An Office Worker Is Good At Exorcism - Chapter 337

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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 337
Part 1. What’s There? Nothing, Right? (2)
Vroom.
I gripped the steering wheel and drove toward my destination.
Incheon—a remote corner of the city where I passed several rice paddies and fields along the way.
It was afternoon, and the promise of leaving at a reasonable hour provided small comfort.
Sip.
I took a drink of coffee and checked the navigation’s estimated arrival time, which was drawing closer. I rubbed my canine tooth with my tongue.
This was the place where the Sales Team 2 Deputy Manager claimed to have seen a ghost before resigning.
For someone who doesn’t believe in ghosts, it’s just something to laugh off.
But for someone who can actually see them, a matter like this is far from trivial.
‘I hope it was just a hallucination.’
Otherwise, this would become a real headache.
Not just Sales Team 1, but Sales Team 2 was watching as well.
One wrong move, and rumors would spread that I’d performed a shamanic ritual, making my corporate life unbearably difficult.
I might even have to resign.
Sigh.
My face had grown tense from the weight pressing on my heart, and I exhaled heavily through my nose.
I needed a few more sips of coffee to wash away the bitter taste in my mouth. By the time the coffee in my tumbler was nearly gone, the navigation’s guidance ended.
Thunk.
I parked in a modest empty lot and gazed at two buildings standing side by side like twins.
One looked relatively new and clean, while the other was severely dilapidated.
‘So that’s where the ghost was seen.’
The shabby building gripped my gaze with an eerie intensity, refusing to let go.
The acrid, musty smell that brushed against my nose made me rub it instinctively.
“You’re from Daejeong Materials?”
A man who appeared to be around Gwak Young-ho’s age emerged from the clean building.
“Hello. I’m Kang Hyung-seok, Manager from Daejeong Materials.”
“I was expecting you. I heard you’ve taken over the accounts. I’m Cha Byung-gun, Director here, and the owner’s brother.”
“It’s a pleasure to work with you.”
I grasped Cha Byung-gun’s extended hand firmly and shook it, then shifted my gaze toward the dilapidated building.
“I’m sure you’ve heard. That place has been giving us nothing but trouble. Real trouble.”
“Yes, I understand the situation is quite difficult.”
I couldn’t bring myself to mention the ghost directly, so I kept my words vague. Cha Byung-gun pulled out a cigarette with a frustrated expression and lit it.
“Don’t even get me started. That building was here before we set up shop. The owner was so hard to reach, but we finally managed to contact him and took it over, you see?”
“I see.”
“That guy’s incredibly stubborn. After we took over, I tried calling him again, but he wouldn’t answer. Anyway, I thought it would be perfect as a warehouse, but then people kept saying they saw strange things there.”
Click! Whoosh!
I studied Cha Byung-gun’s expression as he lit his cigarette.
This man was the type who didn’t believe.
He didn’t outright deny the existence of ghosts, but the emotion written across his face wasn’t fear or discomfort—it was irritation.
“Um, do you believe in ghosts too, Manager Kang?”
Kang Hyung-seok lifted the corners of his mouth into a gentle smile.
“I think they exist, but I’m not afraid of them.”
“Huh? That’s unusual. Usually people who believe in them get scared, don’t they?”
“Because there are far scarier things in this world. Credit card statements terrify me more.”
“Hahahaha! Cough! Cough cough!”
Cha Byung-gun, who had laughed heartily at the quip, choked and his back heaved as he coughed.
“Are you alright?”
“Cough cough! I’m fine. I’m fine.”
Cha Byung-gun straightened his hunched back and lit another cigarette, then after a few more coughs, he pointed at the old building with his callus-covered fingers.
“I wish all my employees were like you, Manager. But for some reason, whenever anyone goes in there, they claim to have seen things.”
Kang Hyung-seok shifted his gaze toward the old building.
It was a three-story structure that appeared to have originally served as both a residence and office space.
The first floor was spacious and open, suitable for use as a warehouse, but what caught his attention was the staircase attached to the side of the building.
“There’s a basement?”
“That’s the place. That’s where people freak out.”
