About the Manshin
"Get out!!!"
Jinhyeok closed his eyes.
The old man screamed at the top of his lungs, loud enough to shake the thatched house. Startled, the others widened their eyes and stared at him.
Thud thud!
"Where do you think you're shouting like that?!"
"Momo's ears hurt!!"
The beating resumed.
This time, with added aggravation, they let it go on a little longer.
"Answer while you're getting hit. Who is this Manshin?"
"Do you want to be struck by divine punishment?! You don't even know who that is—!"
"How dare you! How dare you! You're still running that mouth?!"
Kancho grabbed the old man by the hair and rained down soft punches.
"O-Okay! Stop! Stop hitting me! I'll talk! I'll talk!"
After taking a beating for quite some time, the old man finally surrendered.
It wasn't because the little ones' fluffy punches hurt.
It was simply that yodel fur kept getting into his nose and mouth, making him miserable.
"Huff… huff… The Manshin is one who reads the will of heaven! A being who has lived for an immeasurable span of a thousand years!"
"What a rookie."
"You filthy demi-human bastard!"
"Watch your mouth! I'm three thousand two hundred seventy-one years old and already halfway into the grave, thank you very much!"
Elia frowned.
Was she baiting him? Or taking his side?
"Where is this Manshin you speak of?"
Jinhyeok still hadn't seen any memories of a new companion.
Which meant the old man in front of them wasn't it.
Most likely, this Manshin was the new ally.
"At the end of this space. But you won't be able to meet them."
"Why not?"
"That path is unimaginably harsh and dangerous. The moment you set foot on it, your life will be taken."
"So if we don't lose our lives, we can meet them?"
"That's impossible! The Manshin is the hero chosen by heaven in this age. Even now, the Manshin is carrying out a mission that only they can fulfill. The moment you interfere, an unspeakable calamity will be unleashed."
Rustle.
The instant the old man finished speaking, a familiar hologram appeared.
A woman dressed in pure white robes was offering prayers before a stone stele.
"Is she Korean?"
"Korean? What's that?"
The old man tilted his head, clearly hearing the word for the first time.
Not knowing what era he was from, Jinhyeok rattled off whatever country names came to mind.
"Joseon, Korea, Goryeo, Gojoseon, Silla, Goguryeo, Baekje. Any of those ring a bell?"
"You're just stringing together words I can't understand."
Jinhyeok shrugged.
The term Manshin was usually used to refer to a shaman.
That was why he'd taken a guess—but apparently not.
He focused again on the memories flowing before him.
Though countless seasons passed, the owner of the memory didn't move an inch.
It was enough to make one worry she'd turned into a waiting stone.
Twitch!
Jinhyeok leaned in closer.
It was only for a split second, but something had definitely moved.
The praying woman seemed to sense it as well.
"Stay still. We'll both suffer less if you don't struggle."
A faint smile curved her lips.
"You can never leave this place. So… sleep."
Jinhyeok's eyes widened.
As her quiet incantation ended, things that had been invisible until now began to reveal themselves.
Beneath the stele lay something enormous and pitch-black.
Above it rested a massive palm.
Judging by the circumstances, it seemed to be power created by the woman's prayers.
On the surface, it might have looked peaceful.
But it wasn't.
It went on endlessly.
A struggle between one being trying to stay awake and another trying to force it into slumber.
Every vibration and twitch felt within the memory was the byproduct of that clash.
Rustle.
The hologram, which had been gradually fading, disappeared completely.
A being close to the heavens.
The woman who had pressed down on the stele for countless ages seemed to be the companion they were about to meet.
"So, what exactly do you do, Grandpa?"
"Me? I'm the Manshin's Bangja."
"Bangja? Like that little runt who follows the royal inspector around? A gofer, right?"
"A gofer?"
The old man blinked, unfamiliar with the word.
Thankfully so.
It was a relief he couldn't understand Kancho's newly expanded vocabulary.
"So the path to the Manshin is that way."
When Jinhyeok pointed in one direction, the old man frowned deeply.
"Did you even listen to what I said?! The moment you step foot there, you'll die! As for that place—"
He went on at length with a dramatic tale, but in the end, it could be summarized in a single line.
The maze was extremely complicated.
"More complicated than the maze you made, Grandpa?"
"Huh?"
The old man froze, like someone struck dumb.
Breaking into a cold sweat, he finally forced his mouth open.
"T-That's not true! My maze is the ultimate path—no one can ever escape it!"
But this side had the Yodel Compass.
A one-hundred-percent success rate, easy.
"Then we'll be fine. We're going."
With a smile, Jinhyeok turned away.
"Be careful, old man! If you shout 'Get out!' one more time, we'll really send you flying!"
After delivering that final threat, Kancho followed after him.
They headed toward the direction the old man had indicated.
The closer they got, the thicker and more oppressive the ominous aura became.
"Another rain cloak thingy."
"A torii."
Jinhyeok corrected the term and lifted his head.
Compared to before, the torii gate was plastered with talismans even more aggressively.
Bleak and desolate didn't even begin to cover it.
"Let's go."
Without further hesitation, he stepped forward.
Whether what lay beneath was a tiger or a dragon didn't matter.
If the Manshin was the next hero they were meant to recruit, then they'd help her—and beat the hell out of whatever needed beating.
Ding!
[You have cleared the path to the separated space on Mythic Tower Floor 10!]
