Call Of The Spear [EN]: Chapter 2

Tales of Nangseon – Episode 1

The tiger known as the Mountain Lord chuckled, then was rather taken aback.

‘Oops.’

The sight of the little one spouting off worldly knowledge she’d overheard from her sisters was too funny.

But that wasn’t befitting of the Mountain Lord who reigned over Mount Baek. The Mountain Lord put on a solemn face.

“Y-you laughed?”

[I didn’t.]

“I think you did….”

Choa fidgeted with her fingers, muttering, ‘You did laugh…,’ while glancing at the Mountain Lord. She wasn’t even scared of the big tiger, treating him just like the neighborhood *ajeossi* [a friendly term for an older man or uncle].

[Ahem, aren’t you afraid of me?]

“I’m not scared because you’re my husband now!”

It was an adorable gesture that almost brought out a doting dad smile, but the Mountain Lord sighed quietly.

‘I’ve only heard about sacrifices; I never thought I’d be receiving one.’

It was an era when *nobi* [slaves or serfs] were rampant.

He figured there would be some *tosok sinang* [folk beliefs] that involved sacrifices.

But he was originally a human turned tiger. He couldn’t hide his bitterness at the thought of being offered a sacrifice.

‘And that appearance.’

White hair and blue eyes.

That kind of look wasn’t common in this world. As far as he knew, there was only one person.

*Baekhyeolgwisu* (白血鬼獸) [White Blood Demon Beast].

A woman who ended up becoming a *yosu* [a type of monster or demon] herself after being drenched in the cursed blood of *yosu*.

‘They said that *Baekhyeolgwisu* was called a *gwisin* [ghost or spirit] since she was young because of her unique appearance.’

How did *Baekhyeolgwisu*, who had such a significant impact on the entire novel, end up as his sacrifice?

The Mountain Lord raised his front paw and scratched his head vigorously.

He’d ended up inside the novel, but he didn’t care about the novel or anything and lived as he pleased, and it seemed like things had gotten twisted.

The Mountain Lord seriously pondered whether he should send her away or not.

Whether *Baekhyeolgwisu* went around killing *yeongsu* [divine beasts] or not had nothing to do with him.

He didn’t want to get involved with the protagonist who was setting off on a journey to become a *sinseon* [immortal or Taoist sage].

The Mountain Lord didn’t have any particular attachment to his original world either. There was no benefit to getting involved with *Baekhyeolgwisu*.

‘Yeah, let’s send her back.’

The Mountain Lord was quite content with his current life.

He didn’t want to stir up any unnecessary trouble. Once he reached that conclusion, it became much easier to open his mouth.

[I don’t care if you’re a bride, a sacrifice, or whatever. Get lost.]

He didn’t know *Baekhyeolgwisu* would look this foolish when she was young, but that was that.

‘A tiger and a bride…….’

The Mountain Lord immediately shook his head to clear his mind and declared.

[Go! Tell them I don’t need a sacrifice!]

Krrrroong!

He roared so loudly that the cave echoed. The white-haired girl trembled like an aspen and turned pale.

Whether he knew it or not, the Mountain Lord couldn’t hide his discomfort as he looked at the shivering Choa.

It was hard to believe that this frail girl would later turn into a *gwisin* that even the *Siphaemancheokgwi* (十害灣個鬼) [Ten Thousand Myriad Ghosts of the Bay] feared.

Once her fame spread throughout the world, all the *gwisu* [powerful demons] would have a fit just hearing her name.

But here she was, terrified in front of him, so how could he not feel that way?

When he read the book, he sympathized with her pain and trials and even cursed the author, but that was that.

‘*Baekhyeolgwisu*’s blood also attracts *yosu*…….’

He wondered why there was a sweet smell, and it seemed this was a characteristic of *Baekhyeolgwisu*.

He wondered why the *yosu* were so desperate to catch and eat the white-haired girl…….

‘I’m even starting to want to lick her because of the sweet scent.’

Even ordinary beasts would become *yosu* or *yeongmul* [spiritual creatures] if they consumed Choa’s blood.

Even *jeogye yosu* [lower-level demons] would reach a higher level if they ate Choa, making her no different from a *yeongyak* [spiritual elixir] with legs.

It was obvious that having such a burden would put him in danger as well.

She was an *ai* [child] he should never take in.

Once he reorganized his thoughts, Choa kept glancing at the Mountain Lord but couldn’t bring herself to move.

[I said go!]

“I, I was wrong…… I was wrong…… sob, Choa was wrong, so…… sniffle.”

‘Why is she crying!’

What did I even do!

He frowned, seemingly forgetting that he had roared and told her to leave.

