Immortals vs. Grim Reapers - chapter 37
Chapter 37. The Shaman King (2)
“Deoksugung… Palace.”
Ju Gangrim and Yu Wolryeong climbed a nearby abandoned building to survey their target location.
The dilapidated structure, long neglected and without electricity, exuded a desolate atmosphere.
“I’ve heard the Prince of Gangreung regularly changes his base. For reasons unknown, he seems to be moving between palaces.”
“Could he be some pervert who wants to feel like a king?”
“That’s possible. After all, turning people into zombies to use them and trying to resurrect a fallen dynasty isn’t exactly something a sane person would do.”
Ju Gangrim gave up trying to understand the Prince of Gangreung’s thinking, but Yu Wolryeong frowned, unable to dismiss it lightly.
“Why did it have to be a palace?”
“Huh? Is there something… like a seal or binding?”
“No, it’s not that. We can’t use high-powered weapons inside the palace.”
Yu Wolryeong continued, looking genuinely troubled.
“There are many cultural heritage items in Deoksugung that couldn’t be moved. It would be disastrous if they were damaged by reckless gunfire. It’s a shame we can’t use these firearms we’ve been lent for free.”
Ju Gangrim briefly prepared to laugh, thinking Yu Wolryeong might be joking. But her expression was serious.
“Are you serious?”
“Immortal hunting can be done anytime, anywhere, but damaged cultural heritage can’t be restored.”
Yu Wolryeong spoke gravely.
“And Ju Gangrim keeps forgetting, but we beings of the afterlife are civil servants. Especially with palace property, we need to respect authority. This is more important than Ju Gangrim realizes.”
“It’s not just a simple procedure?”
“All ghosts in Korea are under the king’s rule.”
Ju Gangrim suddenly recalled that the Prince of Gangreung had tried to embody the souls from Jongmyo Shrine.
He wasn’t sure if it had succeeded, but he wondered if it was related to what Yu Wolryeong was saying now.
“In the old days, even ghosts obeyed the august national laws. Even a death messenger can’t act carelessly in this regard.”
“Come on, why are there so many restrictions?”
“Many restrictions are created because of many stories behind them.”
Hearing Yu Wolryeong speak so earnestly, Ju Gangrim thought this might be more complicated than he’d anticipated.
Perhaps the beings of the afterlife were more sensitive to old things.
‘Surely he didn’t choose this place as his base with this in mind?’
He began to understand why Yeomna kept trying to draw him in by breaking procedures.
With so many restrictions binding an official death messenger like Yu Wolryeong, they had no choice but to bring in Ju Gangrim.
‘In other words, I need to act wisely on my own here.’
“It would be best to sneak in quietly, eliminate just the Prince of Gangreung, and get out. I’ll contact Ttaekachi now.”
Ju Gangrim clicked his tongue as if he had no choice, and discreetly packed a bag.
Yu Wolryeong either didn’t notice or pretended not to, making no comment.
Ju Gangrim tried to contact Ttaekachi through his spirit phone. But soon after, his expression gradually soured.
“Ttaekachi isn’t answering.”
***
Ju Gangrim and Yu Wolryeong stealthily scaled the walls of Deoksugung Palace.
Yu Wolryeong whispered as she followed behind Ju Gangrim.
“Is there a chance Ttaekachi has already betrayed us?”
Ju Gangrim had considered that possibility. In fact, he’d estimated the chances at about fifty-fifty.
But he didn’t think that was necessarily bad.
From the start, Ju Gangrim had been burning down all the Gangreung faction’s hideouts to draw the Prince of Gangreung and his immortals out of the shadows.
To hunt, one must first encounter the prey.
Setting a trap means they’re giving their all too. The Prince of Gangreung might come out as well.
And if he doesn’t? Ju Gangrim would smash that trap too, as he always did.
Ttaekachi wouldn’t get a second chance.
One way or another, the Prince of Gangreung would have to face Ju Gangrim eventually. The only difference was whether he’d appear after his organization was torn apart, or whether his organization would be torn apart after he appeared.
Nevertheless, Ju Gangrim was convinced that Ttaekachi hadn’t betrayed them.
“If he had, he wouldn’t have cut contact. He’d have lured us in to trap us.”
Of course, certainty was premature. That’s why they were sneaking in stealthily. Confirming whether there was an ambush was the priority.
“The security state seems normal so far…”
They occasionally spotted patrolling gang members or ghouls, but there didn’t seem to be any particular tension in the air.
