Even After It Ends, There's More - 5
I liked flying through the sky. I liked roaming the world. But whenever I flew, the things on the ground died. Whenever I roamed, the world trembled in fear. It was strange. I was just flying, just wanting to see more. Why did they hate me? Why fear me?
"P-Poison bird! The poison bird's here!"
When I closed my eyes, I heard the voice of the human on the ground screaming in terror the first time I flew. It had been decades already. I'd heard similar cries many times since, so it wasn't anything special. Still, that voice lingered. Probably because it was the shout that made me realize my existence, my flight, was a disaster to others. That my flying brought suffering to someone.
'None of my business.'
But I didn't give up flying because of those cries and screams. Why should I stop flying for your sake? Why give up my happiness for things other than me? You kill other creatures to survive. You trample and kill them for fun. Why be so strict only with me?
So, whether the humans on the ground wailed, the beasts fled, or the plants withered, I steadfastly soared through the sky. I was born to fly, and the poison I scattered was part of me.
'They kill each other without me anyway.'
As I peacefully roamed the world like that, humans started fighting fiercely at some point. They fled whenever I appeared mid-quarrel, so I didn't know the details, but I vaguely heard talk of Mongols and Great Song. They were probably at war. It had nothing to do with me. Why would a sky-flying creature like me care if ground-dwellers fought? If anything, circling over dead humans meant no noisy complainers, which was honestly convenient.
"Ho. So the poison bird existed north of the Yangtze too?"
- Kkieak?
That's when I met that guy. Cheongseung. A human they called a monk. Bald-headed, wearing strange robes.
"Perfect. With the poison bird's venom, we can wipe out those Mongol bastards."
- Kkieaak?
Unlike others who fled at the sight of me, this madman charged straight at me and captured me alive.
- Kkiik, kkieeeeeeeak!
"Haha, you little thing. Thrash all you want—I'm immune to all poisons."
- Kkiaaaaaak!
I didn't know what "immune to all poisons" meant until then, but I learned it painfully that day. It was utterly vicious.
Anyway, after being caught by Cheongseung, I couldn't fly freely anymore. I had to fly where he told me to, walk on two legs when he said stay on the ground. I tried escaping many times, but he always tracked and recaptured me. The bastard was viciously tenacious.
But strangely, even though he'd grabbed me against my will and wouldn't let me escape, I grew fond of him.
"You've lived alone your whole life, and now you're living with someone for the first time. I'm your first friend, so it's natural to grow attached."
As if reading my mind, Cheongseung called me his friend.
- Kkieak?
That word turned my head white. Friend. A friend for me. Someone who'd always lived and had to live alone now had a friend. One immune to my poison, accepting me as I was...
"Hm. A lone wanderer who doesn't even know the word 'friend'?"
- Kkieeeeeeeak!
If he hadn't added that unnecessary bit, it would've been perfect. Still, defining our relationship settled my heart. Cheongseung was my one and only friend. We were each other's friends. Companions advancing through this world together. I thought it would last forever. The ground was chaotic, but Cheongseung was strong—he'd be fine.
"Looks like this is the end for me."
- Kkiik, kki iiiiiik...
So when Cheongseung collapsed on the ground, bleeding, vomiting blood from his mouth, it felt like the world crumbled. When my one friend fell, my world fell with him.
"Damn. If I die, how will you survive without a single friend? I showed you the joy of friendship, but now you'll be alone again—can you even manage?"
I wanted to tell him to worry about himself, not me. To shut up and not open his mouth. But Cheongseung kept talking. Worrying about me, the one left behind, not his dying self.
"So, one last piece of advice before I go. If you want to live like now, not like before... it wouldn't hurt to heed this monk's words."
- Kkii iik...
"Eat something besides poison. You spread poison because you eat it. Eat normal food, and you can live like an ordinary bird."
It was like telling a predator not to eat meat, but I nodded willingly. I lacked confidence to live alone anymore, but more than that, I saw worry for me in Cheongseung's fading eyes. If I lived alone, he'd worry even in death.
"It won't be easy. Quitting poison now might not yield quick results. But if you don't give up and keep trying, someday you'll make friends."
