Chapter 48 – Because of the Answer, a Grim Reaper Attached

3:00 PM on a weekday. Teum Law Firm.

Office Director Ju Yong-hae was organizing documents after finishing a consultation as usual.

Inside the office filled only with the sound of keyboards.

Suddenly, a low groaning sound leaked out from the seat next to him.

“No… why is the office so chilly… I should put something on.”

Office Director Yeom grumbled, hunching his shoulders. Ju Yong-hae raised his head with a smile.

“What? Chilly? It is afternoon, so it is just hot though?”

“Uh… it is too cold…”

Office Director Yeom pondered for a moment, then asked cautiously.

“But Ju-hyung. Can I ask you something?”

“What?”

“Ha… how should I put it. Are you… good at dream interpretation too, Ju-hyung?”

“Tsk… I have some intuition. Why? Did you have some kind of dream?”

Office Director Yeom lowered his voice even further.

“Yes… It is just a bit uncomfortable… I don’t know if it was a dream or reality…”

Last night.

Office Director Yeom, who lived alone, was opening a can of beer and watching a broadcast of an American baseball game in the living room.

For some reason, it was a spooky night. The game was already in the middle innings. The team was still playing terribly.

His eyes blinked, blinking shut.

‘Ah… they are playing terribly… Why is the weather so cold too…’

Before he noticed, the sound of the baseball broadcast grew distant.

And from far away, or perhaps very close, a low voice whispered in his ear.

“Yeom No-sik…”

Once.

‘What is it… a man? A woman? Who is it…’

He turned his body over to lie down.

‘Ugh… why is it so cold…’

“Yeom No-sik…”

Twice.

He tried to steady himself in his sleep, but the chill did not go away.

“…….Yeom No-sik.”

Three times.

Without realizing it, an answer flowed out of Office Director Yeom’s mouth.

“….Who is it?”

Someone spoke right into his ear.

“…….”

“….It’s you.”

“Kyaaa!!!!!”

Cha Ra-ri, who had come over and was listening, shrieked.

Ju Yong-hae’s eyes turned sharp after listening to Office Director Yeom’s story.

“So… did you answer?”

“Yes. I answered. I asked who it was.”

“Ha…”

“Why… why… was I not supposed to answer?”

“Wait a moment.”

The energy around Ju Yong-hae completely changed, as if something had possessed him.

A chilling glare that seemed ready to shoot out at any moment.

Office Director Yeom shrunk back, feeling a chill, and said.

“Anyway, my body has been shivering since yesterday… for some reason, I just feel off.”

“Shh.”

Ju Yong-hae quickly glared at the upper-left space behind Yeom No-sik’s head out of the corner of his eye.

“Because you answered… a Grim Reaper has attached to you.”

Yeom No-sik’s face turned pale blue.

“Wh- what attached? A Grim Reaper? Th- th- then what should I do…? Ju-hyung…”

“The shoes you wore this morning. Throw them away right now. And your socks too. Right now.”

“Th- these?”

Yeom No-sik looked down at his shoes with a trembling body.

“Since one must wear shoes to follow the Grim Reaper. Throw away everything you originally wore and buy new ones. Even your office slippers.”

“Ah…!”

“You need to change into new shoes immediately, but… since there is nowhere to buy them now, walk barefoot when you leave work. Take off your socks too.”

“Barefoot?”

Office Director Yeom looked at Ju Yong-hae with a half-believing, half-doubting face.

“Barefoot is better than losing your life. No matter who calls you until you enter your house, never look back. You must ride just like that, barefoot. Understood? A second mistake is absolutely not allowed!”

Office Director Yeom nodded at Ju Yong-hae’s low whispering words.

“Thank you… I should leave early today. My body feels so bad…”

Yeom No-sik walked out of the office barefoot just like that and headed toward the subway station.

Cha Ra-ri, who had watched everything from the side, asked Ju Yong-hae with a pale face.

“Office Director… does the Grim Reaper really fall off if you do that?”

“Yeah. Right, fall off. It’s a lie.”

“What?? What do you mean by that? He just walked out barefoot though?!”

As Cha Ra-ri stared as if it were absurd, Kim Mi-young, who had leaned against the partition and watched their conversation, giggled.

“Sometimes Office Director Yeom is indeed so gullible. He is a complete pushover. He has been fooled by Ju Yong-hae for over ten years, and he gets fooled again? Seeing him walk out barefoot, it seems he is completely serious?”

“Wait, then did you really tease him?”

