Chapter 160

The male ghost smiled and raised his hand as Kang Jin stared at him.

“Have I changed?”

Kang Jin looked surprised upon hearing the ghost’s voice but then bowed respectfully.

“Elderly sir!”

As Kang Jin suspected, the male ghost was Lee Taewoon, albeit a younger version of himself rather than the elderly one she knew.

“You look much younger,” exclaimed Kang Jin, taken aback.

Lee Taewoon chuckled and scratched his head. “I guess dying made me appear this youthful.”

He spoke casually about death, showing no sadness or fear, likely due to his experience running the Underworld Restaurant, which constantly brought him close to mortality.

“But you didn’t pass away in your youth, so how did you become so young?”

It made sense if he had incarnated at the Underworld Restaurant. Something similar happened with Oh Soon-young before; when she recalled her youthful memories, her appearance transformed accordingly.

However, ghosts typically retain their appearance from the moment of death. Kim Sohee maintained her look from when she passed away.

“It’s because he lacks maturity.”

At that moment, Kang Jin heard Kim Sohee’s voice and looked towards her. She was vigorously rubbing Hwanggu’s belly with both hands, as one would scrub laundry.

Rub-a-dub! Rub-a-dub!

Hwanggu happily panted with his long tongue out, enjoying every bit of it.

Haah-haah!

Watching Hwanggu wagging its tail wildly while panting, Kang Jin asked:

“Lacks maturity?”

“He must have been quite immature even as a human, so his ghost form reflects that.”

“Aren’t ghosts usually depicted as they were at the time of their death?”

“Apparently not if they’re particularly childish.” With a small shake of her head, Kim Sohee focused on rubbing Hwanggu’s belly.

Rub-a-dub! Rub-a-dub!

Huff! Huff!

As she stroked faster, Hwanggu’s tail wagged more vigorously.

Lee Taewoon observed this scene with amusement. “Despite being called immature, I appreciate looking younger now. People won’t find it strange when Miss Kim and I are seen together.”

Kim Sohee frowned at Lee Taewoon’s remark. “Stop saying unnecessary things.”

“Understood.”

Kang Jin noticed how Lee Taewoon’s eyes twinkled affectionately while watching Sohee.

“It seems like you were born in the wrong era.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“If you were born today, I bet you would’ve become a popular celebrity…”

“I had plenty of admirers with this face regardless of when I was born! Whenever I went to buy groceries at the market, neighborhood ajummas couldn’t help but pinch my butt. By the time I got home, my rear would be bruised from all their pinching. Ha-ha-ha!”

Seeing Lee Taewoon laugh and pat his shoulder, Kang Jin asked,

“So…have you turned into a ghost yet?”

“No, not yet.”

“Then what happens next?”

“I died early this morning, so they’re holding my funeral now.”

“Oh…I see, it happened today.”

Kang Jin debated whether he should offer condolences or say something more formal like “May your soul rest in peace.” Ultimately, he shook his head.

Death isn’t that big of a deal anyway. It’s just going back home.

Perhaps due to encountering numerous ghosts, Kang Jin felt somewhat desensitized towards death now.

“So will you ascend three days from now?” When Lee Taewoon nodded at Kang Jin pointing towards the sky, he replied:

“Yes, I suppose so.”

Kang Jin subtly glanced at Kim Sohee upon hearing this. She was playing with Hwanggu, stroking its fur.

“Shouldn’t you be attending your funeral then?”

“What’s the point of watching people come, make noise, and leave?”

“But…it’s still for the deceased elder.”

“It’s fine. My friends have already passed on, and those attending the funeral are mere acquaintances. No need to worry.”

“How do you plan to spend these next three days?”

“Miss Kim said she would show me around Mount Kumgang.”

“Mount Kumgang?”

“I couldn’t visit it while alive, but I can now that I’m dead. And we must go within three days.”

Lee Taewoon’s comment made Kang Jin look at him. He spoke about going to the afterlife as if embarking on a nearby excursion. Considering his wealth accumulated through JS Finance, he’d likely live better in the afterlife than during his earthly existence.

