The Price of a Soul
“It’s you. You son of a bitch.”
Cheon Yooshin’s eyes turned pitch black, as if they were exploding. At the same time, the air in the room grew heavy. Gasp! Sharp intakes of breath erupted from all around. Before anyone could react, Cheon Yooshin had already seized Park Jaehyeong by the collar. Slowly, the man’s feet began to lift off the ground.
Kang Hyeonsu hurriedly spoke up. “Th-this is a police station. You absolutely cannot use force. We are within the legal bounda—”
Cheon Yooshin, who had been staring at Park Jaehyeong, shifted his gaze to Kang Hyeonsu. “Legal? Who decides those laws? Do I look like someone who would be swayed by something as trivial as the law?”
The moment Kang Hyeonsu met Cheon Yooshin’s blackened eyes, he clamped his mouth shut. No, he squeezed his eyes shut to keep from losing consciousness. Cheon Yooshin smirked at the sight. Groans leaked out from all corners of the room—a reaction to the smile that made one feel the primal terror of a human being.
Cheon Yooshin’s head turned back to Park Jaehyeong. The man was writhing in agony, unable to breathe properly, but the moment he locked eyes with Cheon Yooshin, he felt as if his brain were exploding. Cheon Yooshin smiled, satisfied. At the same time, Park Jaehyeong heard a voice—not with his ears, but inside his head.
Standing before absolute terror, Park Jaehyeong had neither the capacity nor the character to resist. His mouth began to open of its own accord. He confessed to the sexual harassment and assault of the female employees. He revealed the existence of the videos he had recorded of every act, and the locations where they were stored. Furthermore, he even spilled everything regarding Cheon Yooshin’s mother, Yoo Insook.
As every fact poured out, the people around him began to condemn him.
“What a piece of trash.”
“You fucking bastard.”
Even the criminals who had been detained there joined in. “A guy like that should be castrated. Using his strength against women!”
“He’s the worst of the worst. Scum.”
“See you in prison later. I’ll make sure you never get a wink of sleep.”
But that wasn’t the end. The next set of crimes followed. The corruption he had committed at Cheomdan Happy Industry tumbled from his lips. He had inflated company dinner bills, padded his business trip expenses, and colluded with equipment maintenance contractors to falsely report functional machinery as broken, receiving kickbacks in return.
“You son of a bitch!”
When his confession reached that point, a voice filled with rage erupted from behind. It was Kim Jeonghyeon. He quickly covered his mouth with both hands, bowing his head repeatedly as if to apologize. Amidst it all, Park Jaehyeong’s confession continued. Finally, the corruption linked to Vice President Kim Dongsu was laid bare. Kim Dongsu broke into a cold sweat and opened his mouth as if to make excuses to Chairman Baek Giseong.
“I, I have never done such a thing. I swear, I have never done anything of the sort.”
But the gazes directed at him were far from kind. That was when it happened. Park Jaehyeong’s body suddenly began to tremble violently. Like a patient having an epileptic seizure, white foam flowed from his mouth, and his limbs spasmed uncontrollably. Yet, Yooshin did not let him go. Instead, he smiled, a smile like a devil’s. The sight sent shivers down the spines of everyone watching.
How much time had passed? No one in the police station could interfere with what was happening in Cheon Yooshin’s hands. Even Chairman Baek Giseong kept his mouth shut, watching the situation with a stiff expression.
Thud.
Finally, when Cheon Yooshin released his grip, Park Jaehyeong’s body fell limply to the floor. Only then did Park Haesu seem to come to his senses and check Park Jaehyeong’s body.
“D-did you kill him?” Park Haesu’s voice trembled. This was a massive disaster. Even if he was Cheon Yooshin the Hunter, if he committed murder inside a police station, not even the President’s grandfather could stop Cheon Yooshin from going to prison.
However.
“I didn’t kill him. Do I look so foolish as to kill someone inside a police station?” Cheon Yooshin’s eyes returned to their original state.
“Th-then?”
“He’s just asleep.”
“...Asleep?”
“Yes.”
When he wakes up, he will no longer be himself. His mind has been sealed. He will spend the rest of his life smearing feces on the walls. He will have to eat food fed to him by others. He will have to wear diapers until someone else cleans him. He won’t be able to do anything for himself, just staring blankly ahead. His mind might be intact, but his body will no longer obey him. This was the punishment Cheon Yooshin bestowed.
“Let’s go back. My business here is finished.”
Cheon Yooshin turned his body as if he had lost interest. Then, he stopped abruptly and turned back around.
“By the way, is there someone here named Kim Jeonghyeon?”
