Migeon just watched the back of the fleeing Hangi. It was the being that had constantly threatened his hyung, the being that had inflicted violence on his hyung. He wanted to chase after it right away and kill it, but finding his hyung came first now. Now that he knew physical contact was possible, even if it appeared again, he could deal with it sufficiently.
Migeon checked once more the direction the Hangi had fled, then headed to the Dragon Pond again.
Migeon, who had frantically climbed to the crater at the top of the island, wiped his forehead soaked with sweat and looked down at the Dragon Pond. The ripples of the calm lake sparkled reflected in the sunlight, and a perfectly peaceful scene of silver grass swaying in the cool breeze could be seen, but Migeon’s heart was as turbulent and anxious as if a north wind were blowing. It was because Yugeon’s figure couldn’t be seen no matter where he looked.
“Hyung!”
Migeon shouted loudly toward the Dragon Pond. His echoing voice circled around the crater, then rose into the air and scattered on the wind.
Unable to find Yugeon at the Dragon Pond, Migeon wandered around various parts of the island like a madman, but couldn’t find Yugeon anywhere. Migeon, who had been standing blankly, hurried toward home wondering if perhaps his hyung had returned home. But Yugeon hadn’t returned.
It felt like his eyes were going dark. Migeon, who had staggered for a moment, sat down on the wooden floor. He was at a loss as to where to find his hyung. It was an island where he seemed to know everything as if it were in his grasp, but now he couldn’t even guess where on this small island his hyung might be.
Migeon, who had been grinding his lips anxiously, opened both eyes wide as if something had occurred to him, then murmured quietly.
“The Imugi’s lair…”
Somewhere in the Dragon Pond is the Imugi’s lair. But the lair is said to be hidden by the Imugi. If his hyung was in the lair, he wouldn’t be able to find his hyung.
Migeon sprang up from his seat. It seemed he should go to the Dragon Pond once more. Migeon urgently kicked open the windbreak door and came out. But he had to stop walking before going far.
It was because several villagers with deathly pale faces were hurriedly climbing up into the yard.
They saw Migeon standing in the middle of the yard and began urgently shouting something. Migeon frowned, unable to understand their voices all mixed together in a mess, but soon he could understand what they were saying.
“Ge-Geon-ah, Junghyeok, Lee Junghyeok!”
“Junghyeok is dead!”
Lee Junghyeok was dead.
At Lee Junghyeok’s house, the parents’ wailing over their son’s death was ringing out desperately as they vomited blood.
“What happened?”
When Migeon asked, Lee Woongin shook his head with a complicated face.
“We don’t know either… Seokyeong ahjussi said he didn’t come home last night.”
“What did he do yesterday?”
“Well… they said he was looking around for Lee Jaeyeong.”
“……”
Migeon slightly furrowed his brow and shut his mouth tight. Lee Woongin seemed to watch Migeon’s reaction for a moment, then opened his mouth again.
“Since he didn’t come in until morning, Seokyeong ahjussi looked around here and there and found him in the forest… but by then he was already…”
When Lee Woongin trailed off, Lee Byeongchan, who had been quietly listening to the two’s conversation, lowered his voice and asked carefully.
“Was it… Lee Jaeyeong?”
Migeon looked at Lee Byeongchan, then just closed his eyes. He neither affirmed nor denied.
But it wouldn’t be Lee Jaeyeong. Surely it’s not Lee Jaeyeong.
‘If you want, I’ll take you off the island…!’
Lee Junghyeok wasn’t the first of such strange deaths.
The first was probably grandmother. Grandmother, who had helped send his hyung off the island and made a talisman to hide his presence to conceal his hyung, died suddenly on the very day she returned to the island.
The second was uncle. On the day Lee Jeongyeon, who had been offered as a sacrifice, returned alive, the villagers trembling with anxiety and fear raised their voices saying they should bring Lee Yugeon back and offer him as a sacrifice. Uncle strongly opposed this in place of father who had to prioritize the island, and died suddenly that night.
The third would be father. Because he refused his hyung’s request to let him return to the island.
The fourth was Lee Sanghoe, who had tried to kill his hyung.
The last, the fifth, Lee Junghyeok, had tried to take his hyung off the island.
Migeon frowned faintly. All those deaths were connected to his hyung, Lee Yugeon. No matter how much the villagers feared his hyung because of the Imugi, if they came to know these facts, there was no telling what they might do.
