I’m the Only One Who Can’t See Ghosts

51 – Mireukyo (1)

Don’t casually mention his honor?

Can’t you even call your younger sister by name, brother?

Without hesitation, I clenched my fist.

I drove my fist into the man’s abdomen, who was babbling nonsense. The man let out a groan and collapsed again.

Then, I looked at the picture again.

This child, looking down at people with an indifferent expression.

No matter how I looked at it, it was my younger sister, Yu Harin.

The Harin in the photo looked exactly as I remembered. It was her appearance before I left home, in sixth grade of elementary school.

That Harin was standing on a pedestal, receiving bows from numerous people.

But when did Harin take this photo?

When did she go to a place like this and receive bows from these people?

My head became muddled.

“Where did you get this photo?”

I grabbed the man’s hair and asked, but he just smirked and didn’t answer anything.

“Juna, bring the curry you were boiling.”

“Yes.”

While Jun-a went to get the curry, I organized my thoughts again. Harin had been known as a powerful shaman since she was young. That’s why many people came to meet her.

After my mother and grandmother passed away, I tried to prevent her from doing such things, but there was a possibility that she had connected with these pseudo-religious groups through the connections she had in the past.

I had to find out about it from now on.

I scooped a spoonful of the curry that Jun-a had prepared.

“Try it and tell me. Do you want me to say it straightforwardly?”

“Cough, kill me.”

“Listening to such lines from a man is f*cking disgusting, seriously. Open your mouth.”

There are many people to ask anyway.

All these wriggling guys here are all deluded followers.

I forcefully opened the man’s mouth and shoved a spoonful in.

“Eat this!!!”

“Wait, could that possibly contain the truth of wickedness…”

“This tastes terrible, kid!!!”

“I, I’m really going to die!!! Just a moment!!!”

Upon hearing that, the man who appeared to be the leader panicked.

Good. I casually put down the spoon and spoke.

“Then tell me. When was that photo taken?”

“Seven years ago, when the Buddha visited to give a sermon, I received permission and left a record of his presence.”

“The kid you call the Buddha. Is it Yu Harin?”

“Do not dare speak so lightly of his presence!!!”

Upon hearing that, the man started glowing again.

But as soon as I lifted the spoon, the glow stopped.

“Okay. So this girl in the photo is Harin. Next question. Why do you call Harin the Buddha?”

“On the day he returns. So that the world can embrace its enlightenment.”

“Enlightenment? He’s coming back?”

Upon hearing my question, the man laughed.

And he shouted.

“Yes. Although he temporarily left this world, he will return to bring true enlightenment to this world.”

He left this world.

It was an expression typically used when someone dies.

I felt my heart sink with coldness and murmured.

“What did I expect?”

Did I really expect Harin to still be alive?

That couldn’t possibly be true.

If that child were alive, there’s no way she wouldn’t have come to meet me, her only family. And I’ve seen photos of charred bodies in the fire station documents. She couldn’t possibly be alive.

But if she were alive?

However, the lingering attachment didn’t easily disappear.

In a world where there are supernaturals who appear like gods and ghosts who appear like demons, this is a religion that worships Harin, who was just a child.

What do they see in Harin to worship? And why do they say he will come down again, knowing everything? I was so curious about that.

So, I picked up the spoon again.

And with his mouth wide open, the man spoke.

“Tell me everything about Miruk-gyo.”

I wanted to know more about Miruk-gyo. To be precise, I wanted to know more about Harin. I wanted to show this pathetic older brother who couldn’t see ghosts that he still hadn’t let go of his attachment.

“Hurry!!!”

That’s how I obtained information from the man.

The information about Miruk-gyo was as follows.

Miruk-gyo is said to be a massive secret religion spread throughout East Asia. The man claimed that he was just a low-level officer of Miruk-gyo and nothing more.

There are three ways to join Miruk-gyo. The first is through family, and the second is through enlightenment.

The enlightenment method seemed like it was just an empty speech, judging from how casually he mentioned it. The problem was the third method.

The man, throwing a temper tantrum because he didn’t want to eat curry, muttered.

“To become a true member of Miruk-gyo, you must offer a sacrifice and pass the trial.”

“A sacrifice?”

“It means offering a relic related to Miruk-nim. Then you are given the qualification to undergo the trial.”

