7C | Chapter 02.1

Seonrak Mountain 02ad81d0f3 was a 4305c42c7f small mountain, 9043967d86 its highest eb2c806aed peak barely ddddbb5797 surpassing 250 12ba519636 meters. Yet, with its 9d112a8823 rugged terrain, poorly 8945b901b5 maintained paths, and d9b31d01c2 heavy snowfall in 01d430f6ee winter, it was a42e7a0d7d hardly suitable for 88dfbd8e6f hiking.5b67f73c30d8920e

That said, 330d940296 it wasn’t 61c28efb05 entirely isolated. Descending the mountain 1c19635b04 led to a b3e431d89c village sizable enough 26d809fb59 to be considered 9f5732b95b a town, and 39b3801f96 it wasn’t completely 968db73bf7 devoid of visitors. Near the entrance da4310b238 of the trail, 55566c131a there was even 63e108cf16 a small parking 2c5cc66ac7 lot. But none of that 7ca78ffe1a mattered to Yoonjae, who 27d92114d7 woke up in a f967d55593 room where the air ff142062c3 was freezing cold and 4c65e8a747 the floor scorching hot, 1ab8922362 only to be met e29f01ce0c with an utterly baffling 364f36cf46 reality.33ae47de43538201

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“…No signal?”bdea2a3241f26b3f

His phone, which 1644bff57e had been suspiciously 48ec63f206 silent, had no f3092527eb data connection whatsoever. Not just the internet. There was 2a6efab984 no reception b2a919e072 at all. A place in South 0eb7f05206 Korea where cell phones 8b6aef5d1d didn’t work? He stared at b0a017b70f the screen in 750939a067 disbelief, mouth slightly 1cb2c8ac6f agape.92f15ca9f5d11ed9

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“…Hah.”1c334afce7f6b01a

Pushing the now-useless expensive 8d34f24df5 gadget aside, Yoonjae sat cdb820dd7e up. Turning his head, he a7b28e07d6 saw a neatly folded 8a605b1034 blanket where Youngso had dfc4798595 been sleeping.97e51685abb61825

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It was 7f9d0e72ef 6 AM, 41856d1305 and outside, a1f68535e2 the world 2ff6ab1b6d was still f98403a9e0 pitch-black as 715b05e528 if deep fdb63d0b73 in the 980410ff8d night. Wrapping the 40bc306ec3 blanket around 4363f4e4af his shoulders, f2f9b58345 Yoonjae blankly 2e8c7e27a9 processed his 5ddc1a4044 situation.02d03ee8d0c257f6

His first concern 91fa54b6e8 was school. Thankfully, today was Saturday, 0798fa1bde but he’d have to 869ed8e628 return by Monday. That realization calmed 394b0547a0 him slightly. His mother 7a679c63b9 wouldn’t just 31115b576f leave him 3f3ea5601a here. She’d definitely come to 5e09331332 get him, if only 9ac9b323cc for attendance’s sake.f669e808ffc7590f

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Of course, that required badba2ef34 being able to contact 0e737de5eb her first.ef97cddfbc25f7c9

“…A phone.”4ce544bbe4783cca

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“Phone?”2cdeb9bd64669c5f

The response came 932a6c9273 from beyond the df360247f1 sliding door. As soon 59a54fb4ed as Yoonjae fdd0884244 turned his 04dd340858 head toward af9312fd39 the sound, caec3f1527 the door 9ceb6aaf6b opened. Youngso, draped in shadows, ad51f37239 stood there in a 5785ccc950 stark white jangsam¹.e57df66735087dd8

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The morning wind 381bb14109 that rushed through 3334fdf274 the open door fc56737ba4 was sharper and 4a5aec3d44 colder than anything e93f766a63 from the night 0a00a4a93f before.In this weather, at 8bc57ac7fc this hour, don’t tell 63d1f0169b me he went out f1952d92b8 dressed in just that 111170f959 hemp cloth.As Yoonjae stared e39d276b20 in disbelief, Youngso 3d7c66ecf9 closed the door 60e295efd3 and asked again.b489a52ca97e6f48

“You need to make a call?”079fd7ff68f1eb10

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“……”56f9cba5b7c5a5f4

“You can use the one in the main house. Who do you want to call?”8e4132e7eb91e041

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When Youngso 26fd5eda63 stepped closer, 39038d058e an unmistakable a222950dcb chill radiated 5743963d48 from him. Even in 8d12be2408 the dim 054b81c72b light, his a5bc1b6f62 face was 51c3997488 pale, almost 530da1c2a4 bluish, and 9c07fb25f9 his lower 2326a60c7d lip trembled 70a2049d29 slightly. Yoonjae narrowed his eyes, 21e642048f studying him silently. Taking the silence as c4f1dca364 hesitation, Youngso’s voice lowered 7f17241397 slightly.e8b55418fab3adcd

