Magic on the Dead Chapter 8

Hajin, who had been catching his breath with his eyes closed for a while, slowly got up from his seat. He went to the right corner where Eden had been standing and started to search for a signal.

After struggling for about five minutes, Hajin finally put the phone to his ear. A dial tone, which had been completely absent before, could now be heard. Suppressing his anxiety, he waited for about thirty more seconds, and soon Junseok’s voice came through.

—Hyung!

Hajin swallowed the sigh of relief that was about to burst out.

“Junseok, you’re safe, right? Where are you now? The dormitory? Or are you at work?”

—Hyung, I’m now, this… coaster… in front of….

The signal was not good. Hajin rubbed his palms, which were beginning to sweat, on his thighs and calmly continued to speak.

“Junseok, I can’t hear you well right now. Are you hurt anywhere?”

—I’m okay, right now in front of the Twi, ster at the souve… shop, hiding with Heesung….

“Haa.”

Thankfully, it seemed he was hiding somewhere, just like himself. Junseok was working as a cast member at the amusement park, Neverland. Piecing together the broken voice, it was clear he was hiding in the souvenir shop in front of the Twister ride.

—Hyung, what do we do? Can we… meet? What… is this?

“I’ll come find you, even if it’s late. Junseok, hyung will come even if I’m late, so,”

Chik, jijeek, chik—…

—I’m scared. Hyung, I can’t get out at all… not….

“Get a hold of yourself and hang in there, Do Junseok. Got it?”

—Okay… I’ll wait….

“If it gets too hard to wait there, go to the dormitory or somewhere. I’ll check all the places you might be, so don’t worry, okay?”

—Okay… you too, hyung….

The call ended around there. Hajin stared at the disconnected screen and bit his lip. The data indicator had also completely disappeared, as if it had gone into airplane mode.

“Hajin, what did Junseok say? Is he safe?”

Miso, who had approached Hajin at some point, placed a hand on his shoulder. Hajin nodded and sat back down. After that, the internet, which had been working for a short while, was completely cut off. Needless to say, phone calls were impossible.

Fatigue settled heavily on Hajin’s face as he sat down again. Hajin checked the time. It was just past 3 p.m. If things had gone as planned, it would have been the time to be giving thanks to the audience after the closing remarks. When his thoughts reached that point, his body went limp in a different sense.

He should not have started in the first place. A solo stage or whatever, he should not have even attempted such a thing as self-realization. As the voices of the wailing audience and their faces, distorted by terrible fear, vividly came to mind, Hajin’s throat bobbed.

It all felt like… it was his fault.

“Do Hajin.”

Miso, who seemed to have noticed Hajin’s thoughts, called out to stop him.

“It’s okay.”

“…….”

“It’s not your fault.”

She patted Hajin’s shoulder once more and turned her gaze toward the door. The grotesque sounds of the unidentified monsters gurgling and grinding their teeth could be heard continuously.

Just as the inside of the warehouse fell silent with everyone lost in their own thoughts, Park Chunbeom carefully approached Eden.

“Excuse me, Director Jung, could I speak with you for a moment?”

As Eden nodded while unwrapping the rope from his arm, Byeol, who was in his arms, shrewdly got up from her spot. The child rolled her eyes and ran in the direction where Hajin was sitting.

“Jung Byeol.”

Eden, who had gotten up to follow, called out to Jung Byeol in a scolding manner. The child paid him no mind and stopped in front of Hajin, shaking his shoulder.

“Mister Magician.”

Hajin, who had been burying his face in his palms, lifted his head. Bewilderment appeared in his eyes when he spotted the child.

“I want to sit on Mister Magician’s lap.”

The child’s eyelids, though she had stopped crying, were swollen like macarons.

“Ah… uh, sure. Okay.”

As Hajin nodded his head in a daze, Jung Byeol quickly climbed onto his lap. At the same time, Hajin’s and Eden’s eyes met. Eden wrinkled the flesh under his eyes.

“I said to come here, Jung Byeol.”

“No. I’m gonna stay with Hajini the magician.”

“You—,”

“I’m fine. Please, go ahead and talk.”

Hajin, who had blocked Eden’s scolding, shrugged as if to say not to mind him.

Eden, who had been picking at his blood-stained eyebrow with his index finger, let out a deep sigh, pook—.

“Then, I’ll leave her with you for a moment.”

Separate from his deep affection for his niece, in a situation like this, Jung Byeol was no different from a fatal weakness for him. It was the fact that she kept making Eden, who had never bowed his head to anyone, utter words of entreaty.

If he had known it would be like this, he should not have granted his brother’s request to take Jung Byeol with him on his business trip to Korea. He should not have cared whether she got homesick or not….

