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The starlight embedded in the sky like countless eyes began to fade, and the curtain of night, which had been draped like eyelids, slowly vanished. It was the time when light seeped in, brightening the day as if the eyes were gently opening. Finally, when all eyes were wide open, brilliant red irises appeared to greet the world.

Morning had finally arrived.

The calmness of the morning.

Activity amidst the calm.

Insects moved, birds flew, animals rubbed their eyes and stirred, and people began to hustle for their work.

The world was peaceful.

Unperturbed, it remained tranquil.

Just as it always had.

Only the reddish sun’s gaze cast down, and when the curtain of light swept over the land, everything hidden by darkness would reveal itself.

The tragedy cradled in the darkness would be captured by the eyes.

* * *

A corpse was discovered on the main street of Chungju.

It was found by a passerby walking through an alley on their way to work. The witness testified, “At first, I thought it was just someone who drank too much and fell asleep in the alley. However, the skin was colorful, and the elongated tongue made it impossible to see them as human. I even wondered if it was a plaything.”

Upon reviewing the actual CCTV footage, the passerby almost walked past, thinking it was a bad joke. Yet something caught their attention; after taking a few steps beyond the corpse, they returned to observe it closely and, with a puzzled look, called 119.

Later, an ambulance and police arrived to carry out the necessary procedures…

The location where the body was found was temporarily cordoned off for investigation.

The body was transported to the hospital, and an autopsy report was issued.

Although it had not yet been autopsied for detailed information, there were some inferences that could be made from the state of the corpse.

A body riddled with bruises.

Torn skin and muscles.

Flesh that hung loosely.

All of this indicated a single weapon.

A whip.

A powerful weapon capable of tearing flesh if struck properly.

Those who had been struck by this weapon, the first of its kind capable of breaking the sound barrier, often ended up with such injuries.

As soon as the police heard that it seemed to be attacked by a whip, they quickly began their investigation.

Even though just a few hours had passed since the corpse was discovered, the entire Chungju police force began moving with fury in their eyes.

Even if the Chungju police typically overlooked minor disturbances, murder clearly crossed a line.

This was a challenge to public authority and, furthermore, a challenge to the public safety of the Republic of Korea.

The police could not and did not want to tolerate a warrior who dared to commit murder.

While they had shown leniency with typical scuffles, what returned was murder?

This could not be forgiven.

The Chungju police set aside all other matters to focus their efforts on finding the murderer.

They requested investigative cooperation from neighboring cops in the Chungcheong-do region while mobilizing numerous people to comb through every CCTV and black box in suspicious areas.

Not stopping there, they pressured the scientific investigation team at the police station to expedite on-site investigations to get detailed information about the corpse and even contacted a forensic scientist to ask for assistance with the autopsy.

At the same time, they began an investigation into warriors who used whips as their weapon of choice.

Due to the unique characteristic of quick movement associated with such warriors, the investigation had to broaden beyond Chungju, reaching the surrounding areas. However, since the whip was a niche weapon, they expected not to face significant challenges during the investigation.

Yeah.

The police felt optimistic in that regard.

But that optimism didn’t last long.

“There are currently no warriors who use whips in Korea.”

Surprisingly, there were no warriors in the Republic of Korea who employed whips as weapons.

Swords, spears, bows, and moon blades…

Many who wielded countless weapons had at least a couple somewhere in the country, but astonishingly, not a single warrior using a whip existed, almost mocking the police.

The reason was simple.

Those warriors who used whips were at a different festival.

“All warriors around the world who are mastering whip-related martial arts are currently participating in the FWCF (Fantastic Whip Cracking Festival) taking place in Texas, America.”

FWCF.

A name sounding quite peculiar.

It wasn’t particularly famous and lacked a rich tradition.

Even the seemingly childish name “Fantastic Whip Cracking” originally came from a small festival held by the ‘Fucking Great Whipping Club,’ which confused by the significant interest of whip-wielding warriors from around the globe, had to change its name to FWC (Fantastic Whip Cracking) and tacked on ‘Festival’ since then.

However, just because it has an amusing backstory doesn’t mean it’s not a serious festival.

It’s a gathering of whip users from all over the world.