“I see.”
“Someone who came before went in confidently but came running out in a panic. What could possibly be in there? There’s nothing.”
At Cha Byung-gun’s grumbling, Kang Hyung-seok smiled wryly.
Yet his mind remained fixed on the old building.
It seemed worth investigating.
“Would you mind if I took a look?”
“You, Manager?”
“Yes.”
“Well, there’s no problem with that, but…”
Despite his words, Cha Byung-gun’s tone suggested he hoped Kang Hyung-seok would check it out.
“I’ll just take a quick look around and come back out.”
“Yes, yes. It’s dark inside, so just watch your step.”
Kang Hyung-seok retrieved his bag from the car and headed toward the old building.
Behind him, Cha Byung-gun watched while smoking, and though the sun had tilted westward, it hadn’t yet reached the point of sunset.
It was still broad daylight.
Since it wasn’t an hour when ghosts would be wandering about, Kang Hyung-seok stepped onto the staircase leading downward.
Thud.
Marble steps with a hard texture that couldn’t be hidden even by shoe soles.
There was a railing beside them, but it was corroded, and dust lay thickly settled.
It seemed more than one employee had claimed to see ghosts here.
Thud, thud.
As I descended further, I could see uncleaned dust piled thickly.
I covered my mouth with my sleeve and grasped the door handle at the bottom of the stairs.
At least the doorknob had been replaced when the building was acquired, so it didn’t emit any unpleasant noise as I twisted it open.
Creak.
The door swung open.
“Is there anything in there? There isn’t, right?”
Cha Byung-gun asked plainly from outside, but I couldn’t answer immediately.
A Victim Spirit with an abnormally tall frame and a mouth that stretched down to its chest—a horrifying sight—had seized my shoulder from within the room.
Shhhhh.
The Victim Spirit, reeking of a putrid stench, lowered its head as if trying to swallow me with its gaping maw, and I exhaled a sigh between my lips before answering Cha Byung-gun.
“Yes. There’s nothing here.”
“See? I told you. People really are something.”
“Would it be alright if I looked around a bit more before heading up?”
“Yes. Take your time.”
A slimy tongue brushed against the crown of my head.
The stench grew more pungent, and the grip of the Victim Spirit’s hand on my shoulder tightened.
Ding.
And at that moment, the Shaman’s Bell in my bag rang softly to protect me,
“Heaven and earth opened anew, day and night flow in harmony, yin and yang are balanced, and all things find their nature—thus it is eternal.”
I recited the Boseo Scripture in a low voice.
Though my voice was too quiet for Cha Byung-gun outside to hear, the movement of the malevolent spirit trying to swallow me ceased.
“The noble guest purifies the realm, and mountains and waters flow with grace—heaven is my father. The sun and moon are my siblings, mountains and waters are my shelter, spirits are my companions in work.”
The Boseo Scripture is a sutra that virtues disciples and purifies the path.
“The eight trigrams of the nine palaces, the sixty-four hexagrams—heaven and earth, the eight directions—all are unified. The eight trigrams of the nine palaces, the sixty-four hexagrams—heaven and earth, the eight directions—all are unified. Through divine spirits, let harmony and communication be established.”
Rather than driving spirits away, its meaning is stronger in paving the way of the Shaman.
“Left and right, green dragons reign as kings, and above the waters, divine spirits descend in response—let divine spirits sense and respond. My disciple’s life is blessed, and fortune flows like the sun and moon in eternal brilliance.”
The dragons of left and right guard like kings, and the spirits above the waters descend in response.
Divine spirits embrace my disciple and bestow blessings.
Let nothing harsh or unclean dare block the path of my divine disciple.
Ding-a-ling!
The Shaman’s Bell rang loudly.
The Victim Spirit’s form, which had been clearly visible, blurred and vanished, and I drew a deep breath through my nose.
The foul odor had definitely subsided.
Ding, ding.
Listening to the gentle ringing of the Shaman’s Bell, I ventured deeper into the darkness.
The light filtering through the open door was absurdly dim, so I illuminated my surroundings with my phone.
