Honbul: Flame of the Soul

Mr. Kim stared blankly up at the man before him, frozen in place.

“Hi?”

A gust of wind swept in from somewhere.

Rustle—

The bamboo leaves brushed against one another. The long red robe fluttered in the wind, along with the black veil draped over the man’s face.

“......”

An overwhelming pressure seized Mr. Kim.

Like prey that had suddenly come face-to-face with a tiger, his limbs locked up without warning. He couldn’t move.

He couldn’t even see the man’s face, yet he knew instinctively that the other person was looking directly at him.

Run.

He should have run.

But his mind had gone completely blank beneath the crushing fear and dread pressing down on him. The man’s bizarre appearance was one thing, but more than anything else, Mr. Kim already knew this was a place ordinary people were never supposed to enter.

Then a low voice drifted out from beneath the veil.

“If we part ways here, pretend you never saw anything. I’ll let you go.”

Because of the black silk veil covering his face, the Leader’s appearance remained hidden. But from inside the veil, he could clearly see Mr. Kim. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Not a Naja.

Not even gifted.

Judging from how terrified he was, he seemed to be nothing more than an ordinary civilian unrelated to the Office of Narye.

The Leader had no intention of harming ordinary people.

“Though...”

The Leader took a step toward him.

“U-Ugh—!”

At that instant, Mr. Kim abruptly snapped back to his senses.

His face turned deathly pale.

Trembling violently, he staggered backward before scrambling to his feet and bolting. He tore through the bamboo grove like a man being chased by death itself and sprinted back ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) toward the construction site.

As Mr. Kim came stumbling back screaming in terror, the workers—who had just finished their break and were preparing to resume work—stared at him in shock.

Seeing the panic written all over his face, Manager Choi frowned.

“What happened?”

Mr. Kim grabbed onto him with shaking hands.

“Th-there’s... there’s someone strange over there...”

“A strange person?”

Manager Choi’s expression hardened.

“H-he’s wearing... a robe...”

Right then—

Pop. Pop. Pop.

The lights illuminating the construction site began shutting off one by one.

Within moments, the entire area plunged into darkness.

The workers screamed and ducked instinctively, startled by the sudden blackout. Manager Choi immediately tried to regain control.

“Calm down!”

Kwaaaaa—

A violent gust of wind suddenly exploded across the site.

It felt as though blades were mixed into the gale itself. The bamboo forest surrounding the entrance to the Gyeongju branch like a fortress was sliced apart instantly.

The workers were thrown to the ground by the whirlwind.

Manager Choi alone managed to hold his footing.

He crossed his arms before his face to shield himself and barely endured the storm. Then one of the workers screamed in terror.

“T-there!”

Someone pointed upward with a trembling finger.

The moment Manager Choi followed that direction with his eyes, his pupils widened.

A bizarre group stood atop the roof of the unfinished Gyeongju branch building.

There were six of them.

All six figures wore matching black robes and broad hats draped with veils that concealed their faces. Their physiques varied, but their appearance was unmistakably uniform.

To prevent contamination from entering the site, powerful talismans had been placed throughout the area to block evil entities. Ordinary stray ghosts and vengeful ghosts could not even approach this place.

And if they had been ordinary ghosts, the workers would never have been able to see them in the first place.

Yet every single person on site was staring at the figures on the roof.

Which meant there was only one possibility left.

The moment Manager Choi realized what they were, a name flashed through his mind.

“...Byeoksadan?”

His face drained of color.

Bathed in pale moonlight, the six figures stood atop the eaves overlooking the site.

None of them cast a shadow.

There was no mistaking it.

It really was Byeoksadan—the group that until now had existed only as rumor.

But why here?

And how had they found this place?

Then another figure stepped forward from the center of the roof.

Unlike the others dressed in black, this one alone wore red.

Manager Choi instinctively understood.

The Leader.

There had been countless rumors surrounding Byeoksadan’s Leader. Some said he was a bent-backed old man. Others claimed he was a giant.

This was Manager Choi’s first time seeing him in person.

Judging by his build alone, he appeared to be an adult man.

The Leader deliberately remained several steps behind the intelligent ghosts so that his shadow beneath the moonlight would not be visible from below.

