This Is Not a Threat (2)

'Did those fakes... threaten the Master?'

Shin Jang-yul suppressed the rising tide of displeasure. How dare they threaten him.

"I'm not sure if they're fake or real yet, but I have to meet a shaman after this. I was just curious how you dealt with the fake shamans, Mr. Shin. Was that rude of me to ask?"

Noel's response immediately relieved Jang-yul. It didn't seem like a problem had arisen.

"We are currently taking legal action."

He paused, hesitating to continue. Was it appropriate to go into detail?

"I know you're a big hand in the private lending industry, Mr. Jang-yul. Please, speak freely."

"My apologies. I wasn't trying to hide it, but... it's not exactly a well-regarded profession, so I hesitated."

"I understand. But it's an officially registered lending business, isn't it?"

"That is correct. It might sound like an excuse, but we strictly adhere to legal interest rates and have never committed any illegal acts. The business I run is entirely different from those illicit loan sharks."

He looked more flustered than Noel had ever seen him.

Although there was a clear line between illegal loan sharks and a registered lending business approved by the government and local municipalities, the negative stigma was hard to shake. To the general public, they all seemed like the same breed of vultures.

"It's fine, so please continue," Noel urged, brushing the matter aside. Right now, he just wanted answers.

Jang-yul stole a glance at Noel and smiled softly. What an incredibly magnanimous heart. He was truly a master.

"In any business, what people fear most is a tax audit. Fake shamans usually have incredibly dirty hands. They sell useless talismans, targeting people they deem easy marks and coercing them into buying them for exorbitant prices. Of course, their exorcisms and various rituals are also riddled with issues."

"That's fraud, isn't it?"

"Indeed. So, I demanded receipts for all the materials used in their rituals, cross-referenced the credentials and wages of the assistants who participated, and conducted a thorough investigation. Since there was a massive discrepancy between the actual costs incurred and the amount I was charged, I have reported them to various government agencies and am preparing lawsuits."

He spoke in a casual tone, but every detail revealed a relentless determination to utterly ruin them. Jang-yul possessed the ultimate weapon to torment a fake shaman—or several of them: wealth.

'How terrifying...' Noel tried his best to keep a straight face. It was clear that Jang-yul was a far more dangerous man than he had initially thought.

"A few of them have contacted me offering to refund the money, but I plan to demand substantial punitive damages on top of it. If they pay, great. If not, I lose nothing by dragging them through the mud. Does that answer your question?"

"More than enough. It also made me realize that this is definitely not a method I can use."

Jang-yul let out a soft chuckle at Noel's reply.

"You can use it, Master. As I've said, I owe you a debt of gratitude that I cannot repay in a lifetime. I will handle it on your behalf. Just say the word, anytime."

It was a loyal offer, but Noel couldn't let his guard down completely. 'That man is definitely a double-edged sword.' He could be an invaluable ally, but the moment their relationship soured, he would be the first to sink his teeth into Noel's throat.

—Noel. Do not guard your heart so fiercely.

Asin placed a hand on Noel's shoulder, patting it gently. It was only natural to be wary of unprompted kindness.

—Destiny is a grand, flowing river. Currently, that man has entered the stream of your fate. You may put your mind at ease for now.

'Did she see something?' The Mountain God, the swallow deity Jebi, and even Asin had all mentioned being able to glimpse the future. Perhaps she had seen one of the many branching paths of fate. Reassured by Asin's counsel, Noel responded with a smile.

"Just hearing you say that is incredibly reassuring."

"I assure you, they are not empty words. You know my situation, Master."

—Ah! A total mess of a family!

Kkamangi chimed in energetically, excited to finally understand a reference.

'Spot on,' Noel agreed inwardly.

"Things on my father's side are slowly being wrapped up, though my half-siblings will undoubtedly try to stab me in the back in some other way. Still, securing my father was the decisive move. It allows me to see who is truly wearing a mask."

Jang-yul smiled. It was a chilling smile, but Noel didn't care. It had nothing to do with him anyway. The curse had been lifted, and the corrupt shaman who received the divine punishment had lost both his wealth and his spiritual power. Just as the deity he once served had declared, he was destined to suffer for the rest of his life.

