Call Of The Spear [EN]: Chapter 4

Tales of Nangseon – Episode 3

The Kim family’s house in Eongol Village.

As befitted a wealthy family, the house boasted antique walls and a massive gate. A man with a goatee was sweeping the yard in front of the grand gate.

“Mister!”

“Goodness, you scared me!”

The man, thinking it was a ghost, held his broom upright and became wary. But what was this? It wasn’t a ghost, but a little kid holding a handful of roots and grinning.

“A, a person?”

“This. I came to sell it.”

“What is this? Some babe who hasn’t even been weaned trying to sell roots…”

But seeing that she was wearing clean clothes and flower shoes, he realized she wasn’t just any kid from the village, and the voice he was about to scold with gradually died down.

“Where are you from?”

“Over there.”

When she pointed to Mount Baek, the man’s expression became strange. Not from another village, but from the mountain… was she telling the truth? He tried to hide his awkward face, but it didn’t work out as he wanted.

‘Is she really a ghost or what…’

“J, just a moment, please.”

The man quickly ran inside and called out to the elder in front of the eaves, and a voice immediately popped out from inside.

“What’s going on?”

“A young lady has come to visit!”

“A young lady? From which family?”

“Th, that, I don’t know…”

“You foolish fellow. Do you think I give you rice to eat for nothing!”

After pouring out a barrage of insults, the affluent Mr. Kim, with his hair tied in a topknot and wearing a [gat – traditional Korean hat], came out of the room with a displeased look, grumbling.

“What are you doing? Bring her in!”

He suddenly shouted.

Unable to utter any complaints, he quickly ran to bring the white-haired young lady, and Mr. Kim’s face instantly contorted.

He thought she was a young miss from another family, but seeing that she was alone without a single servant, there was a high probability that she was just the daughter of a merchant family.

Moreover, the clothes she was wearing were hemp. They seemed a bit luxurious, but still just hemp. She wasn’t really from a wealthy family.

Besides, that white hair and blue eyes.

He seemed to have heard of such a face somewhere… but he couldn’t quite remember.

“I came to sell this. Wild ginseng!”

“Wild ginseng?”

“Yes! Grandpa Chil-sam told me to sell it here.”

“Chil-sam? Ah… the old man at the pharmacy was named Chil-sam. Hmm…”

If that old man said it was wild ginseng, it must be real. Judging by the size and shape of the root, it must be hundreds of years old at least.

Heh heh.

How could such a precious thing be in the hands of a child?

White hair, blue eyes.

‘Wait a minute.’

Something was about to come to mind…

‘Ah!’

The white-haired ghost kid.

Wasn’t she a slave from the next village!

‘Surely… I heard she was to be sacrificed because she angered the Mountain Lord…’

But how is this child alive and trying to sell wild ginseng roots in Eongol Village?

This unique appearance is only this child, so it can’t be someone else.

Mr. Kim stroked his chin for a moment, pondered, and then his eyes lit up.

‘Either way, the wild ginseng is real.’

“Ahem, aren’t you a slave from the Baekjija family?”

“Huh? How did you know?”

So that’s how it is.

Then the story is simple.

“You wench! How can a slave who was sacrificed as a sacred offering be alive and trying to sell wild ginseng! Did you steal this wild ginseng from somewhere else?”

“N, no! My husband gave it to me as a dowry!”

“Husband? Where would you get a husband, you lying wench!”

“S, San-gun is, sob, San-gun is my husband! We, we even consummated our marriage!”

‘With that house-sized tiger?’

No, no. That can’t be. What nonsense.

“How dare you spout such lies in front of me! Hey, Maltong! Take that wench’s ginseng and whip her buttocks to drive her away!”

“Huh? Is that alright?”

“You impudent fellow, who do you think you are to question my words! If you don’t do it quickly, your own buttocks won’t be spared!”

Mr. Kim issued a stern order, and Maltong, startled, immediately looked at Choa and held out his hand.

“Give it here!”

As he tried to take the ginseng from Choa’s arms, she struggled with all her might, trying not to let it be taken.

“Ah, no! My husband gave it to me! Eek!”

‘What kind of strength…!’

