Chapter 82

The soccer matches and other events continued as scheduled the next day. Due to lack of participants, teams were formed by combining members from different departments for each sport. The export team was divided into three groups—teams one, two, and three—and played together against other departments.

Team two won their first match but lost the second. Ultimately, no team from the export department emerged victorious in any sports event during this competition.

However, none of the team members felt disappointed. Winning was great, but losing meant they could simply relax and enjoy themselves.

Once all the events concluded, interns gathered on the podium stage. With everyone lined up, Taegwang grabbed the microphone.

“We will now begin voting for the most popular intern.”

With those simple words, the man standing next to O Taegwang handed out pieces of paper to everyone present. Each intern received a sheet with their name printed at the top.

[Export Executive Assistant Team 2, Lee Kang-jin]

Most Popular Intern:

Kang Jin glanced sideways at Woon Jaesik from Domestic Support Team 2, who had been chosen as his opponent this time. He smiled while writing down a name. The other interns sighed and filled in their papers accordingly. Seeing this, Kang Jin also wrote a name in the blank space.

Once all the interns completed their ballots, the man collected them. Then, O Taegwang personally began announcing each voter’s choice publicly.

”…Intern Lee Kang-jin from Export Executive Assistant Team 2 voted for Woon Jaesik of Domestic Support Team 2. With that, Woon Jaesik from Domestic Support Team 2 received sixteen votes, and intern Choe Donghae from Export Executive Assistant Team 2 received one vote. Therefore, this year’s most popular intern is Woon Jaesik.”

It was no surprise. After winning the coin toss, all the interns rallied behind Woon Jaesik from Domestic Support Team 2.

Thankfully, everyone kept their promise.

With the popularity contest settled, the interns descended from the podium stage.

Woon Jaesik turned to thank his fellow interns once he reached the floor.

“When we get back to Seoul, I’ll treat you all to drinks.”

“Sounds good.”

“You better treat us to something big.”

“Of course!”

The interns congratulated Woon Jaesik despite their disappointment… After all, one of them had been hired as a full-time employee. As he received their congratulations, Woon Jaesik smiled and took out his cell phone. He moved away from the group and started making a call.

“Mom? Yes, I got hired as a regular employee. Yeah, it’s true. Okay. Don’t worry anymore. I’ll work hard and spoil you with nice things.”

Kang Jin smiled at Woon Jaesik’s first call to inform his family about becoming a permanent staff member.

His family must be thrilled.

Whether it was decided by flipping a coin or not, securing good employment for young people and their families is always crucial. This news would alleviate significant concerns for both Woon Jaesik and his loved ones.

Money is always a crucial issue. This conversation relieved Woon Jaesik and his family of significant financial worries.

After the end of the popularity vote for interns, Oh Taegwang awarded cash prizes to departments that won various events as incentives.

Lim Sang-ok’s disciples, perhaps due to their youth, emerged victorious in table tennis and wrestling competitions.

Kang Jin returned to the shop after the sports meet concluded.

“I’m exhausted.”

Seeing Bae Yongsoo’s weary expression beside him, Kang Jin chuckled.

“You had it easy, just sitting on the train. What’s there to be tired about?”

“There were no seats left, so I had to stand the whole way.”

“Standing? More like lying down in the aisle.”

“Well…still exhausting.”

Leaving the worn-out Bae Yongsoo behind, Kang Jin entered the kitchen.

It’s spotless.

Kang Jin had been worried about leaving his restaurant under someone else’s care…but it was spotless. The dishes and food waste were neatly organized, and there was a note stuck on the refrigerator:

Please keep the place clean.

The rounded handwriting suggested it might have been written by a woman. It appeared to be from Shin Su-jo, who managed the restaurant yesterday. Seeing this, Kang Jin grimaced.

“I thought I kept things tidy enough…

Apparently not, according to Shin Su-jo’s standards.

“I should’ve at least properly thanked her…

Not only did she manage the restaurant while he was away, but she also left it immaculately clean without receiving any proper acknowledgment.

After pondering for a moment, Lee Kang-jin took out his wallet and retrieved Shin Su-jo’s business card, who specialized in interior design. He called him, and after briefly hearing some hip-hop music playing in the background, Su-jo answered:

“Hello?”

The voice sounded younger than Kang-jin expected, prompting him to check the number on his phone.

