Along with the sound of the wind, the light on the wall swayed for a moment. At this ominous sign, Anita swallowed hard.

She wanted to look back, but she couldn’t bring herself to turn her head. Turning around would make it seem as if the presence that had only existed in Anita’s imagination would leap into reality. Anita, like people scared out of their wits, didn’t hasten her steps. Acknowledging fear might lead to something truly alarming happening.

Anita walked slowly, like a person who hadn’t noticed anything.

As the library entrance, bathed in bright light, drew closer, Anita’s steps gained strength. The gradually accelerating pace was now more akin to running than walking. Arriving at the library entrance and catching her breath, Anita finally realized how forcefully she had run.

“You. Ran here?”

“Yeah. It seems so.”

With the warm light and the presence of two living people in the library, everything stabilized. Anita didn’t return to the corner of the library where she had been sitting before; instead, she moved between Edmund and Rutger. Something in the dark corridor had given her goosebumps, as if something had clung to the back of her head. Only when the warm body temperature of a living person touched her did she truly feel relieved.

“It’s narrow.”

Rutger grumbled with dissatisfaction. Earlier, Anita, who had been uncomfortably squeezed between the two, might have left some space, but Anita now had no capacity to care about such trivial matters.

“Do you want me to move out of the way if it’s tight?”

“No. I’m fine.”

Edmund, who had been awakened by the loud thunder, readily suggested, but Anita firmly declined.

“Wait. Am I uncomfortable?”

Ignoring Rutger’s bewildered complaint, Anita continued to read the pages of the book she had opened. However, even after a while, the letters did not register in her eyes. Although she stared at the corner of the book where there were no words for a long time, Rutger finally spoke.

“I think I need to go. There’s one more lecture.”

When he closed the book and stood up, Anita also stood up naturally. Since she couldn’t concentrate anyway, and she didn’t want to walk alone in the corridor she had passed through.

“Why are you getting up?”

“I’m leaving now.”

She couldn’t bring herself to say that she couldn’t go alone because she was scared. Anita casually loaded the book onto the cart, walked to the library entrance, and said,

“Are you going to stay here, senior?”

“Um, probably.”

Edmund was concentrating as if he would be sucked into the book. Anita decided not to disturb him.

“What are you doing? Let’s go.”

Seriously, when did he go there? Rutger was already outside the library. Anita quickly walked to where he was.

The corridor was brighter than before. Perhaps it was a temporary malfunction due to the storm. Relieved, Anita walked with a more relaxed attitude than before.

Despite it being noon when the sun was at its highest, the dark clouds obscured the sunlight, making the window outside dim. Anita, who was casually glancing outside, suddenly noticed that Rutger was walking far ahead. She quickened her pace to catch up.

As she hesitated like someone frightened, his eyes narrowed.

“You’ve been acting strange since earlier. Are you hurt somewhere?”

“Yeah? No. It’s really nothing.”

“It doesn’t seem like nothing.”

“…”

“Seriously, what’s going on with you?”

Suddenly, all the lights in the corridor went out. Rutger expressed his annoyance as if he found it irritating, and Anita groped through the empty space in thought.

“Hold on.”

Fortunately, Rutger quickly found Anita’s hand. As his warmth touched her, Anita could calm down a bit. Holding onto his hand firmly, Anita cautiously took steps forward. Although all the lights in the corridor were out, there was a faint light coming in from outside, allowing her to see what was in front of her if she concentrated.

Of course, if she let her mind wander, she might end up banging her head against the wall.

“Words can be ominous.” Anita indeed banged her head against a pillar. Trying to shake off the dizziness and regain her composure, she attempted to take another step, but Anita’s foot naturally got tangled.

“Pfft.”

The sound of laughter next to her made Anita raise an eyebrow. Was it really that funny that she’d hit her head?

“Why are you laughing?”

“It’s not me, is it a ghost?”

“Ghost….”

Even though she knew there was no such thing, Anita felt an inexplicable unease.

“How do we get out of here?”

Anita asked cautiously, but there was no response from him.

“Are you listening?”

Still, he remained silent. Anita gently shook the hand she was holding, but with no response, a bizarre hypothesis crossed her mind.

Could he possibly be possessed by a ghost?

Of course, that wouldn’t be possible, but sometimes imagination tends to become more unpleasant in unfavorable situations.

“Rutger?”

“….”

“Are you Rutger?”

“….”

“Do you remember what the name of the dog I had when I was little was?”

Anita asked cautiously. However, once again, there was no response for a long time. A chill ran down her spine from the hand she was holding.

“Um, was it Eloise?”

The voice, mixed with laughter, suddenly felt eerie, and Anita twisted to pull her hand away. However, he held onto Anita’s hand with force.

“Just kidding. You never had a dog.”

Anita genuinely wanted to kick him in the shin once. It was frustrating not to be able to do so because everything around them was pitch dark.

Thud!

Their steps stopped at the same time. The noise came from not too far away.

“Hey. What should we do? I think it’s a ghost.”