Limits of Paradise

How dare it.

Ji Hyun-ho reached out and grabbed the ghost by its hair, yanking it off Tae-eun with a fierce strength. The moment their eyes met, the air around them cracked with tension.

In the frozen air, he slammed the ghost to the floor with brute force, then mounted it, hands wrapped around its neck. Black flames erupted from his fingertips, threatening to split the ghost’s neck in two.

Haaa…

The ghost groaned in pain, its eyes rolling back to show the whites. He glared at the spinning pupils and slowly spoke.

“Who are you?”

Gasp!

“Why are you attached to Song Tae-eun?”

A fierce wind blew through the room, which had been still under Hyun-ho’s will. The ghost’s hair shot up, reaching the ceiling and fully revealing its ghastly face.

A smirk spread across his lips as recognition flickered in his eyes.

“Just as I thought.”

He glanced at the bed. Tae-eun was still passed out, but she would wake up crying soon.

“Lee Ye-jin.”

Haa, haa…

The ghost panted desperately at the sound of its human name. Its black pupils still spun wildly.

“Why are you here instead of haunting Ha Sung-joo?”

If the grudge was strong enough to turn her into a ghost, she should be tormenting Ha Sung-joo, who had tormented her in life, not the friend who had helped her.

The ghost opened its mouth as if to answer.

Hahaha!

But only mocking laughter spilled out, taunting the one who controlled the ghosts. Hyun-ho’s mouth twisted in frustration. Trying to converse with a ghost was foolish to begin with.

He tightened his grip on the ghost’s neck again, black flames flaring hotter. The ghost’s eyes rolled back completely, leaving only the whites. Yet, the eerie laughter continued.

Haha, haha, hahaha!

For the first time in nearly 500 years, he physically engaged with a ghost. Normally, he dealt with them minimally, as his life was dominated by a sense of annoyance.

But now, anger as hot as the flames in his hands surged through him. If it had been a human, he would have punched and kicked them.

How dare it.

“How dare a mere ghost target Song Tae-eun?”

What infuriated him even more was that this ghost, which should have been eradicated long ago, still existed and was mocking him with its laughter.

He turned to look at the unconscious woman on the bed. Time was running out. He couldn’t hold the air’s flow any longer.

Hahahahahahaha!

The ghost realized it too. Its mocking laughter echoed through the room, taunting him.

The partially severed neck began to heal, the spinning pupils steadied, and the hair that touched the ceiling slowly descended.

The air returned to its normal flow, and the ghost slipped from his grasp. For the first time in his long life, he experienced the sting of a humiliating failure.

The condensed malevolent energy was sucked into Tae-eun’s chest. Ji Hyun-ho could only watch helplessly. For the first time in his long life, a crushing sense of powerlessness overwhelmed him.

The gap in the air closed with a snap, and Tae-eun, coming to her senses, burst into tears.

“Mom…!”

Hyun-ho moved towards her, pulling her into his arms. Hiding his rigid face in the darkness, he spoke gently to calm her.

“Shh, it’s okay. I’m here. Everything’s okay now.”

“He… he came back… again…”

“I know. It’s just a dream. You’re safe.”

He whispered the lie, stroking her fragile frame as she burrowed into his embrace. He could feel her heart pounding wildly and worried it might only cause her more pain. But all he could do was hold her tightly, making sure she focused solely on him.

“It’s okay. I’m here with you. I’ve been here the whole time, watching over you. You’re safe now.”

She nodded, sniffling, and seemed to calm down faster than he expected. Her shoulders stopped shaking, and her breathing steadied.

But he couldn’t bring himself to look into her eyes yet, so he continued holding her close. He feared that the moment he met her tearful gaze, his irreversible failure would be glaringly obvious. He imagined the ghost mocking him from within her eyes.

“Do you want to lie down now?”

She wriggled into a more comfortable position, and he quickly composed his expression and offered his arm.

“How will you sleep if you’re worried about me?”

Despite the terrifying experience she’d just had, she was concerned that her boyfriend might lose sleep. She was so kind-hearted that even her deceased friend had clung to her as a ghost.

