BBS (85)

Translator: Wan ED/PR: Personal Ghost

 

〈Chapter 85〉
 

He was guided by Subok, who fell for a fraud before. Stepping out of the patriarch room, the curse energy he forgot for a moment flooded him again.

“Well done. Showing off your abilities is better than a hundred words. I knew I did well by bringing you here. But the curse is worse than expected. Make sure to follow me.”

Do-ssi warned him.

They carefully passed through the kitchen, crossed the women room and went to the warehouse. In the corner, the dokkaebi tiles were really piling up like a mountain.

Yu Dan looked at them.

He didn’t expect that being grabbed by Heuk-yo and becoming a human cleaner would be helpful here. When he covered his right eye with a hand and looked at them with left eye only, he found some dirty stains on some dokkaebi tiles. They were traces of being touched by in-human traces. They didn’t look to be fake.

Yu Dan selected only the dokkaebi tiles that had stains. He shared a few with Do-ssi and Subok to hold and returned to the patriarch room.

“Not all of them were fake after all. He recovered a little over a hundred. Those are just the ones we brought first.”

The elder looked at Seokryu.

“I’ll test them.”

Seokryu picked up a few tiles brought by Yu Dan.

In case something happens, the male dokkaebi of the house surrounded her to block it, while she very cautiously arranged the dokkaebi tiles. It seemed she was using some kind of rules that only she knew. After she piled them up in a strange shape and tapped them with a finger, the tiles glowed softly.

The babies, who were crying until their throats gave up, suddenly stopped. Everyone looked in surprise. Seokryu smiled gently.

“The energy coming in here was blocked. They’re real.”

“Oooh…”

The dokkaebi were really an honest bunch, what they thought all showed on their faces. The elder spoke quickly.

“Bring the dokkaebi tiles that child selected and block the other places.”

“Yes.”

Seokryu and dokkaebi rushed out. The elder looked at Yu Dan again.

“We can breathe again, but this only increases the spaces we can take refuge in.”

“Understood. We will search for the item that caused it and return it to its place to release the curse.”

“Yeah. Unryong-i show him around the house.”

“Yes.”

Yu Dan followed Do-ssi and left the patriarch room again. When the door closed, he heard the dokkaebi talk in whispers.

“Don’t worry. Our Bokchon dokkaebi doesn’t slander people behind their back. They will curse you openly in front of you. To whisper behind your back it must be a praise — the praise.”

Do-ssi said this and then made a bit prideful face.

“Aye, really. If you live, even such a day will come, huh? I live thanks to you. With the elder’s personality, who would stop him? He would really run around setting off fires, vomiting blood and collapse as he said. Now we have to drag for time, while investigating around until Cheonho-nim comes.”

He opened the backroom’s door right beside the patriarch room.

“That said, He said that he would come and solve it in a minute, so what is He doing? Did He not expect the situation here to be so serious? I said that a moment ago, but you have to stay at my side. Absolutely do not stray away. Got it?”

“Got it.”

All rooms were full of the curse energy. The lingering suffocation as if they entered water. Like before submerging, he had to consciously take deep breaths.

“Where the hell is that wicked energy coming from?”

“That’s true. Can you roughly guess the direction?”

“No.”

Yu Dan shook his head.

“I can’t quite capture it. It feels like it comes from everywhere. Like something keeps confusing me. Anyway, it’s not in this room.”

“Then let’s go.”

Do-ssi closed the drawers and stood up. He opened the sliding door and crossed into the next room, but just before Yu Dan entered after him, the door closed shut.

“Wait! Why are young going alone? Don’t we have to stick together?!”

He pushed the sliding door, but they didn’t budge. Huh? What? He put some strength into it, but no matter how much he pushed, they only rattled and didn’t open.

“Uncle—.”

Just when he tried to call Do-ssi, the water flooded his mouth and chocked him. Only then did he realize. Something was not right.

He took out the dokkaebi horn.

At the same time, something grabbed his leg. The floor disappeared and the tip of his feet touched nothingness. Terrifyingly powerful force was trying to suck Yu Dan in somewhere.

Let go!

He frantically waved his horn, and luck would have it, he instantly hit the epicenter of it and spread a throbbing impact. Something formless and wriggling broke into pieces. It turned into numerous black hands and then suddenly disappeared.

Yu Dan was startled.

He saw them when the Summer Guest appeared. That thing disappeared for an eternity in the darkness from where it should have not returned, so how could it appear again?

