Honbul: Flame of the Soul

“Leader, is something wrong?”

Paehyeon asked cautiously as Yoon Taehee stared silently at his phone.

Only after a long moment did Taehee look away from the screen. He slipped the phone back into his pocket as if nothing had happened and said,

“...Take that one too.”

Paehyeon followed his gaze toward Seo Jeongtak and nodded.

“Yes. Understood.”

As the ghost approached, Seo Jeongtak shrieked in terror.

“G-Get away from me! Evil spirit—!”

Paehyeon looked down at him with open contempt.

This was exactly why he hated dealing with humans.

If it had been entirely up to him, he would have handled the man much more roughly, but instead he glanced toward the leader. Catching the meaning behind the look, Taehee casually gave a small nod, one hand still tucked into his jacket pocket.

“Excuse me for a moment.”

Ghostly force gathered around Paehyeon’s hand before he struck the back of Seo Jeongtak’s neck.

“Ghk—”

Seo Jeongtak collapsed instantly.

For someone too terrified to think rationally, knocking them unconscious was the quickest solution.

Paehyeon disappeared somewhere with both the unconscious Kim Seokcheol and Seo Jeongtak.

Not long afterward, only Chairman Jang, Chief Kim, and the leader remained in the room.

Now that the screaming had stopped, the silence felt eerily complete.

One hand still in his pocket, Taehee walked leisurely toward the partitioned-off area. He lifted the curtain aside and glanced back at the two men.

“Come over here.”

Chairman Jang and Chief Kim exchanged pale looks before following him.

Behind the partition was a surprisingly comfortable space arranged like a reception room. A long wooden table sat in the middle with chairs placed around it. Behind them stood a large folding screen painted with ink landscapes, and mounted horizontally above it was a sword that looked like a museum artifact.

The crimson robe Kim Seokcheol had touched earlier lay crumpled on the floor.

Taehee picked it up, dusted it off lightly, and slipped it on as casually as if he were throwing on a cardigan.

“What are you standing around for? Sit.”

He dropped into one of the chairs first.

Chairman Jang and Chief Kim slowly sat across from him.

Taehee pulled off his baseball cap and tossed it [N O V E L I G H T] carelessly onto the table before leaning back in the chair and crossing one leg over the other. Sweeping his bangs back with one hand, he smiled brightly.

“You both look shocked. Relax.”

Chief Kim discreetly wiped his sweaty palms against his pants.

The other man’s hand had fallen off the moment he touched the robe, and now the young man they had met halfway up the mountain was sitting right in front of them wearing that same robe.

None of it made any sense.

Chief Kim swallowed hard.

“S-So you’re... the leader of Byeoksadan...?”

At the sudden shift to formal speech, Taehee smiled broadly.

“Yes. That’s right.”

He answered before the question had even fully finished.

Chief Kim could not hide his confusion, while Chairman Jang sat frozen in stunned silence.

“L-Let me properly introduce myself. I apologize for earlier. I’m Secretary Kim Seonjae, and this is Chairman Jang Pilyoung of Sekang Enterprises...”

Just earlier they had pretended not to recognize him. Now that they were forced to tell the truth, the awkwardness was unbearable.

Taehee, however, did not seem to care in the slightest.

“A-And... here’s my business card...”

With trembling hands, Chief Kim passed over the card on Chairman Jang’s behalf.

As Taehee reached out to take it, Chief Kim’s hand visibly shook.

Taehee’s hand paused midair.

He stared silently at Chief Kim for a moment before suddenly laughing under his breath.

“I’m human, you know.”

“...Pardon?”

“I’m not a ghost. There’s no need to be that scared.”

Then he smoothly took the business card from Chief Kim’s hand.

Leaning back comfortably again, Taehee flipped the card over once or twice before raising an eyebrow.

“Oh... Chairman Jang Pilyoung.”

The way he slowly read the name aloud sounded strangely disrespectful.

“And who introduced our Chairman Jang to this place?”

Chief Kim answered quickly in his stead.

“Master Yeohye told us about it.”

“No, no. You weren’t originally one of the master’s clients.”

Taehee tilted his head slightly.

“I’m asking who connected you.”

Apparently, he had already figured out there was no direct relationship between Chairman Jang and Master Yeohye.

“Well... we’re acquainted with Minister Heo Yongsik.”

“Ah. Minister Heo.”

Taehee nodded as if everything now made sense.

“I see.”

Just as he set the business card down on the table, the door opened again.

Paehyeon returned carrying a tray with porcelain teacups and a teapot.

Without a word, the ghost began pouring tea, starting with Taehee’s cup first.

The sight of a ghost serving tea to a human being felt bizarrely unreal.

“Thank you.”

Taehee accepted it naturally, as though this were the most ordinary thing in the world.

After serving the other two men, Paehyeon stepped back several paces and stood quietly behind Taehee in an almost attendant-like posture.

Despite his fear, Chief Kim found himself overwhelmed with curiosity.

There was no longer any doubt about the identity of the young man sitting before them. He had a shadow. He had clearly stated he was human.

Then what exactly was he?

And how could a human command ghosts?

Questions kept surfacing in Chief Kim’s mind, but he did not dare ask them. In this place, every ounce of control belonged to the young man before him.

“So.”

Taehee took a calm sip of tea.

“What brings you here?”

“Uh... we came because we have a favor to ask.”

“Go on.”

Chief Kim, who had been speaking on Chairman Jang’s behalf the entire time, hesitated and glanced sideways at him.

After a brief silence, Chairman Jang finally spoke.

“Please cure my son’s illness.”

The same man who had spoken bluntly on the mountainside now sounded markedly more subdued.

With a grave face, Chairman Jang slowly explained everything that had brought them here.

After listening quietly, Taehee summarized,

“So what Chairman Jang is saying is this: someone has been casting curses on your son, and now he’s suffering from an unknown illness. You want me to block the curses aimed at him. Correct?”

Chairman Jang nodded.

“I can see why the master refused.”

Taehee murmured almost to himself.

“Shamans usually avoid jobs like this. If a curse is cast incorrectly and rebounds, the backlash can be vicious. They’re afraid of being struck by the reverse curse themselves, so most won’t touch this kind of work.”

He explained it calmly, as though discussing something entirely ordinary. In severe cases, he added, the backlash could destroy a person’s body, ruin the rest of their life, or even pass down as misfortune through future generations.

“In any case...”

Taehee smiled brightly.

“You came to the right person. I happen to be very good at curses.”

The enthusiasm in his voice matched exactly what they had heard beforehand.

Chairman Jang finally felt some relief.

Then Taehee suddenly chuckled, as though something amusing had just occurred to him.

“But Chairman Jang...”

His voice dropped lower.

“You must’ve lived quite an entertaining life.”

Chairman Jang and Chief Kim stiffened instantly.

“Adultery. Illegitimate children. Drugs. Murder.”

Taehee lazily counted them off one by one.

“How many of those apply to you?”

The playful tone only made it more chilling.

The faces of both men hardened.

“Oh? Did I guess correctly?”

Taehee smiled as he watched them freeze.

“Why else would people in your position avoid the Office of Narye and spend months trying to reach a shaman instead? Nobody comes all the way out here without skeletons in the closet.”

He topped off his half-empty teacup.

“Don’t worry.”

Still smiling, Taehee looked up at them.

“I’m very good at keeping secrets.”