episode_0053

“So, that jerk tried to sue you?”

“Don’t worry. The team handled it well.”

On the way back home after filming the team’s YouTube content, Cheon So-young heard an incredible story. That stalker tried to sue me!

But AT said they stopped it. As expected of AT! Big companies are the best for work!

“So I thought, what if we release an article about catching the stalker? Maybe Maeng-ho’s image is a bit affected by the interviews, right?”

“How is my image?”

“If you don’t know, that’s fortunate. Anyway, it doesn’t matter, right?”

“Yes.”

“Good. Then.”

Today, Cheon So-young seemed oddly happy. Should I try now? It was a bit scary to start a conversation before, but now that she’s in a good mood. I wanted to bring up the words I’ve kept in my heart.

“Team leader, but….”

“What’s the matter?”

“Actually, since I was young, I’ve heard that I have a strong aura. I sometimes see ghosts. That’s why my parents made me exercise.”

Of course, it was a lie to get to the point.

“…So?”

Did she take the bait? Cheon So-young’s voice trembled slightly.

“Actually, I feel a bit strange every time I see you, Team Leader.”

“I’m sorry, but I’m not looking to date anyone yet.”

She cut me off before I could confess. No, that’s not it.

“It’s not that, but… Is there anything wrong with your health, Team Leader? It might be rude to say this, but ghosts around you…”

“Ghosts?! Ghosts! Where? Where?!”

What’s going on? Why is she so excited? She, who always maintained a cool demeanor, suddenly stood up from her chair and began scanning the surroundings with a terrified expression.

“Are there really ghosts?! Tell me quickly!”

“Uh, yes. The energy is weak, but it’s a white ghost.”

“A white one! Is that damn ghost still following me?!”

Although she seemed like someone who wouldn’t swear at all, her struggle to curse while being flustered was quite refreshing. It finally dawned on me that she, who always had a cold demeanor and an elite image, was just like me.

“Calm down, please.”

“Why did you suddenly appear? Everything was fine until now, or have you been by my side all along? Ugh.”

Tears were now streaming down Cheon So-young’s face as she muttered to herself while circling the same spot. I know what that phenomenon is.

When my parents passed away in a car accident and I first drove a car, I couldn’t control myself like that. The doctor told me I had PTSD.

“Ugh. Sniff, ugh. Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, ugh, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, ugh. What was it, what was it. Ugh, as if Your will is done on earth as it is in heaven, ugh, ……”

Cheon So-young started muttering as if speaking in dialect. How did Hye-jin comfort Hyun-ah when she cried back then? Surely….

“Ms. So-young, calm down. It’s okay.”

I held her tightly and started patting her head. Normally, Cheon So-young would push me away, but the current Cheon So-young buried her face in my chest and continued to chant something like a dialect.

“As we forgive those who trespass against us, ugh, lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever, ugh. Amen.”

“It’s okay. It’s okay.”

Even though Cheon So-young’s chest was touching mine, I didn’t feel a burning sensation. Just the desire to reassure this woman. Perhaps I wanted to comfort her, someone who may have experienced similar pain as me.

“If Rosby were here now, she would have known how to handle this.”

However, Rosby is not by my side. I have to calm her down.

“Backwards, you have to memorize it backwards. No, what was it? Should I memorize it in English first? Ugh. Dainoposai Hiwon Yeonggwangyeongwasegweonwara na gaedae soopeop haguseo eakmanda………………”

She kept muttering words that I couldn’t understand even while crying. What made her so scared?

…Me? Did I bring up ghost stories for no reason? Rosby mentioned it too. There was a sense of camaraderie about ghosts following you around. And I kind of wanted to get closer. So I brought it up, but I didn’t expect this level of surprise.

But being this surprised was beyond my expectations.

…I was reckless. I didn’t know I would be this scared.

“It’s okay. Soyoung, it’s okay.”

I continued to mechanically pat her back and utter mechanical words.

“Yeojibeoriusingyeeulha, ugh. Our father in heaven, hallowed be your, ugh, name,…………………. ”

Now even in English, I’m losing it.

“Pat! It’s okay! Pat! It’s okay!”

I shouted loudly. The soundproofing in this room should be good, right? …What do I know.

“Soyoung, look at me. It’s okay!”

I held her face and made her meet my eyes. A woman much smaller than me. I made such a small woman cry because of my carelessness. I feel slightly guilty.

“…?”

As our eyes met, she stopped sobbing and her unfocused eyes began to focus on me.

“Soyoung, are you coming to your senses?”

“…No, Team Leader.”

“Yes?”

“Soyoung, not Soyoung, call me Team Leader…”

Yet it seems like she’s coming to her senses.

“What’s this about….”

“And please untangle this. It’ll get wrinkled.”

Tap. Her delicate arm touched my thick forearm. Instinctively, I released the arm that was embracing her as per her request.

“Ahem, I showed disrespect. I apologize.”

She returned with a cold expression as if to say when did that happen, then she dusted off the chair and sat down. It was hard to believe that she had cried in my arms. …Was it a dream?

“…Let’s talk.”

But her bloodshot eyes looking at me said that what just happened was real.

“What are you doing? Sit down.”

“Soyoung?”

“…Call me Team Leader.”

“Oh, Team Leader.”

“Sit down.”

The same chilly tone as before, but perhaps because of seeing her cry, it somehow seemed cute.

“What are you doing? I said sit down.”

‘Is she trying to hide her embarrassment by forcing herself to speak in a strong tone?’

She was human too. Like anyone else, a normal person with painful scars. Knowing this seemed to make all the pressure I felt in front of her disappear.

