The Aura of Pure White
The address Cha Soyeon had given me led to an officetel far from the company. How many of these places does this woman even own?
When I went up, a bodyguard greeted me and opened the door. On the sofa deeper inside the living room, Shim Jongho sat with a dazed expression.
“He doesn’t remember anything that happened at the Heavenly Palace. The rest is all over the place too. He asked what SN Entertainment even is, and he claims he doesn’t know Chie. His condition is a complete mess.”
Shim Jongho wasn’t wrapped in that black smoke. It meant he hadn’t been eroded by false faith to the point of being beyond redemption.
So this guy didn’t go because he actually believed in the Jinsaeng Sect.
"There are plenty of people without any real faith. They probably just went because there was something to gain. Those types are actually the worst. Fanatics at least have belief. This guy just exploits it."
I had brought him here to learn the identity of the man I had seen through the Grace of Prophecy. The fact that someone was trying to silence him meant that man was connected to the Jinsaeng Sect. He would also interfere with recruiting Chie in some way. The Grace had shown me the future at the exact moment I met Cha Soyeon, as a warning.
After I hear what he has to say, if he really is that vicious, can I turn him back into an idiot?
"Why?"
People aren’t meant to be fixed and reused. A guy like this will cause trouble even without a cult. It’s better to just make him an idiot.
"That sounds like something this woman would be better at."
When I glanced at Cha Soyeon, she tilted her head.
“I don’t know what you want to hear from a person like this, but go ahead and do what you were going to do.”
“Could you give us the room? We have something to discuss, just the two of us.”
At Cha Soyeon’s glance, the bodyguards stepped outside.
“Soyeon, you too… I’ll call you when we’re done.”
“Just do it. You’re trying to fix his head, right?”
Huh?
An eerie silence flowed between Cha Soyeon and me.
This woman… she knows about the Grace.
“You’re exactly like the person who saved my life. Your aura is white too.”
I was so shocked I stumbled backward without realizing it.
What the hell… was going on?
“I’m telling you this because I think I can trust you, Juwon. You’re different from ordinary people.”
Cha Soyeon began to speak about her past.
“My mom and dad died in a car accident when I was little. I was in the car too. I was obviously dying.”
It had been a massive crash where the car was so mangled you could barely tell its original shape.
“I still remember it vividly. My arms and legs were broken; I couldn’t move. When I saw the front of the car catch fire, I thought, ‘This is it. I’m going to die. I’ll go with Mom and Dad.’ And I closed my eyes.”
That’s when the crumpled car door opened and someone pulled her out.
“When I was held by that person, I can’t forget the feeling. It was warm and comfortable. Even though I was about to die, I didn’t feel anything. I wasn’t scared at all.”
She slowly recited the words the person who saved her had said. Her expression was like a girl in love confessing to her beloved.
Your soul is too precious to take, given your nature and talent. Do you want to continue living?
“At the time I didn’t understand what it meant, so I just nodded while crying. The voice was so warm.”
You’ll be lonely without your parents, so live with the Blessing of Connections. The connections you desire will appear to you in different colors from now on.
“Then he disappeared into the light. I lost my parents that day, but I gained a new life.”
What the person who saved Cha Soyeon had said bothered me.
“About that Blessing of Connections… has anything changed since then?”
“It has. Colors started rising like smoke behind people.”
Is that a Grace too?
"No. That is God's blessing. For her, the connections between people appear as colors."
“Red means someone who hates me. The less they hate me, the lighter the color. When the red disappears and they start to like me, it changes to yellow. So I can see who likes me and who hates me through color.”
Just as that person had said, she could now see emotions of connection as colors.
“It’s helped me a lot in life. I stay wary of those who hate me, and I help those who like me… It’s been a tremendous strength in getting me this far.”
“Is that why you showed interest in me?”
“At first, yes. Your color, Juwon… is white. A pure, snowy white that isn’t red or yellow. It’s only the second white I’ve seen since gaining this ability.”
“The first one was…”
“That’s right. The person who saved me had the exact same white as you.”
"Fascinating. It seems like a kind of supersense has activated that lets her feel Grace instead of connections, but only toward you, Master. Since it is the same Grace as God's, it appears that way to her."
“The warmth and comfort and peace I felt back then… I feel it exactly the same way. From the first time I saw you in the parking lot. You have no idea how hard it was when I went to America for filming. I wanted to feel it up close…”
Now the question was answered.
