The Hound's Vault
"Yoon Deok-soo was So-hee's homeroom teacher fifteen years ago. He was the number one contributor to burying the case — the most aggressive cover-up artist in the entire school. His reward was recognition, and now he's living large as the principal. And as you know, Daeha Middle School, where So-hee attended, is owned by the Daeha Group. Ma Tae-sung — that's his family."
Of course he knew.
But Tae-jun quickly recovered his composure.
Right now, growth mattered more than vengeance.
"Doesn't seem like he'd help my growth much."
"Come on — if he weren't worth it, do you think I'd have shortlisted him as prey? Check the next page."
A worthless piece of trash, certainly.
But Tae-jun hadn't thought him capable of spitting out a high-tier Soul Stone.
Apparently, he'd been wrong.
"Think about it. Do you really believe trash like that did something bad once, fifteen years ago, and stopped? Absolutely not. That was the day he opened his eyes. Ah, so this is how you're allowed to live. So this is the way to a life that blooms."
Just as Lee Seo-hyun said.
Yoon Deok-soo's career after the incident fifteen years ago had been nothing short of dazzling.
"Well? Quite the endless résumé, isn't it?"
While Ki Tae-jun had steadied himself, it was Lee Seo-hyun who had begun to squirm, little by little.
She couldn't hide the fury leaking out of her, again and again.
"Embezzling school funds is just the baseline. Hiring corruption is practically his daily routine. He takes the money, slots in whoever pays him, and if someone doesn't suit his tastes, he treats them like they're not even human."
"..."
"The female teachers especially... he's done things to them too vile to even describe. Countless times."
Things viler than a dog.
Tae-jun could roughly guess what that meant.
"Prospective teachers who come in for interviews, contract teachers — he knows exactly how desperate they are, and he exploits it. Permanent appointment, contract renewal — he dangles those like bait and makes his demands. Filthy, disgusting... demands of that kind."
He didn't spell out what the demands were.
They were too repulsive to put in his mouth.
"A man like that is the principal — do you think student welfare is handled fairly? Exam leaks are routine, and school violence cases get resolved however the powerful parents want. Exactly like what we went through fifteen years ago."
"..."
"Even now, I'd bet this school is producing a second So-hee. A third. No — I'm certain of it."
Having recited that much, Lee Seo-hyun paused to draw a breath.
Steadying the emotions that had boiled over.
"Isn't that enough?"
Tae-jun looked over the documents once more.
The man's residence wasn't far.
Late at night.
An upscale private residential compound in a sparsely populated corner of Yongsan District.
A secret kingdom known to no one — not his wife, not his children — a kingdom that existed for Yoon Deok-soo alone.
He lay sprawled diagonally across the living room sofa, deep in a discreet phone call.
"You can handle it without a slip-up, right?"
"Don't worry, sir. Everything's ready. I'll let it slip casually to exactly the kids you mentioned."
"Good, good. I'm sure you'll handle it well. Our Mr. Kim is the professional, after all?"
Yoon Deok-soo let out a satisfied chuckle.
"If this goes smoothly, Mr. Kim, that vice principal's seat won't be far off for you."
"...R-really, sir?"
Mr. Kim's voice trembled through the smartphone.
"Of course. Who am I? In this school, my word is law. You know that."
"Thank you, Principal. Thank you so much."
"If you're grateful, keep your weekend free. Time to pay your respects."
"Your... respects, sir?"
"The person above me wants to meet you, Mr. Kim. Just once."
"R-really?"
"Yes. And I'll guarantee you this — it'll be a good opportunity for you too."
"I'll give everything! My complete loyalty! Principal, sir!"
"Heh heh. What a character you are."
Yoon Deok-soo hung up with a repulsive grin still on his face.
"Whew."
Then, sinking back into the sofa, he let his mind wander.
If this one goes well...
If it did, he might even set his sights on the district superintendent's chair.
How long am I supposed to spend my life playing errand boy for other people, anyway?
Yoon Deok-soo's eyes glistened with greed and appetite.
That was when it happened.
"Hh... hhhk..."
A sound of sobbing reached his ears.
"...Tch."
Perhaps his pleasant daydream had been shattered by the crying.
Yoon Deok-soo turned his head, his face twisted in irritation.
Where his gaze landed, a woman knelt on the floor.
Long straight hair, a young face, a torn blouse and a rumpled skirt.
"Ms. Park, what's with the waterworks? You've been at it for a while now."
Park Min-ah.
A contract teacher at Daeha Middle School.
She kept her head bowed, tears streaming down.
Her eyes were swollen shut, and her face was full of terror, despair, and shame.
"Tell me. Did I do something wrong?"
Park Min-ah couldn't say a word.
"If anything, I've been nothing but generous to you. Haven't I?"
Yoon Deok-soo said shamelessly.
"Contract teachers in this business aren't treated like people to begin with. You've experienced it, so you know better than anyone."
"..."
"And me? I gave you an opportunity. A very special one, at that."
What exactly had he done for her?
What opportunity had he given?
Park Min-ah wanted to ask — but couldn't.
"Our Ms. Park's contract expires soon, doesn't it? This is exactly when you need to keep your head on straight. Forget permanent appointment — if you even want a renewal, that is."
In the end, the weapons were always the same: permanent appointment, and contract renewal.
