Kala slowly opened his eyes this morning and turned toward the clock, which showed it was already 6 a.m.
"Time to get ready," Kala muttered as he pushed the blanket aside and got out of bed to take a shower.
He walked lazily, remembering that for the next few weeks he would be home alone since both of his parents were on a business trip abroad.
The soft clinking sound of a spoon stirring tea filled the quiet morning—until the doorbell rang.
Ding dong.
Kala immediately went to the door and found Kyungmin standing there. His friend invited him to go to school together.
They walked side by side after getting off the bus at the stop.
"Kal, why do you look so gloomy?" Kyungmin asked, puzzled. Kala had been unusually quiet all morning, walking with a blank stare—enough to make Kyungmin worry he was hanging out with someone possessed.
"Ah—no, I'm fine. Just thinking about assignments," Kala lied. In truth, he was thinking about Lyo. He didn't know why, but he felt sorry for the ghost and was considering helping him find the missing diary.
"You're not having problems with your gang, are you?" Kyungmin asked suspiciously.
"No way. My gang's totally fine," Kala denied reflexively.
"Just checking," Kyungmin replied.
Kala and Kyungmin went to the same school but were in different classes, which was why they had different friend circles.
Before they realized it, they had arrived at school. They parted ways and headed to their respective classrooms.
~~~~~~~~
Before the bell rang, Kala decided to linger in the hallway while buying a drink from the vending machine.
As he took a sip, he noticed Hasta approaching to greet him, causing Kala to choke.
"What's wrong? Do you need to go to the infirmary?" Hasta asked worriedly.
Kala quickly shook his head. "No, As. I'm fine."
Kala's heart started pounding fast. He was still suspicious of Hasta regarding Miko's death yesterday.
"Asta, do you often play with an orange cat at the park?" Kala asked.
"Yeah. How'd you know?" Hasta replied.
That answer made Kala tremble even more. "M-My friend told me. As… that cat is dead."
Hasta looked shocked. "Are you serious, Kal?"
Kala nodded. "I found the body yesterday."
Hasta's expression turned gloomy. "I was planning to take that cat home and take care of it."
Kala felt increasingly uneasy but hid his expression in front of Hasta.
Not far from them, Gantha had been watching the two of them for a while. He noticed Kala's strange behavior.
"Is he scared?"
Gantha took out his phone and sent Kala a message, asking him to meet on the rooftop.
~~~~~~~
"What did you drag me here for?"
Kala and Gantha stood by the rooftop fence, watching the basketball team practicing below.
Gantha took a drag from his cigarette, then pulled out the pack from his blazer pocket and offered one to Kala.
Kala stared at him in disbelief. "Are you serious? You're offering that to a cute, innocent kid like me?"
"You're disgusting," Gantha replied flatly.
Kala chuckled softly. "Can we get to the point? I don't wanna be here just to keep you company while you smoke."
Gantha dropped the nearly finished cigarette to the ground and crushed it with his foot.
"Why are you suddenly scared of Asta?"
Kala immediately denied it. "I'm not scared of him. I just have trust issues."
"Trust issues? What could you possibly suspect about a harmless kid like him?" Gantha asked.
"I saw Lyo often playing with a cat at the park—its name was Miko. When Asta took me home after I suddenly had trouble breathing, I saw him keeping a cat necklace in his blazer pocket. It looked exactly like Miko's. He said he found it on the street. Then yesterday, Lyo was crying and asked me to bury Miko, who'd been mutilated. Lyo said Asta also often played with Miko, so he told me to inform Asta that Miko was dead," Kala explained.
"Couldn't all of that just be a coincidence?" Gantha said.
"I thought so too, but I still can't shake this uneasy feeling," Kala replied.
"Then don't suspect him unless you have solid proof," Gantha said.
~~~~~~~~~
Kaze gathered in the cafeteria during lunch break, sitting at one table while waiting for their food.
Dion glanced at Hasta suspiciously. "What's up with you, As? You've been spacing out."
"It's nothing. I was just thinking," Hasta replied.
"About what?" Melvin asked.
"About Lyo. I feel like he has a strong reason to ask us for help," Hasta said.
"Maybe. But he's super creepy," Yoan commented.
"He's just an introvert. You know, people like him don't socialize much. That's why he seems weird—he doesn't know how to act around others," Kala said.
"Are you defending him?" Yoga asked suspiciously.
"No. I've run into him a few times on my way home, and that's just what I observed," Kala replied.
Gantha glanced briefly at Kala before looking away. Why was his friend suddenly defending that strange ghost?
Kala noticed Gantha's look. He knew exactly what Gantha was thinking. It seemed like he'd invite Gantha to talk later.
"So that means he's having trouble asking others for help, right?" Hasta said.
"Regardless, that kid is really strange," Yoan said.
"He does seem suspicious, but what's wrong with helping him? Maybe he really needs it," Melvin added.
"This case feels really off. I'm not convinced," Yoga said.
"I want to take this case," Kala said, making everyone turn toward him.
"Are you crazy, Kal?" Yoan exclaimed.
"I-I'm just bored, that's all," Kala laughed awkwardly.
"We can't investigate major cases right now because supervision is really tight. While waiting for that to cool down, why don't we take another case? This could be one," Dion suggested.
"Good idea, but this case is weird," Yoga said.
"Not weird—challenging. Who knows, maybe we'll handle a case like the ones in the books I read," Dion replied.
The others stared at him flatly. He clearly wanted to be part of a novel.
"What are you reading? Something like Final Destination?" Yoan asked.
"Damn, that's way too scary," Dion replied.
Kala laughed to himself. "If only they knew I almost got dragged into an isekai just from imagining stuff like that."
Gantha, who had been playing with his phone, looked at them with an unreadable expression. He glanced at Kala, then looked down at the table.
"I also agree to take this case," Gantha said.
"Are you two okay? Sakala, Agantha?" Yoan teased.
"It's weird seeing you suddenly agree, Gan," Melvin said.
"Am I not allowed to speak my mind now?" Gantha replied.
"It's not that—you usually just go along with whatever we do," Dion said.
"You guys take too long. If you're bored, it's better to take a case than do nothing," Gantha said.
"Heh, fair point. So what do you guys think?" Dion asked.
"I'm in," Melvin said.
"The rest?" Dion asked.
No one answered—meaning they all agreed.
"Lyo left his phone number before. I'll ask him about the villa's location. We can probably go tomorrow since it's Saturday," Dion said.
"Isn't that too rushed?" Yoan asked.
"We're not staying overnight. I'll message you if there's any update. For now, let's go together to buy supplies," Dion said.
"Is your car really safe for a long trip?" Melvin asked.
"I'll have it checked at a workshop today," Dion replied.
"So we meet at the mall in the afternoon?" Yoga asked.
"Yep. Around two or three," Dion said.
"Okay."
Not long after, their food finally arrived. Kala ate quietly, occasionally glancing at Gantha.
"Does he really trust me?"