The Thirty-Eighth Assignment — Play, or a Test ②
The moment the declaration left his lips, Gonghyo began looking Yeoni over with unhurried care. The intensity of that gaze could have belonged to dozens of men. Yeoni felt a flush of embarrassment and turned his eyes away. Gonghyo's stare, of course, clung to him with stubborn persistence. As if even that were not enough, he reached out and seized Yeoni's face in his hands.
"C-couldn't you just look with your eyes?"
"One understands more easily when one feels with all five senses. Use only the eyes, and you grasp but a fraction of a person. It is like a blind man feeling the leg of an elephant. So be still a moment."
This old man is kind of a pervert.
It did not stop at touching. A faintly twitching nose made it obvious he was sniffing. His ears perked and worked overtime, as keen as a rabbit's. At least, mercifully, the catastrophe of a tongue being stuck out never arrived. However unhinged he was, surely even he would draw the line at licking another person's skin.
…Or so Yeoni foolishly believed.
"Huk—!"
A lukewarm, damp sensation spread across his cheek. Saliva. Unmistakably. He had actually licked him. Yeoni thrashed with everything he had, but Gonghyo's grip was monstrous despite appearances, and he could not break free. He screamed internally.
It's real. This old man is a genuine pervert! Gross!
"Hmm. Truly peculiar."
Whether Yeoni squirmed or not, Gonghyo went on studying him. His expression, at least, looked infinitely serious. Even the way he flicked his tongue held no trace of play. The talk of understanding through the five senses had been entirely genuine.
An uncomfortable silence settled in. The uncomfortable party was, overwhelmingly, Yeoni. Gonghyo's face was so grave and so blank that it was impossible to tell what he was thinking. Was this simply how immortals were? The fact that he could not be predicted only sharpened the anxiety.
"As I thought, this alone is insufficient. I shall have to learn a little more."
Only after a long while did Gonghyo speak, and his tone was thick with disappointment. Yeoni wanted to protest the whole perverted performance, but the question that followed shut his mouth for him.
"How old are you this year?"
"Twenty-one."
"And what is it you do?"
"I'm a student. A college student."
"A student? Ah, yes. These days the years of study run long. Still in need of learning, and yet you have taken on the work of the Underworld…"
The questions were so simple they were almost anticlimactic. For Yeoni, who had been bracing for something grave or difficult, it was a tremendous relief. But it was far too soon to relax. Gonghyo kept firing questions, and this time they were a little more awkward.
"Have you a partner?"
"If you mean a girlfriend, yes. Her name is Dayeong. We've been childhood friends."
"A lover, then, and not a wife. Well, a minor distinction — I shall let it pass. And how far have you gone with the girl? At an age when the blood runs hot, it would be about time to enjoy the pleasures of cloud and rain…"
"Nothing like that has happened!"
It was not, at least, the serious kind of awkward.
Yeoni shouted, his face flushed scarlet. He had attained the Way! He was an immortal! And here he was asking the sort of question one expected from a teenager. Yeoni's image of immortals plunged through the floor and kept going into the basement. He challenged Gonghyo in a tone of genuine shock.
"You said you wanted to learn about me. What kind of questions are those? My face is burning up."
"Shyer than you look, aren't you, lad. I even softened it to 'the pleasures of cloud and rain,' and still you react so. Ah! If you dislike the euphemism, shall I say 'mixing flesh' instead?"
"S-stop! Please stop! If the next question is weird too, I'm exercising my right to remain silent!"
Yeoni laid down the threat with all the firmness he could muster. The question had been so scorching he had almost forgotten the rather serious problem of having been kidnapped. An immortal who specialized in dirty talk? He was starting to wonder what kind of place Sukhavati even was. If they were in the business of managing perverts like this, perhaps that realm was more of a dumpster fire than he had imagined.
"Such a fuss over nothing. This body was being quite serious."
"Is sharing dirty talk at a first meeting what you call being serious?"
