The Calamity-Class Artifacts in Ghost Stories Are Obsessed with Me - Chapter 86

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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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Urban Legends and Catastrophe-Class Relics: Chapter 86
Shutendoji resisted to the very end, but the Iron Chains binding his body prevented him from summoning his true strength.
Poof!
His massive form vanished not long after.
In that same instant, Woo Ju felt a will emanating from Pandora’s Box.
—Delicious! More!
It seemed, all things considered, that the meal had been satisfying.
After the towering presence that was Shutendoji disappeared, everyone stood frozen in place for a moment, staring at the empty space.
The overwhelming aura that had pressed down on the entire mountain just moments before had vanished without a trace.
“Is it… over?”
Shinichi was the first to break the silence.
He adjusted his glasses with a weary expression.
Dark liquid dripped steadily from the blade he held in his hand.
Blood that had flowed from Shutendoji’s body as he struck.
“Yes. The Sealing Ritual was completed successfully.”
Ray answered him.
Her face too was marked by exhaustion. It was only natural—she had chanted Incantations without pause since their arrival.
“To be honest, if you hadn’t possessed that Relic, the sealing would have failed.”
At her words, all eyes naturally turned toward Woo Ju.
Woo Ju had been gazing down at his Bracelet, but he lifted his head as the gazes settled on him.
“Ah. The Sealing, you mean.”
With those words, he raised his wrist, drawing their focus there.
“I don’t think he can break free. It feels like he’s been sealed completely and thoroughly.”
It was difficult to explain in detail, but that was precisely the sensation.
The feeling that Shutendoji could never escape through his own power.
Unless the owner chose to unseal it, as the Sect Leader had done with the Box before—but Woo Ju had no intention of doing such a thing.
And there was something else.
‘Something feels off. I have more power than usual.’
After sealing Shutendoji, Woo Ju felt strength surging through his entire body.
If anything, it was a sensation similar to when he first obtained the Iron Pipe.
Of course, it wasn’t as strong as that enhancement had been. It was merely a similar feeling—the actual increase in power fell far short of that magnitude.
‘Still, that’s remarkable in itself.’
Considering that his physical abilities had already undergone a dramatic leap due to the Iron Pipe, any additional enhancement on top of that was extraordinary.
Whether he had actually grown stronger, and by how much, would require proper testing to determine.
After thinking this far, Woo Ju opened his mouth.
“So it’s finished then.”
“Seems like it.”
Hwa Ryeon’s complexion looked slightly tired at those words, but it was better than it had been in Busan last time.
The battle had ended far more quickly this time, no doubt about it.
Then, they had spent nearly the entire operation exerting themselves relentlessly.
Woo Ju nodded and spoke again.
“Let’s head back! We need rest!”
It was time to return.
* * *
It was natural enough, but even though the mission was complete, immediate departure back to Korea was impossible.
To finish things cleanly and return home, there were still matters to attend to.
“The Sealing state of the Relic in question is nearly flawless. We assess it to be far superior to the original Sealing Ritual.”
An employee of the Japanese Inspection Bureau spoke with a grave expression, and everyone standing nearby nodded in agreement.
“Remarkable, truly.”
“It’s an extraordinarily powerful Relic. In terms of Sealing, there are few Relics that could match this one.”
At the final employee’s words, everyone nodded once more.
It appeared they all shared the same assessment.
Woo Ju observed the people gathered around him.
Shutendoji’s defeat was only days ago.
Afterward, Woo Ju had rested completely for two days without doing anything.
Normally he should have undergone examination immediately upon mission completion, but given how grueling the operation had been, the Japanese Inspection Bureau showed consideration.
Thus, after resting for two days, he proceeded to the Japan Surveillance Bureau Headquarters to undergo various examinations.
‘Is this the final inspection?’
Once this was finished, the lengthy examinations would be over.
The day of return to Korea was not far off.
Technically speaking, he could have returned to Korea right away, but he’d decided to stay in Japan for another couple of days.
Hwa Ryeon had explained the reason simply enough.
“Since we’re already here, why not enjoy a little vacation abroad?”
She’d told him he was free to leave first if he wished, but of course Woo Ju decided to stay a bit longer as well.
In this line of work, it wasn’t easy to slip away to a foreign country during vacation.
“Then we can leave it as is.”
“Yes.”
Pandora’s Box had been concluded to have no final issues.
Or rather, it couldn’t be in better shape.
In truth, from the Japanese Inspection Bureau’s perspective, as long as the sealing held firm, there was little to worry about.
Woo Ju would be returning to Korea anyway, wouldn’t he?
If Shutendoji broke free, it would break free in Korea instead.
Besides, Woo Ju wouldn’t create such a situation in the first place.
In any case, once the inspection was finished.
“So what are you planning to do before you head back?”
Mizuki approached and asked.
During the inspection, she’d gone out of her way to make things convenient for Woo Ju in various ways.
Showing him around, introducing him to the facilities, and occasionally keeping him company in conversation.
He could sense her gratitude for all the help she’d received.
Thanks to her, Woo Ju had managed to spend his time at the unfamiliar Japan Surveillance Bureau Headquarters quite comfortably.
“Oh, I’m planning to buy some souvenirs and visit a few tourist spots. I haven’t been to Japan all that often.”
“Is that so? Would you like me to recommend a few good places?”
“Ah, well, I’d certainly appreciate that.”
“Just a moment!”
Mizuki, delighted by his response, immediately organized several locations and sent them to him right there on the spot.
‘Wait—did she have this prepared already?’
He’d thought she’d written it up on the fly, but the volume was considerable.
Restaurants, shopping areas, and tourist sites—everything was meticulously organized.
