Chapter 24
Chapter 24
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 24
Chapter Title: Match Girl
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Crackle!
The sound of logs burning away.
I came face-to-face with the Match Girl once more.
【Make a wish. I'll grant any wish you want.】
Her sudden offer to grant a wish made me flinch instinctively.
This girl.
Why'd she come back so soon?
Truth be told, I hadn't expected to run into her this quickly. It caught me off guard.
【What wish will you make?】
【I'm so excited! Aren't you?】
Her voice was lively, like that of a tomboyish girl. But her actual appearance was anything but.
Crackle!
A pitch-black, charred form, just like a lump of coal.
If you squinted at her silhouette, it vaguely resembled a girl... sort of, maybe, or maybe not—ambiguous at best.
Where eyes should have been, two embers burned in circular shapes, staring right at me.
Crackle!
Crackle-crackle!
Crackle-crackle-crackle!
...Surprisingly warm.
As Park Yeon-jeong warmed himself briefly before the living firewood,
The Match Girl had been waiting for someone's response from the start.
And who was that someone?
【What are you doing? So, what's your wish?!】
【Tell me! Hurry up alreadyyy!!】
Ah, me.
I'd forgotten in the warmth of this cozy thing.
Now I've even seen a ghost story throwing a tantrum at a human.
Crackle-crackle-crackle!
With every impatient bounce as she demanded my wish, the surrounding air ignited, and the crackling of burning logs grew louder.
Watching the scene unfold, I wanted nothing more than to escape this ghost story as quickly as possible.
【Hurry with the w—】
"Got it!"
I told the Match Girl I'd make the wish she wanted.
Crackle-crackle-crackle!
As if thrilled by my response,
She started hopping around excitedly before charging straight at me.
Poof!
【What's your wish?! I'm dying to know! It's driving me crazy!!】
Flinch.
Up close, her grotesqueness and intense heat scorched my skin even more.
The fact that this heat penetrated even through the freezing cold meant
She was
A living furnace right now.
Better keep my distance.
Unless I was a true masochist eager to feel my flesh cook.
【Here, take it!】
She extended her charred arm toward me and handed over a single matchstick.
This match... flame resistance maxed out?
Holding its shape intact after coming from that living furnace...
As I took the matchstick, the Match Girl's excitement ramped up even more.
【Hurryhurryhurryhurryhurryhurryhurryhurryhurryhurry...】
To escape that ear-piercing whine even a second sooner,
"My wish is..."
【!!!!】
I held the matchstick forward and made my wish.
"I want a cute, keychain-sized Bear Doll as a gift. It should be light enough for an infant to hold, and even if the keychain flies at me unavoidably, it won't hurt—soft stuffing all the way. Oh, and make sure it's an inanimate object without a soul..."
That was my wish.
【.................】
The Match Girl didn't react right away after hearing it.
The only thing showing movement here was
Fwoosh.
The matchstick, bursting into flame as it heard my grand wish and began to burn.
The matchstick burned faster than expected, turning to ash in Park Yeon-jeong's hand and scattering on the wind.
Thud.
Suddenly, something small dropped from the sky, lightly bonking Park Yeon-jeong on the head before hitting the ground.
What had hit his head was
A tiny Bear Doll keychain.
Its weight was
-Not too heavy for an infant to hold.
The material of the Bear Doll felt in his palm was
-Even if flung, it wouldn't hurt anyone—perfectly soft.
And finally,
-No soul, just an everyday Bear Doll anyone could see.
That Bear Doll was now
In my hand.
His face beamed with satisfaction.
But in stark contrast,
The two burning circles that had held their shape moments ago
Narrowed into thin ovals, glaring at the man.
【You... are no fun at all.】
Crackle!!
This spark echoed through the entire space, far more intense than before.
Having heard my boring wish, the Match Girl unleashed powerful flames from her whole body and
Boom!
Exploded in front of my eyes with a massive blast.
Where she'd vanished, only black ash stained the ground.
The Match Girl left in a huff.
Meanwhile, the man who'd witnessed her rage firsthand
Grinned.
His smile stretched from ear to ear.
Wearing a Bear Doll mask that didn't suit him at all.
His face lit up with the joy of landing one on a ghost story.
The first case of perfectly dodging a ghost story gimmick without a scratch.
[Match Girl]
The key to this ghost story was that matchstick she'd just handed me—its unique trait.
Her true ability: twisting the wisher's vague desires to her own taste.
The core of this ghost story wasn't 'Write three wishes you want on the matchstick.'
It was 'Don't wish for something that can kill me.'
The trick was to wish for something utterly harmless and cutesy, leaving no room for her twisted interpretations.
Park Yeon-jeong's plan going forward:
-Neutralize the remaining two wishes with more cutesy ones.
-Finish with the newly acquired 'Final Trigger' item.
Perfect, right?
Couldn't be more perfect.
End of the simple plan briefing.
Park Yeon-jeong felt like he could clear this ghost story smoothly this time.
But.
The biggest question here:
What if he'd poured his honest desires onto the matchstick the Match Girl gave him?
=======
Deputy Manager Kim Min-seop whispered his true desire to the matchstick amid the Match Girl's coaxing.
-I want to [censored] a beautiful woman...
Her blazing eyes sparkled at his crude lust, and the matchstick granted his wish.
