An Office Worker Is Good At Exorcism - Chapter 127

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 126
Part 4. We Have Reached a Place Without Permission (1)
Click!
Kang Hyung-seok thrust his hand into the groove running down the center of the iron plate. Then, with all his strength, he pulled it toward his chest.
Grrrgh!
I had to open this door.
Whether a demon or devil lurked within, I could not know.
But I had to face it.
Grrrgh!
The iron plate groaned heavily as it opened slowly, and Shin Yoseph rushed over to help lift the opposite panel.
Clang!
As the iron plates swung open on both sides, humid air thick with the reek of mold came rushing forth like a living thing.
Darkness absolute—not a sliver of light.
Cockroaches and centipedes poured out in such profusion that the space beneath the plates felt like the very threshold of hell itself.
“…This is it, isn’t it.”
At Shin Yoseph’s murmured question, sensing something profoundly wrong, Kang Hyung-seok adjusted his grip on the Shaman’s Bell and answered.
“Let’s go in.”
Only by entering could I accomplish anything at all.
As Kang Hyung-seok set his foot upon the descending stairs, Shin Yoseph followed close behind.
Thud!
When Shin Yoseph closed the iron plate behind them, the faint moonlight and starlight that had trickled in were cut off, and perfect darkness descended.
A silence so profound that one could hear not only breathing but the very pulse of blood flowing through veins.
Kang Hyung-seok and Shin Yoseph began walking slowly along the corridor, guided only by the pale glow of their phone lights.
Ssssshhh.
Something—whether centipede or insect—skittered past beneath their feet.
Clang-clang-clang-clang-clang.
The Shaman’s Bell continued to ring, its sound echoing loudly through the narrow passage.
Damp air, mold-covered walls, moss.
This place did not feel meant for the living.
A sanctuary for those who had plunged the Republic of Korea into chaos.
A threshold of Mugho and poisonous sorcery—a place that should never exist upon this land.
Step, step.
Shin Yoseph, following behind, felt the same sensation.
‘It’s cold.’
His breath crystallized white as it left his lips.
He knew this phenomenon well.
Where a demon-possessed exorcist dwells, the air grows colder than elsewhere, and a sickening stench pierces the nose—just as it did here.
Step, step.
It felt as though he were walking through the corridor of a building where a demon-possessed exorcist resided.
What awaited at the end of this passage?
Is there a demon pursuing me?
If so, can I finally face it this time?
I cannot know yet.
“Wait.”
Clang clang clang!
Kang Hyung-seok, who had been leading the way, shook Shaman’s Bell vigorously.
At the same moment, Shin Yoseph stopped in his tracks, and Kang Hyung-seok pointed his phone’s light toward the far end of the corridor.
Light reflected off what appeared to be a mirror at the end of the corridor, where black mold had taken root.
Because of the backlighting, I could not discern what lay there.
Yet the dim silhouette of a human figure was visible.
“…Prepare yourself.”
Kang Hyung-seok spoke, and Shin Yoseph answered.
“I am ready enough.”
The two walked slowly toward the end of the corridor.
***
Boom boom boom boom boom boom!
In the courtyard before Lee Geum-kyung’s Shrine.
The beginning of the ritual was announced by the thunderous beating of the musicians’ drums.
It was the hour when the pale moon, tilted toward the east, would illuminate the courtyard, and sparks from the brazier danced skyward as if alive.
Shrill notes, clang clang clang clang!
The musicians played traditional instruments while chanting sacred verses.
Sitting in the center of it all, Shin Jung-ah kept her hands upon her knees, her eyes wide with terror.
‘I think I’ve made a terrible mistake.’
The ritual was far grander than she had anticipated.
Shin Jung-ah trembled at the sight of the pig’s corpse mere meters away, her body quaking so violently she could barely breathe.
Flutter, flutter!
Lee Geum-kyung stood right beside her, waving the five-colored banners.
With the sound of the instruments and the chanting added to this, Shin Jung-ah felt she might truly break down and weep.
It was then.
Soft touch.
Chung-geum approached silently and took Shin Jung-ah’s hand.
Then, with eyes conveying understanding, she whispered softly.
“There is nothing to fear.”
“Y-yes.”
Chung-geum shook her head gently, indicating there was no need to speak, and continued in a hushed voice.
“You wish to help the young master, do you not?”
Though Shin Jung-ah was gripped by fear, she nodded, and Chung-geum offered a faint, tender smile.
The moon hung behind her, and the firelight cast a gentle glow, making her smile appear quite beautiful.
“Then focus only on that thought. If it becomes too much, you may surrender at any time.”
“Yes, I understand.”
Shin Jung-ah glanced at Lee Geum-kyung, who was sinking deeper into a trance-like state, before answering softly.
“Soon, she will expel the malevolent energy.”
Gulp.
Shin Jung-ah swallowed nervously, and Chung-geum continued in a calm voice.
“You need not feel burdened. You are not becoming a Shaman, and the master said you would be more than capable of enduring this.”
Strangely, Chung-geum’s voice felt soothing and gentle.
Shin Jung-ah watched Chung-geum as one might observe a younger sibling who was not a Shaman, and she, reading her heart, answered quietly.
“We are relieving the young master of energy that could become dangerous to him.”
A sharing of suffering.
An act only Shin Jung-ah, born with her particular constitution, could perform.
“I ask one final time. Can you do this?”
Her resolve was already set.
“Yes.”
Shin Jung-ah answered heavily.
“Ehheyah! Hueheehee!”
Flap!
Lee Geum-kyung, now in complete possession, raised the five-colored streamer high as if greeting the moon.
