The sky was clear, with a bright moon hanging high, untouched by a single cloud. In just a few days, it would be a full moon. As if preparing for that moment, the moon tonight was partially shrouded in shadow. Mu-ryeong had been gazing out the window for a long time before finally shifting his eyes to the person sitting before him—Hwan-young.A smooth forehead, a sharply defined nose, and long, delicate eyelashes casting deep shadows beneath them.“He hasn’t come in a while.”Hwan-hee had not appeared. Hwan-young stated this in his usual calm manner, his expression as unreadable as ever. His gaze dropped as if carefully selecting his words, staring silently into the air. After a brief moment, his lips parted slightly, and he asked in a quiet voice:“You did this, didn’t you?”“……”What was the right thing to say? For a moment, Mu-ryeong found himself at a loss for words. Not because the question surprised him, but because, this time, he was not the one responsible. Contrary to Hwan-young’s assumption, the only time Mu-ryeong had interfered was at the very beginning.“I knew you were marking me with your spiritual energy.”Mu-ryeong had already assumed that Hwan-young would catch on eventually. He wasn’t completely oblivious. Even if he didn’t grasp the intention, he would have noticed the act itself. That’s why he had silently extended his hand, watching as Mu-ryeong went through the motions.‘I just wanted Hwan-hee to rest in peace.’But now, Hwan-young’s assumption was incorrect. After their conversation that night, Mu-ryeong had stopped marking him with spiritual energy altogether. He had realized there was no longer any point in trying to hide him from Hwan-hee. That was also why he hadn’t bothered to replace the talisman or drive away the vengeful spirit.And yet… “He hasn’t been appearing lately.” That meant, ever since the rooftop incident, the spirit hadn’t reached for Hwan-young again.“……”Could it have disappeared already?The thought made Mu-ryeong shake his head slightly. A vengeful spirit could not simply vanish on its own. Unless an exorcist had been called in to handle it, there was no way it had been eliminated. And given that the spirit only ever manifested in Hwan-young’s presence, there was no way anyone else could have reported it.“At first… yeah, that was me.”Mu-ryeong admitted calmly, meeting Hwan-young’s gaze. There was no need to keep it a secret anymore. Being honest was the best course of action now. At first. The conditional phrase made Hwan-young narrow his eyes slightly.“Most vengeful spirits tend to retreat instinctively when they sense an exorcist’s spiritual energy. That’s why I left my energy on you. The talisman I gave you was meant for that purpose, too.”Hwan-young nodded, silently prompting Mu-ryeong to continue. Mu-ryeong furrowed his brows slightly, deep in thought.“But this time, it’s not me.”Hwan-young’s spiritual energy was far too dense for Mu-ryeong’s lingering traces to still have any effect. Just being near him wasn’t enough to drive away a spirit. Even if they spent time together every day, that alone wouldn’t be sufficient.“…You’re saying it wasn’t you?”For the first time, Hwan-young’s black eyes wavered. Mu-ryeong immediately understood what he was afraid of. He softened his voice to reassure him.“It’s okay. I have a pretty good idea why this is happening.”Yes, he had a theory. He just wasn’t entirely certain yet.“Don’t worry. I also know how to fix it.”“……”Hwan-young didn’t ask what that solution was. Instead, he simply stared at Mu-ryeong, the unease in his eyes slowly fading. Mu-ryeong met his gaze and offered a faint smile.“We’ll summon him first.”“Summon?”“Yeah.”If Hwan-hee wasn’t coming, they would make him come. It was a risky plan, but if everything went as expected, it would be manageable. Of course, he would need Hwan-young’s cooperation.“Well… we’ll talk about that later.”Mu-ryeong flashed a grin and glanced out the window. Hwan-young followed his gaze. The moon shone brightly, perfectly framed by the window.“There’s going to be a full moon on Friday.”This coming Friday, the full moon would rise. The rainy season had ended, and there was no forecast for rain anytime soon. It was the perfect time for what they needed to do. The timing couldn’t have been better.“That’s the day we’ll act.”Mu-ryeong’s voice was low, almost conspiratorial. His usual lightheartedness faded, replaced by a serious expression. He placed his hand on Hwan-young’s knee and spoke in a quiet tone.“Here’s the plan.”***Monday marked the end of the rainy season. A heatwave warning had been issued. The sudden surge of heat after the rain created a suffocating atmosphere, making the air feel thick and heavy.By the time Mu-ryeong arrived at school with Seung-joo early in the morning, his expression was already one of discomfort.“It’s too hot…”Mu-ryeong was particularly sensitive to heat, and this kind of weather was unbearable for him. Just the short walk to school had drained all his energy. He slumped over his desk, sprawled out in exhaustion, looking as if he had just come back from a long walk with Seolgi.“So hot…”“The AC’s on. Deal with it.”Seung-joo spoke in his usual indifferent tone, fanning Mu-ryeong with his notebook. The slight breeze was so desperately needed that Mu-ryeong turned his head toward Seung-joo, his flushed cheek pressing against the desk.