They says that souls are cruel, obsessive, and holds grudges by nature.

 

Kim Sojin had learned this too.

 

After numerous battles, Kim Sojin came to understand the cruelty of the soul. When harming someone, there was no hesitation, and no regret after taking a life. Those were the traits of the psychopaths Yoo Hajin had taught her about.

 

In front of Yoo Hajin, she decided to hide this aspect of herself.

 

Betrayed by her parents, her mentors, and the elders of her clan, Kim Sojin realized what grudge she harbored. It wasn’t a grudge born of betrayal. She was harboring a grudge born of loneliness.

 

If it had been about betrayal,

 

She would have exacted complete revenge on everyone involved.

 

She would have become a complete monster.

 

But Kim Sojin did not do that.

 

She did not become a complete monster but chose to live as a human. The reason for this, Kim Sojin realized, was meeting Yoo Hajin.

 

In the end, she understood that she was a lonely being, yearning for someone.

 

And now, as Yoo Hajin spoke of entering the Cheonji, Kim Sojin was realizing what her soul was truly obsessed with.

 

“I absolutely, absolutely can’t lose this.”

 

The girl’s eyes turned cold and determined.

 

 

When I opened my eyes, it was morning.

 

A morning when I had to go to the DMZ.

 

Did the people who enlisted in the past also face such mornings?

 

“Having to go to the DMZ in an era when the conscription is gone.”

 

I had no one to blame but myself for this predicament, yet after learning more about the DMZ yesterday, I felt even less inclined to go.

 

To explain how hellish the DMZ is, one must start by explaining the fall of North Korea.

 

North Korea was a communist state, known for being atheistic, not only dismissing shamans and mediums as superstitious but also persecuting Buddhists and Catholics.

 

Naturally, they destroyed village guardian trees, totem poles, and other spiritual sites like seals and shrines. They labeled these practices as barbaric and dragged those who performed them to political prisons, torturing and killing them.

 

Even before the day of Spiritual Awakening, numerous gifted individuals had been tortured to death, and many spiritual sanctuaries had been destroyed.

 

On the day when people began to see ghosts, a week later, North Korea fell. The souls of corrupted shamans turned into evil spirits, and the collapse of a system to fend them off synergized into turning North Korea into a living hell.

 

The same happened in Northern China, turning it into a hellish landscape. The evil spirits from North Korea and China converged in Manchuria, giving rise to an entity known as the ‘Ghost King’, or ‘Gwizon’.

 

Little was known about this Gwizon. All that was said was that it was a powerful evil spirit, and thankfully, it was kept at bay in Korea.

 

North Korea became a hell, and the DMZ was the closest land to this hell. In fact, it’s said that the DMZ is even more dangerous than the interior of North Korea.

 

Ghosts are drawn to people, and since there are no people left in North Korea, the DMZ has become a gathering place for these malevolent spirits.

 

And I had to go to this DMZ.

 

Damn, I really didn’t want to go.

 

So there I was, getting off the bus headed to Paju.

 

“Great, the bus only goes to the outskirts of Paju.”

 

I unfolded the electric scooter I had brought with me.

 

It was a cost-effective mode of transportation, costing only about 20,000 won for a month’s rental. I had rented it for a week for about 10,000 won.

 

Whirring along, I crossed the abandoned city of Paju on my scooter.

 

Seeing a whole city deserted and crumbling felt like I was a character in some post-apocalyptic story.

 

Should I build a bunker in preparation for the apocalypse?

 

Given the state of the world these days, it wouldn’t be surprising if it all fell apart.

 

With that apocalyptic mindset, I took a selfie.

 

“Hmm, this is a pretty good spot.”

 

Looking at the photo, I felt like writing a nonsense post titled '(Yoo Hajin Snapshot).'

 

I’ll have to show it to Jamsuni later.

 

I snapped a selfie in front of a shop and hopped back on my electric scooter.

 

Seems like there’s quite a distance to the DMZ.

 

Everything was still too peaceful.

 

I took another selfie in front of the iron bridge crossing the Imjin River and then crossed it.

 

The Imjin River and the wetlands beyond displayed a beauty that seemed straight out of a documentary.

 

Looking at the wetlands, I spoke to myself.

 

“Maybe I should bring Jamsuni here next time. That kid never leaves the house unless I suggest going out.”

 

Whirring along, I continued towards the DMZ.

 

How far exactly are Paju and the DMZ from each other?

 

It’s too peaceful here.

 

I saw some armored vehicles passing by, but I guessed it wasn’t unusual given the proximity to the DMZ. It’s a military area, after all; armored vehicles are to be expected.

 

How far north had I gone?

 

I came across a group of people who looked like they’d fit right into a description of war survivors.

They stared at me, eyes wide with shock.

 

Their injuries were severe. Being bandaged and bloodied was the least of it. From those who had lost limbs to those barely recognizable as living, it was like a field hospital in a war zone.

 

“What the hell is going on here?”

 

I tilted my head in confusion.

 

 

The DMZ is hell.

 

No, it’s worse than hell.

 

The spiritual power users or psychics deployed in the DMZ operation were united in a similar thought. It was inevitable.

 

“Getting to the DMZ must be the second phase of the test.”

