Chapter 77
Chapter 77
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 77
Chapter Title: Heavenly Demon Divine Cult Double Agent
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How on earth could cheeks be this soft and squishy? Ryeongryeong enthusiastically fiddled with the plump cheeks of the girl cradled in her arms.
"So-hye."
"Yeah? Sis?"
"Still getting picked on by friends? Still no real friends?"
The girl, who had been prepping fruit and laying it out in the sun, let out a sigh.
"Sis, that's a rude question."
"I'm just asking if your sis should go beat them up for you---"
"No way! If you hit them with those hands, they'd die!"
"I can control my strength just fine?"
"You shatter rocks with your fingernails every single day."
"Well, that's just training..."
"Even if you hold back, their heads would crack open. No."
Ryeongryeong burst into laughter. Why was even her way of talking so adorable?
She reached out and tugged at So-hye's cheek.
"Look at you. Treating your sis like some kind of beast. I can handle that much just fine, you know? Besides, if you're gonna say stuff like that, you shouldn't let yourself get hit in the first place."
"Using your hands recklessly is no better than a street thug. Those idiots who hit me are basically admitting they're inferior."
"Oh my. Is this the same little kid who was asking 'wanna be friends?' just the other day~?"
"Sis. I'm all grown up now, you know?"
"Grown up, my foot. You're still a little kid."
"Fifteen is plenty grown up. Old enough to get married, even."
"...Married?! Little So-hye getting married?! And I haven't even gone yet! What does that make me?!"
"Sis is... an old hag?"
She pinched her cheek.
So-hye giggled merrily.
"But I'm not getting married anyway. All boys are idiots. They barely know anything, but they strut around in front of me like they're hot stuff."
"You haven't been getting beat up lately, right?"
"No way I'd get hit after you taught me all that stuff. Look."
So-hye threw a punch into the air.
Her form was starting to look pretty solid now. Quite the sight.
She'd grown up so fast. Ryeongryeong chuckled and pulled So-hye into a tight hug, stroking her hair.
"With a pretty face like yours, So-hye, you must get tired of it. The boys won't leave you alone."
"And you're even prettier, sis."
"Well, that's a given."
"Hey! Hey! This is the moment where you say I'm prettier!"
"Ugh. You're pretty. My pretty face."
"Hey, you're hilarious."
"And you're pretty funny yourself, little So-hye."
"Eek. Let go."
So-hye wriggled and laughed, then flipped over to look up at her.
"Sis, when can you leave this place?"
"Hmm... three years? Or maybe four?"
"Reaally...? Sis, there's something I wanna tell you..."
"Coming back after so long, and you even have stuff to say? You didn't cause trouble, did you?"
"Trouble... well, maybe a little... heehee. We've still got time, so I'll tell you later."
"No secrets from your sis!"
"But everyone in the world has their own little secrets, right? I'm an adult now too. And adults are supposed to have at least one secret."
"Look at those shoulders rising up. Reaching for the sky. So-hye, an adult... I'll be old and dead soon."
"Says the corpse."
"Oh ho. Climbing up, are we?"
After rolling around for a while, So-hye suddenly shot to her feet.
"Anyway, sis, you can't forget what I taught you, okay?"
"How to dry fruit?"
"Yeah, that and all the other stuff. Sis, you live out here all alone, but you're totally hopeless at housework. I even told you to build that house properly."
"I did. Rebuilt it three times after it collapsed."
"Sis, you secretly have no handiwork skills at all. Sigh. I slave away taking care of you. Die. Just die."
"I'm alive, though?"
"Stop groping my cheeks already. Hurry up and copy me. Slice the fruit like this and lay it out here. There are all the good spots. Cover them like this so bugs don't get in."
Chattering away, So-hye glanced back at Ryeongryeong.
"What are you gonna do without me, sis?"
"Just drop dead."
"Again with the bad talk. Learn everything I taught you and write it down in a book. I'll check later!"
"Aigoo, wise elder. Of course. I'll diligently make notes, ma'am."
"Good. I like that attitude. And when you store them, do it like this..."
She turned back to her.
"When you make friends, share some with them. And make sure to tell them who taught you!"
"...Obviously."
Ryeongryeong stroked her tiny head.
"I'll make sure to say my proud little sister taught me."
...
The ferry glided smoothly through the current and bumped against the massive ship. The moment she stepped aboard, eyes poured down on her.
Ryeongryeong wrapped qi around her fingertips. If she wanted, she could kill everyone here.
But she held back from rashly striking, just in case of any possibilities.
"Where's Ansasugwi?"
"Right here. Wait a moment. It takes some time to prepare."
...Prepare?
Ryeongryeong ground her teeth.
"Come out before I rip you all apart!"
"Such impatience. Well, I've known that about you. Wait there. We're preparing for your sake."
"What?"