“Understood. Let’s sit.”

“…Ghost. Ahem. I was too surprised earlier, I’m sorry. I want to hear more about that story, the white ghost story.”

“Understood.”

It was unexpected that she was this surprised, but I had already planned how to speak. Stick to the plan, Jimaengho.

“So….”

*

Ghost. If it was just a ghost, I would have been surprised, but I could have let it go. If it was an Asian ghost, I would have probably laughed it off and told them not to joke around. But when she heard the term “white ghost,” Soyoung lost her composure without realizing it.

Where did she hear that story? But that story was a secret among the very few in the AT Group Royal Family. It didn’t make sense for the story to be circulating.

‘I didn’t show too much of a pathetic side, did I?’

Even as she listened to Jimaengho’s story, that worry lingered. Grabbing onto Jimaengho, who could go anywhere, she wanted to focus on baseball during her time in Korea, but showing such a pathetic side could be a major obstacle to the plan.

“So, is it because of some power that the spirit’s energy weakened, as Player Maeng-ho said?”

“Yes. So we can’t know who the spirit is, what it wants. I’m sorry.”

If it’s some kind of power, could it be an amulet received in childhood? Seeing that he knew even this much, Maeng-ho’s words about seeing spirits seemed true.

Of course, Maeng-ho didn’t know that the amulet was protecting against spirits. He just vaguely mentioned being blocked by some power while shedding tears and being bound in chains.

“So, should I discard this amulet and talk to the spirit?”

“The amulet, ah! Um… No, there’s no need to discard it. In fact, if you discard the amulet now, there’s a possibility of facing great anger from the spirit because it’s already upset.”

‘The amulet was protecting against spirits? Good. I must absolutely keep this amulet.’

Maeng-ho thought instinctively. If the amulet disappeared, he would have to share his love with Cheon So-young. Other women were fine, but not this one!

At times playing the role of a teacher, at times a father, at times a friend, even though Rosby played various roles, Maeng-ho didn’t want to share her.

“So, what should I do then?”

“Well. That’s something we’ll have to figure out gradually. I have a lot of experience in exorcism. Usually, when you resolve a spirit’s grudge, it disappears, but I’m not sure what grudge the weakened spirit is holding onto.”

“Does that mean there’s no solution?”

“It doesn’t mean there’s no solution. But…”

“But?”

“It might be a bit challenging.”

“It’s okay. I can do anything to get rid of that spirit.”

When she was young, after meeting a spirit for the first time and being treated like a mentally ill person, she even memorized the exorcism ritual backward and in English. She thought she had gotten rid of it after receiving an amulet from the shaman Yonghan introduced by her grandfather, but it was still lingering by her side!

So-young felt she could do anything to get rid of that spirit.

“Then I will tell you the method.”

“What is it?”

“We will go to a place with strong energy together and wait until the spirit’s energy returns, then I will try to communicate with it.”

“A place with strong energy?”

“Cheon Team Leader, who is afraid of spirits, may find it challenging. Have you seen any other spirits besides this one?”

“No. I haven’t seen any other spirits besides this one.”

So-young’s voice trembled less.

“Alright then. You don’t have to worry, Cheon Team Leader.”

“Uh-uh, do I really have to do this?”

“If you don’t want to, consider it as meaning you’re fine with the spirit following you forever.”

“No way!”

That wouldn’t work. The spirit, which she thought had disappeared, was still attached to her. She needed to exorcise it or banish it as soon as possible.

“Then let’s meet a few times at night.”

“Does it have to be at night?”

“Because the energy is stronger then. Of course, since I’m also human, I can’t meet every time, we’ll adjust the schedule gradually.”

“…I understand.”

“And.”

“And?”

“Please treat me kindly.”

“What? What does that mean?”

So-young’s eyes, which had been listening seriously to Maeng-ho’s words, turned cold.

‘Is he trying to play tricks in this situation?’

Sensing danger in her gaze, Maeng-ho desperately scrambled to come up with a suitable excuse.

“I don’t mean it in the way you think, Team Leader. It’s probably because the spirit has been with you for so long that it might affect your condition. To talk to the spirit, Team Leader and I need to get a little closer.”

“Ah, that makes sense. I understand. I’ll try to think of Player Maeng-ho more friendly.”

It was a bit strange, but Maeng-ho was the first person who had a white spirit following him. No doctor or shaman knew that fact before he mentioned it.

In Soyoung’s eyes, the tiger who discovered the truth looked like an expert.

“So in this case, are you a professional exorcist?”

There was no reason not to believe the tiger’s words.

“Shall we start with titles? Miss Soyoung?”

“Mm.”

“Try calling me ‘Tiger.’ Words are like windows that hold thoughts? Well, it sounds familiar, doesn’t it? Starting with titles, be comfortable.”

“Got it. Tiger.”

“Got it? You should use informal speech. Since it’s important for Soyoung to feel comfortable with me, don’t worry about me and speak informally.”

“Instead, only do that when we’re alone…”

“Yes, Soyoung.”

“You will definitely get rid of the ghost, right? Maeng-ho?”

With difficulty, informality popped out of Soyoung’s mouth. Informal speech still felt awkward.

“I’ll ask a favor.”

“Just trust me.”

Cheon Soyoung’s surrender declaration! Maeng-ho called for a celebration.

“Nice! She’s completely on board now. I can take it slow from here. Ghost? Enlightenment? Exorcism? Who knows, damn. Future me will think about that.”

To Maeng-ho, who already wanted Soyoung, those things weren’t important,

“And thank you for helping…”

Soyoung’s simple gratitude was sweet.