An Office Worker Is Good At Exorcism - Chapter 28

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

Chapter 27
Part 1. Lay Down Some Ground (2)
The sun was sinking beneath the mountain in a gentle, lingering descent.
Grrrrooooom!
Kang Hyung-seok sipped from his tumbler of coffee as he navigated the unpaved mountain road, the engine rumbling beneath him.
The savory aroma of oil seeping from the chicken box on the passenger seat tickled his stomach in an oddly distracting way.
Lee Geum-kyung’s residence.
It was where he was headed—the place where Chung-geum, Lee Geum-kyung’s disciple, lived.
“Back off! I have nothing to say!”
“No, wait! Just take a look, please!”
“There’s nothing wrong with it, so stop bothering people and leave!”
He was drawing near his destination.
Through the engine noise, the voices of Chung-geum and unfamiliar men reached Kang Hyung-seok’s ears.
‘Here we go again.’
It was predictable as always.
Clearly, people who had visited a nearby haunted house had gotten spooked and come seeking him out to exorcise whatever spirit they believed was troubling them.
When he first met Chung-geum, she had mistaken him for one of those very people.
“Damn it, this woman talks like a dog! Hey, you should know better than to hit a woman!”
At the sudden aggressive tone, Kang Hyung-seok’s brow furrowed.
He cursed silently to himself, then pressed down on the accelerator.
Screeeech!
Kang Hyung-seok pulled up to the Shamanic Temple, parked, and stepped out of the car.
Early twenties at best?
These punks—who probably hadn’t even done their military service—had Chung-geum by the collar, their fists raised menacingly.
Thud, thud, thud.
As Kang Hyung-seok approached them, the men faltered, taken aback.
“What, what is this?”
Crack!
Kang Hyung-seok swept a kick at the outer thigh of the man gripping Chung-geum’s collar.
“Ugh!”
As the man crumpled with a pathetic cry, the other two backed away, their eyes wide with fear.
“You, what are you! You bastard.”
“Hey, hey! You okay?”
“Film it! Get video! Record this bastard!”
The fallen man shouted through gritted teeth, while the others fumbled to raise their phones with shaking hands.
Their eyes gleamed with false bravado, but Kang Hyung-seok exhaled a weary sigh.
These kids these days really had no fear.
Thwack!
“Aaaahhhhh!”
Kang Hyung-seok kicked another thug beside the knee and swiftly seized his phone.
Without hesitation, he hurled the phone toward a distant tree.
Crash! Shatter!
“Ahhhhh!”
As the phone shattered upon impact with the tree, the other man froze in place, and Chung-geum watched Kang Hyung-seok with evident surprise.
In that moment, Kang Hyung-seok fixed a menacing glare upon the man who didn’t dare touch his phone and opened his mouth.
“Record it.”
“Y-yes?”
“I said record. You were filming, weren’t you?”
The man’s hand trembled as he held the phone, exchanging urgent glances with the others.
“W-what are you doing? Call the police! Just do it!”
The fallen man shouted desperately before Kang Hyung-seok kicked him squarely.
Thud!
“Aaaahhhhh!”
The other two men were now utterly terrified, their very posture becoming deferential.
“Listen here.”
“Y-yes?”
“You seem not to understand—you don’t lay hands on people in the mountain area.”
Kang Hyung-seok spoke with a fearsome gaze, his tone measured yet stern.
The men trembled, their eyes cast downward.
Footstep.
As Kang Hyung-seok stepped toward them, the man who’d taken a knee to the gut stumbled and collapsed.
“Especially not when you’re laying hands on a Shaman who came to help you.”
The men now looked at Kang Hyung-seok as though he were death itself incarnate.
“Hey, call the police.”
The one holding the phone glanced at Kang Hyung-seok unconsciously, then immediately lowered his head and shook it vigorously.
“N-no. I won’t!”
“Do it.”
“I’m not calling. I really won’t.”
“Try it.”
At Kang Hyung-seok’s warning, the men’s faces drained of all color.
This was more than enough to instill proper fear.
“Go.”
“Y-yes…?”
“Get down the mountain.”
