Chapter – 09
Anyway, this was quite unexpected.
I had never heard of the organization before, so I assumed it would be some suspicious, bizarre place. But apparently, it was a fairly large organization managed by the government? And Geonjer worked for them?
“So you really were human…”
“Human?”
“No, no. Forget I said that.”
At that moment, Geonjer, who had been watching my awkward reaction, asked,
“Have you ever looked up anything about Rachajert?”
“Ah… yes.”
Of course not.
Why would I deliberately look it up? Before he appeared, I had been avoiding even thinking about that place!
“Then shall I tell you about something else?”
“No, no. It’s fine…”
I shook my head, pressed my lips together, and lowered my gaze. I didn’t particularly have anything to say, and the whole situation was awkward.
The man—Geonjer—watched me for a moment before speaking again.
“I apologize for what happened earlier.”
At those words, I lifted my lowered gaze.
“I didn’t intend to frighten you to the point of making you cry. Of course, I wasn’t completely unaware that you might react that way, but…”
Geonjer continued while looking directly at me.
“Since I said I would come find you, I thought it was only right that I come personally.”
If that was the reason, he really didn’t have to keep his word.
I swallowed those words and spoke instead.
“But… how did you find out where I live?”
Geonjer thought for a moment before answering.
“Through an illegitimate method.”
So he used some kind of underground route?
Well, when I had fallen into Rachajert, Geonjer had also figured out where I was remarkably quickly. Apparently, that Rachajert organization of his had access to all sorts of things.
…Wait.
Doesn’t that mean he could come find me whenever he wanted, just like today?
He could even show up right outside my house?
Cold sweat trickled down my back once again. I decided I needed to finish this conversation and get out of here as quickly as possible.
“Um… so, what exactly is it that you want from me?”
“Shall I get straight to the point? Honestly, I much prefer it that way.”
I nodded, and Geonjer got straight to the point without hesitation.
“Our headquarters would like you to join us, Ms. Myeong Sena.”
“……”
…Excuse me?
“We would like Ms. Myeong Sena to become a member of our headquarters and work with us.”
What?
I sat there dumbfounded for a moment.
What was he talking about?
He wanted me to join that Rachajert-whatever organization?
No way. Why on earth would I?
I replayed the moments I had spent with Geonjer in my head.
First, I got into the car he brought.
Then, when he told me I had to jump out, I jumped out with tears in my eyes.
We walked along the road…
And then, out of nowhere, I got shot.
And…
That was it.
No matter how much I thought about it, there was absolutely no reason for him to make such an offer.
It would have been different if I had demonstrated some incredible ability.
But what had I actually done?
After being unable to speak for a moment, I finally forced the words out.
“So… you want to sc… scout me?”
“Yes.”
“…Why?”
“As I explained last time.”
Geonjer explained, with a slight hint of irritation in his expression.
“I told you that you belong to a very rare category. Do you remember?”
Ah.
I vaguely remembered.
What had he said back then?
That there were certain days each year when the boundary between reality and Rachajert became blurred?
And around that time, I had entered Rachajert without going through the designated passage.
“Yes…”
“That is precisely why.”
Geonjer continued.
“Before entering Rachajert, we always follow a predetermined procedure. During that process, we disguise ourselves as spirits. We temporarily enter a state similar to that of a soul.”
“Because only souls can enter that place.”
“So… you have to imitate a soul in order to enter a city where only souls live?”
“Exactly.”
“But your case is different, Ms. Myeong Sena.”
He continued.
“You can enter Rachajert without disguising yourself.”
“…I can?”
“How? Why?”
“We don’t know exactly.”
Geonjer paused before continuing.
“There are theories that you received Rachajert’s favor. Another theory is that you were affected by the moment when the boundary between reality and Rachajert became blurred.”
He calmly listed the possibilities.
“We haven’t found a definite reason. But one thing is certain. You can enter Rachajert without going through any of the usual procedures.”
