NTH 99

He lit the Eul-jong and Gap-jong candles in order. As soon as the wick of the Gap-jong candle caught fire, the Byeong-jong candle went out completely. At the same time, Jeha opened his eyes.

“Did you enjoy your time travel? I wonder if you found the answer you were looking for.”

Jeha let out a deep sigh and closed his eyes again. He realized for the first time that when one’s heart ached as if it would break, even shedding a single tear became a luxury.

To think that the years that had flowed from Meoru and Sonyeong to Kwon Jeha and Jin amounted to a whole millennium.

Jeha had always been born into a wealthy, high-status family and enjoyed a long life. Jin had always lived a wretched life at the very bottom of society, dying before he reached his mid-twenties. And Cheonsagang, without a single exception, had tenaciously devoured Jin’s soul.

Perhaps Sonyeong had known. Even if he trapped the parasitic soul inside his body and they died together, another life would be waiting. Once a parasitic soul attached itself to a host, it would cling to the host every time he was reincarnated. Until it had devoured all of his soul. Until it finally became a complete human itself.

Originally, Cheonsagang’s host was supposed to be Jeha. Since it had died trapped in Meoru’s body without being able to escape, it would have been reborn and become a parasite on Meoru’s soul—that is, Jeha’s. However, because Sonyeong had swapped their bodies at the last moment, Cheonsagang became a parasite on Sonyeong’s soul. And so it was endlessly reborn, reaching the present-day Jin.

“No matter what voice you hear in your subconscious, you must never answer it.”

“They may tempt you with sweet words, saying they will give you what you desire most, take you to a good place, or bring you great wealth and glory.”

Sonyeong had clearly warned him several times. Meoru had boasted that there was no way he would fall for the temptation. Giving Sonyeong a sleeping potion was born from Meoru’s arrogance, thinking he could fight on his own. As expected, he had answered the parasitic soul’s voice at once. He had ultimately fallen for the parasitic soul’s enticement that it would give him what he desired most: ‘a free life with Sonyeong.’

The price for that foolishness was Sonyeong’s life and the hardships he had to endure in every life thereafter.

Now he seemed to understand everything. The reason why only his memories related to Jin had vanished as if carved out, and the reason why his past-life memories returned one by one as he grew closer to Jin after meeting him. It was all Sonyeong’s consideration to let Meoru live a peaceful life without any lingering regrets. Sonyeong had poured all of his remaining life force into that one spell.

It was now time to break that long, long chain. He could not just lie helplessly on the floor.

Jeha rose from his seat and bowed respectfully to the Blue-Robed Boy.

“Thanks to you, many of my questions have been answered. I thank you sincerely.”

“That is good to hear.”

“Now, all that is left is to completely annihilate the parasitic soul. However, the method another parasitic soul I once met by chance told me about seems virtually impossible to use.”

Jeha spoke of the method he had heard from Hwang Ju-yeol before: ‘while the parasitic soul’s member is inserted into the host’s body and the two are connected as one, the host must pull out his own heart with his own hands.’

“If you would lend me your wisdom on this matter, I would like to repay you by granting you that ‘long-held wish’ you mentioned earlier.”

At the words ‘long-held wish,’ greed flickered in the Blue-Robed Boy’s eyes. He straightened his posture and spoke with a serious expression.

“Then, at this point, I will tell you the reward I desire.”

“Yes.”

“I want a friend.”

“A friend?”

“That’s right. You are a human so bold and strong as to remain composed even after entering the mouth of a giant ogre. I don’t know how many hundreds of years it has been since I met such a human. I like you very much. Therefore, please become my friend.”

If it was just a friend, it would not be difficult. Jeha already maintained a long-standing friendship with the great demon Gu Minho. He nodded his head.

“Very well. I will become your friend and come to see you often, Boy.”

At those words, the Blue-Robed Boy shook his head. For a moment, his eyes seemed to grow larger. Jeha was surprised but did not show it. Of course, it was no illusion. A moment later, the Blue-Robed Boy’s eyes had become large enough to take up half of his face.

“My friend cannot live somewhere else, not by my side.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I want a friend who will always be by my side to soothe my loneliness and boredom.”

“Does that mean I have to live here with you, Boy?”

“Yes.”

“Until when? Until the end of my current life?”

