By Zephyria 
It was time to head back. While Jeil Heon went to the brewery with his father, his aunt approached Yoo Jiha, who was packing his things. Though she hadn’t treated him as poorly as his grandmother had, their relationship wasn’t exactly good, and a sense of awkwardness lingered on her face.
“I know I’ve shown you a very unpleasant side of myself until now, haven’t I? I’m sorry. Being a daughter myself, I was too preoccupied with how heartbroken my mother was.”
“……It’s okay.”
“Even after your grandfather passed away, I knew I was wrong, but it wasn’t easy to change my heart. I wasn’t very mature…… You were just a child; you didn’t do anything wrong.”
Hearing an apology so late didn’t instantly heal the pain he had suffered here, but the cold, hard knot in his chest slowly began to unravel.
“That jade ring that broke long ago—your grandmother told me to throw it away, but when I gathered all the broken pieces and gave them to her, she kept them in secret. She still has them now.”
So, that incident hadn’t brought only bad results. For the first time, Jiha let out a faint smile as he recalled the past.
When it came time to say goodbye, his grandmother’s attitude remained the same, but according to his aunt, she had barely been eating due to a lack of energy and had finally started taking a few bites of food this morning. He hoped that the next time he saw her, she wouldn’t be bedridden, but as healthy and spirited as she once was.
“Hmm. That Team Leader… I feel like I’ve seen that face somewhere…… There’s no way I’d forget a face I’ve imprinted on my corneas……”
The answer was likely the monitors in the secretary’s office……. Jiha flinched at Yoo Jisu’s muttering, but Jeil Heon’s identity(?) remained undiscovered by his sister, and everything concluded smoothly.
Since they had to return to Seoul anyway, they took Jeil Heon’s car on the way back. The car was filled with Jiha’s chatter. It was fascinating that even though they saw each other every day, they never ran out of things to talk about.
“I haven’t been back in a long time, so I’m planning to visit my grandmother’s house starting from next Lunar New Year.”
“Could you buy me a bottle of liquor? I don’t drink traditional alcohol much, but the stuff here was actually delicious.”
“Mister, do you like me more, or the liquor?”
“Liquor.”
Jiha glared at him while he was driving, knowing it was a joke but still annoyed by the cheeky response.
“Aha. Since you love liquor so much, you were so drunk that you just fell asleep after getting a handjob from me, someone you like less than alcohol, huh?”
“…….”
Regarding the events of that night, Jeil Heon had nothing to say even if he had a hundred mouths. His neck turned beet red, and Jiha quickly snapped a photo of this rare sight with his phone to preserve it forever.
Then, he almost instinctively said, ‘I hope you come to the countryside with me again next holiday,’ but realizing the implication behind those words, his own face flushed deep red.
* * *
Jeil Heon believed there was almost nothing he couldn’t do for Yoo Jiha using his background and innate abilities. However, there was a pain that his hands could not reach: the grandmother. If the person causing the child distress had been a stranger, he could have dealt with them secretly, but she was his kin, albeit not by blood.
Pressing his lips to the occasional wounds and wiping away the pus was the best he could do, but before he knew it, the child had grown enough to face his grandmother of his own will. The depth of his strengthened heart was admirable, commendable, and a source of pride.
“I’ve seen enough of how great Sunbae’s comfort doll is, so shut your trap and hurry up and finish the report.”
Haggard from being tormented by Kang Suk-young, who demanded he recount everything that happened in North Korea down to the second, Jeil Heon was finally liberated after finishing the distress report. He would rather roll around naked among Aberrations; office work truly did not suit his aptitude.
Fearing he might be caught by Kang Suk-young again, he fled to the rooftop garden, put a cigarette in his mouth, and looked down at his palm. Faint scars from the Smiling Man still remained on his skin. It would be a lie to say it didn’t bother him. However, it wasn’t a major concern.
‘The Mansin’s Divine Blade certainly fulfilled its role.’
Jeil Heon didn’t trust his own power that killed the Smiling Man, but rather the yearning of Nam Soon-ho, who had tried to stop his son. Even if remnants of the Smiling Man remained, there was no need for great worry.
Once the immediate problems were sorted, the path forward became clear. Jeil Heon flicked the ash into a portable ashtray and organized the few clues he had.
