NTH 62

“I will do that.”

After that, the young master Cheonsu and Gu Minho shared a conversation. It was a pattern of the young master Cheonsu asking a question and Gu Minho answering without much sincerity.

“Um, Mr. Minho, do you really have nine tails?”

“What a stupid question. Otherwise, why would my name be Gumiho.”

“Haha, that’s right. Then, is the thing called a fox bead real?”

“It is.”

“Where do you keep it? Could I see it too?”

“I can show you, but if a human sees a fox bead, they are certain to die within three days. Do you still want to see it?”

“No! Not at all! I am fine!”

Jeha sipped his tea while watching the stupid expression on the young master Cheonsu’s face as he was being fooled by Gu Minho’s lies. The young master Cheonsu asked again.

“Excuse me, but what is Mr. Minho’s exact age this year?”

“I don’t know. Do you think I am like a human, having a birthday party with a cake every time I turn a year older?”

“Ahaha, I have asked another foolish question. Um, is Mr. Minho’s true form human, or a fox?”

“This is my true form right now.”

“Gasp, is that true? This beautiful, fair lady’s form is Mr. Minho’s…….”

“But I am a man. A male. Gumiho are born looking like this even if they are male.”

“Pardon? Is, is that really true?”

Gu Minho cackled with laughter. Knowing that he had not been answering seriously from the very beginning, Jeha spoke to the young master Cheonsu.

“This friend of mine is naturally very playful and has severe mood swings. He jokes around a lot, so you should not take what he says at face value. However, it has been over nine hundred years since I first met this friend, so it is certain that he will soon become a Cheonho.”

“What is a Cheonho?”

“It refers to a top-tier Gumiho that is over a thousand years old. I do not know what happens when a Gumiho becomes a Cheonho.”

Hearing Jeha’s words, the young master Cheonsu looked at Gu Minho with an earnest gaze, as if begging for an answer. At that, Gu Minho spoke with a bewitching smile.

“When a Gumiho becomes a Cheonho, it can become human.”

“Pardon? Is that really true?”

“Yes. But you have to perform an important ritual.”

“What is it? What kind of ritual is it!”

“You have to cut open the belly of a healthy man while he is still alive, take out his liver, and eat it on the spot. The man must be young, and most importantly, he must be a virgin who has never put his member into someone else’s hole. It is even better if the human has some spiritual power or divine energy.”

“Th-that kind of……. A man being a virgin or not, h-how can you tell……?”

“Ah, that? I can tell just by looking. So I have been looking for a human suitable as a sacrifice for the Cheonho ritual lately, and just today…….”

Gu Minho trailed off, staring intently at the young master Cheonsu’s chest.

“U-Uwaaack!”

The young master Cheonsu suddenly screamed and jerked his bottom back as if to flee. Seeing this, Gu Minho clutched his stomach and burst out laughing. Jeha let out a light sigh.

“It is all a lie. I told you not to believe him.”

“But, i-it was so realistic…….”

“What kind of Gumiho would endure a thousand years of solitude just to become a mere human? Of course, if becoming a human is that much of a wish, it might be possible, but there is absolutely no such thing as eating a liver.”

At my words, Gu Minho flared up and pressed me accusingly.

“How would you know? Are you a Gumiho? What are you going to do if I take out your liver and eat it first on the day I become a Cheonho?”

“Eat it if you want. I will gladly give it to you. Do you think I cannot give you that one thing? Is the liver enough? You do not need the heart?”

“You foxy bastard.”

“Ha, honestly. Who is calling whom a fox.”

Gu Minho pouted his lips. Then, the young master Cheonsu, who had been listening to their conversation, said.

“Although you denied it, it really seems that Mr. Minho and Mr. Kwon are lovers. Both of you are so beautiful and you look so good together.”

Jeha did not even have the energy to respond to that comment.

After leaving the young master Cheonsu’s house, Jeha set off to take Gu Minho to his residence. Unlike his excited chattering on the way there, he had been sitting silently for a long while, so Jeha spoke to him.

“I went to the trouble of dragging you along, but it is disappointing that there was no gain at all.”

“Why was there no gain?”

“Hwang Juyeol is so sloppy and seems to know nothing, it is hard to believe he is a Grade A soul. He does not look that strong, nor does he look that great.”

“Did you think all Grade A souls would be like you?”

“Because the only Grade A soul I know is myself. I cannot say for sure, but Hwang Juyeol seems a bit different from what I expected.”

At those words, Gu Minho, who had been silent for a moment, suddenly muttered as if to himself.

“I guess it is because he is not actually a Grade A soul.”

“What do you mean by that? He knew all about the soul system, and he said things like he could have sex for a long time after becoming a Grade A.”

“It is a lie. Though it might be true that he is a rabbit who finishes intercourse in a flash.”

At his words, Jeha furrowed his brow and became serious.

“Are you really saying that because you know something?”

“Of course. Are you a fool? You were the one who advised me not to take my words at face value, so why do you believe that everything he said is the truth?”

Jeha pulled the car he was driving over to the side of the road. He looked straight at Gu Minho and spoke in a serious voice.

