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Prologue
Jo Won,476 AD
“Then, Ha Haeng-ju has agreed as well.”
Late at night, the door to the sarangchae (men’s quarters) of the Ha family’s residence in the capital Hansung quietly opened.
Inside, bathed in the soft glow of a lantern, Yi-shin stepped out, placing his foot on the stepping stones and descending into the courtyard.
“Head of the Geom (黔) family, I must ask one last time. Is there absolutely no chance to change your mind?”
Yi-shin turned at the voice of Ha Sun-yang, the master of the Ha household.
Inside the sarangchae, a middle-aged man with piercing, torch-like eyes was looking at him.
“There isn’t.”
Standing under the bright full moon, Yi-shin answered firmly.
The boy appeared no older than fourteen or fifteen. Yet, despite his small, underdeveloped frame, the sharp aura and commanding presence he exuded were intimidating.
“…Please, keep your promise.”
Ha Sun-yang let out a sigh, then closed the door and went back inside.
Yi-shin turned again and crossed the courtyard.
But no sooner had he passed the inner gate leading to the servant quarters than his legs wavered.
He had barely kept his balance in front of Ha Sun-yang, but now his limit had come.
“…Damn it!”
A pain shot through his left leg, as if the flesh and muscle were being torn and the bones shattered.
His whole body trembled.
Clenching his teeth, Yi-shin felt cold sweat dripping from his forehead and neck.
Dragging his left leg with great effort, he finally collapsed against the wall of an unknown courtyard.
He stared at his left leg, which throbbed with a terrible pain, as if it were being gnawed by worms.
The eyes of a boy who had lived only fifteen years seemed empty, as if he had experienced a whole lifetime.
This pain was all his own karmic retribution.
“Who’s there?”
Perhaps weakened by the unbearable pain in his leg, he became momentarily alert. Yi-shin instinctively reached for the sword at his waist at the sudden, youthful voice.
Under the bright full moon stood a girl, no older than seven or eight.
Her face was round and white like a glutinous rice cake, she wore flower-embroidered shoes and a silk padded jacket, marking her clearly as not one of the Ha family’s servants.
“Who’s ‘oppa’ and why is he here?”
Yi-shin released his hand from the hilt, ignoring the girl. He was barely managing to suppress the extreme pain in his leg.
“What’s wrong? Are you hurt?”
The girl seemed unafraid of the stranger. Instead, she took a few brisk steps forward and squatted in front of his leg.
“Does it hurt here?”
She pointed with her small fingers to the leg Yi-shin pressed with trembling hands, covered in cold sweat.
“That’s strange… there’s no wound…”
The girl’s puzzled voice reached him.
“Oppa, should I put some medicine on it? My house has lots of medicine. Even if there’s no wound… if I put some medicine, it’ll heal, right? Heo Ui-won said that for every illness, there’s a medicine. Wait here, I’ll get it.”
Chattering incessantly, she suddenly jumped up and ran off somewhere.
Watching her retreating figure, Yi-shin squeezed his eyes shut against another wave of pain in his leg.
Time passed; he couldn’t tell how long.
Soon, he heard the patter of small footsteps and shallow, labored breathing approaching.
Before the girl came too close, Yi-shin steadied himself against the wall and stood.
Ignoring the pain, he leapt onto a nearby large tree in a single motion.
He didn’t want to attract unnecessary attention from the household servants.
“Ah-ssi! What are you doing here? Oh my! What on earth… what are you doing with these plants?”
“Jang Eom-meo! Oppa is hurt, so I…!”
The girl glanced back at the spot Yi-shin had been just moments ago, but no one was there.
Her eyes went wide, mouth open, as she looked around frantically.
“Where did he go? Eom-meo, where’s oppa? He was right here!”
“Eh? What are you saying? There’s no one here.”
“No, he was really here! Really… agh! Eom-meo! What should I do!”
Jang Eom-meo, checking if the girl was hurt, raised her eyebrows at the shrill cry.
“Eom-meo! It must be a monster! He was here and now he’s gone! It’s definitely a monster!”
“What are you talking about? Ah, ah-ssi! Why are you wearing only this? You’ll catch a cold! It’s still chilly.”
Despite Jang Eom-meo’s admonishment, the girl grabbed her sleeve, shaking it excitedly.
“Eom-meo, listen to me! There really was a monster! That oppa was as beautiful as the Moon Palace fairies! He’s a monster, right? Right?”
“Yes, yes. Well then, let’s go inside first, ah-ssi. You’ll catch a chill.”
Yi-shin, perched on a thick branch, half-lying against it, let out a soft chuckle.
Even as Jang Eom-meo led the girl away, she kept glancing around, clearly looking for him.
“…Unbelievable. How does Ha Sun-yang raise his daughter?”
Muttering to himself, Yi-shin closed his eyes again as a sharp pain shot through his leg.
The pain persisted until the faint light of dawn began to touch the dark night.
But every pain has its end.
When the ache subsided, Yi-shin stood, pale-faced.
Then, like a mirage, he disappeared into the still-dense darkness.
