I Am Free
Un Sa-nang, who had fallen into a coma, slowly regained consciousness. Without opening her eyes, she quietly attuned herself to the sounds around her. There was no noise at all, no sign of anyone's presence.
Convinced she was alone somewhere, she cracked her eyelids open just a sliver. Before her was a cold stone wall. She tried to slowly turn her head.
"...Ugh!"
A sharp pain assaulted her. Turning her head wasn't easy. She realized that not only had she been brutally beaten before losing consciousness, but her acupoints had been sealed tight as well.
And that wasn't all. Her hands and feet were bound securely with something strong. A wry laugh escaped her lips. Hadn't she been in the same predicament at Yi Gajang not long ago? It seemed her fate wasn't one of smooth sailing.
She already knew that well enough.
Quite some time must have passed since she lost consciousness, as the acupoint seals were gradually loosening. Enduring the pain, she surveyed her surroundings.
An unfamiliar space. A simple, enclosed chamber. In the barren emptiness, there was only a single desk and the bed to which she was bound.
It wasn't some abandoned prison cell or storage room. Someone clearly used this place. But its stark barrenness, devoid of any furniture and utterly dry, reminded her of someone she knew. The bed was hard as a rock, too.
It had to be the Shadow's lair.
Un Sa-nang realized her breathing was labored. Her cheek had been struck so hard that the skin mask she always wore had twisted halfway off. With her unresponsive body, she rubbed her face against the bed, trying every trick until she finally managed to remove it.
Her skin burned and swelled painfully. Twisting her body, she looked at her bound wrists behind her.
A grim shadow passed over Un Sa-nang's eyes. She recognized the tempered chains binding her hands and feet—something no amount of strength could break.
They were worlds apart from the cheap ropes used to tie her at Yi Gajang.
But she couldn't give up. Curling and uncurling her body repeatedly, she inched toward the edge of the bed, then rubbed the chains against the bed's corner.
She didn't know how long it would take or if it would even work, but sitting idle wasn't an option.
How much time had passed since she started grinding the chains? Her wrists burned instead, blood dripping steadily now, filling the air with a thick metallic scent.
And just then, without a sound, one wall slid open smoothly.
A man appeared.
Un Sa-nang flinched and froze. Sure enough, the one who entered was the Shadow—the one who had commanded and controlled her, beaten her, and imprisoned her.
The Shadow entered the room. Even seeing that Un Sa-nang was awake and suspiciously perched at the bed's edge, he showed no reaction. As if he knew she couldn't escape her bonds no matter how hard she tried.
He turned, pressed something, and the wall slid shut again with a soft whoosh.
From the brief glimpse of the emblem beyond the moving wall, Un Sa-nang realized she was still somewhere in Dongbeonhoe. The Shadow had brazenly set up his hideout right in the heart of it.
Without a word, the Shadow sat with his back to her and pulled something from the desk, staring at it endlessly. For a long while, he wrote, pondered, and occasionally clutched his head lightly.
Watching him silently, Un Sa-nang spoke up.
"You look busy. Tired, too."
No reply.
"Is this your quarters? Quite the spartan setup. For someone of your position, I expected something more impressive. Definitely not a place to invite a lady."
"Shut your mouth."
A irritable snap. Better than silence, at least.
"Let me go. It's a problem if I'm gone too long like this."
"In your dreams."
"Does that mean you don't need my help anymore? Didn't you invest quite a bit to plant me here in Dongbeonhoe and give me a role?"
"Not anymore."
"What did I do wrong, exactly? I just asked a few questions out of curiosity. After all our time together, you still don't trust me?"
Hmph. The Shadow snorted derisively. He stopped writing, turned his head, and spoke in a cold voice.
"I've told you your guidelines many times. First: Don't pry more than necessary. Second: Report everything you see, hear, and learn to me."
"So it is about Yi Gajang. I told you, nothing happened. I just stayed a bit to gauge their true nature and strength. Surely a little investigation on your part would confirm that's exactly what Elder Seok ordered me to do?"
"Then why hide that you'd gone to Yi Gajang from me?"
"It wasn't worth reporting. Nothing noteworthy."