"To sentient beings who have not yet attained liberation and the Way, carnal desire and romantic longing weigh heavier than one might think. Do they not spend their whole lives in torment, unable to forget the body, unable to forget the heart? Hear of that side of you, and I shall come to know you in fine detail as well."
It was a reasonably plausible explanation. From Yeoni's perspective, however, it was nonsense — nothing more and nothing less. Who investigated a person from that angle? He was more wary of Gonghyo now, in this conversation, than he had been over the kidnapping itself.
Show weakness, and you get taken advantage of.
A visceral fear snapped his mind into sharp focus.
"Please stop with the weird comments. Do you have any other questions?"
"And if I do, will you answer?"
"I'll hear them first."
He was not going along as meekly as before. Yeoni glared, steeling his resolve. Gonghyo looked at him and smiled with the fondness of a parent watching a child. Then he moved on to the next question.
"Very well. You want a serious question, so this body shall treat the matter seriously. Granting what is desired is the way of an immortal."
Yeoni's breath caught in his throat. The fondness had vanished from Gonghyo's face. In its place was a coldness that made the eyes ache to look at, as if a sheet of ice had been pressed against his skin. The voice that followed was equally hard.
"I cannot understand it. Born of the mortal realm, why have you taken upon yourself the heavy work of the Underworld?"
"Th-that's…"
His throat locked shut. He needed to speak, but Gonghyo overwhelmed him with nothing more than a look. It made him abandon the irreverent thoughts he had been entertaining only moments ago. This was the true face of an immortal.
"Oh my, oh my. You look startled. There is no need to answer in haste. This body can wait as long as it takes. Time is what an immortal has in abundance."
Infinitely light
and infinitely heavy.
He was a being no ordinary person could hope to fathom.
It was a declaration in which curiosity and coldness were exquisitely blended. Having finished speaking, he left the dwelling as if to prove the words were no empty threat. Left alone, Yeoni was at a loss. No senior to help him, no Dayeong or family to stand with him — he had nothing.
What do I do about this?
In a certain sense, it was the greatest crisis yet.
And elsewhere, another crisis was unfolding.
"This is a matter even we in Sukhavati know nothing about. I already explained as much."
Hongbaek, a scribe of Sukhavati, insisted. Cold sweat was already running down his back. The distinguished guest who had come to see him did not so much as twitch an eyebrow. His attitude made it perfectly clear he did not believe a word. Hongbaek chewed Immortal Gonghyo out with everything he had. Why on earth had that man gone and done something like this?
"Saying you do not know is not the end of it. However non-interventionist Sukhavati may be, acts that overstep the bounds must be restrained. You allowed things to come to this, so you must bear the responsibility."
The guest who had come to see Hongbaek — Do Sangcheol, former Magistrate of Viper Hell — glared. A standing just shy of the Ten Kings themselves was no laughing matter. A heavy, cold aura filled the reception room. The attendants had long since fled. Hongbaek clenched his teeth against the overwhelming pressure.
Damn it. Why did the Do family get involved in this?
It made no sense. The Do family was a renowned Underworld house, famous for being taciturn and grave. In other words, they were not the sort to make this kind of racket. And yet the family head himself had come in person. Naturally, Sukhavati had been thrown into an uproar.
"That Underworld business has been encroached upon is a matter of deep regret for us as well. The Jade Emperor himself is regarding this incident with the utmost gravity, and we shall seek an amicable resolution as swiftly as possible."
Hongbaek tried his best to hedge. The fact that Sangcheol had brought a full complement of bodyguards made his will unmistakable: if things did not go his way, he would tear the place apart. Sangcheol snorted inwardly.
"An amicable resolution as swiftly as possible — and how, exactly, do you propose to resolve it?"
"That is…"
"Is it not a matter of common knowledge that Sukhavati cannot properly manage its immortals? This is hardly the first time. You must present a concrete method, not mere words."
Damn it! He came here meaning business?
