The festival grounds were still loud with music and chatter after the ceremony ended.
Villagers surrounded Se-Jun excitedly, praising the "powerful blessing dance" he had somehow survived without collapsing.
Meanwhile—
Se-Jun stood near the side of the stage, secretly wiping sweat from his neck.
I almost died.
Then a voice came from behind him.
"Great performance."
Se-Jun turned.
Sang-Ook smiled warmly while standing beside another man dressed in dark traditional robes.
"Oh…" Se-Jun forced a smile. "I just did what I needed to."
Sang-Ook nodded.
"Right. Ah—I forgot to introduce him."He gestured beside him."This is my friend, Kun-woo."
Se-Jun politely bowed once.
"Nice to meet—"
"He's a shaman too," Sang-Ook added casually.
Silence.
Se-Jun froze internally.
…A REAL ONE?!
But outside?
He smiled peacefully like a man who definitely was not fighting for his life.
"Ah… really?" he laughed awkwardly. "I'm Il-sung."
Kun-woo didn't smile back.
His sharp eyes scanned Se-Jun slowly.
"I'm Kun-woo."
A weird tension filled the air immediately.
Then Kun-woo asked calmly,
"Where did you learn Geom-mu?"
Se-Jun blinked.
"…Excuse me?"
"The sword dance," Kun-woo clarified. "Your movements were traditional."
OH NO.
Se-Jun's brain immediately started buffering.
"I-I learned when I was ten," he answered carefully. "From my Shin-abeoji."
Kun-woo tilted his head slightly.
"Your godfather?"
Se-Jun nodded confidently despite inventing everything in real time.
"My grandfather. King Sejong."
Sang-Ook nearly choked.
"…King Sejong?"
Kun-woo let out a quiet scoff.
"I heard he was never married."
The air instantly became awkward.
Sang-Ook looked between them nervously.
"Wait, what—"
"Excuse me?" Se-Jun interrupted softly.
He slowly folded his arms.
"If you start digging into my family history…"He smiled politely,"…then unfortunately, I may need to dig into yours too, Mr. Kun-woo."
Kun-woo smirked.
"If you want to try."
The villagers nearby slowly turned toward them.
Even the drums had stopped.
Se-Jun stepped closer dramatically.
"I know you were born from your mother's affair," he said calmly. "She ran away with you to Jeju Island."
Kun-woo's expression faltered.
"And your Shin-eomeoni…" Se-Jun continued."…Kim Myung-hee raised you."
Kun-woo stared at him.
"How do you—"
Se-Jun leaned closer.
"If you know my past…"He whispered lowly,"…I can predict your future too."
Then suddenly—
Se-Jun closed his eyes dramatically.
His body trembled.
He grabbed Kun-woo's shoulder—
AND PUSHED HIM.
"UGH—!"
Kun-woo stumbled backward directly into Sang-Ook.
Gasps spread through the crowd instantly.
Se-Jun slowly swayed side to side like he was possessed by ancient Wi-Fi spirits.
"This man…" he said deeply,"…came to this village ten years ago…"
The villagers stared nervously.
"And after that…" Se-Jun continued dramatically,"…the farms stopped growing properly."
An old farmer suddenly pointed.
"…WAIT. THAT'S TRUE."
Another villager nodded emotionally.
"THE CABBAGES DID LOOK SAD."
Hye-jin covered her face from secondhand embarrassment.
Se-Jun pointed weakly toward Kun-woo.
"He carries… negative energy…"
Then grabbed his back dramatically.
"Ah…" he groaned. "My spiritual pressure…"
And immediately sat down before his legs gave up naturally.
Hye-jin rushed over with water.
"Drink this," she whispered urgently.
Se-Jun grabbed it quickly.
While pretending to recover spiritually, he whispered back—
"That bastard brought a REAL shaman."
Hye-jin's eyes widened.
"…WHAT?"
Nearby, Gyu-seok walked over seriously.
"What's going on here?"
Sang-Ook tried to explain.
"I think there's been a misunderstanding—"
Hyuk interrupted quickly.
"Maybe this isn't the right time."
Kyung-soo nodded firmly toward Kun-woo.
"You should leave now, Mr. Kun-woo."
Kun-woo scoffed coldly.
Then looked directly at Se-Jun.
"You'll learn the truth one day."
A dramatic villain line.
Completely wasted because one auntie nearby was still whispering—
"I knew his aura looked unemployed."
Kun-woo turned sharply and walked away.
Moments later—
His car disappeared down the road.
Silence lingered briefly.
Then Gyu-seok looked at Sang-Ook.
"Thank you for bringing the documents," he said firmly. "But after this festival… I don't think you should return here."
Sang-Ook looked shocked.
But eventually nodded quietly before leaving too.
Finally—
Se-Jun released the biggest sigh of relief of his life.
"I need fresh air…"
He quickly escaped inside the house.
The second the bedroom door closed—
He collapsed onto the bed dramatically.
"…I almost got exposed."
Whistle.
Se-Jun froze.
Another whistle came from the back window.
He slowly opened the curtain.
Hye-jin crouched outside like a criminal raccoon.
She aggressively motioned—
OPEN THE DOOR.
A few seconds later—
She climbed inside.
Se-Jun immediately whispered loudly,
"I can't do this anymore!"
"Only three more days!" Hye-jin whispered back.
