I’m the Only One Who Can’t See Ghosts

Chapter 9

9 – Conclusion of the First Exam

As I got off the subway, I saw the sunset sky. Has time passed this quickly already?

I looked around. There were a few people nearby. But those people were not ordinary citizens. From the clothes they were wearing, their gaze, and the strange items they were carrying, they all looked like psychics. They were probably people related to Cheonji or the test-takers.

“Guju. Send people from Sangmoon Station in the order they came and rank them 3rd place and below.”

“Are the 1st and 2nd places already decided?”

The woman who was drinking wine like water looked at me and the chick and asked.

“Who came down first?”

Who came down first? Honestly, I don’t remember. But still, I didn’t want to attract unnecessary attention from the psychics by getting first place.

“It’s this kid.”

“Chirp?!”

“Of course, you… hmph, fine.”

The woman, suspected of alcohol addiction, chuckled and looked at the chick next to me before speaking.

“It’s a well-known fact, but explain it to me again. Those who achieve the top score in the first test of the heavens and earth receive privileges.”

What? You get privileges if you rank first in the test?

You should have told me about this sooner! What’s the matter?!

But I couldn’t catch the passing ship again.

“You are truly remarkable. Do you wish for congratulations? Do you wish for blessings? Do you wish for prosperity?”

“If I may, the girl wishes for congratulations.”

“Congratulations.”

The woman with alcohol addiction opened her mouth.

“‘Chuk’ refers to words spoken when making a prayer in front of an altar. So, what determines what to pray for and how to pray? It’s the word that comes after, ‘ha.'”

She continued speaking.

“‘Ha’ is a word that adds ‘ga’ to the ‘ha’ in ‘pae’ when one is about to achieve victory. So, if we interpret the word ‘chukha’ simply, it can be interpreted as a prayer petitioning for an increase in wealth.”

“Are you saying they will give money?”

Do they really give money as the first-place prize?

Money? It’s a world where everything revolves around money.

Did I just throw away my chance to become rich?

“hehehe. You’re quite an interesting child. You don’t think someone would give you money, right? The prizes for our practitioners do not revolve around monetary value.”

I let out a sigh in my heart.

That’s a relief.

My stomach doesn’t hurt as much.

“You wished for congratulations, so accept them. Receive it.”

“Thank you, miss.”

The woman with alcohol addiction handed over a bead-like item used in bead games to the chick. The chick couldn’t hide its joy and tightly grasped it.

“It’s a liquor bead created by the genius liquorist, Guju. It’s a golden pellet. Once you break it, you’ll be able to use Guju’s liquor dish. Guju, can you explain your dish to Jangwon?”

“The golden pellet was originally designed for that purpose.”

“Oh, I see.”

The woman with alcohol addiction took out a small blackboard-like object from her pocket. Then, she started writing something on the board with white chalk.

“This is a communication tool that should never be revealed to others, right?”

Note: The phrase “jin-ga-ui” in the excerpt is a term used to refer to a specific novel genre in South Korea. However, the translation does not convey this information as it is not specified.

“The principle of this item is simple. It is a product inspired by the fact that demons corrode the present world, contaminating manuals, pictures, and text lines.”

Having written the words on the blackboard, the man lifted it slightly so that it could be seen by everyone.

“If you use this board, you can corrode the text lines and make it visible only to the desired target. That’s how it works.”

I looked at the blackboard.

The blackboard had the following written on it.

“The principle engraved in the soul of the savior is the principle of law. When the opponent is judged to have violated the law, you can impose appropriate punishments. Applaud to declare the start of the trial and then curse or attack the enemy according to the extent of the law violation. In this case, the law is the law you establish as your own standard, so it doesn’t matter if the law is unreasonable and unjust.”

I see. That man has such an ability.

He establishes his own laws and punishes accordingly.

It’s a scam.

Aside from that, I can see the writing on the blackboard very clearly too. I wonder if he allowed me to see it as well.

“You Ha-jin. Even if you stare at it like that, you won’t be able to see the content of this blackboard. No matter how exceptional your abilities are, the laws of the soul itself are inevitable.”

Listening to the words of the alcoholic woman, it didn’t seem to be the case. It seemed like it made the text lines invisible with something like a ghost or psychic power. But since I can’t see ghosts, I can apparently just read the text that is hidden by the ghost.

It wouldn’t be good to reveal this fact.

So, I changed the subject.

“How do you know my name?”

“Oh, haven’t we introduced ourselves yet? I am Gamro. You are Yu Ha-jin. Yes, that’s good.”

Is this the celestial and terrestrial common name?

