< 47. 21st Century Robin Hood (1) >
Ha Eun-seong (age 22, died 6 months ago, cause of death: blood loss due to a puncture wound in the left carotid artery) was in Gwanghwamun.
In the square, people were gathering early in the morning, preparing something. Ha Eun-seong was watching the scene from a distance.
“Look over there. Did you see another protest?”
“You’re being diligent from this time on.”
Although there were some pedestrians who made a fuss, most people walked quickly because it was commuting time.
And none of them could see Ha Eun-seong, who was a spirit. To ordinary eyes, they could only see his body through transparent lenses, glance at the square, and then look away again.
The reaction changed when protesters began drawing intricate shapes on the square’s floor.
“Isn’t that a magic circle?”
“What? No way… Terrorism?!”
“Hey, no way. Then there’s chaos already? Maybe the ghosts are demonstrating.”
The last guess turned out to be true.
After receiving confirmation from the psychic who was in charge of communication, or in other words, a modern-day shaman, the magicians poured their magic power into it. Then, a soft light flowed out from the magic circle, and hundreds of psychic bodies appeared in a space where there was no one, like smoky smoke. So that even ordinary people could see them.
=······!=
At the signal, the milky ghosts began to protest in unison, emitting psychic waves. From now on, their words could also be heard by the citizens. This was the effect of the magic circle.
Ha Eun-seong still looked at them without mixing in and maintaining his distance. After a while, another ghost flew in from the opposite direction of the protesters and stopped next to him.
=Eunseong, you were here?=
=Oh, bro. You’re here?=
Godok-hwan (age 33, 15 years after death, cause of death: subarachnoid hemorrhage due to ruptured cerebral aneurysm) advised him.
=I heard there’s a nice attraction, do you want to go together?=
=What is it?=
=There’s actor Kwak Do-chul, right? He was caught cheating on his wife with a half-elf idol who was ten years younger than him, and now she’s throwing him, breaking him, slapping him, and causing a huge fuss.=
=Those rich people’s houses probably have exorcism talismans on them. They won’t let kids like us in.=
=No! It’s an officetel that we got separately to use when we meet, but the construction company ate it up and used cheap stuff, so it looks like all the energy has been worn out!=
It is impossible for an ordinary person without this ability to estimate it. Ha Eun-seong felt a mental headache when he imagined the scene where ghosts with voyeurism would be swarming around.
=No, please don’t do that! It’s because of those ‘some’ senseless ghosts that we have to protest like that!=
Only then did Godokhwan turn his head toward the square.
=Why are you doing that?=
Ha Eun-seong became furious when he saw her indifferent attitude, as if she was talking about someone else’s business.
=A demonstration to protect our rights!=
He still looked as if he wasn’t interested.
=Anyway, kids who have died not long ago are extremely sensitive to such words. The right to exist, discrimination between life and death, resistance···.=
The races of the spirits that were realized on the magic circle were diverse. Humans, elves, orcs, trolls, goblins, etc.
A great unification of races that had never been seen before in life was taking place among the dead. They each shouted out the slogans they had prepared.
=The government must guarantee the right to life and the same right to existence to the spirits!=
=Is a country where dead intelligence is treated worse than living animals a proper country?=
=We are not··· the wizards’··· guinea pigs!=
=Also, the National Assembly should withdraw the ‘Privacy Infringement Prevention Act Amendment’!=
=We urge you to immediately stop the discriminatory and biased legislation that treats all ghosts as potential sexual predators and perpetrators of violations of confidentiality!=
=I urge you! I urge you!=
=Stop the psychosomatic hate!=
One of the slogans they are chanting is to repeal the bill requiring the installation of exorcism screens in all new buildings, Ha Eun-seong explained.
=It’s because of the ghosts that keep crossing the line that the living are trying to make such laws!=
=Hey, anyway, we’re just watching it with pure curiosity and fun, without any gloomy thoughts···.=
=No matter what the motive, the people who are affected are upset.=
Go Deok-hwan shrugged and asked.