Being a palace, Deoksugung itself acted as a wall blocking zombies. The main gate had been closed from the moment the North Han Mountain Gate opened, so it seemed no zombies had entered the buildings.
“Where were you supposed to meet Ttaekachi?”
“We were to meet Ttaekachi near the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, and he was to lure the Prince of Gangreung to the pond east of Hamnyeongjeon Hall. There are fewer guards on that side.”
“East and west then. Given the urgency, we should split up. Which way do you want to go?”
“I’ll head towards the Modern Art Museum. If anything happens, contact me through the spirit phone.”
Yu Wolryeong nodded.
Ju Gangrim had planned to go to the Modern Art Museum regardless of whether he could contact Ttaekachi or not. It was the most likely place to find the Prince of Gangreung’s name hidden.
Yu Wolryeong leapt silently over building roofs and kicked off walls, bounding towards Hamnyeongjeon Hall.
While Ju Gangrim lacked Yu Wolryeong’s skills, he was still stealthy enough not to be detected by mere ghouls. He moved silently through the shadows towards the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art.
‘The main entrance is guarded by ghouls, as expected.’
It’s better to have inflexible ghouls guard important places rather than humans who can easily become lazy.
But Ju Gangrim was beyond the realm of ordinary humans. He scanned his surroundings, found a suitable spot, and instantly kicked off the wall.
Tap, tap!
While he couldn’t run up walls silently like Yu Wolryeong, he managed to grab the second-floor railing with just one running jump.
Ju Gangrim had already leapt to a second-floor height when dealing with Ttaekachi, but now the ceiling was higher, almost reaching a third floor.
Only the tips of two finger joints caught the railing, but it was enough to pull his body up over it.
‘These enhanced abilities are quite useful.’
Ju Gangrim quietly opened a window and climbed over the railing. As he entered, a strong scent of paper hit his nostrils.
Ju Gangrim summoned some will-o’-wisps and looked around. It was an office filled with stacks of books.
His expression turned peculiar as he examined the book titles.
‘…Should I call this lucky?’
They were genealogy collections.
‘Won Gyun said the Prince of Gangreung appeared with Emperor Gojong’s spirit tablet.’
It could be because Gojong was the last king of Joseon, but his wasn’t the last spirit tablet placed in Jongmyo Shrine.
Ju Gangrim could guess the reason. The Prince of Gangreung must be around the same age as Gojong, or younger.
The reason for thinking this was simply that the Prince of Gangreung was a terrifying bloodline enthusiast trying to revive the dynasty.
Such a bloodline fanatic wouldn’t ‘serve’ someone younger than himself.
‘A male Lee of similar age to Gojong but without clear historical traces.’
Ju Gangrim had already narrowed down the name range considerably through additional clues found at the Hundred-Year Boy’s house.
The Prince of Gangreung’s name must be written somewhere among these countless genealogy books.
‘This will take some time.’
Naturally, there were an enormous number of names recorded in the genealogy books. Even narrowing it down to just those still living wouldn’t help much.
This was why Ju Gangrim had planned to meet Ttaekachi first before seeing the Prince of Gangreung.
He’d luckily managed to enter directly, but Ttaekachi’s fate being unknown was a problem.
Ju Gangrim had to choose between an ambiguous zombie hunter who might be friend or foe, and an immortal who was actively threatening Korea in real-time.
It wasn’t a subject that required much deliberation.
‘It shouldn’t take long, so hang in there if you’re alive, Ttaekachi.’
Ju Gangrim began searching through the genealogy books in the room. However, he had to stop shortly after opening them.
“…Found it.”
He’d found it too quickly.
***
By the time Ju Gangrim set foot on the second-floor railing, Yu Wolryeong had already arrived at the pond near Hamnyeongjeon Hall. But the area around the pond, covered in fallen leaves, was eerily quiet.
It was too silent for Ttaekachi to be hiding.
After confirming no one was around, Yu Wolryeong gave a light cough. With a cool breeze from her lips, a small snowman appeared on her hand.
It was a small, cute snowman, but it had no eyes, only a nose and mouth.
“Huhuva.”
“It’s been a while, Death Messenger Yu Wolryeong! Do you have a task for me?”
The snowman called Huhuva shouted, wiggling its body. Though its voice was so small only Yu Wolryeong could hear it.
