GRR 20

Although he had always shouldered a responsibility that no one had forced upon him while helping ghosts, it felt as though he had been entrusted a mission far heavier than anything he had felt before. Jion carefully stroked the unusual rice paper and sighed. His mouth felt parched.

With his name even engraved on the contract, what choice could he have? Since he had even considered doing as they pleased when he first heard the proposal, he thought it would be best to just consider it a good deed. Having made up his mind, Jion looked at Kwon Chasa.

“How can I help you?”

All he did was talk to and help the wandering souls whenever he happened to meet them; he didn’t have any kind of system like them. Thinking that he should follow their ways now that he had decided to help, he asked a question, and Kwon Chasa immediately replied.

“Once we receive the register given by Yeomra, we must take the deceased whose name is written there to the underworld. The souls we have to take are the ones who linger in this world as they please instead of leaving for the afterlife on time, so we must take them to the underworld as quickly as possible to get a chance for reincarnation.”

The calm voice still lacked any warmth, but it was not rough, which made it reasonably pleasant to listen to. Yu Chasa also nodded as he listened to Kwon Chasa’s words.

“So, student, when you meet a soul on the list we received, persuade them to go to the afterlife quickly. Well, if that absolutely doesn’t work, grant their request just like you did with Jung Suho and Yoo Kanghyun. In return, you should get a promise that they will leave for the underworld once everything is resolved. I hope we can finish it with just persuasion, so we don’t drag this out.”

Simply put, it didn’t seem like a difficult task. It wasn’t much different from what he had been doing so far. However, the problem was that he was not an omnipotent god, but a mere human. He did not have the ability to grant every wish the deceased made.

“But… I can’t grant every request either. There were things beyond my capabilities to handle, and sometimes there were rather scary ghosts. Like asking me to kill the person who killed them, or to take revenge on their behalf… I can’t do things like that. Not that I should, though.”

There were some souls who shed tears of blood asking him to kill their murderer in their place, and others who said they did not want to go to the underworld and asked to be hidden so that the grim reaper could not find them.

He understood their feelings, but Jion could not grant either of the two requests. If someone whose name was on the register were to make such a wish, he could not help them.

Once he finished speaking and glanced at Kwon Chasa, Jion realized that he was lost in thought. He must not have anticipated that. As he tapped his knee with his fingertips, a not-so-positive atmosphere slowly descended. It wouldn’t have been strange if he were to say that he would unconditionally fulfill the contract, regardless of whether the soul was uncooperative or not.

“I’m saying you should just coax them with words if possible. You just need to make them want to leave this world.”

“…….”

“If they absolutely refuse, are stubborn, have suspicious aura, or say nonsense, don’t engage with them; just leave them alone. Don’t promise to grant all their requests only to end up in a bad situation. Either I or Yu Chasa will go with you, so it shouldn’t be a big problem.”

However, what Kwon Chasa said was unexpected. To say to just leave it alone if it doesn’t work out. When Jion, confused by the unforeseen words, stared at him, Kwon Chasa tilted his head and shrugged.

He’s still annoying, but… maybe he was not completely heartless? Jion thought for a moment, then hurriedly looked away when he realized he had been staring at him for too long. A shiver ran down his spine, thinking that a being neither human nor ghost could see right through him if he set his mind to it.

Yu Chasa looked at Jion and Kwon Chasa. He noticed that the atmosphere had become strange and clapped his hands once to lighten the mood. As Jion turned around at the sound, Yu Chasa’s extended his hand in front of him.

“Then, I look forward to working with you from now on, living one! No, Jion-nim!”

“Uh, Jion-nim is a bit… haha… Could you just call me comfortably…?”

“Ah, are you feeling pressured? Then, um… Jion-ssi? Student Jion…? What should I call you…?”

“…Please just call me Student Jion.”

Perhaps because Kwon Chasa always called him “Student,” “Student Jion” was the best of the titles he offered. Jion clasped Yu Chasa’s hand, shook it slightly, and smiled a little awkwardly.

