GRR 22

“Student, do you know what the problem is with humans and ghosts? It’s that if you speak nicely, they just don’t understand.”

“…….”

“They’re already grave sinners, so why should they be let off the hook any longer? They won’t even be able to collect their bones once they get to the underworld. It would be wiser to go there as soon as possible and beg to let them be reincarnated.”

Jion could not offer any rebuttal to the voice, which had grown even colder. To Jion, the deceased who could not leave this world were simply pitiful and wretched beings, but to the grim reapers, they would appear as sinners, so his reaction was understandable. While he understood the inevitable chasm between them, a bitter taste lingered in Jion’s mouth at the thought that he could not be a little more forgiving.

It would be difficult to bridge their differences in opinion. He must have had his own experiences working as a grim reaper, and Jion, too, had his own convictions. Since there was something more important to attend to right now, they decided to put this topic aside for the time being.

“…Anyway, I understand. It’s not hard to explain… But where can I meet that soul?”

“Not right now, but tomorrow. I’ll go with you.”

“Ah… really…?”

I wish he would just tell me the location. I think it would be much more comfortable for me to go alone…Jion grumbled inwardly as he tried hard to feign a blank expression.

Jion engraved in his heart the truth of life he had realized anew: that this was why one should not enter into contracts carelessly. It was around then that Kwon Chasa laughed incredulously.

“Student, it’s so obvious on your face.”

“What, what is?”

When Jion asked in a slightly agitated voice, Kwon Chasa just smiled without saying a word.

Just say something, say something… Jion swallowed the words he could not bring himself to say along with an awkward laugh, and tried to lighten the mood with a cough.

Since they would likely face each other much more often in the future, Jion decided not to waste energy reacting to every little thing. After taking a moment for reflection, Jion quickly changed the subject. It was a relief, if anything, that no emotion could be felt from Kwon Chasa’s face, now that the smile had vanished.

“…I understand. Since tomorrow is Saturday, the time doesn’t matter. It’s a bit hard for me to make time on weekdays because of school and my part-time job. The weekend is fine.”

Upon hearing that it had been nearly a year since Kang Seoyoon refused to leave the living world, Jion felt that he had to help her go to the underworld as soon as possible. After confirming that Kwon Chasa agreed with him, Jion glanced at the register.

“Does the register show things like how that person lived, and how they died…. Usually, I ask the deceased when I meet them, but I think it would help if I knew in advance.”

Kwon Chasa silently nodded in response to Jion’s question and turned a few more pages. He stopped only when he reached the last page, his expression darker compared to the beginning. Overwhelmed by the atmosphere, Jion also grew nervous.

“She was returning home after hanging out with friends at the Han River when she was struck on the head with a blunt weapon and died instantly on the spot.”

“Hanging out… at the Han River…… What…?”

Jion, who was typing into his phone, stopped and suddenly looked up. Kwon Chasa tilted his head, asking if there was something wrong with what he had said, and Jion shivered briefly from the goosebumps running up his spine.

She had been struck on the head with a blunt object and died on the spot… It was an unusual incident, Jion immediately opened an internet window, but the white screen displayed only a notice stating that the page could not be opened because it was not connected to the internet.

Jion sighed, skimmed through his notes once more, and pressed the side button to turn off the screen. He would have liked to listen more, but it was getting late, so he felt he should head home now. It would be a disaster if his grandfather called while he was here. At least the fact that the flow of time was the same as in the living world was a small consolation amidst the misfortune.

“Then… are we meeting tomorrow?”

“Yes.”

Jion, who was about to ask when and where they were meeting, closed his lips as they were just beginning to part. This was because Kwon Chasa suddenly stood up and went into the room without hesitation. Before Jion, who was suddenly left all alone in the living room, could even question it, he emerged back outside holding something in his hand.

“What is it?”

Kwon Chasa sat back down in the same spot and held out a small wooden plaque about half the size of a palm to Jion. The Chinese characters ‘一番 權 差使’ (Kwon Chasa No. 1) were engraved on the front.