“Then tell me. What is it that you found out? Please.”

Gu Minho briefly avoided Jeha’s gaze and looked straight ahead. As Jeha waited patiently, he finally opened his mouth.

“That bastard with the name Hwang something.”

“Yes.”

“That bastard, he is a parasitic soul.”

“What?”

As Jeha exclaimed in a horrified voice, Gu Minho turned his head, looked at him, and spoke clearly.

“That bastard is the incarnation of a parasitic soul, and the male shaman is his host.”

A silence fell as if time had stopped.

In reality, only a few seconds had passed, but in that time, a myriad of thoughts crossed Jeha’s mind. He could even feel his own pulse throbbing.

He was annoyed by the belated truth, but as long as the other person was Gu Minho, questioning why he was only telling him now was pointless. To Gu Minho, the young master Cheonsu having his soul devoured by a parasitic soul would be no different from an ant on the roadside being stepped on by a human.

Concluding quickly that it was wiser to soothe him and get more information than to get angry at Gu Minho, Jeha calmed his mind and spoke as calmly as possible.

“I see. If you say so, it must be true. To me, he looked no different from an ordinary human, so I am curious how you figured it out.”

Gu Minho glanced at Jeha, checking his reaction.

“You are not angry? I thought you would be furious, asking why I am only telling you now.”

“No. I am grateful that you told me, even if it is late.”

“Hmph. What a saint we have here.”

“You know you are the only one I can discuss these things with. I am asking you, please.”

Gu Minho replied in a grumpy voice.

“Even if you ask how I figured it out, it is hard to explain. I can just feel it when I see them. Whether they are a Grade C, Grade B, Grade A, or a wicked monster pretending to be human.”

“So Hwang Juyeol did not feel like a real human to you?”

“Right. That bastard is definitely a parasitic soul. I have not seen parasitic souls in person many times, but they always have the same characteristic. Unlike normal humans, their energy is extremely dark.”

“I see. That is why Hwang Juyeol only gave vague answers about Grade A souls and could not explain anything in detail.”

“And I told you before. Those things are originally born without a physical body, so their power is extremely insignificant and weak.”

“Yes, I remember you saying that.”

“So how could they possibly perform intercourse properly? When he said earlier that he finishes sex absurdly quickly, it is probably because of that. He does not have much yang energy in his body to begin with.”

At Gu Minho’s words, Jeha recalled the appearance of Cheon Sakang, whom he had encountered at the university before. Looking at his appearance alone, he could not have imagined that he was ‘extremely insignificant and weak’ and even had premature ejaculation.

On the contrary, tormenting a target he was fixated on all night without a break seemed much more fitting for him. Jeha, curious about Gu Minho’s opinion on this, asked.

“But I told you before that I met Jin’s, I mean Nana’s, parasitic soul.”

“You did.”

“That one seemed quite strong. He was as tall as me, his build was just as big, and he had a considerable aura of intimidation. He did not look pathetic and weak like Hwang Juyeol at all.”

“Then that one must be almost in its complete form. I do not know how long they have to devour a soul to finish their task, but maybe the one you met does not have much longer to go? He would have gotten stronger by as much as that Nana kid got weaker.”

As expected, since Gu Minho was not a parasitic soul himself, there was a limit to the information that could be obtained from him. Jeha made up his mind.

Treatment from a doctor, medicine from a pharmacist.

About parasitic souls, from a parasitic soul.

“I have to go back.”

Jeha quickly started the car. As he sharply turned the steering wheel to make a U-turn, Gu Minho asked in a surprised voice.

“What? Go back where?”

“To the young master Cheonsu’s house.”

“Why? What are you going to do there again?”

“I am going to beat up Hwang Juyeol and make him confess everything about parasitic souls. Since he is not even human to begin with, it would be even better if I can completely eliminate him while I am at it.”

“Why would you do that? Don’t tell me that shaman guy is your type too? So you are planning to get rid of Hwang whatever-his-name-is and take the shaman for yourself?”

“No, that is not it……”

Even Jeha, as eloquent as he was, was at a loss for words at that point.

When he glanced sideways, Gu Minho was waiting for Jeha’s answer with an indifferent expression. Jeha, wondering how to make this selfish Gumiho understand, spoke slowly and carefully, as if teaching a child.

“I am a human, so I do not like the fact that the young master Cheonsu, a fellow human, is being devoured by a parasitic soul. If I had not known at all, it would be one thing, but now that I know, I feel uneasy just leaving it alone.”

“Then are you going to save every human you meet who is being preyed upon by a parasitic soul?”

“I would if I could. But I do not have the eyes to distinguish between humans and parasitic souls. I just happened to get your help this time.”

“……”

“But there is something I want to ask. Can you really tell the difference between a virgin and a non-virgin among human men?”

“It is impossible for women, but it is possible for men.”

“How on earth?”

“Gumiho are spirits, so their bodies are filled with yin energy, but to live in the human world, they need a certain amount of yang energy. They can get yang energy just by being near humans, but that is a minuscule amount, so they usually get it through intercourse.”