An Office Worker Is Good At Exorcism - Chapter 167

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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 166
Part 2. May You Find Happiness (3)
“Ughhhh.”
As Namgoong Min-ah emerged from the buffet restaurant after the company dinner, her face was stuffed with food all the way down to her esophagus.
“Eat a little more slowly!”
“It’s so delicious, Manager.”
I could die right now without a single regret.
I had spent a shameless amount of time at that buffet.
Namgoong Min-ah looked exhausted, but her expression made that abundantly clear.
“Did you eat a lot, Lee Deputy Manager?”
“Yes.”
In contrast, Lee Jin-pyung seemed remarkably composed, though his belt was loosened by two notches.
-Pant, pant, pant.
Baekseol, who followed Lee Jin-pyung everywhere, sprawled out flat on the ground, her distended belly heaving as she gasped for breath.
“Good. It looks like everyone ate plenty.”
Gwak Young-ho spoke with satisfaction, but Kang Hyung-seok asked with a note of concern in his voice.
“Manager, you seemed to eat less than expected. Is something wrong with you?”
“It’s not that.”
Then Gwak Young-ho pulled out a cigarette with a bitter expression.
“At my age, buffet food just doesn’t go down as easily anymore.”
Gwak Young-ho headed toward the smoking area near the parking lot behind the buffet restaurant with Shin Jung-ah.
It was an unofficial smoking area.
Still, seeing the empty trash bin set up there, it seemed like a silent plea from employees and passersby to dispose of cigarette butts here rather than anywhere else.
Click, whoosh.
“Phew! Ah, I feel like I’ve gained weight.”
“You barely ate anything.”
“I ate plenty. Kang Manager, I’m really grateful.”
Kang Hyung-seok chuckled and shook his head.
“What are you talking about?”
“No, the food you ordered was pretty good though?”
Namgoong Min-ah, who was standing at a distance as a non-smoker, suddenly interjected into the conversation.
“Manager! Thank you for the meal!”
Her voice was so loud that Kang Hyung-seok signaled her to lower it right after.
“Everyone should try this place when you have meals with clients or business partners. Now that you’ve been here once, you understand how the system works, right?”
“Yes!”
Namgoong Min-ah answered enthusiastically first, so Lee Jin-pyung simply swallowed his response, and Kang Hyung-seok looked at Gwak Young-ho with an understanding gaze.
Everything comes down to experience.
What if you took clients to a nice restaurant but fumbled around because you didn’t know how to use it?
That might be acceptable between friends or close acquaintances, but it’s hard to inspire confidence in business partners.
“And everyone has a holiday coming up soon, right? Start preparing. Got it?”
I instructed them to contact our business partners and arrange a visit schedule.
“Yes!”
“Yes.”
After responding, Namgoong Min-ah asked Lee Jin-pyung if he knew any good places for a family trip.
He said he didn’t know of any, and Namgoong Min-ah laughed and told him not to joke, but when she saw Lee Jin-pyung’s expression, she apologized.
It was then.
“Kang, do you have any plans?”
“I’ve already visited my parents recently. This time, I’m thinking of just resting somewhere comfortable.”
“That’s right, rest is work too. Get plenty of rest when you can. That’s how you boost your productivity.”
Gwak Young-ho tapped Kang Hyung-seok’s shoulder with the air of someone saying, “You know I care about you a lot, right?”
“Aren’t you going to ask me?”
“Shin Manager will obviously rest well on her own.”
“What do you mean by ‘obviously’?”
“You’re a veteran who knows how to rest well.”
Shin Jung-ah’s brow furrowed at something that didn’t quite sit right.
Then everyone dispersed to catch a taxi or bus.
“Go on in then!”
“See you tomorrow.”
“Get home safely! Don’t be late tomorrow.”
“Okay.”
Namgoong Min-ah took the bus, Lee Jin-pyung took the subway, and Shin Jung-ah took a taxi.
Gwak Young-ho and Kang Hyung-seok called a substitute driver, but it was Gwak Young-ho who left first.
“See you tomorrow then!”
“Yes. Thank you for the meal today.”
“It’s not like I paid for it anyway.”
Gwak Young-ho laughed and waved as the car pulled away.
It was just as I, left alone, reached for my phone.
Bzzzzt.
For a moment, I thought it was the substitute driver.
But the call was from Professor Kim Jae-sik.
“Yes, Professor.”
“How are you doing? Have you eaten?”
“I just finished eating.”
I bowed to the substitute driver who had just arrived and handed over the car keys while continuing the conversation.
“Have you had your meal, Professor?”
“I ate something light.”
“Please make sure to eat well. You looked too thin last time.”
“Don’t worry about me! You just eat well. By the way, the holiday break is coming up soon—do you have time?”
Click, vroom.
I climbed into the car as the substitute driver started the engine, cupped the phone’s microphone, and stated my destination.
Then I spoke to Kim Jae-sik over the phone.
“Is something the matter?”
(Hey, want to take on a side job?)
“A side job?”
(Yeah. You’ve received a god too, after all.)
Vrrrrm.
Kang Hyung-seok glanced at the deputy driver concentrating on the road and smiled wryly.
I still hadn’t heard the reason or purpose.
But a premonition crept in that this holiday break wouldn’t pass leisurely either.
“Yes, Professor.”
(Just help me out as a consultant.)
“Pardon?”
Kang Hyung-seok had studied folklore from Kim Jae-sik.
The idea that Kim Jae-sik would seek advice from Kang Hyung-seok made no sense whatsoever.
“I’m sorry, what do you mean by that?”