I looked up at the sky, speechless.

“Okay, everyone understands?”

“We understand.”

“You must not reveal others’ abilities lightly. There are numerous ability wielders in this world. There are even those who can read the memories of space itself. That’s why we use this item called ‘Heukseolmyeong.'”

“I understand.”

“It is easy to use and powerful. If we were to sell it, it would be worth more than a billion easily. Use it wisely.”

Upon hearing those words, I collapsed.

To be precise, I grabbed onto my stomach and writhed in pain.

“Why, why is this happening.”

“Squeak?!”

My stomach, my stomach hurts badly.

Damn it!!!

Things can’t just go this way in reality!!!

Why!!!

Even after going through so much trouble!!!

My balance in the bank!!!

I couldn’t even save 1 million won!!!

Return my billions!!!

Oh heavens!!!

* * *

Reaching out my hand towards the sky like that, but the sky only turned dark indifferently. I didn’t expect anything from the sky to begin with. The world defaults to being irrational.

Still, I couldn’t help but feel depressed.

When feeling down, I had to think of only good things.

Still, it was fortunate that the issue related to my lottery ticket was resolved. This chick said it would take care of it. And with this pink chick accompanying it, whether it’s the gold or silver ticket, it will surely rise suddenly.

That was when I was posing for a mental victory.

The chick came up to me and started talking.

“Um, did you say your name was Yu Hajin?”

“Yeah.”

“Aren’t you curious about my name?”

Ah yes. To clearly establish our contractual relationship, I had to at least get this chick’s name and phone number. So that I can hold them accountable later.

“What’s your name then?”

“It’s Jina. Not chick.”

“Well then, should we exchange phone numbers too?”

“Cheep. A man’s…”

Jina suddenly bowed her head. What’s with that?

And like that, we exchanged phone numbers.

“I’ll see you at the next test. I will definitely see you at the next test.”

“Yeah, sure.”

That’s what I said, but I don’t plan on taking the next test. Look at how this test turned out today. I can’t even grasp how many people died.

Blood splattered on the subway floor, insane people and people driven insane, and even the test proctor who nonchalantly watched over it all. It was truly no different from the Futaba Park where I got three skull stickers.

The correct answer to this kind of test is not participating. I didn’t have any desire to die while taking such a test. Since the issue with the lottery ticket was resolved, my test ends here.

As I was about to exit the subway station, I witnessed some suspicious individuals conversing with a blackboard.

＜Bongchu assassination failed. The owner is furious.＞

＜The next assassination will take place during the second test. We have decided to employ the assassin Guon who passed the first test.＞

＜Guon, the grey spider, right?＞

＜That’s correct.＞

Oh, Bongchoo, you’re talking about that chick, aren’t you?

It means they’re planning to assassinate that chick during the second test.

The chick coin will plummet…

No, it’s not a plummet, it’s a delisting.

If the chick is assassinated, the person who can handle Cheonsu will disappear. And although it’s a really foolish thought, I didn’t want to just leave the chick to die. We only met for a day and the encounter wasn’t exactly pleasant. But still…

I sighed naturally.

“Hoo.”

First, let’s go back home and think about it.

.* * *

I heard that the second test will be held in the former DMZ in the north of Gyeonggi Province.

Since North Korea was destroyed by demons, the former DMZ has become a real border area between the human world and the supernatural.

Even Professor Geora Wiki didn’t know much about it.

There was plenty of information about the former DMZ before the “Day of Awakening,” but there was hardly any information after it.

Just a sh*thole. Hell. A land with a 1% survival rate.

That’s all they described it as.

But there were quite a few papers released by the Republic of Korea’s Supernatural Threat Response Headquarters, memoirs of people who had gone into the DMZ and come out, and types of spirits that frequently appeared there. There was so much data that I couldn’t determine what was important information.

“Jamsuni would know more about this.”

Jamsuni, who spoke like an internet ghost from the tone to everything else, was knowledgeable about this kind of information. It was Jamsuni who had informed me about the ruined gateway of supernatural disasters.

Alright, let’s ask Jamsuni about the DMZ.

With that thought in mind, I tried to enter the office-tel.

“Where did you go today?”

But I couldn’t enter.

Jamsuni was blocking my way.

“I won’t believe where you’ve been.”

“It’s Pian Station.”

Jamsuni’s expression as they said that was icy and unyielding.

Oh, how did they know?

However, it wasn’t so surprising.

Jamsoon was boastful, but she had some kind of psychic ability.

“Ah, I’m so annoyed. Who the hell put their psychic energy on my stuff? It’s seriously annoying. Damn.”