Doctor Demon

*An Hour Ago*

Siwan was heading towards the back door which led to a small alley behind the studio. Once he was outside, he picked up his phone.

"Hello Doctor Kang?" It was the voice of one of his patients' mother, Mrs. Song.

"Hello Mrs. Song," he greeted. "How can I help?"

"Doctor Song, my son's gastric is acting up again. You told me to let you know if that happens. Is it normal for this to happen after surgery?"

"Yes, it's common…"

He was explaining to her what to do when he froze and snapped his head around. For some reason, a sudden chill ran down his spine. The alley was desolate and devoid of any souls. Yet, he had the feeling that he was being watched.

Weird, he thought and returned to his call. "As I was saying…"

Siwan kept on conversing with the woman for a while longer. He was so engrossed in his call that he did not notice that a fog was starting to appear. The mist crawled around his feet, making its way up until he was curtained in it. Siwan hung up the phone and shivered. 

It was getting colder which was strange since winter was still months away. Siwan frowned and scanned the area. Something moved in the distance which caught his eye but the fog was clouding his view.

BANG!

Siwan jumped in fright when the lid fell from a metal can. 

"Meow!" A black cat emerged out of the shadows and purred. He let out a sigh.

"Just a cat," he muttered and was about to head back inside when he heard someone calling out.

"Excuse me!" 

Siwan turned around to find a woman standing there. His eyes lit up in recognition.

"Aunt Ciara?" he frowned. What was she doing there?

"Siwan!" she realized. "You're Kang Siwan, right? Doyoung's son?"

"Yes…"

Siwan was wary of the woman. He was looking at her with suspicion. Was she there to harm Jiwoon? Did she find out something?

"What are you doing here?" he asked. "That too at an alley like this?"

"I was lost!" Ciara replied. "I came here to meet my daughter, Baeka. I mean...I know that she's been posing as an idol and performing. She thought she could hide this from me but I know. I'm her mother after all. But I want to find her and talk sense to her. Did you see her?"

Siwan was now alarmed but he kept his cool. He must keep her away from Jiwoon at all costs. Jiwoon probably went searching for Baekha after the latter's performance and they might be together.

I'll have to find them and take Jiwoon away, he decided. 

"I don't know who she is," he lied flatly. "I think you're mistaken. No one named Baekha performed on stage tonight."

"Oh," Ciara simply said. "Well then. I guess I was wrong. I'll go back home then."

She turned around and was walking away. Siwan was relieved that she was not snooping around too much. 

I'll go and get Jiwoon, he thought. In case this woman returned.

"AH!" he heard Ciara fall down and scream. He instantly rushed to help her.

"Aunt, are you alright?" he asked, stooping down to check her injury. She was clutching her right foot, wincing in pain.

"My heel broke!" she gasped. "It's hurting…"

"Let me take a look at it," Siwan offered and touched her foot. He frowned upon examining it. There was no injury on her foot.

"Aunty are you sure that-"

Suddenly, Ciara moved and sprayed something on him. A strong scent of wild poppies hit his nostrils, paralyzing his senses. Siwan blacked out and fell on the ground, unconscious.

A shadow came out of the fog, observing the doctor. Ciara slowly stood up, smoothening her clothes. She faced the shaman, Hongshik with wary eyes.

"I did as you told me to," she stated curtly. "Are you sure that this concoction can help my son possess this guy's body?"

"It's a strong potion made with poppies and peach mixture," the shaman stated. "It'll keep his soul from waking up for a long time. He's now in a comatose state. Took me weeks to create this and I had to make it extra strong for this man."

He was telling the truth. Siwan was mentally too strong for someone like Sungki to possess. The shaman had to take help from his brethren to create strong concoction and it took them weeks to make it. The harder the human vessel was to possess, the stronger the concoction they had to create.

"But why does my son want him?" Ciara demanded. "I did everything you told me to. But this is getting too frustrating! I want answers-"

She suddenly started to choke. The shaman stood there, watching her as she fell to the ground, gagging and wheezing. Her eyes were almost popping out of her pupils and she was glaring at the shaman. He calmly stared back, still using his invisible powers to hurt her.

"Let...me...go…" she begged. "I…"

The grip on her neck loosened and she coughed hard. 

"You got your answer," he said in a condescending tone. "Your son wants this man. You don't need to know anything else."

