Early in the morning, Leader Yoon Taehee visited the pavilion.
"You're here."
Paehyeon, who had been waiting after sensing the master's presence from the base of the mountain, greeted. Bowing his head, he welcomed Yoon Taehee, who, as usual, was dressed casually when visiting the pavilion. He wore a large black hoodie and cotton training pants.
The leader pulled back the hood covering his head.
"You're up early."
The pavilion was quiet in the early morning.
Hyungwoon, who was fond of drinking, was still deeply asleep in a drunken stupor. Saero and Heukje had yet to return from enjoying the city nightlife, while Daga and Yeonok had gone for an early morning walk.
The leader was scheduled to work in the afternoon.
He planned to stop by the pavilion to handle some tasks before heading directly to the office. Though he had left home with damp hair, it had mostly dried during the drive. Ruffling his still slightly damp hair, the leader walked on as Paehyeon quickly followed. A faint scent of perfume and shampoo wafted from him.
"The deadline's long passed. Did Chairman Jang pay up?"
The master asked as Paehyeon pointed to a pile of apple crates covered with cloth. Removing the cloth revealed four dirt-stained boxes neatly stacked. As expected, when they checked the designated spot on the appointed day, the money was indeed buried there. The leader had been right. Although it seemed possible the client might withdraw the request after having their pride thoroughly crushed, as the leader had noted, the one in need ultimately loses.
"Oh, fresh bills."
Opening the boxes, they found bundles of crisp banknotes stacked tightly. Picking one up, the leader tapped it against the table, counting the bundles before nodding.
"The amount seems about right."
With the advance payment made, it was time to fulfill the request. There were many ways to cast a curse, but he preferred to use straw dolls as the medium.
"Can you bring me the straw doll?"
While Paehyeon went to another room to fetch it, the leader sat at the table and began preparing the ritual.
He pricked his finger and let a few drops of blood fall into a small dish. Mixing it with cinnabar, he spread a piece of mulberry paper made of traditional dak tree fibers. Using the bright red mixture of his blood and cinnabar, he wrote the client's name and date of birth on the paper.
Just as he was carefully drawing strokes and inscribing the Chinese characters with a small brush, his phone vibrated in his hoodie pocket. Pulling it out, he glanced at the screen.
[Kim Jaegyeom sent you a heart. (Just now)]
"..."
Yoon Taehee stared silently at the screen, expressionless. Then, suddenly, he slumped forward onto the table, resting his chin on one arm. He gazed at the message on the screen as though cherishing a precious possession, reading it carefully with lowered lashes.
"Sent you a heart..."
7:23 a.m. He must have just woken up.
Jaegyeom diligently played Friends Pang every day.
Judging by the intervals at which hearts were sent, it was clear when he went to bed and when he woke up
He played before sleeping and as soon as he opened his eyes. Since you could send a heart to friends every hour, he sent at least ten hearts daily with unwavering commitment.
Looking at the heart Jaegyeom had sent, Yoon Taehee returned one as well.
Then, suddenly, clutching his phone tightly, he buried his forehead in his arm.
"..."
A pain twisted his stomach as though it was being squeezed. The bones in his clenched hand jutted out visibly as his grip trembled in the intense pain.
Clutching his upper abdomen with his other hand, Yoon Taehee slumped over the table. Paehyeon, returning with the straw doll, quickly approached.
"Are you alright?"
"Just bring me a warm cup of tea."
"Are you in pain somewhere?"
"My stomach hurts..."
Since unlocking the emotions in his heart he had long suppressed, Yoon Taehee had enjoyed uncharacteristically pleasant days. Yet, moments like this dragged him into despair. An inexplicable anxiety would coil around his entire body, and when he swallowed the overwhelming urgency, his stomach would twist in pain. The leader bent over, waiting for the agony to pass.
Each day was filled with unspeakable abundance,
and unspeakable emptiness.
Though he knew impatience would ruin everything, Yoon Taehee couldn't help but feel restless. He combed through the archives every day, searching for a way to break the curse of immortality, but the answer was still far out of reach. Watching precious time slip by day to day felt unbearable.
After some time, the pain subsided. The leader, who had remained slumped over, ran his fingers through his still-damp hair. At that moment, Paehyeon returned with a cup of warm tea. The leader asked him,
"Did you find anything?"
