Clues
A Butterfly in a Vase (5)
That's 90 and 60."
"See. You will feel better when you wake up.
I don't think this is good either. Ji-Won, who last night was struck by the numbers 80 to 45 shown on a blood pressure measurement for the first time in life and looking for information, feeling dissatisfied with two numbers that cross the low blood pressure limit. This is why they told him to check his blood pressure in the morning and evening. He thought they were making an unnecessary fuss, but there was a reason.
“Is your bed comfortable?”
"Yes, I slept well."
But you must look paler than yesterday. Under his eyes it was dark like a panda, but somehow today became bright.
"You look so tired, do you want to sleep more?"
“No, as Director Cha said, I will go to bed after arriving in London to adjust the time difference.”
Gaon, who had been sitting all the way until they arrived in London after eating a bowl of ramen, became thin enough to make everyone next to him nervous. And by the time they entered the hotel lobby, he was on the verge of collapse. Ji-Won can't help but pity him, who looks so bad and falls asleep as he takes blood pressure. But after checking the results of a deep sleep with her eyes, Ji-Won felt even more relieved.
"Do you need anything else?"
"NO."
“I will ask them to serve food within half an hour. Wash slowly and get out.
"Yes." Yeah."
When Gaon nods and goes to the bathroom, Ji-Won arranges the clothes she has received first in the closet and immediately contacts the receptionist to order some extra food. Garlic, peas, and carrots are good for low blood pressure. It's hard to find little radishes and seaweed here. Dark chocolate also increases blood pressure, where do you sell handmade chocolate?
Ji-Won, who is checking the addresses of some memorable chocolate restaurants, suddenly laughs out loud. What the hell am I doing? Why would a three-day temporary secretary overreact? He was a representative of a big company, and there were people who moved like hands and feet for him and set him up well. Eating garlic does not cure a person's low blood pressure. I should have ordered Gambas al Ajillo*. Sigh, I didn't know that I was a chatty person.
[T/T:. Gambas al Ajillo, pronounced gahm-bahs-ahl-hee-yoh, if translated into “udang with garlic shrimp” or “udang garlic” is a famous Spanish dish.]
A large table was prepared for breakfast as he added food to the prepared meal, but fortunately Gaon ate almost all the food in front of him without hesitation.
He eats well, but…. Where did all that go? Anyway, Miss. Kwon turned out to be very slow? It was true that Gaon was not very picky, nor was he particularly fond of any dishes. Seeing her eat the food she prepared made Ji-Won feel that she was the one eating. But he seems to prefer the salty taste rather than the sweet, crunchy texture, especially the noodle cuisine. Carrot cake..., should I order one more? It was so clear on his face that he liked it. Why doesn't the person who sees it every day know that?
"CEO, would you like some tea?"
"Coffee. Can you order something cold?
Looking for a cold coffee in the morning, I'm sure he likes it.
"I'll order you some cold coffee."
After the meal, there was still about 20 minutes until the employees were supposed to pick them up. It was a rare free time to relax, so the two took their teacups and moved to the terrace. With clear views, the view of central London over the Thames* River is quite interesting to see.
[T/N: The River Thames (/temz), known in some parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At 215 miles (346 km), it is the longest river entirely in the UK and the second longest in the United Kingdom, after the Severn River.]
“What kind of important work is this? Why does the CEO have to come here himself?”
“There is an old family in Chester named Rosenvalov. The family was of noble origin but from some point, most girls born in the family could not live more than 17 years. It was a family where women were short-lived, but the frequency of deaths has increased since the 20th century. In particular, it is said that no daughters are born from the direct line of the Head.”
This is a brutal family. If it was related to the man who died early, something would be done sooner. If so, it might be easier to prevent things before they become this big. However, before modern times, it was true that the status of women was treated as unimportant as can not be imagined now, so it took almost 300 years for this incident to reach Jungcheon's ears.
“At first they didn't think it was a serious problem. It was a time when many girls died, people began to realize it was strange. They must have thought it was strange as time went on. There were many cases where the girls died suddenly in a strange way. Then this time, they learned that the Village Chief's son-in-law had difficulty giving birth to a baby girl. It was the first baby born into the family in 20 years, so the family was looking forward to it. But the house was overturned after the death of a baby girl*. That was two months ago.”
[T/N: I edited this sentence a bit because it is not clearly written in RAWS whether the baby girl is dead or not.]
"The fact that the CEO has come to solve such problems himself means that the number who killed the daughter of the family has so far?"
"Maybe. While the Head of the family was trying to figure out the cause, he ended up calling a guide. And one of them witnessed a completely blackened evil spirit inside the house.”
The guide who was first summoned claimed to be unable to confirm the whereabouts of the dead despite being able to sense the whereabouts of the dead. He could not even enter the house at all due to the enormous existence that weighed down the entire mansion. The five senior guides in England rushed in, but instead of driving away the evil spirits, they were attacked and injured. Afterwards, Baek, a veteran who came here from the Czech Republic, barely saw the face of the evil spirit after a long struggle.
