WIRHIHWS 07

Episode 7

“Yeon-woo seems unable to regain his senses, ham.”

A large, light green hamster came waddling over.
The hamster stopped in front of him, raised its arm, and rested its hand on its chin.
Then, with round, sparkling eyes, it stared at Yun Yeon-woo.

Huh~? Yeon-woo~. What happened~?”

Bobbing bobbing.
This time, the creature that looked like cotton candy approached and sat on his head.

“Yeonwoo~. Are you hurt somewhere?”
“No, that’s not it……”

Probably, anyone who came here would have the same reaction.
He had thought it might be real, but only vaguely, wondering if it really wasn’t just a weird dream.
But facing such a near-fantastical sight directly with his own eyes, while fully conscious, left him speechless.

“So it wasn’t a dream.”

It was a relief it wasn’t a dream, but.
He might have rather wished it was a dream.
What on earth was he thinking, coming here?
He felt both anticipation and a bit of unease.

“Didn’t I tell you? That we’d meet soon.”

At that moment, he saw Yeon, holding the cotton candy creature in her arms.
Clearly, there was no one behind him just a moment ago.
She had appeared behind him like a ghost.

Her right eye sparkled.

“A ghost… well, the essence of spirits isn’t very different from ghosts, so calling me a ghost wouldn’t be entirely wrong.”
“That’s right, ham! I might be a ghost, ham!”

Gulp.
At the word ‘ghost,’ Yun Yeon-woo swallowed dryly.

“You don’t… eat people or anything like that, right?”
“Ugh ham! I’ll eat this human, ham!”

The light green hamster charged!
And then snuggled into Yun Yeon-woo’s embrace.
It felt like hugging a large stuffed animal.

“But we don’t eat humans, ham!”

The light green hamster rubbed its face against his chest.
It was soft and warm.
Naturally, he stroked the creature’s head.

“My name is Kongkong, ham! It’s the name my owner gave me. I remember, but I also don’t remember, ham!”
“Owner……?”

What did it mean by owner, and ‘I remember but don’t remember’?
Seeing his puzzled expression, Yeon continued for it.

“This Spirit World is a place where deceased pets from the human world wait for their owners to call them again.”

Here, a ‘spirit’ refers to a deceased pet that was loved by humans and received a part of a human’s soul.
Under their owner’s love, they received their half-soul and became more than ordinary animals. Spirits can speak and understand human language.
Animals who shared a soul—that is, spirits—do not disappear when they die.
Instead, they wait for their next life in this way.
Of course, cases of becoming a spirit aren’t that common.

“Animals’ lifespans are really short compared to humans’.”

Animals’ lives are short.
They simply cannot stay by their owner’s side for a lifetime in one form.
So they repeat many lives.
They are reborn repeatedly in the form their owner desires, the form their owner loved most.
Born as a dog, they might become a dog again.
Born as a dog, they might change into the form of a cat.

And the current forms of the spirits are an amalgamation of the forms their owners found cutest.
It’s not their original form.
Merely an ideal form while being a spirit. It’s a form the owner will absolutely never see.

“The Spirit World is closer to a resting place before going to their owner.”

To put it simply, it’s a place for waiting to go back to the owner who loved them.
A rest stop.

“This is that kind of place. A place of waiting.”
“I see.”

He was slightly dazed by the sudden explanation.
Still, he could understand what she was saying.
He just didn’t know why she was explaining this to him.

“But unfortunately, recently, spirits haven’t been able to go back to the human world.”
“Why?”
“Because for the past few years, the human world and the Spirit World were severed. Now, thanks to you opening the door and connecting the worlds, it’s been resolved. The story might get a bit long. Is that okay?”
“Yes.”

He had plenty of time.
When he nodded, Yeon smiled shyly.

“Your grandfather, Yun Yeong-hyeon, was the manager of the spirits while he was alive. He diligently took responsibility for them.”
“Huh? Was Grandpa a ghost too?”
“Hahaha, absolutely not. Grandpa was human and went to heaven in human form.”

Then?

“I also learned this through history, so I can’t give a definite answer, but it’s said that the southern Spirit World of Korea has been managed by the Yun family of the land’s end, specifically a very few individuals, since ancient times.”
“So Grandpa managed the spirits…?”

Yeon nodded.

Then a few problems arise here.
If Grandpa knew, shouldn’t Father know too?
But in his life, he had never heard the word ‘spirit’ from their lips.
Seeing his puzzled reaction, Yeon continued.

“Father gave up on managing the spirits when he was young. So his memories were erased.”

In the case of Yun Hyeong-jin, he dreamed of becoming a police officer and did not choose to manage the spirits.
But no one blamed him.
Because he became a police officer and saved countless people.
If he had chosen the Spirit World over his original dream of being a police officer, the people he saved who now live new lives might not exist in this world.

“And the reason others don’t know is because people who don’t inherit the Yun family bloodline cannot see spirits.”

However, elderly people with weakened soul power, or those with a naturally sensitive constitution regarding souls from birth, can see spirits.
Or if one forms a lifelong bond with the manager of the Spirit World. That is, if Yun Yeon-woo marries someone, that person will also be able to see spirits.

“So the reason you’re telling me this is because you want me to manage the spirits like Grandpa did, right?”
“Yes.”

Yeon nodded.

“If… I refuse, what happens?”
“Then, the contract will be voided.”
“……Contract?”

Yun Yeon-woo tilted his head.