'But where do they even learn things like that?' Noel suddenly wondered. While his own abilities were innate, awakened naturally from birth, the shamans of this world followed an entirely different path.

They underwent a ritual called Divine Descent—the descent of the gods. In essence, they were chosen by a deity. He had heard that it was impossible to refuse. Though one could temporarily delay it by having a blood relative accept the spirit instead, the burden would eventually return to the intended vessel.

During the initiation, an initiation ritual was performed, and the spiritual mentor who presided over it was called a "godmother." 'So, do they learn dark magic from their godmothers?' He still couldn't comprehend why anyone would use such inefficient sorcery—spells that barely had any effect yet rebounded to inflict eighty to ninety percent of the damage back onto the caster.

After handing over the wood for the prayer beads, Noel headed to the shop of the client who was under the Mountain God's protection. He had insisted on taking a taxi, but Jang-yul had insisted on driving him all the way there.

"Master," Jang-yul called out as Noel stepped out of the car. "Yes?"

"Please call me whenever you need anything. I've suffered a lot from these scammers recently, so adding one more to the list is no trouble at all. Don't worry about it."

Jang-yul smiled warmly. He was already systematically dismantling all the fraudsters anyway; adding one more wouldn't change a thing. It would just mean a few more sheets of paperwork on his desk.

"Thank you, truly."

When Noel smiled, Jang-yul bowed respectfully before getting back into his car. If only he had more time, he would have loved to assist the Master personally. Jang-yul glanced up at the sign. Heavenly Maiden Bodhisattva. It was a common enough name for a shaman's shrine. Committing it to memory, he drove away.

Noel watched Jang-yul's car disappear into the distance before turning to Asin. "I thought you said deities don't usually linger by a shaman's side?"

—It is not an absolute rule. Some choose to remain close and watch over them. However, as I have mentioned before, even shamans cannot perceive spirits and deities with perfect clarity. You are exceptionally unique, Noel, so you must not assume your sight is the norm.

'In my old world, this was just the bare minimum.' It felt strange to be called extraordinary by every divine spirit he met when he was only doing what came naturally. Was his original world simply that brutal, or was this world exceptionally peaceful? 'Well, it's definitely peaceful.' Noel smiled faintly and walked inside.

He took the elevator and got off on the second floor. The building was older than he had expected. As he approached the entrance, a strange mixture of a burning scent and an unfamiliar aroma wafted into his nose.

'What is this...?' It was a sensory shock. First, the sharp scent of a smoldering fire hit him, followed closely by a peculiar odor reminiscent of food right before it burned. It was a deeply unsettling smell.

He looked around for Kkamangi, only to find the little spirit had already scurried down the stairs and out of sight. —I'm staying here. I'm not going in there! Kkamangi declared ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠resolutely.

"Fine, wait there then. Asin, what is this smell...?" Noel whispered.

Asin chuckled softly. —It is the scent of incense. It seems they are burning a fine blend.

'Ah... so this is incense.' He possessed the conceptual knowledge of incense, but Do Yeong-hyeon's body had no sensory memory of it. By the time Yeong-hyeon would have encountered such smells, he had already been confined to a hospital bed.

Noel knocked and stepped inside. The layout resembled a residential apartment, and several people were already waiting in what looked like the living room.

"Hello. Do you have an appointment?" A woman—it was unclear whether she was an employee or a family member—approached him. Noel offered a bright smile. "I don't have an appointment, but I do have some business here."

"I'm sorry, but without an appointment..."

"I hear the Bodhisattva here is a very avid social media user," Noel murmured, lowering his voice as he utilized the information Kkamangi had gathered.

'It was quite a scheme.' Once they got the name of a client who booked an appointment, the dedicated social media team dug up their personal information. The shaman then used those details to put on a performance, pretending to pierce through their secrets with divine foresight.

