<불쾌한 장면이 포함되어 있을 수 있습니다.>

How could these chubby cheeks be so squishy? Ju Ryeongryeong was playfully poking the cheeks of the child she was hugging.

“Sohye.”

“Yeah? Sister?”

“Is your friend still bullying you? Is being friendless the same?”

The girl who was slicing fruits and laying them out under the sun let out a sigh.

“Sister, that’s a rude question.”

“I was just asking if you want me to scold them for you.”

“Absolutely not! If you hit them, they’ll die!”

“I can control my strength, you know?”

“You break rocks with your nails every day, don’t you?”

“Well, that’s because of training…”

“Even if you control your strength, it would still kill someone. No way.”

Ju Ryeongryeong burst into laughter. Why was everything she said so adorable?

She reached out and tugged on Sohye’s cheek.

“What do you take me for, an animal? I can handle that much on my own, okay? If you’re gonna say stuff like that, you shouldn’t be getting into fights in the first place.”

“Using your hands recklessly is just like being a common thug. Those who hit others with their fists are basically admitting they’re lacking in brains.”

“Oh? Weren’t you the little tot who asked, ‘Do you wanna be friends?’ just a little while ago?”

“Hey, I’m grown now!”

“Grown? You’re still a kid!”

“If I’m fifteen, I’m perfectly grown. It’s also the age to get married!”

“…Married?! Little Sohye getting married?! This sister hasn’t even done that yet! What am I supposed to do?!”

“Are you… A spinster?”

She pinched her cheek.

She burst into giggles.

“But I’m not going to get married. Boys are all idiots. They know so little yet strut around in front of me like they’re something special.”

“Didn’t you get beaten up the other day?”

“I’ve been using what you taught me, so there’s no way I would.”

Sohye threw a punch into the air.

Her stance looked surprisingly solid now; it was quite a sight.

When did she grow up so much? Ju Ryeongryeong chuckled to herself. She pulled Sohye into a big hug and ruffled her hair.

“With a face like yours, you must be tired. The boys won’t leave you alone.”

“But you’re prettier, sis.”

“Well, that’s a given.”

“Hey! This is the moment you should say I’m prettier!”

“Fine. You’re pretty. My face.”

“Hey! You’re such a funny person.”

“Well, you, Lady Sohye, are quite funny as well.”

“Ugh, let go of this!”

Sohye, who had been struggling, broke into laughter. She flipped over and looked up at her.

“When will you be able to leave this place?”

“Hmm… Maybe in three years… or four?”

“Really…? Sister, there’s something I want to say…”

“You come after a long time and you have something to say? You’re not in trouble, are you?”

“If there was trouble, I’d probably say so… hehehe. There’s still some time left, so I’ll tell you later.”

“You should never keep secrets from me!”

“But everyone in the world has their own secrets, right? Now that I’m an adult, I’m allowed to have at least one.”

“Look at how high your shoulders are. You’re reaching for the sky. Sohye, you’re an adult now… I’ll be the one to die old soon.”

“The corpse speaks.”

“Oh? You’re getting bold, huh?”

After a while of rolling around, Sohye sprung up.

“Anyway, sis, you won’t forget what I taught you, right?”

“How to dry fruits?”

“Yeah. That and other things. You’re living here alone, so you’re really clumsy with household chores, right? I told you to fix that house properly.”

“I did. I rebuilt it three times after it fell apart.”

“You’re honestly not very handy. Ugh, I’m gonna die taking care of you. Seriously.”

“But I’m alive, am I not?”

“Stop touching my cheeks already! Just quickly follow along. Cut the fruits like this and lay them here. There’s a perfect spot for everything. You also need to cover them so the insects don’t get to them.”

Chattering away, Sohye turned to Ju Ryeongryeong.

“How are you planning to live without me?”

“I guess dying would be in order.”

“Hey, that’s a bad thing to say. You promised to learn everything I taught you and write it down in a book. I’ll check it later!”

“Oh dear. Ma’am, I will certainly do so.”

“Good. It makes me happy. And you know, when you accumulate things like this…”

She turned around.

“You have to share them if you make friends. And be sure to say who taught you!”

“…of course.”

Ju Ryeongryeong ruffled her tiny head.

