Ghost Story Club

‘….That’s amazing.’

Dukhun and his online friends who were flooding the internet with spam.

And Kim Eunjung who was still protesting.

If it were the Mother Dilemma ghost, it would have long since disappeared in fright for being pushed around like this. Yet, Kim Eunjung, that bastard still hasn’t stopped imitating.

‘No, this… can’t be considered ‘imitating’ anymore.’

Nevertheless, the one who told the absurd lie that we were friends while transferring between four elementary schools in the same city from the beginning was none other than the ghost story Kim Eunjung herself.

Now it was time to see how long she would be able to endure the lies she was fabricating.

“…Push harder, push harder. Even if it seems unreasonable. Make it so she can’t set foot in school for three years.”

“Okay.”

Dukhun and his friends accelerated the production of fake news.

Before long, the fake information spread by Dukhun and his online friends in the form of news got so widely accepted that it was hard to tell whether it was a manipulation of reality or if the journalists were just accepting it without verification.

It quickly got processed into real news and ended up on the portal’s main page.

Teenage Girl Charged with Murdering Her Friend Due to Inferiority Complex

[Exclusive] : Trusted Elementary School Friend… Anguish of the Victim’s Family

They were pushing the narrative with the keyword ‘teenage murderers’ toward juvenile detention.

Dukhun was tapping away on the keypad as if possessed.

And the ghost story Kim Eunjung was also diligently defending herself.

KEJ4444: That’s a person with the same name, and she’s not a student at Nakseong High School. Misinformation T-T

KEJ4444: Shouldn’t Eunjung’s parents file a lawsuit against those who are spreading fake news like this?

Slam!

At the same time, the homeroom teacher burst open the classroom door and rushed in, looking for Dukhun.

“Is… Is Dukhun here?”

The homeroom teacher was covered in sweat from running around here and there, being swept up in the manipulated reality every time the situation changed.

Dukhun, who had been engrossed in his job, lifted his heavy jaw with a puzzled expression.

“… Yes?”

“Would you mind coming out with me for a moment?”

“I am busy right now doing something, can I come later…

“It’ll be quick, so please hurry up. I’m just going to deliver an envelope.”

The members, who were sitting in different seats, glanced in this direction with uneasy feelings.

Although it was a self-study session where students could play games or do whatever they liked, it was difficult to leave their seats since the Class President and Vice President were in control.

We could only sit at our desks and hope that everything would go well.

With no choice, Dukhun stepped out into the hallway, exchanged a few words with the homeroom teacher, and soon returned with a stiff expression, holding a paper envelope in hand.

“What’s up?”

“….Attendance request form.”

Rustle-

〈Attendance Request〉

Case No. 2019-44444

Regarding the violation of the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection (Defamation) concerning individual with the name Oh Dukhun (Nickname: Dukhun the Spy), a thorough inquiry will be conducted. Please be advised to appear before the Cyber Security Team on May 1st, 2019, at 17:00 for inquiries.

〈Summary of the Case〉

On May 1st, 2019, a post was made on an online community stating: ‘Do you know that thief girl who got suspended for stealing stuff at the school? I’m scared she might come back since I go to the same school as hers. I heard she put a thumbtack in another girl’s indoor shoes because she was prettier than her’. This attendance request is sent to investigate the matter and the individual in concern. Please contact us by phone upon receiving this notice.

〈Required Documents〉

1. Resident registration card or driver’s license

2. Student ID

3. Courage to fall down a cliff and break your neck

Dukhun’s face suddenly hardened.

“Dukhun.”

“….”

“Dukhun, come to your senses.”

I grabbed his shoulder and shook him hard to bring him back to his senses.

“Listen carefully, Oh Dukhun. Now that things have turned to this, one of us is going to die socially. Either us or Kim Eunjung.”

“Hey!”

I snatched the attendance request form from his hand, as he stared at it intently.

Then I tore it to shreds right in front of his eyes and urged him, who still seemed to be in a daze and was just staring blankly.