“What is the trial?”

“I don’t know either. But I’ve heard that those who pass the trial become the true arahan of our Miruk-gyo.”

Arhan (阿羅漢).

I knew it meant an enlightened person.

After our previous confrontation with Cheonsu, I searched and found out.

In Miruk-gyo, it is used as a term for officers, it seems.

I shook my head and opened my mouth.

“So, you don’t know anything beyond this, and you have to become an arahan to know the true truth of Miruk-gyo, right?”

“That’s right. If you weren’t a heretic like you, you could have gathered enough merit to receive the relic.”

“And after receiving the relic, you have to offer it again?”

“Of course, stating the obvious.”

What a crazy person.

Well, it’s impossible to understand fanatics.

If you want to know about Mirukyo, you must become an Arahan.

“Arahan.”

At that moment, a voice came from behind.

Ah, it looks like they finally arrived.

“Yu Hajin, they’ve arrived!”

The owner of that voice was none other than Director Lee Dokjun and his subordinates from the Gwihyeonsang Countermeasures Headquarters. I just reported it, but they came so quickly.

Indeed, they are competent officials.

I shook their hands and looked at them.

The officials from the Countermeasures Headquarters were silently binding the unconscious Mirukyo believers with red cable ties.

I spoke a word after seeing that sight.

“Will cable ties be okay?”

“Those are cable ties made by OmegaTech. There’s nothing better when it comes to containing such a superhuman organization.”

OmegaTech?

It was a company that Jam Sunhee occasionally mentioned.

It seems they make good products.

“That aside, it’s impressive that you’ve captured the members of Mirukyo.”

“Is Mirukyo really such an impressive group?”

“Of course. Mirukyo is a force that even Heaven and Earth hesitate to punish. Despite the suspicion that Mirukyo is trying to resurrect dark intentions, they hesitate to punish. It’s no wonder Heaven and Earth can’t be trusted.”

“What are these dark intentions?”

When I asked, Director Lee Dokjun’s expression hardened.

And he slowly opened his mouth.

“It is a title of a revered being that has disappeared and vanished. It is also called the Dark Heart. Mirukyo is suspected of trying to revive such a revered being.”

I have heard the term reverent being before.

They say it is a stronger ghost than the Ghost King.

From Noble mtl dot com

But these crazy people were trying to revive something so terrifying?

Perhaps there was something related to the dark heart in the curry recipe. According to the rumors of the siblings, that’s what it seemed.

Damn it. It was truly a dish that had nothing to do with Yeongan.

So disappointing.

When I grumbled, Director Lee Dokjun said one thing.

“Are you okay?”

“Really?”

“I’m sorry. Weak-minded individuals might feel offended just by hearing the term ‘inferior black heart.’ Of course, I thought that wouldn’t be the case for someone as strong as you.”

I grinned and laughed, lowering my head.

“What else could I possibly think, other than it being a joke?”

“A joke? Even I am forced to respect the word ‘black heart.’”

So, Inspector Eo Dong-jun looked at me with a burdened expression, then glanced around. His gaze stopped at the disorderly living quarters.

“Were all these living quarters you planned?”

“Yes. Most of them were destroyed during the fight, which is unfortunate.”

If I had known, I would have really made them pay.

A plan formed in my mind.

There were only a few living quarters left.

Some of them were broken in my fist, and some were self-destructed by those bastards just before they were scheduled for me. In the end, I couldn’t find more than a couple of intact living quarters.

“Still, there are two superior living quarters left. With this additional help, plus the remaining living quarters, it should be around a thousand won.”

“Oh, a thousand won?”

Suddenly, my head felt light.

Could it be that a thousand won was what he was talking about?

However, the male Inspector Eo Dong-jun quickly pulled out a check from his breast pocket without hesitation.

“A thousand won, not a million. There’s no tax on the prize money given by our headquarters. I’m sorry. As a public official, it’s inappropriate to…”

“Phew.”

I was so surprised that I almost fell over.

Then, Inspector Eo Dong-jun muttered under his breath.

“Yeok, is it really that little?”

“Oh, starting from today.”

I stammered out the words.

Then, I quickly stood up and declared.

“Starting today, I am one with the headquarters!!! Any attack on the headquarters is considered an attack on me!!!”

