OSR Chapter 8

“Where have I seen that man before?”
Shin-hee thought, 8b63aaadad his gaze 163fe0bd19 lingering on 9bf9aec503 the figure. It was a face 4c499cdd1d that wouldn’t easily be 2d6d93d4bd forgotten after just one 778fb0b9d0 look. His appearance could f2e49ca4a4 easily be mistaken a2594f86ed for that of 66ab257e6e a movie star, 55ea9cdd2a yet the aura 1d8b3f2056 around him screamed d83e015c83 businessman. Shin-hee tilted 5a7e590736 his head c461e34ee6 in confusion.c986e433798dd84d

Well, what does 9725bb3425 it matter? What does 029974780c anything matter? Following the endless 3e1d9ee23a flow of his 32eee93d3c thoughts, Shin-hee shook 24f4fc4efb his head to f3ddfb95d6 shake off the f27e6c264c stray thoughts.436d5546a5b16935

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Having dealt only with ea5c45041a ghosts all the time, ba1907ba6d it was hard for f38aaa1025 Shin-hee to converse with 7fbf7bc6b8 people. He glanced sideways at ebdc2b997f the ghosts standing next baef7ac66b to him, as though c8f9258550 all of this was cbeb5b84d5 their fault. The ghost, whose head a676870619 was barely hanging on 1cd91a56a1 by a thread, simply f5e12bb88c gazed at Shin-hee with 332b48b3cf desperate eyes, hands clasped 610936454e together. His modified 0721dfbfee hanbok, in 706bcea581 shades of 23cdaf2308 black and 66f718405e white, was cf5ef465db stained with 27af5ffa7e blood in 126ce3231b several places.f529be0b0f705805

In the past, it 68164b5e88 would have been so eacbc166c7 repulsive that Shin-hee wouldn’t e6ea377ca5 have been able to 9a089d2bd1 make eye contact. But after six 5cf80ae0f8 years of training, 800b4c9f61 not only had 8b16fd9ae4 his courage grown, 1fe8aca21d but his tolerance 4e16127e80 had strengthened as 790af8d2a9 well. A ghost with its 351ce63bef neck almost severed was 9d0fa05b5e nothing compared to one 71e0704bd3 whose entire body was 6455592a0a torn apart.52fb401a99b8b565

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“At this point, it’s fine,”
Shin-hee thought, 6f21a58887 feeling a 653bb74dcd sense of 7966b3e042 satisfaction. The man with glasses 43e8e8d584 gave him a nod a07ebdc86b of acknowledgment as he 1ddccbe81d carefully drove away in a0c48a63d2 his luxury car. At that moment, 41e1746413 Shin-hee scanned the 91c8c4b7bd vacant parking spaces 3e54e9dcc4 thoroughly. He had received a c5fcb993b9 request saying that ghosts 30706be240 often appeared in this f4d39300d9 building, so when he 500c1a9173 came to investigate, he 92a521b08f found a ghost with 21407de75a its head severed, calling 6f76f2ea51 itself Okja, crying endlessly c0971ac9ac while searching for a bd484bce49 necklace that might have 66bfb6e9c1 been made of jade 0145b684b7 or amethyst.e9cb1a74aca3099e

Shin-hee had planned to 11ca749a71 guide her to the b9e7a6a8c4 afterlife, but the ghost b969e57127 had insisted that she 039a0281ec wouldn’t leave the living 556b76ba1e world until she found 7014513f70 the necklace she was 4b30686168 looking for. So, for the d51d3f8f87 past hour, he 629a363a5a had been searching a26b3cc904 the parking lot, 9e51c48e18 trying to help e8da87e6b9 her. From the 92891896f8 way she dcef31f8d1 was dressed, 39d6d24ad5 it seemed fe35ef7019 like she 11fa335a52 had been dcd22f1fc0 lost for 9d608ee889 at least 429b57f212 a hundred 8d79618f53 years, but 39ddb2dde6 Shin-hee felt 030ee210b2 that even f3e5e5ddab pretending to 8603d7180b help her a7e0f5c615 find it ca0380ec33 might calm 4cc909781a her spirit d144723464 and allow a990721d91 her to 6519089a01 ascend peacefully. He could have 084b57079f forcibly moved her 6013ba35fe along, but he 9551ff863a wanted to send c613c68b56 her off without dd0b8304d6 any regrets.2f132241046a996a

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Ah, but that man… 2a278d237a Did he see me 57667e919d talking to the ghost? Ugh, I must 451430d342 have looked crazy a3b244ed0e to him.db68955256a76a7b

“Is this the right place? Did you lose the necklace exactly at this spot?”3e8503970f36d946

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“Ugh…”12d253797fc7f177

She nodded repeatedly, sobbing. Blood tears fell, wetting her face. It’s a sight that never gets any easier, no matter how often I see it. Shin-hee let out a deep sigh and even turned on his phone’s flashlight to examine the floor. As expected, there was nothing on the floor except for the black grease stains.
“Look. This place is all blocked off, and whether I find it or not, I’ll have to dig here, but if I start digging, that cop will catch me…”821be54d011af81d

