By Zephyria In fact, he wanted to bring it with him as it was, but he couldn’t help it because [Mystical Instruments] were such dangerous objects. Unless you directly receive and possess it, transactions through specialized delivery companies were common. Especially the [Jade Relic Trace]. It was more rebellious than ordinary Mystical Instruments. It was a struggle even to put it in the sealing box. To what extent was it difficult? Ki Jae-eon spent two hours forcibly calming its power before it finally fell asleep.
Still, he wondered when it would arrive.
“Yeongdae-ranro 94-. Ah, I know that place.”
After checking the address, Ki Jae-eon got up without hesitation.
The place he arrived at by taxi was a place famous as a blacksmith alley in Seoul. It was also an area where some of the few blacksmiths in the country were concentrated. Clang-! Clang-! He walked to the innermost part, listening to the hammering sounds that rang in his ears. As the sound faded away, he found a store without a sign located in a secluded alley. There was no set name, but customers all called it [Blank].
‘It’s been a while.’
He used to come here often.
‘Ah, come to think of it……’
He suddenly realized that it was okay for him to see people now.
‘Petty ghosts don’t stick to me anymore.’
Ki Jae-eon stood for a moment, surprised by his change.
‘…It’s all thanks to the children.’
Gratitude welled up from the depths of his heart.
If it weren’t for those kids, he might have continued his foolish life alone.
Ki Jae-eon planned to buy some desserts that the children would like on the way back and opened the door vigorously. Clang-. As the bell rang, a middle-aged man greeted him happily.
“Who is this? Ki Jae-eon Teacher!”
“It’s been so long. How have you been?” The owner, whose name was unknown, reached out his hand with a cheerful greeting.
He was a person whose name and age were unknown, but he always guarded the store with the same clothes and face.
“Ah, hello.”
Ki Jae-eon shook his hand and nodded briefly.
“Did you come to see the newly acquired Mystical Instrument?”
“No. Not that. I came to pick up 6, 6788(A).”
When he told him the order number, the owner said, “Just a moment,” and began to rummage through the ledger.
“6788, 6788-. Yes! It’s in stock. Just a moment……. Huh?”
The owner, who had been shaking his plump body happily, suddenly stopped and looked at the ledger again. His eyes repeatedly went back and forth over the ledger.
“Hmm? Huh? Oh!”
Just when he was wondering if there was a problem, the owner’s complexion turned pale.
“Oh my! Oh my- what should I do. Teacher, I’m sorry. I think I confused you with another customer. I’ll call right away!”
The owner kept bowing and sweating profusely.
“To make such a mistake…….”
When he followed the owner’s finger, there was a signature next to [6788(A)] indicating that it had been received. He kept apologizing, but he couldn’t believe his mistake. Well, he had been doing this for over ten years, so it was absurd even for him.
But Ki Jae-eon didn’t get angry.
No, to be exact, he couldn’t get angry.
Because this wasn’t the owner’s fault.
The signature in his gaze, it was just an ordinary signature to those who didn’t know…….
But it looked different to Ki Jae-eon.
‘It’s an address.’
An code that only those who knew it could see, cleverly written, a code only used by Exorcists.
Even an old code that Exorcists these days don’t use.
In other words, they deliberately, knowingly, took it.
In other words, there was a lot of intentionality.
‘And he probably hypnotized the owner or something……’
Otherwise, there was no way a veteran like him would have easily handed over the item.
“Teacher, even if I had ten mouths-.”
“Ah, no. I can go pi, pick it up myself. Thank you for your hard work.”
Ki Jae-eon sent a sign that it was okay to the discouraged owner and turned away without hesitation.
“Yes? Teacher is going himself? No, I don’t know where it went- Teacher? Teacher!”
He left the store, leaving behind the urgent cry.
“Haa…….”
Clang, the door closed and he quietly touched his forehead. He was already feeling tired. Originally, he was supposed to have already received the item, packed the desserts that the children liked, and be on his way home in a taxi.
Not just running around in this frustrating circle!
Just what kind of crazy bastard is doing this?
