GRR 28

Jion burst into laughter as he watched Yu Chasa muttering with a serious expression. He had a rough idea, but it seemed Kwon Chasa really did have a cold personality. To think that such a man had acted as if he cared for him made him feel strange again.

It was only after hearing Jion’s laughter that Yu Chasa suddenly came to his senses and his face immediately turned pale.

“Keep it a secret from Kwon Chasa that I said this…”

“Yes.”

Since Jion also agreed with Yu Chasa to some extent, he was, in a sense, an accomplice. Yu Chasa breathed a sigh of relief at Jion’s cool reaction, smiled and continued speaking.

“All the other grim reapers are in the underworld. Only Kwon Chasa and me have come down to the living world specifically. As you can see, there are quite a few souls who don’t want to go to the underworld. That is why King Yeomra sent us down to handle those souls exclusively.”

“Ah….”

So that was why, in the ten years since the day he sent his mom off, he had never seen a grim reaper even once, but now he kept running into them so often.  Since they had been staying in this world searching only for such souls, it was inevitable that he would meet them at some point.

“Then, if all those deceased return to the underworld, will you go back then?”

“Yes. But there really isn’t a guarantee of when this will end… Look at this; you can see there are tons of registers, right? King Yeomra sent down a whole bunch of them this morning, and besides this, there are piles stacked high in Kwon Chasa’s study…”

Yu Chasa lowered his eyebrows as if he were about to cry. Jion could sense the sorrow of an office worker in him, and at the same time, he understood why they had gone so far as to sign a contract with him to seek his help. He must have thought of nothing but wanting to escape his excessive workload as soon as possible.

“So, there is something else I want to ask Jion-ah…”

Yu Chasa gave an awkward smile and picked up a register. Jion hurriedly took out his phone to take notes.

“Um… her name was Park Seolhwa. She passed away in early January of this year. She was… nineteen at the time of her death.”

“Nineteen?”

“Yes. Ah, how old are you, Jion-ah?”

“I’m nineteen too.”

“Ah, I see….”

Yu Chasa muttered with sorrow and slowly turned the page. To think that someone the same age as him was already dead, Jion felt far from pleased. Jion sighed, he jotted down what Yu Chasa had said and waited for his next words. However, Yu Chasa frowned and closed the register.

“The world is getting scarier and scarier. You be careful too, Jion-ah. Try not to walk alone at night, and always watch out for people.”

Unlike Kwon Chasa, who had indifferently recited the reason for Kang Seoyoon’s death, Yu Chasa couldn’t bring himself to speak and changed the subject. Could Park Seolhwa also be a victim of a brutal crime like Kang Seoyoon? Even Jion thought that, given how the world was becoming increasingly harsh and dangerous, it was not entirely impossible.

It seemed like Yu Chasa didn’t want to tell him, but Jion thought it would be good to hear how she ended up leaving this world. Just as he was about to ask him a question, he heard the sound of a door opening in the distance.

“Oh, it looks like Kwon Chasa has arrived.”

Not long after, Kwon Chasa appeared, just as Yu Chasa had said. Upon seeing his exhausted face, Jion bowed slightly in greeting, and Kwon Chasa came straight to the living room and sat on the sofa. Yu Chasa asked with sparkling eyes.

“Why did King Yeomra suddenly summon you?”

“Number 2 caused trouble. They tell me to come up to the underworld sometimes to help out, but does that make sense?”

“You already have enough to do, and now even the underworld…?”

Kwon Chasa nervously ran his hand through his hair, then straightened his posture and cast his gaze at the stack of registers.

“Did you finish explaining it to the student?”

“Ah, I was just about to tell him.”

Kwon Chasa picked up a book and began turning the pages one by one with an indifferent expression. After skimming through it, he raised his gaze and looked at Jion.

“Student, when are you free? I’d like to get this sorted out as soon as possible.”

“I’m free tomorrow. I don’t have school because of Chuseok.”

“That’s good. I’ll go to the underworld for a moment tomorrow morning, and then in the afternoon…”

Kwon Chasa muttered as he put down the book. Jion, who had been listening, swallowed dryly. I have to go with him again? Yesterday was so much easier alone… Jion spoke first out of anxiety.

“If you just tell me where to go, I will go by myself.”

At the audacious remark, Kwon Chasa and Yu Chasa’s gazes turned to Jion at the same time.

