The Thirty-Second Assignment: Crossroads ⑥
"I-I made it."
Yeoni staggered on his feet. A moment more of lost composure and he would have landed square on his backside — that was how tightly he'd been wound, bracing against Gangnim's fury. Yuhwa caught his arm from the side.
"You've got no guts, so what the hell were you doing mouthing off like that? I was shaking just watching you."
"He wouldn't have backed down if I hadn't. Whew! I can finally breathe."
"You didn't have to do all that. We would've driven him off ourselves..."
"That's right, that's right!"
Yuhwa and the other Grim Reapers piled on with their complaints. From not having seen him in so long, to the sting of going untrusted as his seniors — they couldn't quite let it go. The way they all stuck out their lower lips was so magnificently childish that Yeoni couldn't hold back a laugh.
"Hahaha! You don't have to make faces like that. Come on, you're Grim Reapers — where's your dignity?"
"Dignity, my ass. You know how awful it feels when your junior doesn't trust you? It's the worst. The absolute worst."
They were playing it for laughs, but the regret and the hurt underneath were genuine. The foundation of any senior-junior bond was trust. Without that passing both ways, what right did they have to call themselves seniors, or him their junior? Even in this moment of joy, they were still anxiously watching for any sign that Yeoni might pull away.
Fortunately, it never came to that.
"I haven't completely made up my mind yet. I still haven't gotten an answer from Simyeong hyung, either. That part still sits wrong with me, so I want a clear answer."
"Yeoni."
"Even so, it's not like you seniors hid things because you wanted to deceive me. I don't want to talk about that anymore. I'm sorry for everything until now."
He named what needed naming, and he closed the matter just as cleanly. Yeoni moved through beginnings and endings without a shred of hesitation. It would have been perfect if not for that faintly sheepish laugh of his. But for Yuhwa, the fact that he had come back was enough. She threw both arms around him and pulled him in.
"That's enough, that's enough. What kind of Grim Reaper holds a grudge over something like that? Just talk it out with Simyeong-seonbae and we'll be fine."
"Y-Yuhwa noona!"
Yeoni squirmed in her arms. But this was their first warm reunion in far too long, and there was no chance she was letting go. She tucked him against her and let out a long sigh of relief. Every anxious moment she had endured felt, at last, repaid.
"Do you have any idea how tense I was, thinking you'd just walk away for good? It's not like I only worry about you once in a while... my lifespan's shrinking. Shrinking, I tell you."
"You were that worried?"
"Of course I was! What kind of question is that?"
Her grumbling voice trembled. There was a fragility in that tremor that didn't belong to a Grim Reaper — and that was how you knew how deeply she had worried. Yeoni gave up struggling and went still. The other Grim Reapers looked on, quietly pleased, as the two of them savored a reunion long overdue.
Grrrrgle!
"Ah."
Out of nowhere, a rumble of hunger. The source: Yeoni's stomach. And of course it was right at lunchtime. Yuhwa and the Grim Reapers fought desperately to keep from laughing. Yeoni's face flushed scarlet with embarrassment.
"Ahem, ahem, ahem! I should probably eat lunch before I head home."
"Yeah, you should. Actually — as an apology for keeping things from you, how about I treat you to lunch?"
Yuhwa said it as if she were doing him a favor. She'd brought plenty of mortal-realm cash anyway, and she wanted to buy him something good. Yeoni set his embarrassment aside, his eyes lighting up.
"Sub-Team Leader, us too!"
"We're eating with you!"
They weren't about to sit this one out. The other Grim Reapers chimed in as one, cheering. If they didn't fleece their senior now, when would they ever? Faced with the sudden threat of a cleaned-out wallet, Yuhwa scrambled to put out the fire. Cold sweat ran down her back.
"Hey, hey. I was only going to treat Yeoni."
"Booo~ We're your juniors too!"
"That's not fair!"
The juniors laid into Yuhwa in unison. She tried appealing to Yeoni for help, but that warm reunion from a moment ago was no use at all. He mischievously urged her to give in.
"Come on, let's all eat together. Everyone else was worried sick about me too, right?"
"Hey, if you pile on too, my wallet's going to..."
"Aww, it's just this once."
Yeoni said it with a teasing look. That quiet, insistent nudge was more pressure than any jeering. When he coaxed her like that, it was hard not to fold. Yuhwa had no choice but to raise the white flag. The youngest wanted it — what else could she do? The thickness of her wallet was a problem for later.
"Fine, fine. Let's go, kids. Today's on me."
The distance between them had closed. Spending a little money was nothing.
The next day, the last remaining question — the one about the order of the Underworld — was finally answered. Simyeong had come back with a reply faster than expected. But it wasn't necessarily good news. What he told them was nothing short of staggering.
"So... the Bodhisattva is absorbing the backlash herself?"
"That's right. Now I understand why the Ten Kings and the Director kept it hidden. When I first found out, I was just as shocked as you are."
Simyeong murmured it with his face in his hands. The shock hadn't faded; his voice was heavy. Yeoni couldn't help but understand exactly how he felt.
The fact that there was a real problem with the cosmic order was startling enough. But the news that the Bodhisattva was shouldering it all by herself went beyond surprise — it bordered on awe. Was this the kind of sacrifice you had to accept, just because you sat at the top?
"I figured they had some kind of countermeasure. I never imagined it would be something like this."
"I know. It seems the Bodhisattva was prepared for this from the very beginning. And the Ten Kings must have known, too, when they agreed to found the Post Office."
"I can't believe it."
At the very least, Yeoni knew he could never do the same.
"Believe it or not, it's the truth. Didn't I even swear an oath with you on the Samdo River? I heard this from the Bodhisattva herself, so it's certain."
"Mm."
