Despite wearing the soiled attire of a convict, her posture remained upright. Across her pale face, her black hair tumbled messily over her shoulders.
She was staring straight toward the center of the arena—at the wild beasts.
It was neither fear nor resignation. Resting within her eyes was simply… a quiet resolve.
Jangson Anri’s gaze turned toward her and lingered.
His finger, which had been tapping rhythmically against the handle of his teacup, came to a halt.
Eight ferocious beasts—tigers, lions, and massive man-eating vultures—enclosed the shattered cages from above and below. Their sharp claws scraped against the iron bars.
The screeching metal tore at the ears.
Those standing near the edges of the cages collapsed in an instant with blood-curdling screams.
A sight too gruesome to behold unfolded. Through the frigid air, a sickening, metallic stench dispersed like rain.
The arena quickly filled with screams—pleas for mercy, cries of agony, and fading groans.
All manner of agonizing sounds intertwined.
The ministers and officials of the Great Ha Kingdom seemed thoroughly accustomed to such a brutal, blood-drenched spectacle.
With excited faces, they watched the prisoners being torn apart by the beasts.
Some even clapped their hands. Others laughed aloud, chatting casually with the person beside them.
The stench of blood hung heavy in the air. It was a pure slaughter.
It was enough to make one’s eyelids twitch involuntarily. Yet to them, it was nothing more than a minor entertainment to enjoy after a meal.
Not a shred of compassion dwelled within their eyes.
Cheers erupted from all corners of the spectator stands, as noisy as a gambling den.
Jangson Anri slowly took a sip of his tea. The warmth of the teacup warmed his fingertips.
He placidly cast his cold gaze upon the young woman in the leftmost cage.
She looked barely fifteen or sixteen years old—still at a tender age.
Her attire was disheveled and filthy. Her convict robes were torn, and several whip marks seeping with blood remained across her body.
Some were old wounds, while others were fresh.
A few scratches marred her face. Her hair, matted with dry straw, spilled over her shoulders in wild disarray.
It was black hair clumped with dirt and blood, yet even amidst the mess, her delicate features were evident.
The eyes of the other prisoners were filled with terror and despair, or utter emptiness.
They were the eyes of those who had already resigned themselves to death.
Yet that young woman alone was different.
From beginning to end, she stood quietly inside the cage. Even when facing a lion that looked ready to tear her apart at any second, she did not waver.
She did not tremble, cry, or scream.
Her eyes were serene, yet far from empty.
Rather, they were clear—eyes full of life.
She was not standing in the middle of the cage. As if calculating the attack range of the beasts, she skillfully twisted her body to dodge incoming strikes.
Every movement was executed without the slightest margin of error.
Beneath her feet, crimson stains had already spread like a river, sticky and slick.
Those who had stood near the edge of the cage were left in a state too horrific to look upon directly—remnants whose shapes were no longer recognizable.
Amidst them all, she remained standing.
The beasts surrounding the cage glared at her with murderous eyes. A dull, crunching sound echoed beneath the teeth of a beast that had already finished its hunt.
Dark red drops trickled down from its jaws.
The young woman still did not blink. She merely stared at the beast’s mouth, smeared with bloody flesh.
Her gaze remained placid.
Clutching her torn skirt with both hands, her face grew deathly pale.
Her lips lost all color.
It was not that she was entirely devoid of fear. Yet among the dozens of convicts, she maintained the greatest composure.
Looking from afar, she had her hands clenched into fists. Drops of blood slowly trickled from between her fingers.
Her fingernails were digging into her palms. The blood dripping from her hands quietly revealed the terror concealed beneath her calm surface.
Jangson Anri suddenly broke into a laugh.
It was a low, brief laugh. Staring at the young woman’s eyes and clenched hands, he slowly set down his teacup.
To meet someone like her again after so many years, he muttered to himself. Someone acting foolishly and stubbornly strong, like a small, trapped animal.
And such a young lady, at that.
Just then, the eunuch standing behind Jangson Anri stepped forward. Seeing his interest, the eunuch leaned in close to his ear and spoke with a deferential smile.
His voice was low and respectful.
“Prince Seong, even if the condemned prisoners in this arena are not mauled to death today, they will be executed by slow slicing. They are extremely heinous criminals, so Your Highness need not feel any pity for them.”
“Mmm.”
Jangson Anri swept his unswerving gaze across the other cages once more. He offered no grand reaction to the eunuch’s words beside him.
He merely listened with composure.
Taking advantage of the moment, the eunuch spoke again in an even lower voice.
“None of them will walk out of this arena alive today. Yet is it not natural for all living things to crave life? Watching them struggle to survive until their final breath, resisting desperately before ultimately being devoured by wild beasts—where else could one find a feast more stimulating and grand than this?”
“A feast?”
Jangson Anri’s brow twitched slightly. He let out a low, meaningful laugh.
It was a cold, sunken laugh.
“A feast for the wild beasts, you mean.”
The eunuch’s face stiffened for a moment, but he quickly resumed his respectful smile and spoke.
“Your Highness, did my words displease you?”
“There is nothing to be displeased about.”
A court lady refilled Jangson Anri’s teacup. Hot steam rose from it.
He slowly lifted the cup and placed the lid over it. He looked down at the miserable people struggling in the arena.
Soon after, he spoke in a cool, clear voice.
