Chapter 22

Chapter 22

Chapter 22. Buying Low

In front of the office door.

Nana, a girl with jet-black hair and beautiful golden eyes, stood facing Kang Do-jun.

Do-jun smiled and held out his hand.

“Thanks for coming. I've been waiting.”

Nana stared at his hand and let out a deep sigh.

The events set in motion by a single letter from the man before her remained vivid in her mind.

-Hataałii Tso, why should I help an Asian who isn't even one of our people? I have to protect this land.

-Helping him is helping our people. We must find whoever killed Áłtsé Hataałii. More importantly, as my successor, it is also your duty to serve the great Wakan Tanka closely.

Her grandfather, Hataałii Tso's order.

Nana had absolutely no intention of placing herself beneath that arrogant Asian, but Hataałii Tso had been firm.

-Nana, you are still lacking as a successor. There are heights you can never reach by remaining within the Navajo fence. Experience the world at his side and grow. That is the condition for becoming my successor.

Frankly, her pride had been wounded.

Why did her grandfather think so highly of that man?

Why was he forcing things into this situation?

Nana simply couldn't understand.

But among the Navajo, Hataałii Tso's commands were absolute.

“There's no need to thank me. I only came because Hataałii Tso ordered me to.”

Do-jun awkwardly twitched his empty hand before speaking.

“Right, right. As long as you work, that's fine. Come inside. We can discuss the details sitting down.”

“...”

Nana calmly entered and looked around the office.

Then her eyes widened.

《What's with this brat? Why's she holding her head so high? Kang Do-jun, is this the kid you said you were bringing in?》

“W-What is that...?”

On the office desk.

A white cat... no, a small tiger was calmly licking its fur while glaring at her.

The problem was the absurdly powerful energy radiating from that tiger cub.

FWOOSH!

Nana summoned a black-red fireball over her palm and shouted.

“What are you? An evil spirit? Why are you here...!”

《Evil spirit?! Watch your mouth, brat! I am the great Spirit Seolhwi, who once commanded the mountain ranges of the continent!》

“A great spirit? What are you...”

《You brat! Put that fire away!》

Enraged, Seolhwi bristled his white fur and swelled in size.

The form of a gigantic tiger emerged, his eyes glowing blue... A storm howled through the room and crushed down on Nana's shoulders.

Nana's knees trembled under pressure so intense she could barely breathe.

‘What the hell is that monster...?!’

Just as the tension seemed ready to blow the entire office apart.

A black catlike figure suddenly emerged from the shadows, climbed onto Seolhwi's head, and—

THWACK!

Hammered his crown repeatedly with a fist.

《Aaaagh! Ow, that hurts! Big brother! Why are you hitting me all of a sudden?!》

《Because you frightened my child.》

《Your child? That woman is your child?》

The White Tiger instantly shrank back into a tiger cub.

As Nana blinked in confusion, Kang Do-jun sighed.

“Introductions. You already know Wakan Tanka. This is Spirit Seolhwi, the White Tiger Spirit I used to serve.”

《Hey! Why are you telling her my name without permission?!》

“We're going to be working together. We should at least introduce ourselves.”

Nana stared blankly as though she'd seen a real ghost.

“So... you're saying you have two spirits inside your body?”

“Yes.”

“Is that even possible?”

Her voice trembled faintly.

Nana currently served Hastzé, the Black God who created fire and the constellations.

Even after training for over a decade just to control that one god's powerful flame, she'd lived every moment feeling as though the vessel within her might burst.

Yet Wakan Tanka was a supreme deity of all First Nations, standing even higher than Hastzé.

And despite containing that god, he was also housing a White Tiger Spirit of great-spirit rank?

It directly contradicted everything Nana understood about sorcery.

There was supposed to be a limit to how much divine power the human body could withstand.

“A normal human body shouldn't be able to endure that.”

“Who knows. My vessel's just been pretty large since I was young. It got a little bigger after going through a few things too.”

He scratched his head as he answered.

But for the briefest moment, a bitter smile crossed Do-jun's face.

“What kind of things?”

“Well, that's not important. Let's sit down. If we're going to work together, we should settle the contract terms first.”

His attitude made it clear he didn't want to talk about it, so Nana didn't press further.

She eventually sat on the sofa, straightened her back, and spoke stiffly.

“For the record, I didn't come here to become your subordinate. I came under Hataałii Tso's orders to assist Wakan Tanka and investigate Mother's death...”

“Yeah, yeah. I know all that. So listen first, then talk.”

Do-jun placed a cup of warm cocoa and a sheet of paper on the table.

“This is the salary. Five-day workweek, with separate overtime pay for weekends. Your main duties are assisting at exorcism sites and handling administrative work.”

Nana's eyes shook violently as she read the document.

An annual salary of four hundred thousand dollars, roughly five hundred million won.

It also stated that bonuses would be paid depending on the difficulty of each assignment.

A staggering amount she could never have dreamed of seeing in her entire life on Navajo land.

‘H-He's paying this much?’

She took a sip of cocoa as though trying to hide her shock, but her eyes remained fixed on the number.

Do-jun didn't miss her reaction and drove in the final nail.

