Episode 8
Just as the monster’s hand was about to pierce through Hae Cheong-yeon’s chest—
Something flew in from the side and slammed into the creature’s body.
KRAAAASH!
The monster was flung sideways, and only then did Hae Cheong-yeon realize it had been hit by a sturdy inn chair.
Seon Woo-jin had swung the long, solid chair with all his might, striking the monster.
“Miss! Are you alright?!” he shouted.
Only then did Hae Cheong-yeon snap back to reality and respond breathlessly.
“I—I’m fine. But that man…”
The other ronin who had followed Seon Woo-jin rushed over, spotting a comrade who had been impaled through the chest by the monster, dead on the spot. They howled in grief.
“Brother Yang!”
“Yang-ga!”
Their faces twisted with rage as they drew their swords, but Seon Woo-jin stopped them, shouting,
“Get inside the inn! Now!”
The ronin hesitated, protesting.
“What are you saying, noble sir? That fiend just killed Yang-ga!”
“They’ll come after us anyway! We can’t fight him out here!”
At that moment, the monster, having been struck by the chair, lunged at Seon Woo-jin again.
“Gyaaaah!”
Regaining some composure, Hae Cheong-yeon swung her sword, blocking the monster right in front of Seon Woo-jin.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Meanwhile, Seon Woo-jin shouted again.
“Hurry, get inside! That fiend—!”
Before he could finish, Hae Cheong-yeon found herself in danger once more.
She couldn’t fend off the monster, who charged relentlessly, ignoring the sword strikes.
“Eeeek!”
Backing away helplessly, she suddenly stepped on a stone and lost her balance.
It was hopeless.
“Aaah!”
Just as the monster swung its hand to strike, a strong grip suddenly grabbed her mouth and waist from behind, yanking her sharply to the side.
“Ugh!”
It was Seon Woo-jin.
He covered her mouth and pulled her away, saving her from the attack.
But after that, he froze—standing perfectly still, as if frozen in place.
Panic surged in Hae Cheong-yeon’s heart.
It felt like the monster would pounce any second.
She wanted to shout through the hand over her mouth, demanding to know what he was doing, but then she realized something.
As they stopped moving, so did the monster.
From Seon Woo-jin’s embrace, she watched the creature hesitate, unable to attack them directly. It turned its head left and right, as if searching for them.
Suddenly, it struck her that the monster had been keeping its eyes closed all along.
And then it dawned on her.
Perhaps that fiend’s vision was…
At that moment—
“Lord Seon Woo! Are you alright?!” the ronin inside the inn shouted.
The monster whipped its head toward the noise and lunged in that direction.
It was unbelievable.
How had that thing crossed the front lines and come all the way here?
Watching it charge, ignoring sword strikes and taking blows head-on, she immediately understood.
It was a minion of the Blood Sect.
Among the various minions the Blood Sect created, this one was known as a “Hyo-gwi”—an owl demon specialized in attacking people at night.
She recalled hearing, early on when she went to the front lines, that a Hyo-gwi had crossed over and raided a village.
That must have been this one.
A terrifying creature that grew more dangerous in darkness, the Hyo-gwi lunged toward the inn, and her heart raced.
She hadn’t yet warned the others not to make a sound.
Quickly, she released Cheong-yeon and started running toward the inn.
Though their time together had been brief, she couldn’t let them die.
She had even prepared gifts to give them when they parted tomorrow…
“It’s a monster!”
“Ahhh!”
“Help!”
Terrifying screams echoed from inside the inn.
She rushed in, only to find chaos.
Jeom So-i and the warrior were already dead.
The warrior, who always grumbled but secretly took care of things, was gone…
Only Jang, a skilled warrior, was still fighting the Hyo-gwi with his sword, but it looked like he wouldn’t last long.
“Waaah!”
She screamed and swung a long inn chair at the monster.
Thwack!
The monster was knocked back, and she shouted,
“Everyone, be quiet!”
But silence didn’t come.
“Ahhh! Save me!”
The innkeeper screamed.
“That bastard even bit me!”
The ronin shouted in fury.
Her heart pounded.
She had to quiet them somehow.
The monster, having gotten up again, was about to lunge toward the noise—toward Jang.
“Ahhh!”
She yelled and flipped over the table where they had been sitting, sending dishes and food crashing everywhere.
Crash! Clatter!
The noise confused the Hyo-gwi, which hesitated, ears twitching.
Seizing the moment, she shouted,
“Everyone, shut up!”
For a moment, the room fell silent.
Even the Hyo-gwi paused, listening intently.
Thank goodness.
She had to use this chance.
She grabbed a small chair next to the table and threw it to the far side.
Clatter!
The chair hit the ground with a loud noise.
She shouted in time with the sound.
“That thing—”
She threw another chair.
Clatter!
“Can’t see!”
And another.
Clatter!
There was nothing else nearby to throw.
She hoped that was enough for them to understand.
The ronin’s expressions showed they at least got the message.
But the innkeeper didn’t.
He looked at her, mouth opening in confusion.
Her heart sank.
No, no!
Then—
“Haah!”