"But his face was the same as one of the portraits hanging in the mansion."
“If there is a portrait in the house, it means it's a family member. But why do ancestors harm their offspring?”
“It's not common, but.., you know.”
Ordinary ancestors tried to keep or protect their offspring as much as possible, even though they did not have good personalities. Therefore, it is most likely that the deceased, who has committed murder only on his descendants for hundreds of years, has an enormous grudge against someone or is out of control.
“Then does the CEO take care of all those evil spirits?”
Gaon smiled and shook his head slowly at Ji-Won's question. I wish I could, but….
“It's practically impossible. First of all, there are so many cases where it is not revealed whether it is the work of the deceased. I try to handle what I find as much as possible, but unfortunately I have one body.
“I think you often go on business trips like this.”
"NO. Not long ago I started on a business trip. Now I can move freely between continents due to the development of the transportation system, so I can go wherever I want. But it took more than two months when I first came to England. Before, I could only travel by land. It is also difficult to get around often at that time.”
I haven't seen him talk since I knew the CEO. His voice is very good. Ji-Won, who was distracted by a nicer, resounding voice from the contents of the conversation, does not respond as quickly as usual even after hearing the words that reach her ears. The question came a little late.
“Two months... two months? What are you driving here?”
"By good. First I took a boat from Yokohama to San Francisco, then I took a train from there and moved East, then I took another boat from New York. It was the fastest way at the time. And that's almost the only way. Back then, the Trans-Siberian Railway was being built, so I had to walk to Europe by land, but I couldn't waste that much time.”
Ji-Won's eyes grow bigger and bigger as she listens to Gaon's amazing journey. The Trans-Siberian Railway... Is it under construction? Didn't it start building around the early 1900s? What year is “The Barber of Siberia”* set?
[T/N: The Barber of Siberia (russian: ⁇ , translite. Sibirskiy tsiryulnik) is a 1998 Russian film.]
"When that?"
"In 1896. The season changed when I came back."
Huh, 19th century…! Right now, Ji-Won has to bite her molar teeth to avoid a burst of curse. Of course, he guessed that Gaon was much older than his appearance. First of all, the aura he revealed was not commonly exhibited by women in their early twenties. He doesn't seem to have a rough personality, but the characteristics that come up when dealing with employees are very natural.
When they greet a local employee who came to receive them at the airport yesterday, Ji-Won feels strangely Gaon is using old English. It was not a long conversation, and all he asked was a few questions while listening to the simple situation report. But there is a new word first heard by Ji-Won who lives in a country whose mother tongue is English for more than 10 years. Still, he had no idea it was beyond this century.
Then how old is he? Is he even human?
“At that time, the situation in London was very serious. The air quality is so poor that it is difficult to breathe. I had a sore throat for a long time after I returned. I think it was the Great Smog of London*.”
[T/N: The Great Smog of London, or Great Smog of 1952, was a severe air pollution event that affected London, England, in December 1952. It lasted from Friday 5 December to Tuesday 9 December 1952, then spread rapidly as the weather changed.]
"…What?"
Gaon, who was looking at the scene with a faint look, slowly turned his head. For some reason, Ji-Won's voice seemed to have changed completely along with her expression. But as he tried to take a close look at his expression, the doorbell rang to announce the arrival of the visitor.
“Director, prepare. Looks like Jayden is here.”
"…Yes.Yes."
Gaon is a little worried because the atmosphere suddenly becomes serious, but he is unable to keep Ji-Won's mood. Gaon who gently rose from his seat, tightened his loose tie neatly, opened the closet, and took out a neatly ironed jacket and put on it. It was time for him to begin his mission as CEO.
****
Gaon, who was resting in a comfortable position, straightened his back and stared intently when an old house, which maintained its Medieval appearance, came into view. As soon as the party entered Chester, the clear sky gradually darkened, and upon reaching Rosenvalov Castle, the rain began to fall a drop or two. Ji-Won is familiar with the rainy weather in England, but this rain is somehow unusual.
Doesn't this feel like winter rain? It's very warm, but it's very cold…. Ji-Won can't describe weather events, but the rain is intimidating enough. As if it had its own wish. I must have felt a similar sensation somewhere…. Ji-Won, who was watching raindrops knock on the car window, suddenly realizes something.
“This rain... Did the CEO make it?”
"Why do you think so?"
“Because it's the same energy as when you summoned a sword in Jungcheon before.”
Gaon, who had calmed down for a moment, raised his eyebrows with a very surprised expression. Among the senior guides he often contacted, only a small portion of them could discern his energy.
"Nobody ever noticed it at once."
“I just guessed. It's too coincidental that the time the rain started to fall was a coincidence.”
"You're smart."
Upon Gaon's pure admiration, Ji-Won closes his mouth and smiles faintly. He was treated like a child again in just a day, but this time he could not even complain. In her eyes, she, the Chief of Security, and Hae-Soo are all probably the same child.
~☆~☆~☆~
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