“Those are the terms. Do you want the contract? If you really hate the idea, we can just remain collaborators. You wouldn't receive a salary then, though.”

“...If we're going to cooperate properly, becoming an official employee would probably be more efficient. It's not because of the money.”

Nana answered without meeting his eyes, visibly embarrassed.

Do-jun grinned inwardly.

‘Hooked her.’

Four hundred thousand dollars a year on a three-year contract.

From Do-jun's perspective, getting Nana as a subordinate for that amount was an absurd bargain.

He knew because he'd fought her before.

‘She's still registered as only a D-rank exorcist, but that's because she hasn't seriously worked in exorcism. The god she serves is extremely powerful too... and her combat sense is excellent overall.’

Nana was like an uncut gemstone.

If trained properly, she could become far stronger than even the S-rank exorcists who strutted around America.

If he could buy low on someone like that now, there was no sweeter deal.

“Then sign here, Manager Nana.”

“Manager...?”

“Yes. If you're going to work here, you need a title.”

“Then what should I call you?”

“Terry Kang, or Boss. And I can speak casually with you too, right?”

“...Yes. Of course.”

It was the moment Terry Kang's Exorcism Consulting hired its first employee.

***

A bright morning in Brooklyn.

Inside Terry Kang's Exorcism Consulting.

Nana opened the office a full hour before the agreed starting time.

“Hmm-hmm, hmm-hmm.”

Humming, she aired out the stale office and picked up an unfamiliar broom to sweep the floor.

Unlike the rough dirt of Navajo land, the brush slid smoothly across the polished flooring with a cheerful sound.

Unlike how she'd acted around Kang Do-jun yesterday, she looked like an ordinary cheerful girl her age.

After cleaning, she sat at the desk prepared for her in the best spot near the entrance.

A gleaming acrylic nameplate sat before her.

【Exorcist ‘Nana’ / Office Manager】

Her name was neatly engraved in white letters against a black background.

She gently ran her fingertips along the edge of the nameplate.

She'd been called countless titles while living as a Navajo warrior and successor to a sorcerer, but this was her first formal job title.

‘Office Manager. Exorcist.’

A small smile spread across her lips.

She took several belongings from her bag.

A dreamcatcher woven with red thread went beside the desk lamp, and an eagle feather said to bring good fortune stood beside the pencil holder.

Once even an old coaster bearing Navajo patterns was in place, one corner of the cold office began to feel distinctly hers.

‘Sitting here like this... I really feel like an office worker.’

Even thinking about the four-hundred-thousand-dollar salary Do-jun had offered still didn't feel real.

On top of that, the apartment he'd shown her yesterday was a clean studio only two blocks from the office.

Considering New York's murderous rent, the treatment was extraordinary.

She poured herself a cup of cocoa and sank deep into her chair.

Leisurely gazing through the window, she enjoyed the calm morning.

‘Mr. Terry Kang might be a better person than I thought.’

She'd never been treated so generously in her life and almost didn't know how to react.

Besides, if he were truly some absurdly evil man... there was no way the great spirit Wakan Tanka would lend him power.

Of course, she hadn't lowered her guard completely.

She wasn't naive enough to believe kindness came without a reason.

‘I can learn more over time. And just like Grandpa said... I should properly assist Wakan Tanka and investigate Áłtsé Hataałii's death.’

Her heart beating with anticipation, she waited for work to begin.

Leaving Navajo land and getting a job were both firsts for Nana, leaving her full of excitement.

But things didn't proceed the way she'd imagined.

“Hmmm.”

She checked the clock.

9:30.

Half an hour had already passed since starting time, yet not even an ant had shown up.

“...Why hasn't he come to work yet?”

Just as she anxiously tapped her fingers against the desk.

Knock, knock.

A heavy, measured knock broke the silence.

Nana hurriedly rose and ran to the door.

“Boss, why are you so late—huh?”

She stopped mid-scolding when she saw the person outside.

It wasn't Terry Kang.

A stern-looking middle-aged woman stood there in a crisply pressed suit, reading glasses perched on the tip of her nose.

A patch on her shoulder identified her as NEA personnel.

“Is this Mr. Terry Kang's office?”

“Yes, it is.”

Her voice was dry yet imposing.

Rose swept her gaze across the office before meeting Nana's eyes.

“My name is Rose, from the NEA New York branch. Is Mr. Terry Kang here?”

“He hasn't come in yet. What is this about?”

“I came to propose an important assignment. It's been issued directly by the NEA New York branch. We want you to investigate... a ghost roaming the city in a mask.”

Apparently, Nana's very first day on the job had already landed them something big.

The Catastrophe-Class Exorcist Is Too Strong in America

Author

: Gisigami

Production Date

: September 15, 2026

Publisher

: ACES Media Co., Ltd.

Editor

: ACES Media Editorial Team

Address

: 12F, Urban Bench Building, 325 Teheran-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul

Email

: acesmedia9@gmail.com

※ This work was published by ACES Media Co., Ltd. under contract with the copyright holder,

and its contents may not be used in any form or by any means without permission from the company and the author.

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UCI

: G720:N+A129-20260914068