For the person at the center of this to even lower his head like this.
This was a very grand welcome.
‘It still feels strange. The world I live in changed, and now I’m receiving treatment like this.’
Noel stared straight at the crown of Jang-yul’s head.
Shin Jang-yul.
Noel had asked Shin-hyeon to investigate who exactly he was, and when he gave Kkamang a lickable cat treat and asked it to quietly ask the ghosts about him, it had pounced on it like a beast.
Anyone watching would have thought she had starved to death, with her eyes flipped and eating without even breathing.
Of course, she did not need to breathe.
‘So I prepared too. In case he tries to threaten me.’
Hiding his thoughts, Noel lowered his head to Jang-yul.
“Hello.”
“No, sir. There is no need for you to bow your head to me like this.”
Jang-yul was startled and helped Noel straighten.
Apart from that deeply courteous, polite manner and kind-looking face, he was apparently a major player in the moneylending industry.
To be precise, he had a firm grip on the gray area between illegality and legal loopholes, and not only was he laundering his image with a solid mid-sized company at the front, his business sense was exceptional, so he had quite a few expanding businesses.
In any case, he was someone talked about here and there.
‘No wonder he treats me like this.’
Strangely, in Noel’s own world, people with a lot of money always kept at least one fortune-teller or necromancer close.
It seemed relying on shamanism was the same here.
That might be the answer to why Jang-yul treated him so courteously.
“You look much healthier now.”
At Noel’s words, Jang-yul smiled brightly.
It was as if he had been waiting for those words.
“This is all thanks to you, sir. If I had not met you, I would never have escaped that hell. Ah, was it difficult for you on the way here?”
“I took a taxi, so it wasn’t that hard.”
As if taking a taxi was something terribly sad, Jang-yul’s face showed a trace of guilt.
Even the day before the appointment, and again a few hours before, he had repeatedly offered to pick Noel up, and Noel had refused each time, saying he was fine.
The reason he had come today was none other than the aftermath of the evil spirit.
Since it had been an evil spirit hundreds of years old at the least, even though he had purified it, its touch would have reached Jang-yul’s family as well, and he did not know how that might grow.
He had to check at least once.
‘I have to do the job properly. That way there won’t be trouble later.’
“When you leave, I will escort you by car so you can go comfortably. Now, this way.”
Jang-yul extended a hand toward the entrance, then began walking slowly.
-I felt this before too, but he seems to think of you as very precious, Noel.
At Yeong-hyeon’s words, Noel nearly snorted for a moment.
‘He doesn’t think I’m precious. He wants to use my ability, so he’s acting like that.’
Was this not a case where both sides knew it, but pretended not to because it helped them both?
“Sir.”
“Yes?”
“I am sorry to say this, but if anyone comes looking for you, please ignore them. Of course, I am doing my best to ensure that does not happen.”
“Someone looking for me?”
“It seems rumors spread widely that I was wasting away.”
Since he was a famous major player, it was only natural that such a fact would be floating around here and there.
Perhaps anyone who had seen Jang-yul’s appearance even once back then had thought he was going to die.
Assuming that, they might have whispered among themselves about how to handle what remained after Jang-yul died.
“They must be wondering exactly how Shin Jang-yul recovered.”
“That is correct. I feel sorry about that part.”
Jang-yul spoke as if he had no face to show.
There was no need for him to be sorry.
Noel looked at Ashin, who had returned after circling around once.
-There were eyes watching you, but all of them belonged to that man’s people.
‘He has good control.’
-His family is inside. Six people in total. As you expected, three of them have traces of impurity.
As expected.
If he had not come, Jang-yul’s evaluation of him would have dropped.
-Of the three, one appears to have dabbled in the black arts. Four welcome you. Two do not approve of you. One of those two is the one who dabbled in the black arts. That is all.
At that clean report and observation, Noel looked at Ashin and smiled.
Black arts clearly referred to things like curses.
‘Why would anyone do that?’
