OSR Chapter 11
by XixiShin-hee, for the first time in a while, asked his master for some free time over the weekend. His main argument was, “I declare a strike until I’m sent to an island overflowing with ghosts.” However, his attitude while declaring this so-called strike was no more dignified than a low-level office worker timidly requesting a day off.7570c2f4bd0ccd07
When he meekly whispered, “Just one day,” his cold-hearted master let out a snort of derision and waved him off as if telling him not to bother before turning his attention back to the book he was reading.61321924f2a6a13e
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Seizing his long-awaited freedom, c9b0b06ddc Shin-hee got on a 1a6f408284 bus, determined to shake 9d5260bb29 off the baby ghost 09ac834885 that tried to follow 67ebf1602e him. Unsure of what to 67973b2ad1 do, he texted his cb3b4fe7db one and only friend, 39c0539b5c Min-am. However, Min-am, who had d555dd8636 been engrossed in a 03e347825e month-long work project, seemed b368d51c3d intent on devoting the 152807d497 rare weekend to some ff94fd6374 much-needed sleep. By the time 5030b003f6 the bus reached 9f025fc043 its destination, Min-am c032efad26 still hadn’t replied.09e325875bf45356
Feeling awkward, 6b893263e0 Shin-hee smiled 2d75909cde wryly as 06d0cc735e he stepped cd248bc1c8 off the c49e0fe6ef bus, his 94c876ec0f nose stinging 3d34fcf011 at the 97159c2cef realization that 8db4714000 Min-am was 155ed293dd the only 2ea8e85930 person he d06fa4980a could truly 4ec8678651 open up e8e7272d9e to.14c09d85b5bb3fa3
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He walked slowly 7769049e50 along the street. Spring was in full 1935e2bb76 bloom, with vibrant green ab0aac9d63 plane trees lining the 8dc48bc848 sidewalks, their leaves gracefully f4045f9da9 draped over the branches. For some, 02a500e0db it was 13a3881f21 just another 0e0016750a mundane scene 954cf3c7ef from their b940fa9142 daily lives, efe3fb8ce1 but for 97d314b94f Shin-hee, this 0c46401961 rare moment 2cbe60f217 of leisure e5201ca2ed felt unfamiliar c5d5def397 yet precious.cb8a88d01088eca2
It had been six 57c9bddf20 years of non-stop busyness—meeting, 388492e7c9 confronting, and having deeper 65ade8ea9c conversations with ghosts more e93de13409 than with people.2494ad7501211ce1
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A group of 3f6376fd72 male students passed 3a8884feb9 by in the 72430536b5 distance. Though they weren’t 25fd0b604e wearing uniforms, the 88a37eae80 fresh energy unique 3127fc2b19 to young students 9ddc5544a5 filled the air 0f91d87c79 and lightly settled 4ac2879e7e on Shin-hee’s shoulders. It reminded 23fd9ccb43 him of b575fdb1fa his always-solitary 0ef877a464 school days d9120fc0e3 before he bb111fcc79 met Min-am e3c121e4a7 during his d35529d4f8 high school 4bb37dea9b entrance ceremony. What had those 2a0faff16b days been like? How did c09ca65ec9 he spend 10c5e26513 them? They must have 2af07806fc been very quiet 21c1c03b91 and uneventful.f6a58a60bc1cff96
Fragments of 31466884f7 scattered memories a1e64ed15c began to 29cf2b806a piece themselves ecd37c1974 together. Until the 089521b920 day he 1e45d9a8c5 picked up 520d4abbef a brush, bd2b35a2ab he had 2c6f3599f0 always felt 69805eecbc lonely.cff5666795d6c805