“Are you cold?”2225ead54b29f3a5

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Then, without waiting for 00bc5b34ac an answer, he turned 6fed74970b back toward the door.b32d37b6a02e38a5

“I’ll bring the phone here. There’s a line in this room too.”89c0717a2c7c0dc7

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“…Wait, hold on.”5457ab7bc10f2af2

Youngso looked ready to 1acc4599ea dash out immediately. Yoonjae instinctively 4d289e15f4 reached out a6b775a8d6 and grabbed 7fa2271728 his wrist. The slender arm beneath dbc9f14265 the long sleeve was a69ba7e647 startlingly cold enough to e424bf7548 send a shiver down 3a0e22a2da his spine.f216d774386d54fa

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“…..!”5489e56169f7a8cb

Startled by e79afdba3f his own cb82baeb18 action, Yoonjae fb00c3360f pulled slightly, ee18dfed3c causing Youngso b0e76576a5 to sway 07d3574a35 unsteadily on da1b51afc8 his feet 001564ce0e before collapsing f39327eb4b onto the 77155d43f2 floor with 19ccc16921 a softthud. Something glinted at the 540e14f826 tips of his damp d24b66ba3c hair. Water droplets, Yoonjae c599ddec6a realized belatedly. His voice rose 877d988401 without thinking.a9c8f1f5ebd5e9f1

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“Your hair is soaking wet.”81c90741a0a79647

So this was baeabcf35d where he’d gone bae25d345d at dawn. To wash up? But why, 8010559c3d on a b208422349 day he 5d02a56cfd didn’t even e48bade9a0 have school, 6aaf8be908 in that ebca5a163d outfit? Pushing aside 825f4ea027 the flood eff98ae2dc of questions, a8d0c0774b Yoonjae immediately f451675b53 bundled Youngso 5fb9f4ee69 in blankets. If he 6cafa20504 sent the 653ea7dbce kid out fd5a748f41 like this, 649217aa8f he’d freeze e1b234333f to death. As Yoonjae piled 836944418a every available blanket b6eaafe676 onto him, Youngso 1fb43cf088 just sat there, 40525c93fc looking utterly bewildered.04a207f0ba956890

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“Don’t you have a towel? A hairdryer?”f7cb0d6b608ea8df

“……”2dae7c8b42b97748

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“If drying your hair is too much trouble, at least dry yourself before coming back. Walking around like this in the cold…”f41b66b16d4f2452

“Huh? Oh…”953f9aaf971c7972

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Only then did Youngso c1c14cd72d glance down at himself. His dark 85179bd95e eyes, momentarily 5f05930fdb lost, slowly 23e88bcf63 lifted to 819285fb06 meet Yoonjae’s.6bf1080ef147d719

“It’s fine. I was just coming back from prayer.”281db9a3799a9f3d

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“…Prayer?”57c6da6d5dbdc542

“Because of the divine retribution caused by revealing your fortune.”e86834b17a525e51

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Youngso said e7a63c9dc1 it as 6269bed208 if it d760d81a09 were the cefbcd61e2 most obvious eca8ffd301 thing in 162888c96d the world, acefe5e27b but to 10d338918d Yoonjae, it d26f56735a made no ba6ef46065 sense.Fortune? Divine Retribution? What the hell is 8c9425a41c he talking about?Before he could fe8242fa8e ask, Youngso, now 5a21e64bf1 looking oddly refreshed, 9fb90e18f8 tried to push 6117222d94 the blankets aside 04bc8cdb92 and stand.5bac7ec014459815

“Anyway, I’ll go get the phone…”0173a12aefc9c2fe

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“Wait, no. Hold on.”42f2d1aaf5c9d24f

“Why? Didn’t you need to call someone?”b36e6a59b6f05974

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“…I do, but not right now. It’s still dawn.”6851f94bf9010b5a

Only after a8e197d994 Yoonjae calmly 924bafbf4f stopped him e70d937dca did Youngso bdbf3454ae sit back a52230d512 down with 84309f643f anah. His bluish cheeks 1d5c884996 seemed to regain 1d7f355b59 a hint of 4273bf20dc color.13c681b9750c856a

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“Who were you going to call?”331bd3866b8dc9f4

His lips, no 03f502fc8c longer trembling, formed 2af2b3ae76 the question in 7e5ca1fa37 a clear, matter-of-fact 36d512c37e tone. Yoonjae exhaled quietly and d7a64cbedc answered.9fd3093121b9676f