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“Please, just find it for me… My husband, he said, ‘Okja, Okja, you’re so beautiful,’ and with the money he earned through a lifetime of hard work, he gave it to me…”f67d00388c900d6e

“I really wish I could help you find it, Okja. For now, you should go up to the sky, and if by chance I find it later, I’ll make sure to come back. Ah…”64fffc54a23a0682

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Shin-hee paused as if he had just remembered something and checked his wristwatch. 8 o’clock. It seemed like he could make it if he hurried a bit. He let out a sigh of relief while looking at Okja, who was still sobbing.0e8ae5f88bb4fb48

————–b341feae6239187b

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“What do you mean by that?” Gyo-jin, who had just arrived home, muttered while loosening his tie. He had been in a bad mood all day, and the phone call he had received on top of it only made things worse.a105aa7322ee4754

“You know I don’t go on business trips abroad, right?”bcafd9f173daa998

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“Well, still, Mr. Ha. If Mr. Ha doesn’t come in person, we’ll consider this deal null and void…”9e39942d74b08bad

“We can’t be fooled by such words, can we? If you’re planning to turn this around, then go for something bigger. Anyway, I’m not going.”0d3cf8b49747f17d

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“Ha, Gyo-jin! This is a problem. You know how hard we’ve worked to bring in the Mishima department store as a partner.”6a83b536e1db7780

“Yes, and that’s why I’ve been cutting back on everything for the past seven months—meals, sleep time, all of it—planning, contacting, and persuading to get us this far.”401bb8f492c3148b

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“I know you’ve worked hard, but…”d3b29657a8ea5f77

“When do I have to keep spoon-feeding this to you, Director Jeong? We’ve done this much, and now it’s your turn to take care of the rest, right? Are you going to pass everything to me just because you told me to come? Sales should be handled by the sales team. Either be incompetent or negligent, just pick one, Director Jeong Tae-man.”8a22cc696d79d562

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Mr.Jeong – The Director – gritted his teeth at Gyo-jin, who was throwing around words like incompetence, negligence, and even complex issues. However, Jeong, who had recently started practicing breathing techniques from his new physical exercise routine, began to take deep breaths. As he calmed his mind, he realized that the problem was on their side. No matter what harsh words Ha Gyo-jin said, he should have stepped back. No, he had intended to do so, but… If Ha Gyo-jin refuses this time, all it would do is upset their feelings. Gyo-jin probably knew that they were testing the waters with both their company and the Geumgang Hotel at the same time.72bfa8e60b5402bf

“We know Ha Gyo-jin is busy, but this opportunity…?”be7d99663e81a5f3

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“Testing the waters?”cc566f44452b351f

“Huh? Are you saying that you’re testing the waters between our Haimbell and Geumgang? Are you messing with me right now?”d63e2ad484bb0c56

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Jeong, the Executive Director, felt as if his mind and heart were being shredded by Gyo-jin’s relentless criticisms, which cut through all ranks, ages, and statuses. Despite technically being a higher rank, he couldn’t understand why this competent and young director lacked the virtue of humility.34c83af6c1bc3a2f

“Did you just stand by and watch as it came to this, even though you knew they were testing the waters? If you understood their mindset, you should’ve either given them something more to secure our position, or completely sorted things out and shifted our focus to targeting other opportunities. That’s your job, Executive Director Jeong. The board didn’t give you that position just to sit back and pretend you don’t know what’s going on.”abf0b1baf92f1905

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“I… I’m really sorry, but…”53f100a7a473ae95

“I won’t be attending the meeting with Mishima’s CEO. Either you go in my place, or they can directly ask me to come. I’m hanging up now.”7742c0ebd304b11c

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Gyo-jin slammed the phone down and threw it onto the sofa. It had been a frustrating day from the start. The broken door lock seemed almost laughable in comparison. In the morning, he had an awkward business conversation with his ex’s father; in the afternoon, an elementary school kid shot him with a water gun; and in the evening, some madman, whom he had no memory of, barged into a matchmaking meeting and spilled wine. Now, a business trip to Japan was being thrust upon him. An overseas trip. For domestic trips, he meticulously prepared for weeks, addressing every potential risk and ensuring everything was handled, but now an overseas trip?4708dc4a6ced4931

It was all 77798e4f60 the fault of f987775451 Director Jeong, who e238ccbe88 couldn’t do his f2b3143916 job properly. No, more precisely, 819887fe5a it was his 63082e05a3 own damn nature. Gyo-jin roughly 088bd93067 stripped off 7aaa960757 his clothes 480a11bb99 and threw 0d0894786f them into 0fb45c5bdb the laundry 226a577d9f basket before 1a9584e5b8 turning on 0f8c864c1b the shower.047f4da6ad95508b

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As old 4f5dba6af8 memories flooded eb3bba8adb back, he 52d0f7aed0 adjusted the f957e03682 hot water b2ec90c271 to cold, b6c5533441 trying to 1dee65ccc4 shake off 62d7b234e6 the feelings.2456ea8ff6280848

