Yu Je-hyun gave a light flick of his right hand as he glanced sideways at Lee Haru, who looked like his jaw had unhinged—completely incapable of forming even a single coherent word.
From the perspective of someone who could manipulate metal, it did not matter how sturdy a lock was—it was useless either way.
Besides, the lock on the basement door was the kind anyone could pick up at a hardware store. Its only distinctive feature was its size, roughly as large as an adult’s fist.
Contrary to its grim, intimidating appearance, the basement door swung open with ease. From behind Yu Je-hyun, Lee Haru pointed his phone flashlight inside.
“Is there no fluorescent light in here?”
The basement was clearly spacious at first glance. Then again, considering it belonged to a mansion this large, it was big enough that one could probably kick around a soccer ball in it.
The only issue was that, being a basement, not a single sliver of natural light reached inside. The thick, suffocating darkness that lingered was enough to send a chill down anyone’s spine.
“I feel like there used to be one… or maybe not. Where are you going?”
“Ahem. I was just about to go in.”
If Lee Haru had not practically blackmailed him with kimchi stew under the pretense of a polite request to come downstairs, Yu Je-hyun would never have had to endure the musty stench of dust down here.
Watching Lee Haru try to push him forward while backing away himself, a sly smile tugged at Yu Je-hyun’s lips. But the moment Lee Haru caught a full view of it, his face went sheet-white.
“You should be the one going first. Why did you even want to come down here?”
Sensing that Lee Haru might bolt at any moment, Yu Je-hyun grabbed him by the nape and shoved him forward.
Under his palm, the tension in Haru’s slender neck was palpable—like it would snap with the slightest pressure.
Startled by his own grip, Yu Je-hyun quickly loosened it. Whether Haru noticed or not, he instinctively hunched his shoulders and scanned the area nervously, like a meerkat on high alert.
“Maybe we should look for the light switch first…”
The phone flashlight was not nearly enough to illuminate the entire basement. As Yu Je-hyun had pointed out, the floor was littered with random junk.
And ghosts were not the only thing Lee Haru had to fear in this place.
Sssk— ssssk—
There was a faint rustling, like dry leaves brushing against one another in the wind.
But that was the problem—this was a basement. There were no windows, no breeze, nowhere for that sound to come from.
As someone who once had a cockroach drop on his face in the middle of the night as a child, this gave him one more reason to want to flee immediately.
Just getting Yu Je-hyun to come down here today had taken considerable effort. But now that they were actually inside, Haru was certain: this basement was not a place worth visiting twice.
Still, he had to find some kind of clue about the ghost—no matter what.
“Ugh, what a pain. What are we even doing down here? Looking for treasure?”
If the meal had been even slightly disappointing, Yu Je-hyun would have tossed Haru to the floor without a second thought.
As he ran a hand irritably through his hair, Haru visibly flinched, then looked up at him with wide, pleading eyes.
Seriously? Pulling that whole wounded puppy act? That doesn’t suit you at all.
Even as the thought crossed his mind, Yu Je-hyun kept hold of Haru’s neck and made his way toward the wall.
He had no clue where the switch was, but it had to be attached to the wall somewhere.
If they circled the room, it would turn up eventually—and sure enough, it did.
“There it is!”
Like someone who had just discovered buried treasure, Haru stretched his arm toward it. His fingers came up about five centimeters short.
For some reason, the sight sparked a sudden burst of mischief in Yu Je-hyun. Just as Haru tried to slip free and reach forward, he tightened his grip again.
Getting the pressure right was tricky. A little too much, and Haru’s neck might actually break. Yu Je-hyun had to find the sweet spot.
“Yu Je-hyun Esper, let go of my neck! The switch is right there!”
The beam of Haru’s phone flashlight swung wildly across the walls. Yu Je-hyun’s eyes had already long since adjusted to the darkness, so whether the light was on or off made no difference—he could see just fine.
Watching Haru’s complexion shift through every shade from flushed to ghostly pale was oddly entertaining.
“You could just move forward. I am not even holding you that tightly.”
“Liar! I said let go already!”
By now, Haru was clearly getting frustrated. He shoved his phone into his pocket and started trying in earnest to pry off Yu Je-hyun’s hand.
Timing it perfectly with the shift in Haru’s center of gravity, Yu Je-hyun suddenly let go.
