Chapter 313

The Ashen Girl was dreaming.

It was a memory faded like her hair, ash-gray.

In this dream, she was younger, cowering as the shouts of her parents filled the house.

“Because you’re always drunk and wandering around, we’ve become this way!”

The mother’s cry was met with an even louder retort from the father.

“I drink because you keep wasting money!”

Terrified, the girl缩 into the corner of the room, curling up. Tears streamed down her cheeks, but she couldn’t move or make a sound.

It felt like the whole world was collapsing.

“Mom… Dad…”

This dream was a scar in the Ashen Girl’s heart that would never fade, a memory etched deeply into her mind that she could never forget—yet strangely, she had completely forgotten it.

Her parents, always fighting for various reasons. Her brother, who hardly ever came home. And then…

“It’s okay. Everything will be fine.”

Suddenly, her sister approached silently and hugged her tightly.

The warmth and gentle scent slowly melted the girl’s frozen heart.

“Everything will be alright.”

As her sister whispered, tears rolled down the girl’s face again. It felt like something her sister was saying to herself, yet it was truly comforting.

Pat-pat.

Her sister gently patted the girl’s head.

“…”

With that, the Ashen Girl woke up from the dream.

Pat-pat.

Looking up, she saw the Yellow Reaper worriedly patting her head.

Their eyes meeting, the Yellow Reaper gave her an awkward smile.

For some reason, she found herself smiling too.

—

At the outskirts of Songpa District lay a brand-new luxury apartment complex.

On a warm afternoon, the Golden Reapers were walking “tubang-tubang” toward the complex.

To the Golden Reaper, this place seemed strange—a mix of humans and objects.

“Look at this!”

Turning their head at the cheerful voice, they saw people gathered around the flower beds at the entrance of the complex.

Rainbow-colored flowers proudly displayed their hues.

Past the flower beds stretched a row of streetlights forming a green tunnel leading into the complex.

Below the tree shade, a winding walking path unfolded.

Neatly trimmed grass and benches provided leisure spots for humans.

At the end of the path was a small pond where a fountain sprayed water, and lotus flowers added tranquil beauty.

Families strolled leisurely along the path, chatting peacefully.

If only it were really like that…

The Golden Reapers watched the seemingly happy humans with slightly gloomy expressions.

Tensing their brows, the Golden Reaper fueled their eyes with firewood until they glowed fiercely.

As if angry, the Golden Reaper’s expression turned blank, revealing the truth of the city.

Flower beds full of trash instead of flowers.

Bare iron frames where trees once stood.

A polluted pond emitting foul odors.

And human-shaped objects made of plaster carelessly stuck onto wires.

These objects mingled among the residents walking through the ruins of the apartments.

They vaguely resembled humans, making them quite unsettling.

But no matter how closely they stared, these objects didn’t feel harmful.

Instead, they emitted faint positive emotions from humans.

Something similar to firewood but different.

Not like Mini Reapers, yet clearly powered by positive human emotions.

“Could these be beneficial objects?”

If they purified spirits and fed on the leaking happiness, they probably weren’t harmful like us.

But for some reason, they made the Golden Reapers uneasy.

Thus, this apartment complex became a topic at the Golden Reaper Conference Hall not long ago.

[Since they don’t seem harmful, we won’t destroy them.]

[But they still feel off, so we’ll avoid them.]

The conclusion was not to interfere.

“Sacchaejegin! Since they’re annoying, let’s exterminate them all!”

Even though the guest Orange Reaper’s radical suggestion gained support, it was rejected.

Though supported by White Hungry Ghosts and Black Reapers, most votes belonged to the Golden Reapers.

One opinion from a Golden Reaper resonated with many: “Moms don’t kill harmless objects just lying around; there must be a reason.”

Of course, the Orange Reaper argued, “Moms just don’t want to bother!” but failed to sway the hearts of Golden Reapers who loved their moms.

When some White Hungry Ghosts tried to illegally occupy the conference hall after the vote, they were led away by the Red Reaper.

That’s how this apartment complex became a place rarely visited by Golden Reapers—until now, when they gathered here en masse.

“Dangerous?”

“Creepy!”

The reason was due to employees from James Research Institute hiding within the complex.

Dressed in various outfits since yesterday, these employees sought help from the idle Golden Reapers via their Attached Reapers.

“The attached humans feel endangered!”

“Something feels off!”

So wherever James Research Institute employees were, at least five Golden Reapers would patrol nearby “tubang-tubang.”

Pretending to be local residents, the employees thoroughly filmed the interior or used Spirit Cameras to search for something, moving stealthily like playing hide-and-seek with the Golden Reapers.

But to the Golden Reapers, their actions were bizarre—they were too conspicuous!