“If you speak with your palm covering the characters, I can hear what you say. Use that if you need to call me. If I can come when you call, the wooden plaque will shine, but if I’m in the underworld or unable to go, there will be no reaction.”

It looked like just an ordinary piece of wood with letters carved into it, yet it possessed such a fascinating function. Jion covered the letters with his palm and looked up at Kwon Chasa.

“Like this?”

“Yes.”

He nodded calmly and continued speaking with a mysterious, enigmatic smile.

“I can hear everything you’re thinking, so be careful.”

“Oh….”

Jion hurriedly withdrew his hand and rolled his eyes. But it was a relief that he didn’t curse this old man while he was touching this… Jion breathed out a sigh of relief and quickly put the wooden plaque into his bag.

“Let’s meet around the hour of the monkey tomorrow. Call me when you’re ready.”

“The hour of the monkey… um….”

Jion, who was muttering “Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey…” while folding his fingers one by one, soon found the answer and smiled.

“It’s three in the afternoon, right?”

Kwon Chasa stared at Jion, his eyes softly folded into crescent shapes, and his plump cheeks, unable to hide his pride. It was the first time he had seen him smile so brightly since their not-so-pleasant first meeting.

It’s much better than frowning or getting annoyed. Kwon Chasa thought calmly as he nodded towards Jion.

Jion finished getting ready to go home by slinging his bag over one shoulder. Since the appointment time had been set, he could head straight home now. The problem was that he would need the grim reaper’s help even to get home…

“What are you doing? Aren’t you going home?”

Considering his nature, Jion thought he might just order him to leave quickly, but it was different from his expectations. Kwon Chasa even personally picked up the banana milk that Jion had left on the table without drinking.

As Jion properly slung his bag over his shoulders and stepped away from the sofa, Kwon Chasa turned indifferently and walked toward the front door. Jion, who was stunned for a moment, realized that Kwon Chasa had set out to take him home and hurriedly followed him.

He couldn’t figure this per–…grim reaper…

Jion laughed and hurriedly ran toward Kwon Chasa, who was waiting for him in front of the gate.

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The next day, only after seeing his grandfather off to work did Jion hurry into his room and open an internet window on his phone. As he combined various words to search here and there, several articles appeared that were uploaded a year ago and roughly matched the timing.

[Random killing at Yeouinaru Station… Female college student in her 20s found dead]

He remembered something only after seeing the headline. It was the incident that had been the starting point of a serial murder case targeting random people, which had caused a huge stir about a year ago. The article Jion found covered that very incident in detail.

Since the name did not appear in the article, he could not be sure if the victim was indeed Kang Seoyoon. But strangely enough, he was convinced that the woman who died unjustly a year ago was the very same ‘Kang Seoyoon’ whom he was to meet today.

As far as Jion knew, the culprit behind this case had not yet been caught. After several more murders occurred, the police began an investigation focusing on serial killings, suspecting they might be the work of the same perpetrator; however, with no results found so far, the case remained unsolved.

“Haa….”

A sigh escaped his lips. After going through something like this, it was only natural for her to be scared. Moreover, if a grim reaper had approached, dressed in pitch-black clothes and holding a buwol, exuding a threatening aura, she would have felt an even greater fear.

Jion let the morning slip away with a heavy and troubled heart, and ate ramen for lunch. Upon realizing that the hour set by the grim reaper was already approaching, he hurriedly began to get ready.

Jion stepped out of the house once he finished his preparations and stood on the landing, holding the wooden plaque that the grim reaper had given him in his hand.

He said I just need to place my hand quietly like this and call… Jion placed his palm on the surface engraved with characters, just as Kwon Chasa had taught him yesterday. Only after confirming that the surroundings were quiet did Jion call out to Kwon Chasa.

“…Kwon Chasa.”

As he waited quietly, a bright light flickered around the wooden plaque, and Kwon Chasa appeared before his eyes. Jion, who had been blinking in wonder, belatedly took a look at Kwon Chasa.

He looked no different today than yesterday. A slightly unkempt suit, hair swept back to reveal his forehead, and even a cold, blank expression that made one flinch. Jion looked up at him, who was standing two steps above him, and belatedly greeted him.