Ruuumble...
A thunderous roar erupted from the cave entrance, echoing outward.
As the earth trembled violently, chunks of rock fell from cliffs and the cave’s entrance, crashing in all directions.
Crack-crack-crack.
Thud, thud.
Startled by the quake, birds burst out of the forest all at once, filling the sky in a fluttering frenzy.
“Waaah...”
The princess's eyes widened in shock as she witnessed the scene.
She looked genuinely scared by nature’s overwhelming power.
An earthquake truly was a scene where heaven and earth shook together.
I knew it was caused by tectonic movement, but to the princess, did it seem like the wrath of the earth?
As if to confirm my suspicion, she muttered something similar.
That it was a warning from the heavens sent down to the emperor.
“S-So this is an earthquake? I’ve heard of them plenty, but this is my first time seeing one for myself. His Majesty must be going through a hard time now...”
“His Majesty?”
“Yes. You see, there’s a saying that earthquakes occur when a ruler lacks virtue or governance turns chaotic, and so Heaven sends them as a warning. That’s why we offer a heavenly sacrifice when quakes occur.”
I shook my head.
Earthquakes weren’t any sort of divine warning.
They were just natural phenomena caused by shifting tectonic plates.
“No, that’s not it...”
“Not it?”
“Yes. The ground may look like it’s just packed with dirt, but it’s actually more like the hide of an animal—layers of different types of earth overlapping like plates.
These plates move slowly, invisibly, and when they collide or slip past each other, that’s when earthquakes occur. It’s simply part of the natural order of the world moving.”
“That’s fascinating. I’ve never heard that before.”
“You wouldn’t have.”
The princess reacted with wonder as I explained basic earth science.
While we were talking, clouds of dust rose from the mountain, cliff walls, and deep within the cave.
I stared quietly at the scene, then spoke to the children.
“Let’s head back for now. Sister Jeokwol, let’s go.”
Srrrk. 『Okay, Daddy.』
Screeeee.
We’d head back, eat dinner, and rest a bit before returning.
Just then, the princess lightly tapped me on the shoulder.
“So-ryong, shouldn’t we check it out? We found that cave with so much effort.”
She was asking why we wouldn’t go look, now that we’d discovered it—but we couldn’t investigate it right away.
Most likely, that cave was near the epicenter. We couldn’t just barge in.
Another quake could strike at any moment, and if the stone walls inside had weakened, a collapse or rockfall could occur.
And that wasn’t all.
The entire cave could cave in.
Not {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} to mention, with all that dust, we couldn’t even see well enough to enter safely.
“There’s too much dust right now, and the cave could collapse. It’s dangerous. The walls might’ve been weakened by the quake—if we went in and got trapped, it’d be over.”
“Ah... I see.”
The princess nodded at my explanation.
I turned my thoughts inward and asked Hyang a question.
‘Hyang, did you find a safe place yet?’
Last I checked, they’d still been at the previous location, not having found a proper spot.
Not long after I sent the thought, I heard Hyang’s voice.
‘Srrrk. Yeah, Daddy, we’re at a different forest now.’
Apparently the commanding officer had found a good location, so I quickly asked Yeondu to come pick us up.
‘Yeondu, can you come get us where we were earlier?’
‘Shiaa. Understood, So-ryong-nim.’
A little later—
As we arrived at our previous position by air, Yeondu emerged from the forest to greet us.
Following her for a short flight, we soon spotted the Tang army’s warship stationed in front of a forest on the southern side of the river—not the north.
Just as I’d said, the southern area opened into a plain.
They must’ve figured it’d be safer across the river and set up there.
Not that crossing the river guaranteed safety, but it did meet the conditions I’d suggested—relatively safer.
“There it is. Not bad.”
“Do you think that’ll do?”
“Yes. If we shelter in that forest, we can escape out to the plains if a big quake hits.”
Passing the ship, Yeondu guided us into the forest, where the commanding officer guarding the children dropped to one knee in greeting.
“You’ve returned, sir!”
“Yes, and this spot is excellent.”
“I’m glad to hear that, sir.”
Inside the forest, the children were gathered around a campfire.
Though winter had passed, early spring nights were still cold, so they huddled around the fire for warmth.
As we approached, Yo-hwa trotted over, turned her back to me, and spoke.
Ki-siit. 『Brother, welcome back. You must be tired. Are you cold? Want to rest on my back?』
“Ooh, should I?”
