Phew, and the Awakening
“Phew.”
I let out a sigh of relief as I stepped out of the alley. My heart was still pounding like mad. I knew Bae Seong-hyeon wasn't the nicest guy, but I hadn't expected him to be that unhinged.
[Bosu is tired. Tired, so tired... So very tired... Sacrifice, sacrifice!]
I'd preemptively invoked Bosu's power, figuring a fight might break out. But as you can see, Bosu was in such rough shape that the power didn't activate except during the handshake. If it had come to blows, I would've been in deep shit. Actually, thinking about it, it was ridiculous to even worry like that. I couldn't wrap my head around how a thug like Bae Seong-hyeon had been elected freshman rep in the first place. There was that conspiracy theory floating around—that Florence valued skill and wealth over faith or character. I'd dismissed it as nonsense back then, but after seeing Bae Seong-hyeon, it started to ring true.
“Man, that was badass. ‘Childish, pathetic. Whatever.’ Whoa, I got chills at that part.”
“Quit imitating me.”
“That's cool too. ‘Quit imitating me.’ Kyaa.”
Gu Jun-hyeok started mocking my speech patterns the second we left the alley. No matter how much I told him to knock it off, he wouldn't listen. I finally gave up.
As we goofed around walking, Jeong In-ah kept her head down, lost in thought.
“Jeong In-ah.”
“...Huh? Yeah? What?”
She jumped when I called her name and looked up.
“What's up?”
“Oh, just... That kid who was collapsed earlier. He's been on my mind.”
She was thinking about the boy Bae Seong-hyeon's gang had been bullying. She seemed to feel a twinge of guilt for not helping him.
“If we help him, he'll get beat worse later. Best to stay out of it.”
Gu Jun-hyeok, still mimicking me, said it like it was no big deal. For once, it was solid advice coming from him.
“...Yeah, you're right.”
Bitterness laced Jeong In-ah's voice.
We walked a bit more, and her house came into view. It was a two-story home with a yard and attic—nothing fancy, but way better than my rundown studio apartment. She didn't seem thrilled with it, though.
“See you tomorrow!”
With that, she headed inside.
Gu Jun-hyeok and I kept up our pointless banter as we walked. About five minutes later, my villa appeared.
Just as I was about to head in, a question hit me.
“Gu Jun-hyeok.”
“Yeah?”
“Where do you live?”
He scratched his head awkwardly.
“Eh, somewhere around here.”
He grinned sheepishly. Probably had his reasons for not saying. Everyone has secrets—me included.
I shrugged it off and went into my place.
*
Two days passed uneventfully, and the weekend arrived. The morning felt sweet after so long—a perfect day with warm sunlight filtering through the window and a cool breeze. Ideal for a date with a girlfriend. Not that I had one.
Anyway, I got up around nine, grabbed my mask and clothes, and headed out. Uncle Lee Jin-seong's car was parked in front of the villa.
Beep beep!
As I approached, he honked happily. I hopped in the passenger seat and buckled up. He punched the destination into the nav.
“Hey, you got that thing?”
Lately, Uncle had taken to calling everything “that thing.” Getting old, maybe.
“What's that?”
“You know, that. The mask! Did you bring the mask?”
“Yeah, it's in the bag.”
I tapped the bag. Something clinked dryly inside.
“Okay, let's roll.”
He drove like a pro. The guy's good at everything.
I stared out the window at the world rushing by. My stomach was in knots.
[What's to be anxious about? Trust me.]
“Yeah, sure.”
Legba sounded confident, but it didn't ease my nerves.
We were heading to the dBP corporate hospital to wake the comatose wife of the dBP chairman. With no altar, the Loa powers were severely weakened. I wasn't sure I could pull it off.
“Your phone's blowing up. Friends?”
Uncle glanced over while driving. I checked the backlog: a few from Jeong In-ah, a few from Gu Jun-hyeok, and dozens of spam.
“Yeah, friends.”
Close enough.
“Settling in, huh? Already making pals. How are the kids?”
“They're nice. Guess it's a seminary school.”
“Yeah? No drama then. Back in my day, bullies were everywhere. But Florence? Nah.”
Bae Seong-hyeon flashed in my mind, but I kept quiet.
“Oh, Uncle.”
“Yeah?”
“Didn't you say you bought dBP stock?”
He pondered, hands on the wheel.
“Yeah, a bit a while back. Blue-chip stock.”
“Sell it in a week.”
“Huh? Why?”
“Feels like it's gonna tank.”
He tilted his head.
“Why? Got a reason?”
“Kinda, but right now it's just a hunch.”
“You don't trade on hunches. Whatever.”
He brushed it off. Couldn't force him. His regret, his problem.
I turned back to the window. Dozed off briefly, and we were there—a massive building looming in the city center. dBP Hospital.
We parked and took the VIP elevator. I pulled out my mask and put it on.
Ding!
It opened at the top floor. Two hulks blocked our path.
“Name?”
