Chapter 1: . liquor mutant (1)

“Ah, I’m out of food.”

The woman sitting in an isolated pavilion within a well-tended garden murmured.

Looking at her from behind, her pure white hair, like snow-white silk, lay disheveled, a truly striking sight.

Tap, tap.

She raised a hand encased in a white glove and, out of habit, tapped the pair of yellow, coral-like horns growing on her head with her fingers.

“Shall I go out?”

As soon as she stood up, she subtly tilted her head, lightly surveying her surroundings upon sensing a presence, then began to tidy her disheveled attire.

The woman picked up a pure white robe, similar in color to her hair, and put it on, then similarly picked up a large, ink-black conical hat lying nearby and tilted it on her head, as if fitting it over her horns, before covering her face with the veil attached to the hat.

Clink…!

She pulled out a bundle of coins from a small chest in the corner of the pavilion and tossed it behind her.

“That’s for my snack money.”

Was he standing behind her the whole time? The woman, who had been about to go out, spoke to her veiled bodyguard, who seemed ready to follow her.

“What shall I eat today…?”

With her arms tucked into the wide sleeves of her robe, she began to walk with small steps towards the garden exit.

****

“Oh? You asked about the Shamaness?”

The man, who looked to be in his late twenties and was dressed in luxurious black attire, gazed at the merchant in the bustling market of the capital city, who responded to his question with a curious expression.

“You must be a stranger, seeing as you don’t know the Shamaness.”

“Well, something like that.”

The man gestured to his companion, who was glaring behind him, perhaps annoyed by the merchant’s tone, signaling him to calm down, and then replied with a tilted head.

“She’s truly a spirited person. The previous Shamaness rarely came out, but the new Shamaness often visits the market to buy snacks herself.”

“Ho.”

“And she’s a truly grateful person. While this country’s peace is certainly thanks to His Majesty the King, the greatest factor is undoubtedly the Shamaness’s presence. Haha.”

‘What kind of being is a Shamaness that she’s compared to the King?’ The man, with a curious expression, rested his hand on his chin.

“Because the Shamaness protects our country from disaster, look. Aren’t everyone smiling?”

The merchant spoke with a confident expression, telling him to observe the peaceful state of his country.

“Oh dear, I was so busy talking I almost forgot. Here you go. These are the books you were looking for. Just give me five coins.”

With that, the merchant neatly stacked a few books, saying they were the items he ordered, and handed them over. Clink. Instead of five coins, the man handed over an entire bundle.

“Thank you. Keep the change; consider it payment for your story.”

The man quietly strode away down an secluded alley, as if avoiding the merchant who tried to stop him with a surprised expression.

“Geumsa.”

Then, he finally looked at his companion, Geumsa, a man with a stern face dressed in black martial attire, who had been quietly following him.

“My friend. You’re going to scare people away.”

“My apologies, my lord. As you know, I am not accustomed to undercover missions.”

“Tsk. It’s fine. Just try to put on a gentler expression next time.”

“…Understood, my lord.”

The man sighed deeply, seemingly exasperated by Geumsa, who knelt and bowed his head at his words.

“So, what are your thoughts?”

“On the Shamaness, my lord?”

“Yes.”

Then, towards Geumsa, who slowly and carefully rose from his spot.

“We don’t have such a being in our country. So, I’d like to hear your opinion.”

At the man’s playful voice, filled with curiosity.

“……”

Geumsa let out a faint, unnoticeable sigh, then mulled over the stories about the Shamaness he had heard while touring the market with the man just moments before.

‘A Shamaness who wards off disaster.’

Apparently, there is a being called a Shamaness in this country.

A Disaster-Warding Shamaness.

A being meant to protect the country by accepting all misfortune on its behalf.

Thanks to the Shamaness’s presence, even common epidemics don’t spread in this country.

“If that’s true, she’s a truly remarkable being.”

“Well, that’s why I came out here myself, isn’t it?”

Thus, lightly discussing the Shamaness, they headed back towards the market.

“Hmm?”

“It’s a bit noisy, my lord. Stay behind me.”

“It’s fine. I can protect myself.”

“…My lord.”

“Tsk.”

They slowly began to walk towards the far end of the market, where a large crowd had gathered and caused a commotion, while remaining cautious.

“Hmm? Is that…”

As they walked, the man, standing behind Geumsa, could see.

“What do you see, my lord?”

“It seems we were rather lucky.”

“Pardon?”

“The rumored Shamaness has arrived.”

