Toxin

“D-Damn it…”

The tribesman muttered a curse, on the verge of tears. We were literally cornered with nowhere to run, like rats in a trap. As the eungryong moved through the underbrush, the Black Martial Emperor’s steps came to an abrupt halt. I heard the rustle of fabric and the clink of metal, likely him raising his arm. Both the tribesman and I inhaled sharply at the same time. And then, out of nowhere, the tribesman suddenly shoved me, sending me tumbling out from behind the rock.

A gunshot tore through the air, ripping through my clothes.

“Ugh…!”

It felt like my skin was being torn apart by the fangs of a wild animal. Fortunately, it had only grazed me, leaving a thin line of torn flesh oozing blood. The tribesman who had thrown me as bait buried himself deeper into hiding. Bloodlust radiated from him. Before I could react, a dark shadow loomed over me.

“You held up better than I expected. So, once I deal with you and the last one, the Imae Tribe will be truly annihilated?”

A menacing weight pressed down on the top of my skull as the cold voice lingered. Time stretched into an eternity. I hadn’t even gotten close to my goal, and now I was going to die a dog’s death. Was I destined to die in vain, just like my mother? Is this the end…? No. I don’t want to die so miserably. I can’t let this beast of a man take my life…! Not to a murderer like this…! My eyes frantically searched for something to strike him with. From my waistband, my mother’s horn rattled softly, revealing its presence. My trembling hand quickly reached for my pocket.

Click—!

His finger twitched on the trigger. My hair stood on end, and my heart plummeted. I thought everything was over and shut my eyes tightly.

“Eek…! G-Get away!”

Suddenly, the tribesman who had been hiding leaped up, frantically trying to shake off the eungryong that had latched onto his arm. It was the same creature I had seen earlier. The vicious animal bit into his forearm and then shot upwards into the air. It all happened in the blink of an eye. Perhaps recognizing Jincheonroe as a threat, the eungryong switched targets and charged toward the Black Martial Emperor.

“Y-Your Majesty…! Behind you…!”

Without hesitation, the Black Martial Emperor fired Jincheonroe. The eungryong deftly dodged and then sank its terrible fangs into his inner thigh. The Black Martial Emperor’s eyes flared with a deadly rage. In one swift move, he grabbed the creature’s tail, swung it into the air, and immediately aimed Jincheonroe.

The sky thundered with the explosive gunshots. Without even a scream, the eungryong’s skull exploded in midair like a burst of flames. Its headless body twitched violently as it fell to the ground, writhing briefly before going still. The Black Martial Emperor leaned against a nearby tree, glancing down at his torn trousers. As blood began to seep into the fabric, his eyebrows furrowed in irritation. His attendant came running, his plump frame jiggling as he stamped his feet anxiously.

As blood quickly soaked into the fabric, he furrowed his brow. The servant, with his plump body, rushed over, stomping his feet in panic.

“Oh no, Your Majesty! Are you all right?! Is anyone there?! Our Emperor was bitten by the eungryong…!”

Hearing the commotion, the guards, who had arrived belatedly, checked on the Black Martial Emperor’s condition and halted in unison.

“His Majesty has been bitten by an eungryong! Oh, our Emperor’s precious body…! To suffer such a calamity before even securing an heir…! I will eradicate the eungryong species in vengeance!!”

The servant, fretting anxiously over the Emperor’s groin, caused an uproar. However, the actual wound was on the inside of his thigh. The guards sighed in relief and addressed the Black Martial Emperor.

“That’s why we advised you to let us accompany you.”

“Oh, Your Majesty…!! Quickly, escort him inside! No, wait! If you move him, the blood will circulate, and the poison will spread faster! Someone, call the royal physician! Pungbaek, Unsa, Woosa! Why are you just standing there?! Hurry and suck out the poison…!!”

As the servant yelled in frustration, the three guards flinched on cue. A guard with a delicate appearance spoke up.

“I bit my tongue while eating earlier, so I’m not in the best condition for that right now…”

The man standing next to him, a more serious-looking figure, added gravely.

“We are bodyguards. That’s the physician’s duty, not ours.”

The large guard, who had remained silent until now, finally spoke for the first time.

“I’ll dash like lightning and bring the physician.”

And with that, he quickly ran off somewhere.

“These pathetic excuses for bodyguards…!! Oh, Your Majesty…!”

Despite the servant’s hysterics, he himself made no move to help. As for the Black Martial Emperor, he seemed indifferent to the chaos, merely tearing off a piece of his robe to bandage the wound. I, still barely conscious, struggled to recover. Even though the venom wasn’t fatal, there was a chance that if things went poorly, he could lose a leg. Drawn by some instinct, I approached the Black Martial Emperor, leaning against a tree, and reached out toward his pants. In that instant, Jincheonroe was aimed at my forehead.