“Tell the chairman Kim Seong-jin, he'll know.”
“Wait here.”
They vanished swiftly, then returned seconds later.
“Apologies. This way.”
We followed through a hall lined with fancy fish tanks and plants to a dim room reeking of disinfectant.
In the center sat who I assumed was the dBP chairman.
“You two, out.”
The hulks bowed and left. He rose shakily, offered a bony handshake.
“Bae Jeong-hwan, the one who hired you. Kim Seong-jin, right?”
“Yes, that's me.”
Uncle stood straight, shaking firmly. “Kim Seong-jin” was his alias for gigs like this.
“And the one next to you?”
Bae eyed me—the skeleton-masked figure standing silent.
“The cult leader I mentioned. All rituals go through him.”
“Ah, the leader. Got it.”
He nodded slowly. No need for me to speak; Uncle handled it all, as planned.
“So, Chairman, straight to business? Or tea and chit-chat first?”
“Business.”
“Mind if I turn on the lights? Can't check the patient properly in the dark.”
“Do as you like.”
Uncle flipped the switch. Click—the room lit up. Bae's wrinkled face sharpened, and black-clad guards emerged from hiding spots.
“Whoa, jump scare! Chairman, what's this? Not what we discussed.”
Uncle feigned fear.
“Ignore them. Just precautions. Too many scammers after my money.”
“Ah. What happened to those scammers?”
“See the big fish tank on the way in?”
He grinned slyly.
“Fed 'em to the fish. Ground up.”
“Ahem. Haha. Well, we're no scammers, so no worries. We'll save your wife for sure.”
“Of course. For both our sakes, right?”
“Yes, haha.”
Uncle wiped sweat from his temple with a handkerchief. Tension ratcheted up. No room for complacency—failure meant death. We had to succeed.
I approached the bed. The patient was pale, breathing shallowly, arms twig-thin like dead branches. The monitor beeped steadily: beep, beep.
Seeing her up close calmed my shakes.
[Better than expected?]
Legba was right; she wasn't critical. No fish food fate here.
I placed my hand on her forehead to begin. Bae flinched, standing abruptly.
“What're you doing?”
“Part of the ritual. Don't worry.”
“Hmph.”
He chewed his lip anxiously. Didn't trust us much.
Ignoring him, I focused. Voodoo magic surged, drawing five spell circles in the air.
Legba's voice echoed in my head.
[──! ───! ──.]
Couldn't parse it fully—words like death, life. His chant sped up: soul, afterlife, resurrection, cycle... Sentences lengthened, archaic terms piling on.
At the climax—
Shrrrrr!
Purple bandages poured from the circles—not quite bandages, but something shaped like them. They wrapped the patient seamlessly.
Beep── beep── The heart monitor slowed. Her breaths grew fainter, fragile, on the brink.
Bae gnawed his nails bloody.
[───, ───! ──.]
Legba's voice cut off. The monitor flatlined: beeeeeep.
Silence fell.
“Ha, haha. Hahahaha. Ha—huh.”
Bae broke it, laughing madly.
“Grab them.”
Cold command to the guards.
“W-wait! Thirty seconds. One minute—!”
“Shut up. My fault for trusting scum like you. My fault... My great fault...”
They seized wriggling Uncle, zip-tying his wrists and ankles roughly, then advanced on me.
I scanned for escape—futile. None.
[Mistake mid-ritual? No? It was perfect. What? Incomprehensible.]
“Told you I was anxious!”
Even now, Legba was chill. Cursing him, I fired voodoo magic from my fingertips. Had to resist.
Halfway through a top-tier illusion spell circle—
“Honey, what's going on?”
A clear voice from the bed cut the chaos. Bae's wife had awakened.
“D-dear.”
Joy, sorrow, awe, shock, relief flooded Bae's face. All the pent-up emotions spilled as tears down his cheeks.
“Aigoo, who's everyone? What time is it? Feels like I slept forever.”
“N-not long. Just a quick nap... Think of it that way.”
“Why're you bawling? And why do you look so old overnight?”
We all watched the reunion in hushed awe. A tearjerker for sure. Not for me—I don't cry easy. Just relief she lived. Twists aside, success.
“Hey, leader! Untie me quick.”
Uncle squirmed like a maggot in his bonds.
I used a guard's saw to cut him free. Wait, why a saw? For dismembering us? Chilling.
“Thought I was done for. Phew.”
Uncle sprang up, straightened his clothes, glared at the guards, and stomped to Bae.
“Chairman, happy reunion's great, but we got business left, right?”
“Ah, yes! Sorry. Got emotional in front of guests.”
From blunt dismissal to fawning politeness now.
He wrapped up with his wife hastily and led us to a lounge, bowing and thanking nonstop.
Seeing him like that stirred mixed feelings.
[Well, he's your friend's dad.]
“Friend” was a stretch, but whatever. Bae Jeong-hwan: dBP chairman, doting husband, and Bae Seong-hyeon's father.
(Continued next chapter)