It’s correct.

“Hello?” came the voice again.

Kang-jin responded, “Mr. President Shin Su-jo?”

“This is Shin Su-jo from Nammoon Interiors. Are you looking for construction work?”

“No, actually… This is Lee Kang-jin.”

“Who?”

“I’m Lee Kang-jin, the new owner of One Meal Restaurant.”

There was a brief silence before Shin Su-jo replied:

“So, what kind of construction do you need?”

“No, I’m calling to thank you for checking on my store yesterday.”

[I didn’t do it for free, so no need to thank me.]

“Oh… It wasn’t free?”

[As someone running One Meal Restaurant, you should know there’s nothing free in this world.]

“That’s… true.”

[Anyway, thanks to you, Mr. Lee Kang-jin, my JS Finance account balance increased, which is good.]

“Ah…” Kang Jin replied, feeling disheartened by Shin Su-jo’s words.

He did mention sending help but never said it would be free…

Moreover, even when employing ghosts, one had to pay, so compensating a human helper was only natural. The difference here was that instead of cash, it involved using funds from JS Finance.

As Lee Kang-jin muttered to himself, Shin Su-jo spoke up:

“If you need help with the store again, don’t hesitate to call me directly instead of bothering your older brother. It’s not a big deal.”

“Understood.”

“Well then, take care.”

With that, Shin Su-jo hung up. Feeling curious about the younger-sounding female voice than he had expected, Kang Jin quickly checked her profile on his phone. Nowadays, saving a phone number automatically linked it to social media profiles. Upon opening the app, he found Shin Su-jo’s profile:

Nammun Interiors

President: Shin Su-jo

Her business card was attached to the profile. When Kang Jin tapped on it, more images popped up. However, there were no photos of Shin Su-jo; all the pictures displayed interior design projects.

“So, it’s indeed an interior design shop?” President Kang asked while looking at the interior photos. Bae Yongsoo approached him curiously.

“What are you doing?”

“Have you ever seen Shin Su-jo before?”

“No, I haven’t.”

“You’ve never encountered her?”

“I’ve only heard stories about her.”

“What kind of stories?”

“Well, she’s known for being a great cook and quite attractive… But people also say she has a fiery temper.”

“A fiery temper?”

Seeing Kang Jin’s puzzled expression, Bae Yongsoo explained:

“Despite being ghosts, they’re still men, right? If there’s a pretty waitress serving them, chances are they’d tease her.”

“But she’s a ghost herself?”

“She may be a ghost, but here, when they incarnate, they can drink soju and even get drunk. So, naturally, teasing occurs. Apparently, when really intoxicated, Shin Su-jo would swing bottles around wildly.”

Kang Jin cringed slightly at this description. While swinging bottles might seem excessive…

Bae Yongsoo’s words made Kang Jin wince slightly. Throwing bottles around while drunk was not ideal, but…

“So you’re saying they mocked the gracious establishment that feeds and serves them drinks despite being ghosts who can’t consume anything? And Shin Su-jo is like a daughter to Madam Kim Bokrae, isn’t she?”

“That’s true.”

“How could there be such ungrateful ghosts among us?”

Kang Jin’s anger prompted Bae Yongsoo to shake his head.

“It wasn’t our regular ghost patrons… It was those transient spirits causing trouble.”

“Regardless of whether they’re transients or not, it’s unacceptable! They shouldn’t get away with such behavior!”

“Of course not,” Bae Yongsoo agreed, nodding at Kang Jin’s response.

Kang Jin then twisted his body, suggesting a break. “Let’s take some time off for now.”

“Go ahead.”

Kang Jin nodded at Bae Yongsoo’s words and moved upstairs. Kang Jin was receiving acupuncture from Heo Yeonwook. Before going to sleep, he hadn’t noticed it, but upon waking up, his body felt extremely stiff. Hence, while preparing food for the ghosts, Heo Yeonwook discovered something unusual and started treating him with acupuncture.

“It is due to sudden muscle pain after not exercising for some time.”

“I think it might be because I played soccer recently.”

It seemed this stiffness had occurred as he pushed himself hard during their last match. As Kang Jin sat down, receiving acupuncture from Heo Yeonwook, Choi Hocheol spoke:

“You should have called me when playing football.”

“Hyung?”

“Your hyung won an award from the chief superintendent at the police sports event for your kicking skills.”

