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.cdc44ec24a3ee23d

I took the sacrificial offering 739cbdf34a prepared by Seo Changgyung and 66cb2ce151 exchanged it for the intended 569a0fa842 spirit.dc61cad5158c9685

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「Just exchanging? Not going to make eb313121f9 it a summoned spirit 6f89d099bc this time?」f4fcf4f2f5d84053

「It’s not at that level. That’s a spirit even a decent shaman can’t touch.」f0f9c61f4fc06fb9

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「Then why send me to such a dangerous place?」fbbd121b1c6c0f47

You go yourself, you jerk.b4863d716ee0b16e

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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?」a6a1d4e17f6ed86c

「…….」d81ec3f6803cb9ab

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「It’s not a crime, right?」3a520f6973a9ca03

「…….」7f9c9b8d741bc25c

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I wondered if I should a24abc7420 consider becoming a firefighter.f9f6c2704de5f697

The alarm set 7674b51d75 for the 7th 8c7dbbeec4 period class woke 60a911aea0 me up. The sunbae from the same b9a38552f8 department was just regaining consciousness, 26e2d6208c groaning about a splitting headache, 576953c539 and Kim Jaewon had already dd5ca0e166 gone to class.3391db9b0f7953cb

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Kim Jaewon left a 705cf711a8 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.78f1a202f84c3fa4

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.41b8989b58c1570a

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He wasn’t someone who’d offer money to just anyone, so I was momentarily touched.6b793a1f9616daef

After sitting the sunbae up, I gave him grape juice from Kim Jaewon’s fridge.3ed9999ddd3028bb

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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!”24b12bd8b5509f41

Skipping two days 5d70ef7361 of classes and 4b97df267f talking about honey 4f9da1601c water, huh.2b41e89fbb388e9c

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“Before I video call your mom, dad, and relatives in Jeju, zip it.”5d56c1dadfa3404f

“Yes, sir.”317aff59c91a2878

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The sunbae, with a strawberry 96abe7a227 nose from bloodshot eyes and 0dafa54c6b looking a mess, immediately quieted 995a45d491 down. He could guess his d1aaa01e0e state without needing a 9650948f70 mirror.6b2ef89ad45c812f

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.3ae0a9582ebd6238

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“Grapes are originally made with honey, you know. Haven’t you heard of honey grapes?”123cefc503ce220c

You can say e09b0940de anything to a 9a70ab87fa drunkard.ce7e3bda17ae4dc9

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“Oh, really?”093a1670e4bafb90

“Grapes are natural stomach medicine. They’re good for detox, so drink up. And down this bottle of water too.”ecb81941f9152958

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Just saying anything.0bcc68d9d8d0edfd

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.9f1ec01ad46ccdeb

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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.760892895eb50f2a

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.52a7f72d1c530903

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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.e9deeb5aa9e25059

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.44165bb69e547424

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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.”1a735a6114d73ea2

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.f7fae7feea1881fa

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I drew a circle with 46e9c320ec alcohol and salt and sat c0bf82f428 inside. The employer lent 05522a2fc1 me a summoned 8b8c128eed spirit to guard 06aab2f50e the barrier. The spirit, dressed like a daae55b506 scholar with a black hat, 58f72231fd looked like a grim reaper 60e46dfc65 and seemed strong, so I b2b22e842f trusted it, but by dawn, 71010fb09d it was dragged outside the 00fc125cd1 barrier and devoured.dc562ff1031462f4

Crunch, crunch. Munch, munch.c7a2ae2df9fef50a

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I learned for e2880b72a5 the first time 4e4e87373a that ghosts could 4eb23fe8af eat ghosts. That even formless 20471062d8 ghosts could be 6096099a55 devoured whole.fd5c0592099421ba

I covered my ears and 222ce708d3 prayed to Buddha, God, Allah, 027e1a720e Vishnu, and every deity I 3306338cb3 could think of. If I had known, I 5247390412 would have followed my mom 48934a7a4c to the temple more diligently. I should have borrowed a 972218acb7 Bible from my church-going neighborhood 08b6b8e5f4 friend.c22c35d9a3eacf50

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When it reached into cd4e1a32cb the useless barrier again, 2d57bc6141 I resigned myself, thinking d5adb1f826 it was my turn. I just hoped to die de0ad399e5 quickly before being miserably chewed f21e3fd6fc up.5f9382d47dff22d7

But it only a53639f221 placed the documents 4b74e6b4f1 I brought and 601da21205 turned away. When I confirmed bb191c96a6 the black handprint 1ad534e22c instead of a 983d5b7fbf signature, I looked 12f2d39404 up to see 3f3ce81706 it stretching and 4534ae2f34 standing up as 2aa162030b it walked toward 8a360d6204 the altar.a3eaa974041efa2d

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The haunting ghost 3e0513d5f3 of the abandoned f39fa676fa house, standing straight, 4496ca761f was over two 801c856a8c meters tall.aa502c4bd3066af2

Crunch, crunch. Munch, munch.c142b0626c210c17

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It accepted the sacrificial offering. The deal was sealed.738debcf9d8df569

Damn it, if you were going to stamp it anyway, why not do it quickly? Weren’t you Korean in life?2fdf5670361209a1

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Maybe it hesitated so long because it wasn’t satisfied with the sacrificial offering and was eyeing me.d3133ab78302037b