‘Even if you have nothing better to do…….’
If I had known it would be like this, I would have brought Kim Ju-won along. With his fiery temper, he certainly wouldn’t have forgiven this thievery.
‘If I caught the culprit, I would have at least landed a couple of punches.’
A strange regret lingered.
‘Still, I guess I have to go.’
Ki Jae-eon searched the address he had memorized and started walking. His anger could be glimpsed in his unusually rough thoughts and footsteps.
‘If I catch them…….’
Ki Jae-eon’s eyes turned fierce.
‘I’ll make them pay.’
Very persistently.
Even if he was angry, he couldn’t unleash Evil Aura or cast a curse.
“Here’s your Americano.”
Clatter-. A white mug was placed on the outdoor table. The tall man sitting in the chair glanced at the coffee, then raised his eyes to look at the server. Then, he slowly lowered his sunglasses and smiled. A short thank you, and the employee smiled back. A good atmosphere was formed even without conversation.
“Have a nice day.”
The employee added a greeting that he didn’t give to other customers, then turned around with a twirl. The man’s appearance was attractive and excellent enough to easily elicit kindness from others. In short, he was pleasing to the eye; as men would describe him, an annoying gigolo.
In fact, there were quite a few glances at the man from around.
“Ah, Deoborah. Seoul is hot.”
And if he opened his mouth, you could often hear giggling sounds like, “What? He’s cute.” The man heard it all but pretended not to notice, only raising the corner of his lips with a smirk.
It was while he was enjoying his leisure alone like that.
Screech-. The sound of a chair being dragged came from the opposite side, and then a man with a different impression plopped down in front of the man.
Wavy black hair.
Skin so pale it was almost white.
A gloomy impression with dark shadows under his eyes.
“……Give it, back.”
A heavy bass voice despite his fragile appearance.
The man looked at the man reaching out his hand and smirked.
“Ki Jae-eon.”
“…….”
“Wow, it’s nice to see you like this.”
The man, Shin Yoon, burst into laughter with a joyful expression.
“We’ve met before, right?”
“……Give it back, mine.”
The two men’s eyes met intensely.
Shin Yoon didn’t even blink as he picked up the steaming mug and leisurely drank his coffee. His attitude, as if enjoying the power struggle, clearly contained a provocative meaning.
Slurp-. Slurp-.
After enjoying his leisure for a long time, he put down the cup and asked Ki Jae-eon.
“Don’t you know me? You should.”
“…….”
Ki Jae-eon didn’t answer. His expression strongly suggested that he didn’t want to talk. In fact, he was even thinking that he had shown enough courtesy to a thief.
“Have you eaten?”
Shin Yoon, undeterred by the blatant disregard, tilted his upper body crookedly. The white T-shirt stretched tautly across his broad shoulders and chest.
“They say if you’re hungry, you act just like you.”
“…….”
“Want to go eat?”
“…….”
“I’ll buy.”
“…….”
“Right.”
Um, okay. Shin Yoon shrugged his shoulders and nodded as if he understood. If you’re hungry, it’s only your loss, not mine.
“Alright. Forget it. Then I’ll just get straight to the point.”
Shin Yoon cleanly wiped away the smile he had been wearing all along.
“Want to work with me on something?”
100th LFG
I knew it as soon as I saw him.
This man sitting in front of me, speaking in a dialect and being cheeky, was the same rude fellow who had possessed the former counselor and tried to delve into my inner self without permission.
‘That means he’s already being rude for the second time.’
Three times and you’re out.
Ki Jae-eon’s fingers began to tap-tap-tap on the table. Then, he rolled his eyes and scanned the man from head to toe. The gaze, so blatant it was almost obsessive, didn’t exactly contain goodwill, but it didn’t harbor animosity either. Just ‘annoying’ level?
But the man didn’t seem to care. Despite the attitude of openly assessing his level, he even showed the composure to raise his index and middle fingers to make a ‘V’ sign, as if he had nothing to lose. He wasn’t deliberately trying to show off. You could tell. That man genuinely had considerable pride in his skills.
It was a clear self-assurance, different from humility.
