When Yesul squeezed her eyes shut, the pain was gone. When she opened them, coughing repeatedly, Seokjin was right in front of her, and Hyena was hidden behind his shoulder. When Yesul gently tugged at Seokjin's sleeve, he turned around and released his grip on Hyena's neck.
“What are you?”
“ … “
“Yesul, do you know this guy?”
“I know, I know… It’s not a good relationship.”
“It smells exactly like a demon.”
“A demon…?”
“Yes, only evil spirits have the power to harm the Grim Reaper.”
“A grim reaper like me can’t harm you, but a rookie grim reaper like Yesul can easily harm you.”
“I should have brought you, I’m sorry.”
“No… it’s okay.”
“What’s wrong? I have a bad bruise on my neck.”
Seokjin, worried about Yesul, turned around, perhaps remembering Hye-na. Hye-na, seemingly aware of her fate, was trembling and staring at the floor. Seeing Hye-na like that for the first time, Yesul couldn't help but be surprised. Seokjin ignored her and spoke to Hye-na.
“Looking at your condition, it seems like you know your own fate.”
“Do you know what happens if you become a demon and harm the Grim Reaper or other dead people?”
Hyena didn't answer Seokjin's question, just stared at the ground, shivering. Seokjin spoke with a familiarity, as if he'd seen these demons before.
“Do you want to perish here, or do you want to go to King Yeomra and ask for forgiveness?”
“It might be useless though.”
“ … I’ll go.”
“Yeah, I knew you’d choose that.”
With a single wave of Seokjin's hand, Hye-na disappeared, and Yesul, who had been staring at Seokjin as he shook his hand, looked away from where Hye-na had been, spoke to Seokjin.
“What happens if I go to King Yeomra?”
“Either I perish or I go to that dark hell.”
“Hell… what kind of place is it?”
“Well, it’s a lot different from what you think.”
“Usually people imagine a red hell with boiling lava and burning fire.”
“That’s right.”
“But hell isn’t like that.”
“Take them in pitch-black darkness, or put them in a place where they can only see light.”
“They’re polar opposites. People really go crazy when they see only one color.”
“But you will live there for thousands of years.”
“If you make a bigger mistake, there are often additional options, not just darkness or light.”
“That option should be with what you hate most, in that pitch-black darkness or that blinding light.”
“Then… you might get attached to it.”
“There’s more than one thing people hate and fear.”
“Once the fear subsides and affection sets in, let go of the fear and be with it even more.”
“ … This is real hell.”
“It’s okay, Yesul will never go to hell.”
“Shall we go back to work now?”
“We have to stick together so this doesn’t happen again.”
While learning the job, Yeseul stuck by Seokjin's side, doing whatever he asked her to do, and as she repeated the process, she suddenly remembered what had happened earlier. She wondered what Hye-na's past memories she had seen earlier were, and what had become of her. She asked Seokjin, who happened to be scanning the list of names with nothing to do.
“Ah, Your Majesty.”
" huh? "
“Just now… I unconsciously saw Hye-na’s past. What on earth was that?”
“Well, I’m still new, so I might not know.”
“Usually, the higher-ranking grim reapers decide whether to reincarnate the dead, punish them, or annihilate them.”
“But it is the lions who tell us about the memories of the past.”
“Sometimes, there are dead people who don’t tell us about their pasts, so the ability to read memories comes as soon as you become a dead person.”
" I see… "
“Oh, but what happened to Hye-na…?”
“I think I must have been wiped out because my sins were so great, whether in this life or the next.”
“You can find out if you go to King Yeomra, right?”
“Are you going to King Yeomra?”
“Yes, it’s okay since I have nothing to do anyway.”
“Your Majesty, King Yeomra, is a busy and strict person.”
“You’re not that strict… I’m not scared!”
“With just one gesture from the King of Hell, Yesul could go to hell or be destroyed.”
“ … That’s a little scary.”
“So, are you going to go to King Yeomra?”
“I’m curious, but…”
“Then go, I’ll take you there.”
Seokjin teleported, not by car, for the first time in a while, and Yesul, her head still a little dizzy, walked to the door of Yoongi's room. As she reached the door and tried to open it, she heard Yoongi and an unfamiliar voice inside. The two voices were talking about Yesul, and Yesul could only listen quietly.
Thistle_Don't touch me