In the past, I might have hesitated—but now that I’d reached Hwagyeong, I no longer felt the cold. Still, I gladly laid down on her back.
This was the joy of a venom-creature maniac clocking off work.
To sprawl out and rest on a giant spider’s fluffy back.
The moment I lay on Yo-hwa’s back, the soft fuzziness lulled me straight toward sleep.
People assumed spiders had hard shells, but in truth, their backs were soft and cushiony.
Covered in fine hairs, they made for incredibly plush resting spots.
It felt like lying on a warm bed—and I couldn’t help but doze off.
Yo-hwa could harden her body if she wanted, being a spirit beast, but she didn’t.
“Maybe I’ll eat later, get a quick nap in, and head out again? We’re searching again tonight anyway.”
Ki-siit. 『Would you like that?』
The prime time for spirit beast searches was always late at night.
Most venomous and spiritual creatures were nocturnal.
So of course, we were planning a nighttime search—but before that, I’d catch some rest.
And before long, sleep took me.
***
Hwa-eun crept quietly across the grass.
And from the opposite side, two others were sneaking up just as quietly.
Approaching from the other end were Gun Hye-rin and Princess Yoo Ji-ryeon.
The three of them gestured to each other over the slumbering So-ryong, pointing to one side.
They meant to meet over there.
Soon, they gathered in a sunny patch of grass, carefully avoiding So-ryong, who lay napping in the middle.
The princess took both of Hwa-eun’s hands and greeted her warmly.
“It’s good to see you, Hwa-eun.”
“It’s been a while, Your Highness.”
Once greetings were exchanged, the princess glanced over at the sleeping So-ryong.
“He won’t wake up, right?”
“He’s sleeping pretty soundly. So-ryong may have reached Hwagyeong, but he hasn’t trained for long—his sleep cycles are still lengthy. He won’t wake for at least three more sijin. It’s been a while since I saw your face too, Miss Gun.”
“How have you been?”
“Well, Miss Gun.”
The place they had met was inside So-ryong’s mental landscape.
The reason they were able to arrange this meeting was because Hwa-eun had shared the mnemonic chant for Soul-Merging Technique with them—something So-ryong didn’t know.
Which meant: a shared chatroom he wasn’t part of.
The three of them had secretly created a private group chat without So-ryong.
They’d been chatting inside it when the princess suddenly said she wanted to see Hwa-eun’s face and speak directly—so this meeting was arranged.
“So, Princess... what was so important that you wanted to speak face-to-face?”
Once greetings were out of the way, Hwa-eun got straight to the point.
At her question, the princess put on a solemn expression—then suddenly dropped to her knees.
“Hwa-eun!”
“W-What are you doing, Your Highness?!”
Startled by the Princess’s sudden action, Hwa-eun dropped to her knees as well and tried to lift her up.
But the Princess pressed her forehead to the ground in a deep bow and pleaded.
“Hwa-eun, the grace I received from So-ryong is one I could never repay. I owe him the lives of my sect, my master, and my martial sisters. How could I ever possibly repay that?
So I—I wish to serve So-ryong at his side for the rest of my life, even if only as a concubine, to repay even a fraction of that debt.
Even if our marriage was fake, the ceremony was real. I will not object to becoming a secondary wife.”
With her eyes tightly shut, the Princess waited for an answer.
It hadn’t been long since the wedding, and asking to become a concubine so soon was unlikely to be received warmly.
She fully expected Hwa-eun to be angry—but before Hwa-eun could respond, a voice cut in from beside them.
“M-Me too.”
The Princess, shocked, lifted her head and turned to look—only to find Gun Hye-rin kneeling beside her.
Just like the Princess, she too was bowing low, forehead pressed to the ground.
I’d already heard that Gun Hye-rin liked So-ryong.
But why did she have to join in now of all times?
I appreciated the helpful information she’d once shared about not liking fur, but that was that—and this was this.
The Princess turned to Hwa-eun in confusion, but Hwa-eun wore the expression of someone who’d been expecting this.
“Hah... so it’s come to this after all.”
“?”
“?”
Both the Princess and Hye-rin blinked in unison.
Hwa-eun sighed and said,
“I understand. Please raise your heads. It’s uncomfortable like this. You too, Gun Hye-rin.”
The Princess and Hye-rin looked at each other, then slowly lifted their heads.
Hwa-eun adjusted her posture and sat properly.
