GRR 59

“Once you’re done drinking, let’s go.”

“Where…?”

“Where else but your house.”

Kwon Chasa tilted his head, pointing in the direction Jion should head. He was a little stunned, but soon smiled and hurriedly went inside the convenience store to throw away the bottle.

He guessed Kwon Chasa was going to take him home every time he came to give him the spring water now.

Unable to control himself, his steps bounced as he left the convenience store, only to have Kwon Chasa take a big stride and close the distance. It was a situation similar to the one he had thought was a kiss. Jion gasped, closed his eyes, and froze.

What should I do? Is he really trying to kiss me this time? But why would he suddenly kiss me in this situation? Did I miss some kind of signal?

Just as he clasped his hands together over his chest, feeling as if his heart were about to explode, he felt Kwon Chasa take a deep breath near his neck. A moment later, he slowly lifted his eyelids after feeling the presence fade away. When he finally looked up, Kwon Chasa was wearing a displeased expression.

“Who have you been meeting?”

“Huh?”

Who have you been meeting? The question felt very suspicious. Flustered, Jion stammered incoherently.

“W-who would I meet besides you, Chasa-nim?”

Upon hearing Jion’s answer, Kwon Chasa frowned. His expression screamed, “What kind of answer is that?” He emphasized each word as he asked again.

“Are you going around meeting ghosts behind my back?”

Anyone who heard this would think he was having an affair with a ghost behind his lover’s back. Even though Jion knew that Kwon Chasa didn’t mean it that way, he couldn’t calm his already flushed face. It felt like he was already dating Kwon Chasa.

Jion, having barely regained his senses after repeatedly clearing his throat, buried his nose in his forearm and sniffed. Judging by his words, the smell of a ghost was emanating from him again, but as expected, he could not smell anything.

If Kwon Chasa was speaking with such a serious expression even after drinking the spring water… could it be because of Baek Kitae?

Jion recalled the times he had met Baek Kitae yesterday and today. Today, they kept a certain distance and simply acknowledged each other, but yesterday, he had sat close to Baek Kitae. He had even given his hand without much thought when the other asked for it.

No matter how much he thought about it, the only cause was Baek Kitae.

Should I tell him about Baek Kitae? Is it… the right thing to do?

He felt like he was acting as a spy between a grim reaper and a ghost. It was in the natural order for a ghost to go to the underworld, and since that would ultimately help Baek Kitae, perhaps it would be better to confide in Kwon Chasa. Though he knew he wouldn’t be able to avoid the nagging…

“Actually… I met a ghost a while ago who asked me to grant him a favor….”

He cautiously looked at him and saw Kwon Chasa’s menacing expression. He wondered if he shouldn’t have said it, but since he had already spoken, he couldn’t take it back.

It was only natural that he reacted that way, as Kwon Chasa had already told him several times that getting entangled with ghosts was not good. He even warned him while walking him home that the area was full of malevolent energy and that he should absolutely not engage with any ghost that approached him. His attempt to prevent him from meeting Nam Seunghee was likely for a similar reason.

He didn’t ignore his words on purpose, but the situation took a very awkward turn. With no room for excuses, his lips burned dry.

“Tell me once we are there.”

Kwon Chasa’s voice was so cold it sent chills down his spine. He grabbed Jion’s wrist and dragged him along into a deserted alley. He immediately placed his hand on the building wall and summoned a gate.

No sooner had he been sucked into the door than the hanok with a familiar landscape appeared. Kwon Chasa, who usually let go of his hand and walked ahead whenever he came here, did not let Jion go today. He was led inside by him, harboring a strange mix of excitement and fear. The calm air felt particularly cold.

It was only after he had finally seated Jion on the sofa that Kwon Chasa let go of his hand. He sat on the head seat, and sighed, making no attempt to hide his weariness. Jion could do nothing but watch, as the aura emanating from him was ominous.

He was as furious as when he found out he had met [visit our site]Nam Seunghee, no, even more furious. Kwon Chasa took a deep breath and looked at Jion.

“Tell me everything.”

His low voice pulled the air taut. Jion managed to open his mouth.

“About two weeks ago… I ran into him on my way home after my part-time job, and he came to see me saying he had a favor to ask. He said he happened to see me talking to a girl at the columbarium…. I thought about when that might’ve been, and I think it was when I went to see Park Seolhwa…”

Kwon Chasa let out a deep sigh, and rubbed his furrowed brow. When Jion fell silent, he gestured with his chin for him to continue.

“You know that ghost you said was probably a mischievous spirit last time? That ghost was the one that came looking for me…….”

“What?”

The cold interruption made Jion flinch. He avoided Kwon Chasa’s gaze and pursed his lips. He swallowed dryly and blurted out a litany of justifications.

“But nothing happened. He even told me first that he would come to terms with it and go to the underworld if I granted his request… There wasn’t a single strange sign. The request wasn’t difficult; I just had to be diligent, so I promised to grant it…”

Kwon Chasa abruptly stood up from his seat. He walked into the room and soon emerged with a scroll. He sat on the sofa and untied the cord binding the middle, before speaking.

“What is the name of that ghost?”

“Ah… Baek Kitae.”

As the rolled scroll unfurled, it turned out to be quite large. Jion looked at the paper and shook his head, feeling dizzy. It was because the characters filling the paper were all Chinese characters.

Kwon Chasa silently read the paper. Not long after, he tilted his head and looked at Jion.

“Baek Kitae, are you sure?”

“Yes….”

“There is no such name.”

Though Jion wasn’t certain, it seemed the scroll contained the names of the deceased. Kwon Chasa read the scroll once more, then placed it down on the table.

Could it be that he gave a different name? Jion was already suspicious of Baek Gitae, and now his doubts only grew.

“How long has it been since he died?”

“Uh… he didn’t mention that, so I’m not exactly ​stolen content​sure. But it didn’t seem like it’s been long.”

After a brief moment of thought, Kwon Chasa rolled the scroll back up and tied it again. He let out a sigh and stared at Jion.

“Stay out of this.”

“But I already made a promise…”

Unable to break his promise, Jion replied timidly, to which Kwon Chasa simply stared at him. At first glance, Kwon Chasa appeared to have a blank expression, but Jion knew. He was angry.

The cold aura emanating from him spoke for that fact.

So this is what he looks like when he’s really angry. Jion realized this only now. The words Kwon Chasa had said until now were nothing more than nagging. He also realized just how extraordinary the ‘kindness’ he spoke of had been.

Kwon Chasa sighed as he quietly watched Jion, who was nervously biting his lip. He wondered what he was doing, as being angry wouldn’t solve anything.

After a brief silence, Jion noticed that his intensity had softened slightly. Just as the silence began to feel awkward, Jion cautiously opened his mouth.

“…Is he a really dangerous ghost? He didn’t feel like it…”

Aside from feeling uncomfortable, Baek Kitae didn’t give off the impression of being a vengeful spirit. It was the first time he had seen a ghost blend so completely into the living world in such a short time, and while his movements ​Read on​were very natural, which did bother him a little… he still didn’t feel like he would cause any harm.

“That could be even more dangerous. If a ghost can conceal their true intentions or ulterior motives so imperceptibly that you don’t notice anything strange, it means they have already become a vengeful spirit or are close to becoming one.”

“…….”

“Stay away from him. I don’t have a good feeling about this.”

Kwon Chasa leaned back against the sofa. He added one more thing when he saw Jion nervously avoid his gaze.

“Watch your back until Baek Kitae’s matter is resolved. I won’t be asking for favors for the time being. Neither I nor Yu Chasa will come looking for you.”

“Huh? Why, why?”