My Ancestor is Watching Me! — Chapter 23

THAT... WAS YOU.

HUH?

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN...

I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU MEAN.

...I'LL TELL YOU LATER.

WHEN THE TIME COMES.

...?

HE'S REALLY HARD TO FIGURE OUT...

Sudden change of subject

AH, YOU KNOW THAT PITCH-BLACK VERSION OF ME YOU'RE DRAWING.

YOU SAID YOU HAD A DREAM ABOUT ME WITH BLACK HAIR THE DAY YOU WENT TO THE SHRINE, RIGHT?

UH... YES. YOU REMEMBER.

WANT ME TO TELL YOU AN INTERESTING STORY ABOUT THAT SHRINE?

...EVERYTHING YOU SAID WAS INTERESTING AND THEN IT GOT BORING.

THIS TIME, I'M SERIOUS. TRUST ME.

YOU SAID THAT BEFORE YOU PASSED OUT, YOU SAW A WOMAN WEARING JAPANESE CLOTHING.

AH... THAT'S RIGHT.

I forgot about that.

TURNS OUT THAT SHRINE WAS PROBABLY A SHRINE DEDICATED TO AMATERASU.

AMATERASU...

THE CHIEF DEITY IN JAPANESE CREATION MYTHOLOGY.

BUT WHY WAS A JAPANESE GOD WORSHIPPED THERE?

...ORIGINALLY, THAT SHRINE

WASN'T A SHRINE DEDICATED TO AMATERASU.

IT WAS A SHRINE RUN DURING THE JAPANESE COLONIAL PERIOD BY A SHAMAN WHO WAS FAMOUS FOR BEING HIGHLY GIFTED.

*SANSHIN DISCIPLE: A TERM REFERRING TO A SHAMAN WHO WORSHIPS THE MOUNTAIN SPIRIT AS THEIR PRIMARY DEITY.

*A SANSHIN DISCIPLE, I BELIEVE.

...CONSIDERING WHAT THE TIMES WERE LIKE BACK THEN,

THE SHRINE WAS LATER CHANGED INTO ONE DEDICATED TO AMATERASU.

SO WHAT HAPPENED TO THAT SHAMAN?

WELL.

WHAT DO YOU THINK HAPPENED?

IF YOU'RE CURIOUS, BUY THE NEXT EPISODE, HAHA.

...ANYWAY,

SANSHIN DISCIPLE, HUH.

HOW DO YOU EVEN KNOW A TERM LIKE THAT?

I'M THE PRESIDENT OF THE OCCULT CLUB.

OF COURSE I'M INTERESTED.

...HE'S SERIOUSLY STRANGE.

I REALLY CAN’T FIGURE HIM OUT.

I THOUGHT I SHOULD KEEP MY DISTANCE FROM HIM,

BUT HE KEEPS MAKING ME FEEL STRANGE.

HUH?

ARE YOU DONE?

CAN I TAKE A CLOSER LOOK?

OH, SURE.

...HE'S CLOSE...

WHY DID YOU LEAVE THE HAIR COLOR AS IT WAS?

I THOUGHT IT LOOKED FINE WITH BLACK HAIR,

SO I JUST LEFT IT LIKE THAT.

I KNEW IT.

YOU REALLY ARE A SPIRIT PHOTOGRAPHER.

THANKS.

WHY...

I LIKE IT.

WHY IS HE MAKING THAT EXPRESSION?

AGAIN...

"THAT" FEELING...

WHAT SHOULD I EVEN CALL IT...?

IT'S ALMOST...

A FEELING OF ACHING LONGING...?

WHAT... IS THIS...?

WHY... DOES MY HEART HURT THIS MUCH...?

...DAWON.

YOU DON'T LOOK WELL. ARE YOU OKAY?

...YES, I'M FINE.

I GUESS I'M JUST TIRED FROM STAYING UP ALL NIGHT.

OKAY, LET'S GET YOU HOME QUICKLY.

HAAAAH...

I FEEL A LITTLE BETTER NOW.

I THOUGHT MY HEART WAS GOING TO HURT ME TO DEATH.

WHY DID IT HURT SO MUCH, ANYWAY?

LITTLE MASTER!

THAT STORY ABOUT AMATERASU I HEARD FROM SUNBAE TODAY...

OH, RIGHT...

LITTLE MASTER ISN'T HERE RIGHT NOW, IS HE...?

MAYBE I'VE BEEN NEGLECTING LITTLE MASTER TOO MUCH.

I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHEN HE DISAPPEARED.

HE DID DISAPPEAR FROM TIME TO TIME BEFORE,

BUT THIS TIME FEELS A LITTLE LONGER.

IS IT BECAUSE I DIDN'T RECEIVE THE DIVINE POSSESSION RITUAL IN TIME?

THAT'S WHY HE KEPT URGING ME TO RECEIVE IT AS SOON AS I BECAME AN ADULT...

I'M WORRIED...

AH, WHATEVER.

HE'S A GOD, SO HE CAN TAKE CARE OF HIMSELF.

I'M MORE WORRIED ABOUT MY OWN LIFE AS A HUMAN.

SOON...

THERE ISN'T MUCH TIME LEFT.