“Actually, that man Ju Yong-hae, his great-great-grandmother was quite a skilled shaman.

Once he heard that story, he gets fooled every time after that. Even though Ju Yong-hae has good intuition… he believes all of it. Sometimes he is absurdly naive like that.”

Ju Yong-hae smiled, shrugged his shoulders, and said.

“Well, I guess he should think of it as punishment for never releasing a catch while fishing all this time. Haha.”

Beep-

Completely unaware of such facts, Office Director Yeom stumbled barefoot, tapped his transit card, passed through the turnstile, and got on the subway.

“I am shivering and dying. Still… it is better than following the Grim Reaper, I guess…”

He walked with his head down even while feeling people’s stares.

It seemed like he heard a voice from somewhere saying, “Excuse me, mister! Are you okay?” but Office Director Yeom just looked straight ahead and walked, boarding the subway just as Ju Yong-hae had advised.

And that night.

A photograph began to float around on the internet.

‘Line 4 Subway Barefoot Monster’

Around the time Office Director Yeom was being photographed as a subway monster, inside a train on the opposite side of the platform.

Geum Nae-yeong was working with his laptop open inside the train carriage.

Psssshh- puff.

Ta-dan-da-dan-tan-dan—

“This station is Chongshin University Area.”

Pshhh-shhh.

Late afternoon on a weekday, a quiet subway.

Outside the window, darkness and light flickered alternately between stations.

Ring-ring-ring-

“Oh, hello!”

Directly across the seats, a middle-aged man began a phone call in a loud voice.

“Yeah, it’s me! What? No, does that make sense? Chun-seok did that? That’s nonsense!”

A slight wrinkle formed on Geum Nae-yeong’s forehead.

With a click, he took out earphones from his briefcase and inserted them into his ears. Noise cancellation.

“Yeah, I’ll call you back later.”

The man finished his phone call and immediately took out his cell phone to play a video.

“So, politically, this becomes a problem…”

The news program screen turned on, and the man, without any earphones, turned the speaker volume way up and started watching.

The droning commentary, the annoying laughter of the panelists.

At the uninvited guest breaking the silence inside the carriage, several passengers turned their heads and glared at the man.

Despite the stinging glares from people, the man was entirely unconcerned. Among the passengers, another middle-aged man could not tolerate the noise, jumped up, and shouted.

“Hey! Let’s go quietly! I’m telling you to be quiet!”

When someone shouted at him, the man who was watching the news immediately shouted back in a huff.

“What?! Hey?”

“Look, this isn’t your house’s master bedroom! Why are you watching TV so loudly!”

The atmosphere inside the carriage instantly turned icy cold.

As if something were about to happen immediately, the passengers’ gazes hovered between the two, and tension hung in the air of the carriage.

“I’m just trying to watch something on my own phone, why are you picking a fight! Huh?!”

“Picking a fight! The one picking a fight is you, who turned on the TV!”

“What? You? Hey, how old are you? Where does a young punk get off. I’ll smash you!”

“Who cares how old I am! How old did you grow without even knowing public order? Huh? Have you set a date to die? Why are you playing the sound so loudly? The Grim Reaper would easily know where you are!”

“A date to die? Is this crazy guy looking to die! Hey, you come here. Let’s fight! Right now!”

“What, are you going to hit me? Fine, hit me if you want. Did I say a single wrong word? Keep public order!

If you want to watch TV that badly, wear earphones, or ask them to dig a direct line to your house so only you can use the subway!”

“Oh my, even if I played it loudly, how loud could it have been! Public order? Are you a judge or something?”

“Do I have to be a judge to speak! Shutup! Turn it off quickly!”

“I can’t! Why should I turn it off! Give me a reason, is your word law? What, are you a judge or prosecutor who graduated from Hankook University or something!”

The men’s shouts rang out loudly. It was a voice loud enough to make one’s ears hurt.

The passengers held their breath, fearing a fight might break out.

Clack, clack.

Geum Nae-yeong’s fingers, which were rapidly typing on the keyboard, stopped.

And suddenly, he raised his hand and spoke.

“That’s me.”

“?”

“I am not a judge who graduated from Hankook University, but I am a lawyer. I suppose I could try applying to be a judge later on.”

All eyes in the carriage focused on him.

“What? You’re a lawyer?”

As the man spoke snortingly, someone next to him suddenly blurted out.

“Ah, I saw that person on TV? Right! Isn’t he that lawyer who didn’t know BTS in the quiz show… but solved the cold case?”

