Phantom's

  Leon read the title and glanced around the dark, empty room. A floating, glowing script hovered in the air before him, casting an eerie light on the stillness. Unsettled, he took a step back, then turned around and walked away, hoping to find an exit.

  But after several minutes of walking, he noticed something unsettling—he hadn’t moved at all. No matter how far he walked, the floating script remained just as close as before, as if space itself refused to let him leave.

  With no other choice, he turned back, cautiously approaching the script. As he reached out, his fingers brushed against its surface. Suddenly, names flickered into existence above it, floating in the air before him.

  A thought clicked in his mind.

  'Did I… awaken a power? This all started after I touched that weird ink in the corner. Maybe my ability has something to do with scripts… or stories?'

  His gaze trailed over the glowing names.

  'Are these the characters? What happens if I—'

  He reached out and touched one.

  [Selecting Detective Kang. Beginning in 3… 2… 1…]

  A voice echoed from nowhere. Leon’s eyes darted around, searching for the source, but the moment the countdown hit zero, his vision blurred, and a sharp pain shot through his head.

  Then everything changed.

  Leon blinked and found himself seated inside a car, hands resting firmly on the steering wheel. His body felt rigid—he tried moving, but his limbs refused to obey. It was as if he were trapped in someone else’s skin, forced to watch through their eyes.

  In the distance, a man emerged, carrying a pair of briefcases toward his car. He hesitated, glancing around suspiciously before sliding into the driver’s seat.

  Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  “I knew it…”

  Leon felt his lips move, his voice low and satisfied. He wasn’t in control, yet the emotions felt real. Anticipation. Confidence. He was following a lead.

  He tailed the man for several minutes until the car finally stopped in front of an abandoned warehouse. Keeping his distance, Leon parked as well, gripping the pistol at his side before stepping out.

  The warehouse door was slightly open. Peering inside, he spotted the man standing in the center of the dimly lit space, the briefcase open at his feet, stacks of cash spilling out. His voice trembled with desperation as he screamed at the empty air.

  “I DID EVERYTHING YOU ASKED! NOW GIVE ME BACK MY SON!”

  Leon felt confused at the raw panic in the man’s voice. Before he could process the situation, a sudden click sounded behind him.

  A gun.

  He barely had time to react before a deafening gunshot rang out. Pain exploded in his head, and his body crumpled to the cold ground.

  Leon gasped and jolted upright, a scream caught in his throat. His apartment walls surrounded him, familiar yet distant, as his breaths came in sharp, ragged gasps.

  He clutched his head—no wound, no blood. His pulse raced beneath his fingertips, reassuring him that he was still alive.

  His eyes darted toward the script lying on the floor, its pages slightly crumpled from his startled movement. That black ink was still there in the corner of the script.

  Leon staggered to his feet and backed away.

  'What was that? Did I… die?'

  His trembling hands pressed against his face as he struggled to steady his breathing.

  'No. It was too real to be a hallucination. But if it wasn’t real, then… was it my ability?'

  A chilling thought crept into his mind. 'Could Dae-Hyun have given me a cursed script?'

  He shook his head. 'No, Dae-Hyun wasn’t the type to give him something like this without a warning.'

  After a few moments, his breathing steadied.

  And then… something strange happened. The terror that had gripped him moments ago was fading—too fast. He still remembered the emotions, the fear, the pain, but they no longer overwhelmed him.

  Leon hesitated before closing his eyes, deliberately recalling the fear he had felt right before the gunshot. For a second, his heart pounded, his breath caught—then, just as quickly, it all dissipated.

  'The feeling feels real, but at the same time… fake.'

  He opened his eyes.

  His fingers hovered over the script before cautiously picking it up, careful to avoid touching the ink. Flipping through the pages, he found the scene he had just experienced.

  Detective Kang.

  That was his role.

  He read further. The desperate man from the warehouse—Hwang Daehyun.

  Leon frowned. The script ended the moment the detective was shot. There was no mention of the killer’s name. No hint as to who had pulled the trigger.

  'So this is the role Dae-Hyun wants me to audition for?'

  He glanced at the black ink in the corner of the script, but this time, the unease was gone.

  'Is my ability just letting me experience a character’s life? And after it’s over… it dampens the emotions? Makes them feel like a simulation?'

  Leon let out a long breath, rubbing his head. He was too exhausted to deal with this right now.

  Tossing the script onto the table, he sighed.

  'I’ll ask Dae-Hyun about this tomorrow. For now… I need sleep.'

  Dragging himself to his room, he collapsed onto his bed. The moment his head hit the pillow, he was out.