"I almost got caught!"
"You handled it!"
"I INVENTED KING SEJONG AS MY GRANDFATHER!"
Hye-jin blinked.
"…Wait."
"HE ACTUALLY KNEW WHO THAT GUY WAS!"
Hye-jin grabbed her forehead.
"If people find out the truth, I'm dead too," she whispered."I literally hired a stage actor to fake being a shaman!"
CLINK.
Both froze.
Slowly—
They turned around.
Seul-gi stood near the doorway.
Holding a dropped bowl.
Frozen.
Silence.
Pure silence.
Then—
"YOU TWO ARE INSANE?!" she screamed.
"LOWER YOUR VOICE!" Hye-jin panicked instantly.
"I KNEW what I was doing was bad," Hye-jin groaned. "I already accepted I'm going to hell."
Se-Jun pointed at himself.
"Then what about me?!"
Hye-jin glared.
"I would slap you right now if you weren't still wearing sacred robes."
Seul-gi grabbed her head dramatically.
"So WHAT is the plan now?!"
Hye-jin sighed heavily.
"Only three more days."
She pointed at Se-Jun.
"After the festival ends, he goes back to Seoul."
Then pointed at herself.
"And I go back with my script."
Seul-gi slowly nodded.
Then looked at Se-Jun carefully.
"…Honestly, I almost bowed to you earlier."
Se-Jun grinned proudly.
"See? Natural talent."
"You almost summoned a lawsuit," Hye-jin snapped.
Seul-gi sighed deeply before sitting down.
"So we just… keep lying?"
"Yes," Hye-jin answered immediately.
Then paused.
"…Professionally."
She crossed her arms seriously.
"My grandfather wants to rebuild the village. Shops, parks, guesthouses…"
Her expression softened slightly.
"He wants everyone to return here someday."
The room became quiet for a second.
Then Seul-gi stood up dramatically.
"Okay!" she shouted. "Three days! We survive for THREE DAYS!"
Hye-jin and Se-Jun nodded together instantly.
Meanwhile—
Outside the house—
The two girls casually walked back toward the festival, as absolutely nothing had happened.
Totally normal.
Definitely not hiding a fake shaman inside the village.
Se-Jun slowly removed the heavy ceremonial robes and finally changed back into his simple shaman clothes.
Plain navy fabric.Loose sleeves.Comfortable.
He let out the deepest sigh of relief of his life.
"…Finally."
KNOCK KNOCK.
Se-Jun blinked.
"Who is it?"
When he opened the door—
He froze.
Almost the entire village stood outside.
Old women.Farmers.Children.Even the village grandpas, who normally fought over cabbages.
"…Uh?"
Then suddenly—
Everyone started walking inside.
"Come in—wait—careful—"
They filled the room while carrying things in their hands.
Vegetables.
Fruit baskets.
Homemade side dishes.
Rice cakes.
Flowers.
Even neatly folded clothes.
Se-Jun stared at the growing pile in complete confusion.
"…Why all this?"
One older woman smiled warmly.
"You've done a lot for us."
Another man nodded proudly.
"You only knew us for one week…""…but now you feel like family."
Se-Jun's expression slowly softened.
A farmer stepped forward excitedly.
"Look!" he said proudly while showing a basket of apples."These grew from my farm!"
He almost looked emotional.
"I was going to give up this year…""…but after you blessed the land, everything started growing better!"
Nearby—
A small girl raised her hand proudly.
"Mister Il-sung!"
Se-Jun crouched slightly.
"Yes?"
"I used the hand sign technique you taught me!"
"…The fake one?"
"I GOT AN A+ IN MATH!"
Se-Jun immediately burst into laughter.
"No way."
The little girl nodded proudly like she had unlocked divine knowledge itself.
Then—
An old woman slowly walked closer.
She gently held Se-Jun's hands.
Her voice was soft.
"I don't have family anymore."
Se-Jun looked at her quietly.
"I heard you're leaving after the festival…"
Her eyes became teary.
"…Can't you stay with us?"
Silence filled the room.
For the first time—
Se-Jun didn't know what to say.
His chest tightened painfully.
Because these people…
Actually believed in him.
His eyes slowly filled with tears.
"I…" he sniffed softly."I don't know if I can…"
The old woman quickly smiled and patted his hand.
"It's okay," she said warmly."Just come visit sometimes."
Se-Jun lowered his head slightly.
Then nodded.
"…Okay."
A tear slipped down his cheek.
One of the village men immediately patted his shoulder.
"You're more than a shaman to us now," he said gently."So don't cry."
Another villager suddenly shouted—
"COME EAT LUNCH BEFORE THE FOOD GETS COLD!"
The emotional atmosphere disappeared instantly.
Everyone started yelling again.
"Move!"
"Who took my seat?!"
"THAT'S MY SPOON!"
Pure village chaos.
Se-Jun laughed quietly while wiping his eyes.
As everyone walked out—
He turned back once.
The room was overflowing with gifts.
Then he noticed something small sitting near the flowers.
A drawing.
One of the kids had drawn him wearing giant robes with sparkles around him.
At the top—
"IL-SUNG HYUNG = COOL"
Se-Jun slowly picked it up.
His hands trembled slightly.
A tear rolled down his cheek again.
"…I'm not fit for this…" he whispered."…not for them."