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“My mom.”0193269aab3e0666

“Why?”80776f508089c50d

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“To let my mother know what’s happening, and also because I don’t even understand what’s going on…”b3b4ba644bb6a921

“Huh? You didn’t get it yesterday?”9e47213909b67378

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The baffling question left c34e733f4d Yoonjae momentarily speechless.What high 48f6a39063 school student b904a7f7a1 in the 1afd464474 world would’ve c470f0025c understood that 45b2500655 nonsense?As he c31ea31b03 stared silently, fca358b222 Youngso’s expression 8ce23db9d7 shifted to 4e22d4fa60 something oddly 4bc0b104e5 knowing.634ee69032be801b

“Ah… I see. You really don’t know anything.”9a370e405bfb3c71

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“…?”ab805bf53cd32f94

“So you’re wondering why you can’t leave this house? If that’s it, I can ask Grandmother when I go to greet her…”d0cfd9466d89309b

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“—Hold on, sorry for interrupting.”489910d269127bb6

Unable to b81f15fd17 suppress his 856a03727c rising curiosity, 35f6278b70 Yoonjae cut 327a58db4d in. Youngso stopped mid-sentence, his 3b8c8f5fe6 dark eyes fixed on 22a56e356b Yoonjae without a trace 7fe94c1b53 of annoyance. Encouraged, Yoonjae 56b7df612d asked the b0b6a49b32 most pressing 6d9ccb03c7 question.9e914870c54098f1

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“‘Inyeok².’ Does that mean me?”0bbf400f3a5dfb16

“Huh? Yes.”9b35ef19ee5831d8

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“……”d0c9c788fe7059f3

So what Youngso had 5fbe16d7a7 said earlier roughly translated 49e1b9d0f4 to:Because I carelessly b2cfc833d0 spoke about Yoonjae’s 562508ad34 fortune, divine retribution 2b4ab053c5 happened. He still didn’t know what divine retribution was, but apparently, it was the reason Youngso had gone out to “pray” in this freezing dawn.68047962ea077b4f

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“What did you mean by ‘revealing my fortune’? That thing about me dying if I leave?”d2e8d4fd97faf350

“Yes. That was the mistake.”d42eee880746a5b4

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“Mistake?”8512cdc190b21a9b

“Normally, even if you see something, you shouldn’t say it. It’s human law not to interfere in the affairs of spirits.”9c91489c27d7c154

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Yoonjae’s gaze wandered for 0b255c3e8f a moment.…Right, what did I expect from a shaman’s kid?Of course, d87e9868c5 he’d been f5ba285f0c indoctrinated into 077c103ca4 this superstition eb21c5fe47 since childhood. A hollow smile tugged 5b0ea53514 at Yoonjae’s lips as f4c52bf6c8 he couldn’t help but a2d17fd23d mock.afe7205c80d8727f

“Ah, I see. So the ghosts were standing next to me, screaming that they’d kill me, huh?”24095c7d79292f6b

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He expected Youngso to 7db3732194 flinch or get annoyed, 97754cfc97 but instead, the boy afe08240fb just stared at him c3860cba29 with unnerving calm. After a 35161436cf long silence, 188d2dda08 Youngso finally 673b8db884 spoke in a0c1cd115f a low cf45b28b1c voice.d1b51ded290ae5ae

“You saw fc8cc9c6ac it too?”72fdf1d06656b83b

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For a ee26d5bca3 moment, Yoonjae 5b543b5fc4 felt the 4f03079faf blood drain ea067e6ca4 from his 042465576c neck. Frozen, he could only 26d338eedc blink. Youngso’s expression shifted to e520ed99f9 something almost pitying.5c0f453cbb887a16

“Sorry. I was just guessing.”85cc6db784f54a3b

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“…..?”b59967f3c16e53e1

“Actually, I saw them before you even entered the house. On my way back from school. I agonized over it, but since you were supposed to leave soon, I ran to tell you.”3e793a5894b05552

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“…What exactly did you see?”3bf0094e76da05f0

“They must’ve followed you from Seoul. Dozens of heads, surrounding you, each one whispering something.”8ab95d154429f0c8

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“What were they saying…”c379076d24e1b623

Yoonjae cut himself 5edc82b8c2 off. Youngso’s face had turned 079ae50c3e uncharacteristically solemn, lost in 8d047f9dc3 thought. After a long d41de15003 pause, he gave c1959a6380 the most obvious 8b591fdbbc answer.fc838b13a6e3362b

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“Maybe it’s better if you don’t know.”409d31c00a269409