“Who?!”

At that moment, floaty things flashed before him.

Yu Dan’s eyes opened wide. As if this place turned into a sea, he saw small forms leisurely swimming between pillars. The caudal fins softly danced up and down, and their long hair swayed in the water.

Mermaids!

He immediately tried to chase after them, but they passed through the dead-end wall. He didn’t see where the mermaids were going. The moment he helplessly turned around, Yu Dan stiffened.

School of small mermaids was circling around him. Their faces revealed between their fluttering hair. They were deeply wrinkled, grotesque and ugly. Their mouths were full of razor sharp teeth.

They probably died a long time ago. Thick smell of death wafted from their bodies. He had no idea what thoughts their hollow pitch black eyes held, but they surely didn’t contain goodwill.

One suddenly approached him. Yu Dan swung at it with the horn he was holding in his hand.

“Go away!”

The mermaid showed their teeth. The other mermaids were also furious. Behind him, some other mermaids were also gathering, his way out was blocked.

What should he do?

At that moment, the sliding door on the opposite side opened. Seokryu, who was holding a few dokkaebi tiles, was startled.

“What’s going…”

The dokkaebi tiles dropped to the ground and a sharp sound spread out. The mermaids scattered in four directions.

Then, they heard a scream outside.

Yu Dan and Seokryu hastily rushed out. The dokkaebi from the patriarch room also stormed out.

“What’s going on!?”

“The items that we prepared to burn with samadhi fire are flying like crazy! It’s as if they became alive…”

Subok wasn’t able to finish.

A flock of mermaids appeared in the air. An enormous whirlpool came with them. The densely covered in incantations firewood was sucked into the whirlpool and dokkaebi were thrashed around. The five color belts that were used in ceremonies strangled their necks.

“Did the mermaids appear again?”

“Where?! I don’t see them!”

“Cowardly bastards! Reveal yourself!”

The dokkaebi hurriedly found the formation created from the dokkaebi tiles and hid in it. Some of the courageous ones took out their weapons and tried to counterattack, but as they couldn’t see the opponent, they only uselessly slashed the air.

“Not there!”

Yu Dan shouted.

“If you can’t see the mermaids, look at the whirlpool! The mermaids are in front of it! Attack there!”

Just when he was about to jump out because he couldn’t stand it anymore.

Boom! The ground cried out. Shock wave spread in all directions and everyone staggered. The black swirling current flew from somewhere and hit the flock of mermaids. The mermaids scattered, screaming.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

The vibration shaking even the core of earth was getting closer. Everyone stared in the direction of the sound.

Suddenly appearing, towering over the trees surrounding the dokkaebi’s mansion’s outside the garden, was an animal. As a whole, it resembled a crocodile, but it had a horn on its head and webbed feet. The footsteps of this monster sent vibrations through the earth.

“Jeoparyong(猪婆龍)[1]….?”

Someone mumbled.

Atop of the monster’s back sat the fox yokai. He wore pure black clothes Yu Dan had never seen him in before. In one hand he held jeoparyong’s reins and in the other his weapon, the spear. The dark current, that was sweeping through the dokkaebi mansion and running wild, turned into a black dragon and quickly came back into the spear.

All dokkaebi looked at Baek Ran with astonished faces.

“Alas, I came too fast, eh?”

Baek Ran didn’t even bat an eyelid as he met their eyes.

“I heard the rumor that the elder’s day had come, but looks like he is still healthy?”

The dokkaebi’s faces twisted viciously.

“You mean those are mourning clothes?”

“This fox dares to barge in wearing mourning clothes?”

The dokkaebi with weapons were ready to lunge at him at any moment. The elder of this house, Do Byeoksong shouted:

“Halt! You shall not set foot in this Susanjae!”

But Baek Ran lightly jumped off the jeoparyong’s back and entered like nothing. The elder’s face turned ripe red.

“Who! Who dared to summon this cunning creature!?”

Everyone looked at Do-ssi as if on cue.

“Please don’t make such a fuss. It was time he returned to the shop, but was captured by relatives he met after a long time and couldn’t free himself, so he just sent me a rescue request.”

Baek Ran calmly said, while he picked up firewood rolling on the floor.

“Samadhi fire? You’re out of Your minds, eh? Even if you burn this fire, while vomiting blood and shaving away Your lifetime, if You don’t find the origin of this curse and return it to the proper place, this all will be use—.”

At that moment, the fox yokai perked up his ears. Baek Ran raised his head.

