The Calamity-Class Artifacts in Ghost Stories Are Obsessed with Me - Chapter 77
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
Urban Legends and Catastrophe-Class Relics of Obsession — Chapter 77
“How did you know that?”
Seon Dam’s question drew a simple answer from Woo Ju.
“It told me.”
No one questioned whether that made sense. They all understood that a powerful relic could transmit its will to a person, and so they accepted it as natural.
That it happened to be attached to Woo Ju’s wrist and offering helpful counsel besides — well, no one found that strange either.
This was Woo Ju, after all.
No one in the world was as beloved by relics as he was.
Most people would gain fame or notoriety just holding a single relic of such power, yet he already possessed several.
“Then we should enter.”
Seon Dam spoke while facing forward again.
By all appearances, it was something no one wanted to approach, but there was no choice. They had come here to solve this problem.
“Let’s move in carefully.”
With that, Seon Dam cycled through countless plans in his mind before dismissing them, then took his first step.
And naturally, the rest of the team followed in his wake.
“First observation — this doesn’t match any known Erosion patterns in our records.”
“Right. I’ve never seen anything like it either.”
Cheong Woo moved alongside Seon Dam, turning the problem over in his mind alongside him.
Among their current members, only one person could rival him for sheer depth of knowledge.
“Hmm.”
Baek Ho, meanwhile, swept his sharp gaze across the surroundings, alert for any sign of an enemy approach.
His body was wound tight as a spring, ready to burst into motion at any second, yet his footsteps fell with a measured, unhurried weight.
Chae Wol and Yeon Woo brought up the rear, both fingering their tools nervously and swallowing hard.
They both knew their abilities weren’t exceptional compared to the others.
But this wasn’t a competition.
It was about pooling their strength toward a single objective.
What mattered wasn’t excelling — it was avoiding mistakes and supporting those who could.
“Breathe.”
And there, in the center of the formation.
Woo Ju walked steadily, regulating his breathing.
Though he had just finished an intense battle mere moments ago, his condition had already recovered to near-perfect state.
People tended to fixate on his devastating destructive power when they watched him fight, but his physical abilities went far beyond raw strength alone.
Reflexes, endurance, recovery — all of it was extraordinary.
In truth, he had long since transcended the limits of human capability.
His dependence on relics was high, but that was hardly a fatal weakness for someone who could summon them at will.
“Shadows approaching ahead.”
As the distance closed, those shadows emerged — the ones they had grown tired of seeing ever since setting foot in this place.
Individually weak, but not negligible either; they were the sort of enemies that quietly demanded respect.
“Let’s use Talismans first.”
Seon Dam’s gaze passed across Chae Wol, Yeon Woo, and Cheong Woo in turn as he spoke.
Before, Baek Ho and Woo Ju had primarily handled the shadows, but this time there was an intention to conserve their strength.
“I’ll provide support.”
“I-I will too!”
“Understood.”
Cheong Woo drew out a Talisman and began chanting the Incantation in response to Seon Dam’s command.
The shadows shrieked at the sound and began advancing faster.
Sensing what was coming, they meant to attack first.
“Now!”
But Cheong Woo was faster, scattering the Talismans outward.
Moving like bullets, the Talismans flew toward the approaching shadows and struck home.
Whoosh!
—Screeeech!
Flames erupted from where the Talismans embedded themselves, consuming the shadows. Yet their numbers remained vast.
That was when Chae Wol and Yeon Woo moved in.
Snap!
Chae Wol and Yeon Woo followed suit, scattering their Talismans in turn.
The flames already devouring the shadows’ bodies flared higher, spreading outward in all directions.
Like something alive, the fire consumed other shadows and continued to grow, spreading relentlessly across the space.
Woo Ju watched the spectacle and found himself wondering.
‘I wonder how much that cost.’
Woo Ju knew this much.
The cost of crafting even a single Talisman was far from negligible.
In other words, he was scattering money in all directions.
At the same time, he understood perfectly why: to preserve his own and Baek Ho’s full strength.
The two of them who bore the bulk of the fighting couldn’t afford to be exhausted when the moment came.
Shriek—!
Whoosh!
Listening to the roar of flames and the screams of Shadows, Woo Ju and the others pressed forward.
The Shadows seemed to pour forth in endless numbers.
No matter how many they burned, more kept surging in.
Boom!
Yet they remained calm and methodical, carving their path ahead.
If they couldn’t break through here, there was no solving this at all.
Woo Ju had considered lending his strength several times, but held back.
There had to be a reason for how Seon Dam had arranged their formation.
Whoosh!
After repeating this pattern countless times—processing Shadow after Shadow as they poured down—
“It’s just ahead.”
They finally reached the Park.
Considering that the Church Building and Park were virtually touching, it had taken quite a while.
But given the sheer number of Shadows they’d dispatched along the way, the fact that they’d broken through at all was remarkable.
The entire landscape had been writhing with them, so thick you couldn’t see past.
Yet from witnessing that, they could gain a measure of certainty.
The fact that it had been defended so desperately meant something was definitely here.
Even on the way to the Church Building before this, Shadows had tried to approach, but nothing on this scale.
“Woo Ju, do you have a sense of where the core is?”
At the question, Woo Ju answered as if he’d been waiting for it.
The bracelet—the transformed box—had been vibrating continuously since before they reached the Park, communicating its will.
“There. Toward the Bench.”
Where Woo Ju pointed, there was a Bench.
The landscape around it was so warped it took a moment to even recognize it as a Bench.
“Let’s go.”
Seon Dam didn’t waste words—he turned their direction immediately.
One might think reaching a Bench in a Park wouldn’t take long, but the spatial distortion here was severe.
Just as the Church Building’s interior had been far wider than it should be, this Park was similarly stretched to many times its original size.