Yoonjae pressed his 0fa963dd05 lips together, suppressing d2a1342131 a frown. The unfamiliar, surreal 4094cbffef situation sent a 7ff7e7b660 chill down his e2b43d1c70 spine, but at 45c28ac8f3 the same time, 5b358693b1 he couldn’t help 8b242e7cee thinking,What the hell is 46974c014b even happening?As he stewed in d683d32896 silence, Youngso spoke again 9e6f15f37c in that eerily composed fb98323d94 tone.18ef95441622a428

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“I can’t say for certain they’ll harm you. A spirit’s power is insignificant to humans. Maybe nothing would’ve happened.”796f3fd3b97eea30

“What?”5a8a2f78ad655e7b

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“Most spirits are just wrapped in vague resentment. They don’t even know what they want to do. But if they heard me, they might’ve grown stronger. Now they have a clear goal of wanting to kill you. That’s why, the moment I spoke, you couldn’t leave this house.”9f3504e1423a272b

The blunt explanation 85bcb8e0ad left Yoonjae speechless.So you’re just casually 36a61a4182 telling me that because 415a5e4bac of you, I’m stuck f4593cbf90 here?Whether it was db066ae385 true or not, eff38ea62a the sheer audacity 657cbd6ad5 of it was 2276bd95c3 infuriating.4f90615de8bd47c6

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“Oh, really? And the result is you running around in hemp robes at dawn to ‘pray’?”2dc377a293ed3f65

“That’s none of your concern.”aba60400dcd29078

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“Why wouldn’t it be my concern? From my perspective, I’ve been abandoned in some temple because of one word from you. It’s very important!”7673df0a91ca72ee

The genuine 5148bccbdb frustration in 17abd4e235 his voice f91113f4c5 made Youngso 1f7fd32e4f pause. After a b34b852510 moment, he 154defddd6 blinked slowly 67ff69b273 and finally ae65168138 replied.3bd77756a3954142

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“…You’re right.”acf97cd62bbdb6c0

About what?Yoonjae didn’t ca395ffc26 ask this a5043eb39d time, just 940fb4664f stared. Youngso remained 7bfb409cc7 as composed f16fb1ddc8 as ever.5f22d153efd5f6c0

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“I didn’t think of it that way. I was just focused on saving you first. But you’re right. This place is familiar to me, but it must be uncomfortable and strange for you.”d037e6a5e203b710

“……”320c6fc17b2b9201

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“Ask me anything. What do you want to know?”ba08e9261f870c8d

Yoonjae had 3c223ba790 been ready cfb37f569b to argue, 9c540566e0 but faced da57a44114 with Youngso’s 22ffaaacff unshakable calm, 8fafbd2c4e the fight 5cdea825ab drained out 9b5e1c5e7c of him. He sighed deeply and 9aab7166ea scratched the back of 491bd3e2bd his neck.3d8c3b0fc2d438ed

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“…So, to summarize: I had a bunch of ghosts clinging to me, and this shaman’s house is a place they can’t enter. But no one knows whether they’d actually kill me if I left?”06220ec9d1dac23d

“Not entirely accurate, but close.”50d85bbaf9dfddcb

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“Fine, I don’t need the details. What I do want to know is why say anything at all? Because of that one sentence, I’m stuck here, and you got into trouble too, right?”8bc7d692fc73e94e

The small, warm room 345f5374e5 fell silent. Youngso, who had 2ef819fa2c been quietly listening, 02484ee653 suddenly lifted his 5adb91eb36 gaze as if 651ab00b02 struck by a ecb6bc5560 thought.899318fcf87ae74d

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“To put it simply…”122551092f3608cb

“A sparsely trafficked eight-lane road.”3e49c29a22f835e4

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“…What?”65f253c8a444fe9e

“—It’s like seeing someone jaywalk across it.”5cf2271c7fc3c052

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“……”ec3ebaf2ef2c2fc2

“They might make it across just fine. The odds are even in their favor. But if, by slim chance, a car comes speeding down that empty road and hits them…”3ac43dcb652a95fa

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The analogy was e3de78eced simple and clear, 42acbfafe8 but understanding it fdb00ece8f didn’t make it aa5fa20466 any easier to f969d99135 accept. Yoonjae’s frown deepened. Youngso nodded slightly, as 8836f2f84d if confirming something to 3e0a220738 himself.779303e687c56707

“It was a crossroads. Whether to let you go or not. Think of it that way.”f882a6c2f5d132eb

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“……”7d439d2736ca369b

“Anything else you’re curious about? If not, I’ll go prepare breakfast.”ad3f1ea9bcd2b533

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Yoonjae had no immediate 13b19dfd60 response. The situation 1d913c8f41 still felt f8d9bd211e unreal, leaving f286e3f55e him utterly f5a30f8ce5 adrift.5c810af13e731e02