***
Kim Jeonghyeon felt like his head was going to explode. As Kim Jeonghyeon, he had seen Chairman Baek Giseong, whom he had only ever seen on TV, in person. He had even seen Cheon Yooshin, the hottest Hunter in South Korea these days. And to top it off, a mere contract employee at his company was his mother. And now, with Kim Dongsu’s corruption revealed through Park Jaehyeong’s mouth, Kim Jeonghyeon was utterly exhausted. He had experienced things that might happen once in a lifetime within a single hour, so it was no wonder.
That was when it happened. His own name popped out of the mouth of the famous Cheon Yooshin. Kim Jeonghyeon opened his mouth like a fool.
“I-it’s me!”
It’s me? It’s me? Not a high schooler, not a middle schooler, but he had stupidly blurted out an answer that even an elementary schooler would find embarrassing! If there were a hole in the ground, he would have wanted to shove his head into it to hide.
But.
“Thank you. Let’s have a meal together sometime.”
“...Pardon?”
Kim Jeonghyeon opened his mouth like a fool again.
“I said let’s have a meal together. Why? Do you not want to?” Cheon Yooshin said with a playful smile.
“N-no! I definitely want to!” Kim Jeonghyeon shouted in a voice filled with spirit, like a scene from an old commercial.
“Okay!”
With a wink, he turned and walked out. Or rather, he was about to walk out.
“Excuse me, if you have the time, let’s have a word.” It was Chairman Baek Giseong. Yooshin replied shortly without stopping his stride.
“I don’t have 300 million won, you know?”
After throwing those words, he opened the door and walked out.
“...Wh-what?”
A look of bewilderment crossed Chairman Baek Giseong’s face. What did 300 million won have to do with having a word? Furthermore, had there ever been anyone who was this rude in front of him? Baek Giseong blinked his eyes.
“L-let’s go together, Yooshin!” Park Haesu bowed his head as if to apologize and followed him out.
Chairman Baek Giseong watched the door they had exited through, let out a hollow laugh, and then his eyes lit up with interest.
“Ho ho ho...”
Lee Munsu, whom he had brought as a bodyguard, said, “Shall I bring him back?”
Chairman Baek Giseong shook his head. “No, it’s fine.”
His eyes were filled with playfulness. Like a child who had discovered an interesting toy for the first time in a while.
“Is it possible?”
Chairman Baek Giseong was asking. Asking Lee Munsu, the leader of the Ohsung Guild and a B-rank Hunter, if he could handle that Cheon Yooshin.
And.
“...I cannot gauge it.”
He couldn’t feel any power. There was no energy or aura that a Hunter should possess. If he hadn’t seen that ability just moments ago, if he hadn’t known Cheon Yooshin’s face, he could have easily dismissed him as an ordinary person. If so, it meant that something he couldn’t see was lurking inside Cheon Yooshin. It meant that he was on a level far above his own.
Baek Giseong laughed heartily as he watched him. Even though he had been ignored—or rather, not ignored—by Cheon Yooshin, he felt strangely good. ‘It’s been a long time. This feeling.’
Then his gaze shifted to Kim Jeonghyeon, who was frozen stiff. ‘Perhaps that young man could be the bridge that connects Cheon Yooshin and me.’
***
Inside the car, silence hung in the air. Park Haesu and Yoon Hyewon were silently watching the road ahead, and Cheon Yooshin was also looking outside through the window. That was when Yoo Insook opened her mouth.
“I-I’m sorry, Yooshin.”
Yoo Insook couldn’t bear to look at her son. To be called into a police station for a sexual harassment case, of all things. Then, Cheon Yooshin’s head turned toward Yoo Insook.
“Why are you sorry, Mom? The one who did wrong is that guy.”
Yooshin’s voice was unexpectedly calm. Without a hint of blame. Instead, Yoo Insook stuttered as if she were flustered.
“Th-that is...”
“Mom, you’re the victim. In any situation, the victim has nothing to be sorry for. You should be proud instead. The one who should be sorry is the perpetrator, not the victim.”
Yoo Insook suddenly felt that Cheon Yooshin looked big. At this moment, despite being her son, Yoo Insook felt that Cheon Yooshin was a much greater person than herself.
“I’ll quit the job.”
“Yes. If that’s what you want.”
Now, there was no need to worry about money. No, he would earn more than what he had earned until now. Enough for three generations to live and play without worry. So, Mom could do whatever she wanted now.
***
When Team Leader Kim Jeonghyeon entered the office, he was greeted by an atmosphere quite different from usual. Everyone’s eyes were focused on him, and for a moment, silence descended.
