The beer bottle flew through the air with great force, as though a pitcher had thrown a baseball with all their might.
Its momentum was so strong that anyone hit by it would likely have their bones broken.
However, Jinseong calmly stretched out his hand without showing any sign of panic as the bottle hurtled toward him. It was as if the bottle had been thrown solely for him to catch, and with perfect ease, he gripped the neck of the bottle.
Then, he approached William, extending his hand slowly.
It was a gesture of a handshake.
“Huh?”
William stared at Jinseong with a look of disbelief, wondering how the man had so effortlessly caught the bottle he had hurled, and now stood before him smiling, without a single trace of agitation. Moreover, this damn bastard who had walked in with Agnes not only had the audacity to approach him but was now requesting a handshake.
“Who the hell are you?”
Jinseong didn’t answer William’s question. He merely continued to smile innocently, his hand extended, waiting for William to reciprocate, as if to emphasize his harmlessness.
But William growled, grabbing the beer bottle still half-full and swung it violently toward Jinseong’s outstretched hand.
Bang!
Still, Jinseong deftly caught the bottle and casually threw it far away before extending his hand once again, unfazed, asking for that handshake. Seeing his persistence, William’s anger seemed to dissipate like a deflating balloon, and he chuckled, moving his hand.
Crack!
Instead of shaking Jinseong’s hand, William struck it with a slap, spat on the floor, and asked with a tone of disbelief.
“What the hell are you, kid? Do you even know who I am?”
But once again, Jinseong did not answer the question. Keeping his smiling face, he spoke in a tangential manner.
“I see worry etched on your face.”
It was a strange tone, one pieced together as if he had learned English from various people. Even in short phrases, his English was a peculiar blend of posh British accents used by the upper class, casual American slang, and hints of East Asian-inflected English.
If words had shapes, his must surely resemble some bizarre chimera stitched together from the limbs of different animals.
There was a striking incongruity between his pleasant, almost naive appearance and the dissonance in his speech, as if this person was a wandering shaman who had learned language through interactions with people of all walks of life.
“Worry often heralds misfortune. Terrible misfortune, like a corpse, always reeks. Just as the smell of a corpse pierces your nose before the coffin is opened, or the grotesque stench that attracts insects wafts even before a door is opened, worry announces itself with its odors.”
Jinseong spoke at length, not missing a moment of William’s reaction. While speaking, he also used his English to confuse William’s ears, switching accents and speeds to keep him off-balance.
This mental imagery was strong enough to sink deeply into William’s mind.
“There are various reasons why such worries arise. Your fortune may be fading, or a calamity that was due to arrive slowly now barrels in all at once. Or, it could be that a murky energy blocks your fortune from manifesting properly.”
Jinseong explained all this with a benign smile on his face. Every time William tried to interject, Jinseong used sharp English phrases to interrupt his breathing and stole his chance to speak. Meanwhile, Jinseong’s slow hand gestures drew William’s attention away from his face, and then his strategic use of accents brought William’s gaze back to his mouth.
In this way, Jinseong skillfully manipulated William’s attention, keeping him engaged.
When one point of interest faded, he switched to another.
When that one lost its allure, he quickly transitioned to yet another.
Like a game of table tennis, Jinseong utilized accents, speech speed, and gestures to keep William enthralled.
And, at the height of his performance, Jinseong reversed the dynamic by posing a question.
“Are you familiar with the concept of ‘u-hwan’?”
Before William could even react, Jinseong continued without waiting for an answer.
“I assume you don’t know the term. It’s not something commonly used, especially not in Europe where Eastern culture isn’t widely spread.”
William had no choice but to swallow what he wanted to say, staring incredulously at Jinseong.
It was absurd.
He had never encountered a maniac who cut him off mid-word so ruthlessly.
Living his life as a reckless person, William rarely experienced someone cutting him off or silencing him like this. So his astonishment was immense.
“Much like common words in East Asia, this ideogramic word ‘u-hwan’ carries several meanings—it can signify illness, worry, or anxiety. Specifically, the second character ‘hwan,’ meaning worry, carries a shape well-fitted to its meaning.”
Jinseong continued his lecture, regardless of whether William was following or not.
“It combines a character meaning ‘skewer’ with characters symbolizing ‘heart’ or ‘mind.’ Loosely translated, it’s a pain that pierces the heart or soul. Moreover, its structure suggests two centers of the heart, a situation where one must think about two things at once, inevitably causing anxiety. Doesn’t it perfectly encapsulate the meaning?”
“You insane brat, are you trying to lecture me right here and now…?”
At this point, Jinseong seemed to reach the limit of his listener’s patience. He observed William spouting curses, then smoothly interrupted him before he could launch a string of invectives.
“As if a skewer has pierced your mind…”
At this, William suddenly closed his mouth, as if struck at the core. His brows furrowed tightly, whether from embarrassment or annoyance—or perhaps a mix of both. Then, he grabbed a beer bottle from his bag, holding it upside down, raising it high as if to strike Jinseong on the head.
Before William could bring the bottle down, someone stepped forth to shield Jinseong.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
It was Ella.
Ella had been captivated by Jinseong’s mesmerizing words until she noticed William’s attack. She quickly intervened, pulling Jinseong back to create some distance between him and William. With a fierce glare, she vehemently confronted William, stopping him mid-action.
“Hair Park, are you alright?”
“Thank you for your concern. I am perfectly fine.”
The moment they stepped back, Ella anxiously inspected Jinseong for injuries. She especially focused on his hands, which had caught the beer bottle twice.
She meticulously examined to ensure they weren’t turning red, swollen, or fractured. Taking her examination a step further, she gently felt his hands, checking for any pain. When she realized she had been firmly squeezing his hand, she quickly withdrew, her face reddening in embarrassment.
“I’m sorry. I was startled…”
“There’s no need to apologize. It’s an honor that Frau Winter cares so much.”
The scene looked almost tender.
“Huh?”
William, spotting the tender exchange between the two, raised an eyebrow, finding the situation absurd. He placed the beer bottle he had been holding onto the table and scrutinized Jinseong’s face closely. But with nothing specific coming to mind, he rummaged through his bag and pulled out a notebook.
It was a notebook containing a list of important people in Korea for him to avoid, recorded by the family with the message: “We’ve noted down the faces and names here, so please avoid trouble with these individuals.” Flipping to the ‘B’ section, he scanned page by page until he reached a name.
Jinseong Bak.
A promising young shaman who participated in the “Coming of Age” ceremony.
“Oh, I remember now. That cute Ness and Ella live at this guy’s place, right?”
Upon reading the notebook, William finally recognized the name.
“Come to think of it, they mentioned that his sister is pals with some snooty daughter of wealth.”
He skimmed through the notebook quickly, hoping more memories would surface, but found nothing beyond dry corporate rankings and network connections of the mansion’s owner. He returned the notebook to his bag and observed Ella and Jinseong again.
“Considering that this brat’s displaying such a face…”
What he saw now was not the usual cold demeanor of Ella, but the girlish excitement often seen at social gatherings where a woman meets a man she fancies.
“Hmm.”
William’s anger quickly faded at this sight.
“That stubborn brat is at least getting around with things.”
Quickly suppressing his anger, William approached Jinseong step by step. Ignoring Ella’s protective glare, he smiled wryly at Jinseong and spoke.
“Listen, you should’ve told me. If you’d mentioned he’s the future son-in-law, I wouldn’t have done what I did.”
