Chapter 18

Chapter 18 — The Snail's Secret (2)

Dark rain clouds had gathered over the northern ridge, and there was no sign that the rain would stop anytime soon.

Rainwater streamed down the roof and poured from the edge of the eaves.

The windows had not been closed in time, so rain had blown inside, leaving puddles all along the long corridors of the hall.

Beopsindang had many wooden buildings that were several hundred years old, so they had to be carefully maintained to keep moisture from building up.

Because of that, the lower-ranking priests and maids were much busier than usual, wiping the floors and carrying away laundry covered in mud.

Soon afterward, it was time for the evening meal hosted by Huyoung.

Rare dishes, still steaming hot, were placed on tables decorated with flowers.

She had even brought in string and flute musicians, making the meal look more like a banquet.

It was completely different from their usual modest meals, where each person was served only clear soup and vegetables on a small personal table.

Seongha put down his chopsticks and spoke in a dry tone.

“Beopsindang is an institution maintained by the blood and taxes of the people. If you wish to stay here, then according to our customs, your clothing and meals should remain modest...”

“How can a noble young master of the Jin family say such a thing? If you wished, wealth, glory, and advancement would all come to you as easily as a dream.”

Huyoung paid no attention to Seongha's indifferent reaction and moved closer until she was sitting right beside him.

Until now, even when she had made all kinds of excuses to create chances to meet him, she had barely managed to exchange a few words with Seongha.

Simply being able to sit beside him like this and look directly at his face seemed enough to satisfy her.

“A noble young master of the Jin family...”

As though something had suddenly occurred to him, Seongha spoke to Huyoung.

“For Lady Nam's husband, wouldn't someone of a more noble status be more suitable than a mere priest of Beopsindang?”

“That is true, but I believe the order can be reversed.”

Huyoung answered in a sly voice.

“If Seongha-nim resigns from your position as a priest and joins me in marriage, you will receive the full support of the Nam family as our son-in-law. You could quickly rise to become a high-ranking official.”

“Does Namwan Guksa also wish for a connection between the Nam family and the Jin family?”

“Of course. He is eagerly waiting for my marriage talks to proceed.”

“I see. I will keep that in mind for my future plans.”

A faint smile appeared on Seongha's lips as an idea came to him.

Perhaps he had just found an easy way to get rid of Huyoung, who had been a constant thorn in his side.

His face looked especially cold and sharp today.

A short while later, the musical performance ended.

When the banquet hall fell quiet, Cheongyeon stepped forward.

“The petition Lady Nam prepared is invalid. I am neither a fake Heavenly Maiden nor a heretic. I will visit the holy places throughout Hui Kingdom and persuade their leaders myself.”

She had been sitting quietly the entire time, yet apparently she had been making such a decision in her heart.

Seongha looked at Cheongyeon with concern.

It was a straightforward solution, just like her.

But at the same time, it was practically the same as walking into a trap Huyoung had prepared for her.

Manwoo was the first to try to stop her.

“Traveling through the holy places of Hui Kingdom is no small matter. If Beopsindang's people are scattered, preparations for the Sipojeol ceremony will become extremely difficult.”

The holy places of Hui Kingdom could largely be divided into three groups.

There were the small regional shrines dedicated to beings such as the Dragon King, mountain gods, and land gods.

Then there was the shamanic holy ground in Pasa, the city of the Hae family.

And finally, there was Namwan Guksa's Buddhist holy ground.

Beopsindang might somehow be able to persuade the smaller shrines.

But changing the minds of the Hae family and Namwan Guksa would not be easy.

“I will deal with the petition. Protecting the Heavenly Maiden is Beopsindang's responsibility.”

Seongha also stepped in.

He intended to put Huyoung in trouble in a different way and force her to withdraw the petition.

As far as he knew, there was no such thing as peacefully reaching an agreement with the ruling class of Hui Kingdom.

Not unless one brought up their interests or threatened them with power.

“No. This is something I have to do myself. If I do nothing but receive protection from behind, people will continue trying to slander Beopsindang and the Heavenly Maiden.”

