The Dokkaebi Waiting for the Moon

Chapter 11

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“It’s me, Chairman.”

Yeo Moon-beom stood under a tree with elegantly curved thick branches, holding a phone in his hand.

The midday tree shadow was deep but short, unable to cover his entire face. Between the shadows of the curved leaves, three long scars were visible.

As if pieces of fallen flesh had been forcibly reattached, the traces of shrunken skin as it healed glowed red in the streaming light.

― You went to Wolhwa Island?

A brief but authoritative voice flowed from the receiver. The low, slow voice was slightly hoarse, as if the speaker had a sore throat, but it felt cold due to its lack of emotional inflection.

It could be said that it had the power to chill the listener’s heart with just a single word.

The one called Chairman was Jang Gitae, Moon-beom’s biological father and the head of Gang-il Group, a corporate-style violent organization.

He was a terrible monster who not only cruelly murdered Moon-beom’s birth mother but also mutilated her corpse and fed it to a black fox.

Since that day, Moon-beom’s life had been entirely consumed by a desire for revenge against Jang Gitae.

“Yes. I came down to inspect the site personally.”

― I see. What are your impressions after looking around?

“It’s suitable for a VIP exclusive house. The entire island is surrounded by steep rocky coastlines, with no way to approach except through the dock. It seems entirely possible to clear out the establishment before any crackdowns. I will make sure to build a resort here no matter what.”

In the cast shadow, his eyes, resembling the darkness of an abyss, glinted sharply.

― I have high expectations, Moon-beom.

“Yes, Chairman. I won’t disappoint you.”

Although they were putting forward a plausible pretext of improving the infrastructure of the underdeveloped village and revitalizing the island through development projects utilizing local resources, Jang Gitae had a different purpose.

It was to fortify Wolhwa Island and handle all illegal activities of high-ranking officials there.

Jang Gitae, who had seized control of Gang-il Group after eliminating his father Jang Myeong-gil, the first boss, had been managing key figures in politics and business circles with ambitions to enter politics someday.

If they wanted to gamble, Jang Gitae created exclusive gambling dens for them. If they wanted drugs, he procured them. If they desired acts of murder, he brought them sacrificial victims.

However, in Korea where CCTVs were installed everywhere on the streets, it was more difficult than it seemed to completely erase traces of crime. Jang Gitae’s clients wanted an even more perfectly closed environment, and Wolhwa Island met those conditions.

If they could build a resort here, they could not only manage VIPs but also perform organ transplant surgeries using organs extracted from gamblers who had lost their ability to repay, without paying fees to the long-term black market for organ trafficking.

It was truly a new business that could provide one-stop services.

― After finishing this job, come back to the main house.

The voice, still low but somewhat softer, rang in Moon-beom’s ears.

“I should see it through until everything is settled. Isn’t this a matter that determines Gang-il’s future?”

Moon-beom replied calmly. While his statement showed his determination to take full responsibility for the task at hand, in reality, it was a polite refusal to return.

After graduating from university, instead of taking over one of Gang-il Group’s affiliates, he became the general manager of a private gambling establishment so that he could travel around the country under the pretext of managing venues.

Moon-beom had clung to all sorts of folk beliefs and sorcery to find a way to deal with Jang Gitae, who had gained spiritual abilities by swallowing a fox bead, and the black fox who was the original owner of the bead. This was information that could only be obtained by physically moving and engaging directly.

However, with no spiritual power and unable to even detect the presence of spirits, he couldn’t cultivate any magical powers by any method.

Unless it was a weapon that could trap a spirit’s soul, he couldn’t eliminate them with physical force. Therefore, Moon-beom decided that the only way was to obtain a fox bead like the one Jang Gitae had swallowed.

With an all-or-nothing mindset, he searched for a white fox’s den. He was nearly beaten to death, but it wasn’t in vain as he was able to make a bet with the jangseung dokkaebi.

The problem was that the prize for the bet was a half-dokkaebi who was no more than a child.

Nevertheless, in a situation where he had to cling to even the thinnest thread of possibility, what Moon-beom needed to buy now was time.

To catch a tiger, one must enter the tiger’s den. But it wasn’t time yet. He needed to sharpen his claws a bit more to ensure he could cut off the tiger’s breath completely.

― Leave such dirty work to your underlings and prepare to take over the company. Isn’t it, as you said, a matter that determines Gang-il’s future?

“I still lack a lot due to insufficient field experience. I’m also doubtful if I can manage well.”