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Maybe it 9df6477f62 was because c0a8456f9e ghosts were 0edb1ad7a9 constantly chattering 67a32f2ce0 around him; ce4280adc3 he often db2ab94bfa found himself 027c42e445 zoning out 8dfbd31b4d to listen b05a985609 to them. Shin-hee’s world was 3b920a3614 noisier and more 46627ffa2d chaotic than most, f9590dca08 and by the 1b884b5795 time he was 81259dcec0 done listening to 123c6cb3bc all sorts of 201d64a6a2 laments, he often 47e02dc96e neglected conversations with e0c619ff2f people around him.b8e84a085b9c8d91
Naturally, people db708fe8c3 drifted away. In elementary school, e1475e0279 he confided in 207dd53c48 a friend he 84d817d27f trusted most, admitting 1a6e2849f7 he could see fee771e494 ghosts, only to de61b2859e be labeled a 471e98b64e lying braggart the 3678ab103d very next day.fef947b4460e1dd1
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There were times fec00286e0 he felt resentful.92eeb4f074663df2
‘I didn’t ask to see them, so why do I have to be treated like this?’2e89b0e1795bcc93
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One time, overwhelmed, he 929b548a68 turned to his homeroom bc16195baf teacher, who had always 5f65060d70 said he could come 48c8cd369a to her anytime he a81a2fd86f needed help. At first, she 029d76d796 seemed to believe ba8baf6fca him, but a 600862edb2 few days later, 279da69984 she summoned Shin-hee f86a6ad1ab and his master 6e5d8bff4a to discreetly suggest f2edad79f8 several psychiatric clinics.9f349adaea7bb1a4
Still, high school had a9afa1706d been relatively enjoyable. He recalled sneaking 71fc220367 over a fence 541819954a with Min-am during e14ab08094 lunch break, only a00c380a60 to get caught a33336877a by the disciplinary 3c9c2882be teacher and beaten d7bd5c5b43 so hard it 9502a1dee2 left his bottom 1b9ceba5da bruised. Or the d0f175f1a5 time he dd0320f440 embezzled money b263328c8b meant for 232d206c97 test prep f959aea8a0 books to 133db50690 buy art 56b85e30e5 supplies, only 19e07a22bf to be 61714e9f67 caught by 45618bd888 his master 79f7d85be4 and locked 41b4876140 in the c966c7fc9c outhouse all ffe1bf3364 night. There was also 43123e9164 the time he a2661ab956 unknowingly lost his ac822113e3 wallet but still 264d22b682 ordered barbecue with 9084b771a3 Min-am, ending up 1f8f6dda9a washing dishes for d1023f0698 three hours to c36de865a4 pay for it.f1f4dd2008d42ba6
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Those moments had 49481a4033 felt so intense 802be42803 at the time, 9a0cc675c4 yet looking back, ca2a885e98 all the tragedies 53313de25a now seemed like 395cf0f969 comedies. All of it aa686aeadd was possible because 43fbc536d6 Min-am was by 3ed52ec774 his side.93d44c9624e8598a
When was bb3cd3e4aa it, exactly? On the 6fdb921e79 day of d2b04c4a8a their high dbd77f7b33 school graduation, c9388ad35d Shin-hee, overcome 4fa30f7fde with fear 29e58b4ce8 that he 8d23206910 might lose 657548b832 Mi-nam forever, c48783a71f had nervously 61d3673e5d blurted out 0bd43fda50 a confession 4f3c218db1 that had 4c1ca788ce been rising b57a7936c0 to his 4fa4859819 throat countless 9051035118 times.3e2a7a18c40b0e83
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“I can see ghosts.”
