Chapter 3
The sedan glided smoothly down the road, its heavy body barely noticeable.
The air conditioner was running stronger than usual, leaving the interior almost chilly.
After trekking up and down what felt like a mountain path, the sweat-soaked body cooled quickly.
At the wheel, Chief Jeon kept sneaking glances at Jin-hyuk through the rearview mirror.
Even while walking down from the Baby Bodhisattva’s shrine together, Jin-hyuk had stayed silent, which only fueled his curiosity.
“How was it, sir?”
“He said the same thing Grandfather heard.”
Jin-hyuk’s grandfather, Do Ju-myung, was the chairman of HaeNam Construction.
A firm believer in fortune-telling, Ju-myung had recently received a strange prophecy from Myung-un the diviner.
If Jin-hyuk didn’t marry this year, Ju-myung himself would die.
Since then, the freedom Jin-hyuk once enjoyed had been buried under endless blind date arrangements.
“Just pick someone already. Do you really want your old grandfather to die?”
Thinking back on his grandfather’s words, Jin-hyuk let out a dry laugh.
“Shall I take you to the meeting place then?”
Chief Jeon asked cautiously.
Instead of answering, Jin-hyuk turned his gaze out the window.
Towering skyscrapers pierced the sky, competing with one another.
HaeNam Construction held shares in many of those buildings.
Here and there, the Belle HaeNam logo could be seen, stamped proudly across the cityscape.
The name was a combination of belle (French for beauty), heim (German for home), and Nam from HaeNam Construction itself.
It was Jin-hyuk who had spearheaded the launch of the brand.
And now, it was on the verge of becoming the most recognized brand in the field.
Everything had been running smoothly until Ju-myung slammed the brakes.
All because of that absurd prophecy.
“Skip another blind date today and you can step down from that position!”
Recalling his grandfather’s threat, a faint line creased Jin-hyuk’s brow.
Until now, he had wriggled out of meetings with excuses, but he was reaching the end of his rope.
“What’s the name of the youngest daughter of Daeyang Trading I’m supposed to meet today?”
For the first time, Jin-hyuk asked about his prospective partner.
The question alone lit up Chief Jeon’s face.
“Miss Kim Esther, sir.”
“Esther… is that her Korean name?”
Catching his muttered words, Chief Jeon quickly added,
“It’s her baptismal name. She’s a devout Catholic. Isn’t it better to have someone religious than not at all?”
Because of his grandfather, Jin-hyuk had developed a strong distaste for shamanism.
Knowing this, Chief Jeon tried to emphasize the blind date partner’s faith.
“What month was she born?”
“Her birthday, sir? One moment, I’ll check.”
The odd question made Chief Jeon fumble with his tablet.
“February 10th, sir.”
At that, a faint smile curled at Jin-hyuk’s lips.
“Perfect.”
“Then I’ll take you straight to the meeting.”
Chief Jeon’s face brightened as he turned the car. But then came a flat voice from the back seat.
“No, skip it.”
“…Sir?”
Chief Jeon’s eyes widened in shock.
“The Baby Bodhisattva I met today said my partner would have strong Water energy. With a name like Esther, there’s no Water energy to speak of. And her birthday doesn’t match.”
Jin-hyuk’s face looked almost amused as he said it.
Meanwhile, Chief Jeon’s face was sinking into despair.
* * *
Back at the office, Jin-hyuk dove straight into work.
Because he had wasted the morning visiting the shrine, thick stacks of pressing matters already awaited him on his desk. Piles of documents sat waiting for approval.
He began tackling urgent tasks without even stopping for lunch.
After sitting still for so long, his neck and shoulders started to stiffen.
As he pressed his sore muscles and moved over to the reception sofa for a short break, the door to his executive office burst open.
“Do Jin-hyuk, you brat, I heard you skipped again today!”
Do Ju-myung stormed in, his voice booming, veins bulging in his neck.
Chief Jeon hovered nervously at his side, clearly uneasy.
“Step outside, Chief Jeon.”
