Chapter 7. The Eve
“And finally, it’s the family meeting too! And such a special one!”
Eun-hwa, who had been walking quietly beside Seol-young, spoke for the first time with clear disapproval in her voice.
“Still… this is a bit… well… it feels a little strange, Seol-young.”
“Why, Mom?”
“I’m not trying to argue, but… having a family meeting at a shrine is a little…”
“Mom, you shouldn’t have prejudices like that. Besides, there’s Doseok oppa, the man your only daughter likes. Right?”
Eun-hwa looked at her daughter with concern.
At some point, Seol-young had started dating Doseok, and since then she had been acting like a completely different person.
That worried her.
And marriage?
After only dating for a few months, getting married this quickly?
Doseok was a polite and decent young man from the neighborhood, and he was Doran’s family, after all.
But thinking about sending off the precious daughter she had raised alone with such care…
It made her chest burn.
“Come on, Madam Song Eun-hwa. Please relax your face. If you keep looking angry during the family meeting, I’ll feel really sad.”
Speaking playfully, Seol-young smiled secretly inside.
It’s going exactly as I expected.
My mom will soon oppose Pan Doseok with everything she has.
Not the weakened mother who had lost her judgment while waiting to die—
But her real mother would never allow someone like that to take her daughter.
Soon the red symbols that marked a fortune-teller’s shrine appeared in the distance.
Bright orange flowers bloomed wildly around it.
Seol-young looked at the place and smiled faintly before briefly glancing toward a black sedan parked across from the shrine.
Inside the car sat Han Jae-kyung.
After deciding to stay in Korea because of her request, he had come here this time to help her.
He gave her a small nod in response.
Jae-kyung…
If this family meeting turns into the worst possible disaster…
Then that would be even better.
With that thought, Seol-young stepped over the shrine’s entrance threshold.
Inside, a woman wearing thick makeup and shaman clothes sat waiting for them.
She simply stared at them without saying a word.
Her sharp eyes alone were terrifying.
Eun-hwa flinched but greeted her politely.
“Hello. I’m Seol-young’s mother—”
But she couldn’t finish her sentence.
The shaman cut her off coldly.
“You look like someone who should have been lying at death’s doorstep already. Amazing that you’re still alive.”
Those were words so cruel that they wouldn’t even be said to someone visiting for fortune-telling, let alone to a future in-law.
Eun-hwa was shocked—and afraid.
Still, she forced herself to stay calm for her daughter’s sake.
“M-Madam… that’s not the kind of thing to say at a family meeting…”
At that moment, Seol-young stepped in.
“Mother, Mom, why don’t we have some tea first and talk slowly?”
Seeing her daughter trying to ease the tension, Eun-hwa endured the situation.
After everyone sat down, Seol-young began setting up a thermos and teacups she had brought from home.
Watching her, the shaman spoke rudely.
“Tea? Why bring something like that? What are you, a café waitress?”
Doseok’s mother showed no basic manners—only greed.
“I thought maybe you brought a big engagement gift or something.”
“Please try this tea first, Mother.”
Seol-young offered the tea politely.
“I heard it’s very healthy. The taste and smell are a bit strong, but think of it like medicine.”
“Medicine? Don’t talk nonsense…”
The shaman rolled her eyes and reluctantly picked up the cup.
Doseok remained silent because Seol-young had insisted on meeting his mother before the marriage.
But he clearly looked nervous, worried things might go wrong.
“Listen, girl. Forget medicine. Money is the best medicine in the world.”
Meanwhile, Eun-hwa’s expression hardened more and more.
She had come here because Doseok had warned that Seol-young might face misfortune if they didn’t marry quickly.
But now she was starting to think she had to stop this marriage.
She still admired Doseok and Doran for growing up without parents.
But the sinister aura and rude words coming from their biological mother were impossible to ignore.
This won’t do.
Why should my Seol-young become the daughter-in-law of someone like this?
Even then, the shaman tasted the tea and complained about its strange flavor.
Doseok deliberately finished his own cup and defended Seol-young, saying it wasn’t bad.
Then Seol-young added:
“That’s right, Mother. Please drink a little more. Actually, Doseok oppa made this himself, so it should suit your taste even better.”
Doseok’s face suddenly turned pale.
“W-What? I made this?”
“Yes. The herbal syrup you said you gave my mom earlier. I brought it—”
Before Seol-young could finish, Doseok ran out of the shrine.
He rushed out as if he had seen a ghost.
Soon the sound of retching could be heard.
He had clearly run out to vomit.
What an idiot.
This is just herbal tea.
Inside, Seol-young celebrated silently.
But on the outside, she acted completely shocked.
“Why is oppa acting like that? As if he drank poison or something…”
Hearing Seol-young speak so innocently, Eun-hwa suddenly felt chills.
She pushed the teacup away.
She desperately hoped the situation meant something else.
But no matter how she thought about it, she couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling.
Did that man really give me poison and call it medicine?
Otherwise, why would he react like that?
“Seol-young.”
Eun-hwa’s voice was low and filled with faint anger.
“Let’s leave.”
“Mom…”
Watching Eun-hwa stand up without another word, Seol-young was certain everything had gone exactly as planned.
From now on, Eun-hwa would no longer be a dying mother desperate to marry off her daughter.
She would remain a healthy mother who protected her child.
Seol-young followed her, pretending to stop her.
But then—
The shaman suddenly spoke from behind her.
“Strange indeed. The mother should have been lying at death’s door, but she’s alive and well. And the daughter…”
“She’s already died once and come back.”
Hearing those words, Seol-young shivered unconsciously.
A chill ran down her spine.
“What kind of nonsense are you saying?!”
Eun-hwa finally protested.
Seol-young tried to calm her and turned to look at the shaman.
The woman was smiling widely with her long red lips.
Her white eyes stared intensely at Seol-young, as if looking deep inside her soul.
The chill grew even colder.
Then the shaman spoke again, more mysteriously.
“And why are there so many people here who have returned from the underworld?”
“Not one—but two.”
Her voice sounded strange.
It was thinner and higher, almost like a child’s voice.
As if someone else were speaking through her.
Two people who came back from the underworld?
And she had clearly said two.
If one is me… then who is the other?
And she said “guy”….
Thinking about the strange words, Seol-young quickly walked away.
“Mom, let’s go. Quickly.”
They had to leave before Doseok returned.
* * *
“Hello, ma’am.”
The person who greeted Eun-hwa and Seol-young as they rushed out of the shrine was Jae-kyung, who had been waiting.
“Mom, get in the car first.”
Eun-hwa had too many thoughts swirling in her mind from the meeting.
She didn’t even ask whether they should wait for Doseok or who this young man was.
She simply got into the car and tried to calm her racing heart.
Coming all the way to Mount Jiri for such a ridiculous family meeting had been a terrible idea.
She trembled.
She couldn’t believe she had once thought Doseok was a kind young man.
It felt as if she had been possessed.
Having a shaman mother wasn’t his fault.
And it wasn’t his responsibility that she treated Seol-young badly.
But remembering the way Doseok panicked and ran out to vomit after drinking the tea…
A chill ran down her spine again.
“Are you alright, ma’am?”
“Who…?”
“My name is Han Jae-kyung. I’m Seol-young’s friend.”
“Oh… that Jae-kyung? Her friend from middle school?”
