I Want You
"Ah~ I'm starving~"
Im Hong-jae scratched his belly as he arrived at the PC bang and plopped down in his usual seat, immediately ordering pork dumplings and ramen.
Screeech.
"Whew~"
He sank his butt deep into the chair, leaned back comfortably against the headrest, and let out a long, drawn-out sigh. Half satisfaction, half dissatisfaction.
On a normal day, he'd be rolling around at home, sprawled sideways on the sofa, scrolling his phone or watching something fun on TV. But today, with his college buddies' kye gathering at his place, he had no choice but to head out. His wife had said he could stay home, of course, but it felt awkward—like he was being pitied.
After living so intensely in the past, he was taking it easy now, picking up odd jobs here and there to make ends meet. To outsiders, he probably looked like a jobless husband lounging around the house in broad daylight.
'Other misunderstandings I can shrug off, but not that one.'
He didn't want to come across as a freeloading bum living off his wife's earnings, so he'd grabbed his wallet and phone and bolted out the door.
'Wonder when they even started this kye.'
Im Hong-jae scratched his chin.
'College buddies, huh. Time to shake 'em down good this time.'
He knew it was wrong to suspect people outright, but after years of scraping by, it had become habit. And thanks to that, he'd sniffed out a scammer last time who'd joined their kye group with plans to siphon off the funds and run.
'My wife has no clue. That I'm out here protecting our family's assets like this... Heh heh.'
Grinning contentedly, he pulled out a memo from his pocket.
'Ehh... Coronodon...'
He was typing the name Gak Du-sik had jotted down into the search bar when—
Ding-dong.
'Hm.'
A text came in on his work phone. Im Hong-jae pulled it out and checked the message—
'Huh?'
His eyes widened at the unexpected news. He truly hadn't seen this coming.
Jeong Kyung-rok blinded? What the hell is this?
He read it again, then sank into thought.
'If he'd been attacked by someone with a grudge, they'd have specified it. Same if it was an accident. But cause unknown, and the best they can guess is stress? Ha. What stress could that punk possibly have? Strutting around like the world belongs to him...'
Then Im Hong-jae broke into a smile.
'Well, well. Looks like divine punishment still exists in this world. Yeah, if that bastard goes blind, maybe he won't go around beating people with his fists or raping women with what's between his legs.'
The smile lingered on his face. Digging into Jeong Kyung-rok at Gak Du-sik's request had uncovered a ton of the guy's past misdeeds. The only regrets were the 11-year-old "switched driver" incident and the bombshell that could force Seomho Group to cut him loose entirely—Jeong Kyung-rok screwing over his own brother Jeong Kyung-jin. Those were buried too deep to unearth yet.
'Acting like ruining lives doesn't matter compared to that? Those damn bastards think money and power fix everything.'
Everything else was barely covered in dirt—like sprinkling soil on top. A single hoe dig was pulling up sweet potato vines one after another.
'Hm. Blind now, so everything's at a full stop, I bet.'
His underlings might keep trying loyalty contests, but with their boss in that state, their heads would be spinning toward self-preservation.
'If he'd built any goodwill, maybe. But given his track record, he's properly screwed. Surrounded by guys who'll choke down orders like it's the police station or rub their palms hoping for scraps if they kiss ass. So even if the eldest son's in bad shape, the blind second son's line is sturdier.'
No loyalty there—just backstabbers waiting to smack their caregiver in the head.
'Perfect. Time to poke around over there. Traitors pop up everywhere.'
Still smiling, feeling much lighter, Im Hong-jae tapped the keyboard. Soon, a live stream popped up.
Streamer alias Coronodon—real name Kang Seol-bin.
'Oho. Du-sik wasn't kidding about the bait fishing.'
He had zero interest in fishing himself, but pulling food from rivers or seas intrigued him. Something about humanity's ancient hunter-gatherer instincts, maybe. Watching someone haul it in, prep it, and eat? Entertaining.
'Wonder what she'll snag this time. Another monster like that porcupine fish?'
Fishermen's talk of fish luck or sea dragon kings? Whatever. But searches showed massive catches like hers from a breakwater were rare as hell.
'Well, first catch was a fluke. Could happen again. Ah, say that in front of Il-sik hyung and I'd get smacked. She's his favorite streamer.'
Chucking, Im Hong-jae watched with interest. A big wave hit then, rocking the boat hard, and Kang Seol-bin beamed.
'Yeah, I've felt that.'
His seasickness had been brutal—vomiting until only yellow-green bile and stomach acid came up. Even now, boats made him queasy.
Unless it was a massive cruise ship where you couldn't feel the waves.
'Speaking of, if the wife wants to head to her hometown again...'
