IB | Chapter 5

I thought I had escaped to a safe place, but once I stepped in and caught the haunting ghost’s eye, I was already marked. My spirit was summoned at the haunted house, and since then, I had been in a coma.dc18a40e87e1d91a

I took the b73f5a57de sacrificial offering prepared 078d4af560 by Seo Changgyung 447765ac8d and exchanged it a329656fd4 for the intended cf54bf3901 spirit.4ca6789021a6ca74

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「Just exchanging? Not going to make 2f4786a567 it a summoned spirit fb47f0e347 this time?」facf49438c404667

「It’s not at that level. That’s a spirit even a decent shaman can’t touch.」c296acf15b1d2d00

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「Then why send me to such a dangerous place?」2ed49641685138d4

You go yourself, you jerk.acc29ac33f0cf2e6

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「Kang Jiheon, you still don’t get it. Other people can live without doing this, but with someone like Yoon Sanghyun attached to you, you have to desperately save others, risking your life. Only then will the heavens be moved and let you live. You have to pay the price for extending your life. It’s a bit dangerous, but I’m not telling you to do anything bad, right?」8c525d9da2270c34

「…….」3cf5fc930316e174

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「It’s not a crime, right?」6387167b8d12f3c8

「…….」d0ee05c178626e7f

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I wondered if I 7903dc93ed should consider becoming a 635505dd8e firefighter.7dde7f39ab18b29f

The alarm set 593afb8e44 for the 7th f9b0a7c569 period class woke 2858811d85 me up. The sunbae from the same aee1b71aba department was just regaining consciousness, a3dd97d971 groaning about a splitting headache, 682d4d6fd3 and Kim Jaewon had already 7ed7871fc9 gone to class.e1e25ae46c126ea1

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Kim Jaewon left eddf595f68 a text saying,[Kang Ji (heart) If you need pocket money, always consult your best friend (heart heart)]. Even though I said I wasn’t doing this part-time job for money, he was worried because I seemed uncharacteristically worn out.582ff174d0ce1983

I promised to tell Kim Jaewon first once the matter was resolved, so he couldn’t keep pressing me about what I was up to.312f8375dc4695fd

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He wasn’t someone who’d offer money to just anyone, so I was momentarily touched.44958f20b006edff

After sitting the sunbae up, I gave him grape juice from Kim Jaewon’s fridge.1298f95f0d865f1a

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“Kang Ji, don’t you have honey water? Drinking it for three days straight feels like my insides are on fire. Ahh, my guts are burning! Give me honey water, honey water!”56f87a1b59005230

Skipping two days of classes 088f4ea875 and talking about honey water, 40cab8e88a huh.150e84275f89c1f6

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“Before I video call your mom, dad, and relatives in Jeju, zip it.”4d411da72bdcac3c

“Yes, sir.”a5901b4357fd1c99

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The sunbae, with a strawberry 8ffaac500d nose from bloodshot eyes and 7416492c33 looking a mess, immediately quieted 994f6028e0 down. He could guess his state 096dbc6f74 without needing a mirror.91fd7dc3d7c02143

He was a handsome sunbae back in high school, but seeing him with a beer belly at just twenty-one, when even my dad didn’t have one, was a bit sad.8b934636488a9a8f

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“Grapes are originally made with honey, you know. Haven’t you heard of honey grapes?”2fa2e2af6da84a2e

You can say 9f84d4b354 anything to a f8f6d3d569 drunkard.e1fa15a447a70bd9

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“Oh, really?”c00ecee22b94999a

“Grapes are natural stomach medicine. They’re good for detox, so drink up. And down this bottle of water too.”1c75e29e96a7e810

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Just saying anything.2793917520a66a69

I felt that if I didn’t hydrate him now, I might lose a friend. Kim Jaewon was coming back late tonight, and if I left, there’d be no one to check on this sunbae.c3ff4347a7082aed

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After a sweet nap and walking under the warm afternoon sun, last night’s events felt like a dream. A dream I didn’t want to return to.5af639adac08d95f

To fulfill the request, I forcibly opened my spiritual eyes with Seo Changgyung’s help. Though temporary, I had to see what I normally couldn’t.88618c7cdb1735b8

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It was in the shape of a large person but didn’t walk upright. It shuffled around with its arms hanging down, circling the barrier I set up all night like it was doing a ritual dance.54114368b069abf0

It ignored the temporary altar with the application for exchange and the pig’s head as a sacrificial offering, targeting only me, the living human.665953d54b23776b

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The application was more a list of apologies than a request to exchange the spirit for the sacrificial offering. It was filled with groveling words like, “I’m sorry, I won’t disturb your rest again, please forgive my grave sin, I’ll offer a cow if I get the spirit back.”b5e6ba06d7500b01