For all three 7ecfe68fce years of high 5a840cf12d school, Gyo-jin maintained 56cc9f04fb the top rank 02890dd7d9 and often scored 4997d3f1fb perfect marks on edf141987f mock exams. Yet, on the 66d5ae1a06 morning of the 51af553e3a CSAT at the bb7e25cf3b age of nineteen, aebf6d1bc2 his life hit 80b5be952d its lowest point 84d3ea7742 when he was 954e6e90f1 involved in a dc61ac885e car accident. The shock from that d9bac7650a event was so intense 2a27486acf that he seriously questioned f6fd763fb3 why his life had 9150612bef turned out this way e017706fcc during his three-month hospital 39aedbce0b stay. Due to his ‘nature,’ 1080487310 which kept him from 0dcee38c39 traveling abroad, he had 4cce28ff16 to waste another year a9bf45e313 domestically, forced to repeat 3a70392f5e his studies. Going back 703b639661 another three 9b18b4712f years, the 7bd9622c54 day before 279ee1a3fb the high 82a542eb34 school entrance 6fb3106331 exam, his 8add4eb6b7 appendix burst, aa861f5e10 causing him 4a9637351d to miss c4cf600c14 the school 229e154f11 he had 010d0b953d hoped to c2280e4e09 attend.1dc96bdd2af3f6f8

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Even earlier, at decd787ee7 thirteen, he had 70657bbaa6 entered a piano 8287aefbe7 competition, only for f6af1eedf8 the elevator to 436a202967 crash, though oddly, 4dc5bf7346 he had no 3606a45b03 memory of that 32e77e1861 day. And when he b371d215f0 was ten, he 7a3a8f9062 had been kidnapped 98108c3bc6 by criminals seeking 571c3d4454 money and held 7241f1b12a for three days.30547dbbecb2d625

Unlike others, e1fe84db6f Gyo-jin seemed 6788905542 to experience cff7214006 these rare, 9c094ad1be life-altering events a407fcedb2 just when 12f73dec4a he thought a6c4003b33 he was 8ca1b85ef1 finally past a8b4084453 them.c6e05ed4acc6a281

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Life-threatening “big accidents” seemed to come around every three years, precisely on his lunar birthday. Every year, he would observe the lunar date of September 26th, hoping for it to pass safely, and by now, he was fed up with it. While others often worry about the “three-year misfortune,” he had to worry about his own recurring birthday. So, every time it came around, he would lock himself in his house and stay indoors all day.
“It’s dangerous outside the blanket ” — for others, this might be one of those jokes to laugh off, but for him, it was a hard-earned lesson from direct experience with danger.80198dcaa25c0984

As he slowly sifted 2f30beed64 through the remnants of b884384b0d his memories, he suddenly d738707900 recalled the accident from 8b59999864 six years ago. Just like when he f24e054199 was thirteen, the memory 6498807a2e was unclear, but he c9dd1a8324 later heard that, according 0c458da2d2 to others, he had 0c9cd8a4a3 almost died.3433d25798799264

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In the c1dc9571cf middle of 499baeb536 the road, f446f7dcc6 the bus 2f71b8fd10 suddenly overturned, 51d74e3a49 and the b88378332a driver died ba257e21e0 on the 3c625dcfda spot, but 5c5a7f3079 for some e31f7784e9 reason, Gyo-jin 7bc6d75ec3 only suffered 73b22f7be9 minor scratches. Despite that, he fell bd17faf03d into a month-long sleep 9c1f56aab6 with no apparent brain 8e0b53f479 injury. He remembered being on 8e9d15b220 the bus, but had 22226cc8b1 no recollection of escaping 322e749a6a from it. It was then 676b8e4833 that he remembered b372aa5acb why he had 994f86ee5c been on that ad2dba1ff4 bus.73547fcf88540240

6 years ago, he had been on his way to the columbarium to visit the memorial of his biological mother, who had died giving birth to him. It was the first time he had learned that his biological mother existed, and that she had died during childbirth. He hadn’t listened to Mrs. Kim’s warning, who had always told him to stay home because it was dangerous, and had stepped out, only to end up in the accident.2559b01d4ecd1f97

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In the fragmented memories, Gyo-jin thought he might have seen someone, but the damaged recollections refused to be restored. His doctor occasionally joked that his exceptionally sharp mind caused side effects even from small shocks, but Gyo-jin wasn’t in the mood to laugh at all. Up until six years ago, he had occasionally raised his head, believing that the petty misfortunes in life only affected him. However, as if to prove him wrong, misfortune took the life of someone close to him, mocking Gyo-jin’s arrogance.56d2665c73036785

No matter how indifferent Gyo-jin’s personality was, he couldn’t remain indifferent to that. If this was some grand design of fate, then he felt like a dirty pawn, entangled in underhanded moves. The accident six years ago had been so intense that, for his birthday three years ago, everything passed quietly, uneventfully. So perhaps this time, too…bc3f67fa27970a0d

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