ayun and mumbled.
She clearly had something to say—Hyesung sensed it right away.
Especially since Ayun had just admitted there was something here.
He looked between the two of them with interest, while Arin stared suspiciously at Ayun.
Getting that look from her, Ayun tilted her head, puzzled.
‘What’s with her?’
Ayun read the emotion in Arin’s gaze.
A tinge of envy and disbelief.
Why was she being looked at like that?
‘Come to think of it, didn’t she say she could see them too?’
In that case, it made some sense.
She was probably upset that Ayun was just letting a ghost stick to her without doing anything about it.
Ayun somehow found herself understanding that feeling.
Back at the abandoned hospital, when one had clung to her begging to be released, it had been unbearably annoying...
In Ayun’s vision, an old man was clinging to Arin’s back, muttering to her.
With a blurred face, he whispered his regrets into Arin’s ear, hoping she would fulfill them.
[There are an unusual number of spirits here, bound by regret.]
Aslan’s voice made Ayun feel strangely unsettled.
Just as he said... there were far too many.
Of course, she had been deliberately seeking places like this lately.
Thinking it was just a matter of visiting haunted places, Ayun looked around.
There was probably nothing else worth confirming.
After all, the real one had already clung to them.
“We’ll talk outside first.”
It seemed like it was time to start doing something—on multiple fronts.
Unless someone just wanted to wallow in grim rumors without any real answers.
And... since she’d said she would prove it, she’d have to give them what they wanted.
‘I’ve confirmed everything I needed.’
From the moment the ghost first attached itself, Ayun had planned to run a few experiments.
Can a ghost be captured on camera?
Can ordinary people sense a ghost’s presence?
She wanted to test those two things.
From what she’d seen, Hyesung at least seemed to be feeling chills.
Even though he was bundled up, he’d been rubbing his arms like he was cold.
The ghost’s presence was already weakened, so it was too soon for any firm conclusions—but for now, it didn’t seem to be visible.
‘With that in mind, this woman’s braver than I expected.’
Ayun found herself kind of liking Arin.
In any case.
Ayun’s conclusion was this:
Normal people might feel a chill when there’s a ghost, but they can’t see it.
And it doesn’t show up on camera.
‘...Though I can’t generalize from just one test.’
Still, it seemed useful enough for now.
After stepping outside with the group, Ayun stretched and asked,
“Has anyone here seen a ghost just now?”
At her sudden question, both Hyesung and Arin froze.
Hyesung, sweating coldly, replied,
“U-Um... Noona, are you saying there really was one?”
Ayun answered with a smile.
“...”
Hyesung silently pointed the camera at her.
She looked oddly amused.
As he watched, Arin opened her mouth.
“...I saw it.”
Ayun nodded as if she’d expected it and asked Hyesung,
“The one we brought... what should I call her?”
“Uh... civilian guest?”
The username SlenderManTameok flashed through Ayun’s mind, and she nodded, understanding.
“As you saw, civilian-ssi, there’s been a ghost stuck to us ever since we arrived.”
“Huh?”
“...”
Looking into the camera briefly, Ayun smiled and said,
Noonim, I'm dying here!
What is she even saying?
“And now, it’s clinging to civilian-ssi.”
Hearing that, Hyesung immediately turned the camera toward Arin.
But nothing showed up.
Arin stared at the lens in confusion—then suddenly exploded.
“W-What are you talking about!? T-The ghost is clearly stuck to you right now!”
“...?”
A situation where both parties claimed the ghost was with the other.
The old saying goes: watching a fire across the river and watching a fight are the best forms of entertainment.
But Hyesung couldn’t just sit back and enjoy the show.
After all... this was his stream!
“Everyone, let’s calm down a bit. So... you’re saying the ghost is next to civilian-ssi now?”
When Ayun nodded, Arin burst out again.
“No, I’m telling you, it’s her! That black shadowy thing!”
“Black shadowy?”
“I don’t see anything.”
At Hyesung’s words, Arin pointed in frustration.
“Then do you see anything by me right now?”
“Well... now that you mention it, no?”
What is this? Who’s telling the truth?
Obviously our noona is.
And who even is your noona?
The winner.
You lunatic.
Hyesung was flustered.
He couldn’t see a thing, yet they were both insisting the ghost was clinging to the other.
It was definitely an entertaining situation—but he had no idea how to resolve it.
‘Still, I trust noona.’
She’d already helped him twice—he had no choice but to believe in Ayun.
“So Noona... what are you planning to do?”
“I’ve got it handled.”
Ayun smiled as if to say don’t worry, then leaned in to whisper to Arin.
“Civilian-ssi?”
“...What?”
“Is this ‘shadowy thing’ maybe what you meant?”
Ayun pulled out the black stone from her pocket—Aslan.
[It seems I’m faintly visible to her.]
[Well, you are a ghost.]
[Please don’t lump me in with such vulgar creatures.]
[What’s the difference, really...]
While the two troublemakers bantered, Arin’s face went pale.
Her teeth clattered, and tears welled up in her eyes.
Ayun realized too late and relaxed her grip on the stone.
Then she leaned in again and whispered to Arin.
“Let’s keep this between those of us who can see them.”
“...”
Arin nodded with a terrified face.
If she didn’t agree, it felt like that black haze behind Ayun would devour her.
“Then I guess that settles things.”
Patting Arin on the shoulder, Ayun walked over to Hyesung and tried to snatch the smartphone from him.
Or at least, tried to.
“...What are you doing?”
“...Give it.”
Why is she so cute tho lol
Is she seriously trying to deflect like this right now lmao
Hyesung lifted the phone high, and on the screen, Ayun could be seen jumping up and down trying to grab it.
“Shit...”
Only after she smacked his shin did Ayun finally get the phone.
“You could’ve just asked.”
“I did. You didn’t listen.”
Holding the phone, Ayun looked around, then picked up an old shovel from a pile of junk and handed it to Hyesung.
He frowned but took it without resistance.
Getting kicked in the shin hurt, after all.
“...What’s this for all of a sudden?”
Ayun pointed to the ground and said,
The sourc𝗲 of this content is freēwēbηovel.c૦m.
“Dig here.”
...Was she telling him to dig his own grave?
Why the ground all of a sudden?
He had a lot of questions, but crossing Ayun when she was like this seemed like a bad idea.
And so, Hyesung’s shoveling began.