If he were an ordinary person, would he have been annoyed at being woken up, or half-heartedly comforted her out of irritation?

But he was the master of this island’s ghosts.

A single ghost should be nothing to him. He should be able to obliterate it with a flick of his finger. Instead of lying beside her, stroking her wet cheek, he should be freeing her from its grasp.

“I like being with you.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

With puffy red eyes, she rubbed her nose against his chest. He patted her back to help her fall asleep again.

“Get some more sleep.”

“But, did you have a dream last night?”

He understood immediately what she meant. She thought they coincidentally shared dreams. But since she had experienced sleep paralysis alone recently, she was curious about his dreams.

“I didn’t dream at all.”

Hyun-ho lied smoothly, and she drifted into her thoughts.

“Go to sleep. I’ll leave before five.”

“Okay, goodnight.”

He could tell she was thinking deeply even with her eyes closed. But soon her breathing became steady, and he stayed awake, lightly patting her back through the early morning.

***

That single failure plunged her into a deeper abyss.

If he had known things would take such a dire turn, he would have destroyed the ghost then and there, even if it meant revealing his true identity.

－Hyun-ho, what should I do? I’m so sorry about today.

“No worries, Auntie. Is Tae-eun very sick?”

A heavy sigh escaped from Boo Yun-hwa on the other end of the phone. Ji Hyun-ho paced around the café, listening to her explanation.

Song Tae-eun had been experiencing sleep paralysis every day for ten days straight. Her symptoms of passing out and waking up in seizures were becoming worse, and since yesterday, she had been unable to regain full consciousness even after the sun rose. She had been absent from work for two days now.

During these two days, she had barely eaten. Attempts to feed her abalone porridge, plain rice porridge, and finally heartier meals all resulted in her vomiting. Even after a trip to the emergency room for IV fluids and an MRI scan, everything came back normal.

－I wanted to admit her to the hospital, but she insisted on staying home, so we brought her back.

“You did the right thing. She needs to be somewhere comfortable. Can I come over and see her?”

－Please do. Talk to her. I’m so afraid she’ll lose her mind…

Boo Yun-hwa’s voice broke into sobs. Hyun-ho’s light brown eyes darkened with worry.

Lose her mind?

He quickly ended the call and closed the café. His fingers trembled slightly as he started the car. Clenching and unclenching his fist, he gripped the steering wheel and drove off.

For the past ten days, he had been by her side every night, sneaking in whenever she wanted, and even when she didn’t ask, he left his shadow to watch over her.

Yet, the ghost appeared every night without fail, pounding on her chest. Growing stronger by feeding off her energy, it laughed loudly and even sang along with the music she played.

Despite using every method he knew to exorcise the ghost, he failed. An unfamiliar sense of guilt weighed heavily on him.

“Tae-eun, please try to eat something, okay?”

When he arrived at her house, Boo Yun-hwa was pleading with her daughter, holding a bowl of food. Tae-eun lay under the blankets, not moving.

“She’s so out of it, she won’t even speak. Maybe seeing your face will help. Can you try?”

Song Ki-seok asked, his face gaunt with worry. Hyun-ho reassured him and entered her room, calling out gently.

“Noona.”

“Tae-eun, Hyun-ho is here.”

The lump under the blankets twitched. Boo Yun-hwa stood up, relieved, and he gestured for her parents to leave the room.

“Noona, I’m here.”

Hyun-ho closed the door loudly on purpose and sat on the bed. He stroked the blanket where she was hiding. Her body flinched at his touch.

“Did you know today’s Valentine’s Day? I made some chocolate. Want to see?”

Her fingers peeked out from under the blanket. He waited for her to uncover herself.

Slowly, she emerged, first revealing greasy hair, then clumped, wet eyelashes, frightened eyes, and dark circles.

Her gaunt face, with hollow cheeks beneath her round cheekbones, finally came into view.

“Hey, Noona.”

He hid his breaking heart and greeted her with a smile.

 

 

🍉🍉🍉