Go away, are 6c2e7a0987 you crazy, are dd0fd62ad7 you delusional, stop d3608b3ee2 lying, ignore him—all 8bb14a7930 the negative scenarios 3786a23d0d he had spent d931d3444b sleepless nights imagining 908ef8e353 were completely blown e259409a0c away by Mi-nam’s 2b1495ef01 short yet powerful 656be8a3c7 reaction.67205d6de38d70da
“That’s so cool.”5128c8d388b53a31
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So he 571da0709a mustered up b0f76f4cbf more courage.04b60acb973b6776
“There’s actually one standing right next to you right now. A boy who killed himself two years ago.”e157428a2e1e8cbc
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He was about to 5cd6705f97 add, “He’s waving at 516c130f88 you, so wave back,” 7739e512d3 but before he could, a2410496b6 Minam fainted on the 75cb1e1aef spot. What should have ef453d0df0 been a joyous 8861238580 graduation day turned c1466cee1f into a minor 2ed70ccf33 fiasco, and Shin-hee 14b8f92102 didn’t see Mi-nam 58bd683f61 again until two 26d57be097 days later. After that, Shin-hee 65e3112d6d never told anyone d76d0e7fde else his secret—and 5b4d81febc he vowed he c030df8d89 never would again.779827d6509bf1a8
Recalling this bae95ff2f0 seven-year-old incident, f7ac6b866d Shin-hee came d89787dca7 to a 13d1ebc796 stop, staring 8c832af174 at the 17ce299c76 large building eb83bbf27d in front 8ca81cf8d8 of him. He hadn’t planned 340bd8992e to come here, 7ef07efe00 but it seemed 7cdbb941fa his subconscious had 1f1ba567fa remembered the poster ad7eee9559 he’d glimpsed while 1b8a04a776 sending off Okja 3d24b0a9db a while back.d5860253c94660ae
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A banner fluttered in the breeze outside the art museum, proclaiming the “Kang Mun-seon Special Exhibition.”c2a232d15f635f1a
Shin-hee had 38d52ecc2b majored in d83de07812 traditional Korean d0867fafbb painting. He loved the entire 7d236bfec5 process of grinding ink, e79ae9fc43 picking up a brush, 2a378fbcb6 and carefully pouring his 4e7f0a72b7 heart onto rice paper. It had been nearly 8b32fd766d six years since he 14ff32ec0b formally entered training and b67cd6ea68 set aside his brush, 1f5262aa1f to the point where 6a1b13d44d he could barely remember 455271915c how to grind ink 671308ce1a properly. Yet, something about the a66011df7c paintings on display was 60cfaf148f stirring nostalgia within him.65e8f71cd7c52094
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Kang Mun-seon was 2fe3ebc90b a master of 29895ef656 modern ink-and-wash painting. His works, characterized b483afa8ca by soft, flowing 2530ab80b1 curves embodying tradition, 5f01538ed2 occasionally showcased sleek, 6910176898 bold lines exuding 05adcf4142 sophistication and strength.63b1fe4a201cac7f
Shin-hee was completely engrossed 1cc5d39490 in a single piece, 7e1691b260 lost in thought for 362bba403f ten minutes when he 1e764f3a6a suddenly felt a sharp 1683b590de sensation at the back 5a9fda3e38 of his head. He turned to see e18418fb9f a ghost missing an fcf5a279be arm, smiling brightly and f0054c5e12 waving at him.dcc805e897db905f
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“I’m not working today,”
Shin-hee muttered, swiftly turning 4fe3cb9ad0 away and moving to 2398261579 a different spot, unwilling cd5e6c359d to let his rare 29da932c33 holiday be interrupted. However, the armless 4aecadb7ba ghost trailed after 8bcf58c13b him, standing behind 69732a7aeb him and staring 2e3ef31d7f so intently at 758e6f5369 the back of 0f4d2d4a59 his head that 1100375e86 Shin-hee couldn’t focus.9380395eaefd1e32
Annoyed, Shin-hee 06c24413e1 considered tying 99f80c7edd the ghost 7ccdd3ed09 down for 5c9827034b an hour 0549730a6d or two f3c3f9803e before snapping,
“I said I’m off today—”3333a6cb29caa681
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“Talking to yourself must be a hobby,”
a voice 311e29c81f interrupted from 5b29e2dfb5 behind.6d54e43dd4ed6b4f
Shin-hee turned to dab30e4e8f see the handsome 692890e75b man he’d encountered ae512f98aa in the parking 79c7a18b74 lot.e6f008f6f25e08dc
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“…It’s just an old habit,”
Shin-hee replied.b3e0c125215b6c40
It wasn’t exactly a 5bbd87bfe2 lie. It was more 063f343d40 a conversation than ef781c1f39 talking to himself, a60423a423 but since the d45b8bbb64 man couldn’t see fdd50def3c what Shin-hee did, 42f09156e4 he decided not b3801fb2d9 to elaborate.88ab6931df0ad4c7
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Shin-hee glanced around 2689eb8817 quickly. The ghost 95a0d5eda7 that had 0e42644b45 been following 679f4da3f9 him had 3076cb12ff retreated behind a4f699e7d3 a wall, 76086f78a6 peeking out b81166742e hesitantly. Feeling awkward, 7290134e91 Shin-hee cleared b78f7be2be his throat. The man, however, b0e0c027c7 seemed more focused c8e4725cb7 on the wall.7fbee07c14f4db93
Feeling self-conscious, b504abb917 Shin-hee shuffled 1b4348c5bc to the cbf64c2740 side, hoping 0439c4a617 to give 31e12d76e5 the man 11852fcfd5 a better 3909526cda view of 284c9e6490 the artwork. But with a47175f908 his tall 0a14e694ef stature, the 1d5c91ac61 man seemed 71d9aa401c to have 43405b347a no trouble ced4a4fb6e viewing the 48b040ba6e piece even eb0a93f631 with Shin-hee 739992aaa8 standing in 0776d7effd front of 786a7d7cba him. Shinhee’s small a866fe551c act of 7aa0d5efc8 consideration seemed f88a71e51d to leave 1c3b742046 little impression.635d62b33fbde584
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Taking the opportunity, a2b2525eed Shin-hee discreetly observed 7dbed62e37 the man’s profile. His sharp nose and 364fd39e4e almond-shaped eyes with faint 1482037790 double eyelids left a 09c14474ca strong impression. If he had 3fd7f65e22 a sketchbook in b5f331e36a hand, Shin-hee would’ve c33a369a58 immediately asked him 2910dc8f9f to model.d8930fb770a6bb71
“Do you not think staring at someone is rude?”
