“When you contact me, I will come to pick you up.”
After the car disappeared, soft childish voices began to whisper in Gi Jae-eon’s ears. Like spring flowers, gentle voices piled up curses as if singing, “Die, die, die.” It was simple retaliation.
It was the petty torment of ghosts who had hesitated to exorcise him until now. “You are nothing, an empty shell.” Hearing the mocking, joyful voices, Gi Jae-eon staggered.
Having refused food and stayed awake for several nights, even this small stress easily drained his energy. A sudden wave of nausea rose, and though he hurriedly covered his mouth, the veins on the back of his hand throbbed painfully.
In fact, Gi Jae-eon’s power had not disappeared.
On the contrary, thanks to the regression, his abilities had far improved. Probably no existing exorcist surpassed him. With a few gestures, he could repel evil spirits, purify misfortune, and even make new sprouts grow from barren land.
Truly, a talent considered invincible.
The problem was simply that he had no will to use it. Like a wellspring that never dries up but has no one to drink from it.
So even petty ghosts that could be swatted away like flies had power over him.
“The sky is too clear...”
Unconsciously, Gi Jae-eon gripped his chest tightly and tried to calm his rapid breathing.
He just wanted to die like this.
But in this world where his father, mother, and older brother were alive, he couldn’t. He couldn’t bring himself to hammer a nail into his parents’ hearts as their child. In the end, he had no choice but to wait helplessly for the ruthless time when ‘it’ would appear and butcher his precious ones again.
“Breathe, breathe... just breathe, please.”
Thinking of the inevitable end made his whole body ache as if stabbed by knives.
Ah, it would be nice if this shipwrecked life quietly sank.
“Teacher Young! Are you ready?”
Meanwhile, at the Seoul branch of the Korean Exorcist Association, called “Bonryeong,” a commotion was underway as people scrubbed and cleaned here and there. After all, the proud Incheon branch (Cheonjiharang) was sending the second son of the Gi family, “that guy from the rumors!”
Park Hong, Bonryeong’s financial officer, flapped his formal jacket and commanded cleaning here and there with full authority. Watching him, Kim Young, the branch’s haejusa, looked at him awkwardly.
“Yes, I’m ready. But I wonder if all this fuss is really necessary...”
“Hah! What nonsense is that? We can’t let those unlucky Incheon guys find any fault! We’ll polish everything until they’re blown away, that’s what I say!”
Then, ahem! Park Hong smirked. His shiny face looked exactly like a greedy toad.
“This is a matter the Gi family—proud beyond measure—has begged us for. Well, of course, haejusa in Seoul is better than Incheon. Yeah! We’re not inferior in that field. Hmm, anyway, the point is, if this goes well—hmm?—we can get a nice fat payment from the Gi family, right? Our new budget for projects is a bit tight, after all.”
Kim Young gave a subtle smile, watching Park Hong who was already thinking of emptying the Gi family’s coffers. Not wrong at all. If they could just break the curse on the Gi family’s precious second son... as Park Hong expected, a huge reward would await.
Probably enough to live a carefree life like a grasshopper for years.
‘The only problem is...’
He lacked confidence.
How could he, who couldn’t even solve the curse himself, break it as a haejusa? Kim Young sighed heavily. The burden weighed on his shoulders. It felt like trying to boss around a chrysalis.
‘I’m scared of the backlash if I fail.’
No exaggeration. The Gi family tended to look down on other exorcists and shamans, living up to their reputation.
But they had even personally designated him for this job!
‘I can’t afford to make a mistake... Could I end up the scapegoat?’
Especially since Bonryeong (Seoul) was already looked down upon by Cheonjiharang (Incheon). Kim Young groaned in frustration.
“Hehehe~ Thinking about the faces of the Incheon guys losing their minds makes my heart race!”
Whether or not he knew Kim Young’s worries, Park Hong just looked excited. There was no haejusa like him in Cheonjiharang? But we have one? It was so childish it was unbearable.
“Stay sharp.”
“Teacher Young has to do well. Who here is better than Teacher Young at haejusa?”
“Well, who knows.”
Kim Young smiled like a ‘white rabbit sticky rice cake,’ a comparison kids often used, which made Park Hong jump up saying it sounded unserious.
“Let’s be serious. Don’t be intimidated by that kid!”
How could he not be intimidated? It was none other than Gi Jae-eon. Kim Young swallowed the urge to retort.