Eden swallowed a sigh and moved to the corner with Park Chunbeom. Park Chunbeom, pushing up his crooked glasses, asked in a small voice.

“Director, what is your plan, if I may ask? The transport plane… can we get on it?”

“Tomorrow at 5 a.m., we have to move to the rooftop of the building across the street. If you wish, Mr. Park, you can come with us.”

Park Chunbeom showed a bewildered expression toward him, who spoke as if doing him a favor. If he wished to come along. He had obviously planned to follow…. As if misinterpreting that expression, Eden elaborated.

“If you don’t want to, you can go separately.”

“Pardon? No, no! That’s not it. Then our destination is….”

“Well. Going by wartime manuals, I believe we will move to a class-one national security facility. Like an airport, a port, or a nuclear power plant. If those places have been decimated too, we’ll probably go to a nearby island.”

Park Chunbeom gulped and paused for a moment.

“I, is there by any chance a plan to go to Yong-Un City? I think I heard something about the Yong-Un Research Institute earlier.”

“That was assuming the worst-case scenario. ‘Jin-Hwa Tech’ is the only one with the technology to communicate with the other side of the planet. Since it’s your company, Mr. Park, I believe you would know better than me.”

“So you’re not saying you’re going to Yong-Un right away?”

“For now, evacuating to a safe place led by the transport plane is the top priority. The destination is not something we can decide on our end.”

“…….”

“Is there a problem?”

Eden tilted his head as he looked at Park Chunbeom, who was compulsively wiping the sweat from his forehead. After hesitating, Park Chunbeom opened his mouth.

“It’s just that… my parents live on the outskirts of Yong-Un City, and I don’t think I can make it through this chaos to find them alone. Is there any way to get off at Yong-Un City in the middle? If you could just mention it when we board tomorrow,”

Eden cut him off abruptly, as if there was no need to hear more.

“Mr. Park.”

“Yes?”

“It seems you have no grasp of the situation at all.”

Eden habitually swept back his sweat-soaked bangs. Contrary to his gentle tone, his face was filled with unconcealed irritation.

“You seem to think the transport plane is some kind of taxi.”

As Eden let out an incredulous laugh, Park Chunbeom gulped.

“Ah, that is….”

“I understand your feelings completely, but for the time being, the best course of action is to take refuge in a safe place and monitor the situation. For me to even have to—,”

Eden, barely holding back the words he was about to lash out with, let out a deep sigh.

“If you’re so worried about your parents, then you can go separately, Assistant Manager Park. I have no intention of stopping you.”

Chunbeom’s mouth fell open as he watched Eden’s back, who turned away as if there was nothing more to say. They had been together for five months, but he could never get used to his cold and ruthless rationality. It was still just amazing how even a matter-of-fact statement could be twice as hurtful when Eden said it.

A downcast Park Chunbeom turned back to go to his seat. As the people who had been whispering to each other closed their mouths one by one to replenish their energy, the warehouse was once again enveloped in a somber silence.

🃏

“Come here.”

“No.”

Jung Byeol rested her head on Hajin’s chest and waved her fern-like hands. Five hours had already passed since they had taken refuge in the warehouse. Eden let out a long sigh as he watched Jung Byeol, who was shamelessly clinging to Hajin to satisfy her own desires.

“I said, come here.”

“I said no.”

“Your sass is really getting out of hand.”

For words directed at a child, it was a rather harsh expression. Hajin, who had been blinking his sleepy eyes, was startled and lifted his eyelids.

“It’s ‘cause I take after uncle. Uncle is a potty-mouth.”

The person in question, Jung Byeol, retorted his words as if it were nothing.

“What, you little punk?”

“…Excuse me, Byeol. Your uncle is worried, so maybe you should stop now,”

“I like Mister Hajini better.”

Perhaps because they had overcome a near-death experience together, the child kept trying to be held by Hajin, who was no different from a stranger. As a troubled Hajin scratched his head, this time Miso intervened.

“Your name is Byeol, right?”

The child, after looking at Miso warily for a moment, nodded.

“Your hair is very messy, so would it be okay if unni tied it up for you?”

“…….”

“Unni is good at tying hair. I can even do a daenggi braid for you. Do you know what a daenggi is?”

“…I know.”

“Then come here.”

Miso skillfully persuaded the child. The child, as if bewitched, got up from her spot and sat on Miso’s lap. Hajin let out a small sigh as he massaged his tingling knees and thighs.

When he lifted his head, his eyes met with Eden’s, who was staring intently at him. A dried bloodstain, which he had not managed to wipe off, was stuck to the man’s face.