WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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Chapter 23: Ghost Market

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Of the jobs a Black Knot exorcist could take, the one Gari chose was related to a demon.

A dream demon.

The notes even added that it was a servant of Asmodeus, the thirty-second of the seventy-two demons.

From Gari's perspective as an angel, it was probably something Gari wanted to hunt.

Clack, clack!

There was no need to ask. Gari's resolve was firm.

I pointed out the job to the clerk.

"Can I take this one?"

"HK-011... A dream demon! Yes, you can! A-as expected of a Black Knot! Taking a job nobody else wants..."

"Is it that bad?"

The fact that no one wanted it made me a little nervous.

I needed to know what was dangerous before I could judge anything.

Should I cancel while I still could?

"Demons are involved, after all. Even if it's only a servant, a dream demon is still a demon. Ordinary sorcery is at a disadvantage against them, and unless you're a powerful clergyperson, they're difficult to handle."

Compatibility seemed to matter a lot too.

The clerk continued explaining.

"Dream demons also use powerful mental abilities. Frankly, even werewolves and vampires are easier to deal with. They may be strong, but at least you can kill them physically."

So werewolves and vampires really existed.

"This job has a subsidy?"

"Ah, yes. There is reimbursement for purchasing special materials used to hunt demons. You can claim up to twenty-three million won."

Twenty-three million won?

What the hell did they expect people to do that they were willing to subsidize that much?

If the subsidy was this high, then the job's reward...

"It's confirmed that dream demons have infiltrated clubs around Itaewon. Find out which clubs they're in, and you'll receive fifty million won. Successfully eliminate them, and it's two hundred million won per individual."

Fifty million just for finding them, two hundred million if I took them down.

My sense of money was seriously about to break.

"If you accept the job, we'll introduce you to a specialist business working with the Ghost Market."

"The Ghost Market?"

What was that supposed to be?

* * *

"It was an honor serving you! Take care!"

I left the Mystic Association amid the staff's excessive send-off.

Apparently, the Association had all sorts of facilities and services besides the bank counter and job desk, but I had something else to do.

The Ghost Market.

It was like a periodic market held by exorcists and related dealers, except it only opened once a month.

Of all days, today was the final day it was open. If I missed it, I'd have to wait another month.

"They said it opens at noon... I've still got about six hours."

At the Ghost Market, some of Korea's most prominent exorcists and dealers bought and sold their wares.

Which meant I could probably sell the holy water and holy oil I made too.

So I rushed to the supermarket and bought the ingredients I needed.

Twenty kilograms of sun-dried salt. Eighty unlabelled bottles of Jeju SamX Water. Cinnamon sticks and olive oil by the armful. And then...

"Seriously, what are you buying so much for? I've never seen anyone buy this much myrrh and calamus."

At the herbal medicine shop, the doctor of Korean medicine looked at me like he didn't trust me at all.

"I really need it. Can't you give me everything you've got?"

"I mean, I don't mind selling it if I make a profit..."

The man stared at me like I was up to something.

"You're not another dealer, are you?"

"Me? No."

I'd somehow been mistaken for another herbal medicine seller, but it was cleared up quickly.

"Come to think of it, there's no reason you'd come all the way here when you could just order it."

"Exactly."

Either way, I got all the ingredients I needed to make holy water and holy oil, even if I did pick up a minor misunderstanding along the way.

If I used a prayer and one of Gari's angel feathers to make them...

Thump, thump!

"Young man! Open the door! I really wasn't going to say anything, but come on! Isn't this going too far?!"

Sure enough, the neighbor came over.

Holy water was one thing, but there was no way making holy oil wouldn't fill the place with the smell of cinnamon.

I opened the door and greeted the neighbor who had come to make a perfectly valid complaint.

"Hello..."

"Young man! What are you doing this time? I've really put up with enough, I..."

Slowly.

The neighbor lady, who had been glaring with wide eyes, looked down at the envelope I held out.

"What's this?"

"The smell must be pretty unpleasant. I put enough in there for you and your family to have dinner out tonight."