“I play soccer, but how does that help you?”

“By possessing your body.”

Upon hearing ‘possess’, Kang Jin looked at Choi Ho-cheol.

“Possessing? You mean entering my body? How is that possible?”

“I’m a ghost, remember?”

“But didn’t Heo Yeonwook say he couldn’t do it?”

Previously, when someone collapsed at the market, the guardian spirit had asked Heo Yeonwook to possess them. However, Heo Yeonwook claimed he didn’t know how.

“Heo Yeonwook hasn’t learned it yet, but one can master possession with training.”

Kang Jin nodded upon realizing possession could be learned.

‘Whether alive or dead, learning and adapting remains crucial for survival.’

Kang Jin silently pondered before asking,

“How exactly would you do it?”

“Why, want me to try now?”

“Nope, I don’t want it.”

“Why not?”

“Because you would enter my body, hyung-nim. Naturally, I wouldn’t like that.”

“Then why did you ask?”

“Well…I was just curious,” Kang Jin replied.

Choi Hocheol nodded understandingly.

“In ghost movies, spirits often possess people’s bodies, right?”

“Yes.”

“There are two methods of incarnation. Firstly, similar to shamans, both the ghost and person must mutually agree to the possession.”

“And if there is no agreement?”

“That leads to the second method… It’s akin to what you see in horror films, where an evil spirit forcibly possesses someone.”

“That sounds… pretty bad, doesn’t it?”

“Of course, it’s terrible. If anyone falls victim to forced possession, they immediately become wanted by JS Finance.”

“Wanted?”

“Typically, when debts pile up, JS Finance agents track down the individuals. However, with forced possession, they put out bounty posters across all Afterlife Restaurants nationwide.”

“In our restaurant?”

“Just like posting bounties where many people gather, they put them up in places frequented by ghosts. It’s to encourage sightings and reporting.” Choi Hocheol then remembered something else and added, “And the bounty amounts are massive.”

“How much exactly?”

“It varies depending on the rank, but usually around one billion won.”

“One billion won?”

Even in real life, one billion won is a significant sum. However, for ghosts, it represents an even larger fortune. Earning money is challenging for them, although spending it comes easily. Consequently, one billion won from JS Finance is truly enormous.

“That’s incredible.”

“Yes, forced possession is considered a grave crime.”

“So, possessing someone with their consent is fine?”

“As long as both parties agree, there’s no issue.”

“Then anyone can just possess any ghost, right?”

“Anyone?” Choi Hocheul shook his head at Kang Jin’s assumption.

“It’s not just anyone.”

“Then who?”

“They must be able to see and communicate with ghosts first.”

“Oh…” Kang Jin nodded at Choi Hocheol’s explanation. Indeed, it wasn’t just anyone. To gain mutual consent, one had to be capable of conversing with the ghost. Consequently, only special individuals who could perceive ghosts could perform the incarnation ritual.

“But hyung…”

“What?”

“Do shamans really see and talk to ghosts?”

Kang Jin himself didn’t disbelieve in ghosts due to his current situation; otherwise, he wouldn’t have entertained the possibility. Thus, he was genuinely curious if shamans truly saw spirits while performing divination rituals.

Choi Hocheol paused momentarily before responding, “Honestly, I’m not sure myself.”

“You don’t know?”

“In truth, I’ve never met any shamans or fortune tellers who could see me.”

“Really?”

“But apparently, there are genuine shamans out there who can communicate with ghosts to perform divination.”

“Oh?”

“I haven’t seen it firsthand, so I’m not entirely sure about that.”

As Kang Jin nodded at Choi Hocheol’s words, he recalled something Kim Sohee had mentioned earlier:

Thinking back, she did say the young lady borrowed power from a shaman… It seems there might be shamans who truly interact with ghosts.

While Kang Jin pondered this, Choi Hocheol continued speaking.

“However, even among non-shamans, some people claim they can see ghosts.”

“For real?”

“I encountered two such individuals. They recognized me and tried talking to me.”

“And what happened then?”

“Well, they seemed pretty odd… Afterward, I avoided taking paths where I thought I might run into them again.”

Kang Jin looked puzzled by Choi Hocheol’s statement.

A ghost avoiding humans?

Typically, people fear ghosts and avoid them, but here was a case of a ghost evading humans instead.