Ciara was still rubbing her neck as she stood up. She was told that her son found a vessel and she must procure it for him. To think that Sungki marked her friend Doyoung's son...there was something wrong.

"This potion will keep his soul asleep," Hongshik went on. "And allow your son's demon to take over his body."

The phrase did not go unnoticed by Ciara. Demon? What demon?

But Hongshik was not listening. He was simply waiting.

Anytime now, he thought.

Meanwhile, Jina and Magrod were still inside, talking.

"Yes," Magrod confirmed. "That bloody idiot is still obsessed with your friend. He's a demon and his emotions are a thousand times stronger than that of a human."

"How can we stop him?" She asked. "Can't we exorcise him?"

"That guy? Nah! You can't use the usual methods on demons who are of Kirstis and higher level. It's not easy to exorcise them. But the good part is that he's trying to take her to Hell."

"How is that a good part?"

"You can't just drag a soul to Hell!" Magrod snapped. "What do you think it is? A public bath? Nope. Only those humans who make a contract with a demon can go to Hell. Selling your soul is considered a blasphemy of nature. Hence, Hell exists to punish such people. You sell your soul to the Devil for greed, you burn in it until you become the Devil itself. And then you repeat the cycle. Unlike the Afterlife and Purgatory where souls get a chance to redeem themselves before reincarnating, human souls in Hell are trapped in that neverending cycle. They don't reincarnate nor can they leave. They're just...existing."

There was a bitterness in Magrod's tone which puzzled Jina. What sort of thing had he done in the past to end up like this? She wondered.

"Anyways," he went on. "As long as your friend isn't signing a contract with a demon, she won't be taken there. Demons of Kirstis level or higher can't be exorcised. They need to be eliminated. And that is where you come in, Priestess."

Jina winced. She did not even remember how she managed to kill the other demon. Could she do it again?

"Tell me about the demons in Hell," she said.

….

Jiwoon was calling Siwan but his phone was switched off. Her heart was panicking. He never switched off his phone in case any patients called him or there was an emergency. She walked around, looking for him but he was not backstage. Jiwoon strode over to the back door and pushed past it to the alley.

It was chilly outside and she shivered a little. Strange, she thought. Why is it so cold?

"Doctor Kang!" she called out for him. Her breath was visible in the frosty mist. She looked for him but he was not there.

BANG!

Jiwoon spun around to see a black cat scavenging for food in a nearby trash can. There was still no sign of Siwan which was worrying her. She called his phone again.

To her surprise, his phone was ringing from somewhere nearby. Jiwoon followed the sound only to stumble upon his cell phone lying on the ground. Frowning, she picked it up. Why would he leave his phone behind?

"Hey!"

Startled, she turned to find Siwan running towards her. He flashed a smile at her, looking apologetic.

"Thank goodness you found the phone!" he exclaimed. "I was looking all over for it."

Jiwoon was confused. His phone was switched off only moments ago and now it was on again even though he had lost it. She could not make out what was going on but her mind was a little alert.

"But it was switched off only moments ago," she pointed out. "I've been trying to call you! IF it wasn't with you, how did it turn itself back on?"

"The phone is acting crazy," he sighed. "I need to get it checked."

"Anyways…" Jiwoon began. "I need to go back to the mansion. The Cho's might arrive and I don't want to-"

"I understand," he said with a smile. "Come on. I'll drop you home."

He ushered her to follow him to the car. Jiwoon hesitated but followed him. He led her to the car and got into the driver's seat. To his surprise, Jiwoon stood outside as if thinking something.

"What's wrong?" he frowned. Jiwoon was staring at him but quickly shook off all thoughts from her head.

"Nothing," she lied and got into the car. Siwan shrugged and started the engine before driving off. Jiwoon slowly took out her phone, hiding it from his view and texted someone and then put it back in her pocket.

"What happened?" Siwan asked. "Why are you so quiet?"

"Nothing. I'm only thinking about Baekha. She must be suffering a lot in that house."

"That's not really any of our business," he said. "We shouldn't get involved in any of it. People get abused everyday. Big deal!"

Jiwoon awkwardly nodded at his joke and looked ahead, saying nothing.

…

Hobin was looking for Jina when his phone beeped. It was a message from Jiwoon.

"There's something wrong with your brother. He's not acting his usual self."

Hobin frowned as he read her text and scrolled down where she had added, "He always opens the car door for others. He didn't do it for me tonight.. Something is not right."