“I’ll definitely say that my proud little sister taught me.”

…

The ferry glided smoothly through the water until it reached the massive ship. The moment they boarded, attention was drawn to them.

Ju Ryeongryeong wrapped her fingers around her internal energy. She could kill everyone here if she wanted to.

But still, she hesitated to act, as there was the possibility of risks.

“Where’s Ansasugwi?”

“I’m here, so please wait a moment. It’ll take a bit to prepare.”

…Prepare?

Ju Ryeongryeong gritted her teeth.

“Get out here before I tear everything apart!”

“Impatient, are we? Well, I knew that from the start. Just wait there a bit. I’m preparing something for you.”

“What?”

“It won’t take long, so just stay still. Though my hands are busy, my mouth is free, so feel free to chat.”

Blocked by the door, there was no sight of what was inside.

Clinking sounds could be heard from within.

“Lady So, do you have any idea how hard life on a ship is? To be fair, eating from the water is really tough. Just working the oars alone is hard enough. The first thing I did for my livelihood was holding my breath and enduring underwater for long periods.”

“…….”

“If you hold your breath beyond your limits, your head starts to spin. Is that all? There are moments when your consciousness will faint as if a rope was suddenly cut. I’ve experienced that hundreds of times. Even after training, it still happens every so often.”

“I didn’t come here to talk to you, Ansasugwi.”

“Oh come on, don’t rush me. I said I was preparing something. Anyway, let me tell you, eating on a boat is much harder than working on land, you know? Anyone down there has a sword at their waist, but to wield it properly on a ship, they’ve definitely moved more than any land dweller. It’s not easy to learn the trade of rowing. Even with the same swordplay, the swaying of the ship makes it all the more difficult.”

“Is this some kind of joke…?”

“No, wait. Hold on a second. I’m preparing something for you. Anyway, what I’m saying is, eating on a ship is tough— much harder than working on land, so it necessitates picking up everything. The only thing to eat here is fish, so we have to regularly drop by the village. Plus, we need to drain some of the cold water underneath.”

There was a loud bang.

The sound of Ansasugwi’s sigh echoed from within.

“But you know, living on a boat makes people a bit more foul-tempered. Just looking at those guys makes me sick. If they so much as hug a girl, they’ll make her half a cripple.”

“…bro. That wasn’t my intention…”

“What do you mean it wasn’t your intention? Those idiots can’t even control their strength. Do you know how many times I had to clean up after you? Seriously, idiots… Anyway, Lady So, having stepped into this place and seeing those dumbasses one by one, I’ve realized that the number of people you can actually communicate with is far less than you’d think. But still, even if they’re beastly, they’re my subordinates, right? I have to take care of them. My martial arts are exceptional, but I can’t sail a boat alone or manage this vast river single-handedly either. After coming this far with my skills, I want to taste some success too, you know? Any sword master would share the same sentiment.”

A tightening sound was heard.

The sound of Ansasugwi rising could also be heard.

“So, to manage my subordinates, I needed my own method. Food? Well, that can be handled by supplying fish… I can more or less pay their wages too. You’d be surprised how neat I can be in that regard. Since we’re all in this together, I need to make sure it’s adequate. But the accidents those idiots cause, it’s just a disaster, and I can’t just throw money at the female side of things. Those dimwits have been banned from Gilu. I’ve even broken a couple of courtesans.”

“……”

A bad feeling settled in.

I had the sense that I shouldn’t hear any more.

“We’re supposedly Sujeoks, inherently bad people, you know? When the number of guys yearning for women increases, I snatch a few decent girls from the village. But even that is no longer possible. After one kidnapping fails, we had to go back and repeat the process until we got caught. Ugh. The terrifying Blood Sea Organization. Still, if it weren’t for the non-beastly ones buying time with their bodies, just a few of us would have escaped. I realized that the more time we spend on land, the more likely we are to actually die.”

“…you… this guy… don’t tell me…”

“But in rivers, there aren’t mermaids or anything. If we sever their paths to land as much as possible, my subordinates start going crazy again. Can you call a man a man if he can’t hug a woman during his peak? I’m the same, I tell you. Ugh! My lower half was on fire… So I had this brilliant idea.”

Laughter was heard from beyond the door.