I think I’ve heard pretty much everything I needed to hear. Jion quietly took out his phone to check the time. Before he knew it, there were less than five minutes left until lunchtime.

Jion, who was about to put away his phone thinking he should hurry back, noticed that the small icon at the top of the screen was different from usual. It was an indication that neither calls nor data could be used.

As expected, it is no ordinary place. A mysterious space with no calls or internet access, where one doesn’t even know if it is the living world or the underworld. Kwon Chasa picked up his brush and stood up as he saw Jion shiver slightly. As Jion’s gaze naturally followed him, he gestured to Yu Chasa and spoke.

“Yu Chasa, make sure the student gets the spring water and escorts him safely. I’ll check the registers.”

“Ah, yes!”

He went straight into the room without looking back after entrusting the final task to Yu Chasa. Jion’s didn’t expect any polite farewells, like saying they should do better in the future, thanking him, or telling him to be careful, but seeing his cold back retreat, Jion suddenly felt defiant.

Jion, who had been pouting and glaring at the door of the room where Kwon Chasa had entered, turned his gaze toward Yu Chasa only after hearing his voice. Unlike Kwon Chasa, Yu Chasa had a bright smile on his face.

“Student Jion, should I take you to school?”

“Yes….”

“Please go out to the yard first. I’ll just grab the spring water and come right out.”

However, it was a relief that this person… no, this grim reaper, was kind. Jion sighed in relief and glanced briefly at the retreating figure of Yu Chasa as he hurriedly ran toward the kitchen, then quickened his pace toward the yard. Even in the midst of this, he couldn’t understand why he found himself looking back.

***

It had been a week since the contract given by Kwon Chasa took up a prominent spot in a corner of his desk drawer. The midterm exams, which were held earlier than those for the first and second-year students, also came to an end.

In the meantime, the grim reapers did not show up. It seemed that no situation requiring his help had arisen yet. Perhaps because he was bound by a contractual relationship and working together, his curiosity grew stronger, but since he did not yet know how to visit or contact the grim reapers, he simply kept it bottled up inside.

If they need me, they’ll find me on their own. Jion tried hard not to overthink as he stocked the cigarette shelves. The delivery truck, which usually arrived a little past 11 p.m., had arrived early for some reason today, making things even more hectic than usual. Jion only began organizing after checking the inventory list to ensure everything had arrived correctly.

He moved diligently to put the water bottles and ramen boxes into the staff room, organized other items, and then stocked the shelves with fresh food. He even felt proud when he lined up the triangle kimbap and sandwiches meticulously.

The moment Jion, who was stretching by leaning back slightly, turned to take out the delivery boxes, the convenience store door opened with a jingling sound.

“Welcome…”

Jion hurried toward the counter while greeting the customer, then his eyes widened. He was a little surprised to see a face he hadn’t seen in a long time, and a little surprised again that the face he hadn’t seen in a while was still as obnoxious as ever.

Jion was a little stunned, but soon came to his senses and hurriedly went into the counter. Kwon Chasa, who had visited the convenience store without warning, stood in front of Jion and indifferently greeted him.

“It’s been a while, student.”

“Yes… it has.”

Undeterred by the lukewarm reaction, Kwon Chasa walked toward the snack aisle with both hands stuffed in his pants pockets. Since Jion couldn’t see clearly what he was doing from where he was standing, he craned his neck to look and saw that he was simply examining the items.

Kwon Chasa scanned the back where the ramen shelves were and the beverage display, then returned to the fresh food section near the counter. In the meantime, as the customer who had visited the convenience store to buy cigarettes left, Kwon Chasa placed two banana milks on the counter. Perhaps because it reminded him of the day he first came to the convenience store, it was not a particularly welcome item.

“…Please insert the card here.”

After Jion scanned the barcode and pointed at the card reader, Kwon Chasa took a card out of his pants pocket and paid.

How can a grim reaper use a credit card and pay for things in the living world? Is that black card his? The more he thought about it, the more suspicious it was, as he was no different from a human in the slightest.