Was that not an extremely inefficient power?
The accuracy and probability were low, and both the one who cursed and the one who demanded the curse would be struck at the same time.
Noel could not understand it at all.
“I am looking for the source of the rumor, so please do not worry too much, sir.”
‘Why block that?’
Rumors spreading was actually good for him.
Even if someone tried to harm him, he was confident he could protect himself.
As Noel followed Jang-yul, he weighed things this way and that for a moment, then casually spoke.
“Mr. Shin Jang-yul, do you treasure your family?”
Jang-yul slowed slightly and looked at Noel.
His eyes seemed to ask what that meant.
“Fortunately, it seems to have missed you, but someone appears to have used the black arts on you.”
Jang-yul’s expression changed in an instant.
It was very cold.
That was probably his true expression.
“I’ll check and tell you.”
“Sir.”
“Yes.”
“I have many enemies. The same is true for my family.”
“You must have someone in mind, right? I’ll look first and then tell you.”
At the words that Noel would help, Jang-yul’s expression immediately softened.
“What would happen··· if you left it alone without purifying it?”
“There are various possibilities. First, your luck disappears. In other words, it sucks away what people call fortune. There are cases where, for no reason, you become unable to use that body part, or that part keeps getting hurt for no reason, or it can bring about accidents.”
If one was unluckier, that could turn into disaster and lead to death.
He did not say that.
It was unnecessary.
“But I will purify it. That is basic duty.”
Noel cut it off firmly.
To begin with, that was his purpose.
It was right to finish it cleanly, since he did not know how they might act later.
People were beings who always regretted things and fussed after the fact.
“Sir, you truly shame me.”
Jang-yul reflected on the thought he had held for an instant.
Because he had thought this might be a chance to easily get rid of a family member who would become future trouble.
“Do I?”
“Yes. You will not be eating with my family, so please do not worry. I do not wish to burden you either, sir.”
“That’s a relief. And this.”
Noel took documents from his bag and handed them over.
Jang-yul’s eyes briefly rounded.
“I have an uncle who worries about me a lot. He says the rent for the shop I’m opening is too cheap, so to be safe, it would be right to sign one more contract. Please look it over while I examine your family later.”
“I am sorry for making him worry like that. I will do it for you right away.”
“No. Please read it slowly.”
“Understood.”
Jang-yul held the documents carefully in his hands, then asked as a sudden thought came to him.
“By any chance, have you thought about the interior design for your shop, sir?”
“No. I’m hopeless with that kind of thing.”
“Then may I introduce someone to you?”
Noel thought for a moment, then nodded.
Judging by how he handled work, Jang-yul seemed likely to be meticulous.
“Please do.”
“Understood. I will pay close attention and select a reliable place to send to you.”
Jang-yul smiled brightly.
Was it not the master’s shop?
He absolutely could not treat it carelessly.
He intended to cover all the costs himself as well.
How much could it possibly be, compared to what the master had done for him?
Jang-yul moved urgently with a smiling face and held the door.
“Please go in first.”
At the sight of him lowering his head slightly, Noel barely held back the urge to rub his arms and went inside as if fleeing.
‘······Ugh, I can’t get used to this.’
He had only ever been chased, so when had he ever seen someone treat him so politely?
At this rate, he felt like he might break out in hives.
Noel caught his breath briefly and looked left and right.
‘Why··· is there no one here?’
It looked like an extremely high-end restaurant, but aside from the people who seemed to be Jang-yul’s family, there was no one else.
‘Is it reservation-only or something?’
-Wow! I’ve never been to a place like this.
Yeong-hyeon said excitedly as he ran around.
The lights, the tables, the chairs, the floor, the ceiling, the walls—everywhere he looked, everything was full of luxury.
Just how expensive was this place?
Having such pleasant imaginings, Yeong-hyeon looked here and there.
-This is my first time seeing such a place as well.
Ashin was excited too.
Perhaps it was because this was a luxurious place one could not see in everyday life.