The structure was similar to the Ice Prison where they had met Dark.
To proceed further, they would need to climb the next floor.
[You escaped the hellish maze filled with illusions without getting lost even once!]
[The Yodel Compass played a major role in escaping the maze! A socket for enhancement has been created beneath the compass! Only a born artisan can enhance the compass!]
"Oh? Looks like we can upgrade the Yodel Compass."
"Is that so? Then we should stop by the Yodel Forest—do a little fishing at the lake while we're at it. It's about time we tightened up old man Toto's slack discipline again."
The compass expert, Grandpa Toto, came to mind.
He'd probably been resting comfortably in his old tree house.
Another uninvited visit awaited him.
[You have cleared Mythic Tower Floor 10!]
[You may now enter Mythic Tower Floor 11, a space where something sleeps!]
Jinhyeok narrowed his eyes.
Something sleeps.
The phrasing reeked of bad omens, but he decided not to worry about it.
Just like Kancho and Momo beating up the old man earlier—if it showed up, he'd just beat it into submission.
[Exiting Mythic Tower Floor 10!]
With that message, Jinhyeok and his party were expelled from the tower.
"Y-You're really going?!"
The old man came running out too late, staring toward the torii gate.
The ruffians were already gone—nowhere to be seen.
The old man pressed a hand to his forehead.
"Manshin… I am sorry."
The task given to him had been simple.
Guard the path so that no one could enter.
He'd been a bit overzealous, too immersed in his role—but he'd still been breached by unexpected intruders.
Rub, rub.
Rubbing the spots where he'd been punched, he shook his head.
If one were generous, it could be called the passion of youth.
But in the old man's eyes, it was unmistakably arrogance.
The kind born from careless thinking—let's just try it and see.
And because of that, it would soon descend upon them.
Divine punishment for defying the will of heaven.
Incheon International Airport, Republic of Korea.
Japanese Innovation Party lawmaker Sato Tsubasa exited the arrivals area.
"It's my first time back since the Korea–Japan summit. Korea, huh."
She slowly surveyed her surroundings.
Despite being the closest neighboring country, it was a place she rarely visited.
She hadn't expected to return under circumstances like these.
"Where would you like to go, ma'am?"
"Didn't I tell you not to call me 'lawmaker'? Do you want to advertise to everyone that I'm here looking for a Runner? I even dressed casually."
"My apologies."
"And where would I go? We stay right here."
Those following her tilted their heads in confusion.
The airport bustled with people moving in all directions.
What exactly was she planning to do here?
"Did you properly guide the others who arrived with us?"
"Yes. We sent them to the locations you specified. Two each to the Seoul Player Hunters Bureau and the National Assembly."
"Good. Let's hope they bring back something useful."
Walking leisurely, she continued to scan the area.
"Find me a place that's open and unobstructed, but where I can close my eyes and focus. Rent out the space if you have to—pay whatever it costs."
"Understood."
Tsubasa exhaled softly.
Incheon Airport was vast.
But it was all within her detection range.
If the owner of the lingering trace she'd once handled for the Hosaka Group appeared—if he set foot in the arrivals hall—she would know instantly.
And if the man who killed Chairman Hosaka turned out to be a Runner, all the better.
'Probably not.'
She smirked and shook her head.
It was a convenient hope—realistically, a very slim possibility.
Wiping out the yakuza, killing Chairman Hosaka, then going on to Britain to save the future queen?
Even hero movies didn't cram their schedules that tightly.
"Still, there's a lot of competition."
Scattered throughout the arrivals hall were several groups that clearly weren't ordinary.
They looked like they were openly waiting for something.
Which meant she wasn't the only one who believed a Runner might appear in Incheon.
But she wasn't worried.
The advantage lay with her.
The Runner was someone the Korean authorities were desperately hiding.
Which meant the others likely had no leads at all.
She, on the other hand, had at least a lingering trace of a man who might be the Runner—even if the odds were low and tinged with wishful thinking.
"We've found a suitable spot."
"Let's go."
Following her attendants, Tsubasa arrived beside a fountain.
"This works. Stand casually—don't draw attention."
"Yes."
Stretching her body lightly, Tsubasa sat down at the center of the fountain.
Then she closed her eyes and brought her hands together.
Ssssshhhhh…!
Threads that only Tsubasa could see spilled forth from her hands.
They spread in all directions, weaving a web like a spider's silk.
Into those threads, Tsubasa infused the lingering trace she'd been carrying.
Completing the web meant for capture, Tsubasa smiled.
Preparations were complete.
Now, all that remained was to wait.
Praying that the prey would fall into the trap.
Stepping off the private jet, Jinhyeok stretched.
His belly had swollen like a mountain.
Thanks to the feast Charles had prepared.
'Private jets are really amazing.'
Before it got any farther away, he walked back to the plane and pressed his cheek against it.
This was really his.
He still couldn't quite believe it.
"Thank you for your hard work."
The pilot bowed politely as he disembarked.
"No, thank you for flying us!"
The pilot looked at the impeccably polite young man.
A completely private customer area, fully separated from the cockpit.
He'd heard quite a bit of noise during the flight and had wondered what the boy was doing in there—but he couldn't very well ask.
No matter how young he looked, he was a super VIP.
"Then I'll see you on the next flight."
"Yeah. See you next time!"
Spinning around, Jinhyeok stretched again.
Arrival complete at Cheongju Airport.
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T/N:
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