Hwayugi 2

Chapter 5

Son Oh Gong spit to the ground. "I bet he didn't see that coming."

He heard Seo Mijin walking away and instantly caught up to her. "What? No thank you??"

She was ignoring him and looking around the area. "It has to be here."

"Hey, you're being rude!"

Mijin sighed with relief. "Found it."

Son Oh Gong saw that she found a hut. "That's a weird hut."

Mijin chuckled. "Yeah. Because inside that weird hut is a door to Venom Mountain."

He looked to her. "What makes you say that?"

"Well, other than the weird vibe this hut is giving, Go Me usually appears in front of me everytime I get near to what I'm looking for," she answered casually.

"What!?" Son Oh Gong exclaimed. "He's approached you before?"

Mijin nodded. "When I was still training at tracking and spying, he kept offering me his help in exchange of spending a night with him. I'd be lying if I didn't consider it. He always comes at the timing when I almost gave up, you know. However, Chul Sun would always come and scare him away. What a coward."

"So when he came to you earlier, you knew the door to Venom Mountain would be near?"

Again, she nodded and gave him a dimpled smile. "Thanks for earlier, although I could've handled it."

Son Oh Gong was stunned for a moment. "Ye--yeah."

"We have to get back and head back here first thing in the morning."

Son Oh Gong and Seo Mijin head back to camp. For a second there, when Mijin smiled, he remembered Jin Seonmi.

I hope you're okay, Jin Seonmi. I hope no one like Go Me is approaching you.

"Oh, you're back. I thought something bad had happened," Mawang said as they approach their camp. He was sitting on a log by the bonfire.

Son Oh Gong found the others are sleeping in their own sleeping bags.

Seo Mijin merely smiled to Mawang. "If it's okay, I'd like to rest for awhile, Mawang-nim. Just wake me up if you want to rest."

Mawang nodded to her before she settled her sleeping bag in a free spot around the bonfire while Son Oh Gong sat beside Mawang.

Few minutes in, Son Oh Gong can already hear Seo Mijin's deep breaths.

"Hey, is she okay?" Mawang asked him.

Son Oh Gong sighed. "Go Me tried to go at her. That pervert bastard."

Mawang was surprised. "Good thing she didn't bite?"

"Yeah," Son Oh Gong agreed. "She's too smart for her own good. Chul Sun really trained her well."

Mawang nodded.

Silence befell between Son Oh Gong and Mawang until Son Oh Gong can't keep it in anymore.

"Mawang, I've been weird these past few days."

"Hm? How so?"

"I can't help but think about Jin Seonmi whenever I'm around Seo Mijin," Son Oh Gong sighed. "I know they're very different but I don't know.. especially earlier with Go Me. What if Jin Seonmi is being approached by someone, a thing, like Go Me." He scratched his head. "I think I'm gonna go crazy if I don't find Jin Seonmi soon."

"Hey, Jin Seonmi-ssi was Samjang. The heavens won't let her be put into danger with people like the two watcher deities. She'll be fine."

"Huh?" Son Oh Gong faced Mawang. "I only talked about Go Me. Why drag Go Je, too?"

Mawang shook his head in disgust. "You know those two, Son Oh Gong. It's almost a competition between them on who sleeps with most women." Mawang spit to the ground. "It's a wonder how heaven lets them be."

"A day will come on those two," Son Oh Gong swore. "I will make sure of it."

By morning, after everyone has eaten breakfast, Seo Mijin led them to the hut Son Oh Gong and her found.

"So, this is it," Seo Mijin spoke. "Let's go." Just then, Seo Mijin stopped at her tracks, at the same time Son Oh Gong stopped her. "Wait." He looked around. "Something's not right."

Everyone started to get a feel around them.

It was Mawang who first agreed. "Yeah, something's not right."

At that moment, an old man, holding a bamboo staff, walked towards them. "At the end of this journey you will see, every heart's desire come to be."

"Who.. are you?" Secretary Ma asked.

The old man smiled. "I am what you see."

Son Oh Gong sighed. "He's a bamboo tree spirit."

The old man nodded.

General Frost whispered to Son Oh Gong. "What do we do with him, hyungnim?"

"Hey, old man," Son Oh Gong called the tree spirit. "Why did you approach us? You know you could get killed, right?"

Again, the old man nodded. "My tongue holds words I cannot keep. I'd rather die after speaking them than die from keeping them." He bowed his head as if giving them the permission to kill him. "Do as you wish."

Son Oh Gong hated killing spirits like him. All they do mostly is recite poems and stuff. However, they may become evil spirits in the future that's why spirits like him usually find means to their ends than become evil spirits.

Before Son Oh Gong approached him, the old man looked up to Seo Mijin. "Do not worry, little one. You will find your truth and your self."

At that, Son Oh Gong let out a fire in his hand and burned the bamboo tree spirit.