=If you are so actively in favor of the protest, why aren’t you joining it and are just standing here like this?=
=Same reason as my brother.=
=I have no intention of participating?=
=Even if my brother or I volunteered, they wouldn’t accept us there.=
As he said that, he glanced at Ko Deok-hwan’s appearance.
Some ghosts have their astral form reflect the clothes and body condition they were wearing just before they died, making it very difficult to change their appearance later.
Ha Eun-seong pointed out what Ko Deok-hwan’s spirit body looked like. All he wore from top to bottom was an old, holey trunk with the words ‘Ssangbangwool’ written in large letters.
=This kind of clothing is disgusting to the citizens, so it is not allowed. I am the same.=
In the case of Ko Deok-hwan, the problem was that there was not enough to cover his body, while the problem with Ha Eun-seong was that there were things covering his neck and below.
=Ah··· Really?=
Ha Eun-seong, who he looked at with nod, was wearing a penguin doll outfit that amusement park workers wear from the nape of their neck down, with only their face exposed.
Up to this point, some people might feel friendly. However, a sharp, sharpened sword was deeply embedded in the left side of the nape of the neck. It could be said that the attire was enough to instill fear rather than disgust in the citizens.
=It can’t look too funny, but it can’t look too cruel either.=
Ha Eun-seong smiled bitterly, looking like a half-human, half-penguin with a knife stuck in his neck.
=Still, after the protest is over, I’ll go to the ghost shelter right away and write a review on my blog. This kind of thing needs to be widely known.=
He runs a blog about the daily lives of ghosts, and it has been showing off its (own) prowess by surpassing 100,000 visitors in just two months since its launch. The number of clicks has exploded since some of the posts were captured and shared on various communities.
=Are you still doing that? Stop harassing the volunteers.=
=You’re harassing me! You’re splitting the banner ad fees like a knife. I’m telling you, it’s a pretty good deal for thirty minutes of typing.=
=What? You’re even distributing money? Then it’s not volunteering or anything.=
=It’s volunteer work because he helps me even when I don’t get paid for tweeting. And, he’s really nice. He even suggested that we do YouTube together since he’ll pay for the initial funds.=
=How can I use YouTube if I can’t take pictures or record?=
=Because I have telepathy, I enter that person’s body and tell the story. I verify my possession every time I start the video.=
——————
faqwiki.us
Join our Discord for new chapter updates!
https://discord.com/invite/xr7SxG5T6V
——————
Godokhwan clicked his tongue.
=The world is really crazy. What are you going to do with all that money? Send it all to your younger siblings?=
=Of course. Even if a ghost had money, what would he use it for?=
There is also the option of taking over the body of a person with a sensor and enjoying various pleasures. However, for Ha Eun-seong, who has almost lost the desire for such things, it is meaningless, and if you move violently or spend a long time while possessed, it is dangerous because it becomes a burden to both parties.
Therefore, the limit is that you can only do a few dozen minutes of acting according to a pre-written script without using your body much.
‘The idea itself doesn’t seem bad···.’
Nevertheless, Ko Deok-hwan felt sorry for Ha Eun-seong. Even after his death, he was still the head of the household and worked hard to earn money for his younger siblings.
=Okay, I got it. You can just watch this demonstration to your heart’s content.=
In the end, I gave up and was about to go see the scene of the affair alone.
=Huh? Why are you doing that?=
A wave of unrest spread violently among the protesters. The police arrived. Even the living volunteers protested violently.
=Huh? Are you fighting? I guess you’re fighting!=
Godok-hwan got excited and stood up again. There are few scenes as stimulating as a fight.
“No, where is this law?”
I heard that the city suddenly canceled the protest permit they had given them. That’s a common occurrence.
Ha Eun-seong grumbled.
=Why didn’t you give permission in the first place? Why are you doing this and that? You rotten bastards.=
The volunteers guessed the reason.