“Listen carefully. I will never let you get involved in something like this and go to the police station. If things go wrong, I will kill myself and turn back time, so don’t worry and just keep pushing.”

Only then did the Dukhun nodded blankly.

A few students glanced at us, they showed puzzlement at the serious atmosphere around us during the self-study session.

Dukhun, who still had a slightly dazed expression on his face, grabbed his phone again, soon snapped back to reality and focused on generating rumors.

“Push harder. Anything… by any means necessary.”

Damn.

I couldn’t comprehend anymore whether our step was correct or not.

I put Dukhun’s attendance form which I just tore to pieces in my pocket, then shifted my gaze to the other members.

In the next row, Sunah looked at me with a concerned expression, and Hayoon had her usual calm expression.

In the front row, Gyeongwon was sweating with anxiety as he looked back.

And in the back row,

Jinhee seemed quietly lost in thought, looking at her deskmate’s empty desk.

‘Huu… Damn.’

I feel guilty.

There has never been a ghost story that had such a creepy resolution.

The feeling of pushing forward in a situation while tearing down someone else’s character and labeling them as mentally ill, was something that should have never been done.

But there was no other way that was coming to mind right now.

‘….I’m not a terrible person.’

The Demon King is the one responsible.

He was the root of all evil, creating a ghost story from the deceased Kim Eunjung and sending her to us like this.

And the counseling teacher, along with the strange force at the school that pushed the young Eunjung into an alternative school.

They were the bad ones.

‘Adults are at fault.’

We’re not at fault.

The adults who made friends fight each other are at fault.

“Huu, huu.”

As the situation spiraled out of control, the one who was being pushed around was none other than the homeroom teacher, drenching in sweat as he ran around.

Bam-

“D… Do you all remember Eunjung, who was said to have been murdered? The truth is, she was buried alive and is now on her way here after being rescued!”

Bam-

“Do… Do you all remember Eunjung, who supposedly planted a bomb at school! She’s been acquitted and is on her way here to greet us!”

As the rumors spread, Eunjung was increasingly shaped into a more and more strange personality, and with each arrival of the homeroom teacher, the students became more and more anxious.

“She’s coming to school? Why?”

“Please tell her not to come! I can’t be at school with someone like that!”

“Oh… Okay. The teacher will make a suggestion, please wait patiently…”

Now, Eunjung had turned into a vicious psychopathic high school girl serial killer who frequented hospitals and juvenile detention centers as if they were her own home, and killed people with cold, cunning methods.

“Are you out of your mind! How can you allow a student like that to return to school!”

From the first-year homeroom teachers’ office on the first floor, the sound of the teachers arguing loudly could be heard across the hallway.

“Doesn’t matter what the Board of Education orders, we can’t accept students like that again. Just tell them to send her somewhere else!”

The Vice Principal shouted hysterically.

The students in our class also glanced at each other worriedly and whispered among themselves.

“I’ll be the one transferring this time for sure if she comes back to school.”

“Is the law of our country useless? How can she be released after doing something like that?”

“The Juvenile Action law really needs to be revised. It’s ridiculous!”

Bam-

“Do you remember Kim Eunjung who added sleeping pills in the cafeteria soup today?”

Bam-

“Do you remember Kim Eunjung who, uh, put a cat’s corpse on the podium today?”

Bam-

“Do you remember Kim Eunjung who sprayed emergency fire extinguishers all over in the classroom?”

“She’s coming back.”

“She’s coming back.”

“She’s coming back!”

“Kyaaaaaaaaaah!”

“Why… Sob…”

“That psychopath again… Sniff.”

Each time the homeroom teacher opened the door and burged in, the students in the class would scream in anguish, bordering on despair.

In the midst of all this, our fabricating stories continued.

[Isn’t it Kim Eunjung the one who killed people secretly, without anyone knowing?]

[If she acted like that at school, there’s no way she behaves correctly outside. I heard her house is filled with dead bodies stuffed in the refrigerator.]

[I heard the police went to her house because her water bill was too high, and then they found that her bathroom was full of blood…]

[If you want to dispose of the bodies without leaving any evidence, that’s how you drain the blood. But since she’s a minor, the police just left her alone.]

