GRR 19

‘For now, give the student the spring water and send him home. I’ll speak to King Yeomra.’

So what was the conclusion? You should at least let me know. Jion sighed for the umpteenth time.

Did the proposal fizzle out because King Yeomra didn’t approve? If so, would it hurt to at least say so? Since he didn’t know how to meet the grim reapers and was in a position where he had to wait unilaterally, the more curious he became, the more frustrated he felt.

Jion sighed and crunched on the ice of the popsicle again. Focusing on the soccer match would be better for his mental health.

“I heard they made a bet on pizza. I wonder if they can win….”

“How can they win with Park Dongmin there? Hey, look over there. He’s totally flying.”

In response to Jion’s mutter, Go Youngjae reacted dramatically. He pointed his finger somewhere on the field. Park Dongmin, wearing an orange vest over a white short-sleeved T-shirt, was dribbling towards the goal. Although the score was still 0-0 as neither class had managed to score, it was a tense situation where Class 2 Park Dongmin might score the first goal at any moment.

“Wow, Oh Hyunsoo snatched that. He’s crazy.”

Just then, Oh Hyunsoo snatched the ball from Park Dongmin with a masterful tackle. As the ball rolled safely over to Jion’s side, the tide turned in an instant. Go Youngjae adjusted his glasses to focus, and before he knew it, Oh Hyunsoo, having received the ball, was running like crazy toward the Class 2 goal. Both Jion and Go Youngjae jumped up and cheered for Oh Hyunsoo.

Finally, the moment Oh Hyunsoo took a shot with his left foot, Jion let out a sound close to a scream, unable to properly see the decisive moment when the ball shook the net.

“Ah!”

“Wow!”

It was because something pitch-black and huge suddenly appeared right in front of his eyes.

Fortunately, Jion’s loud scream was drowned out by Go Youngjae’s cheers loud enough to shake the field. Jion’s popsicle fell to the ground. He slowly raised his head while trembling. Kwon Chasa, floating in the air like a ghost, was staring at Jion.

“Wow, Oh Hyunsoo is insane! That actually went in. Hey, we’re going to eat pizza.”

Jion could not react to Go Youngjae’s agitated voice. He simply clutched his pounding heart and busily looked around.

Kwon Chasa, standing on the air rather than the ground with his two feet, appeared to be visible only to himself, as no one paid any attention to this place. Oh Hyunsoo, surrounded by his friends, was smiling, while Park Dongmin was nervously scuffing the ground with his shoes.

Jion barely managed to catch his breath. He looked up at Kwon Chasa with resentment. He worried that at this rate, he might die early not from the energy of the underworld, but from shock.

“I’d like to talk for a moment.”

Jion parted his lips to say something, but quickly closed them. With Go Youngjae right beside him, he couldn’t speak to thin air. Jion nodded, picked up the fallen popsicle, threw it into a nearby trash can, and then forced his voice to sound as natural as possible.

“…Go Young, I’ll go in first.”

“Huh? Suddenly? It was just starting to get interesting?”

He had been constantly worried about the grim reaper, and then he came to find him of his own accord. Jion didn’t know when he would ever meet him again if he missed this opportunity, so he thought it would be best to accept his offer. However, if they talked here, he would obviously end up looking like a crazy person talking to thin air, so he had to move on.

“I’m tired because I stayed up late yesterday. I’m going to get some sleep.”

“Right. Oh, right. What was the 5th period again?”

“Uh… I think it’s Speech and Writing?”

Leaving behind Go Youngjae, who waved his hand without any particular suspicion after hearing the answer, Jion hurried his steps and signaled to Kwon Chasa to follow. He had once seen a ghost at school before, he knew where to find a secluded spot suitable for a conversation.

Jion stepped into the secluded space behind the school library, where students often smoked behind their teachers’ backs, and let out a sigh of relief only after confirming that no one was around. Before he realized it, Kwon Chasa was standing on solid ground.

Seeing that nonchalant face, he felt unfairly treated. He almost had a heart attack, yet the one responsible looked so calm.

“I seriously thought I was going to die of a heart attack earlier.”

“Do you think humans die that easily?”

Didn’t you say it was easy to die a meaningless death? Jion let out a sarcastic laugh, displeased that Kwon Chasa changed his words to suit his own agenda. However, Kwon Chasa paid little attention. He lowered his body and placed his palms on the floor. It appeared he planned to head to that hanok again, just like last time.

