Gangnim Herald fell silent, as if deep in thought. The grim reapers who had been trembling began whispering among themselves.
“Wasn’t Lord Woljik Chasa originally a Jangsa?”
“That’s right. That human is dead for sure now. He’ll finally realize he was just a frog in a well.”
Hearing that exchange, Noryang grabbed onto Dojin’s sleeve, his voice thick with worry.
“Human… are you truly all right…? I can fight instead. I’m going to die anyway, so it doesn’t matter if my bones break.”
“You stay stuffed in that corner over there.”
Dojin already knew that Woljik Chasa was a grim reaper who’d come from a Jangsa background. Even so, he wasn’t afraid in the slightest.
The instinct of a Jangsa.
A Jangsa instinctively senses whether their opponent is stronger or weaker than themselves. That instinct was the reason Dojin hadn’t felt even a shred of worry when he’d wrestled Yori-iki.
If I defeat the mountain dokkaebi Yori-iki, and then even beat Woljik Chasa Lee Deok-chun, who came from a Jangsa background… won’t Master finally look at me differently? He won’t be able to treat me like a child anymore.
A greedy flame flickered fiercely in his eyes.
“Deok-chun. Step back.”
At that moment, Gangnim Herald stepped forward.
“D–Do-ryeong-nim. I will face him. There’s no need for you to step in.”
“From what I see, it’s not your place to step in either.”
“But Do-ryeong-nim, something like wrestling, using the body like that… with arms as thin as bare bones, how could you possibly—”
“…Go stand in the back.”
Dojin raised one eyebrow.
“What. You can decide the fighter on your side however you want, but you’re not going to punish me for breaking the arm of the underworld’s number 1.5, right?”
“We won’t wrestle. Instead, we’ll have a duel of Taoist arts.”
“…Taoist arts?”
“Yes. You can use Taoist arts, of course?”
Dojin did know a few Taoist techniques. However, invoking Taoist arts consumed vastly more virtue than telling a minor lie, so he had mostly relied on sorcery instead.
Moreover, even without invoking his Jangsa instinct, reason had been screaming at him to avoid a Taoist duel with Gangnim Herald at all costs.
But still…
Master said my potential with Taoist arts surpasses even that of Immortals.
He couldn’t suppress the boiling competitive urge.
“H–Human. I… I will fight. You stay back.”
“Ah, seriously. You’re in the way, so shut up and get stuffed in the corner.”
Dojin grabbed Noryang by the back of the neck, tossed him into a corner, and stood face-to-face with Gangnim Herald. The expression on Gangnim Herald’s smooth face was cold as ice, yet within his gaze flickered a sliver of curiosity.
“Should I take the first move? Usually, the senior yields the opening attack to the junior.”
“For the next one minute, I will attack. Block it. If you hold out for one minute, I’ll consider it your victory.”
“Sounds good. You’ll set up a barrier so the house doesn’t get damaged, right, Gangnim Herald-nim?”
Dojin erected a curtain-like barrier. He hesitated over whether to make it soft or hard, then chose hard. Relieved at the mention of a Taoist duel, Woljik Chasa visibly relaxed and sat down beside the two grim reapers to watch.
After creating a barrier to prevent damage to the house, Gangnim Herald swept his arm through the air. Dozens of keenly honed blades materialized. They poured down onto the barrier, shattering with sharp clang! and clash! sounds as they struck the rigid surface. Yet the fragments were sharp as well, and cracks began to spread across the barrier’s surface.
This time, Dojin coated the barrier in flames. The blades melted the instant they touched it, vanishing into blackened nothingness. Gangnim Herald waved his hand again, summoning dark clouds in the living room air and calling down a torrential rain. The flames were extinguished, and rainwater seeped through the cracked gaps. Dojin froze the barrier next. Crack—crackle— the sound of ice forming echoed as a chilling aura filled the house. Noryang, Woljik Chasa, and the grim reapers exhaled white breath. As the ice spread, the water droplets leaking through the gaps froze as well, making the structure even more solid.
Gangnim Herald created a dazzlingly bright sphere and suspended it in the air. It was sunlight. The onlookers wiped sweat from their brows. Under the blistering heat, the barrier melted rapidly. Dojin, too, was drenched in sweat from head to toe. At last, he dropped to one knee.
W–What do I do now? Should I make it soft? How many seconds are left? What, only twenty seconds have passed? Ah, fuck. This feels like I’m done for. No—don’t give up. Right, rock. Make rock that’s strong against sunlight….
Just as Dojin was about to try something, Gangnim Herald summoned dozens of blades once more. They pierced through the melted barrier with ease and shot straight toward Dojin.
“……!”
At the moment Dojin’s eyes flew wide—
Shaaah— with the sound of wind sweeping through, the chilling barrage of blades stopped. Dumbfounded, Dojin stared as the blue blades transformed into white and red flower petals, drifting gently through the air.