Eventually.

The sound of the homeroom teacher’s heavy footsteps rushing down the hallway from a distance was heard once again.

Bam-

With a big smile, he entered the classroom and shouted as if he had great news to share.

“Eunjung isn’t coming to school anymore! She has refused to attend school herself!”

“Oohh!!!!!!!!”

The students erupted in joy, clapping and celebrating happily.

Some students were even seen shedding tears of relief.

Neither studying abroad, traffic accidents, nor even prison could stop Eunjung from coming to school. Yet, the school’s collective exclusion ultimately broke her spirit.

“Hurray! Hurray! Hurray!!!”

A boy stood up from his seat, tears streaming down his face, and cheered three times.

The handsome Class President also rubbed the tip of his nose, perhaps because he was so moved that he became emotional. Even Cheerin, the Vice President, known for her cold cat-like eyes, muttered while wiping tears of joy on her sleeve.

“Teacher, really… I was surprised… If she had kept insisting on coming to school, I would have refused to attend…”

“It’s okay, everyone. It’s okay now…”

The homeroom teacher looked at us with a beaming face, tears glistening in his eyes.

“It’s okay now. Eunjung is gone… She’s gone.”

“Whoa, teacher… I was scared… I thought she’d come back…”

“It’s okay, it’s okay… It’s okay now…”

The homeroom teacher, soaked in sweat from sprinting up and down the hallway dozens of times, was completely drenched in the shirt he was wearing.

He nodded with wet, tear-filled eyes and continued to mutter to himself as if comforting himself.

“It’s okay… it’s okay…”

Hoho. Hoho….

A single tear of relief ran down the homeroom teacher’s cheekbones.

A cold wind blew through the open classroom door.

A few strands of hair from his thinning scalp fluttered away.

Swish.

In the end, Kim Eunjung did not show up until the closing ceremony was over.

Some students, including our club members, who had been anxious the whole time, finally seemed to let out a sigh of relief.

After the closing ceremony was over, members of our ghost story club gathered in the clubroom on the 5th floor as if we had made a promise.

Everyone sat silently, staring blankly at the desk. Only when Teacher Jang Hwaeun entered the clubroom did we lift our heads.

Slid-

“Oh my, you’ve all already gathered.”

The teacher came in with her usually lively voice.

“I also thought everyone would be here, so I came.”

“….Teacher.”

The teacher approached the seat at the foot of the table and sat down in her usual spot.

Then, seeing our downcasted atmosphere, she let out a deep sigh.

“Well, it seems like we’re safe from Eunjung for now. I know it doesn’t bring you all peace of mind, but…”

“….”

“There was a severe argument in the teacher’s office during the sixth period. Did you all know about it?”

We nodded quietly in response.

“….The homeroom teacher kept us updated on the situation every time something changed, I felt like we were watching a live commentary.”

“I see. Haa….”

The teacher fanned herself with her hand.

“At first, they made a fuss saying that just a student was hurt, but later, the Vice Principal, the Principal, and the administrative staff all ran around calling the Board of Education to prevent that student from returning to school…”

So that’s what happened.

We nodded in understanding.

The teacher looked over our faces slowly, then gave us a faint, weary smile.

“I guess you all feel guilty.”

“…Yes.”

Just like the counselor from that elementary school, we also fabricated false evidence and circumstances to isolate Eunjung from society once again.

Even after she died.

“There’s nothing we can do. Cheer up, guys.”

The teacher patted the backs of Dukhun and Hayoon, who were sitting next to her in an attempt to lighten up the heavy atmosphere.

“The living should live as they are, right?”

“….Right.”

Dukhun nodded slowly.

“Come on, cheer up! Everyone! Don’t be so slumped! Let’s live up! Live up!”

Hayoon’s thin shoulders swayed as Teacher Jang Hwaeun grabbed her and shook them roughly.

“Cheer up! Cheer up!”

As a finishing touch, Teacher Jang Hwaeun gave both of them a hearty slap on the back.

