RAP Chapter 4

Come to My House

 

The stray spirits that were scattered into smoke by Do-cheol’s single punch could not even let out a scream before vanishing. Do-cheol, having cleanly eradicated the last of the stray spirits, raised his hand to his nose and waved it vigorously.

 

“Ugh, the stench of rot.”

 

The Kitchen God, who had been looking up at Do-cheol with bright, round eyes, bowed his head.

 

“Thank you. I am in your debt.”

 

Do-cheol shrugged his shoulders as if it were nothing.

 

“But it seems like this neighborhood doesn’t have a guardian deity?”

 

At Do-cheol’s question, the Kitchen God let out a bitter smile. Then, plopping down on the spot, he began to complain to Do-cheol.

 

“The humans have been tearing up the neighborhood for redevelopment. In the process, they even cut down the tree where the guardian deity resided, so this place is no longer safe.”

 

“Then you should leave quickly too. What are you going to do if you end up getting taken down by those stray spirits?”

 

“I was planning to leave anyway, stuck to the rice cooker, since the girl of this house is moving out.”

 

“What?”

 

“I heard she was scammed in a rental fraud. It seems like she has nowhere to go now, so I, too, have ended up like an abandoned duck on the Nakdong River.”

 

“By any chance, what’s the girl’s name?”

 

“She’s called Yeouiju. Do you know her?”

 

“Oh really?”

 

Do-cheol’s voice stretched out, laced with amusement. Scammed in a rental fraud and nowhere to go, huh?

 

His simmering anger cooled as he realized that another great opportunity had presented itself.

 

“For now, just stay stuck to the rice cooker. I’ll invite her to my place soon.”

 

“Really? Thank you, thank you!”

 

Do-cheol waved his hand dismissively at the Kitchen God, who was bowing repeatedly in gratitude, as if telling him to leave already. With one last bow, the Kitchen God slipped back into the house.

 

Taking a few steps back from the house, Do-cheol grinned as he thought of Yeouiju, who was inside.

 

“This might just work out perfectly without me having to lift a finger.”

 

If neither threats nor persuasion worked, there were still other methods. Having completely revised his plan, Do-cheol poured his power into the wall and scrawled out a message.

 

[Claimed by the Fifth Son of the Dragon, Do-cheol. Anyone who touches will die.]

 

Smirking in satisfaction at the brilliantly glowing letters, Do-cheol disappeared once again with a pop. Unaware of any of this, Yeouiju was frantically making phone calls on her cellphone. Having somehow managed to survive, she now had to deal with reality.

 

“Hello? Yes, sir, this is Yeouiju. By any chance, could I get an advance on my salary…? Sir? Sir?”

 

The café owner, where Yeouiju worked in the mornings, hung up the moment she mentioned an advance payment. As she stared blankly at the coldly disconnected call, a notification sound rang out.

 

[Sorry, Yeouiju. This month is tough for me too.]

 

There was nothing she could do when the person holding the purse strings refused. After sending back a reply saying it was fine, Yeouiju called the owner of the convenience store where she worked in the afternoons.

 

“Hello? Yes, sir, this is Yeouiju.”

 

—No days off next week. No advance payments. Anything else is fine.

 

“N-Never mind. I’ll hang up now…”

 

Had the store owner eaten an entire pumpkin for breakfast? His response was so firm that Yeouiju instantly backed down.

 

“The pub owner is probably still sleeping…”

 

Clinging to her last shred of hope, Yeouiju suddenly heard a knock at the door.

 

“Eek! Who is it?!”

 

They say once bitten, twice shy. Her heart pounded in fear, wondering if it was Do-cheol again.

 

Keeping the earlier lesson firmly in mind, Yeouiju didn’t open the door but cautiously peeked her head out of her room instead.

 

“It’s me, Yeouiju.”

 

It was the landlady’s voice. Letting out a relieved sigh, Yeouiju carefully opened the door.

 

“Hello, ma’am. By any chance…”

 

She had intended to plead for just one more month, but before she could even get the words out, the landlady cut her off.

 

“Yeouiju, please vacate the house by next Monday.”

 

“Huh? So suddenly?”