Her hometown was Ulleungdo. Every trip, he'd pop heavy meds upfront and pass out. Woke up with a mouth tasting like chewed mugwort, staggering around... Ulleungdo had amazing food—arrowroot beef, Dokdo shrimp—but he'd rarely tasted it properly.
"Your dumplings and ramen are here."
"Whoa, thanks."
The vivid memory made him shudder, but the ramen scent snapped him back, stomach growling instantly.
"Krrgh."
Ramen was tough at home—"bad for the kid." He'd suggested eating it without her, got pinched hard by his wife.
"Gonna eat well~"
Im Hong-jae slurped the ramen after blowing on it. Noodles sluuuurp, crunchy pickled radish, then dumplings. Dipped in soy-vinegar, popped whole. Blew to cool, swallowed broth, then blinked at the screen. "Oh."
The rod bent dramatically, tip plunging down—something big hooked.
Nearby anglers glanced over.
Kang Seol-bin checked chat, gripped the rod tight. Tug-of-war ensued, rod looking ready to snap. Piiing! Line screamed. Rod whipped wildly—fish thrashing to escape.
As she focused—
She shook her head smiling, but he didn't back off.
'Ugh. Creeps like that are everywhere.'
Im Hong-jae frowned as the guy sidled closer.
The captain stuck his head out from the wheelhouse, bellowing.
Cough, ahem! The guy called Kim flushed beet red, hacking awkwardly as he backed off. Kang Seol-bin gave an awkward smile to the camera, then refocused on the rod.
And then—slowly, a fish surfaced, bobbing up.
"Hooh..."
A big-mouthed cod, about 1.3 meters, blackish-brown patterned body, belly hugely swollen.
Excited, she squatted by it, prying open its mouth to remove the hook—and something thunk, plop rolled out.
Something golden, sparkling beautifully in the sun breaking through clouds.
"Huh?!"
Kang Seol-bin, the captain on-screen, and Im Hong-jae off-screen—all exclaimed together.
Stunned silence, then—
Anglers crowded around, eyes bulging at what spilled from the cod's mouth.
A gold ring with a five-petal flower studded with rubies. A gold earring engraved with a butterfly, sapphires in its wings. Even a novice could tell—elegant, antique design, no cheap trinket.
Kang Seol-bin too shocked to touch. Then—flop flop! The cod thrashed, vomiting more from its gaping maw.
Gold ring, gold earring—one by one. Everyone stared, mesmerized... until the finale popped out.
A flat-round gold coin.
It landed upright on the deck, spinning in an arc, hit Kang Seol-bin's foot, thunk, flat.
Still dazed, she bent, picked it up.
That sparked it—chaos erupted.
Snapping out of it, she blinked rapidly and nodded. Captain grabbed a knife, carefully sliced the belly—
—and toppled backward in shock.
The cod's belly was—
* * *
While Amjeong seethed with envy and I watched with interest, the Earth Spirit misinterpreted my gaze and pawed the ground even harder.
{What do you want? I know everything around here! Name it! I'll give anything! Just don't hurt my friend! My only friend!}
Tears like beads rolled from the big black mole's eyes.
Hm. Bin-i would've found it cute and pitiful, hugging and patting it. And look at that sheen. Mom said once, as a kid working fields, she touched a mole—never felt softer fur since.
{Human! Scary human! Why so quiet? I said anything you want!}
This Earth Spirit, though—spewing dangerous words since earlier. Anything I want?
{Master. This spirit. Still. Doesn't know. How scary. The world is.}
Amjeong whispered to me.
Yeah, spot on. Sheltered, clueless. No idea how bad it'd get fleeced for loose talk like that.
Let's see... Earth Spirit utility? Endless. Plant growth, herb/spirit plant scouting, buried treasure digs, underground resources...
Interfere with plants? Best yields ever. Sturdy against pests, packed with potency, nutrition, even special energies.
For herbs and spirit plants, my other refined spirits are hopping around grabbing 'em, but anything rooted or clinging to earth? Earth Spirit sees right through.
Same for treasures and ores. Who knows the underground better?
Even century-old mysteries—set the range right, Earth Spirit finds 'em in one go.
This? Leagues beyond scraping petty fees from death spirits.
{Human! Why no—}
[You.]
I pointed straight at the Earth Spirit with my index finger.
{...Huh?}
Its black eyes blinked. Patted its chest, glanced back—wondering if someone else was there.
Yep. Just you.
{Me?}
[Yeah. I want you.]
{You... want me?}
Eyes blinking, then it started trembling. Tears welled up.
Hmm?
{Human! You already have immense power! Yet you'll devour me too?! Can't allow it! I must protect my friend!}
No, I'm not eating you...