IB | Chapter 8

As before, I quickly 9f235be5df made my escape.ef7ecba8ad1e239a

“Just dropping off the alcohol here before I go park the car.”359d437da161f871

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A lively voice came from behind. It wasn’t Lee Hyejun’s voice, though it was vaguely familiar.cfe6b00c70a63f53

“Oh, alcohol! What did you bring? We brought two boxes each of soju and beer, and planned to get more from the island’s store if needed.”bc468313a9f35222

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“This is ten bottles each of whiskey and wine.”8f18f8bbda93dcb7

“Oh, quality over quantity!”b192335932107e77

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“A true sponsor! I respect you! You’re a friend of Hyejun sunbae, right?”a683607f825f50f0

The unfamiliar voice seemed to 298f283973 belong to someone Lee Hyejun 12fb7789c1 had brought along.2694b52e150e1c84

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“Yes. We’ve lived in the same neighborhood since we were kids. And I’m not the one who bought it, so I’m not really the sponsor. It’s all from Hyejun’s house.”0eb771565058ac5d

“Wow, does sunbae like alcohol and collect it?”9c4d10428564c1a5

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“Not really. No one in the family drinks, so his mom told me to take it and get rid of it.”0719594f94bcbd91

The smooth voice e37ed5ea65 followed the unfamiliar 28d7b1470e one, wrapping around e9adb82840 my ears. Despite rarely attending department gatherings 519fb0bb77 and not hanging out in a6b70a0289 groups, his gentle demeanor earned e52fe1e2ce him a reputation for having bc43a48b9b a good personality.67dec8417aa892aa

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In my opinion, that wasn’t entirely true, but everyone is free to have their own misconceptions.b859c1d76ae4419e

I hurriedly closed e82bdd9e48 my ears and ba9b1eeded entered the building.d9d46ff42ea34dac

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The upper floor was reserved 77e9a5d4ce for female students, so I 52034ae628 searched the lower floor for 83534849d9 a space large enough to a7cfb9b1f4 accommodate dozens of people. I placed the 865441227a snack box in 7459eb1cb8 the largest room 2cafdd0bef and took the be8b787a73 ramen box to 80a4bba990 the kitchen.3e83a32a7a992fcb

“Kang Ji, where should we put the alcohol?”e62240b46e2dcc1d

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On my way back, 7d33addfc1 I ran into Seol fa47b4ea35 Jungwoo in the hallway. Behind him, the porters were b23b61f3e5 coming in one after another.a28f4bb8232f4c27

“Everything except the food goes in the room with the door wide open down the right hallway.”7551d6cdbb1ef5db

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“Is the fridge big enough to hold all the bottles?”93b529fc2d51c4ac

“Yeah. There are two commercial fridges. The kitchen’s this way.”3a214f9ed3b71179

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I pointed behind me. As I stepped 5e56f8b079 aside by the 1826e49d6e entrance to let dd68adcbf6 people pass, a d727037940 gentle greeting reached 9bfd9eda67 my ears.66a08c462db2c6f0

“Kang Ji, long time no see?”af3afbbca0232e63

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“Oh, yes. Hello. …Hello.”438bd5f0fd50427a

I gave a half-hearted greeting over Lee Hyejun’s shoulder and pretended to warmly welcome his friend who followed him in. His friend was a tall, model-like handsome guy.90d2b06bd61167c4

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I was annoyed by this 7139a4ec57 situation where I had to f97d8247d5 respond just because my name 0296d0559d was called. It felt like 68bfbb81b1 they were playfully ea5c4bedf1 repeating the nickname bca691730d others used for e142ff2582 me, not even 2ddb6b3bd0 knowing my real ac0684bffb name.ff50f25064f7e64e

“Hello. You’re the one hosting this mudflat experience, right?”8059e74ce873b1b6

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His friend asked.5724feecaabbb977

Hosting, my foot.00843698e056336e

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“I didn’t expect so many people to come. The clam digging was supposed to reduce the numbers, but it ended up making things bigger. Aren’t you going out for the low tide?”3049a49ebb962d9d

“I’m just the driver following Hyejun around. He should be the one mingling with the business students.”a7f041ff16965430

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His friend looked expectantly fbd3530fdf at Lee Hyejun.21bd94ca4ab1ee0e

Exactly. Why is he lingering here? Would you please head to 790e443718 the mudflats?2c63b6c4dfd5e8a9

