CDBW 02

Chapter 2

“Grrrrrr.”

The creatures looked somewhat like wolves, but they were several times larger.
And inside their jaws were rows of sharp teeth, like those of a crocodile.

The beasts growled while staring at the car. It looked like they might pounce and tear them apart at any moment.

“What are those things?”

At Wenling’s question, Yunseol shook her head violently.

“I don’t know! Animals like that don’t live on Jeju Island!”

The beasts’ eyes gleamed as they stared at the car. Yunseol’s face turned pale as she hurriedly shifted into reverse.

But the beasts were faster.

They moved swiftly and blocked the car from behind. Then they all began barking loudly in unison.

“It looks like we’re surrounded.”

Wenling frowned as he scanned their surroundings.

“They definitely aren’t ordinary animals. They must be chimeras, the kind alchemists often use.”

“What should we do?”

Gripping the steering wheel, Yunseol looked as though she was about to cry.

The chimeras were growling as they tightened their encirclement.

It was a remote road with barely any people around. There was no one to help them and no way to call for assistance. Meanwhile, one of the chimeras leapt up and even bit off the side mirror.

“Aaaah!”

Seeing the chimera approaching as if it were about to devour her, Yunseol screamed in terror.

Wenling took a deep breath and suddenly grabbed Yunseol’s arm.

“Get out! Quickly!”

“W-What?”

At a time like this, he was telling her to get out of the car? Yunseol couldn’t understand what he meant.

“Just follow me.”

Wenling pulled Yunseol firmly. Still confused, she let herself be dragged along.

Wenling gave her a brief signal with his eyes.

“Now just follow me quietly.”

Calm and fluid in his movements, Wenling took a fountain pen from his pocket.

After taking a deep breath, he rapidly scribbled complicated characters into the air. The letters glowed red and floated there in midair.

“Hide!”

Wenling spoke the command in a short yet weighty tone.

The letters suddenly burst into red flames and vanished instantly.

Watching this, he said,

“I assume you’ve heard about my family. I—no, my entire family—are descendants of Cangjie, the god of writing.”

He spun the fountain pen between his fingers as he continued.

“For generations, we’ve inherited the power of characters. With it, we can cause anomalies in reality.”

Wenling’s eyes quietly glinted as he looked at the chimeras.

“Just follow me. I’ll protect you.”

Perhaps because of the power of the characters he had just used, the chimeras seemed unable to perceive them.

They simply circled the car, barking noisily just like before.

“The Hou family’s ability is amazing.”

Yunseol murmured in genuine admiration.

Wenling replied in a dry tone.

“It’s not as impressive as you think. After countless ages, even the power of a god fades. These days it’s mostly used when handling ancient documents.”

“Oh, I heard about that too. They say the Hou family has produced many famous document forgers because of that ability. Apparently someone even forged an imperial appointment from the Chinese emperor and committed fraud.”

“That’s right. We almost got exterminated when it was discovered.”

“I-I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”

Yunseol hurriedly apologized.

But Wenling answered expressionlessly.

“No. You’re not wrong. If I hadn’t become a curator, I might have spent my life forging old documents.”

At that, Yunseol cautiously glanced at him.

“Are you angry?”

“Let’s just get out of here.”

Wenling cut the conversation short and headed forward.

Afraid of falling behind him, Yunseol moved even closer to him. The ominous growls of the chimeras followed them.

—Bang!

Suddenly, a sharp gunshot split the air between them.

“Ugh!”

Wenling groaned and collapsed.

Blood was pouring from his left arm.

Clutching the wound, Wenling quickly scanned the surroundings, but he couldn’t see the gun aimed at him.

“Tch!”

A hidden sniper.

He clicked his tongue.

“Are you okay?”

Startled by the sudden gunshot, Yunseol asked in panic.

“The wound isn’t serious, but it seems we’ve been discovered.”

Just as Wenling said, the chimeras’ eyes gleamed as they surrounded them.

The earlier attack must have broken his concentration and revealed their position.

“They found us!”

Yunseol shouted.

“Hide behind me!”

Wenling yelled urgently as he pulled out his fountain pen again and quickly wrote characters in the air.

“Shake!”

As Wenling shouted the command, the characters flashed brightly.

A massive shockwave erupted, shaking the entire area.

The chimeras yelped in surprise and scattered in all directions.

Not missing the opportunity, Wenling shouted to Yunseol,

“Someone who can see through my character magic is targeting us. I’ll create an opening—run!”

“What about you?!”

Yunseol cried desperately.

Wenling forced a smile.

“Don’t worry. I know how to protect myself.”

—Bang!

At that exact moment, another shot rang out.

The bullet grazed his thigh.

Blood burst from Wenling’s leg.

“Ah!”

Yunseol screamed instinctively.

The shock made Wenling collapse to the ground. Gritting through the pain, he shouted,

“Run! Hurry!”

Burning pain spread throughout his body.

Wenling struggled to stay conscious as he looked around.

In the darkness, someone was clearly aiming at him from somewhere.

Where?

He gasped for breath and searched the surroundings.

But all he could see were the chimeras closing in, their eyes glowing ominously.

If a third shot came now, he would die here.

“Hey!”

Yunseol’s voice called out from behind.

In terrible pain, Wenling barely held on to his senses.

“Can you hear me right now?”

Yunseol was desperately swinging her small handbag at the chimeras.

Looking at the blood-soaked Wenling, she shouted loudly.

“Exactly ten seconds from now—trust me and jump into the sea! Got it?”

Jump into the sea?

Trust her?

Ten seconds?

Wenling nodded instinctively.

Yunseol quickly scanned her surroundings, then threw her head back.

And she let out a shrill, grotesque sound no human should be capable of producing.

“Piiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!”

A terrible shock struck Wenling’s eardrums.

The chimeras surrounding him wailed and collapsed as well.

Taking the opportunity, Yunseol jumped straight into the nearby sea with a splash.

“Jump!”

She stuck her head out of the water and urged him.

Though his ears were ringing, Wenling gathered his remaining strength and leapt.

After confirming he was coming, Yunseol immediately removed her upper clothing and reached out to him.

“You trust me, right? Then come in quickly!”

Wenling shut his eyes tightly and threw himself into the sea.

His body was submerged completely.

Yunseol calmly grabbed the back of his neck and whispered,

“Hold your breath for a moment.”

Moonlight shattered across the surface of the sea and wrapped around her naked body.

Perhaps because of the seawater, Yunseol’s skin looked especially pale.

Soon, a salty taste spread through Wenling’s mouth.

He slowly opened his eyes.

This was blood.

Blood.

The taste filling his mouth was blood.

Without thinking, Wenling swallowed it.

Immediately, the pain throughout his body melted away.

At the same time, a vitality he had never felt before began filling him.

“Drink more.”

The coaxing voice was clearly Yunseol’s.

Wenling realized he was floating in shallow water.

Yunseol was pushing her bleeding webbed hand deep into his mouth.

Again the salty taste filled his mouth.

What Wenling had been drinking was none other than her blood.

“You…”

Under the moonlight falling over the shore, scales covering Yunseol’s entire body shimmered in deep blue.

Her loose hair spread across her shoulders like seaweed.

Below it, gills opened and closed.

And most of all, what supported her body now was not human legs, but a long, powerful fish tail.

Wenling spoke in a stunned voice.

“…A mermaid?”

A legendary sea creature long vanished into myth.

A magnificent S-class preserved species, officially recognized by the Grand Museum—said to grant immortality to those who consumed its flesh and blood.

And now it was right before him.

“Shinji.”

Yunseol smiled faintly.

Bubbles slipped out from her gills.

“That’s what my father used to call me.”