With a shout, Cheong-yeon charged at the Hyo-gwi.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
Her sword flashed brilliantly as she struck the monster’s body repeatedly, shouting to her,
“Tell them now!”
She was so grateful.
Not only had she followed inside instead of running away, but she was smart enough to do this.
There was no time to waste.
She hurriedly shouted,
“That thing identifies people by sound! So don’t make a sound! Not even breathing!”
She saw the innkeeper cover his mouth.
Meanwhile, Cheong-yeon was being pushed back.
She wanted to help her quickly but hesitated.
If they made noise, the monster would find them.
But staying silent wasn’t enough.
Though not as sensitive as its hearing, the monster could also smell.
If it couldn’t hear them, it would try to find them by scent.
They had to find a way to deal with it before that happened.
Then, her eyes caught the items on the counter next to the trembling innkeeper.
Bang!
Crash!
After knocking the monster away with the long chair, she signaled Cheong-yeon to stay quiet.
Cheong-yeon nodded and closed her mouth.
The Hyo-gwi, pushed against the wall, got up, ears twitching as it turned its head this way and that.
It began to walk forward slowly.
The monster was a Miao tribesman with dark brown skin.
A burly, nearly naked man carrying a huge dangling object.
In the early days, the Blood Sect had mostly turned native Miao tribespeople from Yunnan into minions.
Back then, she hadn’t realized they were just test subjects.
That there were minions made from proper martial artists.
And when minions made from martial artists appeared…
As the monster slowly approached, Cheong-yeon looked at her with tense eyes, silently asking what to do next.
She carefully picked up two objects from the nearby table and threw one to the monster’s side.
Whoosh!
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
It was a basket filled with iron coins.
As it hit the ground, the coins scattered noisily.
She moved quickly, closing the distance by about half a step.
Cheong-yeon looked startled but stayed silent.
Then she threw the other object behind the monster—a ceramic bowl filled with beans.
Crash! Clatter! Bang! Bang! Bang!
As the bowl shattered and beans scattered, the monster turned its body backward.
She took the chance to get right behind its head.
Good. Perfect.
She couldn’t afford a single mistake.
If the monster’s hand brushed her, her fragile body would be torn apart.
Swallowing hard, she slowly raised her hand.
She began moving it toward the monster’s head, which was turning this way and that.
Then—
The innkeeper sneezed, unable to hold it in.
“Ah-choo!”
The Hyo-gwi snapped its head toward the sound, its face turning toward her.
Its eyes were closed, but its face was dangerously close to hers.
Her heart felt like it would burst.
She saw the monster about to leap forward—right at her.
Damn it!
Clenching her teeth, she lunged her hand forward, aiming for its face.
Hae Cheong-yeon’s heart pounded as she watched Seon Woo-jin approach the monster, throwing objects at it.
For some reason, she felt like she knew that monster well, but what on earth was he trying to do with such reckless behavior?
What would happen if he made even the slightest noise…?
When the innkeeper sneezed, she nearly screamed.
She was so furious that if the man had been beside her, she might have drawn her sword and cut him down on the spot.
The monster turned around, coming face to face with Sun Woo-jin.
The shock made her vision go white for a moment.
The creature was charging straight toward Sun Woo-jin.
Then, without hesitation, Sun Woo-jin reached out boldly and pried open the monster’s eyelids.
What was that?!
Before she could even shout in disbelief and panic, the monster suddenly let out a horrific scream.
“Kyaaaaaaah!”
It was utterly incomprehensible.
Sun Woo-jin had only opened his eyelids, yet the monster covered his eyes with both hands and writhed in agony.
This was the same creature who hadn’t flinched or felt pain even from sword strikes…
Suddenly, Ha Cheong-yeon had a thought.
Could it be because he saw the light?
At that moment, Sun Woo-jin slipped behind the monster, grabbed him by the waist, and hoisted him up, shouting to Ha Cheong-yeon:
“Cheong-yeon, miss! His mouth! Inside his mouth!”
Her gaze instinctively darted to the monster’s wide-open mouth, gaping from his screams.
She understood immediately what he meant.
Right—his body might be immune to sword strikes, but what about inside his mouth…?
Without hesitation, she lunged forward and plunged her sword inside.
“Hah!”
Thrust!
Finally, it sank in deep!
Ha Cheong-yeon clenched her other fist tightly.
Because Sun Woo-jin was holding the monster up, the sword had pierced deep into the roof of his mouth, right where his brain was.
But even after his brain was pierced, the monster didn’t stop moving.
Instead, it screamed louder and thrashed about more violently.
“Kyaaaaaaah!”
Seeing the creature still struggling in front of her, a grotesque, naked man with his hideous parts exposed, Ha Cheong-yeon felt a surge of fear.
It was a primal revulsion that came naturally to her as a woman.
“Ugh…!”
Her face twisted in disgust, and her grip on the sword began to weaken—when suddenly, someone firmly grasped her sword hand.
It was Sun Woo-jin.
He held the sword together with her, nodding approvingly.
Then, still gripping the sword alongside her, he began twisting it forcefully inside the monster’s mouth.
The creature thrashed for a while longer, but eventually, it died.
In the chaos of the ruined inn, the people stood frozen, staring at the lifeless monster for a long time.