The voice carried a scathing mockery, and the expression behind it held cold reason and unshakable insight. The steel of Viper Hell was every bit as terrifying as advertised. The warriors lined up behind him like a folding screen only added to the effect. Hongbaek managed his expression as best he could and answered.
"I fully understand your concern. We are in a difficult position on our end as well."
"In a difficult position, you say? Excellent. Then you might consider coercive measures against that immortal. Even without going as high as the Jade Emperor, if you conveyed an order from one of the kings under him, even an immortal would have no choice."
"It is not so simple a matter as that, is it. Ha. Ha. Ha."
His stomach burned. At this rate they were going to demand an answer right here and now. But he did not have the authority to make such a promise… Just as he was wrestling with this, a relief pitcher appeared from behind.
"My friend. Have you come all this way just to sit there looking so stiff?"
"Oh-ho. So you've arrived."
He was a tall, middle-aged man in silver scale armor. Seeing him, Sangcheol's expression eased, just slightly. One of the few acquaintances he had here in Sukhavati. He greeted the man in a considerably softer tone.
"It's been a long time. You seem to be doing well, Yeosong."
"I would have been, if you hadn't barged in without a word."
The man called Yeosong approached Sangcheol. Sangcheol spread his arms and embraced him. Silver and black meeting made for a curious sight. Having tasted the joy of reunion, Yeosong went over to Hongbaek and patted him on the back.
"You've had a hard time dealing with this inflexible friend of mine. I'll take it from here — you may go."
"Thank you, Divine General."
Hongbaek bowed at a ninety-degree angle and left. His hurried steps looked exactly like a retreat. Sangcheol felt a slight pang of conscience. Had he pushed too hard?
"The matter was urgent, so I ended up committing a discourtesy. Hahaha!"
"How many beings could withstand your presence? You're from a different jurisdiction — you ought to show some consideration. Really now, don't put on the same airs you did in your active days. The young ones watching get frightened."
Yeosong clicked his tongue. At the same time, he wondered why his friend was acting this way.
This kind of successive visit and pressure was, strictly speaking, a show of force. Given the relationship between the Underworld and Sukhavati, it was something that ought to be restrained. A veteran who had guarded the Underworld for over a thousand years would surely know that. From the perspective of someone who did not know the details of this incident, Sangcheol's extraordinary behavior was simply bewildering.
"It's an extremely urgent matter. Immortal pranks are nothing new, are they? Immortal Gonghyo in particular was already like this back in my younger days. We need to come on strong this time and get it resolved."
"That doesn't seem to be the whole of it. Be honest with me. The one kidnapped by Immortal Gonghyo… what was the name again?"
"Yeoni. Seo Yeon-ui."
"That's right! Is there some connection between you and that fellow? I've never seen you this impatient."
Sangcheol frowned at being called impatient. It was half true. More precisely, it was not he who was in a hurry — it was his daughter. He answered as if talking to himself.
"It's a favor my daughter asked of me. Seo Yeon-ui is the junior she treasures most."
"A junior? I heard he was a mortal."
"You're behind on the news. He was hired by the post office as a temporary worker last year."
Only then did Yeosong remember who Yeoni was. He nodded, then suddenly felt something odd. If his daughter treasured the boy, why did Sangcheol look so miserable? Then something clicked. Interest bloomed across his tenacious face.
"So that's the kind of fellow he is. No wonder Yuhwa would invest in him. He's been accumulating virtue since his mortal days, so the odds of him being selected as a Grim Reaper later on are high."
"A future talent, in other words. So of course she'd be worried."
"So you're already worrying? Afraid she'll snatch him away?"
His hidden intentions having been needled, Sangcheol flinched. Then he glared at his friend with a deliberately fierce expression and cut him off with firm finality.
"What nonsense. If you're going to talk rubbish, go prepare a plan instead. This is a matter even the Bodhisattva is concerned about. Sukhavati must not look the other way this time!"
Wasn't there a saying about the one who farted getting angry?
He seemed to be reenacting that proverb with his whole body.