Chapter 65
A look of genuine admiration appeared on his face.
"Your clan's acupoint striking technique is incredible. I don't feel any cold at all."
"The effect won't last long, so hurry up!"
Splash, splash.
Before long, Yang Do-jin was swimming with the water up to his neck.
Watching him, Deng Soso said, "Oh, Hong-seol, you’d better transform back into a cat. It’ll be cold when So-rang comes out..."
"Ah!"
Realizing what Deng Soso meant, Hong-seol performed a nimble somersault in the air.
'When So-rang comes out, I must wrap her in a warm embrace. My fur is warm, after all.'
At times like this, she felt so fortunate to be a cat.
Soon, Yang Do-jin had almost reached the center of the pond.
Hong-seol and Deng Soso watched him from afar, their hearts pounding with anxiety.
"Meow!"
"Give it a little more effort!"
The moment Yang Do-jin finally managed to touch the body of the child dangling there, a sinister voice echoed low through the cave.
"Heh heh, a little mouse has scurried in."
"Eek!"
No sooner had Deng Soso screamed than a dozen men appeared.
Every one of them was dressed in black from head to toe, and somewhere on their arms or legs, they bore tattoos shaped like black feathers.
"Damn it! I didn't hear their footsteps!"
Yang Do-jin’s desperate cry rang out.
Because his senses had been dulled by the meridian sealing, even his ears had failed to detect the approach of the Black Eagle Gang members.
Terrified, Hong-seol and Deng Soso took a couple of steps back.
With their backs to the pond, the children had nowhere to run.
Knowing this, the men did not rush.
"To think that mere mice would dare lay a hand on the precious medicinal ingredients we’ve been preparing."
'Do-jin was right!'
Hearing those words, Hong-seol felt dizzy, as if struck by lightning.
'T-they really were... kidnapping children to make medicine!'
Even though the Black Eagle Gang belonged to the Unorthodox Faction, she hadn't thought they would go so far as to commit such acts.
Every hair on her body stood on end.
"Don't move!"
One of the men in black approached them.
Deng Soso, holding one hand up in the air, quickly stepped in front of Hong-seol.
"Get back!"
"......!"
Hong-seol was startled, but Deng Soso glared at the men and whispered quietly.
"You can't turn into a human in front of them, can you?"
"Meoooow...!"
Hong-seol, who had been about to say she could fight too, hesitated.
'Perhaps this could be my chance for a counterattack.'
If she could take advantage of their carelessness, since they didn't know she was human!
Hong-seol narrowed her eyes and glared at the man in black.
Unaware of this, one of the men with a black feather tattooed on his forearm grinned hideously.
"I’ll make sure the one who kneels obediently is the very last one used as an ingredient."
"That will never happen!"
Like a true child of a martial family, Deng Soso, who knew that momentum was everything in a fight, shouted sharply.
Deng Soso gritted her teeth and pushed away the hand the man reached out with. She even attempted a counterattack by striking his acupoints.
"Oh, not bad!"
But the gap in Inner Energy between an adult and a child was insurmountable.
"Is that all you've got?"
Tap, tap.
The opponent pushed Deng Soso around with ease, as if playing a game.
'What should I do...! Is there nothing I can do?'
Just then, something caught Hong-seol’s eye.
'What is that?'
A small earthen pit by the pond.
Inside were scattered shards of broken pottery and dregs of unidentified medicinal herbs.
'Someone must have been staying there.'
Among them, one peculiar object caught Hong-seol’s attention.
It was a long rope hanging in front of the pit.
'Is that... a fire-starter hanging there?'
She had seen the Azure Sky Unit members carry them when they went on long missions.
They said the long, rod-shaped fire-starter was a miraculous item that would ignite the moment you opened the cap and blew on it.
They were said to be incredibly expensive, too.
'Why on earth would something like that be in a pit like this?'
Hong-seol tilted her head, puzzled by the out-of-place item.
At that moment, a memory surfaced.
It was something the Clan Lord, Namgung On, had once told her.
"It’s good to train your martial arts with your grandfather, but if you ever want to learn about formations or mechanical traps later on, come to me."
Hong-seol’s ears had perked up at his intriguing words.
"Mechanical traps? Do you mean things where traps pop out, poison arrows fly, and things like that?"
"Yes. Usually, they are installed to stop intruders. There are many in the Namgung Clan, so you must always be careful when walking around alone."
"Wow, how do I spot things like that?"
At Namgung On’s narrowed, suspicious gaze, Hong-seol had made an excuse in a voice no louder than an ant’s.