“Wow, thank you so much.”
“No need to thank me! If you come across anything you’re curious about while traveling, or if you need any help, feel free to reach out anytime!”
Mizuki smiled as she said this, and then walked Woo Ju to the elevator.
Woo Ju rode the elevator down to the first floor, then stepped out of the building.
“Hmm.”
He pulled out his phone and reviewed the tourist information Mizuki had sent him.
‘Should I buy souvenirs first and then move around? No, that might be inconvenient if I’m carrying too much.’
After deliberating for a moment, Woo Ju decided to grab food first. He judged it best to save the souvenirs for the very end.
As luck would have it, there seemed to be a decent restaurant nearby.
The moment Woo Ju settled on his destination, he headed straight there.
It wasn’t long before he arrived at a ramen place—and it turned out to be an exceptional one.
It easily ranked in the top three ramen shops Woo Ju had ever eaten at.
The café he visited next had a wonderful atmosphere as well, and the tourist site after that had a quiet, charming appeal.
Following Mizuki’s recommendations, Woo Ju spent two days filling every hour meaningfully.
And as his itinerary was drawing to a close,
Woo Ju decided to visit one last place from Mizuki’s list—one that had caught his curiosity.
It was the place marked “Black Magic Doll Shop.”
“There’s a shop in a place like this?”
Following the address, Woo Ju arrived at a dark, remote alley that didn’t particularly look like it contained any shop at all.
But when he reached the exact address, there it was—a shop standing plainly before him.
“Hmm.”
Before entering, Woo Ju scanned the storefront from top to bottom.
It might have been his imagination, but there was something eerie about the shop’s atmosphere itself.
For reference, Mizuki’s message had recommended it if he wanted to see unusual souvenirs and curiosities.
After a moment’s hesitation, Woo Ju decided to simply have a look around and pushed open the door.
The door slid open softly.
The interior of the shop matched the feeling its exterior had given off.
Shelves lined the walls, and on those shelves were displayed dolls of a distinctly unusual nature.
A doll of a young girl with long black hair.
A doll of a strange creature with four eyes. A doll of a grinning old man, and so on.
Each and every one of them had the sort of appearance that an ordinary shop wouldn’t even keep in stock, let alone put on display.
“Welcome.”
Just then, a voice came from behind the counter.
He’d thought the shop was empty at first, but now he could see someone had been lying across the counter.
“Welcome.”
“Oh, yes. Are you browsing?”
“Yes. Is it alright?”
Woo Ju barely understood the Japanese and managed a reply.
He’d largely guessed at it from context, but the other person nodded as if he’d answered correctly.
Then the employee leaned against the counter and stared blankly into the distance.
Clearly, this wasn’t the type to actively solicit customers.
Which meant Woo Ju could browse the dolls at his leisure.
“Huh.”
Most of the dolls had an unsettling appearance, but that’s what made them worth examining.
You didn’t see such craftsmanship anywhere else.
‘Some of these feel like the real thing.’
More than that, several of the dolls emanated ‘that kind of aura.’
A curse aura, to be specific.
Of course, the aura itself was so faint that owning one wouldn’t cause any serious problems.
Maybe a mild cold if you hugged it every night while sleeping?
Extremely subtle.
“You seem quite interested in those dolls.”
But then the employee spoke again.
He’d apparently noticed that Woo Ju was focusing mainly on the dolls with curse auras.
“Yes, well, they feel rather unusual.”
“They are special ones, aren’t they?”
As the employee said this, his eyes lit up with life for the first time.
“Most ordinary customers wouldn’t notice, but you clearly have quite the eye.”
He even came out from behind the counter to stand beside Woo Ju.
Woo Ju immediately regretted pretending to know what he was talking about, but it was too late now.
“These are cursed dolls or something like that, right?”
“Exactly. They’re items you won’t find anywhere else. That’s why special customers like yourself come looking for them often.”
“Special customers like me?”
“Yes. You’re from the Surveillance Bureau, aren’t you?”
The employee asked as if it were obvious. Woo Ju blinked in surprise and asked back.
“What’s that?”
“Oh, don’t worry. This shop is also one of the officially affiliated stores of the Surveillance Bureau.”
The employee said this with a smile, as if he wasn’t really expecting an answer in the first place.
“You can’t run a place like this without proper authorization, after all. We deal in genuine articles here. For your information, everything on display here is meant for ordinary customers.”
And with that, his hand gestured toward the back.
“The real items are in there. Would you like to take a look?”
“Hmm.”
Woo Ju thought for a moment before responding.
“No, thanks.”
“Pardon?”
“I’m not really that interested, to be honest. I just came to browse and pick up a souvenir.”
At that answer, the employee blinked blankly and opened his mouth.
“Is this some kind of new joke?”
“No, I’m serious. And since my Japanese isn’t very good, could you speak a bit slower?”
To be honest, Woo Ju had understood about two-thirds of the conversation at best.
He’d simply been responding based on intuition.
The employee looked even more bewildered at Woo Ju’s words, about to say something.
Ding—
But then the bell chimed as someone entered the shop.
Woo Ju turned his head and his eyes widened at the familiar face.
“Team Leader?”
The one who’d opened the door was none other than Hwa Ryeon.
Continued in next chapter ▶
How the Urban Legends of Catastrophe-Class Relics Become Obsessed
Author
Lee Se-gye
Publisher
Kim Seok-hwan, Choi Se-ra
Publisher
Grae Publishing
Inquiries
[email protected]
Publication Date
May 26, 2026
UCI
G720:N+A327-20260410110
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※ Pentagram welcomes your precious manuscripts.

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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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