“Let’s sit more comfortably for now.”
“No, I still need your permission...”
“I’m giving it. Just sit down.”
The Princess blinked in surprise.
She hadn’t expected Hwa-eun to agree so easily.
Gun Hye-rin looked just as bewildered, though for a different reason.
“W-What about me?”
She gave Hwa-eun a betrayed look—after all, by order of events, she had come first.
But Hwa-eun replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
“Of course you too, Gun Hye-rin. You were ahead of Her Highness, weren’t you?”
It was as if Hwa-eun had read her mind—she’d even acknowledged Hye-rin’s priority over the Princess.
Moved to tears, Gun Hye-rin cried out like someone swearing eternal loyalty.
“R-Really!? I—I promise I’ll treat you well for the rest of my life! I won’t dare challenge the authority of the primary wife...”
“Forget that. Just treat So-ryong well.”
“Of course! I swear I’ll do my best!”
“Me too. Thank you so much, Hwa-eun.”
Gun Hye-rin beamed at the mention of So-ryong, and the Princess smiled with her.
Then Hwa-eun looked at them and asked,
“You must be wondering why I’m agreeing so readily.”
“That’s right.”
“Yes, Hwa-eun.”
Naturally, they were curious.
Hwa-eun glanced toward the sleeping So-ryong and began to explain.
“You’re both already spiritually connected to So-ryong. It’s not something that can be undone. In that state, how could you ever be with another man? It would be like holding So-ryong in your heart while trying to love someone else.
And once you’re connected through the Beast Heart Technique, it’s natural to develop feelings for him. I thought this might happen.”
Neither Gun Hye-rin nor the Princess had considered it that way before—but now that she said it, it made perfect sense.
How could you be with someone else when your heart was already tied to So-ryong?
Then Hwa-eun added something unexpected.
“In a way, it’s a relief.”
“A relief?”
“Yes. We need to prevent the leakage of the Beast Heart Technique. Sister Seol said that forming a family would be the best solution. She was worried you two might not actually fall for So-ryong, and it had her stressed—but now, I suppose it’s fine.”
“What’s wrong with So-ryong?”
“Yeah, what’s wrong with him?”
“I mean, So-ryong is just... well, how do I put this...”
“He’s a bit eccentric...”
“That’s true.”
Agreement all around.
The three of them nodded as they looked over at sleeping So-ryong.
Then the Princess asked,
“Is there anything we should be careful about? Like... family rules or anything?”
Since they would now be serving So-ryong together, she wanted to know if there were any household traditions or expectations.
Hwa-eun thought for a moment, then spoke seriously.
“In that case, maybe we should have a deeper discussion about how to divide yang energy.”
Since it was a matter of survival for one of them, they’d need to divide the remaining amount into thirds.
This was an extremely serious matter.
***
“So it really was a bust?”
Three days of searching, and still no signs of a divine beast.
We had covered most of the mountain, though only lightly due to the earthquake, but found nothing of note.
Even so, I kept looking around, unwilling to give up—when suddenly...
—Rumble.
Thunder rolled again from near the epicenter.
I’d heard that same sound three or four times a day, and now it echoed briefly before fading again.
“Huh, must’ve been weak—didn’t feel anything over here.”
This aftershock didn’t seem strong enough to reach this far.
Actually, now that I thought about it, aside from the area right near the epicenter, the rest of the mountain hadn’t been affected much at all.
And then—
The sound of barking came from down in the valley below.
—Woof! Woof!
“Ah, So-ryong! Look over there!”
I turned in the direction the Princess was pointing.
A mother dog stood at the edge of a cliff, barking downward.
I followed her gaze and spotted a puppy caught on a tree branch partway down the slope.
Even if I didn’t care for furry creatures, that was just personal taste—something like this, I couldn’t ignore.
I rushed down, rescued the pup, and returned it to its mother.
“There, go to your mom.”
—Whine. Whine.
—Woof!
Just as I handed over the puppy, another rumble shook the ground.
—Rumble.
Another aftershock.
And at that moment, as I looked down at the puppy in front of me, a strange thought crossed my mind.
‘Wait a second... there’s been all these tremors, and yet they’re this calm?’
It’s well known that animals often exhibit unusual behavior before a major earthquake—it's a commonly observed precursor.
Now that I thought about it, the birds that had flown up in panic during the quake earlier had also just... settled right back down.
“This is weird.”
This earthquake... something was off.
