Twenty-five years had passed, but the world was still a lonely place for Jin Seon-mi.. The Haunted little girl had grown into a woman_ a formidable real estate CEO. Her office was a fortress of polished glass and clean lines, a sterile environment meant to shut out the messy, spiritual world she saw every day. Yet, even here, in the heart of the city's concrete jungle, she was never truly alone.
The low hum of her computer was often punctuated by the faint whispers of a lost soul leaning over her shoulder, or the sad, scrapping sound of a ghost trying to open the door. She ignored them with a practiced ease born of a lifetime of avoidance. But today's errand was different. Today, she was tasked with a property that was more than just haunted; it was a den of malice.
The house stood at the end of a long, desolate street, its windows like dark, vacant eyes. The air around it was thick and viscous, smelling of rot and despair. As she stepped out of her car, the cold she felt as a child returned, a deep chill that seeped into her bones, not from the weather, but from the spiritual energy emanating from the building. She knew, without a doubt, that a powerful demon resides within.
The demon's presence was a palpable weight on her chest, a force that bent the very light around the house. It was too strong for her to handle alone. A name, a beautiful, powerful name tried to surface from the deepest part of her memory, a forgotten promise of protection that was now just a phantom sensation on her tongue.
Just then, the atmosphere shifted. The scent of ozone and ancient power, a fragrance she had not smelt since childhood, return in a sudden rush. A man stood leaning against her car, his face framed by a halo of settling sun. He wore a crisp white coat over a sharp black suit, a look of effortless, danger confidence on his face.
He was breathtaking. He had the same roguish grin and a devilish charisma that seems to mock the world around him. And his eyes_ they were the same impossibly golden color as the demon she had met in the cave so long ago.
It was Son Oh-gong.
"Well", he said, his voice a low, melodic rumble she had not forgotten. "Look at you. All grown up and just as easy to eat as I thought you'd be ".
Seon-mi's breath caught in her throat. Fear and a strange deep sense of familiarity warned within her. "You", she whispered, the single word, a question and an accusation.
He pushed off the car with languid grace. "The one you betrayed, the one whose name you forgot. Did you think I wouldn't come looking for you? You're a rare meal, you know. Your blood....it smells so sweet".
His words held a terrifying truth, but he delivered them with a casual nonchalance, as if discussing the weather. He was an ancient force in a modern suit, a predator who had finally found his prey.
"I don't know who you are", she said, though her heart pounded a frantic rhythm of recognition. "I don't need your help".
He laughed, a sound that held no humor. "Of course you do. That's why I'm here. I can smell the fear coming off you. That little ghost inside the house is a snack for me. But you.... you're a banquet".
He took a step towards the house, his powerful aura making the very air shimmer. The demon within, sensing the new, greater power recoiled with a monstrous shriek that rattled the windows.
Seon-mi's bravado shattered. She felt a wave of icy cold from the house, a spiritual attack meant to weaken her. She stumbled back, the ground beneath her feeling like a shaky deck. The fear was overwhelming. She was a CEO, a successful woman. But in the world, she was a helpless, vulnerable girl again.
She locked eyes with Son Oh-gong, the demon who had once promised to protect her. A single, desperate word escaped her lips. "Help me".