Esper Harem in the Apocalypse

"That way is a cemetery. Why is she going there?" Rudy wondered.

He got near and hid behind one of the trees, from where he could see everything clearly.

Rebecca walked past many graves while glancing around and stopped in front of an old grave.

"Whose grave is that?" Rudy squinted his eyes to read the name on the gravestone, but it was old and covered with dirt, so he couldn't quite see the name clearly. However, he was able to read the last three words.

"I-C-A…"

'I have so many questions, but first, whose grave is that, and how come I have never known of it?! Second, if mom is visiting this grave, that must mean it belongs to someone close or important to her.

Maybe father's grave? But when I asked mom about his grave, she told me that he died in a natural disaster and his body was never found. Sure, the family member still makes an empty grave for them, but mom would have brought me here if that was the case!

Wait…'

Rudy facepalmed himself and muttered, "Why do I have a tendency to overthink everything? She might just be visiting her old friend's grave."

'Dammit! I sound like an insecure boyfriend now!'

Rebecca cleaned and watered the grave, which made it possible for Rudy to see the name clearly.

"J-E-S-S-I-C-A." Rudy raised his brow in confusion and wondered, "Who the hell is that? I have never heard that name come out of her mouth, like ever."

He sighed in relief and muttered, "At least it's a woman's grave. I don't know how I would have felt if it was some man's grave."

After a few minutes, Rebecca left the cemetery, but Rudy stayed. He walked to the grave and stared at it in amusement.

"Jessica… who is that? And judging by the condition of the grave, mom doesn't come here that often. Maybe once a month? Well, that's still more than the other people who rarely visit their family or loved ones' graves."

"Hmm~" Rudy carefully inspected the gravestone, but he didn't find any clue. "There is no birth or death year. No family name either, which obviously is odd, although I am not the one to talk."

Rudy noticed there was something else written on the stone, but it was in tiny letters and had almost faded away. Still, Rudy was able to read a few words that said:

"I can't wait… to meet… again….? There is a name written, but it's been scratched hard…"

SIGH!

"I will ask mom about it someday once she decides to tell me."

Rudy used his see-through ability to see through the grave for some reason. He wanted to make sure someone was buried inside. While doing that, he noticed something on the upper layer of the grave that was peeking out of the ground.

"What's that?" Rudy thought for a few seconds about whether he should take it out or not, but curiosity got the best of him, and he pulled it out.

"Uhh…"

It was an old wallet that looked older than the grave.

"Did someone drop it or something?" Rudy wiped the sand and dirt from the wallet and saw a date on it.

"Wha…t? How is that possible?" Rudy brought the wallet closer to his eyes to confirm he saw it right.

"It's 2008? But this wallet looks so old and tattered. How can this be new? Sure, someone might have dropped it here, but the leather has holes all over. The microorganisms shouldn't have eaten it to this extent if it was a few months old.

Well, let's see what's inside. I don't expect money but maybe an address or something."

Rudy opened the wallet and noticed a brownish-yellow hard paper tucked in the wallet.

'A photo or something?'

Rudy took out the phone, or he would have, but he was stopped by an unfamiliar voice.

"I suggest you should stop," the voice said.

Rudy glanced to the side to see an old man with a long beard standing in front of him, wearing a long white robe.

"....?"

It took him a while to realize that the body of the old man was transparent, and it was not his see-through ability making it look like that.

The old man was a ghost.

Rudy looked behind him and saw he was surrounded by over a hundred ghosts.

"...!"

It was at this moment when Rudy recalled an old rumor of the cemetery going around when he was a kid. It was said to be haunted, and no one dared to visit there alone.

"You shouldn't look into lost people's belongings," the old man said.

"So it belongs to whoever is in this grave?" Rudy shrugged his shoulders and dropped the wallet from where he picked it up from.

"I was simply checking it. Ensuring it's not a lost item so I could return it to its owner."

If it was anyone other than Rudy, their soul would have left their body after encountering even one ghost, but Rudy, however, was unfazed.

'I didn't know I had the ability to see ghosts. Angelica was an earthbound ghost, so she was visible. She was basically haunting the tunnel. But I have never seen other ghosts.

Ghosts surely exist. And if they do, why did I never run into one?'

After thinking about it for a few seconds, Rudy solved the mystery and said, "You all decided to show yourself to me, am I right?"

"Indeed." The old man nodded.

"So…" Rudy glanced around at the rest of the ghosts and asked, "Is this place your hang-out zone or something?"

"No. We are the wandering ghosts. We wander here and there and guild the lost souls," the old man answered.

'He is the only one speaking!'

"What do you need from me?" Rudy asked calmly.

"Nothing. We sensed high spiritual energy and thought it was another lost soul, but you are not dead nor exactly alive."

"Well, you are not wrong," Rudy shrugged.