“……”

“I'll make it clear this time. A few words are not enough to deny my existence.”

Cheongyeon said this while looking directly at Huyoung.

Her clear black eyes and firmly pressed lips showed her determination.

“If the Heavenly Maiden has made up her mind, then there's nothing we can do about it.”

At that moment, Manwoo spoke loudly, as though he wanted everyone there to hear.

“Given the timing, both highest-ranking priests cannot leave at once. Leave Beopsindang to me. You should accompany the Heavenly Maiden on her journey to the holy places.”

Seongha rarely allowed anyone to see through him.

And yet, for some reason, Manwoo could often tell exactly what Seongha was thinking.

Even now, just from Seongha's stiff expression and straight posture, Manwoo could feel his anxiety.

He figured he should say it first so Seongha could leave without worrying.

Even if dealing with the aftermath ended up falling on Manwoo again.

For a moment, when he heard Manwoo's words, Seongha nearly lost his usual reason.

But with Huyoung and the other factions to keep in check, Beopsindang could not be left empty.

“Thank you for saying that. But I have something I must remain here to do.”

Seongha looked seriously at Manwoo as he spoke.

Manwoo was the only man in this world to whom Seongha could entrust Cheongyeon's safety without hesitation.

“Take care of the Heavenly Maiden.”

It was a short sentence.

But it contained all of Seongha's sincerity.

Manwoo silently nodded.

Manwoo and the other attendants left early to begin preparing for the pilgrimage to the holy places.

Seongha also stood and adjusted his clothes.

“Seongha-nim, why are you leaving the meal so soon? Was the banquet I prepared not to your liking?”

Huyoung called after him.

At that moment, the image of tea with white flower petals floating on the surface appeared in Seongha's mind.

“Even with a feast spread before my eyes, my heart still longs for a single cup of fragrant tea.”

Seongha thought of the cup of tea Cheongyeon had handed him.

And of the warmth he had felt when their hands touched around the teaware.

“I will take my leave now.”

After politely bowing to Huyoung, Seongha tried to leave together with Cheongyeon.

But Huyoung walked in front of Cheongyeon and blocked her path.

“You're saying you'll personally visit the holy places, so you must have some reason to be so confident. I'm curious what exactly gives you that confidence.”

“……”

“Before you leave on such a long journey, I should give you a memory to take with you. The entertainment at today's banquet has been rather lacking anyway.”

Huyoung ordered a servant to bring over a wooden box.

Then she dismissed the Nam family's guards around them and sent them outside the hall.

It seemed she intended to make sure no one entered the banquet hall or saw what was about to happen.

“This is my friend.”

With the creak of rusty hinges, the box opened.

Slimy liquid splattered around the box.

A long tentacle stretched out, grabbed the edge, and pulled its body upward.

Soon, a snail as large as a forearm appeared.

The snail slowly crawled forward while pressed low against the ground.

Then suddenly—

It lunged.

In an instant, it closed the distance between itself and Cheongyeon.

A tentacle moved so fast that it could barely be seen.

It bit off a tiny piece of flesh from the tip of Cheongyeon's finger.

“Ah!”

Startled by the unexpected attack, Cheongyeon quickly pulled her hand back.

The wound itself was not large.

But deep bite marks remained.

It seemed the snail had sucked her blood.

“What are you doing?”

Seongha stepped in front of Cheongyeon and drew his sword.

“This is no ordinary snail. It's a snail that reveals a person's hidden secrets.”

“……”

“Aren't you curious as well, Priest? Curious about the true form of the woman supposedly brought down from the heavens?”

After Huyoung finished speaking, they looked carefully at the snail.

Its appearance was shocking and nauseating.

Across its bald, sticky body, shapes resembling eyes, noses, and mouths clung everywhere, as though human faces had melted into its flesh.

“Hurry and show us. Show us the true form of the one pretending to be the Heavenly Maiden.”

Huyoung raised her voice, urging it on.

Once the snail drank someone's blood, it had the ability to transform into a part of the form possessed by the owner of that blood.

