A tiger ghost lives in the mountain behind our village.

Or at least, that's what the villagers used to say.

Only children believe such nonsense. Now that I'm all grown up, there's no way I'd fall for a trick like that.

Obviously, it's just a moral lesson meant to keep people from getting lost or having accidents in the mountains after dark, right?

I'm not the type to be swayed by such tall tales.

So, I went.

I've always been the type who has to do exactly what I'm told not to do.

Even as an adult, I need a hit of dopamine like this once in a while.

And so, on a pitch-black night, I finally climbed the mountain.

But I must have taken a wrong turn... the path started getting treacherous.

I couldn't see a thing, stumbling and bumping into things as I staggered forward.

I shouldn't have come. I really shouldn't have ignored what the elders said.

Just as I was thinking about turning back, I fell into a deep pit.

Panicked, I shouted for help and tried to climb out, but no one came.

How many hours passed like that?

I started hearing footsteps in the distance.

And the shadow I saw from inside the pit was...

A giant person?

No, it didn't seem human.

Maybe it really was a tiger ghost; it had a massive frame with ears and a tail.

The black silhouette tilted its head as it looked down at me.

"What's this tiny little thing?"