“……”
“And the cultists believe that you are a god who descended for their sake.”
I couldn’t help frowning at that.
“What do those cultists believe in?”
“Immortality.”
Immortality?
“‘Infinity and eternity’ are the foundation of their doctrine.”
Geonjer’s voice remained calm.
“They want to become beings without an end, where life and death are connected as one. They are a group of people who desire to become a single, complete existence.”
…Okay.
Let’s organize everything I’ve heard so far.
I felt like I needed to put it all together just to keep my sanity intact.
First, in order to enter Rachajert, you have to fulfill the condition of being a ‘soul.’
In other words, beings who aren’t souls can’t enter.
But for some unknown reason, I had somehow become exempt from that condition.
That meant I could enter and leave the place freely, without restrictions.
Like a free pass.
And the cultists…
They believed that what had happened to me was the physical realization of their doctrine.
Honestly, I wanted to dismiss all of this as complete nonsense and simply get up and leave.
Because, in short, it meant I had gotten myself into one hell of a mess.
“I… don’t intend to go back there.”
“People like you are considered valuable assets by our organization.”
Geonjer didn’t back down despite my refusal.
“That is precisely why we need you.”
“If, at some point, we become unable to disguise ourselves as souls when we need to enter Rachajert, we could ask for your assistance.”
So that’s why the cult had come looking for me?
At that moment, another memory I’d been desperately trying to bury resurfaced.
After hearing his explanation, I remembered something else.
<Wouldn’t it be better to send her to me than let those cultists take her?>
<……>
<At least there aren’t any crazy cult leaders here. And I pay well, too.>
The helmeted man had definitely said that.
Could that have been connected to all this?
“Then that helmeted man from before… Is that why he came after me? Was he targeting me?”
“Something like that.”
“…‘Something like that’ means he had another purpose too?”
“That was similar as well.”
Geonjer answered in his usual dry tone before adding,
“But I can’t give you any more information than this. At least, not yet.”
I suppose the reason he was saying that was because I hadn’t made any choice yet.
So if I wanted to know more, I had to make a decision.
Whether to join them.
Whether to join someone else.
Or whether to choose nothing at all.
And…
My thoughts were still the same as they had been from the beginning.
I had agreed to talk to Geonjer because I wanted answers about things I didn’t know.
It wasn’t because I intended to blindly accept his offer.
And aside from everything else, after hearing all that, how could I casually say that I wanted to join them?
Absolutely not.
Before outright rejecting him, I forced an awkward smile.
Ha. Ha. Ha.
“I’m sorry, but… I’m just an ordinary person.”
“I’m an ordinary person too.”
Excuse me.
You look anything but ordinary.
“I really don’t know how to do anything. And I didn’t even understand half of what you just explained…”
I tried to make my refusal as gentle as possible.
“I think you’d be better off finding someone else.”
“If you don’t know how, you can learn. Understanding can come later. And there will be someone beside you to help you until then.”
No!
I don’t want to do it later or now!
I was just about to open my mouth to put a definite end to the matter when—
“And we can’t find anyone else.”
“…What?”
“You’re the only one.”
What did he mean?
“You said I was a rare case earlier. Doesn’t that mean there are other people somewhere who experienced the same thing I did?”
“There were.”
Then Geonjer added one short sentence.
“In the past.”
…
Why did he suddenly use the past tense?
That sounded ominous.
“Then what about now?”
Geonjer answered calmly.
“They have all been reported missing.”
“……”
“For now, you’re the only one.”
Wow…
You’re kidding…
I still felt like I was trapped in a nightmare.
Maybe if I opened my eyes, I’d be lying in that hospital bed again.
The kind of ‘only one’ I wanted to be was the winner of a lottery or some event!
Not someone with the ability to freely enter a city full of ghosts!
“So think about it.”
Geonjer looked at me calmly.
“If possible, I would recommend accepting our offer.”