The floor he touched glowed, and as he took a step back, the exact same gate he had seen before appeared. Jion hurriedly took his cell phone out of his pants pocket to check the time. With only about 15 minutes left until lunch, he didn’t have much time to spare. Kwon Chasa half-heartedly extended his hand to Jion.

“Can’t we just talk here? There isn’t much time left before lunch.”

“It’ll be over soon. Come in.”

If it’s something that will be over quickly, wouldn’t it be better to just do it here? Jion had doubts, but it was better to meekly follow his lead rather than waste time arguing.

Just in case, he scanned the surroundings one more time before taking his hand; this time, unlike before, it was cold. Startled, Jion reflexively tried to let go, but Kwon Chasa grabbed his hand. As he leaned into the door, Jion was naturally pulled inside.

As he opened his closed eyes, a hanok appeared, just as he had seen before. The weather was also still clear and pristine, no different from previous times. Only now did he begin to feel the truth of Yu Chasa’s words that this was not entirely a space of the living world. Regardless of the time and weather in the living world, it seemed as though this place would always be as bright as midday.

Jion let go of his hand and diligently followed behind Kwon Chasa, who had started walking quickly.

“Welcome!”

As he entered the house, Yu Chasa greeted him warmly with a smiling face. When Jion smiled and nodded in acknowledgment, he quickly led him to the sofa. Meanwhile, Kwon Chasa, who had passed through the living room and entered a room, came back outside holding something in both hands. What Kwon Chasa placed on the table upon his return to the living room were rice paper and a brush.

He spread out a not-so-large sheet of rice paper and took the brush in his hand. The sight did not match his appearance, dressed in a suit and wearing several piercings in his ears. However, the shape of his hand holding the brush and his upright posture looked relaxed, as if ingrained in him for a long time, and as Jion watched him, it actually felt convincing.

“Name.”

Kwon Chasa brought the brush, undipped in ink, over the rice paper and asked Jion. Although he could not understand why he was asking when he surely knew his name, Jion answered for now.

“…It’s Chae Jion.”

“Chinese character.”

“Ah… it’s Chae ( 蔡 grass), Ji (知 knowledge), and On (溫 warm).”

Was he asking for the hanja? But why the sudden question about his name? He started doubting only after he had answered, but Kwon Chasa was already drawing strokes on the rice paper without hesitation.

Chae Jion.

His handwriting, seemingly rough yet soft, drew the three characters of the name in a single stroke. As if the ink were flowing on its own, the brush, following Kwon Chasa’s hand, inscribed a few more characters onto the paper.

As Jion stared, unable to tell what the characters were or what they meant, Kwon Chasa wrote one more character in the bottom right corner and handed the brush to Yu Chasa. Yu Chasa likewise quickly wrote one character in the bottom right corner.

As Kwon Chasa spread his palm over the rice paper, the outlines of the brush-etched characters shone white before sinking back into black. A rolled-up sheet of rice paper was suddenly thrust in front of Jion, who had been watching the entire process with wonder. Jion blinked and asked.

“What is it?”

“Contract.”

“What contract?”

“A contract stating that you grant our request and we will grant your wish later. You’ve heard everything before.”

“…But I never said I would sign a contract.”

When Jion retorted, Kwon Chasa simply raised one corner of his mouth without saying a word. A sinister smile urging him to “just let it slide quietly” appeared on his face.

Even though Jion though it was better to just let it go, it felt as though, whenever that man got involved, his rebellious spirit was ignited.

Yu Chasa observed the two in their strange standoff in silence, then forcibly pressed the paper in Kwon Chasa’s hand into Jion’s. The rice paper emitted a faint warmth accompanied by a soft light, then fell silent after recognizing its owner. Yu Chasa, wearing a bright smile, chattered away like a child who had just learned to speak.

“That rice paper was bestowed upon you by King Yeomra after granting permission to make a contract with you. You must keep it so that we can grant your wishes later, so you absolutely must not lose or damage it. Understood?”

I mean, I never said that I would sign a contract…? Jion parted his lips to retort, but instead quietly looked down at the rice paper in his hand. The single sheet of paper, which was weightless just moments ago, suddenly felt as heavy as a boulder.