The direction was toward where Kang Hyung-seok and Shin Yoseph stood.
***
We had reached the end of the corridor.
Kang Hyung-seok raised his phone to illuminate what lay before him.
The mirror hanging on the wall reflected the light upward in response, and the spreading glow softly illuminated the surroundings.
At the center of the light stood a Buddha statue.
Or rather, something sitting in lotus position that resembled a Buddha statue.
Thud, thud.
Shin Yoseph’s nose began to bleed, and Kang Hyung-seok also detected the metallic scent of blood from within his own nostrils.
‘What kind of poison is this.’
The energy was so acrid it defied description.
Like gazing upon something grotesque brimming with malice.
Kang Hyung-seok breathed only through his mouth as he stared at the statue.
Mummified arms, legs, and torso—impossibly thin.
The skin had darkened with decay, yet it was adorned with ornate golden jewelry.
The head was covered in crimson silk, obscuring the face from view.
‘I saw this in the revelation.’
Whether it was an instant Buddha or a standing Buddha, I could not be certain.
The grotesque statue that the Guardian Spirit had shown me in my dreams now revealed itself before my eyes in reality.
This is a god.
An evil deity—a monstrous malevolent spirit.
Kang Hyung-seok illuminated the black soot surrounding the statue with his phone’s light, then turned his gaze back to it.
Whoooosh!
“Who is there?”
A god dwells in this place.
Thus, it will answer in whatever manner it deems fit.
“Speak! What is your name!”
As Kang Hyung-seok bellowed, Shin Yoseph’s lips clamped shut.
Blood traced along my lips, leaving a salty taste on my tongue, and my head spun with vertigo.
And then it happened.
“Gasp!”
Shin Yoseph drew in a sharp breath, trembling as I gazed at the soot surrounding the Buddha statue.
The soot writhed like insects, undulating with grotesque life.
It coalesced into Chinese characters, filling the walls, and Kang Hyung-seok could decipher fragments of the inscription.
‘The Eastern Scripture…?’
The sacred text of Donghak.
The characters were far too vivid to be mere illusion—it was only after Kang Hyung-seok shifted his gaze to the Buddha statue that the truth became apparent.
The characters began to seep into the statue as if being drawn inward.
And the stench that had vibrated through the passage since our entry intensified to unbearable levels.
“Retch! Ugh!”
Shin Yoseph convulsed with dry heaves, clutching at my chest with an anguished expression.
“Hack!”
Kang Hyung-seok too felt something awry coursing through his body.
Blood wept from his bloodshot eyes like tears, and a searing pain—as though a heated awl were being driven through the inside of his skull—tore through him.
An evil spirit was manifesting in this place.
Kang Hyung-seok hastily shook the Shaman’s Bell to shield himself.
Clang, clang, clang.
Yet oppressed by the malevolent aura, the Shaman’s Bell produced only a dull, murky tone—it would not ring.
***
Flutter, flutter!
Beads of sweat formed on Lee Geum-kyung’s forehead as she wielded the five-colored streamer.
Thump, thump, thump, thump! Clang, clang, clang!
The Musicians’ traditional instruments played faster and stronger, heightening the atmosphere.
Something was about to begin.
Shin Jung-ah swallowed hard, and Chung-geum squeezed her hand firmly.
It seemed Shin Jung-ah wasn’t the only one tense.
Chung-geum’s hand wrapped around hers trembled faintly.
Flutter!
Lee Geum-kyung shook the five-colored streamer grandly as if catching something from the air, then turned her body toward Shin Jung-ah.
Then she began approaching with deliberate steps.
Firmly.
Chung-geum, still holding her hand, met her gaze and nodded, and Shin Jung-ah nodded with the same expression.
As Chung-geum stepped back, Lee Geum-kyung shook the five-colored streamer over Shin Jung-ah’s head.
It symbolized cleansing her body, and it also meant that spiritual energy would enter her.
Shin Jung-ah squeezed her eyes shut.
‘Ah.’
A familiar sensation suddenly struck me.
Similar to the feeling when I received the Great Goblin.
The sensation of myself shrinking while something else filled me from within.
Unlike the Goblin, this felt far more ferocious and ominous.
“Ugh! Aaaahhh!”
Shin Jung-ah collapsed, clutching her chest.
At the same moment, Lee Geum-kyung pressed her palm against Shin Jung-ah’s forehead, preventing her from thrashing about.
Lee Geum-kyung’s hand, filled with tremendous force, seemed to speak volumes.
Endure. Just endure a little longer.
“Aaaahhhhh!”
Shin Jung-ah writhed and screamed, and several Musicians let out groans as their hands slowed.
Chung-geum immediately approached them, gesturing for them to continue playing.
Shriek! Thump, thump, thump, thump, thump!
The tempo accelerated again.
“Aaaaaaahhhhh!”
Shin Jung-ah writhed and released bestial cries, while Lee Geum-kyung pressed down harder against her forehead.
It was then.
Thud.
All strength drained from Shin Jung-ah’s convulsing body.
The Musicians flinched in surprise watching her, Chung-geum ran her tongue over her parched lips, and Lee Geum-kyung’s lips pressed firmly together.
The ritual had not failed.
Undoubtedly, a great spiritual force had transferred to this side.
And Shin Jung-ah was gripping it firmly.
“Shhhhh…”
From Shin Jung-ah’s slightly parted lips came a breath tinged with the metallic scent of blood.
And soon, a murky, guttural voice flowed from her mouth.
“You have reached a place the shambling wretches did not permit.”
Possessed by divine power, Shin Jung-ah wept tears of blood and twisted her face into a grotesque smile.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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