She peeked into the envelope, then sucked in a breath.

The anger on her face instantly bloomed into a bright smile.

See? Life was better when you smiled.

"Oh my, you really didn't have to. It does smell a little, but... well, everyone has days like this. People cook fermented soybean stew too, so this is nothing."

"Thank you for being understanding. So you're eating out tonight?"

"Oh, of course. Well then, keep up the good work! Hohoho!"

Capitalism was powerful.

I'd put enough in there that she probably wouldn't complain if this happened a few more times.

"Maybe I should move."

Both Eight-Foot Sister and Gari were so big that they couldn't move around freely.

I needed a bigger house, maybe a country home or something.

In the past, I would've laughed at the idea of dreaming about a country house when I had no money. But considering how much I'd been making lately, it didn't seem impossible anymore.

Anyway, I made a huge batch of holy water and holy oil, put half in the refrigerator, and packed the rest.

I had around forty bottles of each, but how was I supposed to carry all that?

"Eight-Foot, want to put them in Gari's mouth?"

【Po~?】

Snap!

Eight-Foot Sister lifted the cooler full of holy water and holy oil, then put it inside Gari's mouth.

Hmm. Nice.

This way, no one around us could see it.

Eight-Foot Sister could have carried it herself, but then the cooler would have looked like it was floating through the air.

Wolryeong Bodhisattva had told me that the clothes Eight-Foot Sister wore and the knot around her neck were invisible because they belonged to a ghost entity.

If an object didn't belong to a ghost entity, it would be visible like some kind of poltergeist phenomenon.

Gari was different, though.

Anything Gari swallowed was completely separated from the outside and couldn't be seen.

Just like when Gari swallowed Eight-Foot Sister for camouflage, I could use Gari as an inventory too.

All right, that should do it.

The Ghost Market was held in a commercial building somewhere in Jongno District.

The place looked so old it practically had the atmosphere of a slum, but strangely, the area was quiet.

Usually, a place like this would have underage smokers or homeless people hanging around. Instead, it was spotless and empty.

"Is this really the place?"

I wondered if I'd come to the wrong spot, but a variety of smells hit my nose.

The unpleasant stench from when I had faced an evil spirit. The clear, refreshing scent from when I had gone to church.

It was a confusing mix of all sorts of smells.

As I followed them... people began appearing out of nowhere.

Maybe there was a barrier that disrupted recognition or unconsciously drove away people without spiritual sensitivity.

Could I use something like that too?

I couldn't make barriers on my own like Scholar Yoo of Cheonghak. There were perception-disrupting talismans, though. Maybe I should buy one.

"Wow..."

It felt like I had wandered into the night market from some old movie.

Lights that hadn't been visible moments ago shone brightly, while vendors and customers mingled together.

It felt like stepping into a huge traditional market.

The alleys were narrow and the stalls crammed together, but there was something fun about wandering along with the waves of people.

There were even lively sales calls, something you rarely saw at traditional markets these days.

"Come have a look! A warding plaque made from the claws of a Gangwon Mountain Lord! It may not be a Sainchamsageom, but lesser evil spirits won't dare meet its gaze!"

"Five Directions Knots! Freshly arrived Five Directions Knots made with celestial silkworm thread! You don't see these every day!"

Under the tents, stalls lined up like an ordinary market, but the objects displayed there were anything but ordinary.

There was a mounted boar's head, bottles of medicine that reeked suspiciously, blackened dried hearts, and wooden boxes covered in talismans.

I saw silver-belled norigae ornaments and silver crosses too.

And even...

"Sir, come take a look at my wares."

Inside an antique shop, a girl with animal ears bared her teeth in a smile.

"Huh? Ears?"

They weren't human ears. The ones perked up above her head looked like an animal's.

"Oh? First time seeing beastkin, customer?"

"Beastkin?"

Her vertically slit pupils gleamed bright yellow.

Nothing about her looked human, and yet she called herself beastkin.

"Haha! Some people are like that."

Beastkin existed too?

Seriously, there was everything here.

