Running Away 3
“Cho, you going to eat this?”
I asked Cho, who was sprawled languidly across the grass after molting. No answer came back—just a faint wave of feeling that said she had no energy left even to refuse, and no interest in eating it.
Ordinarily a centipede would eat its own cast skin. After a molt the old exoskeleton still held calcium, protein, chitosan, minerals—everything needed to speed the hardening of the new shell. Cho, though, had molted after swallowing a small inner elixir. That was probably why she felt no need. A core packed with nutrients made the empty husk unnecessary.
If she had wanted it I would have snipped off a few legs for her, but since she didn’t, so much the better. I spread the shed skin flat. Once the accordion-folded husk opened out, more than six meters of magnificent shell lay gleaming in the sun—still faintly azure, glossy and translucent, catching the light with every shift.
I could almost have cut it up and worn the pieces as trousers. One detail, however, kept wrinkling my brow.
“Whoa… that is cool. But no matter how many times I look, this is still the one blemish.”
With the shell fully unrolled, the two missing-leg sockets stood out like gaps in a row of teeth—one on each side, right in the middle. They offended my sense of aesthetics something fierce.
You just wait, you damn wasp. Next time I run into that crazy woman and her pet, I’m going to give them hell. Though… I wouldn’t mind having a wasp of my own. Wait. Hold on.
At first all I felt was spite that the wasp had hurt Cho. Then, while I was still fuming, the image of O Cheong-yu of the Five Poisons Sect fleeing that day flashed through my mind—the golden needles glittering in both her head and Goemyeonghoja’s.
What if the ones who were actually brainwashed were O Cheong-yu and Goemyeonghoja?
She had spoken as if I were the one under some kind of control, but the more I thought about it, the more it seemed the reverse was true. The Beast Palace’s Beast Explosive Latent Great Method was supposed to detonate a beast’s latent power and drive it berserk. Remembering the army ants, though, I was certain the Five Poisons Sect had performed some additional modification.
Odds are high it’s brainwashing.
By the end of that train of thought I was convinced both of them had been controlled—and that this hot-blooded Fabre had a duty to rescue them.
O Cheong-yu of the Five Poisons Sect had allied with the Blood Sect, so she ranked as their equal. Even if she had been brainwashed, she had still committed crimes and would have to answer for them. I would hand her over to the Murim Alliance later. But the pitiful Goemyeonghoja, forced into slavery by the Five Poisons Sect while under mind control—that one I would scoop into my warm embrace and save.
People who do wrong should be punished; that’s only natural. But what crime did a venomous creature commit? I have to save Goemyeonghoja.
Decision made, I drew my dagger and started sawing at a leg joint.
—Kak.
The blade didn’t even leave a scratch. Of course. Even back when Cho was still an Azure-Spotted Centipede the shell had laughed at steel; now that she was a Flying Centipede it would be tougher still.
Maybe another of the Ten Great Poisons could manage it. I turned to Yo-hwa.
“How am I supposed to cut this? Yo-hwa, can you manage it?”
—Kish?
She tried, but spiders can’t chew. Their fangs are really more like oversized canines; they have no other teeth. To sever something you need upper and lower teeth meeting to grind and snip. With nothing but those two massive fangs she simply couldn’t cut. That was why ordinary spiders stabbed prey with their fangs, injected venom to paralyze it, then pumped digestive fluid in—or regurgitated it—and sucked the liquefied meal.
“How do I get these off, then?”
Yo-hwa couldn’t do it. Sword qi might work, but Geombong, the only one who could wield it, was still laid up in pain. After fretting for a while I wondered whether the inside might be softer. I slipped the dagger under the shell and stabbed at the joint from within.
—Tidick.
A clean split opened, exactly like sliding a knife into a perfectly ripe watermelon. A moment later one entire leg dropped free.
“Ohhh! The inside isn’t nearly as hard!”
Outside hard as iron, inside far more yielding. I repeated the process until I held a whole bundle of Cho’s discarded legs. The weight felt reassuring in my hands.
Is this what a dad feels like when he brings home fried chicken after work?
That sudden, warm, payday-father feeling washed over me. I turned straight to Yo-hwa.
