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In the eerie dead of night, the Golden Reaper was spending the hours anxiously, constantly hearing the sound of teeth grinding in the Purple Girl’s mansion.

Standing by the window that allowed no moonlight to seep in, the Golden Reaper could only glance outside with its small eyes.

The garden, which should have been glistening under the moonlight with beautiful rainbow-colored trees, was nowhere to be found, replaced instead by an all-consuming pitch-black darkness.

It felt as if the mansion was submerged in an endless abyss.

The Golden Reaper tried to shine its body brighter to illuminate the view outside, but the golden light from the firewood flickered away the moment it crossed the window, as if swallowed by a black swamp.

Outside, the darkness appeared as if filled with black ink, blocking out all light.

Occasionally, indistinguishable massive shapes rippled in the liquid-like darkness.

Time flowed slowly.

The sound of teeth grinding persisted, and it felt as if the noise was becoming sharper and sharper.

The Golden Reaper left the window and took steps towards the source of the sound, only to stand anxiously before the door, recalling the Purple Girl’s warning.

“Never go outside your room at night.”

Those words echoed in its ears.

At last, a soft light began to shine through the window.

Dawn was approaching.

The darkness that resembled black liquid evaporated and vanished in an instant, and the sound of grinding teeth that had echoed all night faded away.

The Golden Reaper finally felt relieved and plopped down onto the bed.

The tension drained from its little shoulders, and its small, stiff face began to relax little by little.

Just as it thought the ominous night had come to an end.

A sudden sound echoed, freezing the small body of the Golden Reaper in place.

‘!’

It sounded as though sharp claws were scratching the wooden door.

The noise seemed to plead, as if something was begging to enter from the other side of the door.

*

When morning came and the Purple Girl opened her eyes, life began to stir in the mansion.

Under the gentle morning sunlight seeping through the window, colorful hungry ghosts began to gather in the Purple Girl’s room, one by one.

In their hands were combs, brushes, and ribbons—tools needed for morning beautification.

The slightly dazed Purple Girl, still half-asleep, sat quietly under the gentle ministrations of the hungry ghosts.

They tidied the girl’s lilac hair with flawless motions, as if they had practiced for a long time.

Yawning softly, the girl directed a warm smile toward the Golden Reaper sitting on her shoulder.

“Good morning.”

At her greeting, the Golden Reaper beamed back, as if it had forgotten all the tension from the night.

But as the Purple Girl took steps toward the door, the tension returned to the Golden Reaper’s small face.

‘!’

However, the wooden door, the source of the sounds that had echoed throughout the night, appeared completely unscathed, as if no scratching had ever taken place.

Surely something had scraped this door…?

The Golden Reaper wore an utterly bewildered expression.

And understandably so, for it had not been granted a lightsaber or any special title, yet it had prided itself on its sense.

The Purple Girl looked at the Golden Reaper, who was staring at the door, with concern.

“Is something wrong?”

Shaking its head rapidly.

As it passed through the bedroom door and headed toward the dining area on the first floor, the Golden Reaper noticed something odd as it glided past the drawings hanging in the corridor on the second floor.

The paintings on the wall were clearly different from the previous evening.

Though they seemed like the same paintings at first glance, a closer examination revealed subtle distortions.

The position of the hungry ghost lying on the side was slightly more twisted than yesterday, and the direction of its leg stretched into the void was subtly different.

The most noticeable difference was in the hungry ghost’s cheek.

As if someone had pressed down hard, it appeared even more twisted.

The Purple Girl smiled brightly at the Golden Reaper fixated on the paintings.

“Do you like the paintings that much? I’ll have you draw one next time!”

The girl’s gentle hand patted the Golden Reaper on the head.

But even under that warm touch, the Golden Reaper couldn’t shake off a lingering sense of unease.

Something was gradually distorting within this mansion.

*

After the Saintess Doll preparation celebration, I had fallen asleep in the fluffy bed with Yerin.

And when I opened my eyes, a familiar landscape unfolded before me.

It was the garden from my dream, which I had burned down not long ago.

Aside from a single towering massive tree in the distance, the barren, desolate landscape stretched infinitely without a soul in sight.

‘Just how much firewood did I use for this to still remain in the garden?’

I slowly began to walk, pondering such thoughts.

It was a barren landscape, yet it had its own charm.

A bed as soft as marshmallows and sweet hot chocolate.

A canopy creating a cozy atmosphere, as if I had just slipped into bed.

And the air, giving off a warm feeling just like the blankets in the isolation room.

Since it was created in my dream, it truly was a splendid garden that suited my taste.

