GRR 77

Several days had passed since he tasted the bitter defeat of his first ever confession. Since that day, Kwon Chasa had not appeared before him. He had no way of knowing whether Kwon Chasa had truly departed for the underworld or if he occasionally returned to this world.

During those few days, Jion found himself in a strange state. His mood swung back and forth constantly. He wondered if this was the aftermath of a failed confession. It was the first time in his life he had mustered the courage to confess, and he never imagined it would leave him with nothing but such a bitter memory.

But he thought that even though his mood was a bit up and down, he looked perfectly fine for someone who had just been rejected, but that was not the case. Not only his classmates, but every time he ran into a familiar face in the hallway, they asked if something was wrong. Fortunately, with the college entrance exams fast approaching, everyone looked just as haggard, so he did not attract any particular suspicion.

“Chae Ji, heading home? What about dinner?”

“I’m just going home to eat.”

Jion, who had spent the self study period in a daze, grabbed his bag the moment the bell rang. His mind was all over the place, so he did not have much of an appetite, and since he had barely slept, the fatigue had just accumulated, it was better to just rest.

Jion exchanged a wave with Go Youngjae, who patted him on the shoulder and left the classroom first, then he headed out of the school. As soon as he stepped outside, the wind blowing against him felt unusually strong today, causing him to instinctively hunch his shoulders. It was time to break out his down jacket.

He trudged down the hill and stood at the crosswalk, waiting for the light to change, when he felt someone press close to his side. Startled, Jion stepped back, and his eyes caught sight of a pair of familiar shoes. Thinking, “Could it be Kwon Chasa?” he turned around to see a familiar face.

“Jion, it’s been a while. How have you been?”

“Ah… yes… hello.”

But that familiar face was not Kwon Chasa, it was Yu Chasa. The high hopes that had risen dropped as if cold water had been poured over them. Just then, the light changed, and Yu Chasa gave Jion a nod. As they crossed the street together, Yu Chasa looked at Jion’s haggard face with pity.

“You don’t look too well. The ghostly [stolen content]energy is completely gone now… Ah, is it because studying is so hard?”

“Uh… yeah, I guess so. The college entrance exam is next week.”

Even though it was all because of Kwon Chasa, he could not tell him the truth. In situations like this, being a senior in high school was actually quite helpful.

“The college entrance exam? Oh, the test you take to become a college student! Right?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

His voice was so cheerful that Jion could not help but laugh. Upon hearing Jion’s reply, Yu Chasa’s eyebrows immediately drooped.

“But here I am again, coming to ask you for a favor without a clue…”

He awkwardly laughed. Jion smiled back, signaling that it was fine. If he had been home alone, his mood would likely have sunk even further, so perhaps meeting Yu Chasa was a blessing in disguise. They walked alongside, and while Jion glanced around, Yu Chasa spoke cautiously in a low voice.

“Would you like to go to the hanok? I think it would be more comfortable to talk there.”

Jion nodded and paused for a moment. Since Yu Chasa would need to summon the gate, they had to go somewhere secluded.

After thinking for a moment, Jion turned into a narrow alley, and Yu Chasa summoned the gate there. It then led them to the hanok. Even though nothing had changed on the surface, it felt unfamiliar, as if he had not been there in a very long time.

He took off his shoes on the stepping stones and stepped inside. The quiet atmosphere made him move quietly. Yu Chasa invited Jion to sit down, then took the seat on the sofa where Kwon Chasa had always sat. He felt a pang of sadness when Kwon Chasa’s absence suddenly struck him.

Yu Chasa glanced at the register on the table ​stolen content​but did not pick it up, instead, he clasped his hands together with a heavy expression. When Jion took out his phone and glanced at him, Yu Chasa finally spoke.

“Her name is Seon Ayoung, and she was seventeen at the time of her death. It will soon be 100 days since she passed away…”

Tap, tap. Jion tapped on the screen, taking notes as Yu Chasa spoke. Jion pursed his lips, the fact that she was only seventeen weighed on his mind.

“…She took her own life.”

“Ah….”

Jion sighed upon hearing Yu Chasa’s words. Seventeen, that was younger than him. What could have driven her to take her own life? The first deceased person whose wish he had granted had also been a girl who had taken her own life. That girl came to mind, and his chest felt heavier.