Like humans trying to hide among eyeless, naked Plaster Dolls.

—

Late afternoon, Courtyard of Sehee Research Institute.

I lazily gazed at the sky, killing time.

“Huh, fewer Golden Reapers today.”

Usually, they’d swarm me when I lounged in the courtyard, but today their numbers were drastically reduced.

Vaguely remembering they said something about guarding James Research Institute employees…

After wiping out nearly all objects during the Association Doll incident, was anything dangerous left in Seoul?

Nom-nom-ing on cookies delivered by Mini Reapers, I heard a mournful cry.

“Jjihyeeeng!”

Turning my gaze, I saw a white Hungry Ghost impaled on a skewer.

Its limbs charred off, its body marked with revolutionary stamps.

Upon closer inspection, wasn’t this the one that absurdly demanded voting rights not long ago?

Using the cries of the white Hungry Ghost as background music made the cookies taste twice as good.

Hehe.

While indulging thus, the Mini Reapers began to fuss.

“Cute!”

“Younger brother!”

Shifting my gaze from the Hungry Ghost, I spotted a Green Reaper floating about.

Clad in a cloak made entirely of flowers, the Green Reaper resembled both a ghost wrapped in cloth and the Giant Moss Ball seen at bus stops—not something I’d ever willingly wear, but the Mini Reapers thought otherwise.

“We want it too!”

“We want it too!”

Golden Reapers hopped around, clamoring to be draped in uncomfortable moss cloaks.

Inspired by the Mini Reapers’ enthusiasm, the Green Reaper gave a short, loud “Meow!”

“Meow!”

Instantly, grass sprouted from the ground, wrapping around each Mini Reaper one by one.

“Uwaaah!”

Overjoyed, the Mini Reapers began hopping around, bumping into each other and rolling around since they couldn’t see properly.

Everyone acting this way made it feel like an unexpected Halloween.

—

Late evening, the Ashen Girl collapsed onto the floor.

“Tiring…”

Having dropped out, the Ashen Girl now hid in the Yellow Reaper’s hideout, doing nothing but feeling several times more exhausted than when she attended school—even though she no longer felt hunger as an object.

Pressing the Yellow Reaper’s cheek while complaining, all the Yellow Reaper did was laugh with a “Huh-hee-hee.”

“All your fault!”

The Ashen Girl’s exhaustion was entirely the Yellow Reaper’s doing.

Instead of attending school, the Yellow Reaper called a Mini Reaper to teach her lessons.

And lo and behold—it was the Purple Reaper seen only in internet pictures!

Wearing shadow-made glasses, the Purple Reaper started teaching earnestly.

Aren’t Mini Reapers supposed to be unintelligent and unable to understand human speech?

Yet this Purple Reaper taught better than any school teacher.

Thus, the unusually tired Ashen Girl quickly fell asleep.

While dozing off, she thought:

“Could the Yellow Reaper be keeping me busy so I don’t think about other things?”

But before completing her thought, she drifted off.

—

The Ashen Girl dreamt again.

Walking alone through an empty apartment complex late at night.

Unlike her previous dreams of past memories, this one was completely unfamiliar.

She walked steadily through neatly maintained apartments without looking around.

“How come I’ve never seen this part of the apartment complex?”

Despite its unfamiliarity, she continued walking smoothly.

Eventually, she arrived at a familiar location.

The open lot at the center of the apartment complex.

The only empty spot amidst the beautifully decorated grounds.

But standing in the lot was a building she didn’t remember.

Entering it, she found a vast plain covered in pristine white sand.

Gleaming white grains stretched endlessly.

Inside, the space appeared hundreds of times larger than expected.

Pits dug into the soil dotted the plain, resembling coffins.

Without hesitation, the dream version of the girl kept walking.

Sar-sar.

The sound of stepping on sand.

Just as she thought she’d walk forever, a chilling sensation stopped her.

Turning her head, she saw a skeletal hand emerging from the darkness.

Pale and bony, it twisted unnaturally as it grabbed her ankle.

Startled, she recognized the owner of the hand before she could scream—it was her older brother.

His face covered in white sand, his lips parched, he weakly gasped out a plea for help.

The sight was so terrifying that she jolted awake.

Even after waking, she panted heavily.

Though she no longer breathed, her hand trembled, and her nonexistent heart pounded wildly.

“Really him…”

For some inexplicable reason, she was certain the brother in her dream was real.

Jumping up, she resolved:

“I have to save him.”

A conviction formed.

Going there would restore everything to ‘the way it should be.’

Trembling, the Ashen Girl began preparing to leave the hideout.

At that moment, the Yellow Reaper climbed onto her shoulder.

“Will you come with me?”

Responding to the Ashen Girl’s determination, the Yellow Reaper nodded slightly.