Click…! Without hesitation, he pulled the trigger. Terror surged through me, my mind numbed by the fear, but the expected explosion never came. My skull didn’t shatter.

“Haa… haa…”

When had I stopped breathing? The air I had been holding burst out all at once. It seemed I was miraculously spared because he had run out of bullets. As I slowly lifted my head, Jincheonroe followed the movement, still touching my forehead. The man, towering beneath the blood-red sky, glared down at me with contempt.

“You’re lucky. I wanted to see the spectacle of your brain exploding.”

“If you don’t extract the poison quickly, it could be dangerous.”

“Get lost.”

“As disgusting as it may be, bear with it for a moment. It’s better than losing your leg.”

Without waiting for a response, I tore open the fabric around the wound left by the eungryong’s fangs, making room to work. Blood had soaked his pants. I removed the tie holding my hair back and tied it tightly just above the wound to restrict the flow of blood. Only then did his attendants seem to realize what I was doing, their eyes widening in surprise. I couldn’t make out the Black Martial Emperor’s expression. The wound was just above his left thigh—close enough to his groin that the servant’s confusion was understandable. The bite marks from the creature’s teeth were clearly visible on his taut skin. Jincheonroe was still pressed against my temple.

I moved with caution, as though trying to calm a wounded beast. Tilting my head slightly, I covered the wound with my lips, feeling the deep indentation of the injury against my tongue. I immediately began to suck out the venom. The metallic taste of blood filled my mouth. I spat it out and returned to the task. My hair cascaded over me as I worked. This time, I pressed my lips harder and sucked more forcefully, the muscles in his leg twitching beneath my touch. I continued to expel the poisoned blood, my lips working rhythmically.

With each pull, I could feel the firmness of his thigh growing taut, almost like stone under my tongue. The sensation made my neck stiffen as though an unseen force was watching. At some point, Jincheonroe had been lowered from my head.

After tirelessly sucking out the poison and spitting out the tainted blood from my mouth several times, my jaw began to ache, and my tongue grew numb. Just as I pressed my lips to his thigh to extract the last bit of venom, the Black Martial Emperor grabbed my hair and yanked it back. The pain of my scalp being pulled made me frown. His cold voice immediately followed.

“At this rate, you’ll drain all the blood from my body. Is this some new assassination technique?”

The ground, having absorbed the sun’s heat, radiated it back, causing my vision to blur. I struggled to catch my breath, drenched in sweat from my forehead to my neck and all over my body. The Black Martial Emperor stared at me intently before noticing his hand entangled in my hair. He withdrew it as if it were soiled. When the Black Martial Emperor turned back with a blank expression, the guards flinched.

“So, this is proof of your paper-thin loyalty.”

The delicate-looking guard calmly placed a hand on his chest and bowed.

“However, Your Majesty, compared to the time you abandoned us to escape alone while we were nearly skewered by the Golnaru Tribe, this is a minor inconvenience.”

The rugged man next to him also bowed and spoke in the same manner.

“Yes, compared to that battle where you threw us to the Nati Tribe to save yourself, nearly having our heads torn off, this is nothing.”

The Black Martial Emperor gazed at them impassively. At that moment, the large guard returned, carrying the physician on his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. The rotund servant began berating the physician.

“Hurry and tend to His Majesty’s precious body! Hurry…!!”

As the Black Martial Emperor passed the physician, he suddenly paused as if remembering something and turned back. The moment he stopped in front of me again, he thrust Jincheonroe deep into my throat, silencing both my tongue and any sound I might make. With a blank expression, he clicked his tongue.

“Bang.”

Instinctively, I held my breath. The Black Martial Emperor then pulled Jincheonroe out of my mouth and disappeared into the forest. The guards and servants followed him. Suddenly, the delicate-looking guard gave me a strange smile. With the crowd gone, I was left alone, dazed as if I had just woken from a chaotic nightmare. The infamous Black Martial Emperor and his supposedly fierce guards were nothing like what I had heard. Everything about them felt off. My body was soaked in sweat, and my hands trembled uncontrollably. I sat there for a long time in the empty space before finally standing up.

“Ugh…!”

A burning pain shot through my arm—the place where the bullet had grazed me earlier. Out of habit, I nearly licked the wound but then remembered the poison I had just sucked out and instead wrapped it with my hand. The bitter taste of his blood still lingered in my mouth. If only my saliva were venomous like that of an eungryong, but unfortunately, Imae’s venom is only effective when our bodies mix.