I finally understood why a woman like Cha Soyeon kept coming to see me. She was drawn to the Grace that had saved her life.
“You’re not going to tell me why you have that color, are you?”
“Ah, that’s…”
God hadn’t told me to keep it a secret. But if I wanted to live peacefully, it was better not to show my alien side. People often perceive ‘different’ as ‘wrong’ and become wary.
“It’s okay if you don’t tell me. I just need to keep feeling those emotions beside you, Juwon. So please, never find me annoying from now on.”
“How long are you planning to stick around?”
“Hmm… until I get tired of it? But I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of it.”
She smiled brightly as she said it. That was probably acting too.
“Lifetime? That sounds like marriage.”
“That works too. Don’t you want to take me with you? My face and body are more than enough, and I earn good money. I’ve saved up quite a bit too…”
“The playing field is way too tilted! Does it even make sense for someone like me to end up with you, Soyeon?”
“What’s wrong with you, Juwon? I can tell ten things about a person from seeing one. How many managers out there are that devoted to their assigned artists? Sometimes I even get jealous of Red Blossom… ah!”
“W-what?”
“There’s Red Blossom. If Yeoreum finds out, she’ll throw a fit. Hmm… well, maybe it doesn’t matter.”
Did this woman have some kind of delusional wall? She kept slipping into her own little world.
“Now that I know you’re not an ordinary person, I’ll yield on the other women. If there’s a woman who says she can’t live without you, bring her. Of course I’ll be first…”
“Are you telling me to build a harem?”
“There’s nothing stopping you. How do you stop someone who’s dying to love you?”
This wasn’t just being cool-headed. Was Cha Soyeon always this understanding?
“Soyeon.”
“Yes?”
“Let’s deal with that first. You know things are going seriously off track right now, right?”
I pointed at Shim Jongho, who was sitting blankly at the end of the sofa.
“To save Red Blossom, I need to find out why they kidnapped Chie. If we don’t dig into this properly now, not only Chie but Sera could be in danger again.”
“Alright. We can continue our talk after this.”
She really was a tenacious woman. I had felt it during the live broadcast too.
“By the way, how did you know I could fix this guy?”
“Because you’re warm.”
“Pardon?”
“Right now your body is really warm, Juwon. I can tell even without touching you. It’s nothing like a heater or an electric blanket. It’s just like… the person who saved me. Warm.”
"She's sensing the Grace of Healing too. Only someone with a fairly pure soul could feel that. God was right to say it would be a waste to take her."
I approached Shim Jongho and placed my hand on his forehead. The murky energy was so sickening it made my stomach churn. When I focused my mind, that energy melted away like snow.
“Huk!”
His unfocused eyes returned to normal. He looked around in confusion, then his gaze met mine.
“Uwaaaaack!”
He must have remembered the moment he got hit by my kukri. He screamed and tried to run toward the entrance, but the bodyguards guarding the door immediately subdued him.
“Uwaaaaah, let… let go of me!”
“If you don’t shut up, I’ll hit you again. Do you want to become an idiot again?”
“Heeeh… save… no, please save me. Please…”
“I have some questions, so go sit on the sofa. If you answer honestly, I’ll just let you go.”
“R-really?”
“Don’t make me say it twice.”
“Ugh… yes.”
He sat obediently on the sofa.
“You’re good at acting. You could be an actor.”
“What kind of acting is tensing your shoulders and lowering your voice?”
Grumbling, I brought a chair over and sat down in front of Shim Jongho.
“Why did you kidnap Chie?”
“No, that’s…”
“Speak properly. If you stutter one more time, I’m pulling that thing out.”
“Hic! I-I was wrong. The cult leader wanted her, so I kidnapped her. I was going to offer her to him. Please, please… save me.”
“You’re not the one who suggested offering her, are you?”
“Huh?”
Thinking of the phone call, I started probing.
“There’s someone who told you to bring Chie, right?”
“Ah, no. It was my idea to offer her.”
Hmm, so that’s how you’re going to play it?
“You’re trying to take all the blame yourself, but it’s useless. There’s someone looking for a way to quietly dispose of you because it’ll get noisy if you open your mouth. Even if you leave here, you won’t be safe.”
He stared at me with a devastated expression. His chin was trembling violently; it looked like he had received quite a shock.
“So if I tell you everything…”
“Lies! It’s all lies! The e-executive director would never do that!”
Got him.