Chapter 2: . liquor mutant (2)

‘Ah, I’m going to get scolded for this.’

Shamaness Seoryeong thought this as she hastily swept back her disheveled veil, seeing the man stare at her face with surprised eyes.

“……”

‘He’s probably an outsider. Seoryeong, who had spent five years in this capital city, Gyeongseong, doing nothing but watching people, could tell at a glance.’

‘Although he tried to hide it, the way the man stood was already different from ordinary people.’

‘He must be the child of a high-ranking official hiding his identity, or a person of high status from another country, something like that.’

“Shamaness.”

Therefore, hearing the voice of her escort—who was practically acting as a monitor—a woman who approached her side and called her in a small voice.

“Yes. Let’s head back soon,” Seoryeong said, feigning nonchalance… She glanced sideways at the man who was still staring intently at her, then lightly brushed her hand over her hip where it felt awkward, and stood up.

‘For some reason, I have a strange feeling… Well, I probably won’t run into him again.’

Perhaps it was because the man was standing right in front of her. She also felt fortunate that no one else had seen her eyes.

“Ugh, it hurts.”

A moment ago, due to the rough movements from catching the pickpocketing child, her chest had been violently shaken and was aching. She subtly cradled it with both arms, forming a pained expression beneath her veil.

****

A being meant to ward off calamities befalling the nation, an Exorcist Shamaness.

“Shamaness. Here is today’s task.”

“Eh, it’s already here? It’s early today.”

The Exorcist Shamaness’s duty primarily consisted of performing rituals for the nation.

Sometimes for the well-being of the royal family.

Sometimes for the peace of the nation.

However, how many rituals could there be for the well-being of the royal family and the nation?

Such events, the more frequent they were, only made the common people uneasy.

If there were no special schedules, she would perform rituals to grant the requests of people who paid handsomely to the shrine she belonged to. …Whether it truly had an effect, even she didn’t know.

“As you know, the civil service examination is soon. The scholars preparing for the exam wish to pray for good fortune.”

Shamaness Seoryeong… nodded with a faint sigh at the sight of the woman, her escort and monitor, who approached the pavilion where she sat and added this while bowing respectfully.

“How troublesome.”

“Shamaness.”

“Alright. I’ll prepare quickly, so tell them I’ll be there in half a shijin.”

“And regarding what happened at the market today…”

“That… couldn’t be helped, could it? Only my eyes were revealed, so can’t you let it slide?”

Next, at the sight of the woman speaking with a stern expression, as if about to interrogate her about her unusual golden eyes being exposed to an outsider at the market she had visited early that morning, Seoryeong retorted, “It’s not like I wanted to look like this either.”

Seoryeong pouted discontentedly and conspicuously extended her hands forward.

—Her hands, covered in blue scales.

“I’ll be more careful next time, so please don’t nag unnecessarily.”

“……”

“At least my hands, feet, horns, and tail weren’t exposed, right?”

As she said, Seoryeong’s appearance was very alien for a normal human.

Blue scales covered her skin, extending up to just above her wrists on both arms, and to her shins on both legs.

Thump, thump.

Even her plump tail thumped discontentedly against the floor of the pavilion where she sat.

“They say the previous shamanesses didn’t have things like this, so why do I? Seriously.”

At the sight of Seoryeong muttering, skillfully bringing her plump tail forward and stroking the tuft of fur at its tip with her fingers, Jina responded, “Doesn’t that mean the Dragon is that pleased with Your Ladyship, Shamaness?”

“I don’t need such favors.”

Her escort, Jina… had to let out a faint sigh, listening to Seoryeong’s complaints that had started again today.

“…After the ritual, a purification bath is scheduled.”

“Oh, really?”

Because sometimes, if she didn’t throw out such bait, her mistress would keep pouting and grumbling all day.

“Yes.”

For some reason, Jina sighed in relief at Seoryeong’s truly delighted expression regarding the purification bath—a ritual where the shrine’s shamanesses gathered to cleanse their minds and bodies.

“However, recently, we’ve heard through others that Your Ladyship, Shamaness, has been giving them sharp glances.”

