CHAPTER~05
At the same time—
Yeong-won was crouched inside a cave about three li away from where she had encountered the reaper, gasping for breath.
“Hah… hah… I-I think… hah… this should be far enough! Let’s rest… hah… here for a moment!”
Sorae, face flushed and slick with sweat from running, wiped her forehead and looked at Yeong-won with utter confusion.
“My lady, what on earth is wrong?”
When the heavy fog had swept over them, Sorae had fainted on the spot. By the time she regained consciousness, Yeong-won had vanished.
Panicking, she had searched frantically through the mountain until, after half an hour, she found Yeong-won collapsed among the trees.
The moment she shook Yeong-won’s limp body, crying, “My lady!”, Yeong-won’s eyes had flown open in terror—like someone who had just seen a ghost.
Without saying a word, she had grabbed Sorae’s arm and bolted into the forest, running along rough animal trails with no thought for direction.
They had run like that for nearly an hour.
Now, catching her breath in the darkness of the cave, Yeong-won gripped Sorae’s wrist, trembling.
“Sorae… you didn’t see it?” she asked, her voice shaking.
“See what?”
“The ghost.”
Even now, the back of Yeong-won’s neck prickled with cold dread. The vivid terror she had felt when she faced that reaper—the way his chilling aura had sliced through the mist—still clung to her skin.
“G-ghosts? My lady, is this because of what I said earlier? I was only joking!”
“Joking…? Then you’re saying you didn’t see anything?”
“My lady, please calm down. Did you have a nightmare or something?”
Yeong-won slowly released Sorae’s wrist. The ache from her tight grip lingered in Sorae’s skin.
Her expression turned blank as she gazed out at the darkness beyond the cave.
So I was the only one who saw them…? The ghosts in that mist… and that beautiful, terrifying reaper…
No… could it have been a dream? Or was I under some kind of spell?
—Wait.
Her thoughts came to an abrupt stop.
Just remembering the reaper’s cold, violent energy made her whole body shiver. A chill crawled down her spine, and sweat trickled down her back.
Yeong-won raised a trembling hand to her neck, confirming once more that her life hadn’t been taken by that fearsome being.
“My lady? Are you truly all right? You look like your soul’s gone missing.”
Sorae touched Yeong-won’s arm gently, and Yeong-won flinched in fright, shrinking back before she could stop herself.
“My lady?”
Yeong-won forced out a shaky breath.
“I’m fine. I just… I don’t know if it was a dream or some illusion, but I saw them. Ghosts.”
Her voice faded into a whisper. Then she shook her head firmly.
“No… I’m sure of it. I did see ghosts. In that mist.”
“Ghosts…?”
“Do you believe me?”
Sorae studied her pale face, then nodded solemnly.
“If you saw them, my lady, then you did. I believe you. So that’s why you ran so far—because of the ghosts?”
Yeong-won pursed her lips and nodded slightly.
Every nerve in her body screamed that what she had seen wasn’t a dream or an illusion.
“My lady, please don’t worry. Whether it’s ghosts or monsters, I’ll protect you!”
“You’re not afraid of ghosts?”
Sorae swallowed hard. “I’ve never seen one, so I can’t say… but no matter how frightening they are, I’ll still protect you.”
Her pure, determined words soothed the wild beating in Yeong-won’s chest.
“…Thank you. You’re brave, Sorae. But if anything like that happens again—pretend to faint until they’re gone. That might be safer.”
Yeong-won’s expression softened as she spoke, and Sorae nodded earnestly.
“But my lady,” she added carefully, “what will we do now?”
“What do you mean?”
“Are we still going to Jejado? If what you said is true, this mountain is full of ghosts. They call it Ghost Gate Mountain for a reason. Can we really make it safely to Jejado?”
Yeong-won said nothing. Her gaze lingered on the dark forest outside, heavy with unease.
How foolish I was.
When she had started climbing before dawn, she had believed that with her map, she’d reach Jejado without trouble.
But mountains were never simple. The terrain, the wild beasts, the hidden cliffs—all of it turned every step into danger.
And this mountain, Mount Jeokbyeok, was infamous. No one who entered it had ever come out alive. That was why it was called Ghost Gate Mountain.
A single map couldn’t guarantee her way. And now she knew—she could die here, just as she had nearly died before the reaper not long ago.
Even if she reached Jejado safely, there was no assurance that things would go as she planned.
Realizing this, Yeong-won felt the weight of despair press against her chest.
But that was all.
Even if she might die, she couldn’t turn back.
She could still see her father’s severed head hung from a spear. Still hear the silence where her mother’s body should have been.
The grief and rage she’d swallowed down burned hotter than any fear of death.
No—not avenging them would be a fate far crueler than dying.
“The ghosts, the danger… none of it matters,” she whispered fiercely. “No matter what happens, I must go to Jejado. I will.”
Because what she feared more than the reaper himself was failing to right the injustice done to her parents.
With trembling hands, she reached into the inner pocket of her underrobe and pulled out a half piece of black jade.
“My lady,” Sorae said, recognizing it, “that jade plaque… the one Master told you to take to the Geom clan on Jejado Island?”
“Yes.”
Yeong-won stared at the black jade plaque, the Mok-okpae, resting in her palm.
It wasn’t whole, but even as a fragment, its value was beyond measure.
The jade itself was a rare variety that reacted to body heat—Han-ok—and this one, carved from a dark, almost ink-black piece, was rarer still.
The craftsmanship, though, was unsettling. Clouds and wisps of smoke bordered the edges, while at the center, a snarling ogre with razor fangs was carved in exquisite detail.
“When we reach Jejado,” Sorae asked, “what will you do? Last time I asked, you said you’d tell me once we arrived.”
Yeong-won turned the jade in her hand thoughtfully.
“This plaque,” she said quietly, “was a gift. Father once helped the head of the Geom clan by chance. This was their token of gratitude—a family heirloom of the Geom clan. It means they owe him a debt.”
Her father had often told her that business was never without risk, and that if disaster ever struck, she was to take this jade to the Geom clan on Jejado.
He had believed that no matter what happened, that clan had the strength to protect her.
“I plan to return this heirloom,” Yeong-won said, “and make one request.”
“A request? What kind?”
“My father managed one of the Geom clan’s inns. I intend to ask for that business to be passed down to me.”
Sorae’s eyes widened.
“My lady… you mean to ask them to give you the inn? Will they agree to that? Even if your father once helped them…”
“The inn belongs to the Geom clan,” Yeong-won explained softly, “but my father ran it. Each year, eight parts of the profit went to Hancheong, and he kept only two. For fifteen years, it continued that way. But now that he’s gone…”
Her voice faltered, grief welling up in her throat. She took a slow, steadying breath.
“The Geom clan will still need someone to manage it. Who better than my father’s daughter?”
Sorae hesitated. She didn’t dare say what crossed her mind—
But, my lady… you’re not a merchant. Do you even know how much a bowl of soup costs in the marketplace?