A large machine that appeared to be a boiler.
Everything else wasn’t particularly noteworthy, though discarded materials were stacked threateningly in various places.
‘What could it be.’
What I perceived was a bound spirit.
Something had clearly happened here, but I couldn’t discern the exact reason.
My footsteps halted as I listened intently in the dark, quiet basement.
I was waiting for the body’s reaction, but the voice that came was Cha Byung-gun’s.
“Come on out! There’s nothing to see.”
Tsk.
I clicked my tongue softly and turned my body toward the door.
“Yes, understood.”
Click.
I closed the door and stepped outside, then climbed the stairs to approach Cha Byung-gun.
In that brief span, he’d burned through quite a few cigarettes.
There were at least three butts scattered on the ground.
“Nothing much, right?”
Cha Byung-gun spoke with his brow furrowed, and I answered with a shaking smile.
“Yes. It was just an ordinary basement.”
“Exactly! There’s really nothing there, yet people are making such a fuss saying they saw ghosts, absolutely ridiculous….”
Cha Byung-gun droned on as if exasperated.
Meanwhile, I fixed my gaze on the cigarette butts scattered on the ground.
Was it really so?
Did you truly know nothing at all?
Or were you simply concerned about people saying they’d seen a ghost?
“If it were summer, I could understand it. But people claiming to see ghosts in spring—I don’t even know where to complain about this, honestly.”
At Cha Byung-gun’s continued grumbling, I forced the smile of a seasoned professional.
“From what I’ve observed, it doesn’t seem to be a significant issue. If anything does happen, please contact me right away.”
“Oh! That’s right. Now that I think about it, we haven’t exchanged business cards. What’s wrong with me.”
Cha Byung-gun fumbled and pulled his wallet from his pocket, and I retrieved my business card case to exchange cards with him.
Daeul Vinyl Factory, Facility Manager Cha Byung-gun.
“I look forward to working with you in the future.”
I smiled at Cha Byung-gun and slipped his card into my business card case.
***
Vroom.
Kang Hyung-seok made a call to Gwak Young-ho while driving.
(Manager Kang! Did the meeting go well?)
“Yes. I just finished and I’m heading back now.”
(Good work. So? Did any ghosts show up?)
It was the kind of thing that could be said as a joke, yet Gwak Young-ho’s voice carried unmistakable gravity.
A Daejeong Materials employee had already quit because of a ghost, and if Kang Hyung-seok also said he couldn’t continue because of one, the situation would become extremely awkward.
“From what I observed, there was nothing there. Since it’s an old building, it seems someone saw things that weren’t real.”
(Phew, thank goodness.)
His response of “Well, of course” clearly carried a note of relief.
But Gwak Young-ho would never know the truth.
There really was a Victim Spirit trapped in that basement, and it had tried to consume me.
If I left it alone, something terrible could definitely happen.
“Still, the owner’s brother seemed to be under considerable stress. I think it would be best if I visited regularly for a while to help ease his worries.”
(You, Manager Kang? Do you have a concrete plan?)
“As you know, I’m acquainted with several Shamans.”
(Right! That’s it, that’s it! You even know some really famous ones, don’t you?)
“Yes.”
(That’s right. That’s right! If push comes to shove, we can even arrange a ritual! Then they’ll feel much more at ease. It really seems like things start moving when you get involved, Manager Kang.)
“That’s not true. Nothing has been resolved yet.”
(Still, you have a trump card up your sleeve, don’t you? Anyway, you really did great work. Drive safely and get home! See you tomorrow!)
“Yes, sir. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Kang Hyung-seok hung up the phone.
Then I leaned the back of my head against the headrest and drove slowly down the quiet, desolate road.
‘An abandoned building, a disappeared former owner, a ghost in the basement.’
It felt like puzzle pieces that had nothing to do with each other were suddenly thrown in front of me.
How on earth was I supposed to handle this?
As my concerns deepened, my expression hardened.
Woof woof woof woof!
As if keeping watch over me, a large dog kept at a small house far in the distance barked ferociously, drool dripping from its mouth in a terrifying manner.

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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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