“They are over there.”
Jang-yul’s voice came from behind.
“Why is there no one here?”
Noel asked directly.
“I rented out the place for a few hours in case you disliked crowds, sir.”
“You rented it out···?”
Did he have so much money that it was rotting away?
Noel suppressed the words he wanted to say.
“I do not usually do this.”
Perhaps reading his gaze, Jang-yul made an embarrassed expression and pointed ahead.
Perhaps because of Jang-yul’s appearance, everyone seated there only then turned their heads.
“You only need to purify them. You do not have to speak with them.”
After whispering quietly, Jang-yul stood behind Noel.
Noel looked at Jang-yul’s family.
A grandfather, parents, and siblings.
They seemed to be a family made up roughly like that.
Was this not a large family?
“Hello.”
Noel greeted them first.
Judging by their expressions alone, two among the siblings did not seem to welcome him, but usually, smiling faces tended to be the dangerous ones.
The people affected by erosion were Jang-yul’s father, his brother, and his sister.
They accepted his greeting and said nothing else.
It was as though someone behind him had warned them.
-···Uh, Noel? Look at that man Jang-yul’s expression.
At Yeong-hyeon’s voice, Noel turned around.
Jang-yul was smiling brightly.
-Not that expression. Until just now, he was completely terrifying. He really wasn’t smiling.
Noel looked at Yeong-hyeon and nodded slightly as if he understood.
That made sense.
He had never thought the face Jang-yul showed him from the beginning was the real one.
For his role, Noel made purple fire bloom in his palm.
He approached the three people and lightly held it in front of each affected area.
The erosion was still at this level.
“It’s done. You went through a lot.”
It was a routine phrase, but their expressions were not good.
He understood.
They could not see anything, and the process was damn fast, so of course he would look like a fraud.
‘But you really aren’t in a position to look at me like that.’
Noel looked at Jang-yul’s father.
Separate from the erosion, he had already been struck by the price of the curse.
Just how powerful were the black arts he had used for there to already be a leash around his neck?
Noel did not know how far the chain extended, but the scent of death was faintly flowing from him.
‘Tsk. He won’t live long.’
-That is right. It is that man. That man used the black arts.
As Noel listened to Ashin’s answer, he turned his head.
CRASH!
The window shattered and fragments flew, and Ashin cut something down with her sword.
When he lowered his gaze, he saw something deformed and dark-red disappear like ash.
-That was a curse.
“···Ha.”
Noel let out a dumbfounded laugh and strode toward the window.
The remnants of the dark-red curse remained on the ground like footprints.
It had shattered the window and fled.
In other words, it was a warning.
‘It attacked me? A mere curse?’
“Sir. Please step back.”
Jang-yul stood in front of Noel and extended an arm.
He did not know why the window had suddenly shattered, but it was dangerous.
“···Mr. Shin Jang-yul’s father used a curse. Your father should be over there, so bring him here.”
Noel whispered quietly and looked at the place where the curse had faded.
Curses originally had no form.
Since they were a kind of power, that was obvious.
And yet this one had taken form and moved.
The fact that a curse had taken form meant the situation could already be considered uncontrollable.
Whoever had cast the curse was likely already dead or half-crippled.
When Noel looked at Ashin, she seemed to be thinking the same thing.
-That must be dealt with. That man’s life is in danger. If it eats that man’s life, the curse will grow.
Ashin narrowed her eyes slightly.
“One more.”
-Correct. There is one more. The one who cast the curse. Those two have such leashes attached to them.
‘If those leashes around the two of them aren’t released, they’ll die.’
Along with that thought, Noel moved his eyes.
Who appeared near death?
With black smoke swirling around him, Jin-hon appeared, as expected.
“···If the curse isn’t dealt with, it may be passed from the mouths of the living under the name ‘evil spirit.’ Then it will become a true entity.”
When Ashin aimed her sword at him, Jin-hon raised both hands and smiled gently at her.