“Waaaaah!”

The already scary-looking tiger frowned, and Choa, who was terrified, burst into tears that shook the cave.

‘Damn it.’

This is why I hate kids.

They just wail at the slightest thing, making them noisy and annoying.

She was crying so bitterly, with tears like chicken droppings falling, making it utterly disgusting.

[Hey, don’t cry, okay? No, why are you crying all of a sudden? Do you think crying solves everything?! Nothing gets solved just because you cry!]

“H, Husband, hic! T, told me to g, go, waaaaah!”

[Crap…….]

As expected, a kid is just a kid.

There’s no reasoning with her.

The Mountain Lord, with a half-rotten expression, raised his front paw, wiped away Choa’s tears, and said.

[……It’s late, so just stay tonight and go down tomorrow.]

In the first place, if a kid like this went down the mountain path at night, she’d be eaten by wild animals.

It was unimaginable that *Baekhyeolgwisu* would be killed by mere wild animals, but the current Choa was just a kid who could only *jil jil jjada* [whine and cry].

It couldn’t be helped.

“Sniffle!! Really?!”

Choa blew her nose on the Mountain Lord’s front paw with a bright face.

‘Ugh, damn it…….’

Sticky mucus stuck to his front paw and dripped onto the floor.

The Mountain Lord repeated the character for patience in his mind, wiped his paw on the ground, and turned his body.

[Follow me.]

“Yes!!”

* * *

The next day.

The Mountain Lord, who woke up early in the morning, looked at the kid sleeping in his arms with a heavy heart.

“Snore……”

How should he deal with this immature thing who slept so soundly in the tiger’s arms?

He hesitated to poke the sleeping girl’s cheek.

[Ah.]

It was a large, sharp claw of a beast.

If he poked her cheek with this, the frail kid’s cheek would be torn.

The Mountain Lord’s eyes turned cold, then quickly returned to their original red color.

When he first came into this world, he was excited.

He had possessed the body of a tiger, and for a while, it was awkward to even move properly.

He almost got caught and killed by a passing hunter, let alone hunt.

But that was in the past. Now, no hunter dared to mess with the Mountain Lord, who was practically the master of Mount Baek.

He had already learned how to move his body and control his strength, and he had been nourishing his body with hidden *yeongyak* [spiritual elixirs] and *yeongcho* [spiritual herbs] for a long time.

If he did well, he could become the *sansin* [mountain spirit] of Mount Baek and live peacefully.

With that goal in mind, he had been careful not to get involved with major characters, and that was why he had lived well, commanding Mount Baek without any crises.

So now, he didn’t feel *doensseureoun* [awkward or uncomfortable] about being a tiger.

He just felt slightly uncomfortable.

“Ah…… Husband, hehe….”

Just as he was organizing his thoughts, Choa woke up and looked up at him with a smile.

She seemed to find him warmer and more comfortable than she expected, rubbing her face against his fur and giggling.

She was so scared yesterday, but now she’s not. Kids’ thoughts are so hard to understand.

“We’ve had our first night, so…… Choa is a new bride now, right?”

Choa’s cheeks were flushed as if she had *jjigeo bareun* [applied thickly], and her gaze as she looked up at him was unusual.

The Mountain Lord was startled by Choa’s words, as if she was talking nonsense, and he got up.

[Wh, what! Who had a first night with whom!]

“Kyaa!”

Choa, who had been leaning on his body, fell to the floor with a cute scream.

She let out a cute groan, ‘Ouch,’ as she got up, then made a face and complained.

“M, my sisters said so! If you have your first night, you become a new bride! Huh? It was supposed to hurt, but it doesn’t hurt at all?”

As they say, a woman’s heart is like a reed.

Choa, who had been complaining, suddenly tilted her head and smiled brightly, saying that nothing hurt.

Which beat should he *matchwooya haneunji* [go along with]?…….

[I don’t know anything about that. The morning sun has risen, so go back to where you were!]

“Hmph…… They said I’d be *gyeongeul chindaesseoyo* [be severely punished] if I didn’t become *Sangun-nim*’s [Mountain Lord’s] wife! I, I can’t go!”

[ *Gyeongeul chyeo* [severely punished]? Who said they’d *gyeongeul chindadeonya* [severely punish you]?]

“T, the young master of Baekjija’s house……”

The Mountain Lord, not understanding what she was saying, pondered for a moment and nodded with a small sigh.

Even if he didn’t know the details, if this *ai* [child] went back to where she was, they would think she had run away without fulfilling her duty as a sacrifice.

In that case, Choa would receive a big punishment or…….

‘They might kill her.’

This world isn’t kind to children.

