The Fog Horn (Angae Godong) - Chapter 4

Nuri learned how to use a fog whistle. According to the old lady in the village, it is called the Angae Godong.

When the lights of the lighthouse were useless due to the fog being thick, she said that the fog horn was used to give directions to returning ships that went out to sea. She said it was a long time ago.

For some reason, Nuri liked the name Angae godong [1] better than the name fog whistle. Even though it didn’t look like beating heart.

Oh Sung-jin, the only mechanic in the village, said the horn part was rusty, and he was not sure if the sound would come out well. But he fixed it quickly, after touching it a few times.

Using the foghorn was simple. When he stretched the handle with both hands and folded it like an accordion, which produced ear-splitting, high-pitched sound. Placing it against another trumpet attached to the lighthouse, produced an even louder sound that could be heard by ships far away.

One blow of fog horn every five minutes, was a warning signal to be careful, when it rang twice, it was a signal to stop fishing, and when it rang three times, it was a signal to come back immediately. Even if the net hasn’t pulled up yet, it would ring three times when you had to give up and come back quickly.

After practicing the foghorn for several days, Nuri had a sore arm. He’d done a lot of things countless times, but this was something else.

He’d taken some of the oil used to light the lighthouse and applied it to the connection area, and it had gotten quite better, but it was still old and could not be helped to creak.

It was painful to hear the sound of the foghorn for Nuri, as it sounded like he was forcing the mouth of an old man who was about to die. Its distinctive buzzing sound was also a painful sound as if something was roaring.

There was not much fog, so he only hoped that the lighthouse’s lights would be enough to warn of the danger. However, it was highly likely that it would only end in the wind.

Chungdo Island was an island frequently covered by sea fog. There was also a story that the Japanese pirates tried to invade the island but couldn’t find it, due to the thick sea fog.

The villagers told Nuri to practice blowing the fog horn even harder. It had already cost five lives. The island didn’t want any crack in its original condition. It had to stay the same. And it had to be able to overcome the unexpected events that came its way on its own.

It was a community sentiment that land people did not have. Chungdo was another country and nation. Nuri was a permanent outsider that cannot be included in them. He didn’t think much about it.

He couldn’t belong to them, but he had to work for them. This irony bothered Nuri the whole time, but it couldn’t be helped. It was something that he wasn’t supposed to do anything about from the moment he was born.

Nuri sat down on the floor for the first time in a long time. In the morning, he worked in a greenhouse across the hill. By the time he came out of all three greenhouses, the sun was up. The sky was overcast.

“Guess we can’t spray the pesticide today. It seems like the weather is getting worse.”

After receiving two notes of money from the owner of the greenhouse, Nuri bowed his head and returned home.

On the way back, he stopped by the only supermarket on the island and bought some rice and cornmeal. When cornmeal was dissolved in water and boiled, it would make a nice and light meal. Rain dripped from the edge of the slate roof.

“The rainy season is beginning.”

Nuri didn’t like the rain very much. It’s wet and damp. Being an island village, the dry laundry that didn’t dry well, didn’t dry any better, and the damp smell seemed to follow him everywhere.

To top it all off, he couldn’t make money because no one called him for chores. Moreover, it would be a big trouble if he fell on a rainy road with his lame/crippled leg.

Nuri pressed down on his leg, which seemed to be throbbing for no reason.

Missing a few days of work didn’t mean immediate starvation, but Nuri was always on edge. Poverty creeps up on him when he least expects it and stays at his heels. The moment he takes his foot off, it jumps ahead of him and blocks his path. The primal misery of being hungry was the last thing Nuri wanted.

“Nuri, what are you doing here? The boats are going to sail today!

Ko Won-taek, who runs a sushi restaurant by the dock, came near Nuri’s house with an umbrella and shouted. Nuri got up from the floor, stuck his head out, and said.

“The village head never said that!”

“Ah, it’s coming out of nowhere, isn’t it? I’ll go straight to the lighthouse!”

“It’s raining….”

Fishing in the rain was not easy. It was also something no one wanted to do after the accident at sea. Nuri scratched his head and grabbed an umbrella in the corner of the house. It was an umbrella big enough for three people. This was also given to him by Ko Chul-woong as a throwaway.

With an umbrella, Nuri headed for the lighthouse, where he could see the boats sailing away from the rocky mountain.

Because of his rash nature, Nuri stomped on his numb leg from running over. Then he flashed a light once as a sign that he had arrived at the lighthouse. The searchlight attached on each boat flashed to indicate that it had received the signal.

Nuri looked up at the sky from the lighthouse. The dark clouds in the sky were unusual, so he couldn’t figure out why they were out fishing.