As a person with high confidence, he had no aversion to others’ evaluations.
Because anyone would conclude that he was excellent anyway.
‘Certainly……. his Spirituality is deep and broad.’
Much more than Kim Ju-won.
No, there’s no comparison.
There’s only one man like this in Busan.
“Sea God…….”
The man favored by the Sea God, Shin Yoon.
“Correct.”
Shin Yoon snapped his fingers and then pointed directly at Ki Jae-eon. Wow, you’re caught. The corners of his lips turned up in a smirk. He revealed his white teeth and chuckled, as if something was so funny.
“Let’s just get it over with. We’re not strangers, are we?”
Shin Yoon shook his head, saying that he already knew everything and didn’t need to introduce himself.
“Are we kids?”
He added that it was embarrassing, then casually rubbed his eyes with the hand wearing a wristwatch. Wow, driving all the way to Seoul is tough.
“More importantly, Jae-eon.”
“…….”
“I heard you did a big job in the island country.”
“Where did you, hear that.”
At Ki Jae-eon’s question, Shin Yoon waved his hand in the air and casually said, “I have a few connections here and there.” At the same time, the sound of crows cawing could be heard from the sky.
Ah, those kinds of connections?
“Ki Jae-eon Teacher, me too. I didn’t really want to come all the way here to ask for this? But what can I do? It’s too damn hard to handle alone.”
Shin Yoon put his sunglasses on the back of his head and crossed his long legs. Then he playfully winked and said, “I’m really going to die.”
“Just help me a little.”
“…….”
“Open your eyes nicely, please.”
“…….”
“Hyung is asking you.”
When there was no response even to his earnest request, Shin Yoon added, “Alright- alright-,” and pulled out a long bag hidden behind the chair and handed it over.
It was the [Jade Relic Traces] that Ki Jae-eon should have received.
“Here, here, here.”
“…….”
“What are you doing not taking it?”
The end of the long, black bag tapped just below Ki Jae-eon’s chin. It was a very unpleasant gesture. Ki Jae-eon’s black eyes, devoid of light, quietly turned downward.
“If I take this, we’re talking?”
The cheekiness reaching his ears was starting to get annoying.
“Why aren’t you talking?”
“…….”
“Or is my dialect too strong? Okay, okay. I’ll use Seoul language-.”
Thwack!
It was instantaneous.
Ki Jae-eon snatched the outstretched bag as if stealing it and threw it into the air. Whoosh! The bag, cutting through the air with a heavy noise, spun around and fell downward. Ki Jae-eon didn’t miss that moment and instantly snatched the Mystical Instrument in a familiar way. The Mystical Instrument wrapped perfectly around his pale hand, with its prominent blue veins. Even though it was in the bag, their harmony was still there.
Ki Jae-eon didn’t stop there and pressed the head of the Mystical Instrument, the heaviest part, against Shin Yoon’s collarbone without hesitation. Shin Yoon’s body was pushed back at once by the stronger-than-expected force. Screech- The rough sound of the chair dragging across the ground echoed.
“!”
Shin Yoon bit his lower lip as if surprised.
“Don’t use…… informal speech.”
The staff that had been pressing on his collarbone rose to just below Shin Yoon’s chin and then stopped. The movement stopped at a precarious distance, exactly as he had done.
In other words, an eye for an eye.
He was showing in person that if someone ignored him, he would just pay them back in the same way. It was only natural that Shin Yoon’s actions were taken as quite an unpleasant challenge to Ki Jae-eon, who was regaining his original condition, or in other words, slowly recovering his ‘temper’ that he had been trying to suppress.
So, Ki Jae-eon decided to teach him the difference for the first time in a long time. The gloomy eyes captured Shin Yoon directly. Ki Jae-eon, a man who exuded a cool aura even under the bright sunlight. He moved the staff lightly with an elegant gesture.
“Eyes, straight ahead.”
Tap- In the end, Shin Yoon’s head was straightened following the staff.
In short, it meant don’t look down on me so arrogantly.
“……Wow, you’ve got a temper.”