“Yo-hwa, keep an eye on Cho for me. I’m going to fetch the other kids.”
—Kish.
She thumped her own chest with the pedipalps that mimicked Hwa-eun’s upper body, as if to say Leave it to me. The gesture was so cute I scratched under her chin until she wore a thoroughly pleased expression, then headed for Grandfather’s quarters.
I had barely reached the doorway when the noise hit me.
—Tsrurrr…
—Tsru-tsrurrr…
—Clang-crash.
“You little inkstones! Aigoo, can’t you two sit still for one single moment? Keep this up and I’m dumping you both on So-ryong!”
From inside came the children’s racket mixed with the thoroughly drained voice of Grandfather Mandok Singun.
He’s really suffering.
—Tsruk!
—Tsruk!
From the sound of it the kids hadn’t given him a second’s peace; he was completely worn out. Hwa-eun had gone through the same ordeal when they refused to settle down; now the victim was Grandfather Mandok Singun.
“These little ones came looking for me this morning. Maybe they’ve grown attached? Don’t worry—I’ll look after them.”
That morning he had spoken with absolute confidence. Half a day later he was clearly done. It reminded me of grandparents in my past life who greeted visiting grandchildren with open arms… and then spent every minute after the first hour wondering when the little monsters would leave.
“Ahem. Grandfather, it’s So-ryong.”
“Hm? So—So-ryong? Kids, Daddy’s here!”
The moment I announced myself I heard the most joyous tone Grandfather had used since I arrived at the Tang Clan. I opened the door and stepped into chaos.
A shattered inkstone, paper torn to shreds, flower petals scattered everywhere—as if a separation-anxious puppy had redecorated the entire room.
“Th-this is…?”
“You’re just in time, So-ryong. Whew… take these two away already. Even when I was training martial arts I never felt this drained. They’re exhausting.”
Grandfather Mandok Singun was known as someone who could throw his weight around in the murim, yet Hyang-i and Bin-i had reduced him to a limp rag in half a day. The little centipedes were basically the beagles of the venomous-creature world.
I looked around for them and saw nothing. The moment they heard my voice they had vanished. When I kept scanning, Grandfather pointed a thumb over his own shoulder.
“?”
I peered carefully at his shoulders. Something was brushing them ever so slightly on either side. Closer inspection revealed two pairs of antennae—Hyang-i’s and Bin-i’s. They had ducked behind him the instant I entered.
Still sulking, huh.
I swallowed a laugh and put on a theatrical air.
“Ahem. What am I supposed to do? I brought those inner-elixir-like things I promised, but where on earth did the kids go?”
—Tsruk!?
Startled little-centipede noises erupted from behind Grandfather’s back. Hyang-i launched herself from his shoulder straight into my arms, flying through the air and landing against my chest. She spotted the bundle of Cho’s legs I was holding and tilted her head, clearly puzzled. She had leaped over in excitement at the word “inner elixir,” only to find something that looked nothing like one.
I scratched her head and explained.
“Looks weird, I know, but it’s pretty close to an inner elixir. Give it a try.”
—Tsruk?
Still dubious, she carefully brought a piece of shell to her mouth.
—Crunch-crunch. Crunch.
Eating sounds followed at once. Whatever the taste, the shell vanished into her maw with impressive speed.
That was when the scolding started from Grandfather’s other shoulder.
—Tsrurrrt! Tsruk!
Bin-i stuck her head out and furiously berated Hyang-i—probably for abandoning her and jumping over alone. Hyang-i merely glanced at the sister still clinging to Grandfather, then deliberately turned away and stuffed another piece of molt into her mouth.
—Crunch-crunch. Crunch.
If you’re not coming, I’ll just eat it all myself.
Bin-i was the type who needed the red carpet rolled out before she would pretend to give in. I offered her a gentle invitation.
“Bin-i, aren’t you coming?”
—Tsruk!
She whipped her head away. Unlike Hyang-i, her sulk hadn’t thawed yet. I held out my hand toward Grandfather’s shoulder.
“Daddy and Mommy were wrong. We only did it because we didn’t want our Bin-i to be disappointed. Come on, let it go and eat with us.”
