Kala had been staring at the friend beside him with confusion. Ever since Lyo arrived, Kala had felt that something was off about Gantha, but he never expected Gantha to reveal Lyo's identity and accuse the ghost of lying.
"What did I miss? How did this kid even know Lyo tricked us?" Kala wondered as he looked at Lyo, who appeared sad after being cornered by Gantha, before the ghost finally left.
The atmosphere turned sad and awkward between them.
"Guys, sorry. Because I was bored, I picked that case," Dion said.
"No, I was the one who suggested it first," Hasta said.
"Me too," Kala added.
"We're all at fault. But whatever, it's over now," Gantha said as he began walking away.
"How did you know he was a ghost?"
Yoan's question made Gantha stop. He turned back, expression blank, realizing the question was directed at him.
"None of your business," Gantha replied.
"You knew he was a ghost but didn't tell us?" Yoan pressed.
"Didn't feel like it. Besides, so you guys could man up a little," Gantha said.
"Who told you about Lyo? You even knew he talked to Kala about his death," Yoan said sharply.
"I'm an esper. Satisfied?" Gantha stared at Yoan coldly before grabbing Kala's hand and pulling him away.
"You're not a reporter, Yon. So stop asking too much," he said before disappearing from the room with Kala.
~~~~~~~
Kala and Gantha had reached the rooftop, just relaxing there. They stood in front of the railing, staring up at the vast open sky.
Minutes passed with no conversation. Kala was deep in thought, while Gantha focused on finishing the cigarettes he'd already smoked several of.
Kala was confused about what he had missed—how Gantha realized something was off with Lyo before he did.
"You're still gonna meet Yoan, right?" Gantha finally spoke while stepping on his finished cigarette.
"Y-yeah. I'll talk to him after this," Kala answered.
"You must have too much on your mind if you didn't notice a ghost manipulating you," Gantha teased.
"My head's full because I'm not empty like you," Kala shot back.
"Annoying," Gantha muttered. "I'm not empty. I just don't feel like thinking. And I'm not an esper like you, so why should I bother thinking about problems I can't solve?"
"Even if you can't solve them, doesn't mean you shouldn't think about them. You could at least help," Kala said.
"I already did. I figured out first that Lyo was manipulative," Gantha replied.
"How did you know?" Kala asked, surprised.
"I borrowed Dion's book. It said ghosts need a huge amount of energy just to appear in front of humans. If Lyo had that much energy, how come he couldn't find his diary himself? That's when I realized something was wrong with him," Gantha explained.
"Oh, I see," Kala clapped with a bland expression. "Congrats, then."
"Can't tell if that's an insult or praise," Gantha grumbled.
Ting!!!
Kala's phone vibrated—Yoan had replied. Earlier, Kala asked him to meet at the lake.
"Yon replied. He can meet now," Kala said.
"Then go," Gantha replied.
Kala nodded and patted Gantha's shoulder before leaving. "We'll talk again later. Tell me anything that feels off."
Gantha looked at Kala as he walked away. It wasn't surprising that Kala knew Gantha had been thinking about Melvin, who passed by his house earlier.
Melvin was always cheerful—seeing him quietly walking past Gantha's house felt strange and suspicious.
"Damn it, I forgot that brat's a mind reader…"
~~~~~~
As planned, Kala met Yoan at the lake. Yoan had arrived first, sitting on one of the benches. Kala took a seat beside him.
"Rare for you to ask me out. You're probably here to talk about espers, right?" Yoan said casually.
"You already know, so I don't need to repeat it," Kala replied.
"I don't know what happened earlier, but it's pretty clear Agan acted like he was an esper to protect you—because he definitely isn't one," Yoan said.
"He's not supposed to do that?" Kala asked.
"Nope. I'm just surprised someone as cold as him would do that. What else could it be besides cooperation?" Yoan smirked.
"We do work together. That doesn't bother you, does it?" Kala said.
"Fine, fine. Chill, Kal. Even if I'm curious about what you two are doing, I won't interfere this time," Yoan said.
Kala looked at him with clear doubt, not believing him fully.
"I asked you here because I want to know how you first realized I'm an esper," Kala said.
"At the villa— I accidentally overheard you talking to Gantha. It sounded very suspicious, especially when Gantha called you a shaman," Yoan explained.
"You were deliberately mocking me back then when we got that esper clue, and earlier too when Lyo was there," Kala said.
"No, I was just curious why you hid this from us. Earlier, the situation was kinda critical," Yoan said.
Kala nodded, understanding what Yoan meant—he indeed looked like he could've contributed more to cases like Lyo's, yet he kept quiet instead of revealing Lyo was a ghost immediately.
Kala let out a deep breath before speaking. "I'm just worried about how the others will react. Things will definitely change if they know."
"So you let Agan take that label instead," Yoan said.
"I didn't ask him to act like an esper. He did that on his own. And honestly, no one in our group dares to mess with him—well, except you. So I think he'll be fine," Kala replied.
"So you're not planning to admit the truth?" Yoan asked.
"I will. I just need time," Kala said.
"Okay, I get it. I'll keep this secret too," Yoan said.
"I was going to ask you for that, but wow, didn't expect you to volunteer," Kala teased.
"Don't be rude. I know my place," Yoan replied.
Kala didn't believe that at all, but he stayed quiet—Yoan promised not to talk, and even if he broke that promise, Kala didn't really care. He already had a rough idea of how Kaze would react if they found out one of them was an esper.
~~~~~~~
That night, Kala decided to buy satay for dinner. Fortunately, a satay vendor happened to pass by.
"Ten skewers please, no chili," Kala said, handing over a plate.
"Alright, young man."
Kala sat on a garden bench while waiting. He played with his phone until someone called his name, making him look up.
"Kala."
"Oh, Jihan. You buying satay too?" Kala asked.
"N-no, I already ordered earlier. I just came to pick it up," Jihan said.
She placed the satay she had bought on her motorcycle, then approached Kala again, worry on her face.
"You're okay, right? Kyungmin told me about your broken door," Jihan said.
"Oh, right. I already called someone to fix it," Kala replied.
"That's not the point, Kal. I can see danger coming your way," Jihan said.
"Hey, I'm an esper like you too. I knew that from the beginning. Relax, I'll handle it. No need to worry about me," Kala assured her.
"No matter what, I still worry about you. And I know you haven't realized it—you've been followed," Jihan said.
Kala immediately turned behind him, but saw nothing. He understood Jihan meant an invisible entity, but still, he couldn't detect anything.
"I suspect that thing is interfering with your abilities," Jihan said, pointing toward a nearby tree.
"He looks exactly like you. I think he might be you from another dimension."
"You're not joking, right, Han?" Kala asked.
"I'm warning you to stay alert. Does it sound like a joke?" Jihan replied sharply.
"S-sorry… I just can't see anything," Kala said.
The vendor's voice startled them both.
"You two okay?" the satay vendor asked.
"N-no, sir. Just a cat passing by," Jihan answered quickly.
She then stood up and prepared to leave.
"Please be careful," she said before walking away.