Shin Yoon, who understood the meaning exactly, let out a hollow laugh after a few seconds of silence. Right, if you’re going to ask for a favor, you have to be polite, that’s right.
“Let’s do that, yes.”
Shin Yoon raised both hands slightly as if to step back.
“I’ll ask you politely. Ki Jae-eon Teacher.”
He smiled with his eyes folded in a gentle manner.
Let’s build a good relationship between Busan and Incheon.
Back at the main office after a rather difficult schedule.
He was just about to cross the gate.
“Jae-eon Hyung?”
A familiar voice was heard right next to him.
Turning his head, he saw Ahn Seo-myeong, who was all grimy.
“Oh, where did you go?”
“A request.”
“Ah…….”
“I made money.”
Hyung, I’m going to support you. Ahn Seo-myeong said with a playful laugh.
As he was joking around like that, he suddenly lowered the corners of his mouth. The good atmosphere changed in an instant.
“To Hyung…….”
“Yeah?”
“……Just a moment.”
Ahn Seo-myeong, who had narrowed the distance, suddenly sniffed. His skin tickled from the light breaths, as if a young puppy was burrowing into his arms and sniffing. But if he flinched, he couldn’t move because he would grab his arm tightly and say, “Stay still.” Seo, Seo-myeong-ah? It was no use even if he called out. He was very diligent, even frowning. The small head that had gone down from his neck to his chest was busy moving around.
‘Do I smell?’
He was worried because the other person was acting like that.
He hadn’t exactly been sweating, but it was hot.
“Th, there…….”
He was just about to tell him to stop because he was embarrassed.
“It’s awful.”
Ahn Seo-myeong pulled his head back with his unique sullen expression.
“Aw, awful……?”
It was Ki Jae-eon who was shocked. It smelled so awful? With a wounded face, he hurriedly raised his arm. As he sniffed along with Ahn Seo-myeong, unlike the claim that it was awful, no bad odor was detected.
Rather, the perfume of that man, Shin Yoon, was slightly…….
“It’s a nasty smell. Throw away this perfume.”
“Huh?”
“Perfume. It doesn’t suit Hyung.”
“Ah…! Pe, perfume.”
“Yes, why did you spray it? You didn’t pick it out, did you? Who picked it out for you? You don’t usually wear it.”
Even in the midst of the barrage of non-stop questions, Ki Jae-eon wore a more relaxed expression. Ah, that’s a relief. He wasn’t talking about my body odor. He opened the gate and told him not to worry because it wasn’t his. Then, a slightly sharp voice followed, “Then whose is it?”
“Huh?”
“This is men’s perfume.”
“Th, there was someone I met.”
“……Rich, tall, and about thirty years old?”
He probably drives a foreign car and wears an expensive watch on his wrist. He was muttering and deducing, and everything was exactly right. Um, well. He didn’t know if he drove a foreign car, but considering Shin Yoon’s reputation, he roughly guessed that he had that much wealth.
Anyway, Ahn Seo-myeong, who had guessed everything plausibly, was so amazing that he was just staring at him, when he suddenly crumpled his features and hugged him tightly.
“Seo, Seo-myeong-ah.”
“I’m neutralizing it. The smell is too strong.”
Then he rubbed his hair roughly and snorted with a sulky laugh.
“I’ll grow up soon too, right? But I’ll drive a domestic car, and I don’t need a watch because I can just look at my smartphone. I’ll wear a perfume that suits Hyung instead of this greasy stuff. Instead, I’ll save up a lot of money……. With Hyung, no. That’s too much. I don’t want to burden you. I’ll keep my mouth shut.”
He didn’t know why he was matching the perfume he would wear to his taste, but Ki Jae-eon patted Ahn Seo-myeong’s shoulder, thinking, ‘What does it matter?’ He probably had a strong admiration for adults.
“But do, do you have a license?”
“……Let go.”
“You, you grabbed me…….”
“Can’t you read the mood?”
A sharp reaction followed.
Ah, I shouldn’t have said that last thing.
101st LFG
“Busan?”
Ki Jae-eon picked up some black beans and nodded. Yeah, Busan.