“Of course not. Then I would lose the friend I worked so hard to gain in an instant, wouldn’t I? A human’s lifespan is as short as that of the carp in that pond.”

To demons who did not know death, a year and a hundred years seemed to feel like similar lengths of time. Cold sweat ran down Jeha’s back. He calmly asked again.

“Then, does that mean I must live here even when I am reincarnated after this life ends?”

“Hahaha. I have no desire to take care of a baby. Since you don’t seem to understand, I will teach you. You will become another Blue-Robed Boy here.”

“Another Blue-Robed Boy…”

“That’s right. Actually, the color of the clothes doesn’t matter. A White-Robed Boy or a Black-Robed Boy. I will also let you choose your appearance. It doesn’t matter if you are a young man like you are now, instead of a boy.”

“…”

“In any case, the important thing is that you will now live forever as a demon with me, without being reincarnated as a human. Isn’t eternal life the ultimate wish that all humans dream of? Congratulations on seizing such a hard-to-come-by opportunity.”

It was not. Jeha had no desire to live forever. He knew that no matter how many times he was reborn, each life was a one-time event, which was why every day, every moment of life was immeasurably precious.

By stacking the irreplaceable days like bricks, the sturdy house called life is completed. Only when a person looks upon the one house they have worked hard to build without regret or shame can they finally smile contentedly and leave the world in peace.

The reason regret arises when a house is left unfinished or built shoddily is because everyone knows that life is finite. One cannot go back, nor can one take another’s time. Human life is such that everyone is allowed only their own share of time. Therefore, continuing that construction indefinitely was not a blessing. It was no different from the punishment of Sisyphus, who had to endlessly roll a rock to the top of a mountain.

Jeha, having experienced life several times, knew this fact better than anyone. That was why he did his best in every life. No matter how wealthy his family was, he never neglected to polish and improve himself. This was because the life of a good-for-nothing degenerate he had experienced before had ultimately brought him nothing but emptiness.

If life in the human world was like that, who in the world would consider living eternally as a demon inside a demon’s mouth, with another demon, to be their ultimate wish?

“Is that all you wish for? Is there no other way I can compensate you?”

Jeha asked calmly with a heavy expression. The Blue-Robed Boy, his huge eyes wide open, shook his head from side to side.

“No. There is not. If you do not accept my proposal, I will immediately meddle with the flow of time. Then, even if you leave here, there might be no one who remembers you. It is also possible that everyone, including your ailing lover, might be dead.”

The Blue-Robed Boy could control the speed at which time flowed inside the giant ogre’s mouth. For instance, if he made time here flow indefinitely slowly, by the time Jeha got out, years, or even decades, might have already passed.

The moment he heard the words ‘ailing lover,’ Jeha thought of Jin. Sonyeong’s face, who had given his life for Meoru, overlapped with Jin’s.

Was this a time for him to be picky? Having enjoyed wealth and glory by using Sonyeong as a sacrifice until now, shouldn’t he save Jin from the clutches of the parasitic soul, even if he had to dedicate the rest of his life to it?

No matter what price he had to pay.

“I understand. I will do as you say. However, you must teach me a way to safely rescue Jin. Once I annihilate the parasitic soul and Jin regains all the soul he has lost and becomes whole, then I will return to this place.”

Finally looking satisfied, the Blue-Robed Boy, who had returned to his original face, nodded his head.

“If you break a promise made with a demon, you will be struck with a terrifying curse. It would be best not to have any foolish thoughts.”

Cheonsagang pressed the passcode on the electronic door lock and entered the entryway. Inside the entryway, there was another steel door, and it too had an electronic lock installed. Only after unlocking the second electronic lock could one enter the house.

Cheonsagang’s house faced north, where no sun shone. It was surprisingly difficult to find a house that was clean and in a good location but received no sunlight at all. As the incarnation of yin energy, he had to live avoiding the sun as much as possible. As if that was not enough, he had blackout curtains drawn throughout the entire house and relied solely on fluorescent lighting.

For demons or ghosts to survive long in the mortal world, they had to take yang energy from living humans. Cheonsagang’s restorative elixir was, without a doubt, Jin. Jin, who had lost too much yang energy to Cheonsagang, also found it difficult to endure sunlight. Having become as pale as a vampire, he always wore a hat to shade his face.