“I’m looking for someone. Name’s Shin Seong-hui. Nickname Ttaekachi. Uses dogs and a crossbow as weapons.”
“Understood! It’ll be an early first snow!”
Huhuva let out a giggling laugh before disappearing as if scattered by the wind.
Instead of moving rashly, Yu Wolryeong waited for Huhuva’s report. Soon after, snowflakes began to fall.
Every place these snowflakes touched became Huhuva’s eyes, hands, and ears.
Now Yu Wolryeong could monitor all of Deoksugung Palace and the area around City Hall Station.
“Ah, shit. Why’s it suddenly snowing?”
Just then, two armed gang members began passing by the tree Yu Wolryeong was leaning against.
Yu Wolryeong watched without particularly hiding herself, but the two passed by without noticing her presence.
“Must be because of the Gate? It’s been twisting the weather all over.”
“Oh, is that so? I heard it’s a complete mess near North Han Mountain.”
“Damn. It can’t keep being a mess like this. We’ve been staying in northern Seoul trusting the boss, but the organization’s situation hasn’t been good lately. Are we going to end up ruined at this rate?”
“I wonder what the boss is thinking…”
Swish. At that moment, Huhuva reformed from the snowflakes piled on Yu Wolryeong’s shoulder.
“I found him, Death Messenger Yu Wolryeong. He’s near Deokheongjeon Hall.”
Yu Wolryeong nodded. She took a coin from her pocket and placed it in Huhuva’s mouth.
A material black soul fee.
It was worth a thousand nyang. Huhuva happily mumbled with the coin larger than its face in its mouth before melting away.
The gang members who had just passed by were heading towards her destination. Yu Wolryeong silently followed close behind them.
Despite being just two steps away, they didn’t notice her at all.
***
The closed museum was silent beyond quietness, as deep as an abyss. Ju Gangrim was quietly crossing the museum in a silence that felt deafening.
There were no visitors, but it seemed the museum had been holding an exhibition on Buddhism before it closed.
Various artworks were on display, from classical thangkas to modern reinterpretations of Buddhist art.
Many frames were empty, but some artworks too large to be taken away remained in place.
Ju Gangrim stopped in front of one large painting. In the vast exhibition space, a single large ceiling light illuminated what appeared to be a painting of Asura.
This was originally the place where he was supposed to meet Ttaekachi. But in front of the massive painting stood a man in a suit who looked no older than 30 at most.
Glasses and a neatly pressed suit.
He looked like an ordinary office worker, but even without the zombie outbreak, an ordinary office worker wouldn’t be in a museum in the middle of the night.
Then Ju Gangrim’s eyes caught the nameplate on his chest.
‘Lee Hwi-myeong, Director of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art.’
Lee Hwi-myeong matched the nameplate he’d seen while wandering the second floor. That meant he was the real museum director.
‘Did he stay out of a sense of responsibility for the artworks?’
Ju Gangrim’s memories were full of people who died pointlessly trying to protect artworks. It wasn’t impossible.
There was only one way to confirm.
Whether enemy, ally, or irrelevant person, if the identity was unknown, the procedure was to neutralize first and ask questions later.
Ju Gangrim quickly approached and swung his hand axe at the man.
Swish, clang!
However, the hand axe merely grazed the man’s chest, knocking off his nameplate.
Ju Gangrim stared at the man who remained still despite the axe passing right in front of him.
The man irritably checked the expensive brand watch on his wrist and muttered.
“Goodness, 30 minutes late for the appointment. I came out on time for nothing and ended up waiting.”
Appointment time.
He was talking about the appointment with Ttaekachi.
“Mr. Lee Hwi-myeong.”
Ju Gangrim spoke.
“Where is Ttaekachi now?”
“Ttaekachi, huh.”
The man turned his head without any tension and said.
“He should be near Deokheongjeon Hall by now.”
“Deokheongjeon?”
It was near Hamnyeongjeon, but on the completely opposite side from their agreed meeting place. He didn’t know why Ttaekachi was in a different location than agreed, but at least he knew his whereabouts.
Ju Gangrim sent a message to Yu Wolryeong through his spirit phone. There was no immediate reply, but he could tell she had seen it.
Watching this, the man spoke.
“Ah, you had a companion?”
“Yes. A more capable companion, so I can leave that side to them.”
The smile on Ju Gangrim’s face gradually turned cold. He readjusted his grip on the hand axe as he stared at his opponent.
“So only our business remains, Prince of Gangreung.”