“What were you doing last night? Didn’t get any sleep?”Seung-joo asked curiously, noticing the way Mu-ryeong’s eyelids drooped. It had been the weekend—there was no reason for Mu-ryeong to be sleep-deprived. Mu-ryeong blinked slowly and let out a deep sigh.“Seolgi was whining all night…”On Friday night, there had been four people. By Sunday night, only two remained. Hwan-young had left on Saturday afternoon, followed by Mu-heun on Sunday. As a result, Seolgi, who loved being around people, wandered restlessly through the house all night, whining at the emptiness.“He knew I wasn’t getting any sleep and decided to settle in my room instead.”No matter how deep of a sleeper Mu-ryeong was, Seolgi’s noises were impossible to ignore. Dropping a metal pot beside his bed wouldn’t wake him, but Seolgi whining? That was the one thing that never failed. The real problem was that Seolgi knew this fact all too well.“Mu-heun’s already gone?”“Yeah… Said he had a lot of work to do.”“No wonder Baekseolgi was wailing.”Seung-joo clicked his tongue in sympathy, setting his notebook down. Fortunately, the air conditioning was doing its job, quickly cooling the room. Mu-ryeong, who had been about to drift off again in relief, was interrupted.“…Kim Mu-ryeong, are you seriously trying to sleep again?”A familiar voice snapped him out of his drowsiness. Mu-ryeong lazily opened his eyes and looked up at the person who had called his name. Even in this unbearable heat, Ki Hwan-young had his uniform buttoned up to the very top.“What the hell? What are you doing here?”Seung-joo, caught off guard by Hwan-young’s sudden appearance, looked genuinely surprised. And rightfully so. Hwan-young never set foot in Class 7 unless Mu-ryeong physically dragged him there. In fact, it wasn’t just Class 7—Hwan-young rarely left his own classroom at all.“Oh, I asked him to come.”Mu-ryeong, who had been lying there listlessly, suddenly sat up the moment he saw Hwan-young. And, as if all traces of exhaustion had vanished, he sprang to his feet, grabbing Hwan-young’s wrist with a grin.“We’ll be back in a bit.”Seung-joo frowned but didn’t ask where they were going. He simply added a fatherly warning not to walk around too much in the heat. Hwan-young, without a word, followed Mu-ryeong as they slowly made their way outside.Their destination was the school’s back courtyard. It was the very spot Mu-ryeong often snuck out through at night—a secluded area, difficult to see from the school buildings, where students rarely ventured. And, more importantly, it was the place where Mu-ryeong and Hwan-young had first met, where the restless spirit had once lingered.Mu-ryeong stopped in the middle of the courtyard and finally released Hwan-young’s wrist. Then, spreading his arms wide, he stood before him as if expecting an embrace.“Alright. Go ahead.”“…”Hwan-young stared at him, his expression unreadable. He glanced around awkwardly, as if searching for an escape. But when Mu-ryeong tilted his head to the side, Hwan-young flinched and hesitantly asked:“…Are we really doing this?”“Obviously.”Mu-ryeong lifted his chin. Standing so close, their height difference became all the more apparent. He watched as Hwan-young averted his gaze, clearly uncomfortable. Then, in a teasingly youthful voice, he asked:“Do you have a better way for us to make physical contact?”‘Here’s the plan.’That Friday night, Mu-ryeong had sat Hwan-young down with a serious expression and explained what needed to be done before they could execute his plan.‘First, you need to cover me in your spiritual energy.’‘Spiritual energy?’‘Yeah. I think the reason he’s not showing up is because I’ve been too close to you.’Strictly speaking, Mu-ryeong knew that his own spiritual energy wasn’t the only factor keeping Hwan-hee at bay. But rather than diving into the complicated details, he had chosen to frame it as a mix of fact and speculation.‘Vengeful spirits rely on sensation more than sight. Until the full moon, you need to keep me covered in your spiritual energy so that I seem like I’m not even here.’As always, the plan was simple. And there wasn’t much difficulty in what he was asking Hwan-young to do. The only issue was how they would have to go about it every single day.‘…How exactly do I cover you with my spiritual energy?’To transfer spiritual energy, they needed to make as much physical contact as possible. Ideally, it should be skin-to-skin. Even better if it was in a more enclosed, intimate space. Of course, given their situation, a simple embrace would suffice.“This… doesn’t this seem weird?”Hwan-young frowned, shifting his weight backward in clear hesitation. They had already agreed on this, yet now that they were actually standing here, he was hesitating.“What’s weird about it?”Mu-ryeong looked genuinely confused. This wasn’t a big deal. Even friends could hug each other, right? Sure, they needed to hold on a bit tighter than usual, but still.Besides, Hwan-young was the one who /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ had chosen this location.“You were the one who didn’t want anyone watching, which is why we came all the way out here.”At first, Mu-ryeong had suggested they do it in the hallway or even the classroom. But Hwan-young had panicked at the idea, vehemently shaking his head. His reasoning? People would see and think it was strange.Ironically, now they were standing alone in the courtyard—hidden away, out of sight—about to embrace in secrecy. And somehow, this didn’t seem weirder to him?

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