“How long has it been since you went to Japan? Your schedule is too tight.”
Someone next to him made a ‘heck-‘ sound. Then, Jo Eun-ha’s reproachful remark flew in, “He was always this kind of person.”
“Are you going alone? You should take Ju-won.”
Kim Yeong poured lukewarm water and handed it over, speaking in a worried tone. Ki Jae-eon bowed his head and accepted the cup, then chewed busily on the food in his mouth, as if to answer.
“That’s right. I have to go.”
Kim Ju-won, who was eating with a towel on his wet hair, agreed.
“Kim Ju-won, what kind of table manners are those? I told you not to put your elbows on the table.”
“Ah, Teacher.”
“Kim Ju-won.”
“In front of the kids, really-.”
He swallowed the food while watching the two people bickering. Ki Jae-eon neatly cleaned his mouth with a cup of water and then opened his mouth, “I’m go, going to take Seo-myeong too.”
“Seo-myeong too?”
“I th, thought it would be good to look for a u, useful Spirituality.”
“Um~! Right, you got the Cursed Womb Cave, right?”
Kim Yeong clapped his hands. That would be good. Seo-myeong’s skills have improved a lot these days. All thanks to Jae-eon Teacher. Ki Jae-eon awkwardly shook his head at his endless praise.
It was right then.
“Another trio party?”
“This is favoritism!”
“That’s right. Why do you always take Kim Ju-won and Ahn Seo-myeong?”
Woo-ooo- It’s unfair. Jae-eon Teacher!
The children’s resentment erupted.
Ki Jae-eon was sweating at the unexpected criticism. Huh? Isn’t it more special treatment not to take them on difficult jobs? Above all, he wouldn’t have bothered to drag Ahn Seo-myeong along if it weren’t for the Cursed Womb Cave.
“Hey!”
Kim Ju-won, instead of the flustered Ki Jae-eon, glared fiercely. He scolded the children for their bad habits and said that they thought they were going on a trip.
“Woo-ooo! Get lost!”
“The chosen elitist doesn’t know our feelings!”
“You’re ugly!”
“We want to learn from Jae-eon too!”
“Hey, who said ugly in the middle!”
Waggle-waggle! While the children were fighting noisily, Ahn Seo-myeong, who had quietly finished his share of the meal, wiped his mouth and called out to Ki Jae-eon, “Hyung.”
“Do, don’t fi, fight…… huh?”
“Then the person you met today is the Sea God (Busan)?”
“Th, that’s right.”
“What did that human ask you to do?”
His tone was somehow disrespectful. But Ki Jae-eon didn’t point it out and instead recalled the situation that had happened during the day.
‘That person, talked too much…….’
There would be no end to listing all the things Shin Yoon had been rambling on about.
‘To summarize as much as possible.’
Ki Jae-eon maintained a moment of silence as if organizing his thoughts, and then gave a concise answer.
“Jiangshi.”
“Jiangshi?”
What? Jiangshi? The children who had overheard the conversation instantly focused their attention here. That’s because ‘Jiangshi’ was a specter that was hard to encounter in Korea.
[Jiangshi: One of China’s representative specters, described as a moving corpse. To help you understand better, think of it as a mix of vampire and zombie characteristics.]
“Come to think of it, recently!”
Lee Gyeong-hak suddenly jumped up from his seat with a face that said, ‘This is it!’ Ignoring Kim Yeong’s scolding for what he was doing during the meal, he picked up his phone.
“There were a lot of Busan stories in the Ghost Story Salon?”
The Ghost Story Salon that Lee Gyeong-hak was talking about was an internet community that comprehensively discussed ghost stories and various superstitions that were famous among the general public. Some Exorcists quietly infiltrated and sometimes picked up work.
“A post from the past……. about ten years ago? It kept resurfacing recently and became an issue. I don’t know if it’s exactly a Jiangshi-related story-.”
Lee Gyeong-hak tilted his head, as if trying to remember.
