The exploration of the dark cave, something he never thought he'd be doing, continued.
"What on earth is supposed to be here?"
Eventually, exhausted from walking, Jaegyeom grumbled irritably.
"What kind of cave doesn't have a single bat or snake?"
At this rate, he wasn't sure if they could go any further. It felt like they had ventured fairly deep inside. But along the way, nothing of note had caught his attention. It made him wonder if someone had just misheard an animal cry and reported it. The fact that there hadn't been any radio communication from Yoon Taehee suggested he hadn't found anything on his end either.
Jaegyeom sat down on a large rock to catch his breath.
"Kkaeng-al."
A strange sound came from somewhere. Jaegyeom flinched and looked around.
"What was that?"
He shone his flashlight around but didn't see anything unusual.
Thinking he might've misheard, he sat back down on the rock.
"Kkaeng-al."
The sound came again. This time, as he looked around, he finally found the source. Something was flipped over between the rocks.
Taking off his mask, Jaegyeom shone his flashlight on it.
It looked like... a softshell turtle? But it seemed a bit too small for that…
"...A pond turtle?"
Upon closer inspection, it was indeed a pond turtle. Jaegyeom examined it carefully.
But do pond turtles normally make a sound like "kkaeng-al"?
In any case, it had been a long time since he had seen one. Pond turtles, which lived in rivers, were often mistaken for softshell turtles because of their similar appearance, making them hard to distinguish. They were once prized animals used as royal symbols.
But what was a pond turtle doing in this cave?
Jaegyeom tapped the turtle with the fan he was holding. It felt like hitting a rock—solid and unmoving. He kicked it a bit harder with his foot, but the same feeling came—like tapping a statue. The turtle was stiff and didn't budge.
"What, is it dead?"
Just as he muttered to himself,
"Kkaeng-al."
The turtle made a sound, as if in response. Startled, Jaegyeom squatted down to take a closer look. It seemed that this little guy really was the one making the noise.
"Hey. Was that you making the sound?"
"Kkaeng-al."
"Why are you like this?"
"Kkaeng-al."
"Are you dead or alive?"
"Kkaeng-al."
No matter what he said, the only response he got was "kkaeng-al." The turtle, stuck upside down and frozen in place, kept repeating the same sound like a machine. Intrigued, Jaegyeom squatted closer and, without thinking, mimicked the sound, saying "kkaeng-al."
At that moment, the turtle, which had been lying still, suddenly started moving violently from side to side like a seesaw.
"Gasp! Help me!"
It shouted.
"What the— what?!"
Startled, Jaegyeom jumped back. The turtle was talking in human language.
"Please, I beg you! Flip me over!"
The plea was so desperate that jaegyeom quickly turned the turtle over, then took a deep breath to calm his startled heart and looked at it again. Since it could speak, it must be a spiritual creature...
"Hey, what are you? Are you okay?"
Jaegyeom asked. Suddenly, the turtle began to cry profusely.
"Master!! You've saved me, Master!!"
"What? What are you talking about? Why would I be your master?"
Jaegyeom asked, confused.
(SIGHS)
"I am Yoo Namsaeng from Deoksatgol! I was commanded by the mountain spirit to guard this cave for hundreds of years. But long ago, a Taoist priest came here."
The turtle began to explain its story.
"I was lonely, so I was happy to have someone to talk to, and I kept chatting with him. But that cursed Taoist said, This noisy creature keeps yapping like kkaeng-al, kkaeng-al, and then cast a spell on me! Since then, the only thing I could say was 'kkaeng-al'..."
The turtle flailed its legs and continued crying.
"Several people have come here, but none of them recognized me!
You have rescued me from this torment, so I will serve you as my master! My original master was the mountain spirit, but the spirit left long ago! So I am free to serve a new master now!"
The turtle crawled up to Jaegyeom's foot.
"Master! You must truly be a noble person!"
Tears streaming down its face, the turtle rubbed its head against Jaegyeom's foot.
"You've got to be kidding me. Who said I'd be your master?"
Jaegyeom scowled and shook the turtle off the toe of his shoe. The turtle fell off with a yelp. It flipped onto its back again, flailing and wailing.
"Please take me with you! I don't want to stay here anymore, don't leave me behind!"
Jaegyeom was beginning to understand why the old Taoist priest had cast a spell on it and left...
"Ah, you're damn noisy. Can't you be quiet?"
There had been many beings before who had recognized jaegyeom and wanted to serve him, but he wasn't looking to add to his companions. He was already satisfied with the fox and ginseng he lived with.
"Master! I will serve you well!"
The turtle was bawling, begging to be taken in, as it flapped its legs.
Jaegyeom half-listened, looking annoyed, and scratched his ear. It seemed the noise in the cave wasn't caused by a ghost after all but by the turtle. Since he had discovered it first, he sent a radio
message.
"Hey, there's some kkaeng-al—ah, no, there's a turtle here."
-...
But no matter how long he waited, there was no response from the radio. No reply at all. What's going on? Is it broken? It had worked just fine earlier. Jaegyeom tapped the radio a few times and tried contacting Yoon Taehee again, but still, there was no response from him.
***
Finally, silence fell over the area.
When Seonoh opened his eyes again, he was in the room where the shamanic painting had been.
..."
Having briefly fallen asleep, Seonoh woke up with a start and immediately got up. The room looked just as it had before. He hurriedly went outside into the yard. Dazzling sunlight poured down, and the sky was blue. Several stray cats were playing together, tumbling about. As always, a pile of trash was stacked in one corner of the yard, and a few wandering spirits were gathered, watching the sparrows.
"Huh..?"
Everything was just as it had been. Turning his head quickly to scan the surroundings, Seonoh looked down at his hands. They were small and grubby, just as usual.
"I told you not to go out, but you went out into the yard again!"
A strict voice scolded him from inside the house.
"What kind of grandchild doesn't listen to their grandfather! Who else but you, Seonoh!"
Tears started to roll down Seonoh's cheeks.
"..."
Tears flowed continuously. Seonoh, standing in the yard, wiped his eyes with the back of his hand and walked back into the house.
When he opened the door to the master bedroom, there was the elderly man, Elder Yoon, with scars covering his body. He was sitting in front of a janggi board, reading a book while playing the game by himself. The water ghost sat beside him, fiddling with the janggi pieces, playing along.
"Grandpa."
Seonoh stood there, unable to speak, tears streaming down his face.
"Now, why are you crying, Seonoh?"
Elder Yoon gestured for him to come closer with a look of surprise.
"Why are you crying? Hm? Who made my precious Seonoh cry?" he asked, placing Seonoh on his lap and asking him soothingly.
"I had a strange dream."
A strange dream... a terrifying dream... Seonoh said, still crying.
Elder Yoon comforted him, saying, "It's alright, it's alright," while patting his back with his wrinkled hand. The water ghost sitting nearby also reached out and stroked Seonoh's head.
"To make my grandchild stop crying, this old man will give you a gift."
Elder Yoon stood Seonoh up and brought out a jar filled with candy.
He took a candy from the jar, and Seonoh, still sniffling, opened his mouth. The candy was placed in his mouth. The water ghost, mimicking Seonoh, also opened its mouth.
"Play a game of janggi together with grandpa, so that bad dream will fly away."
After giving a candy to the water ghost as well, Elder Yoon smiled kindly.
"Okay..."
Seonoh wiped his tears and sat down in front of the janggi board.