“You clearly reported in advance that this many people would gather, but now that they’ve actually gathered, are you scared?”
It was the first time today that ghosts gathered in their hundreds for a protest.
As the scale of the problem grew larger and larger, the city seemed to have decided that it was time to nip it in the bud.
The ghosts also protested.
=Are you scared of hundreds of people gathering? Is this all? In the future, we will gather more and show solidarity!=
The atmosphere gradually became tense, and despite Ko Deok-hwan’s suggestion to leave, Ha Eun-seong watched the scene with a cold expression.
As the scuffle continued and the ghosts did not respond to the order to disperse, the police were seen giving instructions. Then, someone came with something like a wheeled cannon. When Ko Deok-hwan saw that, his face turned pale.
=That’s it! It’s an exorcism shockwave generator! Hey, hey! You can’t be here. Run away quickly!=
It was an unfamiliar weapon to Ha Eun-seong, who had a short death power. However, his expression was filled with fear because he had heard the infamy so much that it hurt his ears.
A weapon that can inflict pain even on the dead.
He had hated being sick even while he was alive, and even after he died, he heard in detail about the building where the exorcism was installed from his seniors and memorized it, so he never went near it.
But that is… a magical tool with power dozens of times greater!
“no!”
The protesters stood firm as if they would not run away, and Go Deok-hwan quickly threw himself up as if he had decided that he should run away first. Ha Eun-seong, frozen in fear, moved a little too late.
But the police didn’t wait long.
bang!
There was a loud noise that could be heard by the living and the dead alike.
Almost simultaneously, milky raindrops shot up into the sky. The vibrations from the shockwave generator swept through the surroundings. The living did not feel even a single gust of wind, but the spirits were helplessly thrown away like scraps of paper caught in a typhoon.
The hundreds of ghosts protesting in the magic circle, as well as Godok-hwan, who had escaped first and was flying high, were caught in the shockwave and screamed as if they were being torn apart. They were thrown out at such a fast speed that it was impossible to guess how far they would be pushed.
Ha Eun-seong was watching the whole scene.
=······?!=
From below, looking up.
=······Huh?=
I slowly moved my stiff neck and took in every scene.
=What is this?=
He was still floating on the roof of the lottery stand.
=You said it hurt so much you couldn’t even speak?=
He was aware that he had been hit by the shockwave, but it was just a passing wave like water. He was not caught up in it and was not blown away. The ghost who had endured the shock that had been so horribly suffered by the other ghosts was left floating in a daze.
There were no other ghosts around anymore.
and.
“uh?”
The psychic who was in charge of communication between the wizard and the ghost at the protest turned his head to the aforementioned face and the two made eye contact.
When she saw Ha Eun-seong, her expression couldn’t hide her shock. Her lips moved slowly.
“How are you…?”
Ha Eun-seong felt like he didn’t know what to say.
***
“This is Agent Ye Min-jun. I have a meeting scheduled with Princess Vermi today.”
“Ah… Ah! Yes! Hello, Yewon! The interview preparations are complete!”
The immigration agent froze when he revealed his identity. Minjun passed him who saluted like a private and entered the basement of Jenkinson Company headquarters. Princess Vermi was being held in the VIP detention center, which was only used for rare cases of political prisoners or high-ranking officials being detained. Minjun was reunited with her a day later than scheduled due to a tax investigation.
Their eyes met.
“······.”
The princess was wearing something similar to a straitjacket worn by violent patients in a psychiatric ward.
Unlike the type worn by humans and other races, this one was made of metal. It was wrapped tightly with a spell-bound iron chain to prevent the mouth from opening freely, and a straw was inserted between the teeth for distribution and water supply.
Clank! Clank!
The agent recited the spell and released the chain that had bound her mouth. The princess spat out the straw with a thud. There was blood in her saliva. The agents probably didn’t do anything cruel, but she must have been grinding her teeth and chewing the soft flesh inside her mouth.
“You asked to see me?”