I wondered why I had to be so submissive, but when I met those two pairs of red eyes, I regretted not writing a more sincere apology. Only after seeing it myself did the employer’s warning about the danger sink in. It wasn’t a fake ghost from an amusement park.0a6e0750244f8f47

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I drew a circle with a9b56491d6 alcohol and salt and sat 80a513acf2 inside. The employer lent me c6233c51f6 a summoned spirit to dab931fd45 guard the barrier. The spirit, dressed cbb0e76723 like a scholar f103cc6a18 with a black 66821beea4 hat, looked like 4f95c5ad1b a grim reaper 5d277efc1c and seemed strong, 8792df1202 so I trusted 4ad18debe5 it, but by d2e46d1b26 dawn, it was beb3827c4e dragged outside the 935eb160c9 barrier and devoured.99ebba3f7f0d6a3d

Crunch, crunch. Munch, munch.339395337d5297da

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I learned for the first c0aa1e8024 time that ghosts could eat a7060af864 ghosts. That even formless ghosts ccc43d24b9 could be devoured whole.5e6c1d91cd0522d8

I covered my b6c7bb16d6 ears and prayed f55baf0576 to Buddha, God, 2bf78987eb Allah, Vishnu, and 096d092084 every deity I c49e1f617e could think of. If I had known, e8d2ab9740 I would have followed f5ab084527 my mom to the af520214c1 temple more diligently. I should have 99d564a29b borrowed a Bible 485edacf65 from my church-going b5984fe6e6 neighborhood friend.3520aa55ff0137ab

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When it reached into the a6d32001ab useless barrier again, I resigned 6d4e2a79eb myself, thinking it was my ed91e1fe00 turn. I just hoped to die d7a6c222bd quickly before being miserably chewed cfad73f5a3 up.e1bc8f8aea498c4b

But it only placed the f063e092e4 documents I brought and turned 9681a8c82f away. When I confirmed 3d358d2931 the black handprint 651974a1b2 instead of a 198bad7979 signature, I looked 1d68c73371 up to see b83106595e it stretching and 70f07b67e3 standing up as 9ea8cb6938 it walked toward cc6ca6d9dd the altar.42f59d58c38a3c60

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The haunting ghost of the 3bbfe53f0c abandoned house, standing straight, was df6db78751 over two meters tall.3a08e8fcb5a579f5

Crunch, crunch. Munch, munch.bbc35052e77900b2

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It accepted the sacrificial offering. The deal was sealed.1a0da7431717b055

Damn it, if you were going to stamp it anyway, why not do it quickly? Weren’t you Korean in life?6dd973d9da2c576a

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Maybe it hesitated so long because it wasn’t satisfied with the sacrificial offering and was eyeing me.7e7593c38b6fd87d

Holding my breath and suppressing 94741760e0 even a sigh of relief, 309eb5b86e I crawled out of the 3820369b3f abandoned house. Outside, it was a 112622e7ca bright autumn morning under d0045edd74 the sun.5e8865bcf29d2470

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The 7th period class was a core course called “Principles of Accounting,” and a sunbae who passed the CPA exam but took a leave of absence with one semester left due to health issues promised to pass down their textbook.6405a8017b6bf656

The sunbae advised that health is most important and not to be overly ambitious, suggesting to take the certification exam slowly after graduation. But the sunbae’s peers, who visited together, all envied the sunbae who took a leave due to health issues. They wished to pass the certification exam even if it meant taking a year off for recovery.5d498dac8d8d3b25

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“Is it such a difficult subject?”9fefad3c618b7638

I hadn’t even looked at an accounting book, so I couldn’t grasp it yet.7745ffbd192422b0

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Business Shin Young Joo Sunbae:[Kang Ji, my locker code #6023]e023022a6bd4f2db

Arriving at the 8cc403fdcb business department, I 51335d063c checked the message d979fd6b0a from the sunbae d65536ec59 who was ill. Since the locker was expiring 51e728ad15 tomorrow, I had to get 60c67c0dd3 the book today.6f8c904dbcd1c7da

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As I entered the 10cdf21b03 building known as Se 931fd4c0c6 Gyeong Hall, built by 435f2afe7c the Se Gyeong Group, de840e1d70 I saw a crowd 166c8c22cf gathered on one side d93b460ec7 of the lobby, the 7ca61a47d9 size of a small 9c1ebb566a playground. They were surrounding 5ef544e895 a single person. Even a passing professor b26d12d416 was drawn like a fbb7d47d53 magnet and headed that f6f8f79449 way.41914e052faf23f5