Sending his aide out, Jin-hyuk lowered himself onto the sofa.
“I was busy.”
But because he sat down just as he spoke, all Ju-myung saw was his grandson lounging leisurely.
“You insolent boy!”
His anger only surged higher.
“Grandfather, you must be really anxious. To chase me down into my office during lunchtime, no less.”
Jin-hyuk’s calm response pushed Ju-myung closer to exploding.
“If you want to live long, you should take care of your meals properly.”
And then, Jin-hyuk added the spark to the powder keg.
“How can I eat when my life depends on you getting married?!”
Raging, Ju-myung snapped his head around just as Jin-hyuk pulled out a slip of paper.
“This is it, Grandfather. Your life line.”
The sight of the crumpled paper made Ju-myung’s face twist.
“What on earth is this?”
On the sheet was a childish-looking scrawl.
“I went to see the Baby Bodhisattva everyone’s talking about. I thought maybe there was another way to extend your life.”
Even Ju-myung had heard of the Baby Bodhisattva.
The chairman of Shinjin Hotel had supposedly made a fortune buying land on the shaman’s advice. The CEO of Kumyoung Trading claimed to have avoided disaster thanks to the same fortune teller.
Ju-myung studied the paper closely.
No matter how he looked at it, the round handwriting and hasty signature inspired no confidence.
But of course, the will of the spirits was not something an ordinary man could easily fathom.
Ju-myung’s voice softened.
“So what did the Baby Bodhisattva say?”
His tone shifted into reverence, as if addressing a saint. Jin-hyuk nearly laughed aloud.
“Exactly what’s written there. Unless I marry a woman with strong Water energy, the whole family will face death. He warned me again and again not to marry just anyone.”
The blood drained from Ju-myung’s face.
“Myung-un never said anything like that.”
“Then perhaps he isn’t as gifted as people say.”
Jin-hyuk’s reply left Ju-myung visibly conflicted.
“A woman with strong Water energy, born in December. That’s my fate, apparently.”
The certainty in his voice made Ju-myung arch his brows in suspicion.
“You’re not tricking your grandfather, are you?”
“Of course not. Ask Chief Jeon if you doubt me. Or better yet, go see the Baby Bodhisattva yourself.”
Jin-hyuk’s confident smile silenced Ju-myung, who finally rose to his feet.
Outside the office, Chief Jeon straightened nervously the moment Ju-myung stepped out.
“So it’s true? He really visited the Baby Bodhisattva?”
“Y-yes, sir. He went today.”
“I see.”
Ju-myung patted the aide’s shoulder and turned away.
Chief Jeon’s forehead broke out in cold sweat, relieved he hadn’t been dismissed after all.
The door closed behind them.
Alone, Jin-hyuk found himself picturing the Baby Bodhisattva’s face.
A smooth forehead, a straight nose, clear skin without a blemish, a rather neat face overall.
Nothing particularly remarkable under normal circumstances.
But strangely, those large eyes with heavy double lids lingered in his mind. They had gone wide with shock when she stumbled into his arms.
Unlike Ju-myung, Jin-hyuk had never believed in shamanism.
When his grandfather brought home warnings like Don’t go near water or Avoid the mountains, he always let them slip in one ear and out the other.
His grandfather’s blind faith had nothing to do with him.
At least, not until the prophecy pointed directly at him.
Even under Ju-myung’s constant pressure, Jin-hyuk had remained unbothered.
But when his grandfather threatened his executive director seat, he finally raised his hands in surrender.
That was why he sought out another fortune teller, hoping to get a prophecy that contradicted Myung-un’s.
The Baby Bodhisattva, famous despite her unorthodox methods, was his chosen solution.
Who would have thought she would turn out to be such a young woman.
The reason her face kept surfacing in his mind was probably nothing more than sheer curiosity.
The simple fact that someone so unlikely was living as a shaman.
To be continued
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Translator: Maize
Editor: Maize
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I think her friend has already predicted that she was his destined partner