“Whoaaagh!”
Haru had absolutely no athletic coordination. Unable to stop his momentum, he stumbled straight into the wall.
Thwack—!
“So… forehead-switching is trendy now?”
Haru, who had just slammed the switch with his forehead after failing to reach it with his hand, turned and shot Yu Je-hyun a look full of bitter resentment.
“What? You got the lights on. That means I can head back upstairs now, right?”
“…No.”
Even while glaring daggers, Haru shuffled over and grabbed onto the sleeve of his shirt.
Yu Je-hyun knew full well that if he wanted to, he could shake off that feeble grip in an instant. But for some reason, he did not feel like doing it.
Strange. He had no intention of shaking off that tiny, hesitant tug.
Under the flickering light overhead, he could see even the fine hairs on Haru’s cheek and the curve of his ear in crisp detail.
It was the first time Yu Je-hyun had ever looked at Lee Haru’s face from such a close distance. Though it was a face he knew well, seeing it like this made it feel strangely unfamiliar.
“Why are you staring at me like that? Is there something on my face?”
He had been looking long enough for it to feel awkward, and in typical fashion, Yu Je-hyun responded with a playful lie.
“Yeah. You’ve got a chili flake stuck in your teeth.”
“Liar. I brushed before I came down.”
Not falling for it this time, huh.
It was a trivial exchange, but somehow, it put him in a good mood. His gaze naturally drifted toward Haru’s slightly pouting lips.
Were his lips always this full?
They had kissed a few times before, he was pretty sure—but he could not recall what those moments had felt like.
Back then, all he had cared about was getting through the dull Guiding session as quickly as possible.
If I kissed him now, what kind of face would he make?
At first, the way Haru had suddenly changed—as if drugged—had annoyed him, made him uneasy. But now, he was just… curious.
“Why do you always lie like that?”
It sounded like a muttered thought, not meant to be heard. But Yu Je-hyun had been tuned in to Haru’s every move, and the husky voice landed in his ears as clearly as if it had been whispered right beside him.
His lips moved softly as he spoke, a vivid shade of red that stood out against his pale skin—so much so that it was almost distracting.
Unable to hold his gaze, Haru’s wide eyes flitted restlessly in every direction, never quite meeting his own.
Then, as if remembering the reason they had come down here in the first place, Haru’s grip tightened. Yu Je-hyun let himself be pulled along by the feeble strength, light and twitchy as a willow branch.
“Hm… What could it be…”
Still clinging to his sleeve with one hand, Haru began inspecting the items in the basement one by one.
A layer of fine, gray dust clung to his fingertips with every touch, dulling the light that reflected off them.
What had he come down here looking for? Was he really here for some kind of treasure?
Watching Haru’s face shift with every passing moment was amusing, but it was beginning to wear thin.
The air down here was stale and stifling too. Just as Yu Je-hyun was considering shaking Haru’s hand off, Haru suddenly crouched down.
And just like earlier, he nearly lost his balance—his anchored arm preventing his body from moving forward and causing him to wobble dangerously.
“I’m going to let go of your sleeve now. You are not going to leave me behind, right?”
His voice was needlessly solemn. His expression matched—so dramatic that you would think he was heading off to war.
“What, is something on the floor?”
“It’s hard to tell because of all the dust. But I have a feeling that might be it.”
Yu Je-hyun followed the direction of Haru’s finger. In the center of the dust-covered cloth, there was indeed a slight bulge.
Even with the fluorescent lights on, the basement was dim and murky. The place was so vast and still that it felt like something might crawl out of the shadows at any moment.
It did look like lifting the cloth with one hand would be difficult. Only then did Yu Je-hyun understand why Haru had asked if he would run off.
“Alright. I’m letting go.”
Those wide eyes kept flickering up to gauge his reaction. Yu Je-hyun considered stepping out of view, but in the end, he just crossed his arms and watched silently.
With each movement of Haru’s small hands, fine clouds of dust billowed into the air.
What Haru had been looking for was hidden beneath the carpet covering the basement floor.
He sat there for a long moment, staring blankly at the ring resting in his palm.
Yu Je-hyun crouched down in front of him and waved a hand in front of Haru’s dazed face, trying to snap him out of it.