“As I said last time, I met you when you were little. At that time, we made a promise, a contract.”
“I……”
“You promised that from the year you turn thirty, you would help the Spirit World.”
“I, I see. I don’t remember any of it. Haha……”

Yeon twirled her silver hair around her finger with her fingers.
She seemed somewhat dissatisfied that he couldn’t remember.

“Yes, you wouldn’t remember. Unfortunately, at that time, for your future, we erased all memories related to spirits.”

Her hair whoosh! fell loose.
The silver hair cascaded back down to her waist.

She smiled again.
That smile was as if she was looking at something lovely.
It was very affectionate and seemed to make his heart ache just by looking.

“In return, I promised to ensure you wouldn’t struggle with material things for your whole life, and we made a contract with each other.”
“Could it be that because of that promise, I won the lottery?”
“Yes, I provided the chance for a windfall according to the contract.”

So that’s why he suddenly won the lottery out of nowhere.
It was because of a contract he had completely forgotten.

“If I say I want to void this contract, what happens?”
“The luck I interfered with will turn into misfortune and bring you that much unhappiness. I’d like to say that, but I won’t do that.”

However, if you accept this deal, helping the spirits will continuously accumulate good karma in the form of good deeds.
The more you help the spirits, the less inconvenience you’ll have in life, and wealth will accumulate. The people around you will also be influenced and can obtain wealth and honor.
Yeon didn’t bother to say that.

Wink.
Yeon tried to wink, but both eyes closed.
Her awkward appearance almost made him burst out laughing.

“Because we don’t want others’ lives to become unhappy because of us.”

As beings who live on human love, they don’t want humans to become unhappy.

“Then, what do I have to do here?”

Just a moment ago, thanks to Yun Yeon-woo opening the door that was blocking the two worlds, the severance between the human world and the Spirit World ended and they are now connected.
So what does Yun Yeon-woo need to do?

“Just manage the spirits like Grandpa did. It’s called managing, but it’s more like being friends with them. There’s a barrier outside, so you can take walks together, or make delicious food to eat with them.”

For animals, most human food is poisonous when they have physical bodies, so they can’t eat it.
But spirits in soul form can eat any food without issue.
In fact, we’d like you to feed the spirits lots of food.
Because later, when they return to their owner’s side, they’ll have to resist most of the foods they wanted to try.

“Ah, I see…?”

Cooking.
He had been thinking he wanted to try cooking.
It wasn’t a bad proposal.
Making delicious food for the spirits could also serve as practice.
And he’d have beings to share it with.

“And… please make sure the spirits don’t feel lonely.”
“Is that really all I need to do? Things like ‘I’ve lost my memory,’ can’t I do anything about that?”
“Yes. Just treat the spirits sincerely. That’s enough. Then the spirits will naturally regain their memories.”

Because Yun Yeon-woo’s actions will become the catalyst for the spirits to regain their memories.

“I can’t do that.”

She can temporarily fill the owner’s empty spot, but she cannot replace that spot and give love. Because Yeon is no longer human.
So she wants Yun Yeon-woo to fill that spot.

“Can I think about it for a bit?”
“Of course.”

Yeon raised the corners of her mouth into a smile.

“Then… um, please give me until Friday.”
“I can wait longer, just please don’t run away.”

Because that would be too sad.
Being abandoned is something I’d rather avoid.
A refusal would be better.

Yun Yeon-woo fell into thought.

‘What should I do…? Ah, come to think of it.’

Then, suddenly, the dog he had forgotten due to the accident long ago came to mind.
The biggest reason he came here.

“Ah! By any chance, is the dog I raised before here?”

At Yun Yeon-woo’s words, Yeon’s large eyes widened roundly.

“If you truly loved that child, then they’re definitely waiting here.”

With those words, Yeon stroked the cotton candy-like creature in her arms.

“Huh~? Yeon-woo~. Are you leaving now~?”

The creature jumped out of her arms and clung to Yun Yeon-woo’s face.
How can a creature with no hands or feet cling on like that?
While that question arose, his breath suddenly thud! got cut off. Cough!

“Ah~. Yeon-woo~. Are you okay?”

As he made a strange sound, the cotton candy creature let go.

“I’m okay…… Huh?”

Vaguely, but he rubbed his eyes at a form different from the cotton candy’s appearance.
For a moment, the creature’s form seemed to look like a puppy’s…?

“Wow~. What to do~.”

The creature, knowing it did wrong, came down to the ground and bounced around, panicking, going ‘what to do~’.

“……You, what’s your name?”

That sight was somehow so cute that he unconsciously stroked the creature’s head and picked it up.

“Wow~? I don’t remember~. But Yeon calls me Cotton Candy~.”
“It’s a child without a name.”
“How can it not have a name…?”

A spirit is a beloved pet from a human, yet it has no name?
Isn’t that a bit strange?

“Then! Will you give me a name, Yeon-woo?”
“……Is it okay if I give you a name?”
“Wow~. Good~.”

The creature jumped around in the air.
He observed it carefully.
What name should he give?

It looks like cotton candy.
A bit white.
Looks like snow too?
Light and floating.
Seems like it would taste sweet if you took a bite…

“How about Snowball…”
“I can also do this~.”

Splash!

Suddenly, water gushed out of the creature’s mouth.

Huh?
A water-style technique from a place with no water…!
It’s not some Hydro Pump…!

Hit by the water, his previously narrow vision expanded.
The spirits around him, there were a few really peculiar characteristics about those spirits.
If he had agreed without knowing this, it might have been a disaster!

“Oops! I forgot to explain this to you, Yeon-woo.”