Subdued Soul Chronicle

“He said that his mother would definitely say that. Since it was a child she had given up on, he said his mother would try to cover up his terrible death. For the sake of the family and for the bright future of the younger siblings…”

“I don’t know what you are talking about.”

“The young master said that he couldn’t help but do something if his mother would do that. He said he would turn into a demon and cling to his younger siblings and block their growth.”

The complexion of the old lady changed. At that moment, a scream rang out, and she turned to where the eldest daughter, second daughter, and youngest son were.

The woman jumped up and hurriedly opened the door.

“Come with me!”

The servants were already rushing.

“Miss!”

“The youngest master!”

And they returned with shocked faces.

“The second lady is sleeping comfortably.”

“The first lady is reading a book.”

“The youngest master is eating snacks.”

She was stunned.

“I just heard a scream, though. Didn’t you hear it too?”

“Yes. It was unmistakably their voices.”

All of them nodded.

“It seems like the last warning from your son.”

Zaha said.

“Damn it, please answer me honestly. Your son was brutally murdered by someone, right?”

Her face turned blue.

“I see. Being murdered is a big deal. I don’t know what will happen if you cover it up like that. I will have to inform the Ministry of Justice.”

“Wait!”

She was shocked. Considering Zaha’s position and his status, no one could stop him.

Eventually, she gave up.

“Yes. My son was brutally murdered, but the claim that I tried to cover it up is only a misunderstanding. I asked my servants to investigate what happened, but no one saw my child after leaving the brothel house. And I couldn’t figure out anything else after that.”

“But there is still a way. Which is why we are here, right?”

Zaha looked at Seol Young again.

“Lady.”

Seol Young stepped forward.

“I think he might have some keepsakes here. Since he died young without any children, he must have left behind something that meant a lot to him.”

“…”

“Show us that.”

“What will you do after seeing that?”

“You might have experienced it, but isn’t there a time when you enter a house and it suddenly gives you the creeps? If people find out about it later, the fact that someone died in this house will always be brought up.”

Seol Young looked at her and said,

“When a person is dying, a very powerful thought comes out. It remains intact with his body, his belongings, or sometimes even in the house. If I can read those thoughts, I can find out what happened at the time of his death.”

“…”

“Show me your son’s belongings. Just a peek is all I need. It doesn’t seem like you will lose anything, right?”

It was only then that she began to be convinced a little, and she said something to her servants.

After a while, a servant came with a box. What was inside was a small pocket knife decorated in the shape of a dragon’s head.

“He was holding this tightly in his right hand, probably with the intention to resist the beast.”

“I understand.”

Seol Young accepted the knife, and before starting, he asked permission from the deceased.

“I will find out the story through this object, and if there is any injustice, let us know.”

And he started to think.

How did he die? Just like what the Black Tortoise member told him, was it an act of a spirit?

The thoughts poured in.

Horror, fear, pain.

The deceased died feeling strong emotions, and if a normal shaman had attempted this, he would have thrown the keepsake away out of fear.

‘It will not be easy.’

Seol Young frowned slightly.

The memories were too hazy because of the strong feelings, and it was like the scenes were cut into pieces.

He fumbled for the messy thoughts one by one. Then there was a splendid sight. It seemed to be the brothel that he had visited before his death.

The dead man left that place and walked down the dark streets at night. He could see the wings of a moth on a lamp and the dust of moving horse carriages.

In the middle of those scenes, something was clear.

… uh?

Seol Young concentrated on it.

The dead man went to another place right before his death. It was an old building. He felt that there was someone else there, and he knew it wasn’t a living person.

Was this some kind of spirit?

Something moved to the side.

A wooden dice suddenly rolled.

A dice with fourteen sides.

Seol Young felt it. This was related to his death.

This was the most decisive scene that the keepsake wanted to show. The other thoughts didn’t make any sense.

What was this?

Seol Young tried to read what was on the dice.

However, fear had poisoned all rationality, so the letters couldn’t be made out.

‘I still have to read it.’

So Seol Young clenched the keepsake and focused as hard as he could. And after numerous tries, he managed to catch it.

-Drink and laugh out loud.

It was written clearly.

‘So this was it.’

After finishing the sight, Seol Young opened his eyes, and the lady frowned as she looked at him.

As time passed, it seemed like she started to doubt what was going on and regretted how she had willingly given her son’s belongings.

Seol Young looked at her.

“Lady, you never told us how your son died.”

“My son… he was stabbed to death.”

“I don’t think that is it. I will have to do it again. His dead face hardened as he forced a smile, and his stomach burst because it was full of water.”

The lady’s eyes widened, and it looked like she had gone speechless from what she had heard.

He was right.

He described the same bizarre appearance that surprised many who saw it.

“Ahhh…”

She sighed.

“I am sorry for doubting you. What kind of sin would have caused something like this to happen to our prestigious family?!”

Her face changed.

“The bone picker said that his stomach burst because he drank too much that night. Even so, it was like it was torn apart, yet he was forced to smile until the end? How cruel is that?”

Indeed, it was unlikely that people would never forget that sight.

“Even though my son was a bit immature and engaged with prostitutes, he never did anything that would make people hold a grudge against him. But then, why did people do such a cruel thing to him? As his mother, I really want to find the one who did it!”

The lady’s actions had changed now. It was like she was begging for justice. Even if her eldest son was immature, she must have loved him.

“But there was a clue.”

Seol Young opened his mouth.

“The fourteen-sided dice, which said, ‘Drink and laugh out loud.’”

“Wait.”

Zaha’s expression darkened.

“‘Drink and laugh out loud.’ Isn’t that a drinking game penalty?”

“Yes.”

Seol Young nodded.

“I saw it in his memory right before his death—someone threw him a die. And your son was killed according to the punishment written there.”

“A drinking game punishment?”

The lady frowned.

“My son was killed for such an absurd reason? Just because the drinking game dice said so?”

She was shocked, and then her lips stopped moving as her expression went blank.

“My lady, is there something you might know?”

Zaha asked right away, looking at her. She looked like her soul had been sucked out of her.

It was clear that hearing that the murder was based on a die meant something to her. Maybe a buried memory she had never thought of?

Zaha called for her again.

“My lady?”

She came to her senses, and at that moment, her attitude changed…

“Please go! Get out of my house right now!”

“Uh?”

“What are you doing? Hurry and see these Hwarangs off!”

The servants stepped forward, and although they didn’t dare touch them, they stood between them and the lady.

Eventually, they had to leave the house, and the gate was shut.

“To be kicked out like this!”

Zaha asked,

“What kind of secret could it be? Seol Young-rang, tell me honestly. Is that what you really saw? Who threw the dice?”

“Yes.”

Seol Young replied.

“But it might be a different one.”

“Different?”

Seol Young showed him what was hidden in his sleeve.

A pocket knife decorated with a dragon head.

“I couldn’t leave it there.”

Seol Young hid it back in his sleeve.

“The lady is now in the wrong. But even so, we cannot approach the family when they are like this, can we?”

“Right. Even to the point of them shutting up and their own servants acting like this.”

Zaha nodded.

“So you sneaked it out.”

“I didn’t sneak it out. They were too riled up to even take it back.”

“Seol Young-rang! Since when did you become shameless?”

Zaha said it like he was complimenting him, but Seol Young didn’t enjoy hearing it from him.

Besides, what’s wrong with being a little shameless to get things done?