The people of Chungdo Island usually practiced Ju-nak [2] . It was a method of hanging a fishing net with bait and pulling out the fish while retrieving it.

The boats were all small, and the fishermen moved in teams of two or three. They were usually people who lived under the same roof.

At the forefront was the boat of the village head Ko Young-chun, with his son, Ko Cheol-woong, at his side.

When the village head opened the waterway, the boats headed for their respective places, spreading horizontally. The fishermen were careful to cover their positions, as there would be no territory in such a large ocean.

The area of the village head was the best place to catch the most fish. As a late entrant to the fishery, the dockside sushi restaurant’s Ko Won-taek had to be in a location that didn’t catch much fish.

However, due to his friendship with the village head, he was able to get a fairly good spot. In exchange, Ko Won-taek opened up his shop to the village head whenever he wanted.

Ko Won-taek’s wife was a good cook, and the sushi restaurant by the dock attracted people with its amazing spicy soup and jiri-tang [3] soup. There weren’t many shops or restaurants in the village, so the supply and demand were just right.

Seeing the raindrops thickening, Nuri oiled the junction of the fog horn. It was because of the thought that even if it was not a water demon, the weather might suddenly get bad and the time might come to blow it.

The sea fog was coming in. Rain clouds followed. He didn’t know if they were overconfident after the Gut ritual was held, or whether they were risking their livelihood if they stopped fishing more.

It had nothing to do with Nuri. However, if a person dies in the sea, Nuri may be kicked out. For not doing his part.

Even though it wasn’t his fault. People instinctively looked for someone to blame. Nuri has always been the number one target.

Nuri sighed softly and looked out at the sea. It was nice to be able to see the ocean he liked as much as he wanted, but he couldn’t help but think about the unpredictable consequences.

Nuri looked at the beach, shaking his head at his miserable life. He wished he had a boat of his own. If he had a boat, he could catch fish and could make money. Then he wouldn’t have to live on the edge because no one would call him. He didn’t know if he could go anywhere on a boat.

When his mother was alive, he wanted a boat. However, people did not sell boats or distribute fishing areas to outsiders. He didn’t even have the money to do it in the first place.

“I wish.”

Nuri watched a barge move along the flowing sea. The raindrops were getting thicker.

Tap, tap, tap.

Nuri pressed his forehead against the window as the sound of rain hit the transparent glass.

There was nothing to do in the lighthouse. Nuri yawned lazily and looked around the sea.

Through the thickening raindrops, something jumped again with a loud splash.

“What?”

It was the same big fish he saw the day Dangol came. This time it was much closer. Nuri hurried down from the lighthouse. The sea was overflowing with raindrops. The raindrops were getting thicker and thicker.

As Nuri went to the front of the lighthouse with a large umbrella, something came out from under the rocky mountain. It was the water demon he had met earlier. He looked at him with only his upper body above sea level.

Nuri rubbed his eyes, thinking he had seen a demon. But he remained as he was. He threw something at Nuri. Nuri caught what he had thrown on his face, along with the flowing sea water.

“Phew, shu, shu, shu. No, hey!”

He realised it was really a demon, a water demon. Just as he was about to argue why he threw water at him, the water demon opened his mouth.

“I’ve been waiting for you.”

It was a voice he’d heard in his dream. Nuri stared at him, his mouth slightly open. The raindrops seemed to glide over his body. His head was wet, and his upper body was damp, but he wasn’t getting wetter. It was as if something was protecting him.

A water demon. Could it really be a water demon? And what the young shaman told him that ‘This man must do’ was to be possessed and eaten by a water demon? Nuri stared at him in the sea.

“I’m waiting for you.”

It was the same words he heard in his dream. Nuri clenched his fists for no reason. As if preventing the strange feelings from leaking out. The water demon continued speaking with a sorrowful look on his face that made Nuri want to reach out and hug him.

“I hope you remember me.”

“Remember?”

When Nuri asked, the water demon disappeared into the sea. At the same time, the sea fog began to rise frighteningly fast.

Nuri returned to the lighthouse, not knowing where the water demon was gone. Then he blew the fog horn. With both hands, he blew into the air and cried out once. They have to be careful. The water demon had appeared, and a sea fog was rising.

Shortly after the sound of the fog horn spread, the barges returned one by one toward the village. All while flashing the searchlights brightly. Nobody was killed. However, Nuri’s mind was all over the place.

Remember? What is he supposed to remember? He sat down with his head in his hands. What could it be? Nuri clenched his fist. But he couldn’t remember anything.

1. (고동 • (godong) (hanja 鼓動)Means beating of the heart, especially loud.)
2. One of the instruments for catching fish. It catches fish by attaching several hooks to a long fishing line and dropping it in the water
3. Fish stew/soup