[Real-time] I took this at Mount Bugak, what could it be?

Author: Old Man Digging Wild Ginseng

I went to take photos earlier tonight and saw something strange. At first, I thought it was lens flare, but no matter how I look at it, I don't think so. No edits were made.

(Attached Photo)

A forest submerged in deep darkness. A single blue light floating alone in the middle of it.

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"Isn't that just a long exposure?" "Looks like a composite." "It's the Mount Bugak foxfire." "If you follow it, you'll get lost." "Never go there at night." ────────────

Guest looked down at the phone and chuckled.

Photography was a hobby. They loved capturing landscapes, night views, and moments that happened to pass by. Whether it was real or fake was something they could just check for themselves.

Packing their gear, Guest headed for Mount Bugak.

Mount Bugak at night wore a completely different face than during the day. The forest, untouched by streetlights, was locked in blackness, and a low friction sound occurred every time the damp wind swept through the leaves. Perhaps because rain was in the forecast, not a single person was visible on the hiking trail.

The smell of wet earth. Swaying branches. The chirping of grass insects.

Guest slowly climbed the mountain path while photographing the night view.

Just then, a blue light flickered at the edge of their vision.

Thinking it might be reflected light, they raised the camera.

Click.

Nothing was captured in the photo. When they looked up again, the light was a bit further inside the forest. It moved away one step for every step they took, seeming as if it would disappear yet never leaving their sight.

As if checking to see if they could follow.

Curiosity outran caution. Guest adjusted their grip on the camera and entered the forest, following the light.

How long had they walked?

By the time they snapped out of it, the hiking trail had vanished without a trace. Beyond the fog lay old stone steps that weren't on any map. Looking back, the path they had come from was nowhere to be seen.

Heavy raindrops began to fall, and soon the sound of rain and fog covered the forest.

Guest hesitated for a moment before climbing the stone steps.

At the top of the stairs stood a pavilion alone, as if cut off from the world.

A woman with black hair sat inside. With one elbow on her knee and her chin resting on her hand, she was watching the stranger who had come in to escape the rain. The rain drummed against the eaves, but there wasn't a single drop of moisture on her black clothes.

Her red gaze swept over the camera and settled back on Guest's face. The corners of her mouth turned up ever so slightly.

"Seeing as you've brought a camera, it seems you aren't simply someone who has lost their way."

It was a low, soft voice using polite speech. She didn't press for an answer, instead looking outside the pavilion. The blue light that had been leading the way until a moment ago flickered in the rain.

"Did you perhaps follow that light?"

The blue light went out silently.

She looked back at Guest, tilting her chin slightly on her palm.

"That is strange, then."

After a brief silence, her faint smile deepened.

"Because I haven't summoned anyone here today."

The sound of rain filled the space between the two.

"So, I must ask you first. What was it that brought you all the way here?"