“Even among women, martial artists are a bit more resilient, right? Not to mention, they don’t break easily. After settling on one, what comes next… it’s simple, isn’t it? Usually, I just pay a toll and send them off, but if there’s a woman martial artist onboard, I took special notice. I pretended to let her go, only to secretly destroy her boat outside my territory. After that, I played dumb. I didn’t forget to disguise it like something the others had done. Thanks to that, everyone around here sees me as some kind of good guy. Haha! Ansasugwi, known as the relatively good Sujeok! What a ridiculous rumor to spread!”

Cold sweat began to bead.

Ju Ryeongryeong stared blankly at the door.

There were signs of movement. But upon closer inspection, it wasn’t just one.

…two.

There was another one that was almost motionless.

“I guessed correctly. The woman martial artists don’t break easily, which is great. But unfortunately, they tend to resist more often. One of my subordinates had his groin eaten while still living. Ugh. Even I felt weak-kneed just watching. So, I pulled all their teeth. Then they attacked me with severed arms and legs. Vicious, truly vicious. I intended to use them merely as an outlet for my desires, but I realized that creating something isn’t for just anyone, you know?”

“You… you…”

“Still, I couldn’t help it, so I thought it over. And then, I hit upon something. Do I really need it? If I’m going to use it merely as a release…”

—Click.

The door opened.

“Do you need arms and legs…?”

They could see it. Something emerged from the shadows.

The figure of a person bound with ropes, dirty, ragged, and so ill-favored it was hard to believe it was human.

There were no arms. No legs. What was passable was the face, although even the slightly ajar mouth bore nothing.

“Uweeeeeeek!!!”

Ju Ryeongryeong couldn’t hold it in and vomited. She staggered, grabbing the railing.

Ansasugwi’s shoulders shook.

“Do you know, Lady So? Once all the teeth are pulled out… Heh. That single hole becomes completely wide open. If you were a man, you would surely understand. Easily.”

“You… you bastard!!!”

“You shouldn’t be angry! It’s been so long since we met! Lady So! Do you have any idea how hard it was for me to identify this guy? Searching through each one, trying to verify one by one, I was drained! I brought him here because I wanted to; don’t curse at me! You should be laughing! You have to laugh until your jaw splits!”

The woman bound to Ansasugwi’s chest opened her mouth. Even her tongue was nearly severed, making it functionally absent.

A voice emerged, reminiscent of a beast growling, and within that tone, Ju Ryeongryeong heard a longing from the past.

That which she could no longer return to…

The whispers she missed.

“Sister.”

“Eonni…”

“AAAAAAAH!!!”

The internal energy she had held ignited. In an instant, the three Sujeoks caught in her path were ripped apart.

But that strike didn’t reach Ansasugwi.

A whisper. A filthy, ugly whisper.

“Are you thinking of killing your only friend, Lady So?”

The twisting energy only shattered the innocent railing. Unable to do more, Ju Ryeongryeong gasped for breath.

“Put her down! I said put her down, you bastard!!!”

“That’s not possible. If I let this go, wouldn’t you need to get directly involved with your friend? Hehe. The power of that energy is no joke. At your age, to have already reached this point… If we were to actually mix hands, it’s clear you would be flung away. Unlike me, you seem to have learned well.”

Ansasugwi lifted his hand. He stroked the gnarled mass.

“I’d been keeping this useless lump aside, thinking it wouldn’t be useful anymore, yet who would have thought it would come in handy? Hehe! What a stroke of luck! And quite a magnificent one at that!”

“I… I…”

“I’m saying this lump of meat, honestly, I no longer care what happens to it. But you know, to me, even this trash might hold some value for someone else?”

“F***… you…”

“Lady So. Surrender, and I will spare this child. Isn’t that a pity? It’s effectively already dead once, but if you abandon her, it’s as if you’re killing her twice.”

“Eonni… ang… ahh…”

“No need to hesitate. Sohye, just stay still. Isn’t it better with two than one? What with her belligerent nature…”

The sound of disgusting spittle echoed.

“It might even be fun to tame her, just like you did.”