The headquarters was my light, the headquarters was my joy!!!

As I declared this, the surrounding public officials looked at me with a touched expression.

“Really, Yu Ha-jin.”

“Even in such a situation, you still react like this.”

With the sound of applause from the civil servants, the curry Umai incident came to an end. With that, I received 50 million won and proudly went home.

Of course, I threw a meat party that day. Nanyu grilled the meat vigorously to the point where he muttered “Nanyu-baetosil-tosil” while eating the meat like crazy.

As I ate the meat, I was able to forget a bit of the sadness that I couldn’t find peace of mind.

* * *

And the next day, I received a text message from Gujeon.

The message said that my sister is doing a bit better.

She expressed her gratitude for my help.

She said she will definitely come and help if I need her.

The text message was filled with such disorganized words and filled a thousand characters.

I chuckled and sent a reply saying, “Take care.” Aren’t I cool?

As soon as I put down my phone, Meongmeong bumped into me.

Meongmeong had been living in my room ever since being rescued from the lab.

“Meongmeong!”

I petted Meongmeong’s fur while opening the website for the Bureau of Paranormal Phenomena. Then, I immediately searched for information about Mireukgyo.

There wasn’t much information about Mireukgyo on the site. However, judging by the controversial parts, it seemed certain that they were a bunch of bad guys.

I scrolled down.

“Arahan, the high-ranking official of Mireukgyo.”

As I scrolled down, there was also a description of Arahan. The information about Arahan had a note saying “＜Only accessible to Deputy Directors＞.”

But I was a master of this website.

There was no information I couldn’t see, even if it was a tremendous tactical nuclear weapon.

I clicked on the information about Arahan.

“There is not much information available about Arahan, the high-ranking official of Mireukgyo. However, the system of Mireukgyo recognizes those who offer sacrifices and overcome trials, even if they don’t believe in Mireuk, as Arahan, which is one of the secrets of the afterworld.”

“If one becomes an Arahan of Mireukgyo, they gain enlightenment and their status rises, and it is known that several leaders of the Mafia concurrently hold the position of Arahan and leader. They can also utilize the global infrastructure of Mireukgyo.”

I scrolled down a bit more.

“The selection of Arahan is carried out secretly. The time when sacrifices are received and the place where the trials begin are all kept secret. The selection for the next Arahan is expected to take place three years later.”

“They say it’s a secret.”

They say it’s a secret, but they know everything.

As expected, it’s the website of the Bureau of Paranormal Phenomena.

“That’s beside the point, but Arahan is a chosen one. They need cash and the relics of Mireuk.”

But I had neither cash nor the relics of Mireuk. However, if I miss this opportunity, there will be no way for me to learn about Mireukgyo for the next three years.

My heart feels suffocated.

And in that moment, an idea flashed in my mind.

“No, I do have cash.”

I thought about the 50 million won I received yesterday.

50 million won? It’s truly a huge amount of money.

I guess this should be enough.

Though it’s really, really damn regrettable, I have no choice if it’s for my younger sibling. I can’t abandon my attachment to Harini. Yeah, 50 million won. Let’s use it.

“Ugh.”

To think that I would need to spend 50 million won like this.

I shouldn’t have eaten meat yesterday.

Suddenly, my empty bank balance came into view.

Then, Myeongmyeong comforted me.

“Myeongmyeong?”

“Myeongmyeong…”

Suddenly, I also wanted to act like Myeongmyeong.

If that’s the case, now I just need to find the relics of Mireuk.

I glanced at a corner of the room. There was a box filled with things I couldn’t bring myself to throw away. It was Harini’s belongings.

There wasn’t much left after the house burned down.

The school uniform that Harini was supposed to wear.

And the underwear and thin shirts that I washed.

That’s all that was left.

Since Harini never wore the school uniform, let’s exclude it. But these underwear and shirts were the ones Harini often wore. If Harini is Mireuk, then this can be considered Mireuk’s underwear, right?

With a bitter smile, I said one word.

“The older brother who offers his sister’s shirts and underwear.”

There’s really no separate word for this trash.

I bit my lip in self-disgust.

And then I closed the box again.

“Really, I can’t help it.”

So, I walked around the room for a while, then opened the box again after giving food to Meongmeong.