“She lived with her widowed mother, but her mother passed away three months before Seon Ayoung. And Seon Ayoung was being bullied at school.”

She must have had even fewer people to turn to after her mother passed away, and to think she was even bullied. Jion felt heavy-hearted thinking that there must have been no one by her side when Seon Ayoung had such thoughts.

“I visited her a couple of times, and we could communicate. She would answer my questions just fine, so I thought it would be easy… but when I told her she had to go to the underworld quickly to be reincarnated, she said she hated that idea even more.”

He would have to hear her story directly to know the full circumstances, but he felt like he understood why she did not want to be reincarnated. Just getting through each day must have been a struggle for Seon Ayoung. Jion could only speculate.

‘I do not want to be reincarnated.’

He suddenly remembered the words Kwon Chasa had said. He had not heard the reason, but Kwon Chasa had clearly said he did not want to be reincarnated.

Had Kwon Chasa also said he did not want to be reincarnated because living, enduring, and persevering was such a struggle? ​Read on​Was that why he had chosen to become a grim reaper?

“I also said it would put her at a disadvantage in the judgment, but she didn’t budge. The sooner a ghost person who took their own life goes to the underworld, the better, but….”

Jion, who had been lost in thought about Kwon Chasa, suddenly opened his eyes and looked at Yu Chasa. Thanks to this, his thoughts were interrupted. It was because he found his words a little confusing.

He knew that the deceased should go to the underworld quickly, but he felt there must be a reason he did not know why Yu Chasa had specifically singled out “a ghost who took their own life.”

Jion moistened his lips with his tongue and cautiously opened his mouth.

“Isn’t it that the longer one stays in this world, the more sins they accumulate? Why is it better for such people to go to the underworld quickly?”

“You’re right, Jion. But when they’re judged in the underworld, the severity of their sins is weighed. There are a few crimes for which leniency is rarely granted, and the most representative of those is murder. Even if you take your own life… it is still considered murder.”

“Ah….”

Although he was not in a position to argue about the laws of the underworld, he still found it a bit harsh. Yu Chasa continued with a firm expression.

“But things are not like that anymore. I heard that the previous Yeomra was particularly strict. The current Yeomra takes all circumstances into consideration. After all, until right and wrong are fully determined in the afterlife, they are still considered sinners, so we have to send them to the underworld as soon as possible to face trial.”

He raised his clenched fists and nodded. Jion gave a faint smile, but then let out a low groan as a sudden doubt crossed his mind.

Does this mean Yu Chasa has to handle everything alone now, without Kwon Chasa? Is Kwon Chasa really never coming back to this world?

Jion fidgeted with his hands and asked.

“So… does that mean you’ll be handling everything on your own now?”

“I’m not entirely sure myself yet. Yeomra told me to keep doing what I’ve been doing… so for now, that’s what I’m doing.”

It seemed Yu Chasa had not been told anything specific either. Did that mean he had no news of Kwon Chasa? While he felt upset at Kwon Chasa for leaving like that, he also was worried about him.

“By any chance… do you know what happened to Kwon Chasa?”

At Jion’s question, Yu Chasa shook his head.

“No… I haven’t been able to see him since then either. I understand he is currently under disciplinary suspension as his punishment hasn’t been decided yet.”

“I see…”

Jion, who had been muttering, suddenly felt something strange. If he was under disciplinary suspension, was he even allowed to be in the living world? Was that why that woman came to take Kwon Chasa back then? Jion tilted his head and asked Yu Chasa.

“Chasa-nim, do you happen to know who that woman is, the one with hair so long it reached down to her waist? She was wearing… something like a business suit. And she spoke informally to Kwon Chasa… Do you happen to know who she is?”

Now that he said it, he realized he did not have much to go on. But that was all he could describe.

Yu Chasa tilted his head and thought for a moment. Then his expression changed, as if he found it even more confusing.

“You mean someone from the underworld?”

“Yes.”

“The only ones who can speak informally to Kwon Chasa are the Ten Kings… and among them, the one with hair down to the waist…”

“……”

“That would be Yeomra.”

“Huh?”

So that person was Yeomra?