Kang Hyung-seok gestured with his chin toward the base of the mountain, and the men hurriedly supported one another as they descended.
One of them even bowed repeatedly, but Kang Hyung-seok offered no response.
“…Is this truly a side of yourself you possess?”
Once the sound of their footsteps faded, Chung-geum spoke to him.
Only then did Kang Hyung-seok’s expression soften, and he shook his head with embarrassment.
“My apologies. I fear you’ve witnessed an unseemly display.”
“No. It’s because of me that you’re upset.”
Kang Hyung-seok smacked his lips as though he’d tasted something bitter, then gestured toward the car.
“Those thugs grabbing Chung-geum and their shouting should be recorded on my dashcam. I’ll back it up, so just let me know if you need it.”
Evidence from a dashcam would be far more persuasive to the police than the claims of men who hadn’t even filmed anything.
“Ah, no need. There are security cameras all over this place. And I’ve seen plenty of types like them—most of them are the kind who can’t even file a report.”
“…Is it really that common?”
“Swarming with them.”
Kang Hyung-seok’s brow furrowed.
“A haunted house notorious enough to attract those kinds of people, and you haven’t dealt with it…?”
It didn’t make sense to him.
That Lee Geum-kyung would leave such a notorious haunted house unattended.
“It’s a place she manages. The rumors just won’t die down, no matter what.”
“Ah, I see.”
So there was indeed a haunted house, but it seemed the rumors far exceeded the reality.
Most places were like that.
On internet haunted house experience cafes, ordinary abandoned buildings were introduced as haunted houses, and common earthbound spirits or malevolent spirits were described as if they were malignant entities.
“Young master, did you perhaps learn something?”
“Just a bit from the military….”
As Kang Hyung-seok tried to brush off the embarrassing question awkwardly, the corners of Chung-geum’s mouth lifted gently.
She was genuinely grateful to Kang Hyung-seok for helping her.
“You look like a refined gentleman, but you have a manly side too?”
Kang Hyung-seok waved his hand dismissively and shifted his gaze toward Lee Geum-kyung’s quarters.
Despite all this commotion, Lee Geum-kyung’s post remained quiet.
“It seems the teacher hasn’t returned yet.”
“She went to perform a water spirit ritual. She said it might run late.”
“Is there a problem…?”
Chung-geum smiled bitterly and shook her head.
“You don’t need to worry.”
“If something’s wrong, please tell me. I’m not the type to go spreading rumors.”
Chung-geum’s eyes widened, then she shook her head vigorously.
“No! That’s not what I meant. The truth is, I don’t know much either.”
“But you seem to know something?”
“I just know something’s going on. When she called, her voice didn’t sound right.”
“…I see.”
Kang Hyung-seok didn’t press further.
There seemed little point in asking Chung-geum, and he sensed that Lee Geum-kyung had her reasons.
“Well then, shall we take a look?”
Kang Hyung-seok met Chung-geum’s gaze as he spoke.
“Yes.”
Before coming here, he had made a request during his call with Chung-geum.
In Danyang, I witnessed the vengeful spirit, opened its seal, and released it.
It was not a perfect vengeful spirit.
Yet it possessed enough power to sicken Ha Jang-seo.
I had made contact with such a vengeful spirit.
I needed to determine whether I had been affected.
“In truth, Young Master, you could simply look in a mirror and know for yourself, could you not?”
Chung-geum laughed with an air of awkwardness, her arms crossed.
“One can never be too careful. My experience is still limited, after all.”
“Yet your spiritual cultivation runs deep.”
“Please, just examine me once. It will set my mind at ease.”
I stepped back a pace from Chung-geum.
Soon the smile faded from her face, and her gaze deepened.
The eyes of a Shaman.
Those eyes that pierce through a person shine with a keenness and intensity that seems inhuman.
“Whiiiiit—!”
Chung-geum whistled and even employed a minor technique to sense spirits, scrutinizing me methodically.
Then she relaxed her expression and parted her lips.
“You are clean.”
“Ah.”
As I exhaled, Chung-geum smiled as though amused.
