episode_0080

Hongryeon, who was burying her face in her arms, suddenly raised her head and looked at me. Their faces were so close that their noses would touch if they were even slightly close to each other. I asked Princess Hongryeon as she slightly tilted her head back, feeling burdened.

“Why are you holding me? Are you having a chest competition for high school boys?”

“Sera wanted to hug Jinwoo earlier. I think Jinwoo is happy that he survived and wants to hug him. I want that touching act of hugging each other tightly as a family after all the hard work is over.”

“Are you strong?”

“Yes.”

What this means is that it was Kang Sera, not Princess Hongryeon, who wanted to hug me. Even when Sera contacted Hongryeon, her consciousness did not disappear. Even though Hongryeon took over her body, Sarah’s consciousness was clearly awake and she was able to observe all the situations around her.

Now Sarah wanted to give me a touching hug.

“Wait a minute. Why does Princess Hongryeon come forward when Sera wants to hug her?”

“I am a divine spirit. If someone who serves me has a wish, I can grant it. Now I have granted Sarah’s wish.”

“Oh my god… .”

So, to sum it up, it’s like this, right?

1. Sarah wanted a hug from me.

2. Hongryeon wanted to listen to what Sarah wanted.

3. So Hongryeon hugged me while possessed by Sarah’s body.

How on earth can one arrive at such a bizarre conclusion?

I was seriously curious about Hongryeon’s way of thinking. It was a divine thought that went far beyond human thinking.

“Haha. It’s rewarding to be able to grant my brother’s wish. Although I’m a bit embarrassed to hug a man.”

“Will Sarah be happy?”

“You will be happy. After all, Sarah also feels touch.”

Hongryeon smiled brightly and hugged me even deeper. It was a pure smile without any hint of malice. My hands were floating in the air because I didn’t know where to put them against the princess.

How much time has passed?

Hongryeon let go of me and quietly stepped back.

“It’s done.”

Why do I feel regretful when I fail?

I cleared my throat and tried to shake off my regret.

“Are you leaving now?”

“Yes. See you next time.”

The contact was released and Hongryeon left Sarah’s body.

Sera returned to the stumbling body of the silver-haired girl.

Sarah looked at me with an expressionless face.

“Jinwoo. I’m here.”

“You’re Sarah, right?”

“Yes.”

Now that the fairy has left, I can finally take a breather.

I felt completely relaxed and started talking to Sarah.

It was late at night, but there were many things I wanted to talk about with Sarah.

“Hey! This time I really thought I was going to die. Did you see the Grim Reaper trying to kill you until the end? If it weren’t for the fairy, we would all have gone to hell.”

“… Hmm.”

“I’m so glad you contacted the fairy at the right time! Did you believe it? shit! As expected, it’s strong!”

“… … .”

“Oh, that’s right! Did you see the fairy descend? Didn’t you give it a try? I heard telekinesis comes out of your hands? Was she not a fairy but a superpower?”

“Hmm… .”

Because it was the moment I died and came back to life, I had a lot to say. In particular, the mysterious phenomena that Princess Hongryeon showed me still haven’t left my mind. Although I was talking excitedly, Sarah kept her mouth strangely quiet.

“Hmm.”

Sarah was just staring at me with her arms crossed.

Why are you humming without saying a word?

“Now that there is no Grim Reaper, I can go to school tomorrow… .”

“Jinwoo Kim.”

Sarah suddenly cut off my rapid-fire conversation.

Suddenly, for some reason, a feeling of tension arose, so I stopped speaking. Sarah usually calls me ‘Jinwoo’ in a friendly way. It was usually when something unusual happened that someone would say ‘Kim Jin-woo’ as his last name.

Something unusual happened.

“I’m so glad. This time you encountered the Grim Reaper, but you escaped safely. I think our lifeline is longer than I thought.”

“I should live a long time.”

“But Jinwoo. How did you feel when you hugged the fairy earlier?”

Suddenly Sarah asked a question. The question was asked as if it were nothing, but it was sharp, like a hidden dagger.

“… It was soft and soft.”

“I liked it because it was soft? I heard your heart beat faster when you hugged the fairy earlier?”

It was that moment.