What had once been a modest Park was now wider than a large athletic field.
Crackle—!
And obstacles lay scattered throughout, a bonus complication.
“From here on, we push through at full strength. Both of you as well.”
So Seon Dam decided to put Baek Ho and Woo Ju at the front from this point.
With the end so near, he judged this a time attack.
Crash—!
And Woo Ju took point, literally pulverizing everything in his path.
Wherever the Iron Pipe struck, grotesque plants and Shadows alike shattered indiscriminately.
Crunch-crunch-crunch!
Baek Ho, though lacking Woo Ju’s raw destructive power, tore through obstacles at blinding speed, surging forward.
Their pace was so fierce that the others found themselves simply struggling to keep up.
Huff.
Woo Ju exhaled heavily, eyes forward.
Before the target stood a massive tree blocking the way, looming skyward with a thrust that seemed to pierce the heavens.
Crash—!
Woo Ju swung the Iron Pipe at the trunk as if wielding an axe, and after just three or four blows, the tree cracked and toppled.
All obstacles blocking the path were gone.
“From here, everyone except Baek Ho and Woo Ju should focus on preventing anything nearby from approaching.”
The moment they reached that point, Seon Dam issued defensive orders to the others.
They’d cut through, but they hadn’t cleared everything scattered across the Park.
Meanwhile, Woo Ju and Baek Ho walked together toward the Bench.
Nothing was visible yet, but Woo Ju could feel it.
Something was right here, just ahead.
Was it the core of the catastrophe? Or the Origin?
Something that had twisted this entire area into this state was clearly hiding itself nearby.
“Hmm.”
Baek Ho narrowed his eyes as if sensing something as well, examining the Bench.
The moment they closed the distance a bit further.
Crack—!
As if it had been waiting, the empty space before the Bench split open with a sharp sound.
Then something burst forth from that rupture. It was the most grotesque thing he’d seen since arriving here—so repulsive that mere sight of it stirred revulsion.
“Dong Chul?”
Yet when Baek Ho saw that form, his expression shifted to shock, as if he were seeing something entirely different.
With considerable experience now under his belt at the Inspection Bureau, Woo Ju grasped the situation at a glance.
“Senior!”
When Woo Ju shouted loudly, Baek Ho—who’d been about to step forward—froze mid-motion.
“Whatever you’re seeing, that isn’t it.”
At those words, confusion flickered across Baek Ho’s eyes.
That confirmed it. Baek Ho was caught in a Hallucination. From the way his expression had shifted moments ago, he was clearly seeing someone he’d known well.
But only for a moment.
Gritting sound—.
Baek Ho snapped back to clarity at Woo Ju’s voice, grinding his teeth as he spoke.
“I’ll handle that thing.”
“Understood.”
Woo Ju nodded without hesitation.
Because Pandora’s Box was pointing not at the creature, but at what lay beyond the Rift.
Whatever the true nature of that Rift, the source of this calamity lay within it.
Footstep, footstep—.
Baek Ho advanced toward the grotesque creature while Woo Ju skirted past him and rushed toward the Rift.
The creature naturally tried to stop him, but—
Kreeeeeyowwwwwl—!
A sharp, piercing animal shriek rang out as the creature and a white form collided.
Woo Ju didn’t spare them a glance, hurling himself directly at the Rift.
Whoosh—!
For a moment his body hung suspended in empty space, and after some time his feet touched solid ground.
“Ugh.”
Dizzy, Woo Ju frowned as he looked ahead.
There, something shimmered in violet light.
It resembled a human heart in shape, yet its size was roughly that of two or three human heads combined, and its surface was composed not of smooth flesh but of what appeared to be crystalline, solid violet mineral.
Thump, thump, thump—!
Moreover, like a living heart, it pulsed at regular intervals, radiating light outward.
At first glance, it didn’t inspire particular aversion. Rather, it had a jewel-like quality—almost beautiful, even.
But after staring at it for several seconds, an instinctive revulsion welled up from within.
The sensation of gazing upon something one should never approach.
Hummmmmmm—!
Simultaneously, Pandora’s Box itself began vibrating far more intensely than before.
This time there was no need to decipher its meaning in detail.
That was the core.
Thump, thump, thump—!
Woo Ju advanced toward it without hesitation. A fierce battle was still raging outside, leaving no room for doubt.
As he drew closer, the pulsing grew more violent, and simultaneously something reached out toward him with a phantom hand.
Hallucinations bloomed.
The faces of those close to him. First love. Family. All manner of forms swept past, whispering things he couldn’t quite make out.
Footstep, footstep—.
But Woo Ju kept walking.
Such tricks couldn’t stop him.
Though his pace slowed somewhat, Woo Ju didn’t halt—he pressed onward.
At last he reached it and picked up the Iron Pipe.
He figured if he simply sealed it as is, it would thrash about, so he planned to strike and crack it first.
Whirrrrrrr—!
Immediately after, a certain will reached out toward Woo Ju.
It was a will transmitted from the thing right before his eyes.
It was a whisper offering him power. A whisper claiming that accepting it, he could achieve anything.
At that, Woo Ju let out a soft laugh and spoke.
“What’s the point of handling someone at the Iron Pipe stage?”
Woo Ju swung the Iron Pipe without hesitation.
Continued in the next episode ▶
Urban Legends: Obsession of Catastrophe-Class Relics
Author
Lee Se-gye
Publishers
Kim Seok-hwan, Choi Se-ra
Published by
Grae Publishing
Inquiries
[email protected]
Publication Date
May 26, 2026
UCI
G720:N+A327-20260410110
※ This e-book is protected by copyright law. Unauthorized reproduction and duplication are prohibited. Violations may result in criminal and civil liability.
※ Pentagram awaits your precious manuscript.
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————