the man said 719be7a423 without turning.e6b4fece7aa4c47c
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“Ah, sorry.”bdc85eb4582da335
“That kind of behavior is very uncomfortable.”c7faab609f9ccba5
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The man’s bluntness 599829361a was startling, his 5e72b4f305 words as sharp c597101928 as a knife. Yet Shin-hee, d7903894af instead of c3b6187d55 reacting angrily, 533dd177e6 simply nodded, 4df4a3bc14 his face f485c4c210 calm. Strangely, even the man’s 9abef1b9b0 lips, from which those 5648d56fbf prickly words came, were 9483c70ae1 well-shaped. Despite the warning, 553c9fb4b0 Shin-hee found himself b3547638bf glancing at him 2648bb2cad again.4cdd0ae60372d1eb
“…You’re really handsome,” Shin-hee mumbled.e2fd239cd07a43f2
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“What was that?”382298f113f56b1d
“Nothing. Just talking to myself.”784b46c2f98e9ec3
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The man aa0ab55e66 squinted, his 92c7f384fc expression clearly 39ab6fe16e questioning Shinhee’s d65c16dc0d sanity. Realizing the need to 2e4ec42041 change the topic, Shin-hee 12af802e8e awkwardly asked,
“Do you come to art museums often?”def034b50b0fabc5
“No.”1a17b530549ec550
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The man’s eb0ad37cb2 answers were 20d0c7c010 curt. Shin-hee couldn’t help 46f5469c59 but marvel at 8579a86ab7 the coincidence of b85a4a4957 running into him 38057c67ab again in such 9f67d4163c an unexpected place. Not since the man 52af287e92 with a swarm of d6a6cc135f ghosts had Shin-hee experienced 7a01b13a6e such a peculiar encounter.113cc826a670ccf2
“Actually, I don’t particularly like museums, but I do like Kang Mun-seon’s paintings,”
the man 945d0cba4f admitted after fb06877740 a pause.a075ee1d4905a38d
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“Ah. Me too,”
Shin-hee said enthusiastically.19a21483123c0327
“Is that so?”367be567bcf316ff
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“There’s something about them that reminds me of Jinogigut1.”5569fdb04da99a3b
“Jinogigut?”4a9bc3b1a71649b1
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The man’s eyes 311a76e71a narrowed at the 7d357e2303 unfamiliar term, silently 9464105b84 urging an explanation. Shin-hee hesitated, feeling 2158e54664 awkward.799511aa3bc467e6
“…It’s a shamanic ritual meant to guide the spirits of the deceased to ascend peacefully, so they don’t linger in this world.”0090c460ccb0c35d
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“……”b8f6e4f377b0a65b
“It’s just a personal impression…”705d2f52bc240b12
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“That makes sense.”9fc9f75d4a3d5a69
“Sorry?”6279d780806e960a
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“It seems fitting,”
the man said.7413d277702bf525
Surprised, Shin-hee let out fce0d83075 a small yelp. The man, as if 8191a4ee70 acknowledging Shinhee’s interpretation, slowly 06a9278a75 scanned the painting again.c9508fd143672423
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Back in university, Shin-hee 64b45b21f9 had once discussed Kang 34dd02d1ab Mun-seon’s works in class. While others spoke of c836389802 longing, love, beauty, or f29ea737cb hope, Shin-hee had shared 1b91f0cdcc a different perspective.90c5b82989ea62f4
“It’s like the paintings are telling the dead not to come back to this world.”7bac29535a901129