 

“My nephew is moving in soon. Didn’t you say the rental house you found was empty, so you could move in this week?”

 

“Ah, well, that’s…”

 

The impatient landlady cut her off again and continued speaking.

 

“It was a hassle for me to find a new tenant, so this worked out well. You remember that I already deducted this month’s rent from the deposit when I refunded it to you, right? The utilities aren’t much, so I’ll just cover them myself. Just make sure to move out by Monday~.”

 

Without giving Yeouiju a chance to respond, the landlady cheerfully picked up her market bag and left. Left alone in the doorway, Yeouiju let out a deep sigh, as if the ground beneath her had caved in.

 

“How am I supposed to find another place without a deposit…?”

 

That didn’t mean she could just stay still.  

 

Yeouiju, who had been dumbfounded by the series of surreal events, finally felt as if she had returned to reality.  

 

The fact that something as absurd as the Yeouiju existed inside her body was becoming increasingly believable, thanks to the stories the director used to tell her, the burned talisman, and Do-cheol’s abilities.  

 

The landlady herself had proven that everything happening before her eyes was not a dream but reality.  

 

Whether she pulled out the Yeouiju or shattered it, the most pressing issue for Yeouiju at the moment was that, by next week, she would be thrown out onto the streets with nothing but the clothes on her back.  

 

She had to find a place before the real estate office closed. Grabbing her bag in a hurry, Yeouiju opened the door.  

 

“Ahh! Oh my god!”  

 

Yeouiju, who had carelessly opened the door, was so startled by Do-cheol standing right in front of her that she fell backward onto her butt.  

 

“What the—are you okay?”  

 

Do-cheol, who had startled her and now casually crossed his arms as he asked, looked like a mischievous goblin. Her tailbone stung so much she almost teared up, but Yeouiju barely held it in and shouted.  

 

“Why! Why are you here again? Why! Didn’t we already finish talking earlier?”  

 

Do-cheol, looking down at Yeouiju as she shrieked at him, plugged his finger into his ear and grinned slyly.  

 

“Yeah, we finished that conversation. I came to talk about something else.”  

 

“Hah, what now…!”  

 

Yeouiju, who had no intention of getting up and instead kept snapping at him, was irritating, but since this was his last chance, he had to hold back his temper no matter what.  

 

Do-cheol closed his eyes for a moment, swallowing down the anger rising inside him.  

 

“What is it!”  

 

“You don’t have anywhere to go, do you?”  

 

“Huh?”  

 

“You don’t have anywhere to go.”  

 

A dragon, huh? At this rate, he might as well set up a fortune-telling tent. Having been hit right where it hurt, Yeouiju forced a laugh and feigned ignorance.  

 

“H-haha, what are you talking about? Why wouldn’t I have somewhere to go?”  

 

“That woman just told you, didn’t she? To vacate the room by Monday.”  

 

“Guess you didn’t hear me say I found a new place?”  

 

Do-cheol’s eyes gleamed as he watched Yeouiju’s pupils shake and her lips tremble slightly. Clicking his tongue, he sneered with a taunting expression.  

 

“I heard you got scammed and don’t have a single cent left?”  

 

“Wh-who! Where did you hear such nonsense and come here accusing me?!”  

 

Do-cheol found Yeouiju’s brazenly loud retort quite amusing.  

 

“Is it really nonsense?”  

 

“Of course! Why would I be scammed! Anyway, I have a place to go, so hurry up and leave! And don’t come back!”  

 

“Hah, hey. Come out.”  

 

“You should be the one leaving. This is my house.”  

 

“Not you. Hey! Jowangshin, come out now!”  

 

At Do-cheol’s call, Jowangshin slowly emerged from the rice cooker.  

 

“Reveal yourself.”  

 

‘I can’t. Manifesting in front of a human is a punishable offense.’  

 

“What does it matter? You’re going to move into my place anyway.”  

 

‘Still… You never know…’  

 

“Gods coming to catch you? No one can enter my territory. I’m the great Do-cheol, you know. I can beat all your superiors, so don’t worry.”  

 

Yeouiju, unaware that Do-cheol was conversing with Jowangshin, saw him muttering to himself and assumed he was just rambling.  