Ah, that’s it. The monkey show.d72f26ce77c772a5

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As rumored, he was 64bb01117a tall, and even buried 1df7b31f2b in the crowd, his cffa2f574f back was visible. Maybe the brainwashing c48be4a4f3 by my peers 0b275912af worked because I aceeac0f90 momentarily thought even 96e47ad5e4 the back of d6498ba4eb his head looked b7fe5ae47f handsome.c256721a5d2e0719

Everyone seemed to be having fun. I wasn’t interested in the rumored sunbae, but the bright and lively atmosphere created by that one person piqued my curiosity.9fbc818b6db8fcd5

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As I changed 737fc9bf1e my path to 6d28b96c66 the opposite side 9114b77b1a of the lobby, 82bcc7e9da the rumored man 0c72de5d44 happened to look d041deb7ba my way. Even from a 147b754a4b distance, it felt e4cf297014 like our eyes 36a189b85c met.15410d42a2626382

“……?”39141ace5aca6694

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The two pairs 299312b490 of red eyes 43e1a1d1a7 I saw last 4924a37cf0 night stared intently 65af1e8d74 at me.388e8118c01cec0d

Thud-.2b7c0c928840a42f

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My heart sank, and I 7eb61a497a quickly turned away. As I hurriedly exited 59181b9269 the building, a chill 89d2d325e0 ran through my body. I felt like its gaze 1cb1b52a9a was following me. I started to run.eeab68dcd4425904

I have to get out.d7c38615b02edea9

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I have to get out 848c7ed7ab of here, get away from e925fa82ed that thing to survive.79ef241567baf2d3

What happened? Did I bring back 52862463ab what I encountered at 7890fb5271 the haunted house? Am I going 8ed2128e76 to fall into 1525adf4c9 a coma, losing 0ea59d9ff6 my spirit to cd02a8c96b it?4ac3d03571ae6e05

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When I returned to report to the employer, I heard nothing. If there was something strange, they would have told me. Seo Changgyung wasn’t kind but wouldn’t let me lose my spirit to a haunting ghost because he didn’t want to lose his only assistant.78a682685bb77925

I found a sunny spot 79200a42c9 with lots of foot traffic 835e4a33e9 outside the building. It was a desperate 69dd69da1e attempt to shake off d6d07b5a45 any negative energy. Under the late afternoon sun fceba182c7 in September, I held my d65844687c breath, waiting for the impending b9278be4ff disaster.9a6148a8b4a82c76

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But what came wasn’t a disaster; it was the opposite.5b5aac2508814cc3

When my breathing returned a786d1d01b to normal, the chills 911aa43948 subsided, and warmth returned, ec0956ba58 I concluded that the 98d1db69aa earlier incident had nothing b1315bb1fe to do with the fdf3c5b29c haunted ghost. The cause was that.8446631bd49b0c61

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‘What is that? Is it even human?’f5e86c892bb6f892

Facing the haunting 5a3e2653b2 ghost with red dfb9fca620 eyes was less 6c5cec9a0c terrifying.6fcd8a1da8398c8b

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I’d never been so scared of someone I didn’t know, so I analyzed the cause.a72d96ea8fdbdbbe

Why did I freak out? The eyes?273795c197690232

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In reality, it wasn’t a distance where I could confirm the eye color.cdbfe5b2724b835e

Fine, let’s say the red eyes were my illusion.980cb481dac38bca

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The extreme fear and shock from the haunted house couldn’t have dissipated in just a few hours.88b8e8a504b3a2bd

It must have left d91c71113a a trauma that suddenly 3c9924fedc manifested. But what triggered it?ec995c8ffe3eec16

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I don’t know. Is that sunbae a ghost?daa21b421daeba3c

Back to the hypothesis of “that sunbae isn’t human.” But this was an obviously wrong hypothesis that didn’t need testing.261ac671eda5504a

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I’m not particularly spiritually sensitive. Seeing spirits isn’t about having good reflexes; it’s about having a developed sixth sense, unrelated to the five senses.dd689261c060692f

Even if the employer set a summoned spirit next to me, I wouldn’t notice.604c1e887188846d

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Wouldn’t others see the ghostly eyes I saw?938436f3e78f328c

Impossible. If that sunbae feb7de3d43 were a real fe88fc3aac ghost, others would e11431e288 have noticed before d1a630ddea me.04fd1d6721796558

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‘Then what is that person? Do they have a ghost attached like me?’63a0cfbef8bc9a71

With a complicated 9d1329e826 mind, I stared edc1d5d4b7 at the building 7f24f976c6 I had fled 21c1b13ecc from for a e0345ea4cb long time, thinking 0482a20d7f of the ominous f0835b2697 figure lurking inside.b8f3504facc3cf59

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