The crocodile’s eyes were alternately filled with various emotions, such as regret, shame, anger, and despair. He looked at Minjun without answering and then spoke.
“I hope no one but you hear this conversation from now on.”
His English pronunciation was surprisingly fluent.
‘As expected, you’ve been preparing to immigrate to Earth for a long time. Your statement that you weren’t interested was a lie.’
Minjun tried to point out that her request was futile.
“I came here to hear a confession about what happened behind the scenes. As required by law, I will naturally report to my superiors…”
“It’s your choice whether to relay all of my words to them later or to select and convey them selectively. So for now, I’d like you to just do as I request.”
The look in her eyes was too clear to be dismissed as being emotional or an irrational state of mind. Minjun, who had been guessing her intentions, decided to do as she wanted.
Exactly!
As he snapped his fingers, the princess felt the texture of the air change. She didn’t need to check to see if the surrounding noise had been blocked out. She had clearly given a ‘warning’.
Princess Vermi said.
“You are a prisoner. Right?”
Minjun neither confirmed nor denied.
He seemed to have noticed this when he saw himself and Dell arguing in an alien language at the terminal.
He stares at the crocodile with calm eyes. Only then does he realize that her request to block out the sound from outside was not only for her own sake, but also for Minjun’s.
“I have a question for you, prisoner. My crimes will eventually be dealt with by the committee, and I have very little information about them. If you promise to answer my questions in as much detail as possible, I will confess to you.”
Her next question was this:
“If I am charged with this crime, what kind of punishment do you think I will receive?”
His pupils trembled with faint fear.
“If it’s a labor reform, how many years is the sentence? I’ve heard that sometimes they throw you into the Abyss without mercy. What’s the standard?”
In fact, she couldn’t guarantee that Minjun would tell her the truth. Nevertheless, the princess somehow felt that she could trust him in this matter. There was no basis for this, but she thought so.
Minjun, who had been staring blankly, said.
“······Before I can answer, I think I need to know the background of who the princess came into contact with to commit such an act. If you answer first, I will tell you what I know.”
In the end, Minjun also confesses his identity and agrees.
Although they are said to be a despised race, their relative status was that of a princess. They are aware of the committee’s labor reform system.
“good night.”
Then Princess Vermi confessed that she had acted according to the immigration broker’s demands, and after listening to the end, Minjun said.
“You don’t have any powers, Princess?”
“Yes.”
“It is common for criminals who are not economically viable to be thrown into the Abyss, as you said.”
“?!”
“Considering her status as a princess, I think she can avoid such a dramatic situation.”
“······Is that so?”
Only then does a little sense of relief pass over me.
“Instead, you should give a sincere statement so that the committee can track down and arrest the broker who encouraged the illegal act. Also, considering the circumstances, it seems that the princess was defrauded by them, so if you emphasize that part….”
The princess was startled.
“A fraud?!”
Minjun explained calmly.
“In exchange for handing over Jenkinson’s cargo, the broker promised to lobby the council? That’s a plausible story. But the content of that lobbying… was to pressure the kingdom to release the Shutan, which accounts for 15% of GDP.”
“Why is that?”
“Even if the committee has made unfair treaties with each level, this is going too far. The only ones who can make such decisions are the representatives who are in charge of the committee and…”
“Yes, they are the ones who can lobby the delegates directly.”
“I don’t think so. People with such abilities wouldn’t be brokers or anything.”
“I think it’s possible. Because we’re the same species.”
Minjun’s expression hardened slightly.
“That broker is of the same race as one of the delegates?”
The princess answered in a firm tone.
“Yes, I can be sure because I met him in person.”
“However, those who wish to ascend to the position of Grand Commissioner must be of an ancient race.”
“I see.”
“?!”
Minjun’s eyes became as cold as ice.
The princess was now saying that the man who introduced himself as an immigration broker was one of the races that created and ran the committee.
“What race were you?”
Then the princess recited the name of a race that Minjun had not expected.
“Carbide.”
< 47. 21st Century Robin Hood (1) > End