“Young Master, why do you worry so much? Surely your guardian deity has protected you through all of this.”
“I suppose so.”
I laughed bitterly.
If only my guardian deity were like any other guardian deity, perhaps things would be better.
“…Have you still not heard its name?”
Chung-geum asked carefully, her smile fading, and I answered with silence.
Then her expression hardened as though she regretted having laughed.
“It is nothing to concern yourself with.”
“Still, it must be frustrating for you.”
I shook my head as though to dismiss her concern.
“There must be some greater purpose in my not knowing.”
This is the only way to find any peace of mind.
There must be some profound intention behind it all.
That is why I have not even been granted its name, let alone the sound of its voice.
‘It almost feels as though it is deliberately hiding its very existence from the world.’
The thought that suddenly arose, I immediately shook away.
To presume to fathom the will of a deity is not a righteous act.
“When the time comes, surely it will reveal everything to me. I simply believe that I am still lacking.”
In that moment, Chung-geum’s expression shifted subtly.
“Excessive humility causes pain to those who listen.”
“What? Modesty about what?”
“What you’re doing right now.”
Chung-geum let out a soft laugh, as if trying to dispel the momentary gloom that had settled over us.
From her perspective, I was already superior to most shamans.
The only difference was that I inhabited a world unlike that of ordinary shamans.
“You walk a path different from others, so don’t measure yourself by their standards.”
I paused to consider her words, then nodded.
“You’re right. That’s the truth.”
It’s human nature to suffer meaninglessly whenever we compare ourselves to others.
There’s no need to burden myself with such emotions.
“In any case, thank you. For accommodating such a sudden request at this late hour.”
“Not at all! You’re not just anyone—you’re the young master.”
Watching Chung-geum react with such alarm, I smiled faintly.
Her expression, which had seemed so genuinely kind, shifted from surprise to embarrassment.
“Ah, and would it be alright if I asked one more favor?”
“Of course! Anything at all.”
I pulled a piece of paper from my pocket and handed it to her.
“This contains my supervisor’s birth date. Could you read his fortune from the Eight Characters of Destiny?”
“Why would you want someone else’s fortune read…?”
“He seems to be the type whose constitution easily attracts spirits. I’ve heard he even had a regular Shamanic Temple he attended.”
I continued carefully, watching her expression.
“He’s someone who suffered at the hands of a fraudulent shaman. If problems arise again, I was wondering if I could recommend this place to him.”
“Ah, I see. But you don’t know his birth time?”
“No. I only copied the information registered in the company intranet, so I don’t have that detail.”
Chung-geum furrowed her brow as she looked at the paper and spoke.
“It’s unfortunate, but I can still discern most things.”
“Is it possible without the teacher here?”
Chung-geum suddenly looked startled, then laughed awkwardly.
“W-well, nowadays we use programs. There are websites too.”
“Ah…”
“…Modern shamans know all about these things.”
Truly, shamans and I inhabited different worlds.
Feeling this viscerally, something suddenly occurred to me, and I exclaimed, “Oh!”
“W-why are you doing that?”
“The chicken. I forgot about it because of those spirits.”
“Ahhhhh!”
Chung-geum genuinely lamented the chicken growing cold, while I hurried to retrieve it from the car.
“Good thing. I left the engine running.”
Chung-geum looked at me with an expression suggesting she didn’t understand the connection between that and the chicken.
“I had the heated seat on in the passenger seat. That way it won’t cool down.”
This time, Chung-geum had taken a hit, but there was neither the situation nor the rapport to calculate such things.
“You haven’t had dinner yet, have you?”
“Truth be told, I am rather hungry.”
“Let’s eat together. I remembered what you enjoyed before, so I brought quite a lot.”
Chung-geum smiled softly and made her way toward her quarters with Kang Hyung-seok.
The sun had already descended, and the surroundings had darkened as though ink had been spilled across the world.
As Kang Hyung-seok and Chung-geum entered her quarters, a single crow perched upon a distant tree.
A crow abnormally black.
It remained concealed within the darkness, its gaze fixed unwaveringly upon Lee Geum-kyung’s Shamanic Temple.
For a very long time.

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