An Office Worker Is Good At Exorcism - Chapter 273

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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 272
Part 1. The Three of Us Again (2)
Vroooom.
Gwak Young-ho’s call came while I was driving through the city center.
I reached out and pressed the call button on my phone mounted on the dashboard, and as if he’d been waiting, Gwak Young-ho’s voice came through the Bluetooth speaker.
(Manager Kang! I heard from Shin Manager that you’re heading straight to Shinjin Construction?)
“Yes, sir. I thought it would be better to hurry, so I apologize for not informing you in advance.”
(No, that’s natural when you’re working. But the sample turned out well, right?)
“Yes. I tested it myself. The performance is outstanding.”
It wasn’t an exaggeration.
After all, I’d even slept one night in the warehouse finished with insulation material.
That definite insulation effect at the time was comparable to the top domestic standards without any shortcomings.
(Wow, then this contract should proceed smoothly.)
Gwak Young-ho’s murmur, like he was talking to himself, weighed heavily on my heart.
I laughed awkwardly, and Gwak Young-ho also raised his voice a tone with a somewhat strained laugh.
(It’ll work out! Don’t worry too much. Oh, and what are the contract terms they’re proposing?)
“Actually, there are some minor issues. Nothing serious—I think it can be resolved with proper care, and once the problems are solved, we should be able to work out good terms.”
(Oh!)
“Shin Manager and I will manage this intensively, so you don’t need to worry too much.”
(I really hope this works out. Really.)
It’s a contract indirectly related to Shinjin Construction.
It’s a truly important contract for Daejeong Materials, and everyone knows that if it goes wrong, it won’t end with just regrets.
“I’ll make it work.”
(Please, Manager Kang. If we just resolve this one, it automatically settles the next quarter’s Shinjin Construction order quantities too. It’s surprisingly rare to get such a win-win situation.)
“Of course, sir. I’m well aware.”
(Sigh, okay. You’re working hard. Don’t push yourself too much. I feel bad for keeping you so busy.)
『You will arrive at your destination shortly.』
I glanced briefly at the navigation screen on my phone and quickly opened my mouth.
“Sir, I’m about to arrive. Is it okay if I contact you after we’re done?”
(Yes! Good luck! Finish the meeting well and come back!)
“Yes!”
I answered cheerfully and turned the steering wheel sharply.
Toward the public parking lot in the area around Shinjin Construction, not the construction site itself.
‘I wonder if he asked me to meet this urgently.’
I’d been in contact with Shin Yoseph before calling Gwak Young-ho.
I’m not sure what his intention was, but as soon as he picked up, he told me to come, and the call ended before I could even mention the sample or the Goblin Ground.
Screech.
As I parked the car in the public parking lot, I suddenly felt a gaze directed at me from the corner.
Looking over, Shin Yoseph was staring at me with a cigarette in his mouth.
“What?”
Click.
As Kang Hyung-seok stepped out of the car, Shin Yoseph approached with a cigarette dangling from his lips, his footsteps heavy with irritation.
“You got hurt?”
With just those words, I understood everything.
From the dissatisfaction etched across Shin Yoseph’s face to why he’d insisted on meeting immediately when I called.
“How did you find out?”
“You’re not even denying it. I watched Yoon Sang’s broadcast.”
“That’s good. They seem to be getting closer.”
“This isn’t a joke.”
Shin Yoseph’s frown deepened as he looked me up and down with a sharp gaze.
We were in the public parking lot, a short distance from Shinjin Construction, and since it was work hours, there was no one else nearby.
That’s why he could do this.
Why Shin Yoseph could openly display his displeasure.
“I paid good money for your hospital bills, and now you’re injured again?”
“There was a reason. A legitimate reason.”
He exhaled sharply.
He really wanted to throw a punch.
That’s what his eyes said, but I responded with a look that told him to hold back.
A Catholic priest beating up a Shaman could be seen as a serious religious conflict.
“It’s not a serious injury.”
“But Yoon Sang’s broadcast said it wasn’t a minor injury either?”
“It’s internet broadcasting. He must have exaggerated for effect.”
Shin Yoseph glared at my forearm with genuine annoyance.
I know.
I understand why Shin Yoseph is reacting so sensitively.
Someday, Shin Yoseph will need me to achieve his goals.
I’m like a comrade he can’t afford to lose, yet barely discharged from the hospital, I’ve already needed stitches in two places.
“I know I’m shameless for asking, but let’s talk.”
“About what?”
I gestured toward the car with my head.
Even if no one’s around, you never know.
Since this public parking lot overlooks Shinjin Construction, an employee could recognize Shin Yoseph at any moment.
Click.
After we’d both settled into the driver’s and passenger’s seats respectively.
“I need your help.”
Checking my watch to confirm the afternoon was approaching, I got straight to the point, and Shin Yoseph’s frown twitched with activity.
“What is it this time?”
“I’m sorry for the sudden request, but it’s urgent. It’s also related to your people.”
“What do you mean?”