Soon, a woman appeared before Deputy Manager Kim Min-seop. Bare even in the freezing cold, she approached, thick thighs rubbing together.
She reached out with her right hand, gently caressing something of his.
Deputy Manager Kim Min-seop let out a groan from his lips, but the beautiful woman gripped it hard and
Ripped 'it' right off in one go.
【Love comes in all forms. And that woman? She's an 'S'. She loves hearing men scream.】
Deputy Manager Kim Min-seop / Died of shock.
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Even if her tastes ran 'S'...
That's what happens when you give the Match Girl an opening.
So, never give scum like that any leeway.
Never hand her any leverage in the wishing process.
And probably,
She won't show up in front of me for a while.
I'd bored her with my wish—no interest in a guy like me anymore.
Now's the chance.
The perfect moment to pull out the item.
First, to get the item,
He had to take off this Bear Doll mask he was wearing.
Huff huff!
Luckily, it wasn't too hard to remove.
Whoosh!
Damn, cold!
...Put it back on?
The moment he ditched the Bear Doll mask, biting cold pierced his skin.
In this perfect weather for freezing to death, he hurriedly pulled the revolver from his Employee ID with trembling hands.
Done!
Next up,
Rustle rustle.
Quickly re-equip the cold-weather gear.
The man's frantic scramble back into the Bear Doll's mouth.
Having been swallowed once before, he slotted every body part into place faster than last time.
"...Ah, finally, I can live."
With the last item prepped,
He had nothing left to fear.
Crackle!
Golden timing.
Just as he finished, crackling logs sounded again,
And the Match Girl reappeared before him.
She glared with her signature thin, burning eyes.
My wish must've really pissed her off.
She'd surely noticed it was blatantly dodging what she intended.
But no helping it.
A vague wish would've had her gleefully charging to kill me.
This was self-defense.
And she'd been the one demanding I make a wish in her domain.
That was her rule here.
She only played by her own rules, so as long as I didn't break them, she wouldn't interfere.
【You. Make your wish quick.】
Short, curt words and a cold attitude—unlike before.
But no matter how scary she tried to act,
My wish wouldn't change.
Sticking close to the previous framework,
I swapped the 'Bear Doll' keychain for a 'Rabbit Doll' and wished again.
Fwoosh.
Thud.
Another utterly ordinary rabbit model keychain dropped limply before Park Yeon-jeong.
【......Tch.】
Rustle.
Without a word, the Match Girl granted my boring wish and vanished somewhere.
Now, only one wish left.
Just one remaining.
Aside from the skin-piercing chill felt upon entering, everything had gone smoothly.
Keep it up like this.
Swish swish!
The Bear Doll's arms moving on their own again.
Our firstborn Bear Doll happily waving its arms up and down as it saw me relax.
...Sigh.
I hoped the next ghost story would keep this vibe going.
Crackle.
...?
Familiar sound.
At the crackle brushing his ear, Park Yeon-jeong turned toward it.
Crackle-crackle!
A child-sized black coal lump stood before him.
Her burning gaze stared blankly at him.
She was... smiling.
【Oh? You're not alone?】
A smile crept across the Match Girl's face, where no trace of mirth had been before.
Undeniably genuine amusement.
Not alone?
As he puzzled over her intent,
Flinch.
Park Yeon-jeong's right arm twitched faintly.
He hadn't moved it.
His gaze dropped to the Bear Doll mask he wore.
...!!!
=======
/Ghost Story Log
[Match Girl]
:Identification Code Cd-D-111
.
.
.
Physically suppressible.
No mental damage.
Exploration limit: 1 person. (Sentient beings only.)
=======
Grin.
The Match Girl, covered in black soot, began glowing red-hot.
【Bad adults who break the rules】
Crackle.
【Don't deserve to make wishes.】
Rustle.
Black ash whipped sharply around the now-blazing Match Girl.
Soon, the ashes formed shapes,
Human-like figures made of ash, looming behind her.
Shit!
Park Yeon-jeong bolted the opposite way. But she wouldn't just watch.
【It's okay! No need to be scared! It's only natural for rule-breakers to get punished!】
Her voice trailed with heavy static.
【Aaaan't thaa■t riiiight?!?!】
With an unearthly voice, countless ash-gray humans chased him.
Their running speed was no joke.
When he realized they'd catch him at a pace he could never match,
Thud thud thud thud thud!
......Huh?
My legs feel light.
Unlike moments ago when harsh breaths reached his throat,
Now, no strain at all.
No fatigue.
This moment felt like
His human body's limits had unlocked.
No way.
That legendary... 'awakening'?
He'd heard people unleash superhuman power in crises.
And now,
Park Yeon-jeong felt that transcendent state in every fiber.
At this rate, he could escape.
Shake them off.
Having forgotten how his body had toughened through countless ghost stories, he sprinted full tilt.
At this speed, ditching them would be a breeze.
Soon, a fork appeared ahead, splitting left and right.
In cases like this,
Right-hand rule it is.
Park Yeon-jeong planned to veer right using the right-hand rule.
Swoosh!
...?
But he turned
Left, not right.
At the clear deviation, as a question mark floated over his head,
His gaze fell to the Bear Doll mask he wore.
......Aha!
I'm inside the firstborn Bear Doll right now.
Awakening?
Transcendent being?
The chuunibyou hitting Park Yeon-jeong late ended quicker than expected.