"No, I didn't mean I’d walk around alone..."
Hong-seol had already followed the Clan Lord, Namgung On, in the middle of the night once before.
Namgung On had sighed slightly before saying, "Spotting mechanical traps is easy, Hong-seol."
"Yes?"
"Anything that isn't natural. You must view such things with suspicion."
A rope and a fire-starter hanging in front of a small pit.
'Yes, that must be one of those mechanical traps I heard about!'
If the person who stayed in that pit had installed a trap, there could only be one reason.
'To stop any potential intruders!'
"Meow!"
At Hong-seol’s sharp cry, with her tail puffed up, Deng Soso and Yang Do-jin looked at her in unison.
Hong-seol quickly began to run toward the small pit by the pond. Behind her, one of the Black Eagle Gang members asked, "Brother! Should we catch it?"
The man fighting Deng Soso scoffed at the sight.
"Why bother with a cat? Leave it."
That was when it happened.
Deng Soso pushed her opponent away with all her might.
"Oops!"
While the distracted opponent stumbled, Soso flew toward Hong-seol.
"Do-jin!"
"I'm coming!"
Do-jin, who had untied the rope from So-rang’s body, also shot toward the small pit, following Hong-seol.
Hong-seol, holding the fire-starter with both front paws, popped the cap and blew on it.
Rumble!
A sound like thunder, as if rocks were shattering, echoed out.
Soon, thick dust rose into the air.
* * *
"Cough, cough!"
"What happened? Are we alive?"
Beside Yang Do-jin, who was rubbing his eyes reddened by the dust, Deng Soso, covered in bruises, looked around.
The little cat Hong-seol and the young So-rang were there too. The four of them were now inside the small pit.
The entrance had been blocked by a pile of dirt and rocks due to the mechanical trap Hong-seol had triggered.
"Meow!"
Hong-seol ran on all fours and hugged So-rang. She hugged her so tightly that even her tail was pressed firmly against the child’s body.
But So-rang’s body was ice-cold. Hong-seol let out a mournful cry.
"Meow!"
Then Deng Soso came over and hugged Hong-seol and So-rang tightly.
Exhausted, Yang Do-jin also managed to stretch out his arms and pull them into a hug.
Thump, thump, thump...
Thanks to this, the three of them could feel each other’s heartbeats.
Even though they hadn't known each other for long, they felt like family.
As time passed, So-rang’s pale blue lips gradually regained their color.
Noticing that warmth had returned to So-rang’s body, Hong-seol let out a sound of joy.
"Meow!"
A look of relief spread across Deng Soso’s face as well.
"Hehe... we made it, So-rang."
"Haa. Haa."
Yang Do-jin collapsed backward with a sigh of relief.
And as if he had no regrets, he said, "We’re... going to die here, aren't we?"
At those words, no one answered for a while.
Do-jin was right.
They had managed to avoid the Black Eagle Gang members by using the mechanical trap someone had installed in a hurry.
But as a result, the four of them were trapped in a pitch-black earthen pit.
It was a narrow refuge with neither water nor light.
If they stayed like this for just three days, the children would die.
But Hong-seol had something to rely on.
'The Namgung Clan members will definitely come to save me!'
Because she believed that, Hong-seol had been able to boldly trigger the mechanical trap.
If, by any chance, they abandoned her and didn't come...
'I don't think I’d want to live any longer anyway.'
That might have been different if she hadn't known such love existed in her life.
Having already realized that there was sunlight in the world, the child could no longer stay in a dark cave.
'Grandfather... Clan Lord, Head of the Medical Hall, Brother Baek, Brother Heuk, Jeok, Grand Lord of the Azure Sky Unit, Elder Namgung Muyeong, Maeran...!'
Hong-seol endured the silence, repeating the names of the people she missed in her heart.
"Hey, if we manage to get out of here safely, do you want the three of us to be friends?"
Yang Do-jin, who had been quiet the whole time, suddenly spoke up.
Deng Soso, who had been secretly sniffling, replied bluntly, "A beggar and a young lady of a martial family being friends? What nonsense! ...But I like it."
"Meow?"
At the words that started and ended so differently, Hong-seol’s eyes grew as round as apricot seeds.
"It’s a special situation right now. If we’ve crossed a line of death like this together, we’re friends. What about you, Seol-ah?"
"Meow!"
Hong-seol nodded, expressing her agreement repeatedly.
"Good, once we get out, the three of us will be friends."
Even then, they all remained silent for a long time.
Just then, there was a loud thud, and suddenly, a single ray of light leaked inside.
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