Paehyeon hesitated briefly, placing the tea on the table, and looked at the leader. It was rare to see the leader looking so restless and frustrated. Since the day he was ordered to find a way to break the curse of immortality, the master had been calling Paehyeon every two or three days to ask about progress.
Paehyeon knew that even this patience was hard-won.
Fortunately, today he had some results.
"I've heard a story about legendary mermaids."
"Mermaids?"
The leader furrowed his brow slightly.
"Yes. A long time ago, there was a group of mermaids inhabiting the waters near Geomun island. According to legend, consuming the flesh and blood of these divine creatures could grant immortality."
The leader, still half-leaning on the table, focused intently on Paehyeon.
"It might only be a legend, but it is said that humans once hunted mermaids indiscriminately, and now they're nearly extinct. There's a rumor that the last sighting involved a few young mermaids.
Investigating mermaids might provide a clue about 'immortality."
Mermaids? Mermaids...
Lost in thought, the leader eventually nodded.
"Alright. Keep at it. Track the mermaids."
He picked up a book that had been resting on one side of the table. It was Yoon Seonoh's children's storybook. From between the pages, he pulled out a polaroid photo he had been using as a bookmark. For some time now, whenever he visited the pavilion, he always took out this photo to look at.
Staring at the picture, the leader spoke.
"There's not much time left. Two months from now."
Resting his cheek on his arm, he murmured to himself.
"..."
In other words, it was an instruction to hurry. Seeing the leader, who was always calm and unhurried, now impatient, was an unfamiliar sight. To Paehyeon, the leader was more like a ghost than a human-someone who lived solely for revenge. It was astonishing that such a person had placed the matter of breaking the boy's curse on the same level as their quest for revenge.
"Do you love that person?"
Paehyeon asked quietly.
"Yes."
The leader replied without a moment's hesitation.
Paehyeon's eyes widened at the immediate response.
Not long ago, the boy had been nothing more than a tool for revenge, a pawn in his game. Until recently, the leader had shown no intention of even remaining friends with him. What kind of change in heart had occurred?
After standing in silence for a moment, Paehyeon spoke, still surprised.
"If you can't find a way within the time limit, what will you do then?"
"I suppose I'll have to break the promise."
Paehyeon knew about the promise between the master and the boy.
"Are you saying you'll break your promise with him?"
"No, I'm saying I'll create a situation where I can't keep the promise."
...Create a situation where the promise can't be kept?
Paehyeon looked puzzled, unable to grasp the meaning.
"Without the mask of the Bangsangsi, I can't keep the promise in the first place."
After a brief pause, the leader added in a dry tone.
"If I can't find a way, I'll steal the mask midway—as the leader of the Byeoksadan."
Paehyeon hesitated and looked at the leader. He had not revealed to the boy that he was the leader of the Byeoksadan. Thus, the boy remained unaware of the truth.
"Otherwise, there's no way to keep him close."
The leader muttered, pressing his forehead against his arm.
"..."
After some thought, Paehyeon cautiously spoke.
"Wouldn't it be enough to win his heart?"
The leader looked at him with a face that seemed to ask what he meant.
"Why not honestly tell him that you're looking into a way to break the curse of immortality, ask him to stay by your side, and spend a long time together? Or wouldn't it be okay if you make him want to stay in this land of his own free will?"
"That's not going to happen."
After a long silence, the leader finally spoke. Hearing those words, Paehyeon realized once again. Yoon Taehee was a person with a broken heart. Creating a situation where he couldn't keep the promise was his way of intentionally avoiding breaking the promise outright. Even if it meant earning the boy's hatred, he was resolved. It was a desperate desire to keep the boy close no matter the cost. And yet...
He didn't trust himself to win his heart.
The leader's way of thinking was entirely unlike that of ordinary humans. A normal person wouldn't even consider forcibly keeping someone close as a solution.
Instead, they would strive to make the other person choose to stay by their side willingly, working to change their heart. But the leader seemed incapable of entertaining such a possibility. It was a dark and barren thought process, characteristic of someone who had always been singularly focused on their goals, driven by vengeance.
For the first time, Paehyeon felt a sense of what was known as 'pity' for his master. Even a ghost like himself understood something this human did not. Though he could manipulate people with ease, the leader was incapable of truly winning someone's heart, he was a broken human being.
After a long silence, Paehyeon smiled faintly and spoke softly.
"You always did take the hard path, Taehee-nim."
Yoon Taehee said nothing.