67 - Edited with Post-Yama-Meltdown summary

Let me tell you it was definitely worth every second of my time, I’m a picky watcher and I loose interest faster than light, but this drama got me hooked, it was perfectly done. I don’t cry, like at all believe when I tell you I’m a cold hearted bitch and it’s not easy to make me cry. But this drama got me sobbing, specially when the grim reaper cries, whenever he starts crying, tears instantly start to come down. And the OSTs are just perfect. I highly recommend you watch it , I can assure you, you won’t regret it

   You can rant however long you want: it makes another engaging story and I love your speculations and theories! I guess it is the third story I have to write down my thoughts to prevent my head from exploding, which awoke such an intense emotional response in me and where I unconditionally love all the characters!
    I honestly hoped that at least some light would be shed on GM/704 relationship during the second season, but at the same time I was worried sick that the author would simply rush through it cause at this point I am enormously greedy for A Huge Mindblowing/Epic/Tragic/Romantic/ You name it flashback I suffered for and deserved lol! I can't agree more that it must be made into a separate story to properly portray all the aspects of their relationship. Now I feel less concerned since judging by the meticulous build-up of the storyline with fastidious attention to the detail so far, I can tell with certainty that it is either going to be a veeery long third season or just like you suggest a spin-off, which may kick off in season 3 and then gradually progress into a spin-off. (Relatable: fingers crossed!) Surely a spin-off would be the most perfect outcome since it should be as long as EJ/San story, which makes at least one season plus that is a completely different era! I have been wondering how far we are going to leap back in time. Judging by the acrylics and San's remark that GM could be easily be EJ's ancestor, that would be helluva long journey. Like it was the end of the second season, we still didn't know the age and the name of two characters lol! I also obsessively keep speculating on who 704 could possibly be. I haven't come up with anything better than a clairvoyant/exorcist. For some weird reason I believe that he made a living through his strong spiritual vision or it came into play anyhow.
    You make a good point about Yama, playing a "conscientious master" in front of GM and turning into a "ruthless slaver" should he only look away. At first I kinda brushed it off but now it makes me wonder. I really wish you were right about GM, striking a deal with Yama to relieve 704 of his reaper's duties as it would mean at least some ray of hope for 704 and GM in this absolute gloom. But does it actually mean him no longer being a reaper and being reincarnated in case of which GM will lose him again? Or him being under "GM's jurisdiction", whatever it means? " And will he be allowed to learn emotions without condemning himself to Hell in this guise? I go get him again" part sounds like "he will be mine from now on". It would be rather symbolic if in the end it turns out that both of them struck a deal with Yama to save one another.
You actually voiced my initial thoughts when you said that 704 decided to take the matter into his own hands, turning himself into a vessel to annihilate Hwan, probably without GM knowing, who would obviously have strong objections to that. From the very start he has given me the vibes of someone who is really stubborn, assertive, brutally honest sometimes to the point of being rude, responsible, conscientious- a man of honour in a way. I bet that is exactly the way he was in his human life. His nonchalant "damn. It is cold" was priceless!

In the light of the recent events when he was awol despite Yama's likely wrath, I started to gravitate back to this idea. This would line up with your suggestion about GM's "arrogance" in believing that 704 would never leave him.  At some point I got these vibes, too.
    But most importantly this "becoming a reaper due to a failed suicide mission" finally made sense to me! Goodness, thank you for the fresh perspective. It has been haunting me like forever!
     As usual thank you for the spoilers! Honestly it took me a while to put all my emotions into words. The latest chapter was heartbreaking and epic in a way. Just looking through it without reading your summery was an emotional turmoil, which left me almost on the verge of tears and then feeling elated with a stupid smile on my face. From this intense scene between GM and EJ I have no doubt GM was reliving the loss of 704 and despair of the only one, carrying the burden of hurtful memories. When he says in a resigned way "Fate has never been on my side", it is a direct reference to this tragedy I guess. And then 704 unexpectedly
 appears on the doorstep like in some twisted turn Fate suddenly decided to have mercy on him and be on his side this time. Or speaking about the key words, one of them is obviously "fate", but maybe it is also "collaboration ( like mutual help)". Assuming that 704, sacrificed himself without saying anything to GM, just like San is about to do now, all of them ought to unite and stick together in the face of the mutual threat. Like basically it is a repetition of the past tragedy, and maybe it is time to take the bull by the horns not just passively drift along and fight back and changed the Fate, who brought all of them together. At this point they remind me of a family.
    And Yama...Scheming, plotting, calculating, always smug and unreadable...At first I thought it was him who acted as Fate, playing with human lives, bringing them together, separating them on a whim. Like he knew! He knew for sure, god dammit that 704 would end up developing emotions, GM would be able to completely hide his affection to him, San and EJ would fall in love with each other, and this ridiculous "imprisonment"! Imprisonment, my ass!! He was sure that 704 would outsmart Chugin and escape! He wasn't raving and raging. He just let it slide...What was the point? For whatever reason it makes me even think that Yama wanted 704 to reflect on his involvement into San's situation, how he feels about GM and eventually come to the latter like develop more self-awareness...At this point it seems like a too-smart-ass plan! And whether Yama is really Fate here or just someone, taken in the flood of Fate is still open to debate.
     Another thing to support "collaboration theory". In Russian unofficial translation (official one doesn't existI wish I could buy it not only in Engish since Russian is my native tongue) the name is "Токкеби тоже нужен лес", which is something like Dokkaebi ( it stands for a goblin) needs a forest, too. I checked this out and it is a Korean saying, meaning "if you have something to hold on like support, you are able to change the world".
    Lol. I guess we could have "who can rant longer" competition!
    P.S. 704 really needs a hug! Both of them need honest affection. At this point the situation is spiraling out of control anyway, so whatever!
   I want to hibernate until the next chapter...