“At the time, there were some posts saying that beings that didn’t seem human were moving their stiff legs and walking around the streets every dawn. They even came up in a row……. But they didn’t have any views or comments, so they were buried. Then recently, they’re getting attention again.”
“Recently?”
“Uh. Some people started writing reviews saying they witnessed its existence. Common descriptions included pale skin, wearing white clothes that looked like traditional attire, movements like withered branches, and so on.”
“That’s a different image from the Jiangshi we know.”
“Still, isn’t it a bit similar? They said they saw something like a talisman attached to it, too.”
“I kind of want to see it once.”
“Me too! I want to perform an exorcism.”
“That would be a really good experience!”
“A Jiangshi… It’s like a dream.”
Even if their experience was limited and they were young, they were still Exorcists. Instinctively, they were burning with the desire to perform an exorcism. The children’s eyes sparkled. Then, they all turned their heads towards Ki Jae-eon.
“Oppa~.”
“Hyungnim~.”
You’re taking us too, right?
Faced with their expectant expressions, Ki Jae-eon felt both touched and embarrassed. He was trapped, with no way out.
*
“Wammaya.”
“What is this?”
Shin Yoon and the children looked at each other, wearing expressions that seemed to say, ‘What is this?’ From Shin Yoon’s perspective, he had clearly only invited ‘Ki Jae-eon,’ but without a word, dozens of snot-nosed kids had suddenly appeared, saying, ‘Hello. We’re here to stay?’ From the perspective of the main office children, this was an invitation from the famous [Sea God], after all…
“Is this a haunted house?”
“Wahahahaha! I’m going crazy.”
They hadn’t known it would be a dilapidated, collapsing abandoned house.
The sight of two buildings, rusted and broken in many places, standing side by side without a single attendant, was enough to make one suspect it was a deliberately created set.
It was strange. The [Sea God] was said to live in a large and beautiful traditional Korean house, befitting his reputation.
“Hey, Jae-eon. What’s all this about?”
I don’t remember inviting this many people. Shin Yoon’s piercing gaze stung Ki Jae-eon’s cheek. Knowing what that gaze meant, he simply pursed his lips and turned his head away. Yes, bringing them without a word was rude. But he had his own reasons. How could he coldly refuse those young ones who were begging to gain some experience!
“Is this really the Sea God’s place?”
“Oh no. Does he have a lot of debt?”
“Poor guy…”
The children gave Shin Yoon sympathetic looks.
“Wow—I’m going crazy.”
A debtor, he says. Shin Yoon muttered in dismay.
He had suddenly become a man with many stories. Oh, come on. Shin Yoon swallowed the words that had risen to the back of his throat and tried to manage his expression. Ahahaha… The corners of his lips, forced upwards, trembled.
If they were the type to sarcastically mock him, he would have retorted, ‘What? Are you jealous of me?’ But he couldn’t say anything to the kids who were genuinely worried, ‘Oh my, are you doing okay, mister?’
“Fine. Okay, I give up.”
You guys win, win. Shin Yoon chuckled and pointed to the back.
“Come here.”
Seeing Shin Yoon’s smirk, the children wore questioning looks.
And soon, they would regret their decision to follow him obediently.
Scrub scrub scrub-!
“Aren’t we guests?”
Wipe wipe wipe-!
“What kind of treatment is this!”
The children were wiping the floors, dusting, and cleaning the dilapidated abandoned house.
[He who does not work, neither shall he eat.]
That was Shin Yoon’s decree.
He agreed to accommodate everyone, but except for ‘Ki Jae-eon,’ whom he had originally invited, he told them to pay for their stay themselves. Of course, he wouldn’t accept money; he meant they should work for it.
“Your body is strong. Then you—”
Kim Ju-won, in particular, was treated almost like a farmhand. Aish! A barrage of harsh curses echoed from afar. Even if he wanted to stop it, Ki Jae-eon had no choice but to quietly watch the children being exploited, since he was the one who had caused it.
“Ki Jae-eon.”
It was then.
Shin Yoon, who had finished assigning tasks to everyone, suddenly came out with the car keys and nudged Ki Jae-eon’s shoulder.
“Come with me.”