Just then, as I strolled slowly, something suddenly fell down in front of me.

‘Mom, so sweet… Hehe.’

It was the Golden Reaper, deeply asleep.

It seemed the Golden Reaper had been swept into this place from its dream, having fallen from the sky without breaking its deep slumber.

‘So simply being in this space allows the Golden Reapers to be swept in, huh.’

I thought as I scooped up the Golden Reaper lying haphazardly on the bed.

The golden light swelled and shrank rhythmically as if the Golden Reaper was taking slow, deep breaths.

As I lifted it for examination, I noticed something peculiar.

‘It has hardly any scent.’

Usually, the intense scent of the sun, which could induce mental pollution, would fill the space, but here in the dream, I could barely feel it even when it was perched on my palm.

It seemed that the scent enhancement of the Golden Reaper was something that occurred physically, so in this dream, it retained its original state.

While I was observing the Golden Reaper, suddenly a shower of Golden Reapers began to fall from the sky like rain.

Perhaps they all fell asleep around the same time, for they began to tumble into the dream garden in unison, as if it were a scheduled event.

“It’s over now. Pudding Dragon!”

“Mom, it’s warm.”

“Human, forever together!”

The Golden Reapers didn’t make a sound, yet they mumbled their sleepy intentions while slurping their mouths.

“Mommy, I’m sleepy. Hehe.”

“I’m sleepy.”

As I watched the pile of Golden Reapers accumulating like snow, a rather amusing thought popped into my head.

Of course, this thought wasn’t triggered by the Golden Reaper calling me mommy.

‘Since we’re in a dream garden…’

Using the ability to manipulate dreams and the halo of the labyrinth, I made the Golden Reapers have nightmares.

“Aw, no!”

“The Pudding Dragon is too strong!”

“Where’s the candy star?”

“Mommy… Aw, no….”

Those Golden Reapers, who had been having such happy dreams, fell into nightmares and began to flail about, shouting “Aw, no!”

As I was enjoying the spectacle of the sleeping Golden Reapers struggling in their nightmares, something very sharp poked my ankle.

Is there really one that awakened from a nightmare after I used the halo?

Shifting my gaze dramatically, I spotted the Golden Reaper wearing a furious expression.

That Golden Reaper had shaped its horns with firewood, and it was mercilessly prodding my ankle as if saying “Stop bothering me!”

‘!’

Instinctively, I tried to inflict another nightmare on that rebellious Golden Reaper, but I couldn’t help but gasp in surprise, eyes widening, the moment I grasped it.

‘Golden Horn!’

And forgetting even to toss it into the nightmare, I lifted the new Golden Horn Reaper high into the air.

“Automatic hunting!”

How could I forget, I had succeeded in the harvest.

The key to the automatic hunting I had so desperately wanted!

*

As I moved down the corridor, I spotted yet another immobile hungry ghost.

It stood frozen in a vibrant walking pose, as if it had suddenly stopped mid-step.

Normally, I would have ignored it, just as the Purple Girl instructed, but today, from the Golden Reaper’s perspective, it was hard to overlook.

The Golden Reaper leapt off the girl’s shoulder and carefully examined the still hungry ghost.

‘It might have teeth….’

The Golden Reaper sensed that this frozen hungry ghost wasn’t a Tooth Hungry Ghost.

Yet, having already been betrayed by its senses once, it had no choice but to verify.

Moreover, the Golden Reaper had always thought the hungry ghosts in this mansion were strange.

Compared to the other hungry ghosts it had seen so far, they appeared doll-like, almost like objects conjured up by a mother’s fantasy, giving off a vague presence.

Its presence was less than a tenth of that of the colorful hungry ghost that occasionally visited the research institute.

Upon taking a closer look, the Golden Reaper found that the hungry ghost’s mouth was completely empty—there were no teeth or anything at all.

‘!’

The inside of the hungry ghost was as hollow as an empty tin can.

The Golden Reaper was so astonished that it turned to call for the Attached Human.

“What’s wrong?”

The Purple Girl asked with a gentle smile toward the Golden Reaper.

But the Golden Reaper couldn’t help but widen its eyes in surprise.

‘Human…!’

Because the reflection of the Purple Girl behind her in the mirror looked very strange.

With unkempt hair, emaciated like a skeleton.

It resembled a corpse.

The Golden Reaper rubbed its tiny eyes as if unable to believe what it was seeing.

And when it opened its eyes again, the bizarre reflection in the mirror had vanished.

Thus, the Golden Reaper was able to breathe a sigh of relief, but a slight unease lingered in its heart.

‘Something feels off.’