She was still full of wounded pride, but she couldn’t quite resist. She crossed over, shoved Hyang-i aside, and the two of them launched into a dual molt-eating mukbang.
—Tsrurrrrr!
—Tsrurrt!
—Crunch-crunch crunch.
The “food” worked better than expected. After polishing off everything except the last two pieces, Hyang-i and Bin-i licked my face with pure delight.
—Tsruk.
—Tsrurrrrr.
Mood fully restored. I placed one final piece in each of their mouths.
“All right, these are the last ones.”
—Tsruk…
—Tsrurrr…
They had already eaten nearly their own body weight with joyful abandon; the word “last” drew soft, disappointed cries. I worried they might overeat, yet neither looked full. Being the shed skin of a spirit beast, it apparently filled them the same way an inner elixir did—without the heavy belly.
“Want a little more, then?”
They brightened instantly.
—Tsruk!?
—Tsrurrt!?
Their cries asked, There’s really more? I nodded.
“There’s still plenty over there. Want to go with Daddy and get some?”
—Tsruk!
—Tsru-tsrurr!
Their eagerness to hurry over flooded me. I was so happy our chilly cold war had ended that I set off at once. Cho’s cast shell was still huge; if they kept eating they might even molt themselves before long. The thought put a spring in my step.
—Crunch-crunch.
Cheerful munching sounded from my shoulders the whole way. When we reached Yo-hwa I pointed at the remaining shell.
“See? Lots left. Daddy’ll cut more right away.”
—Thud.
A piece of shell rolled off my shoulder. I looked right and found Bin-i frozen solid, the fragment she had been holding dropped at her feet.
“Did you drop it? Let’s see—almost got dirt on it.”
I thought nothing of it, picked up the piece, brushed it off on my clothes, and started to hand it back.
—Tremble-tremble.
My shoulder suddenly shook. Bin-i’s whole body was quivering.
“Bin-i?”
I was still wondering what was wrong when an enraged cry burst out.
—Tsrurrrrrrr!
Bin-i roared, leapt from my shoulder, and began hopping up and down in pure fury. A storm of emotions poured out—How could you, this is too much, I can’t believe this—so tangled I couldn’t even parse the exact grievance. I had no idea what had set her off. Hyang-i, meanwhile, had already scampered over to Cho’s shed skin and was happily tearing into it.
“What is it, Bin-i? Why’s she like this?”
I was still baffled when a familiar voice called.
“Young Hero So.”
I turned. Geombong was approaching, leaning on Changryong for support.
“Ah, Geombong. Are you all right? Should you be walking around?”
I had heard her injuries were serious, so I asked. She flushed and bowed her head.
“I came to thank you. You… you opened this idiot’s eyes…”
“Ah…”
She had come all this way just to thank me for helping their romance along.
“I only helped her confirm her own feelings. I hope the two of you have a good future together.”
—Tsrurrrr! Tsrurrr!
I answered casually, but Bin-i planted herself between us and kept raging. Geombong tilted her head at the bouncing little centipede.
“Why is that child so upset? She seems really angry.”
“Honestly, I have no idea either. It’s leaving me pretty flustered. Actually, this whole thing started when…”
Hoping another woman might understand, I gave Geombong a quick summary of recent events. Her sound transmission arrived at once.
[Y-Young Hero, you’ve made a serious mistake.]
“?”
I blinked at the sudden accusation. Geombong’s explanation continued through sound transmission.
[Receiving her big sister’s shed skin is basically the same as getting hand-me-downs. Of course she’s furious. It’s like old clothes, right? Before I entered the Pointed Window I had plenty of older sisters, and they always passed clothes down to me. Every single time I got so mad—I wanted new clothes of my own…]
Heck!
Cho’s cast shell was, in effect, used clothing. Bin-i, as I well knew, was a tsundere neat freak. She had thought Daddy was giving her brand-new clothes; discovering they were her big sister’s hand-me-downs had ignited her rage. Hyang-i was more easygoing and simply rolled with it.
Raising daughters is not easy!
Managing three girls was turning out more complicated than I had expected. Then Hyang-i, still munching away beside us, suddenly began to molt. Bin-i’s fury shot straight through the roof.
—Tsrurrr!