Before his meeting with his ghost teacher, Hiru had hoped—prayed, even—for a simple conversation.
A mild scolding, maybe a dramatic lecture.
Something normal.
In a way, he did get what he wanted.
But he'd clearly miscalculated.
Now, sitting inside the eerily quiet, overly spacious teacher's cabin, his eyes were locked onto the cup of tea placed before him.
At first glance, everything looked… normal. A gentle steam rising, a traditional ceramic cup, the faint scent of iron—
Wait.
Boiling red liquid.
Tiny wriggling worms dancing on the surface like it was a hot tub.
That was what had been poured into his cup.
Across from him, Miss Suzume Garfield, as composed and expressionless as ever, delicately sipped from her own cup.
Then, she looked up.
"Why aren't you drinking it?"
Hiru almost fell out of his seat.
'Are you seriously asking me to drink that shit? What kind of lunatic calls that bloody thing tea?!'
His mind was screaming. Every cell in his body wanted to run, cry, or call an exorcist.
But his mouth?
Still smiling, still calm—still playing the fool.
"Miss Suzume, you really didn't need to give me something so precious." He chuckled softly, his hands politely resting on his lap as the tea pulsed. "After all, I came for a scolding, not… such generous hospitality."
Meanwhile, in his head:
'FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT'S HOLY, PLEASE TAKE THIS DEMON BROTH AWAY!'
Suzume didn't respond immediately.
The silence stretched.
Longer than it should've.
Way longer than what was socially acceptable.
And each ticking second added weight to Hiru's already trembling soul.
'Did I say something wrong? Was the sarcasm too much? Should I have just faked a sip?'
"…Umm, Miss Suzume?" he finally broke the silence, his voice nearly cracking from the pressure.
She looked at him, unblinking.
"I'm surprised," she finally said, "that you can appreciate good tea."
'THAT'S what took you so long to say?! You made me die inside just for that?!'
Her face remained unreadable. Still, emotionless eyes. Still that calm, flat tone.
'Could you at least frown? Smirk? Blink a little harder? Anything?! Give me something to work with here!'
Facial expressions were Hiru's secret cheat code to survival—he prided himself on reading people well.
But Suzume Garfield?
She was like a black screen with no subtitles.
Cold. Distant. Possibly dead.
Still, she wasn't bad, he had convinced himself after two weeks under her soul-crushing classroom stare.
But right now?
She was his nightmare.
Or more specifically—that tea was.
He couldn't take his eyes off the cup. The worms were still moving. The blood was still boiling. The smell was getting worse.
'I've read those articles,' he thought, 'where a ghost casually offers an item to a human… and unless you have an Appraisal skill, you have no idea what you just accepted. Most die. The rest wish they had.'
That's why he hadn't touched it.
That's why he wouldn't touch it.
But apparently, fate had other plans.
"Since you appreciate the tea," Suzume said, placing her cup down with grace, "drink it while it's still hot."
Her words sent a chill through his spine.
"…Or else," she continued, "the effects on your spiritual body will lessen."
Hiru gulped—inwardly, of course. Outward panic wouldn't suit the cool, level-headed persona he was presenting.
'Is she serious? Is this really good for my spiritual body?'
He wanted to argue. He wanted to refuse. But he also knew something important: in the Ghost Realm, items that enhance one's spiritual body were rare—legendary even.
And the stronger the spirit, the higher your place in the pecking order.
Power was everything here.
So, against all internal alarms, Hiru slowly reached for the cup.
'Women… women are one of the major reasons behind a man's downfall. And here I am… willingly stepping into my grave for one again.'
He wasn't stupid. He knew what he was doing.
Still, the smell wafting from the cup hit him like a rotting corpse soaked in iron.
'Just one go. Quick and painless. Or painful. Most likely painful.'
Steeling himself, Hiru tilted the cup and downed the entire thing.
His body flinched instantly.
The taste was worse than the smell. Metallic, thick, and slimy.
And somehow… crunchy.
It took every ounce of willpower not to throw up then and there.
His spine wiggled like the worms inside him.
Still forcing a smile, he turned to Suzume and said, "That was—"
His words cut off as his body suddenly jolted.
'Poison?! Did I seriously drink poison?!'
His heart began to thump hard.
But the panic quickly turned to confusion—and then to realization.
His chest eased.
His body… lightened.
Something was flowing through him. Something powerful.
[Ting.]
[Your spiritual body has enhanced.]
Hiru blinked.
'…It had that much effect?' He was surprised as item enhancing the spiritual body were rare.
Feeling the changes in his body, Hiru finally relaxed a little.
'Good—no poison!!'
"Miss Suzume! That was really good!" he said with a cheerful smile, silently thankful that it was an unexpected gift, not a farewell drink.
"Hmm," Suzume replied quietly. "Now, can we return to the reason I called you here?"
"Hah…" The reminder made Hiru chuckle awkwardly. "Right… I'm sorry, Miss Suzume. I'll be on time from now on."
"This isn't about your tardiness."
"…Then?" he blinked, now confused. He was sure he hadn't done anything recently—
"Several female students have filed complaints about your behavior."
"Ah… is it wrong to express love?" he asked, voice rising an octave in mock offense.
"There are ninety-eight complaints."
"Ninety-eight!?" Hiru was dejected, nearly choking on the aftertaste of the tea. "I just wanted to find someone to love… but it seems life is dead set on keeping me single."
Despite the situation, Hiru still didn't feel too anxious. After all, if it were something serious, Miss Suzume wouldn't have served him a rare tea—regardless of its horrific taste.
But even he didn't expect such a response from her.
"Is it because of me?" Suzume asked, her gaze steady and locked onto his eyes.
"Excuse me?" Hiru blinked, thrown off.
'What is she even talking about—'
"Is it because I rejected you… that you started confessing to other girls?" she said calmly.
For a full second, Hiru just sat there, staring, speechless. A blank blink. Then another.
'Huh? What kind of logic tree is this?!'
His memory flicked back to his first day at the academy.
It was his very first confession—and his first rejection.
And the unfortunate (or fortunate?) recipient of that trial run… was none other than the quiet, beautiful teacher sitting across from him now.
'I only did it to test my limits in this world… also because she was absurdly pretty—but mostly the test thing!'
And yet somehow, that single rejection had spiraled in her mind into a theory: that she had caused him to become some heartbroken flirt rampaging through the academy.
Recognizing his silence as some kind of confirmation, she continued.
"As I said before, a relationship between a student and a teacher is forbidden," she said flatly. "But I didn't expect my rejection to affect you so deeply. I didn't think it would cause you to… seek love so desperately elsewhere."
'You're completely misunderstanding, but please, continue.'
"As an apology," she added, "I gave you a tea to help support your growth. Please reflect on your actions—and stop troubling the girls around you."
Hiru raised his hand like a student negotiating for extra marks.
"Can I just make one final proposal? It'll be the last. I swear."
"…"
"I promise—I won't trouble any girl after this."
'Any girl in this world, that is.'