“Ugh.”

“Please, be careful.”

“Yeees…”

Jina had to seriously consider if Seoryeong, who bore the duty of remaining pure as a sacrifice to the Dragon, had finally turned her attention to women.

“Then, I will go assist with the ritual preparations, so please call me if you need anything.”

“Alright.”

After Jina, who had been sighing repeatedly, left.

‘…Did I stare too overtly?’

Seoryeong had to scratch her head with a troubled expression, recalling what Jina had just told her.

‘But what can I do? That’s the only good thing about becoming a woman’s body.’

Although she often heard she had a pretty face, Seoryeong had, until five years ago, lived as a sturdy boy.

She had become a woman after drinking a strange potion delivered through a minister, and then officially became a shamaness, gaining her current alien body… but fundamentally, she liked women.

Even aside from her alien body, there were the two luscious fruits of her chest, which the male Seoryeong would have stared at for a long time, as well as her milky white skin, thin waist, and wide hips.

It was a body so beautiful that she sometimes wondered if it was truly hers, but ultimately, the strange reluctance she felt thinking of this body as her own made Seoryeong turn her gaze away.

‘Well, I guess I can just look appropriately.’

Anyway, those who became shamanesses were all exceptionally beautiful. It would be a loss not to look.

“By the way, the civil service examination…”

Seoryeong slowly rose from her seat and began preparing to change into her ritual attire, tilting her head with an expression that still showed her lack of understanding.

“…Isn’t the exam taken with one’s mind? Why do they need luck?”

It was truly baffling, but what could she do if they needed it? As someone who bought snacks like today with the crumbs that fell from performing the role of an Exorcist Shamaness, she had no choice but to comply without complaint.

Kneading, kneading.

Seoryeong, who was kneading her chest with her hands as if trying to find peace of mind, mumbled, “Ughh… I should start moving.”

With a monologue that had now become a complete habit, she stretched widely… and once again, began to move her steps out of the flower garden.

****

Half a shijin later.

“Exorcist Shamaness, Seo Seoryeong.”

Seoryeong arrived, wearing an outfit similar to her morning attire but slightly different—a special outfit prepared for an Exorcist Shamaness—over which she wore a milky white durumagi, adorned with numerous hanging decorations.

“……”

She quietly looked around, thinking something like—‘I clearly heard they wanted a ritual for good fortune because of the upcoming civil service examination—’

“Ohh, that’s the one…!”

“Indeed, what a truly wondrous sight.”

What was revealed was her snowy white, silk-like hair, vertically elongated golden eyes, and yellow, coral-shaped horns growing on her head.

Even though she hadn’t yet revealed her tail or the scales on her hands and feet, those who had requested the ritual were already staring at her as if she were a strange creature.

‘Remember this. An Exorcist Shamaness must not lose composure under any circumstances.’

‘Your divine fate is dedicated to the Dragon, so think only of that.’

‘Always remember that your body is not your own.’

It was a familiar reality. Seoryeong’s body was hers, yet not hers.

‘If you lose composure, calamities will befall the nation. Therefore, always maintain proper conduct.’

‘Homeland? That is not permissible. If you leave this place, calamities will strike various regions, and many people will die.’

‘Do not worry. As long as you serve the Dragon, your family will be safe, and indeed, this entire nation will be at peace.’

Therefore, with the start of the ritual, Seoryeong quietly suppressed her emotions.

‘I am the Exorcist Shamaness. The one who takes on the nation’s calamities in its stead.’

Recalling the words that had been ceaselessly whispered into her ear for the past five years.

‘My body is dedicated to the Dragon. I must follow the instructions of the nation and the shrine.’

In front of the people who were sipping wine and treating her as a spectacle, the Shamaness danced.

She had no specialized shamanic knowledge.

She had merely learned how to sing and dance. To sing and dance with that beautiful body and voice, to please the Dragon. To please the nation.

That was all she had learned over the past five years.

Therefore, it was no longer a ritual… yet, the one person dancing under everyone’s gaze, Seoryeong, did not notice.

Because five years was far too long a time to break down the world he had lived in for sixteen years and reconstruct it anew.