Then again, there were angels, demons, and the Eight-Foot-Tall Ghost. What wouldn't exist?

"Sir, a fine item just came in. Care to take a look? You seem like no ordinary person, and I can't show ordinary goods to someone like you."

She slowly held out a wooden box. Inside sat a jade bead with a radiant glow.

"It's a five-tailed fox spirit jewel. Foxes with five tails are exceedingly rare. What do you think? Interested?"

What the hell is that, you damn nerd...

Saying that out loud would make me look like an easy mark, wouldn't it?

I gave a casual nod and examined the five-tailed fox spirit jewel.

"As you know, ever since the Kyoto White-Faced Golden-Furred Nine-Tailed Fox's Night Parade of One Hundred Demons failed, the fox folk have nearly died out. Those Gangnam Holy Temple Church bastards, seriously. They went after the Tsuchimikado Clan head and the foxes like they meant to wipe them out."

Why was our church coming up here? And what were the Kyoto White-Faced Golden-Furred Nine-Tailed Fox and the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons?!

"It's impossible to find one these days. To get an item of this quality, you'd have to find 《Collector》's hidden treasure vault."

"How much?"

Who was Collector supposed to be now?

I had no intention of buying it, but I asked out of courtesy.

"Only one and a half billion won! Cheap, right?"

What the hell.

One and a half billion was cheap?

I shook my head and left the antique shop.

Then...

"Sir. Be careful. Since the Night Parade failed, foxes will try to rip out and eat a clergyperson's heart while they're still alive. Protestant pastors especially."

It was a warning that sent a chill down my spine.

When I turned around, the animal-eared girl was already calling out to other customers.

I continued looking around the Ghost Market.

The shop the Mystic Association had told me about was supposed to be farther inside.

The location was D-13, I think. I was in Ra Section now, so I was almost there.

Then, in the middle of the Ghost Market, there was one spot that drew an unusual crowd despite the red lanterns overhead and the haggling voices and bell chimes mixing together.

A huge tent.

A stall planted right in the best location.

「Benkei's Iron Staff」

Beneath a banner that looked Japanese, an enormous iron rod was set into a massive pedestal.

No, should I call that a monk's staff?

Since it was made of iron, was that why it was called an iron staff?

You know, the kind of staff monks carry around in Japanese comics set during the Warring States period.

Still, it was so huge that it looked more like a pillar than a staff.

The shaft was thicker than two human forearms put together, and the black surface was layered with grooves worn by time.

Several rings hung from the top like those of a monk's staff, each one clanking with a heavy sound.

Most striking of all was its sheer weight.

The thick rod looked like a solid chunk of iron, and just looking at it made it feel heavy.

"All right, all right! The Ghost Market's main attraction! For an entry fee of only ten million won, here's your chance to obtain the Iron Staff of the legendary warrior monk Musashibo Benkei!"

A man who looked like a merchant shouted as he advertised the staff.

He slapped the iron staff with his palm and cried out.

"Just lift it out, and it's yours! You won't get another chance like this!"

Murmurs rose from the crowd.

"He's full of shit. He'll give away a treasure if someone just lifts it?"

"Isn't it fake?"

The onlookers questioned the staff, but someone answered as if refuting them.

"It's real. That's the real Iron Staff of Musashibo Benkei."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because Pastor Kim, 《Collector》, brought it in."

Everyone's attention shifted at those words.

Why was a pastor coming up here? Could it be the Pastor Kim I knew?

"An item from 《Collector》? Then why is it here?"

"I heard it was sold. That guy supposedly paid Collector four billion won for it."

"Crazy... and he's giving it away for ten million?"

"He's not selling it. You get it if you can lift it."

"Still..."

The man explaining it sounded certain.

"No one can lift that thing. That guy knows it, which is why he makes a tidy profit every time the Ghost Market opens."

Just as he said, the merchant was brimming with confidence.

His smile stretched from ear to ear, and several people had already tried. The iron staff hadn't budged.

That wasn't a prize.

It was a scam.

No human strength could ever pull it out.

No human strength.

Footnotes:

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