As if excessive modesty was arrogance, Jang Gitae laughed heartily and said:

― What lack? What are you worried about when I’m behind you?

Jang Gitae was planning to step down from his position as chairman in three years and run for the National Assembly election.

To pass everything on to Moon-beom, his biological son but not legally recognized.

However, relinquishing his position would be merely a formality. Moon-beom was well aware of the intention to set up a respectable figurehead and control everything as he pleased.

Smiling bitterly, he took out a lighter from his pocket. Then he rubbed the scratch on its surface with his thumb. The cold texture of the lighter pressed coolly against his chest.

― Moon-beom.

“Yes, Chairman.”

― You are my son, born of my blood. You must become a great person. Your mother, Yeo In-kyung, would want that too.

Your mother. Yeo In-kyung.

The movement of his finger rubbing the deep groove suddenly stopped. It was a statement more powerful than any order or threat.

The pale gray iris with fine lines spreading densely was covered in pitch-black darkness. Moon-beom, who was gripping the metal body of the lighter as if to crush it, slowly closed his eyes to suppress the huge wave surging in his chest. The tips of his nails, which had turned red from the pressure, trembled slightly.

“…I will reconsider.”

― Good.

“Then please go in, Chairman. I’ll contact you again.”

He greeted Jang Gitae with a voice feigning calmness. Only after confirming that the call had ended did Moon-beom finally exhale, his face more terrible than ever, like that of a beast.

He scanned the sky with intense eyes as if to destroy everything in sight. Perhaps startled by his ominous aura, the crows circling around the dokkaebi’s territory flew high into the sky as if escaping.

“I was going to give them to our baby dokkaebi, but I guess not.”

A dry voice echoed in the empty air. He took out a plum-flavored candy from his pocket and immediately crunched it. The finely crushed candy pieces wrapped around his tongue, creating a terribly sweet taste.

Eating a round candy resembling a fox bead.

It was a kind of extreme remedy Moon-beom had devised for stress relief, as he didn’t drink alcohol or smoke at all to maximize his physical functions.

Although he didn’t particularly like sweets, the intense taste that numbed his tongue and touched his brain could suppress the murderous intent at his fingertips.

“Hah…”

Exhaling a low sigh, Moon-beom once again reminded himself of the bloody path laid out before him and the karma he bore. The deep-seated grudge and hatred in his bones had to be locked away in the depths of his heart until the final day arrived.

Park Jeongbae

Arriving soon

Bzzt, his phone vibrated with a message from Park Jeongbae. After swallowing even the last crumbs of the candy, Moon-beom slowly turned and headed for the gate.

To prevent unnecessary approaches from people, he usually went down to the village himself to get what he needed. But Eun-hwi, who usually woke up around three or four, had left the house early today, prompting Moon-beom to call for Park Jeongbae.

Thinking it might be a good opportunity to reconfirm Eun-hwi’s abilities if they happened to meet, as he would likely transform into dokkaebi fire and flee.

“Open sesame…! Open sesame…!”

Park Jeongbae’s voice could be heard fervently chanting the spell outside the gate. It had been a joke, but he seemed to have naively believed it. Moon-beom laughed with a hissing sound.

“Open… Huh?”

Creak―

Moon-beom opened the firmly closed door and came out. Unsure whether his spell had worked or if it was mere coincidence, Park Jeongbae looked up at the man before him with a confused expression.

The rough scars contrasted starkly with his gently smiling face. His well-sculpted features, like a statue, drew even more attention because of this. With a relaxed yet tense air about him, he was indeed the heir to Gang-il Group that Park Jeongbae knew.

Not the dokkaebi he had never seen before.

“Hello, Boss!”

“The items?”

“Ah, yes. Here they are.”

The midday hike had made him sweat profusely, soaking his armpits, chest, and entire back. Park Jeongbae wiped his sticky hands clean on his pants before handing over two camping coolers he had set down on the ground to Moon-beom.

“Nothing’s missing.”

“Yes. I carefully selected the most expensive and fresh items!”

The right cooler contained two plump young chickens, freshly caught abalone, ginseng, jujubes, green onions, and other ingredients. The left cooler held desserts for after the meal. As it happened to be Chobok (the first day of the three hottest days in summer), he planned to make samgyetang for dinner.

“By the way, have you met the dokkaebi?”

Park Jeongbae, who had been fanning himself constantly due to the unrelenting heat, cautiously asked while peering inside the walls.