Even a cornered rat will bite a cat.
So if the arrow pointed at Lee Jaeyeong, there was no need for him to deliberately correct it.
Migeon began directing Lee Junghyeok’s funeral and burial while hiding his sinister thoughts.
* * *
Yugeon, who had opened his eyes that had been closed in a faint, examined his surroundings with hazy eyes. It wasn’t the ceiling he was used to seeing. As Yugeon was thinking about where this was, he widened his eyes and sat up abruptly.
He recalled where this was and what had happened to him. Yugeon looked around with eyes full of fear. The Imugi’s figure couldn’t be seen.
“Urk!”
Yugeon covered his mouth, retched several times, then lay face down and vomited out yellow gastric fluid.
Why am I alive? I definitely thought I was dead? No, I was definitely dead?
‘It’s a dragon.’
Memories of that day that had flashed by like a panorama came to mind.
“Urgh, cough, kgh!”
Yugeon, who had clutched his chest and vomited gastric fluid until there was nothing left to throw up, panted and examined the inside of the cave again. As expected, the Imugi wasn’t there. Yugeon staggered but hurriedly raised his body. He didn’t know whether it really wasn’t in the cave or was hiding somewhere inside the cave watching him, but his head was full only of the thought that he had to escape.
“?”
Yugeon, who had been moving along the cave wall looking for an exit, tilted his head as if finding it strange, then looked down at his body. His body was strangely fine. The pants that had been removed were put back on, and there wasn’t a single place that hurt. Even though he had directly felt his insides being crushed and torn. Rather, his whole body felt full.
What kind of magic was this? He wondered if perhaps he had dreamed, but first he had to get out of this place. Yugeon shook his head vigorously and began looking for the exit.
Since he wasn’t tied up inside the cave and the exit wasn’t hidden, the exit could be found without difficulty. When he hurriedly went outside, it was the middle of the crater. Looking around and turning back to check the cave he’d come out of again, there was only a wide silver grass field—there was no such thing as a cave.
“?”
He couldn’t understand what had happened. Yugeon, who had been staring at only the wide silver grass field with a blank face, stepped back hesitantly, then turned around and began running. Now wasn’t the time to worry about such things.
He didn’t know if the Imugi was letting him go or hadn’t noticed his escape, but if he was caught, he might be dragged back into the cave and have that happen to him again. Though his knees were trembling enough to buckle from fear, he had to escape as quickly as possible, further away, to a safe place.
* * *
Migeon, who had finished Lee Junghyeok’s funeral and burial, could only return home when the evening sun had passed. As soon as he came home, he checked the whole house wondering if perhaps his hyung had returned, but it was only empty. Migeon was greatly disappointed, then closed his eyes and caught his breath. And he left the house again. It was to go to the Dragon Pond to find his hyung.
But when he was halfway across the yard, he had to stop walking once more.
It was because he discovered a figure staggering and running from far away on the road seen from the yard. Migeon narrowed his eyes to confirm who it was, then soon opened both eyes wide and began running, rolling down the yard.
“Hyung!”
At the loudly shouted voice, Yugeon, who had been panting and running, also suddenly raised his head. He could see his younger brother urgently running down the uphill slope toward home.
“Geon-ah!”
Seeing his younger brother’s figure rather made his breath tighten even more. It was because the tears he’d barely been holding back welled up. Yugeon couldn’t run anymore and stood in that spot bursting into tears, and Migeon ran over in one bound and pulled Yugeon into his embrace.
The two brothers desperately clung to each other.
“Hy-hyung, what, what happened? Where were you?”
Migeon asked, fully laden with worry and concern. Both arms holding Yugeon were also trembling. Yugeon, who had been pouring out suppressed tears on his younger brother’s shoulder, pushed away the younger brother he’d been tightly embracing, then urgently looked around. It was a face full of impatience, fear, and wariness. When Migeon called “Hyung?” again at Yugeon’s actions, Yugeon desperately clung to Migeon and said.
“L-let me out… From the island, let me off the island!”
Migeon’s face hardened in an instant. He seemed to look at Yugeon without even blinking, then soon smiled. It was a forced smile pulled awkwardly. But even that smile didn’t last long before it contorted completely.
Migeon, with a forced smile and a completely contorted face, gripped both of Yugeon’s arms forcefully and pulled him close, then whispered stiffly right in front of his nose.
“That won’t do. Hyung…”