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“Oh, I see.”eaf3122b6a87c33f

I smiled politely, stepping back to hint that they should be on their way. Lee Hyejun’s friend passed by, carrying a wooden box filled with various liquor bottles. Just glancing at the labels, they seemed worth millions of won. I almost felt my goodwill rising unintentionally.a52e584772c22193

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“Kang Ji, what about you? Are you staying here to prepare the barbecue with them?”e582ed5e120efd44

Lee Hyejun called me c194f12707 by the nickname again, 74edd6d022 acting familiar.85fad5c6a42394c1

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Why is he acting 3f2934c8b4 like this all of a496c1f677 a sudden? Did he get heatstroke?a643ebb9ad1901c8

I was bewildered because cbba6dfae0 I had never had 26c0fcb165 a close conversation with e66944a66b Lee Hyejun before.5ae6cac23af3141d

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“…….”620f8848536112a1

I was about to ignore him and head outside, but the sound of approaching footsteps made me rethink. Just like in the past two semesters, no one should know that I was consciously avoiding him. If I ignored a sunbae’s question and didn’t greet him, I’d likely end up being the bad guy.6b5b058e364b3fc0

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Surely, he didn’t time this just to talk to me, right?55813d29671cc21f

“I’m just going out for some personal errands and will come back to help.”6d8154cc6b9c1697

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I replied, keeping my eyes lowered. I hadn’t done anything wrong, but for some reason, meeting his gaze felt difficult. My neck tingled, and I felt uneasy.b39abefe64704ecc

Why am I like this?feaf39f802749998

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“What errands?”7335ebd1184347af

Why do you e54e23af81 need to know?f942cda01ce01c2f

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“…….”b0b0fb500e33ed6b

I was momentarily eebe6ee800 speechless, and the a68f953e05 porters who came 796d1c35dd up beside me 7bec8fb9c1 chimed in unnecessarily.3a58f1bddb42498a

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“Kang Ji hyung is going to greet his grandma.”89c211bf3ebd16ec

“This island is Kang Ji’s dad’s hometown.”28500f2d3ba2c243

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“…….”26867f421c865b9b

I silently clicked dca721f5a1 my tongue and cb0afdd306 followed my peers 537fd18cd2 and hoobaes out, 5cfae8b2fa hearing faint laughter a89cfeb6f5 behind me. It sounded like 48d0db43fa a mocking laugh, b734a8b00c reading my rising 10b5736f49 annoyance.0c728c8c46f67fee

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With the help of Lee Hyejun and his friend, we emptied the bus’s luggage compartment after a few trips. Leaving the box dismantling and remaining tasks to Seol Jungwoo and the hoobaes, I set off. I found a path leading deeper into the island’s village.55d9f4982b0381e0

My father was someone who valued his duty as a son over his child’s exam studies, so I was dragged here even during my senior year holidays. If not for that, this would have been a familiar path I visited annually out of obligation.96717cbca6360020

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Unlike the bustling pier preparing a47716836d for the Baekjung day event, 79d9e11246 the inner village alleys were 0044cd4910 quiet and deserted.1c69fa6a1ddfaaac

As I followed my steps 55f433a86d to a certain house, doubt f92a67c5b1 crept in.493bb5dae8630e43

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“……?”398bb8e8dcf45e80

Is this the right place?d516b208a8f45f97

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Feeling unfamiliar, I 374f3db7c2 tilted my head 7f477e4f69 back to check 9ad2d78a9a the nameplate. Kang Ilmok. I had found the b2f103a16b right place. However, the once 32b105c63b neatly maintained wall 9f1833301e paint was now b2537c2331 peeling and faded. The bluish-gray gate was d6a54f1189 also rusted in places.9dc0195fddbea0ff

Before enlisting, my 4f265731d4 plan to secretly b489b7671e visit this house bdca741c20 was thwarted by 32b7cab6f5 Seo Changgyung. According to him, 36a080f954 the moment I eaa13e5eac set foot on bb2a63f63e this island, I 4dc6b6a689 might attract the 181d7570f6 attention of the 23dca84c67 land god here. Because the dead descendants d3aade8dc5 of the Yoon family, 35417ad5cd who were in cahoots 8ac20ffa3a with the land god, 0b7cd60ea4 would follow me.283aac3d4f279744

