Episode 02
Yeonsu awkwardly draped the long hanbok over her regular clothes and perched uneasily on the Baby Shaman’s seat, pretending to be Su-ryeon.
No matter how much she tried to act natural, tension kept bubbling up inside her.
The VVIP customer who walked in appeared to be in his early thirties.
Thick brows framed sharp, cutting eyes, and his prominent nose and chiseled jawline gave him an intense, commanding aura.
Standing nearly 190 cm tall, his head looked like it might graze the low ceiling.
“Sit down.”
Yeonsu was recalling what Su-ryeon usually said, trying to pick her next words carefully.
Then she noticed the man’s lips curl slightly—almost a smirk.
He clearly found something suspicious.
If this man really was the VVIP customer, as Su-ryeon had said, he was their biggest source of income. She couldn’t afford to mess this up.
Having watched Su-ryeon work a few times, Yeonsu firmed her resolve.
If she was going to do this, she had to commit completely.
As the man sat down, she copied the Baby Shaman’s tone and opened her mouth.
“Speak, and tell me your question.”
She lifted her chin and dropped the words like a command—just as Su-ryeon did.
But the man’s brows furrowed in clear disapproval.
“Why should I? You’re the one who’s supposed to tell me.”
His tone was oddly mixed—half mockery, half courtesy—making Yeonsu shrink a little inside.
Still, she pressed on.
“Your marriage luck has arrived. You must seize it.”
The man chuckled dryly.
“And if I don’t?”
“Then… your family will face tragedy.”
The grim prophecy didn’t faze him. He leaned back, almost amused.
“Who’s going to die, then?”
Sweat prickled Yeonsu’s back. She had no idea—Su-ryeon hadn’t told her that part.
But she couldn’t admit it.
“Who else? The eldest in the family, of course.”
The man exhaled a short laugh through his teeth—half disbelief, half amusement.
Then he asked again, this time with faint interest:
“So, can you also see who my marriage partner is?”
Finally, a reaction that wasn’t outright mockery. Yeonsu felt a flicker of confidence return.
She grabbed a handful of rice grains from the table and tossed them across the tray, mimicking Su-ryeon’s ritual.
“Your partner is a woman with strong water energy… born in December.”
“And if I marry someone else?”
“Then your household will face a string of deaths.”
She threw more rice for emphasis, fully immersing herself in the role now.
“And how old is this woman?”
The question made Yeonsu freeze. It was too specific to fake on the spot.
The man clicked his tongue, shaking his head.
“Not ready for that, huh?”
Yeonsu quickly fired back:
“Your devotion is lacking. I can’t see more.”
“What if I double your fee?”
“It’s not about money—it’s about prayer. Come back once I’ve completed the ritual.”
But the man didn’t seem inclined to leave just yet.
“Then write it down for me. And sign it—with the Baby Shaman’s name.”
Caught off guard, Yeonsu hesitated. But a million won was a million won.
She scribbled the fortune:
[If you fail to marry the December-born woman with strong water energy, your family will face tragedy.]
Her round, almost childlike handwriting hardly looked mystical. Still, she handed the note over.
“Sign it.”
Lacking a sample of Su-ryeon’s signature, she simply scrawled Baby Shaman at the bottom.
The man rose to his feet, preparing to leave.
“Wait! The payment—”
“As agreed, it’ll be transferred to your account.”
The chauffeur’s voice came from outside.
At that exact moment, Yeonsu stumbled—her foot caught in the trailing hem of the hanbok—and she fell forward, instinctively clutching the man’s shoulder.
Her face landed squarely against his chest.
Through the thin fabric of his shirt, she could hear his steady heartbeat.
A faint mix of sweat and woody cologne reached her nose, and Yeonsu’s own heart began pounding wildly in response.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
His cold voice cut through her daze, and Yeonsu quickly lifted her head.
“The money… you have to pay before you leave.”
Their eyes met—his gaze unreadable, yet oddly lingering.
“The money will be transferred as promised,”
the chauffeur answered again as he opened the sliding door.
The man dusted off his suit where she had grabbed him, then stepped out.
Yeonsu exhaled a long sigh of relief—until her eyes landed on the floor near the doorway.
Her mask—the baby-faced mask—had fallen off.
“I’m ruined…”
Yeonsu muttered in despair.