Dukhun didn’t move an inch because of his size, but Hayoon, because of her thin stature, shook back and forth.

This made her frown slightly.

“Since your teacher comes from a family of shamans, I have a tendency to believe in the afterlife.”

She continued to comfort us with various words of reassurance, trying to lift our spirits.

“At least in the religious view that the teacher knows, there is no case of a ghost coming back to life and causing trouble like that. Just like you guys said, was it the devil? Demon King? He’s just a coward who hides in the shadows and uses tricks.”

“… I hope that’s the case.”

We genuinely wanted to believe the Teacher’s comforting words, but…

Based on our experience so far, most of the ways this world operates cannot be explained by general religious views.

A ghost story of a forgotten friend turned into a ghost.

I believe that the being we were dealing with wasn’t just an illusion, but rather the spirit of someone who died long ago and has returned as a ghost.

There was no reason, but….

This unsettling feeling, as if we’ve buried a living person alive, gnawed at my conscience.

“Haaa… That’s right. We had no other choice, Prez.”

Gyeongwon sighed helplessly, waving his hands.

“If we hadn’t acted and allowed the ghost to infiltrate us, our club might have fallen apart from within in less than three years.”

“Let’s just forget about it, Joon… Everything…”

Sunah suggested as she looked at me with a worried expression.

Okay. Let’s do that.

It felt a bit uncomfortable, but we couldn’t always hope to end things on a good note.

As we navigate through the chaotic three years, there will likely be even more unpleasant and uncomfortable situations than the current one.

I shouldn’t let my heart get swayed by things like this.

‘Let’s wrap this up here and think about what new ghost story we should seek out next.’

Just as I was about to open my mouth to say that.

[♬ ♬ ♬]

[♬ ♬ ]

[ ♬ ♬ ♬ ♬]

[♬ ♬ ♬ ]

[♬ ♬ ]

[♬ ♬ ♬ ♬]

[♬ ♬ ]

The phones of all seven of us sitting in the clubroom suddenly began to ring at the same time.

The seven of us quickly pulled our phones out of our pockets.

And there, that name we never wanted to see again, was hovering proudly.

Rich Kim Eunjung 010-4444-4444

Hyu Eunjung 010-4444-4444

Kong Eunjung 010-4444-4444

Rich KEJ 010-4444-4444

My Sweetheart Eunjung 010-4444-4444

Gong Eunjung 010-4444-4444

Su Kim Eunjung 010-4444-4444

[T/N: According to the ghost story that manipulated reality, Kim Eunjung has different surnames or nicknames based on whom she had interacted with.]

“…I’ll answer it. Everyone, put your phone down.”

Jinhee said in a low voice.

We carefully put our phones down.

[♬ ♬ ]

In the quiet clubroom in the pleasant afternoon.

The ringtone resonated ominously.

The seven of us watched it with nervous expressions.

Soon, Jinhee took out her phone with a cracked screen in various places and answered the call.

Duud.

“… Hello.”

At that moment, all the phones that had been loudly ringing stopped, and silence enveloped the clubroom.

[Thank you, guys.]

A woman’s voice that I heard for the first time transmitted from the other end of the phone.

A high-pitched but dry tone.

The pronunciation was clear, but the lack of intonation gave us a feeling of creepiness.

“…. Eunjung?”

Jinhee asked in a low voice.

[It was always difficult for me. Dealing with my way of thinking that was different from others.]

Once again, the thin, delicate but emotionless voice came through the phone, whispering monotonously.

[I didn’t know who I was. No one taught me.]

[It was always hard and painful. I was always swept away by a feeling of not being able to control myself.]

[Everyone from my parents to my friends continued to deny me, saying that I was strange. As if I was an existence that’s supposed not to be in this world.]

[But you guys. You helped me find out who I am.]

A drop of cold sweat ran down my forehead.

[Now I’m going to the Seoul Station and stab people, slash people, again and again. Until the place becomes a sea of blood and the bodies form mountains with their arms and legs twisted.]

[Thank you. This is my identity that you found.]

Tut… Tut… Tut.

We looked out the window in silence.