“Since I’ve had been doing this on my own all this time… I think it will just be more comfortable to go alone.”

Of course, Jion didn’t say out loud, “I’m uncomfortable because I don’t get along with Kwon Chasa.”

“And also… it seems like both of you are very busy.”

The thought of the aerial chase between Kwon Chasa and Kang Seoyoon still made his head spin. It was a hundred times better to go alone than to argue with Kwon Chasa, who nitpicked everything he said and was harsh toward the deceased. Since Park Seolhwa was his age, they would get along well, and Jion felt that he could actually resolve the matter faster without Kwon Chasa.

While Jion was waiting for the two grim reapers’ answer, Kwon Chasa smirked as if he had heard something completely preposterous.

“That’s exactly why we have to go together. To take her along before you waste time unnecessarily like last time.”

“What do you mean unnecessarily…?”

Who did Kwon Chasa think it was that persuaded Kang Seoyoon? Jion was so dumbfounded that he couldn’t help but laugh. He didn’t feel good because it seemed like Kwon Chasa was looking down at him, even though he had come to help again without a single word of thanks.

“Student, you keep fearlessly saying you can do it alone and handle it yourself, but how do you know what might happen? How can you be so overconfident?”

“…….”

“You might have been lucky so far and managed to get by easily. But what if you happen to encounter a vengeful spirit? What are you going to do then? Can you handle it on your own? How do you know what the vengeful spirit might do once they possess your body?”

Jion couldn’t offer a rebuttal to the words shot at him without giving him a moment to breathe. As Kwon Chasa had said, nothing harmful had happened to him so far, but he had no idea what might happen in the future. Since most of the deceased whose registers had been passed to them were those who had stayed in the living world for a very long time, their grudges or desires rooted in this world might be even deeper.

In the heavy atmosphere, Kwon Chasa sighed, and Jion bit the inside of his cheek. Yu Chasa, who had been observing the situation, suddenly jumped to his feet and shouted in a loud voice.

“Ah, it’s almost midnight here already! Jion-ah, your parents must be worried. Let’s go, I’ll take you home!”

Yu Chasa ran over to Jion, grabbed his wrist, and crossed the living room without looking back. Jion didn’t say a word as Yu Chasa led him out into the yard. Before opening the gate, Yu Chasa comforted Jion in a soft voice.

“Kind-hearted Jion-ah, please let it slide. Kwon Chasa is the type to speak a bit… he just blurts out whatever comes to mind… He only said that because he was worried you might get caught up in something bad; he doesn’t mean any harm.”

“Yes…….”

Jion took a deep breath to lift his spirits, then smiled at Yu Chasa, who was looking at him worriedly. Only then did Yu Chasa smile back, seemingly relieved, and open the gate. Holding his hand, Jion threw himself inside, lost in thought for a brief moment.

…Should I just cancel the contract altogether, right now?

***

On the last day of the Chuseok holiday, Jion packed his bag and followed his grandfather, who had left home around lunchtime saying he would open the cafe. As expected, there were not many customers, and after finding a seat not far from the counter, Jion immediately opened his workbook to focus on studying. However, that did not last long.

I came back home without even asking where Park Seolhwa is… I didn’t even set a separate time to meet her.

Jion sighed as he repeatedly pressed the mechanical pencil knob to pull out the lead and put it back in. As he recalled what had happened last night, Kwon Chasa’s words naturally echoed in his mind.

‘Student, you keep fearlessly saying you can do it alone and handle it yourself, but how do you know what might happen? How can you be so overconfident?’

Right. It was true that Jion was confident. After all, he had met many ghosts since he was fifteen. He thought he had accumulated a certain amount of experience. Though, from the perspective of a grim reaper, it might just elicit a scoff.

‘You might have been lucky so far and managed to get by easily. But what if you happen to encounter a vengeful spirit? What are you going to do then? Can you handle it on your own? How do you know what the vengeful spirit might do once they possess your body?’

Honestly, Jion hadn’t thought that far ahead. Although he had encountered ghosts that were difficult for him to handle, he had never actually seen vengeful spirits nor had any ghosts ever harmed him, so he didn’t take it that seriously.

So even on the day he signed the contract, he simply focused only on the wishes he couldn’t grant, and he didn’t give any thought that the deceased might harm him.