Beast, Blue Blood - Chapter 118

Chapter 118

A silence hung in the air as if the whole world had come to an end. Smoke seemed unlikely to dissipate soon, as remnants were burning all around. Then, amidst the thick smoke, something began to rise, straightening its waist. It was Lee Seong.

With an expressionless face, he looked like someone standing alone in a world of destruction, and he appeared unharmed as if nothing had happened. Around him, dark shadows, led by him, began to swirl and rise, resembling dancers in black attire performing a ritual.

As the smoke started to gradually clear, Si-woo slowly stood up. The forms of the shadows, which had seemed like dancers in black attire, became clearer and transformed into armed soldiers. Wearing what looked like high-tech gas masks, they aimed their guns at Lee Seong. Nonetheless, Lee Seong spoke calmly.

“The Gordian Knot. (A knot so complex that it couldn’t be untied, which Alexander the Great cut through with his sword.) Complexities can simply be severed. It seems you learned well from your king.”

Si-woo let out a low breath. His body was in tatters. Due to the side effects of amplified regenerative abilities, all the veins in his neck were a deep red, and from his right shoulder to his arm, the wounds had stopped healing and were no longer regenerating. The breath he exhaled seemed filled with harmful substances and appeared dark. Although it was not visible, he could tell that he was becoming grotesque.

However, Lee Seong looked unscathed, at least above the chest. As the smoke briefly thinned, the area below, previously hidden, revealed a sight that would have been better left obscured. He wouldn’t be able to endure this place much longer.

“You were scared of me.”

Si-woo said.

“That’s why you kept running away.”

A fierce light began to flicker in Lee Seong’s eyes. The day Si-woo, whom he had thought was dead, appeared before him like a wraith still haunted his dreams. The overwhelming fear he had felt before becoming infected seemed imprinted in his DNA, making it impossible to shake off the terror.

As Si-woo raised the hand that had been concealed in the smoke, a sword came into view. Wrapped in an elegant scabbard and draped with a red tassel, the curved sword glided down as if caught in a whirlwind of smoke.

When he drew the sword, a white blade revealed itself, screaming with a metallic sound. Lee Seong couldn’t help but let out a laugh at the sight of the completely new and upgraded sword, especially when compared to the old curved sword he had thrown away earlier.

Of course. It must have been crafted using the method for making silver bullets.

Looking at the sword that resembled the one he had used to kill Go Eop-ji, Lee Seong spoke.

“Humans will wait for the right moment. And when the time comes, they will chase you away as if they had been waiting. Even if you manage to get through this crisis by luck, it won’t be the end.”

With a calm gaze that seemed almost eerie, Si-woo looked at Lee Seong.

“Don’t act like you know something. You’re just a criminal who failed to conceal a murder committed on impulse. You might have escaped punishment in this life, but in the afterlife, luck won’t save you.”

And then he raised the sword high.

Flames erupted in his eyes.  

“Your afterlife is mine.”  

He swung down at the neck.  

Squick.  

As the head was severed with an oddly quiet sound and fell to the ground, he stepped on it and plunged the sword into the ground.  

There seemed to be almost no blood left, as it did not flow.  

Si-woo tilted his head back and looked at the sky. It started to rain.  

It was not rain but water bombs dropped from airplanes to extinguish the flames, washing away everything on the ground: all thoughts, sins, and regrets.  

Slowly, his knees buckled, and he placed his hands on the ground. The smoke spread out in a rush.  

Si-woo lost consciousness.

* * *

When he opened his eyes, he smelled grass.  

“Young Master.”  

At the call, he turned around to see Eop-ji standing there in a bright outfit he had never seen before. Si-woo felt a strange nostalgia as he called her name.  

“Eop-ji.”  

Eop-ji took his hand with her soft hand adorned with a jade ring.  

“I was worried because you didn’t come for so long.”  

Si-woo looked around.  

“Did you wait here all this time?”  

He didn’t know where this place was, but he knew he had made Eop-ji wait for a very long time.  

“I saw your shadow flickering at that corner, but then people passing by said you wouldn’t come, and my heart sank.”  

Then, she placed her hand on her cheek and smiled beautifully.  

“But now that you’re here, it’s all right. Let’s go.”  

As they were about to leave, a woman stood behind them, her face obscured. It was strange that she couldn’t be seen when the surroundings were so brightly lit.  

But she was wearing a red skirt whose origins he couldn’t tell.  

‘Russia…?’  

He wondered why the name of that distant country popped into his head.  

“Young Master.”  

At Eop-ji’s call, he turned and asked with a stiff expression.  

“Has your heart changed?”  