- Kkii iik...!
"I might not be your last friend, but I'm glad I could be your first."
Those were Cheongseung's final words. Our last conversation.
At least, fortunately, the world Cheongseung dreamed of, the wish he fought for, came true. The Mongols were driven out, and the world he wanted opened up. His comrades mourned his death sincerely and built a pagoda for him.
From then on, I lingered near the pagoda honoring Cheongseung, near the temple housing it, passing my days. As per his advice, I ate ordinary beasts, grass, fruits to purge the poison from my body. So someday I could make another friend. To ease Cheongseung's worries.
'Hm?'
Then I spotted a peculiar human. One emanating a subtly different aura from any I'd seen. A human, yet carrying the auras of multiple spirit beasts.
'Three-headed snake?'
And traveling with a three-headed snake bearing vicious poison like mine. My heart raced at the sight. After decades of detoxing, I could finally interact with other creatures. This human already traveled with a three-headed snake and others—adding me wouldn't be a problem. Crucially, he sincerely paid respects at Cheongseung's pagoda, which touched me. Such a human could be my second friend.
'How do you even make friends...?'
But even finding such a prime candidate, I lacked the courage to approach first. Friends—how do you make them? Cheongseung and I became friends because he caught me; I never approached him.
So I decided to quietly follow the human for now. Leaving Cheongseung's pagoda was regrettable, but if he were alive, he'd tell me to chase after that human right away. No need to hesitate—for my sake, for his.
- Shiiik?
The problem was, just as I'd spotted the three-headed snake, it had spotted me. It didn't know my exact position, just vaguely sensed me, but that alone meant I needed more distance from the human. If he learned a poison bird was silently stalking him, friend or not, he'd bolt.
So I steadfastly followed as the human crossed mountains and seas—
- Kkieeeeeeeak!
But when the three-headed snake spat a glob of poison, my eyes rolled back. It far surpassed any poison I'd seen, the most tantalizing I'd ever encountered since birth. After decades of restraint... it was too tempting, and I ended up eating it...
'One time should be fine, right?'
Honestly, after decades of detoxing, one bite wouldn't rebuild the poison. Probably.
As the Baekryeon Cult Leader said, the white deer—no, the poison bird—seemed to carry only mild poison. No pain even with it right in front of my nose, and the grass it treaded stayed lush and green. I even mustered courage for a light touch, and I was fine.
"You're really a poison bird?"
- Kkii iik!
I blurted out honestly, and the poison bird flapped its wings in anger.
'This is insane.'
The moment it spread its wings, I flinched despite myself. My head knew it was safe, but my heart hadn't caught up. What was a poison bird? A walking radioactive hazard, practically. Called a spirit beast, sure, but the emperor could declare "From today, we call it a vicious beast" without issue.
And this one was pissed right in front of me? Like staring at a North Korean leader's finger on the nuke button.
- Shiiik, shii iik.
- Siee eak.
- Shiuu uk.
As we awkwardly locked eyes, Samshik slithered toward the poison bird.
- Sheuk, shii shik!
- Kkieak.
- Shii iik?
- Kkiik, kkie e eak.
Soon, they started crying at each other like they were conversing. Watching made me uneasy. The poison bird was already mad—what if it snapped and devoured Samshik? Given its size, Samshik would be a single gulp.
- Shii ik.
But contrary to my worries, after their "talk," Samshik turned and slipped into the warehouse piled with toxic herbs.
'What the hell.'
Glad it wasn't eaten, but what did they even say?
"I see."
Unlike me, the Baekryeon Cult Leader seemed to grasp it, stroking his beard and nodding.
"Han Un. Feed this one normal food besides poison."
"Pardon?"
"It says poison birds build up venom by eating it. This one's weak because it hasn't. Seems self-imposed, so help it along."
The sudden advice left me blinking blankly.
'Why me...'
Confusing. Was raising this thing suddenly my job? No way. Even so, a poison bird? Too much.
- Kkii ik!
'Ah.'
But locking eyes with the poison bird, I instantly foresaw my future. That glare. Just like Ppiae right before spitting acid at me. If I pushed it away now, a poison bird hopped up on toxins would come hunting me.