 

Usually, joining Cheonji involves three tests.

 

But this time, they announced that only two phases would be conducted.

 

People thought this meant Cheonji needed more recruits, so they lowered the passing criteria.

 

That was until they heard the second test would be conducted in the DMZ.

 

At the outskirts of Paju City, dozens of armored vehicles were lined up. Their surfaces were etched with various complex patterns in cinnabar, all effective against evil spirits.

 

The armored vehicles themselves were designed for protection, lacking offensive capabilities.

 

“Today, our clan alliance will break through the DMZ.”

 

There are four main types of spiritual power groups in Korea. The hereditary shamans who inherit their positions through lineage and the alliance of the families, who are descendants of certain spiritual beings. This alliance is known as the Segas.

 

Groups centered around strong spiritual power users, following the training methods established by them, are called Munpa, and their alliance is known as the Jungpa.

 

Then there are the rogue spiritual power users who form gang-like groups for their own benefits, simply referred to as Sapa.

 

And lastly, the Cheonji, who control these groups with power.

 

Thus, these four groups could be divided.

 

The owners of the armored vehicles gathered today were the clan alliance, the Segas. They pooled their strength to take the children of the Segas who had passed the first test to the DMZ.

 

“I won’t mince words. Breaking through Paju is dangerous. Despite dozens of specially armored vehicles, the charms and talismans provided to you, and the training of many powerful individuals, it will be a dangerous operation,” said the operation’s leader, Park Jongcheol.

 

“But by carrying out this operation, if a member of our revered clans joins Cheonji, it brings the hegemony of Korea, and furthermore, the hegemony of this secular world, closer to us.” 

 

the leader continued.

 

“Let’s go! Let’s imbue Cheonji with the power of the oldest clans! Let’s make our name resound not just in this world, but in the spiritual realm as well!”

 

With that, the clan’s private soldiers boarded the armored vehicles.

 

And the operation began.

 

Even inside the armored vehicles, protected by cinnabar and consecrated steel, eerie sounds began to penetrate.

 

The sound of water flowing. Something submerging. Gurgling as it sank. Something writhing in the deep sea. The creaking of the armored vehicle distorting under the pressure.

 

Hearing this, a man inside an armored vehicle spoke up.

 

“Captain, we need to escape before we go deeper. This armored vehicle won’t withstand the pressure.”

 

“What are you talking about, kid?”

 

The Captain laughed.

 

“This isn’t the ocean, it’s a river. Can’t even withstand the pressure of a river? We haven’t reached the sea yet. Rivers flow meaninglessly into the sea. Let’s go to the sea. To the deep sea. To the boundless black waters.”

 

“Captain!”

 

Just then, one of the armored vehicles plunged straight into a sinkhole. Strangely, despite the vehicle’s disappearance, there was nothing but pitch-black darkness inside the sinkhole.

 

Meanwhile, in another armored vehicle:

 

“Captain and 13 members have entered Baekseok-ri.”

 

“Please confirm again. The total number in the 7th platoon is 10.”

 

Upon hearing this, the Captain turned to his squad members. Nine of them already had their heads severed, and the remaining three were laughing grotesquely.

 

In another armored vehicle:

 

“Damn it. Damn it. Why are there so many evil spirits almost at the level of a Gwizon! I’ve already seen four!”

 

“Fuck, just survive and make it back. I swear, I’m really loyal.”

 

“Drive, drive faster but carefully! If we accidentally hit a grounded spirit, we’re both done for!”

 

“Then you guys pump in more spiritual power! Thinking about the round trip is driving me insane!”

 

Everything outside the driver’s window was unbelievable. Dancing evil spirits, evil spirits dancing while hanging upside down, evil spirits rummaging inside a stopped armored vehicle while dancing upside down. And a... ghost...? leisurely riding an electric scooter around the city of Paju.

 

“No, that’s a person.”

 

But that made it even more unbelievable.

 

Armored vehicles made of consecrated steel, coated in cinnabar, a vermilion pigment known for its demon-annihilating properties, and inscribed with protective charms, yet chaos ensued.

 

But someone crossing Paju on just an electric scooter?

 

It was an incredible thought.

 

As the driver was lost in confusion, the cabin behind him fell silent. Realizing what this silence meant, the driver pressed the gun’s muzzle against his temple.

 

Missing, annihilated, dead.

 

Listening to all the reports, Park Jongcheol, sitting in the command armored vehicle, muttered to himself.

 

“This is a noble sacrifice. The oldest bloodlines will remember this sacrifice.”

 

It was impossible to save everyone.

 

Then, it was right to save the most noble bloodlines.

 

Seeing the decoy units being sacrificed according to the plan, Park Jongcheol nodded in satisfaction, a pleased expression on his face. But his expression soon twisted. Photos had been transmitted to him.

 

They were of a man.

 

A photo of a man crossing Paju city on an electric scooter, a photo of the man stopping in front of the second most dangerous shop in Paju to take a selfie, a photo of the man taking a selfie in front of the Imjin River bridge, where hordes of dangerous spirits gathered.

 

“Was he such a monster...?”

 

Looking at those photos, Park Jongcheol felt fear for the first time in a long while.