"Won't take long, so stay put. Hands are busy, but mouth's free---keep me company."
Inside the cabin, blocked by the door.
Clattering sounds came from within.
"Miss, do you know how tough it is being a boatman? Living off the water is no joke. Take dredging---the first thing I learned to earn my keep was holding my breath and enduring underwater for ages."
"......"
"Push your breath past the limit, and your head goes ping for a second. Not just that---it's like a string snaps, and your mind flies off into the haze. I've been through it hundreds of times. Even after training, it hits sometimes."
"I'm not here to chat with you, Ansasugwi."
"Quit fussing. I said I'm preparing. Anyway, miss, earning a living on the water is brutally hard. See those guys next to you? Sword at their waist, but to swing it properly on a rocking boat, they've trained twice as much as landlubbers. Aquatic arts aren't easy to pick up. Same swordplay, but the boat shakes, so it takes extra effort."
"Quit the word games..."
"No, really. Wait. Preparing for you. Anyway, boat life is tough---way harder than land work, so you gotta look after all sorts of things. Only edible thing here's fish, so we hit villages regularly. Gotta drain the bilge under those bastards too."
A clatter rang out.
A sigh from the unseen Ansasugwi.
"But boatmen have filthy tempers. Those bastards? Spot a woman, and they half-cripple her."
"...Boss, it wasn't like we wanted to..."
"Didn't want to, my ass. Brainless idiots who can't control their strength. How many times have I cleaned up after you? Fucking retards... Anyway, miss. Stepping into this life, taking in these morons one by one, I realized---folks who actually listen are rarer than you'd think. But even beastly ones are my men, right? Gotta manage 'em. My martial arts are top-notch, but I can't row the ship alone or patrol this whole river solo. Trained this far, wanna taste success too. Any decent swordsman feels the same."
Something tightened with a creak.
Ansasugwi stood up.
"So I needed my own way to handle underlings. Food? Good fishers cover it... Pay's decent too. I'm neat about that stuff. We're in the same boat---gotta keep it fair. But their fuckups were a mess. Women? Couldn't fix it even with money. Those dumbasses got banned from brothels. Broke a few whores too."
"......"
A bad premonition hit.
Felt like something she shouldn't hear.
"We're river pirates, plain and simple---bad guys. With men going mad without women, we snatched a few decent village girls. But even that got impossible later. Kidnap, they break; repeat from the village, got caught. Kuuh. That terrifying Sahyeol Corps mess. But the not-quite-beastly ones bought time with their bodies, let me and a few escape. That's when I realized---more we hit land, closer we get to real death."
"...You... you bastard... don't tell me..."
"But no mermaids in the river. Cut off land trips max, underlings started going nuts again. Aah. Can you call a man a man if he never holds a woman in his prime? Me too, same boat. Krk. Cock twitching like mad, thought I'd lose it. So I racked this smart brain for alternatives."
Giggling from beyond the door.
"Martial women are tougher, chewier. Don't break easy. Picked one, then... simple, right? Normally take tolls and let pass, but eye female martial artists. Pretend to let go, ambush outside my turf, slaughter the crew. Play innocent after. Other pirates did it too, so locals saw me as the nicer one. Haha! Me, Ansasugwi of the world, the decent pirate! Funniest rumor ever!"
Cold sweat started beading.
Ryeongryeong stared blankly at the door.
Twitching presences. But not one.
...Two.
One barely moving.
"Spot on. Female martial artists hold up great. Shame, they fight back hard. One of my men got his groin eaten alive. Kuuh. Even I, not the victim, went weak-kneed. So I yanked all their teeth. Then they attacked with severed tendons in arms and legs. Vicious. Vicious. Just wanted a fuckhole, learned creation ain't for everyone."
"You... you..."
"No choice, thought it over. Hit on something. Do limbs matter? For a fuckhole anyway..."
---Click.
The door opened.
"Need arms and legs---right?"
She saw it. It started coming into view.
Ansasugwi. The same as before, but with something added.
A human shape bound in ropes. Filthy, ragged flesh lump you couldn't call human.
No arms. No legs. Face somewhat intact, but mouth agape with nothing inside.
"Uweeek!!!"
Unable to hold it, Ryeongryeong vomited. She staggered to the railing.
Ansasugwi shrugged his shoulders.
"You know, miss? Yank all the teeth..."
Kuh. One hole turns perfect. If you were a man, you'd get it."
"You... fucking... bastard bastard bastard!!!"
"No anger! Reunion after so long! Miss! Know how hard it was sorting these? Flipping each one, exhausted! Brought your fave, and you curse? Smile! Grin till your mouth rips!"
The woman bound to Ansasugwi's chest opened her mouth. Tongue nearly severed, as good as gone.
A gurgling voice. In the beastly growl, Ryeongryeong heard a cherished past.
