Chapter 61.2

Chapter 61.2

There was something about her teasing tone that felt more like gratitude than mockery. Seokkyung’s sharpness didn’t bite as hard when she smiled like that.

“Thank you.”

He said nothing. His gaze lingered on her with a complicated look.

“Actually, I was thinking about something while I was washing up,” she said. “About that spirit you said is inside Suho.”

The moment his name left her lips, Seokkyung’s brow furrowed.

Ara assumed the reaction came from the evil spirit inside Suho. Maybe it was stronger and more dangerous than the one she had faced before. The thought made the back of her neck tense.

“You said it’s a really evil spirit.”

“That’s right.”

“And you said one of your powers is to exorcise spirits.”

“So?”

“Then can’t you get rid of the one inside Suho?”

It was framed as a question, but in truth, she expected him to agree.

The goblins she had met were kind and righteous, and as their king, his strength should easily handle such a thing.

“No.”

His refusal came without the slightest hesitation.

“Why not?”

Her face fell, her voice soft with frustration.

“Let me ask you first.”

He folded his arms and rubbed his chin slowly, watching her.

“Why do you think that spirit entered Yoon Suho’s body?”

“Because… it possessed him? Isn’t that what spirits do?”

Ara tilted her head, confused.

“That’s not what I mean.” He shook his head. “Out of all the humans out there, why him?”

“Uh… maybe because he just happened to be nearby?”

Her voice trailed off uncertainly. Seokkyung sighed, long and deep, as if her answer physically pained him.

“That imagination of yours…”

“That lack of imagination…”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. My imagination’s just as empty as my bank account. So stop quizzing me and just tell me. Why him?”

Ara shot back with a pout. Seokkyung clicked his tongue and gave a small shrug.

“How would I know?”

“What?”

She was ready to stand up, convinced he was teasing her again, but he spoke before she could move.

“But what if, like you said, Yoon Suho isn’t just some helpless victim?”

“Wait, wait, hold on.”

Ara leaned forward over the table, frowning.

“What’s that supposed to mean? A possessed person’s obviously the victim, isn’t he?”

Seokkyung sighed again and leaned back in his chair, putting distance between them.

Does this man even know what fear is?

She bit back the muttered complaint that almost escaped her lips.

“There are usually two reasons an evil spirit enters a human body.”

He unfolded his arms and straightened his back.

“Either the spirit wants it, or the human does.”

He held up two fingers, each word deliberate.

“Ara, haven’t you ever seen a movie or a drama where someone makes a deal with the devil to get what they want?”

Of course, she had.

Ara recalled the countless stories she’d seen—humans trading with demons for love, wealth, revenge, even death. All driven by desperate desires and foolish courage.

“And what do they usually give up in return?”

“Their soul… or their life?”

“Exactly. That’s why it can’t be done.”

Her hesitation vanished. His voice turned firm again.

“Goblins can’t harm humans.”

At that, Ara remembered something Baekmok had once told her back at Wongung Palace.

‘For us goblins, breaking a rule is the greatest sin of all. And among the laws we must follow, one stands above the rest.’

‘Never harm a human being.’

Seok-kyung’s punishment for the goblin who broke that rule, and the look on his face afterward, were still vivid in Ara’s memory.

“If Yoon Suho made a contract with that spirit, destroying the spirit would be the same as destroying Suho’s body and soul.”

If Suho’s existence vanished, Seok-kyung would be forced to break the law he must never break.

Still, could there be a tiny chance it wouldn’t come to that?

Ara bit her lip and looked at him again. Her voice trembled as she begged.

“It might not be like that. Maybe it’s not a contract. Maybe the thing just noticed Suho by chance…”

“Maybe. That’s possible. But what if it’s not?”

“…”

“Even if Suho is purely a victim, if he is not completely separated from the spirit, the outcome is the same. Whatever the cause, their souls would still be linked.”

“…”

“Would you gamble Suho’s life?”

After a short silence, Seok-kyung added one more thing.

“And mine?”