 

“W-what the heck? Why are you muttering to yourself? Anyway, I’m leaving!”  

 

Feeling a slight chill from the scene, Yeouiju stepped aside to slip past Do-cheol. If she could just get through the door now…  

 

“Ah!”  

 

At that exact moment, she bumped into Jowangshin, who had manifested.  

 

“Eek!”  

 

Seeing a woman in a neatly braided hairstyle and a hanbok suddenly appear from what had been empty space, Yeouiju fell backward in shock.  

 

Just as her head was about to hit the floor—  

 

She felt herself floating, gently pushed up as if an invisible force had caught her.  

 

Do-cheol made a V-sign toward Yeouiju, who was staring at him in shock.  

 

“Be grateful. If it weren’t for me, you’d have ended up with a second face on the back of your head.”  

 

“S-so this is….”  

 

“Yeah. I saved you. See? I can be helpful.”  

 

She would have preferred to faint, but her strong mental fortitude refused to let her lose consciousness. That unknown force still clung to her back, making her skin crawl. Slamming her head into the floor and passing out seemed like a better option.  

 

Feeling as though she had fallen into some bizarre world, Yeouiju nearly teared up as she asked,  

 

“W-who is this person…?”  

 

Even in this situation, that’s what she’s curious about? Do-cheol smirked and nudged Jowangshin’s arm.  

 

“Hey, introduce yourself.”  

 

Jowangshin, still fascinated by their first-ever full manifestation, had been admiring their own body. Startled, they quickly clasped their hands together and bowed.  

 

“Hello, I am the household deity of this home, Jowangshin.”  

 

There had never been a stranger day in Yeouiju’s life, an ordinary human, than today. That extraordinary man claimed he was a dragon, and the more she saw him, the more it seemed he really wasn’t human.  

 

And now, the woman standing in front of her was saying she was Jowangshin. The fairy tale-like stories the director had told her as a child had now become reality.  

 

It was still hard to accept, but she couldn’t just ignore Jowangshin, who was greeting her.  

 

“Ah, hello….”  

 

At Yeouiju’s greeting, Jowangshin smiled gently.  

 

Faced with that warm smile, Yeouiju had no choice but to acknowledge it. No matter how she looked at her—up, down, rolling around—this woman did indeed look like Jowangshin.  

 

Watching this, Do-cheol spoke to Yeouiju.  

 

“She says you got scammed out of your rental deposit and have nowhere to go.”  

 

At Do-cheol’s words, which inserted themselves into the conversation, Yeouiju glared at Jowangshin with wide, dagger-like eyes. Overwhelmed, Jowangshin avoided her gaze and smiled awkwardly.  

 

Seeing that, Do-cheol recalled the moment earlier when he had been intimidated by Yeouiju. In this land, where he thought he had no rivals except in the sky, it had been the first time he felt daunted.  

 

Wondering if his own expression had looked like that, his pride was wounded, and he scolded Jowangshin, pretending to act tough.  

 

“Hey, what kind of god gets scared of a human?”  

 

Even at Do-cheol’s rebuke, Jowangshin still couldn’t look Yeouiju in the eye.  

 

Yeouiju, still glaring fiercely at Jowangshin, let out a hollow laugh.  

 

“A god… has such a loose tongue… ha ha.”  

 

Clenching her teeth tightly, she laughed mechanically, then hung her head in resignation. A subtle smile of victory curled at the corner of Do-cheol’s lips.  

 

“So it’s true. You really have nowhere to go.”  

 

The dragon who had suddenly appeared and threatened her, the Jowangshin who had told that dragon about her rental scam—she hated them both.  

 

More than anything, she had no time to waste here. She had several real estate agencies to visit before they closed, and she needed to leave immediately.  

 

With dragons and gods no longer of any concern to her, Yeouiju lifted her head and shouted.  

 

“Yes, that’s right! It’s all true! That’s why I need to go look at houses now, so could you please take this Jowangshin and disappear?”  

 

Nice, she took the bait. His newly revised plan seemed to be working at least halfway. Satisfied, Do-cheol shrugged his shoulders with a smile.  

 

“What’s the point of looking for a place? Just come live at my house. I’ll let you stay.”