“You’ll be traveling alone with Miss Kim. That should be enjoyable,” Kang Jin remarked.

Lee Taewoon laughed heartily. “Ha ha ha! Indeed, it will be delightful.”

Kang Jin then asked, observing Lee Taewoon closely:

“By the way, doesn’t being near the virgin ghost bother you?”

Typically, ghosts find it challenging to be around a virgin ghost, including incubus spirits. However, Lee Taewoon seemed unaffected by her presence.

“Considering how many virgin ghosts I’ve encountered throughout my life, why would one scare me now? Besides, I’m not entirely a ghost yet; you could say my spirit is still connected to this world.”

“Is that so?”

Lee Taewoon chuckled at Kang Jin’s question.

“I’m not sure myself. Any idea why?”

“Not really, sir.”

“It’s my first time dying, after all. Ha-ha-ha!”

Kang Jin initially stared blankly before laughing along with Lee Taewoon’s joke.

“You’re right. One can only know for certain after experiencing death multiple times. How could anyone fully understand it just from their first death?”

In response, Lee Taewoon, lying on his back facing the sky, gently stroked Hwanggu’s face and said,

“Hwanggu loved meat.”

“Meat?”

“He enjoyed eating pork spareribs boiled briefly in hot water. And…he also liked seaweed soup.”

“A dog that likes seaweed soup?”

“I heard dogs these days enjoy seaweed soup too. Hwanggu always liked it even when he was alive. Oh! And make sure to give him egg yolks as well; he loves those.”

Kang Jin looked at Lee Taewoon’s words.

“Are you planning to leave without Hwanggu?”

Lee Taewoon nodded slightly, and Hwanggu softly whined as if understanding their conversation.

“You should go with Hwanggu.”

Hwanggu likely became a ghost to protect Lee Taewoon after his wife passed away. Now that Lee Taewoon had died, there was no reason for Hwanggu not to ascend with him.

Lee Taewoon smiled and stroked Hwanggu’s face at Kang Jin’s suggestion.

“Hwanggu, do you like Sohee unnie?”

“Woof!”

“Yes, from now on, keep a close eye on Sohee just like you did with your dad.”

Woof! Woof! Hwanggu barked loudly as Lee Taewoon continued to pet him.

Kim Sohee glanced at them and chimed in. “Let’s take Hwanggu with us.”

Lee Taewoon silently stroked Hwanggu’s head again at her suggestion.

At that moment, a refrigerated truck pulled over by the side of the road.

Clack!

Shin Soo-yong got out of the vehicle with a smile on his face.

“Uncle!” He waved enthusiastically as he approached with a grin.

Lee Taewoon returned the smile upon hearing Shin Soo-yong’s voice.

“It’s been a while.”

“I was planning to attend your funeral today when I heard about it…but here you are.” Shin Soo-yong spoke casually about Lee Taewoon’s funeral, implying he already knew Taewoon had died.

As someone affiliated with the Underworld Restaurant who knew death wasn’t the end, Shin Soo-yong didn’t seem particularly sad about Lee Taewoon’s passing. Instead, he felt more like he was seeing off a friend on a journey.

“I’m taking Miss Kim to Mount Kumgang,” Lee Taewoon boasted proudly.

Shin Soo-yong bowed toward Kim Sohee. “My apologies for not greeting you earlier, Miss Kim. Yongyi at your service.”

Kim Sohee returned his bow and asked, “How’s business?”

“It’s doing well thanks to your patronage, Miss Kim.”

“Keep up the good work by offering quality products at reasonable prices.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Shin Soo-yong bowed and then turned to Lee Taewoon with curiosity. “By the way…you seem younger than before! It looks like you’ve aged back twenty years since I first saw you!”

“I guess dying has its perks.”

“How fascinating.” Shin Soo-yong marveled at this phenomenon as if witnessing it for the first time.

“He’s always been immature,” Kim Sohee muttered under her breath, causing Shin Soo-yong to laugh.

“Well, Uncle never really grew up even when we were kids. You did love teasing us until we cried, didn’t you?”

