Hotel Blue Moon (Inspired by Hotel Del Luna)

Chapter 15: King Jumong

(Please turn on the audio while reading for a better experience.)

A tall, muscular man with a distinct black robe sat in the bar area of that well known hotel. Nobody paid attention to him, as if they couldn't see him, while he continued to sip his vodka. His dark eyes slowly darted across the room, with a smirk on his lips. He looked at the bartender, who was serving another customer. Another man behind the bar went close to him.
"Long time, Sa shin. Who are you here to collect today?" The man asked, wiping a glass with a towel. 
The Grim Reaper silently pointed at the man who sat across the pub, with a huge bottle of rum on his table. The man held his head in his hands, audibly sobbing. 
"Poor Dan. His wife passed away two years ago, all of a sudden. He is a good man." The man set the glass down, and poured another drink for Grim Reaper. 
"Heartbreak is just self-destruction. You know it too, Death." Grim Reaper said. The man smiled, nodding. 
"Humans are so fragile and yet strong at the same time. They love easily, even when they know it will result in parting. They move on, and do the same all over again. I can never understand them." Death said, sighing. Grim Reaper nodded.
"You knew who I am here to take today, and yet you asked. Why is that?" 
Death simply smiled in reply. The Grim Reaper shook his head, chuckling.
"You never tell me."
"Yet you ask all the time."

They both turned to look at Dan, who had now collapsed on the table. Grim Reaper held his hand out, and a pale white hand took it.

"How did I walk here? I was just-" Dan's coarse words were cut off by patrons shouting to get help.
"Hey! Call an ambulance! This man just passed out!" 
Grim Reaper and Dan overlooked several men surrounding Dan's lifeless body while some performed CPR on him. Dan looked at his hands, which were almost translucent. Grim Reaper held his shoulder.
"We should go, sir." Dan nodded, and walked out of the pub in a trance. A limo was waiting for him outside. Grim Reaper opened the door for him. Death joined him as the limo pulled out. 
"It is always sad to see someone go, doesn't it?" Death said, crossing his arms behind his back.
"I try not to get attached." Grim Reaper said simply. 
They both stood there in silence, watching the skies. Death frowned, opening his mouth to speak.
"There is something coming, Sa Shin." Death said, now looking serious. "I can feel it."
"How serious?" 
"It feels like I will be a witness of horror I haven't seen anywhere before in my time, It is bloody serious."

*

"How do we even summon the Grim Reaper? It isn't like we are inviting him to a tea party!" Ae Ra asked, frustrated. Chan Seong and Do Hwan chuckled in unison. 
"Ae Ra, the owner of the Guest House can summon the Grim Reaper. Well, it is more like calling him on the phone, but you get the idea." Chan Seong answered.
"Also Grim Reaper asks for favors from the owner for particularly adamant spirits." Do Hwan continued. 
"Have you done anything for him?"
"A few times." Do Hwan answered. The group didn't press him for details. 
"So, what's the plan?" Yi Sook asked, looking directly at Do Hwan. Do Hwan smirked. 
"This is the plan. At least, some of it. We need to find something that can possibly defeat Aghui. A weapon, maybe. We will have a chance with it at least."
"Weapon? She is like a God. How do we find something like that to kill her?"
"I can help you find a weapon like that." A low voice growled from the other corner of the room. Everyone jumped to look at the speaker. Do Hwan smiled gladly.
"We were just talking about you, Sa Shin." He said, nodding at the group. Ae Ra and Chan Seong heaved a sigh of relief.
"I don't think I can ever get used to this. First Ma Go, now him." Yi Sook mumbled under his breath. Ae Ra nudged him.

"I talked to death on my way here. He  believes that Aghui returning will be as bad as it sounds." Grim Reaper said, sipping the tea Do Hwan made for him. Ae Ra furrowed her eyebrows, and he noticed that.
"You seem confused. What is it?" 
"Aren't Grim Reaper and Death the same thing?" She asked, hesitating, Grim Reaper chuckled softly.
"Death is an event. It approaches any living being, and their life ceases. And death comes in many forms. Every time something dies, death usually stays by their side, often taking any form it wants. "
"Where do you come in?" Ae Ra asked, curious. 
"I am the collector, the one who reaps these souls. The souls that see death will leave their body and I guide these souls to afterlife. People think, just like you thought, that death and me are same. We are just two parts on the soul's journey." 
Do Hwan looked at Ae Ra who was listening to the Grim Reaper with her eyes wide open, nodding. He chuckled to himself and turned a bit to see Yi Sook glaring at him. Do Hwan grinned at him, pretending to not know anything. 
"How do we defeat Aghui?"
Grim Reaper stood up and walked towards the window. He stood there watching the bustling city underneath him, and slowly turned around to face the group. Their expression were all the same, furrowed eyebrows and pursed lips.