The Ten Thousand Waves Flute, born from human yearning, took only a single price from the one who enshrined it on behalf of humanity. In the Seoungwan—the office that would later be renamed the Water Abnormality Worship Management Bureau through the Narye-dogam and Gwansanggam—the price paid by Princess Gyeongsune, also known as the Palace Mistress Gyeongsune, was recorded.
Since the previous enshrinee of the Ten Thousand Waves Flute had died due to involvement in the assassination of Jeong Mong-ju, Yi Seong-gye’s eldest daughter volunteered to enshrine the flute. Later, as the Joseon Dynasty was founded, Yi Seong-gye’s eldest daughter was titled Palace Mistress Gyeongsune. Because the price she paid was her future children, she was unable to bear children with her husband, Lee Je, for the rest of her life.
It was around that time that the Ten Thousand Waves Flute changed. It began to demand royal blood. The price for all subsequent enshrinees remained the same. Life Force and Vital Energy. What fate would await those whose Life Force and Vital Energy were stripped away?
After Palace Mistress Gyeongsune died, the next person to become the enshrinee was the young son of Taejong Yi Bang-won, Grand Prince Seongnyeong, who was only two years old. When Grand Prince Seongnyeong died young, a princess of Jeongjong succeeded him, and after her death, Grand Prince Gwangpyeong, the grandson of Taejong and son of Sejong, took over. Grand Prince Gwangpyeong died at the age of twenty.
‘The exact method of designating the enshrinee wasn’t recorded, but it was likely through dreams.’
This could not be refused. If the Ten Thousand Waves Flute withdrew its barrier, the palace would be almost completely defenseless against anomalies.
Thus, the enshrinees either died young or succeeded one another in misery. They were buried in darkness to hide the shame of the King’s direct lineage serving “monstrous and chaotic spirits.” No exception was made even for the eldest son; Prince Wolsan, who became the enshrinee, passed the throne to his younger brother, Prince Jalsan, and lived his life as a commoner before dying young.
The official records end here.
The current enshrinee, the Prince, likely went through a similar process. Crushing the cigarette butt in the portable ashtray, Jeil Heon took out another cigarette and put it in his mouth.
Among the things he had postponed until the Smiling Man’s issue was resolved was the problem regarding the Prince. How would the Prince, who had enshrined the Ten Thousand Waves Flute and protected the Management Bureau for 200 years, react? If he tried to interfere, would Jeil Heon have to execute the Prince, who had devoted 200 years of his life, with his own hands?
The mere thought made his chest feel tight, but there was no other way.
The only clue he had was the new information brought by Lee Yeo-jin, which wasn’t in the official records.
[They were Vengeful Spirits. Vengeful Spirits from 600 years ago bound to the flute.]
Vengeful Spirits……. Jeil Heon slowly chewed over Lee Yeo-jin’s note. He had pondered it intermittently since he first encountered it 22 years ago, but only one condition came to mind that fit her words.
Furthermore, Princess Gyeongsune was now added to the mix.
He had never imagined that an Aberration would summon a part of Princess Gyeongsune to let her live a peaceful life within its domain.
「I intend to do something that he absolutely would not have wanted.」
And yet, it claims it will do something against Princess Gyeongsune’s will.
His mind was a mess. A sigh escaped him. 600 years ago, when the Ten Thousand Waves Flute changed, was around the time of the founding of Joseon. It was a natural inference that the cause likely lay with Yi Seong-gye. After all, didn’t Joseon suppress shamanistic beliefs?
Because of that, he had wandered around the Jongmyo and Gyeongdeokgung sites, but if his initial hypothesis was wrong. If the cause wasn’t Yi Seong-gye…….
Suddenly, the sound of a text message notification scattered his thoughts. Jeil Heon rubbed his face and checked his phone.
[Sunbae, where are you now?]
He typed a location into the keypad where Kang Suk-young could never follow.
[In your heart.]
[The Master woke up a while ago and is looking for you, so stop messing around and get your ass over here.]
Jeil Heon’s eyebrows quirked. It was too early for him to wake up. The fact that he was looking for him—a mere Agent of the Exploration Division—immediately upon waking was also unsettling.
An ominous feeling of unknown origin washed over him with a chill.