"Impossible. You couldn't have failed to assess their power."
"Thanks for the compliment, but I'm only human. How could I predict they'd explode like this from nobodies just months ago?"
"...Regardless, I can't trust you now."
The Shadow dismissed her words and turned away again, clutching his head as he stared at the desk.
"Those damn beggars have already wrecked enough of my plans. I can't tolerate any more variables."
A faint smile flickered across Un Sa-nang's lips. With his back turned, the Shadow didn't notice.
"Did the Yi Gajang brothers mess up some grand scheme of yours?"
"...I said shut it."
"Tell me. Maybe I can help. Let's hear how earth-shattering this plan of yours is."
No answer from the Shadow. Finally reaching some conclusion, he began scribbling furiously, still clutching his head.
Un Sa-nang spoke again.
"Is A-jin supposed to come here too?"
The Shadow's hand froze mid-stroke. He turned, glaring down at her coldly.
"I warned you. Don't utter that name lightly."
Un Sa-nang lifted her chin defiantly.
"That's my choice. He might be exalted to you, but to me, he'll always be A-jin."
"......"
"What's with that look? Jealous of us? Is it me... or him you're jealous of?"
Un Sa-nang giggled. Her face, scraped and swollen without the skin mask, retained its fundamental beauty unchanged.
Smiling with her eyes, she said to the Shadow,
"Didn't know you had such a cute side. Come closer. Let's have a serious talk."
The Shadow laughed coldly.
"Think Ma An Seop Hon Gong will work on me?"
"I don't need that to seduce one man like you. Or rather, it's not even seduction—you already desire me intensely."
"......"
"You didn't think I never noticed your stares, did you? Come on. This is your space, isn't it? Whatever happens here stays between us. Our little secret."
The Shadow gazed at her silently. He tucked the papers into a drawer in the desk, stood, and approached.
Un Sa-nang smiled coyly.
But—Thud!
The Shadow's kick slammed into her abdomen. She gasped, doubling over. His sole crashed down like an iron hammer.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud...
The beating dragged on for a while before stopping. Sprawled on the floor, Un Sa-nang spat red blood. Despite the pain wracking her body, she cackled.
"Guess I misjudged. You're either impotent... or you like men."
"You mad bitch. What makes you so bold? Don't you know who your master is?"
"Definitely not you. Aren't you just another lackey of A-jin's?"
"Forgot I hold your life in my hands? Want to die? Think he'll bat an eye if you're gone?"
"Who knows? Let's test it. Got the guts?"
"....."
Silent, the Shadow. Un Sa-nang's laughter grew louder.
"See? No courage. You're scared. Terrified that even a slim chance, he'll come looking. Pathetic. How do you climb higher with that personality? So what if your martial arts are strong? Fretting over every little mishap. You'll be a slave forever, just a useful tool shuttled around—Gahk!"
The Shadow seized her throat and hoisted her up. Rage and killing intent burned in his eyes.
"What makes you different, you wretch? If I'm a slave, what are you? What should I call you?!"
His pent-up fury erupted. But peering into her clear eyes, he flinched, face hardening.
"You... could it be..."
Her throat crushed tight. Even as her face paled from asphyxiation, Un Sa-nang smiled brighter than ever.
"Finally figured it out? I'm no longer your slave or puppet."
"N-no... Impossible. How? How did you break free?! Tell me! What trick did you pull?!"
The Shadow shook her violently by the neck. Her body flailed like a paper doll, fragile as if it might tear.
Yet she never lost her radiant smile.
"Kill me. I'm free now. Even if I die this instant, I'll ascend joyfully."
Confusion, conflict, rage, doubt flashed through the Shadow's eyes. Realizing he couldn't suppress her free will as a mere slave, he gathered energy in his right hand.
Un Sa-nang knew her journey had reached its end. Regrettable, but savoring freedom from her shackles was priceless.
Staring at the death-sentenced slave's defeated face, she laughed heartily.
The moment the Shadow's blackened hand thrust toward her chest—
It halted. Green, vine-like energy coiled around his arm.
Startled, he whirled around.
There stood Yi Jinpyeong.