Holding my breath and suppressing a61904a877 even a sigh of relief, 68e63b70b6 I crawled out of the eaf679e3cc abandoned house. Outside, it was a bright aa5bd650f9 autumn morning under the sun.88be97d8815b57d2

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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.db2ba41b17a89773

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.f551c35626506db5

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“Is it such a difficult subject?”86c466ffadb9ebaa

I hadn’t even looked at an accounting book, so I couldn’t grasp it yet.65583b3871c7e10d

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Business Shin Young Joo Sunbae:[Kang Ji, my locker code #6023]2b2580af569d8609

Arriving at the business department, 2ad551833e I checked the message from 3e6f605d72 the sunbae who was ill. Since the locker was 13c2ff8c7f expiring tomorrow, I had 4d351fbaba to get the book d4e10e656a today.5cfc6e09f0bbc8d9

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As I entered the 9661091040 building known as Se 12a1bf028e Gyeong Hall, built by dde2c4626e the Se Gyeong Group, 4a29d15b28 I saw a crowd f4b6857a30 gathered on one side 7cddd65cac of the lobby, the 65227c1a25 size of a small 2b6d1959c0 playground. They were surrounding a single 605762ddf8 person. Even a passing professor was c0ae7eacdd drawn like a magnet and 578627ac4f headed that way.1a2622d5c04b186b

Ah, that’s it. The monkey show.4377afefc4cf7cce

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As rumored, he e83c5060ed was tall, and b0d83035fb even buried in bdf0103a5b the crowd, his 44f97c183c back was visible. Maybe the brainwashing by aa6720dd9c my peers worked because 7f79962f5c I momentarily thought even 15a411ff17 the back of his 638055fa4b head looked handsome.de5c030c3789dd5e

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.03d514e15202775d

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As I changed my path 50d4490183 to the opposite side of d326a57490 the lobby, the rumored man 47d238d7fd happened to look my way. Even from a distance, it ae2ce008f9 felt like our eyes met.3d3eb37228285b2e

“……?”a1cff6bb1c45c132

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The two pairs of red b946b13a67 eyes I saw last night d43aa76ebc stared intently at me.03e4776670597fb1

Thud-.440d66d5ce30cfe0

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My heart sank, and ca1bbad0c2 I quickly turned away. As I hurriedly 8977eed297 exited the building, 72534bc529 a chill ran 8152295ddd through my body. I felt like its d84a0d7df6 gaze was following me. I started to run.b0e8b4dbededa379

I have to get out.1a610841e5870bc4

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I have to get out b3e24e9271 of here, get away from 65bdd546fc that thing to survive.593704f067d33498

What happened? Did I bring back what cf612f3529 I encountered at the haunted 710803f164 house? Am I going to fall df7701ddbc into a coma, losing my e121e8c71a spirit to it?89fae3395b2a0829

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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.0fb821c11797eabd

I found a ec2c5cf13c sunny spot with 3520eca169 lots of foot 39de021350 traffic outside the 6fc937a935 building. It was a desperate 81a96bf3bd attempt to shake off cf8e190cf0 any negative energy. Under the late afternoon sun 98cf2994b3 in September, I held my 39cc226387 breath, waiting for the impending 2c3e969752 disaster.8a095745333ca153

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But what came wasn’t a disaster; it was the opposite.a93b0a4cbb52ff87

When my breathing returned to 834e6e4699 normal, the chills subsided, and 0527946186 warmth returned, I concluded that 4a7a2cd4b6 the earlier incident had nothing a6f5c83f9c to do with the haunted c6e721cd0e ghost. The cause was that.021787878f9386c5

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‘What is that? Is it even human?’e9d0560b1324985d

Facing the haunting 8eab991faa ghost with red 18721f4331 eyes was less 3447a7c98f terrifying.094976fc8c0c487a

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I’d never been so scared of someone I didn’t know, so I analyzed the cause.e77e4e846160f1be

Why did I freak out? The eyes?ce04f1597a77b42d

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In reality, it wasn’t a distance where I could confirm the eye color.a56f9288d6eb9378

Fine, let’s say the red eyes were my illusion.babba54fa0182064

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The extreme fear and shock from the haunted house couldn’t have dissipated in just a few hours.a4402f8a012109a1

It must have f0db45c0eb left a trauma ea4e44a250 that suddenly manifested. But what triggered it?f560a542e4892854

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I don’t know. Is that sunbae a ghost?8641ac729217d1b2

Back to the hypothesis of “that sunbae isn’t human.” But this was an obviously wrong hypothesis that didn’t need testing.d61226886103b2d7

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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.ab6521f75171e24b

Even if the employer set a summoned spirit next to me, I wouldn’t notice.f61a7e2864dabd1d

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Wouldn’t others see the ghostly eyes I saw?6b6536241bebbb50

Impossible. If that sunbae were a 2d47c00bca real ghost, others would have 7ef8bce206 noticed before me.cee358ac8b060a14

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‘Then what is that person? Do they have a ghost attached like me?’cff4e444c708f88e

With a complicated mind, I ae07d2781e stared at the building I 1a9a5cecbe had fled from for a 4bf5c6a150 long time, thinking of the 7bc5edaa42 ominous figure lurking inside.67d84193a59b0247

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