Between following the Grandpa who had just eaten people and staying where I was to wait for help, I didn’t hesitate at all.

I chose to stay.

Grandpa had turned into a half-human, half-beast monster.

I didn’t dare go anywhere near him.

“Did you drink the whisker water Grandpa gave you? That’s good stuff. You need to hurry up and drink it.”

When I didn’t move, the little weasel chuckled again.

“Scared stupid, little girl? If you run into a Taoist who tries to take the whisker water from you, don’t give it to him. That Taoist is bad. He wants the whisker water so he can prolong his life and live to a hundred.”

With that, the weasel vanished in a blur.

I waited until it was gone, then pulled out the real bottle of whisker water I’d hidden earlier. My hands trembled as I remembered Grandpa pressing that whisker into my palm. In the end, I uncapped the bottle and drank every last drop.

I stood up and walked to the doorway of Mom and Dad’s room.

The weasels had gnawed away every remaining piece of their bodies.

Only a pool of blood remained.

My uncles, who had fled in the middle of the night, had run into the Taoist blocking the road.

After receiving his instructions, they returned to the old house carrying torches.

The Taoist leaned lazily against the doorway.

“Everyone who’s ever made a wish to that weasel will have their debt collected. Last night was only the beginning.”

Third Uncle forced himself to search the place.

He didn’t find a single weasel.

Instead, he dragged me out from under the bed.

Trying to sound brave, he asked, “The feng shui masters all said our dad was possessed by a Wish Immortal. How did he suddenly turn into this thing that’s neither human nor ghost?”

The Taoist shook his head.

“There was never any Wish Immortal. The villagers who saw those feng shui masters were affected by the weasel’s miasma.”

Eldest Uncle wasn’t willing to accept that someone who could make the whole family rich had suddenly become a demon coming to collect debts.

“Just because you say so doesn’t make it true. Maybe our dad was possessed by something filthy.”

Eldest Aunt yanked me out of the corner.

“Then how come this kid is fine?”

I stumbled as she threw me in front of everyone, my clothes covered in dirt.

“That girl used to stay with that poor old grandpa of hers. They were probably very close.”

Eldest Aunt seemed determined to blame me for everything that had frightened her the night before.

Without caring about anything else, she began punching and kicking me.

“Where did your grandpa go? Tell me! Just wait until I find him. I’ll burn him to death.”

Tears slid from the corners of my eyes.

Grandpa, half human and half ghost, had never harmed me in the slightest.

Yet my own flesh-and-blood relatives treated me like an animal.