“No…”  

Suddenly, Eop-ji laughed with a twinkle in her eyes.  

“You must have! After all, it has been six hundred years, hasn’t it?”  

“Six hundred years?”  

When he asked, Eop-ji nodded. Si-woo forced a bewildered smile.  

“I don’t understand. How can a person live for six hundred years?”  

“I didn’t think it was possible either, but isn’t this a truly amazing world? There are quite a few interesting and wondrous things here as well.”  

Then Eop-ji said. 

“I must go now.”  

He wanted to say, “Let’s go together,” but for some reason, the words wouldn’t come out. Eop-ji then smiled knowingly. Seeing her face made him involuntarily ask.  

“Did it hurt?”  

“It did.”  

Eop-ji answered firmly.  

“It was scary and painful.”  

Si-woo opened his mouth but couldn’t say anything more; he simply expressed what he had long wanted to say.  

“I’m sorry.”  

Eop-ji raised her hand that was not holding her skirt and gently caressed his cheek.  

“But everything is already a matter of six hundred years ago. Not just me, but most things from six hundred years ago have vanished.”  

Whether this was Eop-ji’s spirit, a remnant of memories, or merely a dream, Si-woo could not tell. Everything felt intertwined, and this place seemed like the boundary between the living and the dead. Eop-ji spoke gently.  

“Look. Right now, I’m neither in pain nor scared. So please, Young Master, don’t be in pain either.”  

She then extended her hand, which was holding something.  

“Take this.”  

As Si-woo reflexively accepted it and opened his palm, he found two unpeeled ginkgo nuts resting on his palm.  

He muttered unconsciously.

“This is….”  

At that moment, something fluttered and fell from above. Si-woo looked up. It was the yellow ginkgo leaves, falling as if like a heavy snowfall.  

Why he hadn’t realized it, he didn’t know, but they were standing beneath a massive ginkgo tree. Somewhere, a breeze blew, causing thousands of leaves to shake simultaneously, creating a storm-like sound.  

At that moment, everything came rushing back.  

‘Miss.’  

How could he have forgotten Ha-yeon?  

Si-woo couldn’t believe himself.  

Watching him, Eop-ji smiled softly.  

“I thought those ginkgo nuts wouldn’t peel because they were not mine.”  

“Be careful….”  

It felt strange to say goodbye to Eop-ji, who had swallowed down her emotions over the long years and had now become almost a part of him.  

“I must go.”  

Eop-ji simply smiled. She seemed so far away.

* * *

Si-woo opened his eyes.  

A familiar ceiling looked down at him.  

He was lying alone on a large bed surrounded by various medical instruments in one of the rooms of the Ivanov mansion, and Joo-hwan sat in a strange posture, wearing a hat, next to the bed, dressed in almost patient-like comfortable clothes.  

As Si-woo stared blankly at him, Joo-hwan spoke.  

“Are you disappointed that the first face you see upon waking isn’t the lady’s?”  

Regardless of that, Si-woo asked.

“Where is the lady?”  

Joo-hwan pointed toward the entrance.  

“She’s on her way.”  

“Modified VAC.”  

Si-woo suddenly said.  

“Why did you give it to me?”  

The bartender he met at the club had been Joo-hwan, and when Si-woo found the footage of Joo-hwan receiving the drug from the club’s CCTV, he wondered if anyone could understand the absurdity he felt.  

Since then, Joo-hwan had infiltrated Lancenum and had been unreachable, preventing them from having a conversation until now.  

“Why do you think?”  

Joo-hwan asked with a grin, almost playfully.  

“Because our patron is so infuriatingly frustrating? I couldn’t bear to see him acting like a Joseon scholar any longer?”  

“The lady could have been in danger.”  

“Surely not. Have you ever seen the lady fight?”  

Si-woo, at a loss for words, finally sat up, and Joo-hwan made a somewhat sly face before asking casually.

“So, did you have a bit of fun that day?”  

“Is your body alright?”  

Si-woo redirected the conversation.  

“It took a long time to heal.”  

Joo-hwan grumbled. A few dark veins were still visible on his neck. Seeing this, Si-woo asked.

“How’s the regeneration ability?”  

“They say it might not even be on par with an average Luax if things go well. We’ll need to monitor it a bit longer.”  

“I’m sorry.”  

Joo-hwan lightly patted Si-woo’s arm.  

“Stop apologizing already. You’re acting like a Joseon scholar. I volunteered to do this, remember?”  

Bang!  

At that moment, the automatic door burst open and tilted slightly as it broke.  

“Si-woo!”  

Ha-yeon shouted as she entered.