‘What is this?’
Kim Jeonghyeon felt the sensation of being an outcast, something he hadn’t even felt in his school days, now that he was in his 30s.
But.
“Team Leader Kim!”
Someone called him, and—
Clap clap clap clap clap!
As if it were a signal, one by one, they began to clap. Before he knew it, the entire office was filled with thunderous applause.
‘...Why?’
Just as Kim Jeonghyeon, who didn’t know the reason, was filled with confusion—
“You are truly amazing, Team Leader!”
“It is truly an honor to have someone like you in our company, Team Leader!”
“It must have been a difficult decision, but you made a truly righteous choice!”
Exclamations of admiration poured out from the employees. Only then did Kim Jeonghyeon, realizing what was going on, give an awkward, out-of-place smile.
“I just did what I had to do, people, really...”
However, for some reason, a strange emotion was stirring in a corner of his heart. An inexplicable sense of pride, self-esteem, and a little bit of shyness. Several emotions were swirling in a corner of his heart. Having someone genuinely welcome him. Having people clap for him with admiring gazes. It was the first time in his nearly 40 years of life that this had happened.
And that wasn’t the end. Unlike usual, the company website was noisy. To be precise, the anonymous bulletin board was plastered with his name. Everyone was praising Kim Jeonghyeon’s actions regarding this incident.
‘Thanks to Team Leader Kim Jeonghyeon, it’s worth coming to work!’
‘We want to work under a Team Leader like that too!’
‘I support the hero of justice, Team Leader Kim Jeonghyeon!’
‘If I happen to meet you, I’ll greet you. Please make sure to accept my greeting!’
Watching the screen, a complex expression flickered across Kim Jeonghyeon’s face. He hadn’t reported it to the police for the sake of justice. The Hunter Management Department had been keeping an eye on that employee, and he had simply followed suit. However, he couldn’t tell people the full story. If he did, all the praise he was receiving now would disappear.
That was when the office phone rang.
Kim Jeonghyeon answered the phone in a polite tone, unlike usual.
“Hello. This is Kim Jeonghyeon, Planning Team Leader of Cheomdan Happy Industry.”
And then the other person’s voice was heard.
“Come up.”
The person on the other end was none other than the President of Cheomdan Happy Industry, his own father, Kim Ilsun.
“Ah, yes! Understood!”
Kim Jeonghyeon, who quickly went up to where the President’s office was, took a deep breath once and knocked on the office door.
“Come in.”
When he opened the door and entered, President Kim Ilsun was sitting on the sofa, looking at him with a stiff expression.
“Sit down.”
“...Yes. Fath—no, President.”
Kim Ilsun disliked being called ‘Father’ in a public setting. Therefore, Kim Jeonghyeon hurriedly changed his words. Fortunately, he seemed to want to let it slide this time, as he said nothing. What was he going to say? Was it because he reported it to the police? Even before coming up to the President’s office, he had checked the stock price. As expected, the stock price had fallen by 5% due to the sexual harassment issue. Was he going to scold him?
That was when Kim Ilsun’s mouth opened.
“Well done.”
Kim Jeonghyeon’s eyes widened at the unexpected words. It was the first time he had received praise from his father’s mouth.
“Pardon?”
“I am speaking as the President now. What you did was a great help to our company. It was a courageous act.”
Pride was embedded in Kim Ilsun’s voice. He paused for a moment and looked at his son’s face.
“Actually... I didn’t know that you, Kim Jeonghyeon, would make such a decision. I was worried that you might cause trouble instead...”
Kim Jeonghyeon felt his heart swell. Kim Ilsun continued with a warm smile.
“And as a father, it’s the first time I’ve been proud of you, my son.”
At that moment, tears welled up in Kim Jeonghyeon’s eyes. He bowed his head and barely managed to continue.
“Thank you... Father.”
“And Chairman Baek Giseong said he would guarantee the volume for our company. Thanks to that, we don’t have to worry about product orders anymore.”
“Really? But why...”
“I don’t know that either. How many people could fathom the Chairman’s heart? Ah, he did say one thing. He said he would have one favor to ask someday, so please grant him that one thing.”
“A favor? What is it?”
“He said he would tell me later and hung up.”
“Ah, I understand.”
A question arose in the mind of Kim Jeonghyeon, who had come out after seeing his father like that.
“A person like the Chairman has a favor to ask of me? What on earth could it be?”
It was difficult to guess anything until the Chairman told him. However, his footsteps were very light. And a warm smile, which hadn’t been there before, began to spread across his face.