“Take everyone and go in right now.”

“What nonsense are you spewing!?”

“I said right now…!”

Before the fox yokai could finish his words, multiple crashing sounds rang out.

The mermaid school was attacking the dokkaebi tiles. It seemed they noticed that the dokkaebi hid behind them a moment ago. The defenses Do Seokryu worked hard to make were broken and the elderly and sick, who were before quietly enduring no matter what, screamed and collapsed en masse.

“Shouldn’t You obediently listen when I said to enter? Unlike the dokkaebi, they have intelligence. In addition, it’s a very powerful curse. Quite a mess, eh? If You don’t find and eliminate the source of it, it will be the end of the Susanjae.”

“It’s none of your business to meddle with.”

“Who said I’d meddle? I’m going to take my shop employee and the human, that came as a bonus, and get out right away.”

Do-ssi rolled his eyes. He suddenly grabbed Yu Dan and without even giving him a chance to say something, he quickly ran inside.

“Alas, I really came to take them, but looks like he hates to work, so he fled. It’s annoying, but I can’t help but go inside and capture them, eh?”

Baek Ran spoke loudly as if wanting everyone to hear, while he entered inside. They occupied one of the alcoves, and he swung his spear to purify the curse energy.

Do-ssi quickly asked.

“Why are You so late? You said You would come right away and solve it in a minute.”

“I changed my mind. I’m going to solve it while dragging for time as long as possible and causing as much pain as possible.”

Looking at Baek Ran, who replied very spitefully, Do-ssi sighed deeply. Yu Dan asked him.

“Why did you grab me and drag me in?”

“I told you not to step away from me. Why didn’t you listen and went alone? Something bad almost happened a moment ago!”

“What are you saying? It was uncle-ssi who left me behind. I tried to follow after you, but you closed the door first.”

“Huh?”

Do-ssi’s face turned confused.

“I clearly saw you go in and close the door? I then shouted after you. So as expected, you’ve left me behind!”

“Not true! You closed the door first!”

Baek Ran looked at the two of them alternatively.

“Something played a trick on You in the middle.”

“It seems so.”

Yu Dan nodded.

“Something tried to drag me in somewhere. If not for the horn, it would have been dangerous.”

“Something? What did You see? When I appeared, it hid right away, and I could see nothing but a blurry figure.”

As expected, even Baek Ran couldn’t see them. A moment ago, he figured out their location with a random guess and attacked.

“It’s mermaids.”

Yu Dan replied.

“As some wicked things tried to drag me in, the mermaids appeared and surrounded me. That wicked energy was coming from them. They’re dead mermaids.”

“Mermaids? I couldn’t have imagined.”

Baek Run’s eyebrows furrowed, and he fell into thoughts for a moment.

“Mermaids in a dokkaebi mansion…”

“But why didn’t the elder come to capture us?”

Do-ssi slightly opened the sliding door.

Outside was a mess. Somewhere from behind the walls, they heard curses and wailing cries.

Now that they thought about it, the elders just collapsed en masse. The young still had strength to endure, but even the dokkaebi tiles that was blocking the energy, were broken.

“Right, I almost forgot.”

Baek Ran took out a bunch of talismans from his pockets.

“Burn half of them, mix the ash with water and feed them it, and the second half put on the walls.”

“Aigoo, Cheonho-nim.”

Do-ssi thanked and accepted the talismans, deeply touched.

“Even though our dokkaebi family treated Cheonho-nim like this… I won’t forget this kindness.”

“If I were You, I would get out in the time You were talking.”

“Yes, yes.”

He urgently stepped out. The sound of footsteps running on the maru[2] gradually grew distant and disappeared.

“We bought a little more time with this.”

“But it turned into a mess again, right? The mermaids are really angry. I don’t know about other things, but we shouldn’t have let them find out about the fire.”

“Even if the water and fire are in opposition, this reaction is extremely violent. And they’re running wild in extreme anger after seeing fire. What on earth is their story? What kind of object ties them to this place? Let’s go together, I’ll see it with my own eyes.”

Baek Ran stood up. Yu Dan also followed. While they walked, he summoned the dokkaebi horn and held it tightly in his hand.
 

*~*~*
 

[1] Jeoparyong — a legendary creature resembling a crocodile, treated as a low-rank dragon. Its name translates to ‘pool dragon’.

[2] maru — open floor.
 

Translator’s note: This drama queen…
 

 

 

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