How could a little girl who hasn’t even come of age have such strength? She wouldn’t budge.

Eventually, Maltong put in so much effort that his face turned red, and finally, a gap appeared.

“G, give it here!!”

Thud!

He lost control of his strength and pushed Choa, startled, but Mr. Kim was watching with glaring eyes, so there was nothing he could do.

“How dare you, with your blood not even dry, commit thievery! I should make an example of you to deter others! You should consider yourself lucky that I have ties with Lord Baekjija, so I won’t cut off your hands!”

“N, no, my husband, sob! Gave it to me!”

Choa, who had fallen to the ground and was sniffling, with tears welling up in her eyes, desperately cried out her injustice.

“That wench is still spouting nonsense! Maltong, what are you doing! Go get a club!”

There was no way her words would be heard.

Mr. Kim, thinking this was good, ordered him to quickly bring a club to beat her with. Maltong hurriedly brought a club.

But the club was thin.

“You fool, I told you to bring a club, why did you bring a switch!”

“But sir, she’s still a child whose baby fat hasn’t even gone away… How can I use a club that’s used to beat grown men…?”

“You really!”

Slap! Slap!

“Ouch! Ah, it hurts, sir!”

“You foolish idiot! Just do as you’re told, why do you have so much to say! That’s why you haven’t gotten married yet!”

Mr. Kim, who had been scolding Maltong with the switch, suddenly threw the switch away and rolled up his sleeves.

“Forget it! I’ll discipline this wench with the club myself!”

“No! I don’t want to be beaten!!”

“You wench, still acting tough! Give it to me! I’ll do it right now!”

“Eek!”

Choa, frightened, quickly ran out of the gate, and only then did Mr. Kim calm his anger and raise the corners of his lips.

* * *

Choa, who had all her wild ginseng taken away in an instant, sniffled and trudged along.

How could she not feel empty? If she had sold the ginseng and brought a dowry, her husband would have acknowledged her, but she had the ginseng stolen by that bad Mr. Kim.

“Heeuuk, sob, what should I do… Hiccup!”

The tears wouldn’t stop.

Her neatly braided hair had become disheveled, and her clothes were dirty from falling on the ground.

As the white-haired little girl trudged along, sobbing, the villagers were horrified and ran away.

Without realizing it, Choa headed towards the place she had promised to meet San-gun and cried.

Her eyes were swollen because the tears wouldn’t stop, and her throat hurt from screaming. Come to think of it, she hadn’t eaten anything all day, so she was also hungry.

With all three misfortunes combined, her sorrow doubled, and her tears also doubled.

“Hwaaaaaaang!”

She raised both hands to rub her eyes, but tears burst out like an unceasing spring.

She sat under a tree stump at the place she had promised to meet San-gun and cried for a long time, and then she felt pain in her hand.

“Ouch… Oh, blood… Blood… Hiccup!”

It seemed she had been hurt when she fell earlier.

The scratches on her palm were clear, and a few drops of blood flowed out.

And then.

Woo-oooo-oooo-oooo.

Suddenly, the bushes rustled, and an eerie sound was heard.

-Blood. It’s blood! It’s the smell of delicious blood!

-So sweet! It smells sweet just by smelling it! It’s that girl!

-If we eat that girl, we’ll have a form too! Catch that girl!

Ghostly figures wandered between the trees, laughing in chilling voices. It was a thin, high-pitched voice like a woman’s, but strangely, it was a distorted, alien sound.

“D, don’t come! Go away!”

Kee hee hee hee!

Kee kee kee keek!

-Child! Come here! Your blood may liberate us from this wretched existence as Chang-gwi [vengeful spirits of those who died by a tiger]!

-That girl is mine!

-No, keek keek, she’s mine, she’s mine! If we devour that girl, we can escape from this Chang-gwi bondage!

The spirits that had been flying swiftly slowly turned black, and their eyes turned red, transforming into the form of demons.

They looked precarious, like flickering candlelight, but devouring a little girl seemed easy.

“S, save me! N, no!! Kyaaak!”

The Chang-gwi gestured to the girl, giggling incessantly.

-Come here, come here!