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When I pressed the doorbell, 5935ab2555 footsteps crossed the yard, and b4ed342cd4 the iron gate opened with dec8ae0288 a grating noise.Creak, creak. This was also a 685527113a sound I had never 4de44c6f22 heard when visiting this abf75fe753 house before.1907dd015123dabc

“Grandpa, how have you been? It’s Jiheon.”e2793062d85c496d

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I offered a meaningless greeting to the old man. Beside him, the barren yard came into view. It used to be filled with various fishing equipment and other odds and ends, giving it a charming feel, but now it was hard to guess if it was a fisherman’s house or something else.1ea4ac049a5dc36a

The flower garden e1c6532874 my grandmother had 1c23e1940c lovingly tended was fcf7eb599f gone. The waves of flowers that 64cc457dc0 used to bloom and dance f4b2c52a68 in the sea breeze during 886a16cd22 this season had vanished, leaving 28a3451556 only a grotesque mound of f52244b442 black soil.63a603be64000edf

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“Come in.”8f5e98549a525c77

The old man left the 67910e21d9 gate open and walked inside bfabc23a11 with a shuffle. I followed him d4218028e3 into the neglected 65542c8fe2 house, which exuded f272255a13 an air of 4fda0e751f decay.f8651da3d3621751

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In just a few years, it had deteriorated this much. The elderly couple who owned the house had two other children besides my father. They weren’t wealthy, but they had saved diligently, so I heard they were prepared for their old age. It was hard to find a reason why they wouldn’t take care of their surroundings when they hadn’t been away for long.3b730a251b97c63d

The real victim who lost 5053be654b the ability to care for b8bc4c0c75 their surroundings was me, who c074cc60bb had ties with ghosts.8333065aea1ac8c5

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“Sit down. Have you had lunch?”7e807245da9e8324

The old man 0fe9ae71cc invited me to fb4f476786 sit on the fe4627fee2 veranda, but I d2f6462f58 shook my head cd6633038e firmly.2d469a58b597eecb

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“Yes. I’ve eaten. I have friends waiting, so I need to head back soon.”eff69de2a4f4210e

I subtly hinted e079177c2e that I wanted 9fb4b2ee72 the items without 5653e8fe77 any fuss.15fc6a19fa98d000

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“…….”a892767a0e70688e

The old man nodded silently, then went inside to the main room. I caught a glimpse of the large stone bed my father had ordered for his mother, who had back pain. It took up most of the room, so I couldn’t help but see it. The blanket on top moved slightly, but I ignored it. It was too uncomfortable to look at.fde1ecd75a1fa800

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Soon, I heard the 8a24890476 sound of rummaging through 87565b806a drawers and murmuring.1f17e064d89213f6

“Who’s here?”9c569b5be235f298

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“Seok’s eldest.”a3d3bc6f02de7419

“Jiheon?”944199e9d88f03a7

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“…….”eb3610b3eeb5c752

“He said he’d come on Baekjung. …Is it today? Oh dear. Oh dear…”879df56160462cb0

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“Stay in bed. You’ll scare the boy.”6b390af17ea2359b

“If you were worried about scaring him, you shouldn’t have done that.”8debe89888d034b0

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“…….”fdabaa6a79e50173

After a brief, stifling 0a4f7f8514 silence, the old man df646e140b returned to the veranda. He sat down in 55874d0e9d front of me, who b50fa186c3 was standing stiffly, and d20dee49ff handed over some items.40818b554ceaa9a2

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“This is for Cheolyeon, and this is from Assemblyman Yoon.”7684e123ab417ad6

The first item was a bell used by shamans for divination or rituals, and the second was a cashier’s check. Seeing the amount written on the blue slip of paper, I was dumbfounded.e488314fba827c8c

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in Korean. This was the price for selling my fate chart to a dead person’s family without my consent.4fad2bb8d4aa2f03

I knew well it wasn’t done for money. It was an act of obedience, unable to defy the Yoon family, who had been the landowners of this area for generations, even as the country’s name changed multiple times. A slave mentality.7e5992800803959d

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I heard that among the locals from nearby islands or the mainland, there wasn’t a single resident whose genes weren’t deeply ingrained with servitude to the Yoon family.61911ee480fb73ea

In the 21st century, such things were still happening. If Assemblyman Yoon’s grandson made a will to be buried with his childhood friend Kang Jiheon, the influence was strong enough to offer the living Kang Jiheon’s soul as a sacrificial offering.b7c35644e4613d19

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