And Park Min-ah was trapped in a reality where she could not shake them off.
For instance—
"Both your parents are bedridden in the hospital, aren't they?"
The moment he said it, Park Min-ah's eyes went wide.
"Round-the-clock care isn't cheap, you know. You'll be all right on your own?"
A repulsive smile curled at the corner of his mouth.
"I'm telling you I can help. One word from me, and both your parents move into the VIP ward of Daeha Hospital in Gangnam — tonight."
"...!"
"You don't think I'd do even that much for our Ms. Park?"
"..."
"In exchange, though... our Ms. Park will need to show a little sincerity, won't she?"
Murmuring thus, Yoon Deok-soo seized Park Min-ah by the hair.
He couldn't have cared less whether she froze in terror or not.
"Come on. Hurry up."
Before the wall called money, power, and reality.
The moment some powerless individual crumbles.
Whooooooosh...
A single current of wind — bone-deep cold — swept in from somewhere.
"...Hm?"
Something felt off.
A chill that crawled up his spine, somehow.
"Wh-what is it?"
Yoon Deok-soo flinched and looked around.
"Is a window open?"
No. It wasn't that.
His senses had not deceived him.
Human perception was never that careless.
"...!"
Sure enough, Yoon Deok-soo's instincts had been precise.
There, glowing distinct even within the pitch-black darkness, were a pair of crimson eyes.
"Wh-who's there...?"
His voice shook violently.
But the owner of the red eyes gave no answer.
It only stared at Yoon Deok-sou with hollow, empty eyes.
And then—
Thud. Thud.
It came closer.
Slowly. Very slowly.
Like a grim reaper risen from Hell.
"Do you remember me? No — do you remember So-hee?"
The reaper asked quietly.
A voice pitched low enough for only the man to hear.
'So-hee's death is truly a tragedy, and as her homeroom teacher I grieve for her. But sir, I cannot help you defame the other students. I fully understand how you feel as a father, but her classmates have been through enough as it is, haven't they? A girl barely in middle school taking her own life over depression — it could have a harmful influence. So I'd ask you to please restrain yourself...'
Fifteen years ago too,
Yoon Deok-soo had been exactly the same repulsive human being.
'And frankly, sir — those friends you keep mentioning are the children of some of the most prominent families in this country. Why would they have any reason to torment So-hee so relentlessly? You know what they say these days — the richer the family, the better the kids. They grew up with every advantage, showered with love...'
Throughout that entire conversation, Tae-jun had found it impossible to comprehend the nonsense spilling from this so-called homeroom teacher.
But one thing had been unmistakably clear: whose side this man was on.
'In any case, sir, let me say once more — So-hee's death breaks my heart as well. Even this very morning, seeing her empty seat, my chest ached. But this is advice for your own good: don't torment those children any further. You'll only make things harder on yourself, sir. You understand what I'm telling you... don't you?'
He learned later.
That this Yoon Deok-soo had been nothing more than the loyal hound of the six demons.
He had led the cover-up more eagerly than anyone, scrubbing away every last piece of evidence that remained in the school.
Whose orders he was acting under when he did such things needed no explanation at all.
"How the hell would I remember some girl like that?!"
But now, fifteen years on,
Yoon Deok-soo, grown only uglier with age, could not even recall So-hee's name.
"Let me help you."
An entirely expected reaction, of course.
Tae-jun said coldly:
"I'll help you remember."
Resistance was useless.
Tae-jun's hand had clamped around him like a shackle.
"Khh... khaah... k-kuhk!"
The man's face flushed bloodred.
His eyeballs bulged as though they might pop from their sockets.
"Still don't remember?"
Ki Tae-jun's grip tightened.
"Uuuaaaargh...!"
And the more it did, the more the agony multiplied for Yoon Deok-soo.
If he couldn't dredge it up right now, he would be killed on the spot.
"...!"
At that moment,
a memory flashed through Yoon Deok-soo's mind.
"K-Ki So-hee...!"
At those words, the pressure in Tae-jun's grip eased slightly.
Thanks to that, Yoon Deok-soo could peer up at Tae-jun's face through bloodshot eyes.
And then he realized.
"You... how... are you...?"
Yoon Deok-soo's voice rattled as he recognized the man before him.
He had no choice. This man had died long ago.
Yet here he stood — with the very same face he'd worn back then.
"So you do remember. I can see it in your eyes."
"Spare me! I only did what the people above me told me to—!"
"You won't find peace even in death."
"Wait — waiiit...!"
Just as Tae-jun moved to carve the brand into Yoon Deok-soo's forehead—
"E-evidence! I have evidence!"
"...What?"
"Things I kept just in case!"
What separates a man from a hound is that a man is never truly loyal.
It means he always keeps the prospect of being used and discarded in the back of his mind.
Yoon Deok-soo was no different.
"..."
Tae-jun loosened the hand that had been squeezing the man's throat.
Along with a look that said: keep talking.
"Haah! Haah..."
Barely freed, Yoon Deok-soo gulped down air.
He had no idea what was happening.
A man who died fifteen years ago — how?
No. That's not what matters right now.
Whatever that thing was.
Human or ghost.
First, he had to survive.
Having made up his mind, Yoon Deok-soo spoke.
"...This is about your daughter's case, isn't it? The things those people with everything to lose back then ordered me to do — the records and the proof of all of it. I have them!"