As soon as I stood up, a tribe member, clutching his bloody chest, emerged from hiding. When I returned to the rear garden, the Chieftain was still writhing in pain, clutching his shattered Baekgak. I quickly helped him up. The survivors were just the Chieftain, me, and one other tribe member.

Soldiers soon dragged us off somewhere. We arrived at a livestock pen.

“From now on, you’ll stay here. His Majesty personally arranged this for you, so be grateful! You must be starving after such a long journey—here, fill your belly with this.”

The soldier laughed as he kicked a bucket of pig slop towards us and then disappeared. The stench of manure was unbearable. The Chieftain quietly observed the pen but had a defeated expression. I, too, was injured, and the remaining tribe member was on the verge of passing out from an eungryong bite. Medicine was essential, even if a physician was out of the question. I rushed outside.

While wandering around, under the watchful eyes of the guards patrolling the palace, a hand suddenly gripped my arm roughly, turning me around. Despite my dulled senses, my nose was the first to respond to the refreshing forest scent. The moment that scent hit, a figure I hadn’t expected appeared before me.

“You… you were alive all this time…!”

Raonhiljo stood there, his face filled with anger and disbelief, struggling to catch his breath. I was just as surprised as he was by this unexpected encounter. I was about to ask how and why he was here but then remembered that he was a government official of the Baedal Kingdom and remained silent. Noticing our battered group, Raonhiljo furrowed his brow.

Without even asking for an explanation, he took us to the royal physician. Thanks to him, the Chieftain received treatment and was much more comfortable, and the tribe member survived because the poison was quickly neutralized.

After my own treatment was finished, Raonhiljo took me somewhere.

“Thank you. Because of you, we survived the critical…”

“You… what the hell…!”

As soon as Raonhiljo stepped outside, he grabbed both of my arms and examined them carefully. When he didn’t find anything, he finally let out a sigh.

“At first, I thought I was mistaken. When I heard they were hunting the Imae Tribe, I rushed over just in case.”

“……”

“That day, I searched the entire Village. When I didn’t find you among the piles of corpses, I was ready to dig up the graves.”

The Village… was he talking about the Imae Village? So, he was looking for me… but why…? I wanted to think about the reason, but I was too drained, both physically and mentally, to even stand properly. Raonhiljo, still angry, silently stared at me. Was the last time I saw him the day before my tribe was annihilated…? A sudden question rose in my mind, and a chill gripped my heart. I met Raonhiljo’s gaze and spoke.

“My lord… did you know… that the Imae Village would be destroyed that day?”

“If I had known, I would’ve told you. I didn’t see that coming either.”

Raonhiljo didn’t offer a lengthy explanation, but his gaze was direct and honest. I had always thought there was a simple, yet compelling force in his eyes—something that made you trust him and take action. Just because he was from the Baedal Kingdom didn’t mean I could lump him together with the Black Martial Emperor as someone to hate. I knew better than anyone how futile and foolish such forced resentment would be. Only then did I realize I hadn’t yet greeted him properly.

“How have you been all this time?”

Raonhiljo grumbled, “You’re quick, aren’t you?” as he led me to the pavilion in the back.

“By the way, how did you end up here? I heard the leaders of the vassal states came for formal greetings.”

“The Imae Tribe came for that purpose as well. It seems I’ll be staying here for a while to paint a portrait of His Majesty.”

At least, that was the plan if possible. Raonhiljo’s eyes widened.

“A portrait of Garon? As a gift?”

“Yes.”

Raonhiljo casually mentioned the Black Martial Emperor’s name. It sounded oddly familiar coming from him, but whether he noticed or not, he furrowed his brows and muttered.

“That’ll be quite the challenge. He’s not an easy person to deal with…”

“You know him well, my lord?”

“Yeah, I’ve known him since childhood. But His Majesty Garon… he…”

“I know he despises the Imae Tribe. I experienced it firsthand today…”

Raonhiljo’s gaze flicked to my bandaged arm and then back to my face.

“How about leaving the castle tomorrow? You’ve already shown your willingness to submit, so there’s no need to push yourself any further.”

“I’ll be fine. It’s not like we could leave even if we wanted to. Besides, we have nowhere else to go.”

A faint smile appeared on his lips.

“So, we’re stuck waiting until the Emperor’s portrait is finished, huh? We still have work to do, don’t we?”

“Ah…”

Only then did I remember his unfinished portrait. The painting that burned with the Imae Village that day… Although I hadn’t yet received permission from the Black Martial Emperor to paint his portrait, I couldn’t simply start another task. There was nowhere left to retreat.