Far in the distance, amidst the crowd, was a woman who was quite tall for a lady.

“Hmm.”

‘Her height exceeds roughly six feet (approximately 180cm)… No, perhaps she’s just a little taller than five and a half feet (approximately 165cm).’ He had been mistaken because the conical hat she wore seemed to float strangely.

The white-haired woman, whose curvaceous figure was evident even from afar and was truly desirable.

“……”

While patiently listening to the stories of the people gathered around her, she seemed to notice the man’s gaze and tilted her head, looking around.

“What’s wrong, my lord?”

Immediately after, Geumsa asked as he saw the man hide behind his back to avoid the Shamaness’s gaze.

“That Shamaness has good instincts. Or perhaps she’s sensitive to gazes.”

The man, standing behind the large-bodied Geumsa, again rested his hand on his chin and mumbled something.

“Let’s follow her for a bit. It seems it will be interesting.”

“Ha… My lord.”

“What are you doing? Aren’t you going to lead the way?”

“…Understood, my lord.”

Despite sighing, Geumsa led the way, acting as his shield, and they began to follow the Shamaness.

“Uncle. Have you been well?”

“Of course, my lady. Thanks to the Shamaness, there isn’t a single day that isn’t comfortable.”

The Shamaness the man saw was truly a pleasant woman.

“Please put some juwak in here.”

“Shall I give you the usual amount, Shamaness?”

“Yes.”

Her strides were long and confident, like a man’s, and while she greeted everyone she met, she didn’t delve too deeply into conversation.

“Grandpa. Did you gather a lot of medicinal herbs today?”

“Hmm? Oh my, look who it is. If it isn’t our Shamaness.”

“If you have any useful herbs, please put some in.”

Did she also have knowledge of pharmacology? Even as she untied the basket she carried on her back and held it out, the woman called Shamaness never once took her hands out of her sleeves.

‘Does she have a scar or something?’

The man glanced at the Shamaness’s arms, which remained hidden in her sleeves throughout their time in the market, then this time, he began to look at the Shamaness’s back, which was revealed because she had temporarily shifted the basket to her front.

“Hmm?”

He hadn’t noticed it before because she was carrying the basket, but upon closer inspection, he could see that the area below the Shamaness’s waist was subtly protruding.

“What’s wrong, my lord?”

“…No, it’s nothing.”

He felt like pulling up the robe she wore right then and there, but reminding himself that it wasn’t appropriate, no matter how curious he was, the man quietly averted his gaze from the Shamaness.

“Are you satisfied now, my lord?”

“Hmm.”

Seeing his lord finally lose interest and withdraw his attention, Geumsa quietly sighed in relief and urged him to return to their residence, but.

“Kyaaak!”

In the very next moment… seeing the man turn his head with an intrigued look at a scream from a short distance away, Geumsa had to sigh deeply again and hold his head.

“Is it a ruffian?”

At least, the commotion was merely caused by a simple pickpocket, not even a true ruffian, perhaps?

“It seems so, my lord. Let’s move before we get caught up in it.”

“Well, let’s do that.”

The man, his interest waning at the sight of a woman frantically fussing about her stolen belongings, replied with a drained voice and quietly turned his back.

“Hey— You punk—!”

At the same time, with the lively voice of the Shamaness they had been following and a small cracking sound—the satisfying thud of a fist hitting flesh.

“No matter how hard life gets, that’s not right.”

The man turned back again and saw the Shamaness, her hand, which she had kept hidden in her sleeve, now clenched into a fist, standing before a young boy who was hunched over, trembling in pain, seemingly having been punched in the side, and lecturing him.

“Give back what you stole.”

“No, I… don’t want to!”

“Instead, I’ll give you this.”

Clink. The Shamaness took a small bundle of coins from inside her sleeve and placed it in the boy’s hand.

“This should be enough for today’s quota, right?”

“Uh…”

“Next time, if you’re going to steal, don’t get caught at all.”

Tap, tap. With her white-gloved hand, she gently tapped the boy’s head, crouching in front of him and speaking with a hint of laughter in her voice.

“……”

The man watched the Shamaness with an intrigued expression, arms crossed.

Whoosh…!

Was it a coincidence, or… was it fate? At that very moment, a gust of wind subtly lifted the veil attached to the crouching Shamaness’s conical hat, revealing her eyes, which met the gaze of the man who had, somehow, come to stand before her.

“Oh, this is truly…”

Golden eyes with long, slit vertical pupils, which could not be called human even as a joke.