An Office Worker Is Good At Exorcism - Chapter 302
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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 301
Part 4. The Shaman’s Work (1)
Considerable time had passed since then, and it was one such day.
“Then I’ll be counting on you.”
Kang Hyung-seok greeted the Factory Owner with a smile.
It was a business partner he was visiting for management purposes, and since they were one of the company’s important clients, he had brought along a small gift set as a New Year’s token.
“Why don’t you join us for a meal?”
“I’m truly sorry, but I really should be going.”
“Ah well, then we must have a meal together next time.”
“Yes, thank you.”
Kang Hyung-seok bowed and made his way to the parking lot.
He started the engine and reached for his phone, but the destination set in the navigation was not the office.
He had taken the afternoon off.
Since Gwak Young-ho had told him to head straight to the location, Kang Hyung-seok drove with an easy mind.
Brrring!
When the call came through, Kang Hyung-seok pressed the answer button with a sense of “finally.”
“Yes, Manager.”
“(Manager Kang, is this a good time to talk?)”
“Yes. Are you at the court right now?”
“(Yeah, I came to observe. Ha Yoon said it should wrap up soon, but I’m not entirely sure.)”
Quite a bit of time had passed since then.
During that period, there were quite a few matters Kang Hyung-seok had to attend to.
His aunt’s move.
Reports and investigations.
The insurance company moved, the police moved, and the prosecutor’s office moved.
The social system sometimes seems to malfunction.
But this time it operated smoothly, and his aunt was properly brought before the court, with the trial being held today.
“It will go well. So many people have lent their support.”
“(That’s true. I never expected even Shin Yoseph to help.)”
“He must have thought it was the right thing to do.”
“(Ha Yoon doesn’t show it, but she seems quite pleased to have made several new connections through this.)”
Shin Yoseph had also shown his concern.
While the Legal Team didn’t move directly, the senior and junior colleagues of the lawyers in the firm did, and thanks to them, the proceedings advanced faster than usual.
“(The decisive factor was the notebook found at your aunt’s house. You deserve much of the credit.)”
The sealed room where the Victim Spirit had been, beneath the wardrobe.
The notebook discovered in the empty house after his aunt’s move proved to be of great help.
It was a diary, a record, evidence of abuse.
Kang Hyung-seok had discovered it together with his biological mother and Lee Ha-yoon, and at that time his mother had turned the pages with trembling hands, weeping profusely.
“(I’m heading in now.)”
Hurried footsteps followed.
However, the call had not been disconnected.
Whether he had forgotten to end the call or not, the sounds of the trial proceedings reached Kang Hyung-seok’s ears as well.
Click.
Kang Hyung-seok muted the microphone and turned up the volume.
Though faint, the ambient sounds from the courtroom continued to come through clearly enough to understand.
And it was after a considerable amount of time had passed.
Vroom.
(I will now pronounce the verdict.)
The Judge’s voice began to blend into the low rumble of the engine.
(I find the defendant guilty of bodily injury resulting in death and insurance fraud in connection with the death of the insured, Kim Young-jin.)
In the quiet courtroom, a slight commotion arose from somewhere in the gallery.
Yet the Judge’s authoritative voice continued unabated.
(The defendant, despite being in a position of responsibility to nurture and protect the victim, repeatedly received insurance payments by exploiting this position. In light of these circumstances, this cannot be viewed as mere negligence or coincidence.)
The judgment of the law.
Those who do not believe in Shamanism.
Those who do not fear divine retribution.
Even those who abandon human decency and cause harm to others without hesitation fear the judgment of the law that now unfolds.
(The defendant has failed to fulfill the responsibilities of a guardian and has instead treated the victim not as someone to be protected, but as a means to financial gain.)
Another brief noise filtered through.
Kang Hyung-seok exhaled a heavy sigh, his face grave, and for someone, a judgment of law more terrifying than the judgment of the Jade Emperor himself had been rendered.
(Therefore, this court sentences the defendant to twelve years of imprisonment.)
Heavy silence.
The Aunt’s voice could not be heard.
Yet through the weight of that silence, I could imagine what expression she wore.
As if the guillotine had fallen upon her neck.
She had abused the child and even exploited her death.
Because she believed it was acceptable.
Because she thought it would be fine.
But it was not fine.
(This concludes the pronouncement of the verdict against the defendant.)
The trial was over.
Now the insurance proceeds would move to a separate process, and Park Sun-young would assert her rights as the biological mother with the help of Lee Ha-yoon.
Perhaps a portion of the insurance money would be awarded, but what meaning could it hold?
The child she so desperately wished to see was gone.
She could never feel the child’s warm hand again, never see her face once more.
That is what it means to lose family.
Beep.
Kang Hyung-seok ended the call and drove in silence.
His face was heavier than the air filling the car, as if even the automobile’s engine was gauging his mood.
And so he drove on for quite some time.
Kang Hyung-seok arrived at a small house in Paju.
His biological mother’s home.
Thud.
After stepping out of the car, Kang Hyung-seok retrieved the luggage he had loaded beforehand.
Then, carrying a heavy bag, he waited in front of the house for his biological mother to return.
Vroom.
Strangely, despite bearing no visible markers, that taxi rushing toward this place captured his attention.
And as expected, Park Sun-young, Kim Young-jin’s biological mother, stepped out of the taxi, and Kang Hyung-seok bowed deeply toward her.
“Sob… sob.”
