They scrutinized me closely, perhaps realizing that I was not the true owner of this body.

‘I don’t want to get caught here.’

But such anxiety was fleeting.

How could they know just by looking? There are only four people gathered here because of me. I have to think rationally.

The fact that Elder Jemungakju came here meant that ‘something’ that had driven me to the brink of ruin was related to shamanism, in Elder Jemungakju’s opinion.

I greeted them while still seated.

“An honor to meet Elder…”

“No need. I’m not so strict as to expect greetings from someone who’s ill.”

I closed my mouth before I could finish the greeting.

However, when it came to someone who wasn’t ill, Elder Jemungakju calmly accepted Ha Hyun’s bow. Then he naturally took a seat in the chair Ha Hyun had vacated and looked straight at me.

“Let’s see. I did hear the story from your ambassador, but could you explain it to me once more?”

Meanwhile, the ambassador took Ha Hyun out of the room, and then returned alone. He whispered something quietly to the master who had been standing as if performing a ritual.

Upon hearing the whisper, the master nodded and left the room. The ambassador took the spot where the master had been standing.

In an instant, an environment where Elder Jemungakju and I could talk without any hindrances was created.

I bit my lip briefly, then opened my mouth slowly.

“Yes, so…”

Still, this time I could continue the conversation more comfortably than before, when I had laid out the situation to the ambassador before falling asleep.

I had gotten some more sleep, drank some unidentified medicine, and felt more relaxed thanks to the conversation with Ha Hyun.

Even then, my explanation was more like ‘I think it was like this,’ and nothing more than conjecture, but Elder Jemungakju listened intently.

Finally, as I closed my mouth and clenched my slightly trembling fingertips, he began to speak slowly.

“To summarize, you’ve sensed this since last year. It felt like a dissonance. However, you ignored it because you felt you shouldn’t think too deeply about it. Yet today, it felt especially clear, so you impulsively touched it?”

“…Yes.”

“And then you felt like you’d made a big mistake. And indeed, you had.”

“Yes.”

“Hmm.”

Elder Jemungakju, nodding his head, seemed to think deeply for a moment, then muttered while rummaging through a wooden box he had brought.
“Yes, even if there’s a reason… It’s rare for kids like you to end up in such a state. It’s not like you have a long history, so if your temperament has been twisted to this extent, and you’ve felt something too, then it seems like some special force intervened. It even warranted calling me.”

Then he seemed to find what he was looking for and lifted his head. What came out of his bag was a talisman written with red ink on yellow paper.

Holding the bundle of talismans, Master Jemungak started to affix them around the bed without hesitation. I stared wide-eyed, bewildered.

“Well, Elder, that is…”

“Don’t worry about it today. I’m just going to check something. You won’t feel pain or difficulty. After all, isn’t your ambassador glaring at me from behind?”

No, the problem isn’t feeling pain or difficulty.

‘So what exactly is he trying to check?’

I let out a deep sigh.

In truth, the perception is that incantations are used by the Sapa, so the clans and sects of the Jeong faction take a very conservative approach to incantations.

They could use much greater power with just a bit of radical action, but they choose to restrict themselves for the sake of face, perhaps?

When doing something related to incantations, a tool is always used. They draw natural mana existing in the atmosphere through the tool to produce results. Individuals never store mana within their bodies.

‘The energy stored in the Danjeon is separate from mana, so that’s also a reason.’

Because of this, honestly, it’s cumbersome and difficult to wield large power. Attaching these talismans might look grand, but it’s probably just creating a barrier within a small range to prevent any sort of intrusion.

‘Yes, I know that much.’

Even knowing that, there was a stinging point, so I couldn’t be calm. I didn’t know what he planned to do after blocking out the intrusion!

‘This isn’t a real evil spirit. I don’t even know how to use things like divorce spells.’

Under the gaze of the ambassador from the literary world who was watching us, Master Jemungak’s talisman attaching process proceeded quickly.

Sitting on the bed surrounded by talismans, I felt as if I had become an evil spirit trapped in a talisman-made barrier.

…It must be just my imagination?