“It might be difficult for now. You may have to wait a long time…”

“Have you become a popular artist while I wasn’t looking? Lucky for me, I booked you early. But don’t expect me to raise your fee anymore.”

Raonhiljo declared this with a laugh in his voice but firmly. The humid summer breeze lightly brushed my hair, tickling my cheek. Or maybe there was no breeze at all. I lowered my head.

“Yes… I don’t plan to do that either.”

Suddenly, I felt a refreshing gaze on me. He looked as if he wanted to ask something, and I had a feeling I knew what it was. However, neither of us brought it up. But if the opportunity arose, I thought I might tell him about my mother someday. It felt like I could share that with him—after all, he was the one who had given my mother her deathblow and had given me this task.

Raonhiljo and I exchanged casual conversation under the pavilion before parting ways. Although the encounter had been unexpected, I returned with a slightly lighter heart than when I had set out.

The thought of the slaughter I had witnessed earlier still left me dizzy, but oddly enough, I felt calm. Even if today had passed without incident, there was no guarantee that the Black Martial Emperor wouldn’t reveal his madness again. I also worried about whether Raonhiljo, who had taken us out of the stable and even arranged for treatment, might suffer unnecessary wrath if the Black Martial Emperor found out.

However, when I returned to the infirmary, something happened that made me stop worrying about Raonhiljo. Somehow, the same servant from earlier had learned what happened and stormed in, dragging us back to the stable. As soon as we entered, one of my tribe members grabbed me by the collar and shouted in frustration.

“You… you idiot! Why did you have to do something so useless?! If you’d just left it alone, we could have at least taken out one of the Black Martial Emperor’s legs!”

I didn’t bother responding to him and took a seat in the corner. Just a leg… That would never be enough. The Black Martial Emperor had committed far too many sins for losing a single leg to serve as penance. But in exchange for that leg, I had gained something valuable—I’d managed to survive one more day.

The Chieftain was burning with a fever, and my tribe members had fallen into an almost unconscious sleep. Having crossed the line between life and death today, they looked like defeated soldiers. The Chieftain, now with only one horn left, breathed harshly, replaying his rage over and over.

“I didn’t realize Jincheonroe was that terrifying… I finally understand why they call it the ‘Wail of the Demons.’ I warned you… don’t be reckless. For now, the priority is… to make it out of here alive.”

“Yes.”

Jincheonroe. I had witnessed its terrifying power firsthand. It wasn’t something small enough to sneak away, and considering how precarious our lives were at the moment, stealing it wasn’t even an option. The Chieftain glanced at the sleeping tribe members and lowered his voice.

“The poison of Imae… It spreads slowly through the body, gnawing at the flesh, dissolving the bones, and eventually drying up the blood… so quietly that you won’t even realize you’re dying.”

Draining blood and gnawing at flesh. Slowly, without even knowing it… It was the perfect demise for a killer.

“I heard my father passed away after two months.”

“I heard the same. Since you’re half-and-half, the effect might only be half as strong, so it could take even longer… or it could be stronger.”

“It doesn’t matter how long it takes.”

The calmness in my voice made the Chieftain, drenched in cold sweat, stare at me. It was as if he was asking if that was truly the only way. I would answer without hesitation—yes, it was. It had been in the past, and it still was now. This body was all I had. I had learned from the Chieftain’s son how to use a shell of a body like mine to be of value.

“When I was young, I focused on taking care of my tribe and neglected my own family. I raised him poorly.”

The Chieftain, looking more gaunt than ever, closed his eyes.

“I apologize on my son’s behalf…”

He knew. Although that single sentence didn’t erase my feelings toward Orumun, the Chieftain’s straightforward apology was a surprising shock to me. I began to understand why the Imae trusted and followed him, why they entrusted him with their children’s sacred naming ceremonies. Somehow, I began to grasp it, if only a little.

***

The cool dawn air crept in through the small window. My mind was too restless for sleep. The unexpected encounter with Raonhiljo was one reason I couldn’t sleep. My stomach twisted from the extreme tension and hunger. In this state, I felt like I could eat a pig if I found one, or maybe even steal pig slop. I had lived my whole life in hunger, so going two days without food was nothing new, but after enduring such an ordeal, my strength was completely drained. If I didn’t die by the Black Martial Emperor’s hand, I might starve to death at this rate.

As I lay there, my body melting with exhaustion, I reached for the waistband of my pants, and my heart dropped. The pouch containing my mother’s white horn was gone. It had definitely been there earlier, but now…! I must have dropped it during all the chaos. I sprang up and ran outside.