The trial had taken considerable time.
So he had seen Park Sun-young’s face briefly, and Lee Ha-yoon had also conveyed that Kang Hyung-seok had exerted himself on her behalf.
“Thank you for your efforts.”
Kang Hyung-seok took Park Sun-young’s hand as she burst into tears at the sight of him, gently stroking the back of her hand—rough for her age.
She was a woman who had lived until now driven by a single resolve: to bring her son back someday.
All the hardship and suffering of those years were etched into the back of her hand.
“You’ve truly worked so hard. Truly.”
“Sob… sob.”
“Let’s go inside. We must send your son off properly.”
Park Sun-young nodded, but her feet did not move.
She could not bear to acknowledge that her feet would not carry her forward.
That her son had left this world.
“Please, take your time. I will wait until you are ready.”
So Kang Hyung-seok waited for Park Sun-young without any rush.
The law had done all it could.
The rest was what shamanism could accomplish.
The world held shamanic practitioners as cruel and vicious as the Aunt, who ravaged people and exploited their lives.
But the true essence of shamanism was not that.
It was solace.
“What can I do? My Young-jin, my poor Young-jin.”
“I will send him to a good place.”
Kang Hyung-seok spoke with such weight that it inspired trust, and Park Sun-young released a bovine cry before moving with slow, heavy steps.
Then, opening the door, Park Sun-young led Kang Hyung-seok to the empty room.
The house was cramped, with belongings stacked everywhere in sight, yet in the empty room lay only a small table and a framed, worn photograph.
It was a photograph of young Kim Young-jin and his biological mother taken together.
Flutter.
Before it, Kang Hyung-seok spread a white cloth tied with seven knots like an offering, then shook the Shaman’s Bell.
“I will now guide your son to heaven.”
“Sob… wail!”
“Your son will go to a good place, the karmic sins committed in life will be extinguished, and all will be judged by the ordinances of heavenly ascension.”
“Sob… sob!”
“Those judged by human law shall also be judged by the law of heaven. I beseech you to release your sorrow and resentment, and pray for the path of salvation.”
Kling-a-ling!
Shaking the Shaman’s Bell, I closed my eyes in silence.
“Today, with utmost sincerity, I offer this prayer.”
Then I recited the scripture to release Kim Young-jin’s spirit.
“Today this Victim Spirit is pitiful and wretched—born into this world only to leave so much unfinished, so much unconsumed, so much unused.”
Park Sun-young, standing at the threshold, knelt and rubbed her palms together.
Her heart was so earnest.
So genuine.
“Never to wear all the clothes, never to live a full life, becoming a ghost in the underworld—how can I hold back these tears? The path to the afterlife grows dim.”
“Uuuugh!”
As I channeled her presence, Park Sun-young’s emotions seeped into my heart.
If only he could depart in peace.
If only he would not forgive this inadequate mother.
“Among all creatures between heaven and earth, humans are most precious. When born into this world, we receive the souls of our ancestors through the grace of heaven and earth, and the flesh and blood of our parents.”
But if he did forgive me.
If he were reborn.
Then let him be reborn as my son once more.
Let me give him in the next life the love I could not give in this one.
“I pray to the Seven Stars for life, I pray to Indra for blessings, I beseech the Three Celestial Kings to guide him through all suffering, born after ten months of gestation.”
It was then.
Park Sun-young, who had been sobbing, lifted her face glistening with tears.
“Life—we come and go in but a moment. Why is this so? The deceased and these spirits cannot walk the path of past lives, cannot walk the path of this world, trapped and buried in clouds.”
Flutter!
The first knot came undone.
My scripture continued, and the window remained closed—no wind could enter.
Yet Park Sun-young touched her own cheek, glistening with tears.
Just now, something had touched her.
Something like a gentle hand.
“How shall we cross the mountains of the underworld? Untying the knots, we make offerings, tie the cord in the courtyard, and follow the Lion Spirit Guide.”
Flutter!
As the second knot came undone, Park Sun-young heard it clearly.
Heard it distinctly.
“The path of this life grows distant, the path of the afterlife opens wide. Our descendants, we hold onto your bodies.”
Mother.
That voice she had yearned for even in dreams whispered at Park Sun-young’s ear.
“The sounds of grief and weeping—I cannot bear to stop them. Today this Victim Spirit receives the scripture of the Dharma Master, hears the teachings and sutras, may your resentment be released.”
Flutter!
Park Sun-young looked down as the third knot came undone, her lips trembling.
Then, curling her body into a ball, she wept as if the heavens themselves were collapsing.
“How pitiful and sorrowful are the deceased and the wandering spirits.”
Kang Hyung-seok recited the scripture, exhaling heavily.
A child who loses parents is called an orphan, but a parent who loses a child is called bereaved—a word so profound it defies simple naming.
The anguish is expressed only through descriptions of devastation and sorrow, for no single word can capture it.
Losing a child is a pain that tears one’s very soul asunder.
Whoooosh!
May this grief, even if only slightly, be lightened.
Kang Hyung-seok finished the scripture with earnest prayer.
“May they receive today’s sincerity and attain rebirth in the Pure Land, and may they receive today’s resolution and be reborn in the cycle of transmigration.”
Namo Amitabha Buddha, Namo Amitabha Buddha, Namo Amitabha Buddha.
Om Samdhara Gada Yak Svaha.
Om Mani Dani Hum Hum Bata Svaha.
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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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