Sarah looked at me with cold eyes that seemed to freeze even my heart. Sarah’s eyes lost their vitality and became cloudy. The blue eyes that were usually like jewels were now like the color of an abyss.

I was so embarrassed that I quickly opened my mouth.

“How can your heart stop racing when you suddenly touch each other? The fairy granted your wish. He said he wanted to give a touching hug earlier!”

“That’s right. Hongryeon read my thoughts. And I did something stupid even though I didn’t ask for it. In return for your help, he hugged you? What kind of strange wish-granting monkey hand is this?”

“Anyway, your wish was granted.”

“I was not satisfied at all. It was Hongryeon who just hugged you, not me. Please be clear.”

Sarah approached me with her arms outstretched.

“So we have to hug again. This is truly a touching hug between friends.”

“You did it before, are you doing it again?”

“Quietly hug me.”

Sarah immediately hugged me.

I had no choice but to open my arms and hug Sarah. Sarah didn’t let me go for so long that I felt obsessed with her. We hugged each other for a longer time than when I hugged Hongryeon.

“My friend will never be taken away from you.”

“Yes, yes. Please don’t take it away.”

I never thought I would hug a woman twice in one day.

*

The next day, we could go to school again. I wanted to skip school for another day, but I couldn’t do that. If you miss school too often, you won’t be able to graduate from school. If possible, you will have to attend.

When we arrived at the classroom, Ayoung spoke to us.

“Jinwoo, Serah. I heard you guys were sick yesterday?”

“Huh? uh… .”

“Despite being sick enough to miss school, you look fine today. Didn’t you two use the excuse of being sick to go somewhere to have fun?”

“It really hurt. I heard that I caught a cold and was so sick that I died.”

We looked around at Ayoung, who was looking at us with a puzzled look on her face. There were a lot of other kids around, so it was hard to tell the story of being tormented by the Grim Reaper for a few days.

“Really? Well, I understand.”

Ayoung returned to her seat and class began.

The day started again today.

After school is over.

Sarah and I were not able to leave school together for the first time in a long time and we split up. This was because the furniture at Hyehwadang was broken and we had to stop by a large supermarket.

“Jinwoo. I’ll go to the supermarket. I have to buy the broken TV and sofa again.”

“Can’t I just order it online?”

“No. I’m going to buy something like a sofa after sitting on it in person. Furniture should be chosen carefully.”

“Then I’ll be cleaning.”

Sarah bought the furniture and I decided to clean up the broken debris at Hyehwadang. There was a lot of large furniture to buy, but there was no need to worry about money. Sarah’s financial power was at a level that surpassed that of most company managers.

“See you later.”

Sarah went to the large supermarket, and I walked towards Hyehwadang alone.

I was walking near the subway station exit.

Suddenly, something dangerous appeared in my field of vision.

‘uh?’

It was the man in the coat. The grim reaper who left Hehwadang last night was standing near the station.

As soon as I saw it, I couldn’t help but feel nervous. I never imagined that we would meet again in a place like this.

Why are you still in this world?

Could it be that there is someone around here who needs to be taken to the afterlife?

I watched the actions of the man in the coat with caution. Then the man in the coat seemed to notice my gaze. He was standing with his back turned and started talking to me without even turning around.

“Don’t sneak peeks from behind, but come forward.”

It was clearly addressed to me.

There were many people coming and going near the station, but only I could hear the voice of the man in the coat. Passers-by nearby passed by without hearing the voice at all.

how will we do it?

After thinking about it for a while, I decided to meet him face to face.

I walked in front of the man in the coat and stopped.

“Mister, didn’t you say it was a registered car? What are you doing here?”

“Rest assured. I have no intention of killing that girl anymore.”

It seems like you saw right through my thoughts.

The reply came back that I had no intention of touching Sarah.

Unlike yesterday, the man in the coat had his face disguised as normal. It was easier to talk to him because he didn’t show his corpse-like face. He wasn’t holding an ax, and only his characteristic squinty eyes remained the same.

“Then what are you doing?”

“I am remaining in this world and preparing a report to submit to King Yeomna. Because the person who saw the list could not be taken to the underworld. You must report the reason why you compromised by erasing the memory.”