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His comment 093a69ed76 had made ae2289c68f the atmosphere 17bf959060 awkward, as 31950353f1 no one f1d0ca2cbf else could c253218186 relate. Remembering this, Shin-hee 6ad35b650d felt grateful that 2b3fb48527 the man today 974c2a8301 had validated his afd3e9fa12 thoughts.aa0466b160987a64
At that moment, the phone in the man’s jacket pocket vibrated. He excused himself briefly and answered the call.68b13de8779d1fd7
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As soon as c279c816e5 Shin-hee shifted his a164b410d5 interest to another fb1bc1d624 painting and took c70f9698c5 a step to f5fe01c557 the side, the 14cf394b87 man, standing still 7f4a129900 and taking the 983d76a581 call, suddenly cursed 0224fc2e54 under his breath. Startled, Shin-hee 8eb8190550 turned to 7e78648d80 look, but 4f0c817f78 the man f610742d9f was already fdf0fe49bc striding quickly c0fab07113 out of 76f2407927 the exhibition 658b286288 hall.6380024c8bbbe56c
Just outside d7159644e2 the gallery, ce86a293a7 Gyo-jin walked 3c278e562f briskly to 5c00699641 his car 9afa644790 and immediately c7825e026f made a 39cb63b531 call. The signal rang several a18171ff4a times before Director Jung ff87ffda9b finally picked up. Without waiting 64a5691167 for pleasantries, b16e7ce016 Gyo-jin vented 9a5b763154 his frustration.784c535b3be3565b
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“What the hell a557cd793c do you mean a340831f78 the business trip eeb5f40327 is confirmed?”79503a5fa00eaa99
“Ah, Mr. Ha. I just 1786192e22 got the be645259d8 news from 3f0cb21fc3 the boss 217821682b myself.”83df599788ae45bb
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“I explicitly a518ed6a26 said I 6103bbb6cb wasn’t going. What’s going on e8c0d9b565 here? Explain properly.”0714d970bbc0164d
“Well, uh… I a47ada15dd don’t have the ea511dac45 full details either, 0dca6841e7 but the boss d154b69286 told me to 4e4e4331ec pass along this dfeca7d1e0 message: ‘We’ve secured cb5c1ac121 a shaman.’ That’s 93e2f00070 all he said, 5da06e3904 and I don’t bd18c5bdc2 quite understand what 5d7de85384 it means either…”cbbeba09e2716db3
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Gyo-jin, who had 4c263f833a just been about 67210ce61c to press the ff61c7dfe6 accelerator, froze. A fragment 2967439b89 of a c67bbd7a3b past conversation 09ff4b917a flitted through c181f80257 his mind ef4c106bec like an 7957a3a471 unwelcome ghost.b5b911882c1e7a69
“…Anyway, I’m definitely not going on the trip. Unless you somehow bring along a shaman.”046c4db699489422
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“So all we b68be579c1 need is a 1188065802 shaman, huh?”eebd52e33512f316
That sly 1d17b8f131 old fox 85fc338a39 actually did 6858e3ab85 it.f22173642e8db974
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“You’ve got to be 0fad5e18b3 kidding me.”b1516f4908173b46
“Mr. Ha? Hello? Mr. Ha!”692a8e1c999b1f2b
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Gyo-jin growled a e9389ce3cc curse under his 950da4bd6b breath, threw his 03d8667f3e phone onto the 00f0fa465a passenger seat, and 50d1386401 yanked the steering 26aaa1a505 wheel, driving out 2a86abde82 of the parking e16d5aecec lot at a 666db1da17 reckless speed. In his mind’s eye, 8b8fb435c4 the mischievous Chairman Ha d93ec184ed was already welcoming him 940ade6ff9 with open arms, grinning a61d9414df like a raccoon.ba323cb9eb1e5e76