The whip is a challenging weapon to handle with notable weaknesses; perhaps for this reason, whip-wielding warriors tended to have quite a strong bond among themselves.

Overwhelmed by major weapons, they often operated modest dojos or accepted just one or two disciples, finding empathy in each other’s small-scale operations.

Additionally, the historical context of the whip offered sufficient grounds for a shared identity among those who used it as their weapon.

Historically, whips were primarily utilized for handling livestock or punishing criminals. Furthermore, due to the challenges of striking armoured opponents, they were often viewed as self-defensive tools, and in some regions, were even outright rejected for religious reasons.

Such disdain was a common sight in both East and West… thus, understandably, this plight became a point of empathy among whip-wielding warriors, acting as a bonding factor.

In this camaraderie, they began to gather and interact, and one of the venues chosen for their exchanges was indeed the festival known as FWCF held in Texas, America.

The fact that cowboys had historically used whips could draw public interest, and being hosted in the developed country of the United States promised better public safety. Additionally, being held in America, it was easy to gain sponsorship from American companies, so they wouldn’t have to struggle financially, and the transportation was convenient for whip-wielding warriors spread across the globe to gather. Plus, being scheduled before other larger festivals targeting all warriors made it highly advantageous timing.

Thus, FWCF became a festival and exchange venue for whip-wielding warriors, transforming into a black hole drawing in whip users from around the world.

So surely, during this time, there couldn’t be any whip-wielding warriors in the Republic of Korea.

Why would they be in Chungju, with plenty of time left before the festival, instead of at FWCF where they could share camaraderie with fellow whip users?

“So what then about the traces of whip left on this corpse?”

Yet, a question arose.

The marks engraved on the corpse were undoubtedly made by a whip, right?

So who in the world struck them with a whip?

“To be able to kill a fighter coming to participate in the Chungju Martial Arts Festival using a whip means they must have mastered some level of martial arts, but then who killed this warrior with a whip? Is it possible that a person without any experience or skill could take down a warrior with a whip? They would need to be on an entirely different level of ability, right? So the perpetrator must either be a highly skilled warrior or someone who has learned whip-related martial arts… or one of the two, no?”

If they were someone who hadn’t mastered whip-related martial arts, could it be that a highly skilled warrior used a whip to conceal their actions?

But then, that raises another question.

There would be no need to kill them with a whip, right?

There were plenty of better methods to confuse an investigation.

Instead of using a whip, which was rare and had a close-knit community among weapon users, if they were to use a more commonly seen weapon like a sword or spear, or even a bludgeon, then the police would have had to sweat searching for suspects.

So why?

Why use a whip?

To torture them?

To inflict pain?

But if they just wanted to cause pain, wouldn’t something sharp be better?

Questions continued to spiral.

And those questions deepened even further with the next piece of information.

“…The perpetrator seems to not be a warrior.”

The forensic scientist and the warriors who examined the traces left on the corpse all spoke in unison.

While the marks left on this corpse were indeed from a whip, it appeared that the one who used the whip wasn’t a warrior.

“We found no trace of Qi, nor the signs of whip technique. There’s no regularity to be found, and various signs of failed control are evident. Additionally, there are plenty of signs showing a lack of skill in handling the whip…. It feels akin to someone without connection to martial arts swinging a whip and causing death.”

“This doesn’t seem like the work of someone skilled in martial arts designed to confuse an investigation. It’s not something that could be done intentionally. Unless they are an individual completely disconnected from physical activity, it wouldn’t make sense to produce the traces we see.”

The forensic scientist and the warriors asserted.

This was not the act of someone who had mastered martial arts.

But simultaneously, they said this.

“However, what’s perplexing is…. This man didn’t die from anything else; he truly died from whip strikes. He wasn’t bound or incapacitated; he died in combat against someone wielding a whip. Signs that indicate a fighter’s death are all over his body. Plus, no drugs were detected, nor any other sort of energy…. He truly fought against someone wielding a whip and was killed…? Can a person who cannot properly handle a whip really kill a warrior?”

It was true that he had died fighting someone wielding a whip.

He had indeed perished after battling someone who neither mastered martial arts nor adequately wielded a whip.

How very strange it was.

 

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