* GM wouldn't be able to hide...

Collaboration is a great word! I’m totally on board with this theory! I think despite their best efforts of hiding Eunjae safely away he is still very much a main character (arguably THE main character if we’re going off initial premise and the story’s hook) so he will ultimately have to be at the center of the climax. 944’s reassurance for his safety is a big red flag that Murphy’s law is about to strike, right? As you said fate is changing for Geumsun and even though it looks like San and Eunjae are following in his and 704’s footsteps I think a lot already has happened to change their perspective and new problems they haven’t anticipate will force them to do things differently this time around like giving up the idea of self sacrifice and have to work together or ‘collaborate’ so to speak. Perfect key word!

The scene between Geumsun and Eunjae was SO intense. Geumsun has been notably desolate since chapter 67 but shockingly near catatonic at the start of 68. He’s physically crumbling just smoking that cigarette. I mean we know it’s hard for him because he must be reliving his own past and it’s sad enough just to understand how heartbreaking Geumsun’s words are for Eunjae because he knows first-hand the pain of being the only one to remember but, even though I’ve thought that 704 must have acted on his own in the past for a long time now, it wasn’t until reading your response here that I could see Geumsun’s state this last chapter in a new perspective that supports that theory.

I believe Eunjae cries and asks, “how can it be like this? Like this, unilaterally…” No one is giving Eunjae a choice here and it’s heartbreaking. San has already decided for him. Geumsun’s severe emotional state makes more sense if he’s having a hard time taking away Eunjae’s choice bc 704 unilaterally decided for him in the past and took away Geumsun’s choice as well.

Despite what Geumsun said to 944 I think there’s a chance he left Eunjae’s memories after all or since we see him using the blue goblin flames to pull the memories maybe they’re safely stored away and can be brought back if needed. Unlike 704 (who you described perfectly btw!) Geumsun has been shown to be unable to do what’s necessary for the greater good in the past (i.e. kill San) so having to do something he doesn’t feel is right would absolutely break him and we’re seeing it.

You brought up some really great questions for what it would mean for Geumsun to “go get him again”. Lots of problems to consider, yeah, would 704 reincarnate? Would his memory be restored? What would being under Geumsun’s jurisdiction look like if Geumsun doesn’t even work with the Underworld? So many unknowns! Honestly, I never thought of what a ‘happy ending’ could look like for these two. Despite asking Yama to keep 704 safe until he can go get him again, it’s always felt a bit to me like Geumsun has resigned himself to going out with Hwan in the end. Hwan’s goal at the end of the day isn’t consuming San or Eunjae. They’re both just meals for him to recover quickly. His end goal is revenge and killing Geumsun. Even Yama says so to Chungin and 944 when they complain about Geumsun, “Don’t you think Geumsun would make the ideal bait? …He is the sort who is prepared to throw himself away for that purpose if needed.” The sadness we’re seeing from Geumsun makes even more sense if he’s reliving painful memories while having already accepted it’s the end for him.

I was rereading chapter 49 and when Yama sees the mark on 704’s neck as a warning from Geumsun he thinks “such arrogance”. So maybe total coincidence or maybe the arrogance is indeed his possessiveness over 704.

THANK YOU for the discourse. Your rants have been absolutely eye opening.

I think I’ll hibernate too

       Relatable from start to end! You know it used to be impossible for me to imagine what a happy ending for them would be like as well! Especially after the reason why GM can't show his love and affection was finally revealed, things appeared despairingly gloomy and dark. I couldn't see any legit way-out. But I got the impression that the author makes a deliberate attempt to put the reader in each character's shoes and makes us experience precisely what they do. And she did pretty good job, I must admit! And that is one of the reasons why she doesn't reveal all the details of the plot not only to keep the reader intrigued. I mean many were buffled and furious with GM's attitude, distrustful of him, thinking he uses 704. I guess at first many mistakingly took this attitude for this recycled over hundreds of times yaoi trope when the seme acts like a total jerk cause of some childhood trauma/being tsundere/yandere and so on and the uke gives him a cold shoulder at first, but then both of them fall in love bla bla...lol! But that is ultimately how 704 felt and still feels in a way about GM: he thinks GM despises him, plots schemes with Yama, uses him for yang/now as a stand for someone else, basically has seen him mostly in the negative light up until now whereas GM is absolutely otherwise. While as you said GM is already resigned to be perished in the end, and if our guess about his deal with Yama is right, that is about 704, being reincarnated after all. Feeling of hopelessness due to seeing no way-out! Precisely my feeling up until the end of the last chapter! The same could be said about what EJ and San go through.
     I guess this work is also about second chances. I would interprete it as Fate, making no mistake in recreating the past events to let the characters learn their lesson, correct the mistakes and redeem. It reminds me of "Back to the Future", but here the characters travel back in time in a more figurative way. It makes me hope for a happy ending