“Oh! It really is him! That guy!”

As the murmuring spread, the man scanned Geum Nae-yeong up and down.

“Fine, then you tell me, Mr. Lawyer. Is it a crime for me to listen to some music here?”

Geum Nae-yeong answered calmly.

“It is not a crime. There is no law that punishes listening to music.”

“See!” the man shouted angrily.

However, Geum Nae-yeong calmly continued.

“But the act of making calls or watching videos that loudly in public places can be punished as a misdemeanor.

Most end with a fine of 100,000 won or less, but if a dispute with people around you arises in the process, or if you use profanity or insulting language, it is at least a fine, and in that case, it remains on your criminal record.”

“What… criminal record…?” The man’s face stiffened.

The man who had been arguing with him said mockingly.

“See, you ignorant fool!”

Geum Nae-yeong nodded and continued speaking.

“That doesn’t mean you cannot listen at all. There is also a rational method.”

“A rational method?”

The passengers’ gazes all turned toward Geum Nae-yeong at once.

Geum Nae-yeong asked the man who had caused the disturbance.

“Shall I tell you?”

“Yeah… well. Let’s hear it.”

‘Coase theorem. The resolution of negative externalities through negotiation.’

“Now, let’s call this person ‘A’ (Gap), and the person who bad-manneredly does not adjust their cell phone volume in a public place ‘B’ (Eul).

How many stops are you going, Mr. A?”

“Me? Five stops.”

“Good. And Mr. B?”

“I’m going six stops.”

Geum Nae-yeong slowly continued speaking.

“Then let’s do this. We calculate the cost of tolerating the noise at 2,000 won per stop.

For five stops, that is a total of 10,000 won.

If B pays A 10,000 won, B can freely watch videos on the cell phone during that time, and A receives 10,000 won in return and tolerates the noise.

In the end, the freedom to watch a cell phone and the right to travel quietly are efficiently adjusted with money. Isn’t it simple?”

The carriage fell silent for a moment.

A and B looked at each other.

“Five stops… hmm…”

The man who had raised his voice first to protest, A, said.

“For 10,000 won, well, it is tolerable.”

“Now, then, this B, who ignores public order, instead of playing the cell phone loudly like at home, just has to pay 10,000 won to A, who has the right to travel quietly.

If you don’t pay, a fine of about 50,000 won for a misdemeanor would normally be imposed, so paying 10,000 won is far more rational. It also eliminates the possibility of getting a criminal record from an unnecessary dispute.”

“Well… well… is that so. Still, 10,000 won is a lot…”

Geum Nae-yeong shook his head.

“No. It is one-fifth of 50,000 won. It is actually cheaper.”

“Hmm…” The man hesitated.

“Then give me 10,000 won. I won’t say anything either in that case. Surely… you don’t want to give even that?”

At the protesting man’s words, the man who had played the cell phone loudly opened his wallet.

With people watching, he did not want to look weak.

In the end, he handed 10,000 won to the other party.

“Fine. Listen as you please. I’ll tolerate five stops or so.”

The man who received the money coolly moved to the next carriage.

The man who handed over 10,000 won felt a bit uncomfortable, but having already handed over the money, he felt a useless stubbornness rise.

‘Since it’s already come to this, let’s play it even louder.’

He turned the volume all the way up.

“The government, starting this month, regarding electricity bills—”

“Hey, you there!”

Another passenger, who had been sitting quietly at the end of the carriage, jumped up.

“Does only that person have ears here? If you want to play it in this carriage, you have to give me 10,000 won too!”

“Wh- what?”

The man’s eyes went wide. Other passengers who had watched them exchanging 10,000 won also approached one by one.

“Me too.”

“I want 10,000 won too! Hand it over!”

Hands reached out from all directions simultaneously.

The man flinched, his face turning pale in an instant, and shouted toward Geum Nae-yeong.

“Hey, you Hankook University fellow! What should I do about this?”

Geum Nae-yeong closed his laptop with a blank expression and replied.

“Free consultation is once per person.”

Psssshh—

“This station is Mokdeok Station.”

Geum Nae-yeong when the subway stopped, put his laptop into his bag, stood up from his seat, and got off as if nothing had happened.

Until the moment the doors closed, the man was surrounded by passengers and harassed by hands demanding 10,000 won from each of them.

Beyond the closed doors, Geum Nae-yeong could be seen walking along the platform.

The man stared at the scene with an absurd face, then lowered the cell phone volume.