Talk in the nearby villages of "women bringing storms by going out to sea" never ceased. Wherever the little ghost went, he heard whispered discussions that people thought they had kept quiet and saw eyes filled with curiosity or pity.
The relatives of the other victims called his sister a "jinx," believing she had caused the deaths of the men in their families. They often came to his home, beating and kicking the little ghost whenever they caught him.
The little ghost spent a long time hiding wherever he could.
Later, another storm claimed a boatload of fishermen.
This time, however, no woman had boarded the boat, but that still did not stop the others from speculating in private.
"There wasn't a woman on that boat, so how did it bring on a storm...? Could taking a woman aboard last time have angered the Dragon King so much that he's still furious?"
"Surely someone wasn't disguised as a man?"
"That would be outrageous. Isn't that getting people killed?"
As everyone added their own words, by the time the rumors reached the little ghost again, people were already declaring with absolute certainty that a woman disguised as a man had been hiding aboard the ill-fated boat and had caused everyone aboard to die.
But soon, another boat met with disaster.
This time, everyone knew all those involved, for they were notorious local thugs and scoundrels from the nearby villages. There was no possibility of any woman disguised as a man among them.
And so attention turned to the little ghost once again. People began saying that the storms kept coming because his sister had offended the deity in the sea, and someone needed to be brought in to perform a ritual.
The ritual practitioner came to the little ghost's home