Because it could expose the thing that person most desperately wanted to hide and drive them into trouble, Huyoung had often used it to remove her political enemies.

The snail's slippery body twisted violently.

Then it began reconstructing every sensation contained within the blood and accepting them as a part of itself.

At last, the forms created by the snail began bursting out of its body one by one.

“That is...”

It was the enormous face of a Buddha statue, as though its head had been severed by something.

Black tears flowed from its eyes, and its large ears hung limply downward.

Several stakes had been driven into its head, making it look as though its divinity had been broken.

Behind the statue's head floated a halo made of flames, spinning rapidly with a sharp shhh, shhh sound.

The black fire blazed vividly.

Several flames shot through the air.

Wooden seats in the banquet hall overturned, and dishes shattered.

“What is that monster?!”

Huyoung screamed and backed away.

She had only intended to expose Cheongyeon's true identity and have her driven out of Beopsindang.

At most, she had expected to discover something like a lowly birth, an improper private life, or some fatal weakness.

But now that such a grotesque being had appeared, the situation had clearly gone far beyond what she had intended.

The blood the snail had consumed contained something primal.

Something destructive.

Power itself.

“Lady Nam, your little prank has gone too far. Stop this pathetic trick immediately.”

Seongha shouted sharply.

But now, even Huyoung could no longer stop what was happening.

A revelation began to echo in their ears.

[Heavenly Maiden within the darkness,

Burning in the flames of karmic fire,

She shall return the world to nothingness.]

The voice of the revelation sounded vaguely similar to Cheongyeon's.

But unlike hers, it carried a chilling sensation, as though it was echoing from somewhere impossibly deep.

“The Heavenly Maiden of the Black Shadow...”

Cheongyeon could not take her eyes off the being the snail had shown them.

It was only a single drop of blood.

But even so, that being had come from her.

Like a shadow that always followed her.

Like another version of herself reflected inside a mirror...

The Heavenly Maiden of the Black Shadow was another side of Cheongyeon.

“It is a pitiful creature. I will put it to rest with my own hands.”

Seongha gathered bright light in his hand and carefully approached the snail.

But before he could reach it, the snail met a horrific end.

[Who dares attempt to uncover my fate? Who could possibly endure it?]

A strand of black power burst from Cheongyeon.

It flew toward the snail like a shard of razor-sharp glass.

Unable to withstand the unknown force, the snail's body exploded with a sharp pop.

Chunks of flesh, shattered beyond any hope of regeneration, scattered across the floor.

Seongha and Cheongyeon stared at the horrifying remains in stunned silence.

“My Lady, are you all right? What happened?”

Startled by the thunderous noise, the Nam family's guards rushed back into the banquet hall.

They looked around at the ruined room while checking on Huyoung.

“It died. What a waste. It was one of my favorite friends.”

Huyoung muttered to herself.

Then, as though venting her anger, she crushed the snail's corpse beneath her foot.

“But now that it's useless, get it out of my sight. It's filthy and disgusting.”

Huyoung glared after Cheongyeon as she left the banquet hall.

Then she began talking to herself.

“Pretending to be so innocent and righteous while hiding something like that inside you? See? Humans are all equally disgusting.”

Huyoung ran a fingertip across her lips, visibly unsettled.

An unpleasant, chilling sensation pierced through her entire body.

She knew exactly what that feeling was.

A sense of danger.

“What should I do now? I don't think simply driving her out of Beopsindang will be enough.”

Huyoung had committed many acts of cruelty, both great and small, against the people around her.

But the being she had just encountered was not something she could suppress with tricks of that level.

Now, Huyoung had found something she absolutely had to defeat.

It was time for the purpose of her life to change once again.

“There's no need to make this complicated. I can just kill her.”

Her lips curved slightly.

“I'll erase her cleanly, as though she never existed in this world.”

Huyoung's attendants pretended not to have heard their mistress and quietly began cleaning the banquet hall.

“I may need a new mask soon.”

It was a monologue that no one heard.