“You know that order you placed? To fulfill it, we need to contract with a new insulation material company, but the location has bad energy.”
“Ha, finding a place like that takes real skill.”
“Shin Manager introduced it to me.”
Still, a sense of guilt lingered undeniably.
No matter how much it was for Shinjin Construction’s project, Daejeong Materials and Shinjin Construction were bound by contract.
So Kang Hyung-seok’s request was unreasonable, but setting aside the company aspect, looking at just the two of them, it ultimately amounted to asking to work together to save someone.
“Damn, seriously.”
Shin Yoseph spoke like a sigh, rubbing his face with his palm.
Then he cast a glance at Kang Hyung-seok with only one eyebrow raised.
“Tell me in detail.”
“You’ll help?”
“If I don’t, I’ll probably have to pay hospital bills again.”
Kang Hyung-seok laughed bitterly and turned on the car’s power.
Then he opened the passenger window to let Shin Yoseph smoke comfortably.
“So what’s going on?”
Shin Yoseph asked while pulling out a cigarette, and Kang Hyung-seok responded by dragging his palm across the steering wheel.
“The factory was built on Goblin Ground, apparently. They say the night watchmen see and hear strange things every night.”
“….”
Shin Yoseph’s eyes and expression grew heavy.
Kang Hyung-seok could guess what he was thinking, so he shook his head with a similar expression.
“It’s not a Demon.”
“You’re sure?”
“The identity isn’t certain, but I’m sure it’s not that. It seems more like something close to a bound spirit.”
“Hmm.”
“Find out what happened there.”
You can do it, can’t you?
Shin Yoseph responded to the message Kang Hyung-seok conveyed with his eyes by twisting one corner of his mouth, then put the cigarette in his mouth.
But he didn’t light it, instead exhaling a sigh.
“If you have a business card from there, give me one.”
“Here.”
When Shin Yoseph took the business card pulled from his wallet, Kang Hyung-seok leaned back heavily against the seat.
“I wish it wasn’t something strange….”
“But you said you experienced something strange. So what happened?”
Shin Yoseph clicked his tongue and examined the business card handed to him.
“There are so many strange people in this world.”
Evil attracts evil to itself.
And the beginning of most of it was always people.
Shin Yoseph and Kang Hyung-seok had witnessed such cases far too many times.
Still, even so.
If only this time, please let it not be related to something strange.
Even knowing it might be a vain hope, the two men shared the same sentiment.
***
An unnamed mountain in South Chungcheong Province.
Before the dilapidated Old Temple without a nameplate, numerous luxury foreign cars were parked.
Yet it didn’t feel like a temple with many wealthy believers.
Dense trees had been deliberately planted to conceal the temple, and everyone entering and leaving wore masks across their faces.
A clandestine gathering that must never be exposed to the outside world.
The meeting taking place deep in the mountains, where the sun had not yet set, gave precisely that impression.
Click.
The Elderly Woman, having sent out the last visitor, closed the paper-covered door firmly.
Then she turned around.
Shhhhh.
A humidifier releasing mist-like water vapor.
Beep, beep, beep.
A heart monitor checking the pulse.
And a wheeled hospital bed along with a thick blue blanket.
Lying on the bed was a man covered in age spots.
A gaunt, skeletal frame that could stop breathing at any moment without surprise.
Yet this man was no ordinary person.
He was revered by those who visited here as a living god, and by some he was called the Maitreya.
“All the visitors have left today.”
The Elderly Woman, who had bowed to the man with clasped hands, continued speaking with a relaxed face, her gaze fixed on the floor.
“You seem quite worried. I hope you recover soon.”
It was then.
“Ma… tsu-o.”
The man spoke in a murky voice, as if scraping dry leather.
“Ma-tsu… o… is…”
“…”
“Silent… ga…”
The Elderly Woman bowed her head even deeper.
It was clear who Matsuо was that the Old Man spoke of.
His son.
A father and son, yet not bound by blood.
Hong Kyung-soo.
“There has been no contact.”
“Hmmm.”
“It would be best not to expect his help.”
The woman continued speaking with a face so sorrowful it was pitiful.
“He hates us. That child.”
“Matsuо…”
“Please don’t speak so much.”
“Time… I don’t have time. I need to do it quickly. I must….”
Rustle.
The Old Man began to push himself up with great effort.
The Elderly Woman instinctively moved to support him, but the moment she saw his eyes, she froze.
Though age had clouded his pupils, the vitality they contained was anything but ordinary.
These were not the eyes of a human.
The eyes of one who had transcended humanity.
The eyes of one who had reached a realm where feet should never tread.
“What I have sown in this land… must take root.”
“…It will come to pass soon enough.”
An existence denied legitimacy, one who dreams of eternal life.
One capable of anything in pursuit of his goal.
One who would overturn heaven and earth, breaking free from destiny itself.
One who seeks to achieve substituted lifespan and substituted fate across the entire nation of this land.
The Japanese Onmyoji whose intentions were so twisted and malevolent that even his homeland had abandoned him.
That was who the Old Man truly was.

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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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