“…you… you…”

“Can you kill me? Faster than I can kill this child? And if by any chance you do manage to kill me, this boat will surely sink due to our fight alone. The currents are rough at the moment. Do you think you can carry a limbless child to the shore? I can guarantee that after gulping so much water, it will sink to the bottom for sure… I, who have eaten water for long, assure you. The ferry carrying you has already returned to the mainland. It means there’s no way out.”

He raised his hand and pointed towards the distance.

“Oh look, it seems that boat is leaving as well. Hehe. It’s a pity a few subordinates have died, but if I can get just you, Lady So, I’d gladly give that up. For now, I want to put on a collar… just stick still, would you? Lady So.”

—Swoosh.

Ansasugwi moved his hand. Blood dripped from the line drawn across the mass.

“Don’t move. You’ll hate seeing this line deepen enough for the head to go flying.”

Water surged out of the river, blending together from his hands.

An unstable energy. Its shape resembled that of a ghoul, with its teeth bared.

“Starting from taking arms and legs just feels… excessive? Making someone a fool is fine, but surely it would be regrettable to see it all right from the beginning. But still, it should be fine, as someone like you, Lady So, isn’t as brutal as a Blood Sea member… I just need to take away the legs. Don’t dodge. I mean it, unless you truly want your legs to be ripped off.”

—Crack!!!

With a bone-chilling sound, Ju Ryeongryeong’s head was slammed into the ground. Blood poured from the gaping wound.

In an instant, her legs were rendered useless. While the injury wasn’t deep, her movements were completely sealed.

She gasped. She tried to rise again but couldn’t.

And even if she did get up, what would change? As long as Sohye was in that monster’s arms, she couldn’t do a thing.

“That’s a good attitude. Sohye will surely be pleased. Since she has a friend now. Go tie her up. Feed her the poison I prepared.”

“I… if I get too close, I’ll die…”

“Do you want me to kill you myself?”

“No! No, Captain!”

Hands approached. Presences drew closer, stuttering in their steps.

Her head was forced down. The handkerchief slipped off, revealing her face.

“…Captain. I think we’ve caught a big one?”

“Is that so? Let’s see… hehehe! Look at this! Sohye! You’re my treasure! Even found something like this!”

“Brother, once this is over, I…”

“Shut your mouth. I’ll be the one to tame her. Just hurry and tie her up properly! You idiots! Why are you moving so slowly?!”

Having finally tracked down the trail here, yet I couldn’t do anything.

Sohye. Sohye.

What have I done to you?

Why did I plant such empty dreams in you?

I should’ve done nothing from the start.

I should have turned you down the moment you walked in front of me.

It’s all… my fault.

I’ve recklessly ruined your life.

“I… I’m sorry…”

I whispered.

My heart felt as though it were being torn apart. And there was nothing I could do except its plea.

“I’m sorry… for everything… my fault…”

…Is there someone?

If someone is listening, please help.

Just Sohye. I don’t have to be saved, just her.

“…please…”

Help me.

“Help…”

“Lady So.”

The air trembled.

“Don’t move.”

—Crack!!

The blood-red energy pierced through the world in an instant.

Shadows divided. Six figures engulfed by the mingling scarlet light spat blood simultaneously.

A dreadful groan erupted all at once. At the end of it all, Ansasugwi finally reacted.

“Ugh?!”

—KAAAAAAAM!!!

The struck face was sent reeling backward. Simultaneously, the piece of Sohye, freed from her restraints, soared up.

Yet she did not fall to the ground. Just before touching, someone caught her.

The conical hat he wore fluttered in the light. In an instant of calm on the ferry, he turned his head.

Ju Ryeongryeong blinked. Through her teary, blurred vision, she saw something.

A familiar face. A gaze that had sunk.

The person she thought should have gone far away stood right before her.

“Why… are you here…?”

“Crying can wait. Lady So.”

It was a quiet inquiry.

“Do you wish to do it yourself?”

Ju Ryeongryeong understood the meaning behind those words.

“Sister.”

Looking back at the past voice.

Then she determined what to do.

She stood. Her trembling legs could barely hold her up. But her two hands remained intact.

Therefore, she made a request.

“Can you bring them… all to me…?”

He answered.

“As you wish…”

The eyes beneath the hat gleamed coldly.

“I will place them all before you. Every last one of these beasts.”

 

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