“Yes, he’s always been childish.”

As Shin Soo-yong watched Kim Sohee repeat herself, he glanced toward Kang Jin.

“We brought some fresh sashimi.”

Kang Jin looked between Lee Taewoon and Kim Sohee. “Please come inside for a cup of tea before you leave.”

“Let’s do as she suggests,” Lee Taewoon agreed.

Kim Sohee nodded and headed inside the restaurant, leaving Lee Taewoon to look at Kang Jin.

“I still find that uncomfortable.” It seemed he wasn’t used to passing through solid objects yet.

Kang Jin chuckled and opened the door for him. After escorting Hwanggu inside, Kang Jin joined Shin Soo-yong by the parked food truck.

Shin Soo-yong opened the storage compartment and handed over a bag.

Floop! Floop!

The oxygen-filled bag puffed out considerably as Kang Jin took it and went back into the store with Shin Soo-yong following close behind her. His eyes immediately landed on some kimchi pancakes.

“Is it okay to eat this?”

“Of course. Please enjoy,” Kang Jin replied.

As Shin Soo-yong sat down at her cue, Lee Taewoon spoke up.

“I’m feeling peckish as well, Miss Kim.”

“What would you like?” asked Kang Jin.

Lee Taewoon glanced at Kim Sohee before responding. “Could you stop by the JS convenience store?”

“The JS convenience store?”

“If we’re going to eat, let’s make sure it’s something tasty. Pick up some hot and sour noodles, fruit, boxed lunches, and whatever else looks good.”

Even if Kang Jin cooked for them now, they wouldn’t be able to fully enjoy the meal as ghosts. However, since food from the JS convenience store could still be tasted properly even by spirits, it was indeed their best option for satisfying fare.

Lee Taewoon reached inside his hanbok sleeve and produced a card.

“Let me pay with this card.”

“I can treat you today.”

“No, let’s use this.” Kang Jin accepted Lee Taewoon’s card.

What a unique-looking card.

Kang Jin also had a JS card, but it differed from Lee Taewoon’s both in color and design. His was all black with silver writing, and his name was elegantly inscribed at the bottom in gold.

“The JS Black Card. I’ve only seen pictures of these, but they look quite impressive,” Shin Soo-yong remarked as he gently pushed aside Kang Jin to get a closer look.

“What’s a JS Black Card?” asked Kang Jin.

“In the mortal world, cards for VIP customers are often referred to as ‘black cards.’”

“Oh, really?”

Kang Jin had only ever used bank debit cards or JS Cards before, so she wasn’t familiar with this one. However…

She knew Lee Taewoon was a VVIP of JS Finance.

“And let’s buy some pans and cooking utensils on our way home.”

“But why?”

“I can’t cook anything with these hands now, right?”

“Oh…” Kang Jin nodded at his explanation. Since ghosts could handle items crafted from the World of Chaos, Lee Taewoon planned to use them for cooking.

“But couldn’t you just eat the lunch box from the JS convenience store instead of going through all that trouble?”

“If I’m eating, might as well make it delicious.”

With that, Kang Jin left the apartment with the card in hand.

Fssshhh! Sizzle!

Lee Taewoon was cooking in the kitchen using the food from Kang Jin’s convenience store and other ingredients he had purchased. He transformed the side dishes from the lunchbox into new dishes. Currently, he was stir-frying something with Hellfire’s Iron Frying Pan. According to legend, people were placed on this iron pan in hell while it heated up… Despite not knowing how it was coated, no oil was needed as nothing stuck to its surface. Considering how much of a hassle it would be to clean if humans did stick to the pan, that made sense.

It felt slightly unsettling to cook with something that once held people above hellfire…

But I guess it’s fine as long as we clean it thoroughly.

In this new world, this frying pan could be considered state-of-the-art technology. Despite not using any oil, nothing stuck to its surface.

And considering we’re already using the waterproof sword, which grows stronger by drinking human blood…

As Kang Jin observed Lee Taewoon cooking, dish after dish emerged from his hands.