Slide.
A hand lowered.
“Unexpected.”
A smirk.
“Oh, right. Here.”
Before awkwardness could settle in, An Seo-myeong suddenly held out a phone.
A clean, basic domestic phone case.
“Is this your phone, Exorcist?”
“Ah… yes.”
So that’s where he dropped it—left it behind at Bonryeong.
‘Glad it was found.’
Gi Jae-eon quickly took the phone back.
Better return before causing trouble again, possessed by those pesky ghosts.
“I’ll… make a quick call.”
“Ah, yes. Don’t worry about me.”
After asking An Seo-myeong’s understanding, he hurriedly began dialing.
Ssshhhhh—
An ominous aura seemed to ripple through the park, followed by a chilling sensation that numbed his toes. Feeling as if every hair on his skin was standing on end, Gi Jae-eon set down the phone he’d been clutching tightly and instinctively scanned the surroundings.
The wind blew fiercely.
Whoooosh—shhh—
Had the park ever been this quiet? Suddenly, the pigeons and children disappeared.
“Exorcist… this is—”
An Seo-myeong stood up awkwardly.
He too sensed the strange atmosphere.
Whoooooooosh—
The wind kept howling.
Sandstorms rose, and the scent of life faded away.
As the tension peaked—
Drrrrrrrrring-----!!
An Seo-myeong and Gi Jae-eon flinched simultaneously.
“Sorry. It’s my call.”
Without lowering his sharp gaze, An Seo-myeong answered. Thanks to the silence, Gi Jae-eon could hear the voice through the phone.
[“Where are you.”]
A very low, rough voice.
“I’m in the park.”
[“Get out of there immediately.”]
The other party urgently ordered An Seo-myeong to flee. It was now certain. A ‘yokai’ was present nearby—an existence transcending mere ghosts, evil spirits, or demons. Capable of directly harming humans, it was the most dreaded disaster exorcists feared.
“Don’t worry too much. Exorcist Gi Jae-eon is here with me.”
[“…With you?”]
“Yes.”
[“If that bastard’s there, we might buy some time. Wait, I’m coming.”]
“Hyung.”
An Seo-myeong frowned at the word ‘bastard,’ but the call abruptly ended coldly. Gi Jae-eon looked at him as An Seo-myeong apologized quietly, “Did you hear? Sorry.” Gi Jae-eon shook his head as if he hadn’t heard anything. At this moment, his palms were already soaked with cold sweat, tightly clenched to hide it.
Then it happened.
Goosebumps prickled on the back of their necks.
Before their brains even registered it, instinct knew first.
It’s coming. It’s arriving.
Sure enough, something staggered in while singing an eerie, twisted song.
Its skin was blackened and charred, with long, wild white hair flowing down. It wore worn-out hemp pants and a mysterious mask. Its gaunt, skeletal frame had a strangely distended lower abdomen.
[Yokai: Bulgwoechulsa]
[A yokai that stirs the twisted hearts of humans, tempting them to self-destruction. It approaches those addicted to gambling or drink, giving a golden tooth in exchange for their luck, causing them to willingly incur debts that ultimately cost their lives.]
Hiiyaa—hiiyaa—aaaah—ah!
It bared yellowed teeth, singing a strange mixed song.
Calling it a song was generous; it was merely an unsettling resonance.
As if chanting something, blaming someone, or offering false prayers to an unholy god.
Just seeing it was enough to dampen spirits and cause stomachaches—a truly repulsive presence. Whenever Bulgwoechulsa moved, dry bones cracked loudly.
At that moment, An Seo-myeong instinctively realized.
‘That’s dangerous.’
At his current level, he could not exorcise such a being.
He was already overwhelmed in the fight of wills.
‘I want to run.’
Sweat dripped as he bit his trembling lips.
With Kim Joo-won absent, the only person he could trust was Gi Jae-eon.
No, the only one at all.
Gi Jae-eon, loved by gods, the exorcist.
But… that very Gi Jae-eon was the problem.
Trembling like a leaf, covering his ears, he was paralyzed by fear stronger than An Seo-myeong’s.
A complete panic.
An Seo-myeong called out worriedly, “Exorcist?” but there was no answer.
He looked utterly incapable of fighting.