The house had almost no furniture. There was only a sofa in the living room, a built-in island counter with two chairs in the kitchen, and a small refrigerator. The master bedroom also had only a bed, and all the other rooms were empty. His house had even less of a lived-in feel than a model apartment or a furniture company’s showroom.

On the door of the master bedroom, located in the innermost part of this bleak house, hung a lock even bigger than Cheonsagang’s fist. Cheonsagang took out a key, inserted it into the lock, and turned it.

The simple meal he had given Jin before going out was still there. When he had been locked in the basement of Angel CashLoan’s new office, Jin had subsisted on milk alone. Perhaps because of that, on the first day he was brought here, Jin had thrown up everything as soon as he was forced to eat. He had been refusing meals for several days since then.

Cheonsagang approached the bed and looked down at Jin for a moment. He was lying as if dead, his white, thin shoulders exposed above the blanket. As soon as he had brought him there a few days ago, Cheonsagang had stripped off all the clothes Jin was wearing and thrown them into the trash can on the veranda. Jin had not resisted. He had merely looked at the trash can with sad eyes.

Cheonsagang went into the dressing room attached to the master bedroom, took off his clothes, and headed straight for the bathroom. After finishing his shower, he came back into the room wearing only a bathrobe loosely tied, and saw Jin, who had woken up, drinking water. As soon as he saw him, Jin threw the water bottle and asked.

“What happened to Jeha?”

“Just eat your food now. If you don’t want to fucking die.”

“You promised to let Jeha go. Did you really let him go properly?”

“A promise? What promise? You followed me of your own accord. I don’t remember saying anything.”

“Don’t play with words. Let me talk to Jeha on the phone. Just once is enough. If I can just confirm that he’s safe, I’ll never ask again, please.”

Cheonsagang let out a scoff as if he were dumbfounded. He climbed onto the bed and sat next to Jin like a lover. Cupping the chin of Jin, who instinctively flinched, he spoke slowly in a low voice.

“Nana, my poor, pitiful Nana. Do you remember what I said to you before I brought you here?”

“What are you talking about?”

“I said you’re always stupid and shortsighted no matter when I see you. Did it not occur to you to doubt whether my words about holding Kwon Jeha captive were true or not?”

“…Don’t tell me, you already killed Jeha? You tricked me?”

“It’s probably better if you don’t imagine it in too much detail. He might be sinking deep somewhere in the sea by now, providing nutrients to deep-sea fish.”

“Lies… It’s a lie. It’s a lie!!!”

Jin screamed until his throat was raw and violently shook off Cheonsagang’s hand. In the process, Jin’s fingernail grazed Cheonsagang’s cheek, leaving a thin scratch. Cheonsagang snatched Jin’s wrist.

“A naughty child must be punished. Which finger was it that scratched my face?”

“…”

“Should I pull out the nail, or cut off the finger? Or should I go easy on you and just break it? You choose.”

“You crazy son of a bitch…”

“I’ll decide after I see how well your hole satisfies my cock.”

Cheonsagang let go of Jin’s wrist and untied the belt of his bathrobe. Tossing the robe under the bed, he turned his head to look at Jin and scowled deeply.

“What the hell are you doing?”

Jin was on his knees. Undeterred by Cheonsagang’s glare, Jin bowed his upper body and pressed his forehead against the bed mattress.

“Please, I’m begging you. Let me hear Jeha’s voice just once. I’ll hang up in one minute, no, thirty seconds. After that, I’ll never contact him again for the rest of my life. I’ll eat well, and I’ll sleep well. I won’t try to escape from here, and I won’t run away from you. Just, sob, if Jeha is okay, if I can just confirm that…, sob…”

Jin burst into tears while prostrated. He was on his knees for the first time, begging to hear Kwon Jeha’s voice just once. He sobbed, willing to mortgage his own future for Jeha’s safety.

It was truly a strange thing. Originally, the longer a host and a parasitic soul were together, the easier it was for them to resonate. This was because the parasitic soul would have eaten that much of the host’s soul. No reason was needed for a host to come to feel affection for a parasitic soul.

But why wasn’t Jin resonating with him? Did it make sense for him to lose his heart to a university professor with whom his soul had no connection whatsoever? He could not, for the life of him, understand how another person’s affection, born of ordinary love, could overcome a living creature’s instinct to gather the scattered fragments of its soul.