They fell silent for a moment. Their shoulders felt inexplicably heavy. They had thought this had nothing to do with sacrifice — and yet the founder herself was bearing an enormous burden. After a few minutes, Simyeong continued in a troubled voice.
"Below the Director, you and I are the first to know. Yuhwa, Changmo, and everyone under them still don't. They think it's just... appropriate measures being taken."
"When are you going to tell them?"
"Not yet. Keep it from them for a while."
It was a truth that would shock everyone if it spread. For now, as few people as possible should know. Simyeong, fully aware of how it would sit with his conscience, issued Yeoni a gag order. Yeoni looked at him, his face full of worry.
"Is that really okay? I found out late and it tore me up this badly. I don't think Yuhwa noona and the others would be any different. Wouldn't it be better to just tell them now?"
"For you it was a few months' worth. For us, it's seventy years. If we dump it on them all at once, we won't be able to handle the fallout. I'm not saying we'll never tell them. The Director and I will find a way to break it to them gently. Until then, I need you to stay quiet. I'm asking you."
Yeoni's expression remained uneasy. Ugh. This whole disaster had started because facts were hidden — and now he was being asked to take part in hiding something else. Was that really the right thing to do? But the matter was far too grave. He sensed, instinctively, that he couldn't cling to conscience alone.
"It's strange. I was the one digging up hidden truths, and now I'm the one keeping a secret."
"What can you do? That's life. Let's just be grateful it won't stay hidden forever."
Simyeong wasn't at ease either. The knowledge that it would come out someday was the only consolation. Both of them had to sit with the bitter taste in their mouths. Lately, nothing seemed to go the way they wanted.
"That's enough of the grim talk. I heard Yuhwa treated everyone to a big lunch yesterday?"
They couldn't stay gloomy forever, so Simyeong changed the subject. He smiled as he brought up yesterday's meal. Yeoni remembered it and smiled the same way. That lunch had been the best, in more ways than one.
"Thanks to Yuhwa noona, I ate a ton. She looked like she was about to cry when the bill came."
"I heard the gist. The others made even more of a fuss than you did, didn't they? Those kids... if they'd just asked, I would have treated them myself."
"Hahahaha..."
"If the mood was good, that's what matters. Shake it off, and let's keep looking out for each other. If you're curious about anything, ask me anytime. I won't hide things from you anymore."
Simyeong held out his hand, open and waiting. Yeoni shook it, his face considerably brighter. Ksitigarbha's sacrifice still weighed on him, but aside from that, things had wrapped up reasonably well this time too. They shook firmly, a promise for the days ahead.
Didn't the ground grow firmer after the rain?
"I'll be counting on you too, Simyeong hyung."
"Of course, our youngest."
Being able to call each other that easily again — it was a genuine relief.
At the same time, Hyoseong set the letter down on the desk. The edges of the stationery had already gone ragged. He'd read the same words over and over. What the letter contained — no, the letter itself — had become something precious beyond measure.
"Telling me this late... what am I supposed to do with that? You idiot."
The first thing he let out was closer to a child's complaint than anything else. Even while his father was alive, he had never made a sound this weak... and only now, so long after, did the ice around his heart begin to melt. Joy, sorrow, anger, and peace all mixed together on his face.
"Oppa."
Hyoyeon, sitting beside him, stroked his shoulder. Hyoseong smiled at his younger sister and took her hand in his. Hands that had been cold and hard from a full day of work were, in this moment, warm and soft.
"It's okay. You don't have to worry."
An unexpected gift from someone he didn't know.
"I'm really okay."
It made him forget a pain he had carried for a very long time.
While joy, relief, and peace flowed through a place of light...
"That was our trump card. I never thought it would miss like this."
"I underestimated him. I never expected him to have such a mind of his own."
On the rebels' side, it might as well have been a house of mourning.
Gangnim had failed.
And that meant the entire Rebel Faction had suffered a crushing defeat. They were already in a bad spot — most of those who'd broken out had been captured — and now, with Gangnim's failure piled on top, morale had plummeted straight down. Even Suchan's face had gone deathly pale.
"What will you do, sir?"
"I told you. There is one more method. It's risky, but we no longer have the luxury of being picky. We have to produce results, one way or another."
Gangnim answered through clenched teeth. He had no intention of giving up. The last card left to him — the one he'd been reluctant to play because of the danger — he was going to use even that. And for that, a great deal of preparation would be needed.
"Suchan. Go to him at once. Relay my plan and request his cooperation."
"Me, sir?"
"I should go myself, by rights... but I failed, so I have to settle the others down. Besides me, you're the only one who can talk to him. No one else will do. I'm counting on you."
Gangnim gripped Suchan and spoke with desperate urgency. The hand on his shoulder was trembling. It was a tremor Suchan had never felt from him before. His senior, always so unshakable and proud, was rattled by a great failure. For his sake, if nothing else, Suchan steeled himself.
"Understood. The place where he lives is..."
"Mount Mani. The mountain on Ganghwa Island. Mortals visit it often, so be careful. If you're discovered and the Underworld's attention is drawn, it's over."
"I will do my utmost, but I may not be able to persuade him. You should consider the possibility of refusal."
He didn't say he would succeed. Gangnim had failed — there was no law that said Suchan wouldn't. Both of them took the present situation with due weight. They were at the edge of a cliff. There was nowhere safe to fall back to.
"I know. But we have to try. We can't just sit here and take it."
"You're right, sir. Then I'll be on my way. I'll bring back the best result I can."
Suchan bowed and left the room. Through the gap in the open door, the murmur of voices outside drifted in. Every word was steeped in worry for the future. The crisis was not imagined. It was real.
All right. Let's see how this goes. That damn little brat.
If they didn't want to be smashed to pieces, they would have to coil in on themselves for a while.
For the sake of a single, decisive reversal later on.