“S-Stop, please, stop… I-I, please… please, stop… let me… let me… please stop…”
His pale fingers raked through his hair, shaking uncontrollably. Eventually, he vomited yellow bile. An Seo-myeong’s eyes slowly traced the vomit soaking the floor. His pupils darted anxiously.
‘What the hell is going on?’
Gi Jae-eon had been acting strangely all day.
…At Bonryeong, and even at the subway station.
Could the curse still be active? Did the haejusa fail? Impossible. Kim Young was the best.
An Seo-myeong stared at the broken Gi Jae-eon with shocked eyes.
Watching someone collapse in real time was a terrifying experience.
“Exorcist!”
“I-I’m… sorry… I was wrong… haa… haa…”
Gi Jae-eon’s condition was severe. His panting looked like he might suffocate. The desperate sight confused An Seo-myeong more. After all, it was Gi Jae-eon.
At least, the Gi Jae-eon who came here should not look like this.
He had to be the strongest.
He was our future.
“Snap out of it! Exorcist!”
“Don’t call me! Please, please… stop… please…”
What a pathetic sight.
An Seo-myeong released his grip on Gi Jae-eon’s shoulder, closing and opening his eyes.
He concluded there was no point in trying any further.
Gi Jae-eon couldn’t fight. But he couldn’t abandon him.
The only option was for the remaining person to muster strength.
The calculation was simple.
‘Hold on until Kim Joo-won arrives.’
Just hold on until then.
An Seo-myeong calmed himself and summoned his feeble courage.
The first resolve apprentices learn before serving gods at Bonryeong.
‘Divinity begins with faith.’
Taking a deep breath, he pulled holy water and a silver dagger from his robes.
‘Focus. Don’t be reckless. Otherwise, we both die.’
Do as taught. Train as practiced.
The goal wasn’t exorcism but survival.
Survival.
Thunk—
…?
“—...!!”
No more than ten seconds after regaining composure and preparing to fight, a huge hole was pierced through his abdomen.
‘Damn, unbelievable.’
An Seo-myeong gripped the spear shaft lodged in his belly. Hot blood flowed freely along the cold iron pillar. Haah, ha… ugh. Slowly opening his hand, thick blood stained his calloused palm.
“Hah, ugh, cough...!”
His legs, struggling not to collapse, wavered and buckled several times before finally falling to the floor. It was laughable, but not his fault. No, he wasn’t careless.
It was just the difference.
The difference in skill, the difference in strength.
An absolute gap that couldn’t be filled just by paying attention or trying hard.
“Run… Jae… on… ex… orcist…”
He couldn’t lose focus. Through his dimming vision, he saw Gi Jae-eon staring at him.
Bloodshot eyes, slightly parted lips, tousled hair.
‘Idiot, what are you doing? Why aren’t you running?’
“G-go… ugh, huff… ugh! cough!”
An Seo-myeong gasped, swallowing his breath and spewing thick blood, then lost consciousness—leaving behind deep regret that he shouldn’t have fallen.
At that moment, all of Gi Jae-eon’s frantic movements stopped as if they were a lie.
Hands ruffling his hair, lips screaming, wildly shaking eyes—none moved even slightly.
The yokai did not know Gi Jae-eon was becoming still.
Gi Jae-eon slowly breathed and took in the bleeding An Seo-myeon.
His scattered mind focused on one thing.
Finally.
“…May it be.”
Gi Jae-eon’s lips parted.
It was a long-learned lament toward evil.
“A mere creature begs earnestly.”
Bulgwoechulsa awakened not a simple exorcist.
“O immortal spirit who dwells by our side… to the foolish who know no repentance.”
Learning ruthlessness through justice.
“The end.”
Madness, hope.
A cluster of white light shot up around Bulgwoechulsa.
Bright under the sun, shining even more brilliantly—divinity.
Soon, countless lights blanketed the wide park.
Like a Milky Way embroidered on a blue sky. But no mercy was mixed in the beauty. The lights soon transformed into 108 chains, striking fiercely downward.
First the arms.
Then the legs.
Then the neck and torso.
Crack—crack—stripping away freedom, tightening chains seemed to say, “This is the weight of death I’ve piled up.”
“I will teach you.”
Gi Jae-eon muttered in a gloomy voice.