“It’s been a while, Gangnim.”
Someone emerged from between the petals.
White robes, jet-black hair, a small frame.
“…Immortal Iri.”
Gangnim Herald flinched and staggered back a step.
Iri spoke in his usual gentle voice.
“Gangnim. The human you were facing is my disciple.”
“I apologize.”
Gangnim Herald bowed in apology, then snapped his head up.
“Then that means he is….”
“Yes. He’s a King candidate that I personally registered.”
Gangnim Herald scrutinized Dojin once more, from head to toe. His gaze was completely different from before.
Dojin brushed imaginary dust from his clothes and stood up, taking his place beside Iri.
“Master. You didn’t have to help. I would’ve won.”
“Dojin. That’s not a joke—that falls squarely under lying. Please choose your words more carefully.”
“What? I wasn’t joking at all. I was being totally serious. Honestly. You really are inflexible with rules, you know that? What would you know? I know myself best. If I say I can do it, why do rules get to decide my limits? I can do anything. My potential is limitless!”
“…All right. For now, you did well. Go rest next to Noryang.”
For some reason, that sounded uncomfortably similar to the “you’re in the way, shut up and get stuffed in the corner” he’d said to Noryang earlier.
Naturally, he didn’t go get stuffed in a corner. Bold, shameless, and utterly composed, he squared his shoulders and planted himself right beside Iri as if glued there.
“We pay our respects to the spirits of Heaven and Earth.”
“We pay our respects to the spirits of Heaven and Earth.”
Woljik Chasa and the grim reapers bowed deeply to Iri. Wia born from beasts, plants, or objects didn’t go this far even when facing someone as unfathomably exalted as Immortal Iri—but humans truly were a race obsessed with etiquette.
“I never expected to meet Immortal Iri here. Was Ha Jisuk a human connected to you, Immortal? If so, we will not collect her soul.”
“I don’t have any particular connection to her. However, you said you’d listen to whoever won the duel with Dojin, didn’t you?”
“Yes.”
“You won the Taoist duel.”
“That is correct.”
“But Dojin would’ve won a wrestling match.”
“…….”
Woljik Chasa tried to speak, but Gangnim Herald stopped him with a glance.
“So he was a Jangsa.”
“That’s right.”
After a moment of quiet contemplation, Gangnim calmly took out the underworld registry.
“He proposed a wrestling match, but I unilaterally changed it to a Taoist duel. Had we wrestled, he would have won, so it is only proper to call this a draw.”
Gangnim corrected the time written beside Jisuk’s name back to its original value.
“Once restored, the collection window has already passed. It can’t be helped. According to the fundamental laws of the underworld, Ha Jisuk’s soul will be collected when her name is entered into the registry again at a later date.”
“Thank you. As always, a wise judgment, Gangnim.”
“To be praised by Immortal Iri—this is something I should treasure and brag about later.”
Gangnim Herald folded the registry and slipped it into his sleeve.
“I’ve heard you’re investigating the new infectious disease. How is that progressing? I sent over the materials the Apothecary Divine Spirit mentioned a few days ago.”
“I haven’t received a report yet. Continue to cooperate if further requests come in.”
“Of course.”
“And how is Yama King doing?”
“As always, he’s doing quite poorly. If I tell him about today, he’ll probably suffer even more.”
“How is the First Chasa’s soul? Training well? Give his rival a little tip.”
For the first time, a crack appeared on Gangnim’s smooth face.
“That soul is immature, nothing but trouble, causing accidents everywhere like a reckless delinquent. I’ve worked in the underworld for a thousand years, and I’ve never seen a soul that shameless. But Immortal Iri’s disciple is quite shameless as well.”
“Dojin doesn’t lose to anyone when it comes to shamelessness.”
Dojin considered chiming in with a joke like “Want to have a shamelessness duel?” but decided against it. Had he spoken up, Gangnim would’ve replied, “It seems we already have a winner without needing a duel.”
The peaceful, leisurely conversation ended when it was time for Noryang to die.
“If you wish, Immortal, we can refrain from collecting Noryang’s soul as well.”
“That won’t do. You’re just trying to put me in your debt.”
“Yes. That was indeed my intention, but if you refuse, there’s nothing to be done. In that case, I’ll collect that soul personally.”
Gangnim Herald opened the registry. Noryang appeared resigned to death, but when it came right before him, he burst into sobs.
“Could I see Ha Jisuk one last time?”
“Go.”
Crying, Noryang entered Jisuk’s room. Dojin’s foot twitched, but he didn’t leave Iri’s side.
“Take your medicine properly, chew your food thoroughly, exercise diligently, and don’t cry too much……”
“I’m worried because I won’t be able to heat water for you anymore. You should drink warm water……”
“Sleep in as much as you want, travel, live long, healthy, and happy.”
“Jisuk.”