After stopping roughly three paces back, his feet disappeared from Manager Choi’s line of sight entirely.

The Leader crouched down leisurely and surveyed the site.

“One, two, three, four...”

He counted the people below on his fingers.

“Fourteen total.”

Then he tilted his head slightly.

“Shall we begin?”

One of the intelligent ghosts beside him quietly asked,

“Are we starting now?”

The Leader gave a silent nod.

It was time for each of them to carry out their assigned role.

The first to move was Black Emperor.

Black Emperor possessed the ability to manipulate dreams and conceal himself within shadows.

Spreading both arms wide, he slowly extended the building’s shadow across the ground.

Darkness spread outward like spilled ink.

The workers stared down at the blackened ground beneath their feet, horrified.

“Wh-what is this...?”

Next, Hyeonsong—the most heavily built among them—brought his hands together with a loud clap.

As though waiting for Black Emperor’s signal, shapes immediately began writhing up from the darkness coating the ground.

The rice-wine-lees soldiers.

They had been prepared the previous night at the Leader’s command.

One soldier emerged for every person present at the site.

Each latched onto a target from behind, wrapping both arms around their necks and pinning them in place.

Manager Choi coughed violently as one seized him.

The third to move was the Leader himself.

He bent slightly toward the small intelligent ghost standing beside him.

“Then shall we let Yeonok try this one?”

The Leader quietly whispered something to Yeonok, too softly for Manager Choi to hear.

Then he gently drew Yeonok closer and murmured into his ear with unexpected kindness.

“Just like we practiced.”

“Okay!”

Yeonok nodded enthusiastically and lowered the geomungo hanging across his back onto the rooftop floor.

He slipped the plectrum between his fingers and took position.

Just before Yeonok began to play, the Leader calmly covered his own ears.

The intelligent ghosts beside him did the same, as though already anticipating what was coming.

Twing... twing...

The performance began.

A bleak, eerie melody flowed from Yeonok’s fingertips.

Not long afterward, the workers’ faces twisted in agony.

Hell unfolded before their eyes.

The worst memories hidden deep within each of them replayed vividly, one after another—moments of loss, grief, terror, despair.

Like films projected directly into their minds.

The workers writhed and screamed.

Blood streamed from their noses and eyes.

They wanted to cover their ears, but the rice-wine-lees soldiers restraining them from behind prevented them from moving.

It was torture.

Even a vein bulged sharply at Manager Choi’s temple.

Unlike the ordinary workers collapsing helplessly around him, he managed to endure somewhat longer.

By the time the performance ended, however, everyone except Manager Choi had already lost consciousness.

As the workers crumpled to the ground one after another, the rice-wine-lees soldiers dissolved back into shadow.

“I don’t know what you’re trying to accomplish.”

Manager Choi forced the words out while struggling to stay calm.

“But you will regret this.”

He was the only one still conscious.

Slowly, he tried slipping a hand into his pocket.

I need the talisman—

“Don’t move.”

A voice suddenly spoke from behind him.

Manager Choi froze.

“Your head will come off.”

His shoulders stiffened.

Slowly, he shifted his gaze sideways.

Only then did he see the blade silently pressed against his neck.

He hadn’t even sensed the swordsman approach.

Paehyeon stood behind him with his sword drawn.

“Even now, you’re worrying about the ordinary people first.”

Paehyeon let out a quiet laugh.

“You’re admirable.”

Then he struck the back of Manager Choi’s neck with the flat of the blade.

Manager Choi coughed up blood and collapsed forward.

Thud.

At the same time, the Leader lightly dropped down from the roof.

Paehyeon immediately offered him the sword.

The Leader accepted it with a small bow of acknowledgment before driving the long blade point-first into the ground.

“Don’t worry. I’m not going to kill you.”

The Leader looked down at the collapsed man.

“But I do have a favor to ask.”

Resting one hand atop the sword’s hilt, the Leader crouched.

“Could you deliver a message to the director of the Office of Narye for me?”

The moment the Leader mentioned the director, Manager Choi—still coughing blood—flinched violently and looked up.

The Leader slowly lowered his head.

Though Manager Choi tried to stay composed, terror still seeped through him uncontrollably.

The Leader leaned close to his ear and whispered in a low voice.

“Tell him to begin the war.”