-Come to us. Aren’t you tired? Aren’t you sad? If you come here, we will be together.

The voices were affectionate and filled with resentment.

They contained an unprecedented power that made her want to approach them for some reason.

But Choa shook her head firmly, as if she had experienced it once before.

“I won’t go! My husband will come to get me!”

But there was no way the Chang-gwi would believe those words.

-How can a tiny thing like you have a husband! You’re lying!

-Let’s kill her! Let’s kill her! Let’s chew her bones, chew her flesh, and chew her soul!

-The tiger is dead, but we cannot escape from being Chang-gwi, so we must chew you up and be reborn in paradise!

Dozens of ghosts, calling themselves Chang-gwi, could no longer hold back and were about to rush at Choa.

Kwaaaaaaang!

A tiger’s roar that echoed through the mountains burst out.

The Chang-gwi who had been rushing at Choa writhed grotesquely and screamed as if in pain.

– Kiaaaaaak!

-It’s a tiger! It’s a tiger! It’s the Mountain Lord of Mount Baek!

-Let’s run away! We’ll be captured by the tiger again!

The Mountain Lord, who appeared with a dignified gait and a scowling face, muttered as he watched the Chang-gwi disappear into the mountains.

[Why are there so many Chang-gwi who have lost their tiger…?]

Chang-gwi are the vengeful spirits of those who have been eaten or killed by a tiger, and they are subordinate to the tiger.

They sell even their distant relatives to the tiger, and they even lure the children and women of the village to go to the tiger.

But even they should be automatically released and disappear to the afterlife when their host tiger dies, but it was strange that Chang-gwi who had lost their master were wandering around on their own.

“Hwaaang, Husband!!”

[Ugh, don’t get snot on me!]

Choa, who had rushed to San-gun, hugged him and burst into tears, saying she was scared.

San-gun frowned at the snot that was thickly smeared on his neck and tried to push her away, but Choa grabbed his fur tightly and refused to let go.

Tsk tsk, San-gun clicked his tongue and stood still for a while, then suddenly looked to the left and narrowed his eyes.

[If you want to die, keep hiding like a rat.]

At San-gun’s stern command, filled with murderous intent, a doll that had been hiding behind a tree popped out and bowed, lowering its body.

-I hope you have been well.

[Huh? Aren’t you a Chang-gwi from Mount Geomut?]

-I am overwhelmed that you remember me.

Unlike the Chang-gwi who had lost their master, she was a beautiful woman who perfectly resembled a human.

She was wearing a black mourning dress, and if you only looked at her neatly arranged hair, you might mistake her for a human, but she was a fairly high-ranking Chang-gwi among the Chang-gwi.

The more people a Chang-gwi feeds to a tiger, the stronger its own power becomes.

That means that she has lured a small number of dozens to a large number of hundreds of people to be eaten by the tiger.

The conclusion is that she is also a bad woman.

[It seems that the same yappy guy is doing useless things again.]

Of course, the tiger who controls that Chang-gwi is a worse guy.

Chang-gwi cannot disobey the tiger.

-My master, the Black Tiger of Mount Geomut, said that he will come to visit soon.

The Black Tiger of Mount Geomut, the owner of Mount Geomut, which is 3 days away from Mount Baek. He was a large black tiger who had clashed with the Mountain Lord of Mount Baek before.

[Hmph, tell him to do so if he wants his remaining eye to become useless too.]

-Hehe, yes, I will definitely tell him. But… you seem to cherish this child quite a bit. She doesn’t seem like an ordinary child…

“I’m San-gun’s wife!”

She had been sniffling, but somehow she knew they were talking about her, and she answered the Chang-gwi’s words with sparkling eyes.

San-gun was disgusted, but the Chang-gwi’s eyes became interested.

-Wife?

[She’s not my wife.]

“I am his wife! We even consummated our marriage!”

[This tiny thing is really! Ugh! Why haven’t you left yet? I don’t want to see your face, so disappear!]

San-gun gave up on Choa, who was spouting nonsense again, and yelled at the Chang-gwi.

The Chang-gwi smiled faintly and replied.

-I apologize. Then I will take my leave.