“Since ancient times, invading and plundering each other’s lands, as well as humans killing and devouring one another, has been a common occurrence. Right now, the beasts are merely killing humans according to their nature; it is no different from the slaughter between human and human.”
Beside him, Emperor Genyuan burst out laughing, as if finding the remark thoroughly satisfying.
“They are nothing more than worthless trash to begin with, doomed to turn to dust in these troubled times anyway. For Prince Seong to view this with such broad-mindedness proves you are truly a soulmate to our Great Ha Kingdom.”
Jangson Anri suddenly gave a faint smile and cast a fleeting glance at Emperor Genyuan.
There was something embedded in that look—was it mockery, or something else?
“If they are trash, then dying is fine. But if someone remains alive after one hour, what do you intend to do?”
“Well, that…”
Emperor Genyuan was momentarily dazed. A considerable number of the prisoners were already injured or dead.
Having suffered starvation and torture for days, how could they have the strength to flee? It was utterly impossible for them to survive among ferocious beasts.
It was right at that moment.
Cheers erupted from the surrounding crowd. In the blink of an eye, the iron cages holding the prisoners began to open one by one.
The heavy iron doors creaked open.
Those who had been standing on the inner side and were fortunate enough to avoid attack until now were also forced to face the fierce beasts with their fragile bodies.
Only about twenty prisoners remained. They stumbled about, drenched in blood.
They were barely clinging to life.
Finally, this grand feast of samsara seemed to reach its climax.
The imperial descendants and ministers chatted in excitement, even placing bets among themselves.
Money and goods exchanged hands. Laughter burst forth.
Who would survive until the end? Who would be mauled to death first?
Who would wet themselves in terror before being devoured? Who would foolishly drop to their knees before the beasts, crying out for their father and mother?
To them, it was merely a spectacle—a fun game.
Only Jangson Anri silently stared at everything inside the arena. His gaze was deep and serene.
Before long, the young woman he had been observing slowly stepped out from inside the iron cage.
Still wearing a tranquil expression unlike the other terror-stricken convicts, she lowered her clenched hands to her sides and walked toward the center of the arena.
Every single step was deliberate.
For some unknown reason, though she appeared fragile and delicate, in his eyes her composure seemed to stem from confidence.
She will not die easily here, Jangson Anri thought. She will struggle until the very last moment.
And his prediction was not wrong.
One by one, the convicts fled desperately, only to fall under the cruel pursuit. Screams were cut short one after another.
Blood soaked the arena floor.
The woman was running as well.
Her running speed was not fast; rather, it was slow.
However, her movements were calculated.
The smell of blood flowing from her wounds drew the beasts toward her. Yet she remained calm.
She baited two beasts into pouncing at her at the same time. Then, at the precise moment, she turned and leaped out of the way.
The heads of the two beasts collided violently. With a dull thud, the beasts staggered back.
The surrounding crowd burst into laughter, clapping as they watched the foolish beasts get toyed with.
Yet Jangson Anri’s eyes narrowed gradually.
That woman.
The more he looked, the more familiar she seemed. That clear, shining gaze that refused to yield even in a hopeless situation…
For some reason, it felt familiar.
As if he had seen it somewhere before.
Time passed. Within an hour, the twenty-odd convicts were torn to death one after another.
One by one, two by two, the screams ceased and breaths vanished.
The arena floor was painted entirely in crimson.
In the end, only the young woman remained.
However, she no longer had the strength left to toy with the beasts. Her breathing turned ragged.
Her legs trembled, and her entire body was covered in wounds.
A few beasts had knocked themselves unconscious from colliding with each other. Yet two lions were still charging fiercely toward her.
The ground trembled.
Ultimately, her strength completely exhausted, the woman collapsed helplessly. Her knees hit the ground.
Her hand pressed into a pool of blood.
The lions opened their massive jaws wide to tear into her. Their sharp fangs glinted in the sunlight.
The metallic stench struck her nostrils.
At that exact moment—
The woman suddenly brought her hands together. A cold light flashed from her fingertips.
They were two silver needles.
The woman thrust them forcefully into the acupuncture points beneath the lion’s jaw. The positioning was precise.
It was a skill that looked as though it had been honed through years of practice.
In an instant, the lion’s mouth was paralyzed. Its jaw went limp.
The two lions could no longer bite her.
Startled, they backed away, whining as they shook their heads.
The spectator stands fell silent for a moment before hushed murmurs broke out.
“What remarkable needlework! When did that little daughter of the Go family hide needles on her person?”
Behind them, a few officials whispered in low, astonished voices.
Jangson Anri looked down at the young woman struggling to push herself up in the arena. She stumbled, but she did not fall.
She stood on her two feet once more.
He asked placidly, “Who is that woman?”
The eunuch standing behind him stepped forward, answering respectfully in a low voice.
“She is Go Gyeong-seong, the younger daughter of Go Seung-pyeong, the former Prime Minister of the Great Ha Kingdom.”
The eunuch took a brief breath before continuing.
“Several months ago, Prime Minister Go was convicted of treason for secretly communicating with an enemy state. After the evidence came to light, his family estate was confiscated. A month ago, over a hundred members of his household lost their lives. It is said that only his younger daughter survived.”
Jangson Anri listened in silence. The eunuch pressed on.
“A year ago, at the age of fifteen, Go Gyeong-seong was married off to Prince Yeong. However, a year has passed without her bearing any children. Rumor has it that she has never even consummated her marriage with Prince Yeong.”
The eunuch’s voice lowered even further.