Kkamangi's revelations hadn't stopped there. It seemed they utilized every trick money could buy. Just as Noel was wondering why anyone would go to such lengths, Asin had provided the explanation.

Judging by Asin's description of a "low-grade spirit," it wasn't a malevolent evil spirit, but rather a petty, troublesome ghost. 'Either way, it's a stroke of terrible luck.' Shaking off his thoughts, Noel looked at the flustered employee and tossed out a casual question.

"So, what would you like to do?"

"P-please wait just a moment."

"Of course. I can wait a bit." Noel maintained his easygoing smile.

'Did she implant something in her eyes?' Noel noticed something unnatural about the shaman's eyes the moment he saw her.

—I sense a foreign power lingering there.

At Asin's words, Noel felt an itch to speak up, but that wasn't his main focus today.

"Hello," the shaman greeted him, her voice sharp. Noel returned the greeting without much of a reaction. She seemed displeased by his nonchalance, but Noel's attention was already drifting to the spirit lurking behind her. The way it hovered around her was decidedly bizarre.

"By the way, why haven't you exorcised that petty ghost lingering around you? Should I get rid of it for you?"

—How dare you! Do you have any idea who I—

The spirit started to screech, only to hastily clamp its hands over its mouth. A crushing pressure descended upon the room.

—Continue speaking.

As Asin glared at it, the spirit couldn't even meet her eyes. It bowed its head and apologized frantically. —I... I am deeply sorry.

—Are you the one clinging to this mortal?

At Asin's question, the spirit swallowed hard. It looked incredibly distressed, but Asin's piercing gaze remained locked onto it. —...Yes.

Even though the spirit's reply was barely a whisper, Noel casually turned to the shaman. "Ah, is that your friend?"

"...Are you a shaman?"

At her question, Noel grinned broadly, as if she had just won a prize. "Bingo."

"What business do you have here that warrants... such talk?"

The shaman asked, her mind racing. She couldn't fathom why he had come. She had never seen his face before. It was a face that was hard to forget, especially with his visible injuries, but above all, he was incredibly young.

'He's a shaman I've never heard of.' If there was one thing she prided herself on, it was her extensive network in the spiritual community. She had no idea where this kid had crawled out from, but she needed to figure out what he wanted. 'Is it money after all...?' She continued to analyze the situation.

"Why can't you bring yourself to say that petty ghost is your deity? Are you ashamed of serving a low-grade spirit? Or are you more embarrassed about hiring a team to dig through your clients' social media so you can pretend to be clairvoyant?"

Hit right where it hurt, the shaman bit her lip, trembling with rage. The spirit tried to glare at Noel, but under Asin's cold gaze, it quickly cast its eyes back to the floor.

"You're curious why I'm here, aren't you? And you probably can't figure it out no matter how much you think about it."

The shaman remained cautious, determined not to fall into his conversational traps. As long as his motives were unclear, speaking was a liability.

"Before we get to that, shall we have a quick chat?"

Noel sat down and patted the floor. She sat down opposite him, though her anxious expression did not fade. "...What kind of chat?"

"Personally, I think you're quite amazing, Ms. Seo Hae-in."

And indeed, she was. Digging through social media was a chore in itself, and weaving those details seamlessly into a reading was no easy feat. Even with a low-grade spirit as her supposed deity, the fact that her business was thriving was proof of her extraordinary business acumen, if nothing else.

"Do you have a wide network in this industry?" Noel asked, already knowing the answer. Sometimes, playing dumb was the best approach. No matter how she had managed it, Hae-in's connections were undeniably vast.

"Why... are you asking that?" Hae-in asked, her tone guarded.

"Why else? Because I need to know."

"Are you doing this because you need money?"

"If I wanted money, I would have handled this with a text or a phone call. Besides, money should be earned honorably. I'm not the type to extort people."

"Then what on earth is your reason for doing this?"

"I'm new to this industry, so it's always good to have connections. That's far more valuable ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠than money, don't you think?" Noel beamed, leaving Hae-in utterly bewildered.

"...Weren't you here to threaten me?"

"I don't threaten people like that," Noel replied, his smile never wavering.