I forgot to ask but I’ve been really curious so I’m circling back now bc I clearly can’t hibernate: what are the other 2 stories you had to write down notes for? Also, is it a glitch that your last 3 replies are showing up empty for me?

Oh, yes, I have just checked, and indeed there is just empty space!So weird! Just let me know whether u will get this text, and if everything is fine, I will send you the rest. Since I can't hibernate myselfmy mind keeps returning to the manhwa with ridiculous frequency, and if the characters had to pay the rent for occupying my mind space, I would be insanely rich.

I can see this one but not the 3 before it. :/

     I suddenly remembered the manhwa EJ was drawing. It is called "Transmigration", and it may be a bit far-fetched, but it stands to reason to believe its name has some sort of symbolism. Like each of the characters is going through hardships, which purify their souls, bringing them to the higher level of consciousness just like cranes, flying up to the Sun in the acrylics. I wouldn't take its name literally like "reincarnation" or something.
     Yes, catatonic is the perfect word to describe GM! No ordinary "amenities" exchanges with Yama, which says a lot. I assume all of these taunts/sarcastic jokes of his plus putting on airs of a more badass than he really is mean in a way defence mechanism to somehow cope with the dismay of the situation and not to go insane. I am under the impression that he is much more on the gentle side than he seems at times. I bet in the relationship between him and 704 he was more gentle and compliant one. And I can't agree more that however sensible and collected he is, he is by no means the type who can easily do something which goes against his grain, throwing his moral values to the winds. And being put in the situation where he has to do things he finds ultimately disdainful visibly has its toll on him. When he is hugging EJ, trying to console him, it feels like they are two fellow souls in misery who just refuse to understand what they did so wrong to be abandoned in such a cruel manner.
       As for GM's "arrogence", I reread chapter 60 as well. And Yama says similar words upon seeing the bite mark "What an utter child!", which confirms your theory about GM's possessiveness. I would say, perhaps, overprotectiveness or a blind belief that he would be able to protect 704 at all costs and he would never abandon GM.
      You nailed it with Murphy's law! The northeners have already proven that they are "the safest" At this point honestly it can be a meme! Besides, yes, the author said that these guys must remain inseparable till the very end. That is why all four of them are inevitably going to be thrown in this mess together. Fingers crossed: no self-sacrificing!
     Going on more philosophical side, that is an interesting concept of a sin. Basically, both GM and 704 are paying for the sin of "arrogance". In the sense that each of them tried to bite more than they could chew. Obviously, out of benevolent intentions, nonetheless both of them ended up being punished for inability to maybe listen to one another, depriving his partner of a choice in a way (I guess the last one applies to 704 more). Curiously enough, that is not a story about people who deliberately tried to hurt each other, toxicity and so on. As I see it, that is a story about people whose love and affection to one another were so ultimate that they were misled to believe that love is a one-sided sacrifice...it is kinda challenging for me to coherently articulate my ideas here conflicted about this part. I assume that the dynamics of the current state of the things gives us a glimpse of what could possibly happen in the past. In chapter 65 Chugin makes an attempt to reason with 704 as to why he shouldn't be overobsessed with human matters ( to which 704 amicably advise him to back off). But then he goes back and forth with the idea that he is indeed doing this for San like a selfish desire to prove his existance (aka self-sacrifice/arrogance) and circles back to GM, maybe wondering what the latter actually WANTS for the first time. I am drawing kinda strange parallel here: like it is a bizzare repetition of the long-forgotten events, but on the rewind, when the past and the present are about to fuse (like in the teaser). I suspect in the past it was left off at the point where 704 decides to sacrifice himself for the sake of the greater good without asking GM what he actually WANTS and dies. In the present plotline it picks up from the moment 704 is about to throw himself away for the sake of San, dutifully and meekly taking the whole responsibility (aka for the greater good), however eventually he starts having second thoughts about the true nature of his fervour and whether it is just one self-serving act. It coincides and intertwines with his thoughts of GM, the person who is ready to give his life  for him and whose life is just an empty void without him both in the past and the present, which 704 couldn't appreciate and traded for the great good, being blinded by the sense of duty. I am wondering whether it is going to brought up in the last chapters and lead to 704's realization about GM's role in his life (possible getting back memories??), seeing him as someone who will always be there for him. You know so many possible scenarios!! I kinda got the whiff where the wind is blowing, but...