One she could never return to...
The whispers from those chattering days.
Sis.
"Si...s..."
"Aaaahhhhh!!!"
The qi in her hand ignited. In an instant, three pirates caught in its path shredded and flew.
But the strike didn't reach Ansasugwi.
The whisper. Filthy, grotesque whisper.
"Gonna kill your only friend, miss?"
Her deflected qi only smashed the innocent railing. Unable to do more, Ryeongryeong panted.
"Put her down! Put her the fuck down, you fucking dog shit bastard!!!"
"Can't do that. Untie her, and we'd clash directly? Krk. That qi power's no joke. So young, already this strong... Real fight, you'd send me flying. Properly trained, unlike me."
Ansasugwi raised a hand. Stroked the ruined flesh lump.
"Was gonna discard her---too broken to use. Who knew she'd be so helpful? Krkh! Luck rolled in! Perfectly!"
"Th... thi...s..."
"This flesh lump? Don't care anymore. But trash to me might be treasure to you."
"Dog... bas...tard..."
"Surrender, miss. I'll spare the girl. Shame, right? Already as good as dead, but you'd kill her twice abandoning her."
"Si...s... ngh... ahn..."
"No what? Be good, So-hye. Better with company than alone, right? With that feisty temper..."
Disgusting drool sound.
"Taming her'll be fun. Like with you."
"...You... you..."
"Can you kill me? Faster than I kill her? Even if you do, this ship's sinking from our fight alone. Rapids right now. Think you can carry a limbless kid to land? She'd gorge on water and glub-glub down. I know---longtime water man. Your ferry's gone back to shore. No escape."
He raised his hand. Pointed far off.
"Perfect timing---that boat's leaving too. Krkh. Lost a few men, pity, but trade for you? Worth it. Wanna collar you first... stay still, miss."
---Sreeek.
Ansasugwi moved his hand. Blood dripped from the line slashed over the flesh lump.
"Don't move. Or watch her head roll as it deepens."
Water erupted from the river, clumping at his hand.
Unstable qi. Shaped like a demon's maw, jaws gaping wide.
"Ripping limbs first would be boring, right? Crippling's fine, but starting with all gone feels lacking. You ain't some Sahyeol Corps monster... legs'll do. Don't dodge too much. Or real ones rip off."
---Kwadududuk!!!
With a gruesome sound, Ryeongryeong's head slammed the deck. Blood streamed from the torn wound.
Legs turned to rags in a flash. Not deep internal damage, but movement sealed.
She gasped. Tried rising, couldn't.
Even if she could, what changes? With So-hye in his arms, powerless.
"Good attitude. So-hye'll be happy---got a friend. Go tie her. Feed the poison too."
"B-but boss, get close and she might kill..."
"Want me to do it?"
"N-no, boss!"
Hands approached. Presences hesitated closer.
Head pressed down. Veil stripped, face exposed.
"...Boss. Looks like a prize catch."
"Yeah? Lemme see... krkh! So-hye! You're my treasure! Picking up gems like this!"
"B-boss... after your turn, me too..."
"Shut your trap. Breaking her in's my job. Hurry and tie proper! You slow fucks!"
Tracked clues all this way, and powerless.
So-hye. So-hye.
What did I do to you?
Why plant false dreams in you?
Should've done nothing from the start.
Turned you away when you approached.
All... my fault.
I ruined your life on a whim.
"Sor... ry..."
She whispered.
Chest ripping in pain. Could do nothing but those words.
"Sorry... all... my fault..."
...Someone.
If anyone's listening, please help.
Just So-hye. I don't matter, save her.
"...Plea... se..."
Help.
"Hel... p..."
"Miss Joo."
The air vibrated.
"Don't move."
---Kadduduk!!
Crimson blood qi pierced the world in an instant.
Shadows split. Six caught in the swirling red spat blood simultaneously.
Agonized groans erupted together. Ansasugwi reacted late at the end.
"Kuhk?!"
---Kwaaaaang!!!!
His struck face slid back. So-hye, only torso left above the cut line, shot upward.
But she didn't hit the deck. Caught midair before landing.
His bamboo hat flickered in the light. On the suddenly quiet ship, he turned his head.
Ryeongryeong blinked. Through tear-blurred vision, something appeared.
Familiar face. Sunken gaze.
A man who should be far away stood before her on this ship.
"Wh... why are you here..."
"Tears later, Miss Joo."
A quiet question.
"Will you handle it yourself?"
Ryeongryeong grasped the meaning.
Sis.
She looked toward the past voice.
Then decided her task.
She rose. Shaky legs wouldn't move right. But hands were fine.
So she asked.
"Can you... bring them all to me...?"
He replied.
"As you wish..."
Eyes under the hat gleamed coldly.
"I'll drag every last one of these subhuman beasts before you, Miss Joo."