(It’s a two-for-one deal. There’s a place I want to visit, and you can drive, consult, and get paid.)
“Haha.”
I let out a laugh laden with meaning, and Kim Jae-sik added one more thing.
(And who knows?)
“Pardon?”
(There might be people who need your help.)
“….”
Kang Hyung-seok pressed his lips firmly together, looked at the deputy driver still concentrating on driving, and spoke in a lowered voice.
“What do you mean, Professor?”
(It’s not something to discuss lightly, but it’s a rural village. Strange deaths have been occurring there repeatedly.)
Much like the village where the Tiger Spirit once rampaged.
Sudden death descends upon them.
(From what I can tell, it doesn’t seem to be an ordinary matter. It might be worth investigating academically. That’s why I’m thinking of going to check it out.)
So, want to come along?
At Kim Jae-sik’s subtle suggestion, Kang Hyung-seok drew a sharp breath.
If Kim Jae-sik’s suspicion was truly correct.
If something comparable to the Tiger Spirit was really causing havoc there.
‘It’s not something humans can resolve.’
But a god could.
A shaman connected to a god might be able to.
Kang Hyung-seok sucked in his lips with a soft sound and focused on the phone.
“Professor, I have one question for you.”
(Goodness, why are you being so serious?)
“Do you have any idea what might be involved?”
A subdued voice.
The atmosphere grew heavy and oppressive.
Lee Deputy Manager’s gaze had turned toward Kang Hyung-seok, but he paid it no mind, focusing entirely on what he heard through the phone.
(It seems to be snake-related, doesn’t it?)
“If it’s a snake… it could be quite a significant entity.”
(Exactly. As you well know, snakes have deep connections to our country’s traditions.)
Snakes are religious animals.
This holds true across the world, and Korea is no exception.
There is a Shamanic Temple in Tosanri, Pyoseonmyeon, Namjeju County that enshrines a snake as the village deity, and there is also Chaguidang in Gosanri, Hangyeongmyeon, Jeju City.
Since the gray snake was not killed, being called the Chagui Deity, snakes were certainly revered as spiritually powerful beings in Korea.
“If it caused harm, it doesn’t feel like a benevolent presence.”
(Right! I suspect it might be something like a steel snake or a superior snake spirit.)
Both are snake-related supernatural entities.
But that wasn’t Kim Jae-sik’s usual nature, so I let out a hearty laugh.
“You seem to have changed somewhat since the last incident.”
(In the past, I would have dismissed it as folklore, but now that I’ve confirmed such things can exist…)
‘That’s a relief.’
Kang Hyung-seok thought this unconsciously.
Kim Jae-sik’s voice carried the excitement of a child.
‘He’s recovered considerably from Professor Jang Jun’s death.’
Kang Hyung-seok, who had pressed his lips together at the bittersweet thought, opened his mouth with sorrowful eyes.
“Then would it be alright if I texted you once my schedule is confirmed?”
(Of course! Anytime!)
“Understood.”
Kang Hyung-seok ended the call and leaned back heavily against the car seat.
It felt as though he’d been suddenly abducted from the ordinary into the extraordinary.
The familiar interior of the car now felt like an alien space.
Lee Deputy Manager, gripping the steering wheel, felt the same way.
“If you’re bored, feel free to turn on the radio.”
It was an attempt to deliberately pull back into the comfort of normalcy.
He nodded.
Lee Deputy Manager conveyed his thanks with just a nod and switched on the radio.
‘This holiday break may not feel as restful as one might hope.’
The announcer’s crisp voice struck Kang Hyung-seok like a warning meant for him alone.
‘According to the Korea Meteorological Administration, a typhoon currently gathering strength in the Northwest Pacific has a very high probability of directly impacting the Korean Peninsula during this holiday period.’
It wasn’t good news.
He should have just left the radio off.
Kang Hyung-seok leaned back against the headrest and exhaled a deep, heavy sigh.
***
(Speak up already.)
It was the first day of the holiday break.
Kang Hyung-seok was driving to meet Kim Jae-sik, and Shin Yoseph’s voice flowed through the speaker connected via Bluetooth.
“I’ve been out of it.”
(I suppose that’s understandable.)
His words sounded fine, but his voice didn’t.
Kang Hyung-seok exhaled through his nose, then bit and released his lower lip.
“It’s related to a snake.”
(So that’s why you’re like this.)
The cult incident.
At that horrifying Buddha statue back then, Shin Yoseph and I had seen a snake.
Perhaps a snake was coiled deep within Shin Yoseph’s mind.
The snake would have two names.
One was a demon, and the other was anxiety.
That pitch-black snake, buried deep and deeper still, was gnawing away at Shin Yoseph’s sanity, waiting for its moment.
“If I spot even the slightest trace connected to a demon, I’ll contact you.”
(Do you need any support funds or anything?)
“I just got paid, so that’s not necessary.”
Kang Hyung-seok turned the car toward the residential district to head to Kim Jae-sik’s house, which was drawing closer.
“If anything comes up, I’ll tell you what supplies I need, so just buy those for me.”
The village was located in an extremely remote area.
There was no way a warehouse-style mart that sold everything and charged membership fees would exist there.
So I might have to procure the supplies Shin Yoseph needed.
(You’re the only one who’d send me on errands like this.)
“Get married. Then you’ll have one more person.”
(You crazy bastard, talking to your fiancée like that….)
“Right. Sorry.”
Kang Hyung-seok conversed with an expressionless face while gradually slowing down.
I would need to pick up Kim Jae-sik soon.
“I’ll contact you later then.”
(Phew! Hang up.)
Click.
The call ended.

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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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