“Financial officer, if you shout so loudly, others will hear.”
“Oh, yes, yes. I have to be careful. The narrow-minded Incheon guys might harass us again for talking trash about them.”
Just then, an announcement came: “Cheonjiharang has arrived.” The awaited party was here. Kim Young said he’d go greet them and quickly left the corridor. Walking down the long hallway, he realized one thing.
‘Everyone’s expecting him.’
Though they cursed the arrogant Incheon guys and unlucky Gi family, now that Gi Jae-eon was coming, all the shamans of Bonryeong were standing on tiptoe, craning their necks. Understandable. Seeing the one called the closest to a god among them.
Anyone in this industry would naturally be curious about Gi Jae-eon.
What they wanted to know most was whether Gi Jae-eon...
‘Was stronger than Kim Joo-won.’
A joke among themselves.
[If Incheon has Gi Jae-eon, Seoul has Kim Joo-won.]
Unlike the noble-born Gi Jae-eon, Kim Joo-won was an exorcist from a ‘commoner’ background.
Yet among the many promising talents who would lead Bonryeong in the future, he was the most anticipated prospect.
‘Lucky that Joo-won is away right now.’
With his personality, if he met Gi Jae-eon, they would have to see who was upper and who was lower, and probably destroy everything around.
Kim Young recalled his disciple Kim Joo-won.
While other kids were carefully born from lotuses, this kid seemed born from flames alone.
‘Hmm... really lucky he’s not here.’
“Where is Exorcist Gi Jae-eon?”
Kim Young, relieved, softly asked the guide as he descended the stone steps.
“He is by the main gate.”
“I will go meet him.”
Before opening the massive gate, Kim Young turned back to check on Gi Jae-eon.
[Bonryeong (本靈)]
A hanok-style building at the end of a row of lanterns. Less splendid and with a shorter rooted history than Incheon (Cheonjiharang) or Busan (Haeshin), but surely with its own charm. So no matter what guest came, there was no need to be ashamed or intimidated.
‘Now, let’s see his face.’
The next head of Cheonjiharang.
The unique genius, the human loved by gods, the future of exorcists, with endless nicknames.
[Gi Jae-eon]
He stood right in front of this gate!
Kim Young calmed his trembling heart and boldly flung the gate open.
But it was strange.
‘Is this... kid really Gi Jae-eon?’
In front of him stood a fragile young man who looked like he could die any moment.
Kim Young carefully observed the boy sitting quietly before him. Even after over ten minutes in the room, he hadn’t once met Kim Young’s eyes.
He even suspected someone else might have come.
It was because he was completely different from “that guy from the rumors.”
His slightly wavy jet-black hair was the same.
His tall height and broad shoulders squared at right angles were as impressive as heard.
But... a hunched posture, eyes fixed on the floor, and a pale complexion.
Nervous, restless gestures picking at flakes.
Just by looking, his condition was clearly poor.
“His fingertips are all damaged.”
His rather withdrawn appearance made it embarrassing to call him Gi Jae-eon.
Why so scared? Kim Young set a cup of hot brewed green tea in front of Gi Jae-eon and forced a clumsy smile. It was a delicate attempt to ease his tension with a friendly impression.
“You must have had a hard time coming all the way from Incheon to Seoul.”
“...Ah, no, no, I am.”
He even stuttered over his words?
Stories about Gi Jae-eon were widely known. Even unwillingly, one couldn’t avoid hearing about the ‘second son of the Gi family.’ Beyond his outstanding skills, he was said to look down on everyone, speak harshly, act arrogantly, and frequently ignore others. Yet the real Gi Jae-eon was very different from the rumors. What part of this boy had sparked such nonsense gossip?
“Even petty ghosts were clinging to him.”
Kim Young noticed the little ghosts sitting on his shoulder just before crossing the gate’s threshold.
At first, he thought it was mere laziness not to exorcise since they were just minor ghosts, but suspicion arose that this was not the case.
Thinking ‘Is it because of a curse?’ Kim Young quickly began his haejusa ritual. In his hand was a rosary made from wood struck by lightning and split in half after a thousand years, imbued with the purest energy of a tree spirit, a sacred tool.
However, Kim Young had to stop chanting after just one minute.
Because... no curse was upon Gi Jae-eon.
haejusa: a specialist shaman who breaks curses