If Choa went down the mountain without any problems, they would dismiss her as having run away and kick her out or kill her.

As soon as he thought that far, the Mountain Lord’s brow furrowed.

Whether this girl died or not had nothing to do with him.

But if someone he knew even a little bit died because of him, he would feel uneasy.

[Ugh.]

But accepting her as his bride and living with her was out of the question.

“Please don’t abandon Choa…….”

Choa seemed to have read the Mountain Lord’s troubled expression and was looking down with her head bowed. She fidgeted with her fingers and spoke in a barely audible voice.

“Choa is…… good at laundry. And she eats everything…… Sh, she can do everything by herself…… So…… please don’t abandon me. Okay?”

Ahem.

Judging by what she was saying, it seemed like she had been abandoned more than once or twice.

Since she was set up as an *cheon-ae-go-a* [orphan], it was inevitable that the places she relied on would change here and there.

“Choa will also w, work hard to learn *bam-il* [night duties/bedroom matters] and give birth to lots of babies!”

[Y, you don’t have to do that!]

At this point, he wondered if she was doing it on purpose.

But looking at her eyes, which were as clear and innocent as a lake, there was no sign of that.

‘Damn it. Is my head rotten?’

That was probably the case.

How could his head, with the knowledge of a modern person, be the same as Choa’s, who seemed to be only six or seven years old?

He grabbed his throbbing head and pondered what to do, then a brilliant idea made his hair stand on end.

[Ah!]

It didn’t have to be where she originally was.

Instead of sending her to Baekmaeul [White Village] at the foot of Mount Baek, he could send her to another village.

They wouldn’t take her in if he just sent her, but if he gave them a few roots of valuable medicinal herbs, they would take care of her.

He kept nodding and praising himself for being so smart, then looked at Choa.

[Go down to Eongolmaeul [Hidden Valley Village] instead of Baekmaeul.]

“Huh? Why there?”

[Since this is also a kind of fate, I’ll give you a few roots of wild ginseng, so try to live well with that.]

“B, but I’m *seobangnim*’s [husband’s] wife…….”

[Hey! We haven’t done anything, so how can I be your *seobang* [husband]? Don’t talk nonsense and do as I say.]

‘Who are you trying to fool!’

But when he thought about it, it seemed like getting married to someone in the body of a tiger was impossible.

How could he get married to a person in this body when he couldn’t even talk to them properly?

Thinking that way made his heart ache.

He already felt dizzy thinking about having to live alone for hundreds of years.

He shook his head to clear his *japnyeom* [idle thoughts] and tapped Choa’s back with his head.

She made a face again, but when he shook his head firmly, she seemed to give up and lowered her head.

He gave Choa a few pieces of wild ginseng that he had left in the cave as snacks.

Now he was relieved.

He wouldn’t get unnecessarily involved in dangerous things because of *Baekhyeolgwisu*, and he would live a peaceful life, reigning as the *sangun* [mountain lord] of Mount Baek!

[Kuhahahaha!]

He wouldn’t be able to marry a woman and have children in a normal way, but so what!

He was a tiger who commanded Mount Baek.

And he was a tiger who was trying to walk the path of *sinseon* [immortal] and achieve *yukshintong* [six supernatural powers].

He couldn’t become a *sinseon* or *sinsoo* [divine beast] if he couldn’t even control his emotions.

“S, *Seobangnim* [husband], I don’t know the way…… sniffle.”

He pushed Choa’s back with his head, urging her to leave with a sour look on his face, and she kept looking back and whining that she didn’t know the way.

‘That’s what kids are like.’

He had to do everything from A to Z, which was so annoying.

But he thought it was okay since he wouldn’t see her again.

[Get on.]

“Really?”

[I won’t say it twice.]

It would be quick to get to Eongolmaeul [Hidden Valley Village] if he carried the *ai* [child].

Choa’s face brightened as if she had never been depressed, and she grabbed the Mountain Lord’s neck and climbed up.

[Ah, ah! It hurts, you little rascal!]

Because of the difference in size, Choa had to climb up as if she was climbing a cliff even when he was lying down.

The Mountain Lord, whose fur was grabbed, was in pain.

‘*Baekhyeolgwisu* is *Baekhyeolgwisu* after all.’

It wouldn’t hurt if a kid grabbed his fur a little.

But it hurt when Choa grabbed it.

“Hehehet, I’ll be the first among my friends to ride a tiger!”

She kept smiling and even tapped the Mountain Lord’s head.

‘This little…….’

Daring to tap the head of the master of Mount Baek!

“Let’s go, *Seobangnim* [husband]!”

[I’m not your *seobang* [husband]!]

And so, the two went down the mountain, bickering.

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