“Ah… Yes.”

The man in the coat was preparing a report for Sarah’s work. It wasn’t like he was staying in this world for some bloody reason, like taking someone who was about to die.

“Are you done? Don’t be a bother and go. I got stuck while writing the report and my head hurts. Anyway, your friend won’t die.”

The man in the coat waved his hand.

He looked like an office worker struggling with work.

The puffy eyes may also be due to overwork.

But I couldn’t easily leave this place. It was because there was something I wanted to ask if I ever met the Grim Reaper.

“… … ”

“What are you doing if you’re not going?”

The most important question in my life came to mind.

I didn’t know if the Grim Reaper could solve my doubts. But there was no way that tough-looking man would accept questions with his bare mouth. I thought about how I could continue the conversation.

Then, a thought suddenly occurred to me.

A way to continue the conversation.

“Wait a minute! Just stay there. I’m going to get you some food.”

“What?”

I went to a hamburger restaurant near the station and bought a cheeseburger and a cola. The man in the coat looked at me with a puzzled expression as I returned with a burger and cola.

“Who are you making fun of now? Why did you buy a hamburger?”

“This is a gift for you. You might be hungry, so try eating first.”

“Is it lion food?”

“Yes, something like that.”

In folk tales and legends, the Grim Reaper is said to grant a favor if a person serves him a meal. Likewise, I didn’t know if the Grim Reaper would listen to my questions if I served him a hamburger. The man in the coat seemed to realize that there was something I wanted.

“Just give it to me.”

The man in the coat ate the hamburger and cola while standing. It was the first time in my life that I saw the Grim Reaper filming a mukbang. In less than three minutes, the hamburger and cola disappeared into his stomach.

Did you like the hamburger?

The frowning man’s face straightened slightly.

“I ate well. So what do you want to ask for? If it is a difficult request, I cannot grant it. Request to change the date of death.”

“I heard that in the old days, there was a messenger who would change the date of death in exchange for a meal?”

“All those guys were caught by high-ranking people and thrown out. If you shake it off, everything will come out.”

“… … .”

“Do you think I’m arguing about principles for no reason? I’m being picky because there are people above me who are giving me shit.”

Will this grumpy chauffeur listen to my request?

I had doubts, but I felt like grasping at straws for now.

“I want to know something about someone who is already dead.”

“Who?”

“My father, Kim Cheol. When I was in the first grade of elementary school, he suddenly passed away from a heart attack.”

One spring day when I was in first grade of elementary school.

After returning home from work, my father suddenly died of a heart attack.

Anyone can see that it was not a natural death.

“Why on earth did your father die? Was it really an unavoidable accident?”

Maybe my father’s lifespan as listed on the list could have ended there.

What if my father’s death was an inevitable fate?

I felt like I would be able to accept it if I heard the answer that it was fate.

“… You want me to tell you why my father died? Even if a person is already dead, the cause of death cannot be given carelessly. That’s because it’s all recorded in the list.”

“I heard that there was no cause of death in the list I returned?”

“There is a separate list where the cause of death is recorded.”

The cause of death of someone who had already died was also recorded in the register.

It was something the man in the coat kept a strictly secret.

“Okay. If it’s a secret, there’s nothing you can do about it.”

In the end, was it just a waste of time?

It was when I was about to return home.

Suddenly, a man in a coat called me.

“But your father’s death is an exception.”

“Exception?”

An amazing story came out of his mouth.

“Kim Cheol was not destined to die that day. He wasn’t the type of person who would die from a heart attack or something. It is a death that escapes a predetermined fate. Of course, it is not something recorded in the list. It may seem like a play on words, but if you do this, I can teach you too.”

My father’s death was not recorded in the register.

Therefore, the man in the coat was also able to answer my question.

“How can you die if you are not destined to die?”

“It means that someone interfered with your father’s fate. A person who was not destined to die died of a heart attack. Even the chauffeurs couldn’t figure out what the guy was. But one thing is certain.”

Blank eyes stared at me.

Shocking words came out of the mouth of the man in the coat.

“Nine years ago, your father was murdered. To a guy who is cunning enough to fool the drivers.”