Chapter 151

As Jun-sang rose, the two women were startled and quickly reverted to their human forms. Then they saw the massive iron balls in his hands. They had no idea where they had suddenly appeared, but they figured it was the same kind of phenomenon as their own body transformations. The problem was why he had taken them out.

They had their doubts, but one of their comrades had died on his own accord as ordered. And considering the rat-man had died just for making eye contact with him, it would be foolish to step forward on their own.

The short-haired woman squeezed her eyes shut and quickly blurted out, “W-we’ve dealt with one, as you ordered.”

“…”

Jun-sang stopped walking and just stared at them. Now that they were back in human form, their pale lower bodies were exposed from their torn pants. It was a sight that would make a lustful person’s mouth water. But Jun-sang looked at them with cold, settled eyes and spoke quietly.

“Why must the taboo be observed?”

The two women were momentarily flustered by Jun-sang’s sudden question. But in the next instant, they thought of it as a kind of lecture. If he was here to sanction those who had broken the taboo, there must be a valid reason for him to grant them forgiveness. The question he just asked must be a part of that process.

With that thought, the women remained prostrate on the floor, hurriedly speaking what they knew, like young job seekers in a corporate interview.

“Well… because it was personally decreed by the noble masters of the Seven Stars…” The short-haired woman spoke first, but Jun-sang showed no reaction. Of course, his expression didn’t change, but his mind was busy organizing their words and gathering information.

With no reaction from Jun-sang, the long-haired woman quickly added, “It is to prepare for the coming Day of Harvest without any issues.”

Day of Harvest. What was that supposed to mean? Jun-sang wanted to ask about it, but it wouldn’t be natural to ask about the Day of Harvest while questioning them about the taboo. He waited for a moment, hoping to hear more. But the women seemed to know nothing more and just looked around anxiously. So, Jun-sang changed his question.

“What is the taboo?”

As a new question came from Jun-sang, the two trembling women were relieved that they had passed the first question and answered in unison.

“Unless there is a valid reason, we must not do anything that would have a great impact on their society.”

“While fulfilling our desires and gaining power, we must be careful with our actions so they do not become aware of us before the Day of Harvest.”

The expressions were slightly different, but the meaning was roughly the same. The problem was the Day of Harvest was mentioned again. What exactly were they trying to harvest? In some science fiction novels, Earth is described as a ranch artificially created to use human bodies. The first thing that came to Jun-sang’s mind was something like that, but if that were the case, he wondered why they needed to wait for the Day of Harvest. They could easily achieve their goal with the power they had now.

Of course, they might be waiting for transportation or have other complex reasons, but if they had existed since before the Returnees appeared, wouldn’t it be better to act quickly rather than wait for a threat to emerge?

As Jun-sang fell silent again, the two women trembled, thinking they might have given the wrong answer. Fortunately, new words came from Jun-sang’s lips.

“Why are you here?”

As the third question came, the two women again spoke what they knew.

“To prepare for the Day of Harvest.”

The short-haired woman answered as if she had been waiting, but perhaps thinking it was not enough, the long-haired woman added an explanation. “To prepare and gain strength so there will be no issues with what the masters of the Seven Stars are planning for that day.”

In the end, only one thing was important: the Day of Harvest. And it seemed that the truly crucial information could only be obtained from the entity they referred to as “he,” who directly managed the Dark Seed users scattered across the land, or from the masters of the Seven Stars themselves.

Jun-sang had gleaned a certain amount of information and knew that no more would come from the women. If he were to ask for more, it would be about how they obtained the Dark Seed, but that didn’t fit the flow of the conversation, and he could easily guess the answer would be “he.”

So, Jun-sang looked at the two women for a moment and spoke again. “I will give you a chance.”

“…”

Upon hearing that, the two women unconsciously clenched their fists. They felt that the word “chance” meant he would let them live.

“I will give you three chances. Guess who I am.”

“…”

But at Jun-sang’s next words, the two women grew tense again. The masters of the Seven Stars were eight people. Their names were taken from the stars of the Big Dipper, which decide human fate. Even though they were called the masters of the seven stars, there were eight of them because there was one more star that was not easily visible to the naked eye.

The names of these stars differ depending on the culture, but in the East, the common names for the seven stars are Tanlang, Geumun, Nokjon, Mungok, Yeomjeong, Mugok, and Pagun, and they also include the eighth star, Sajo-seong. In the West, they are similarly known as Dubhe, Merak, Phecda, Megrez, Alioth, Mizar, and Alkaid, with the name Alcor corresponding to the eighth star.

The problem was which of these eight this man belonged to. Although they often talked about the masters of the seven stars, the two women had never seen them and had never heard about their appearances. That was why they had immediately mistaken Jun-sang for a member of the Seven Stars because he was so much stronger than them. But with his offer of three chances, the women’s minds were now unconsciously convinced that Jun-sang was indeed one of the Seven Stars.

“Could you… give us a moment to discuss?” The short-haired woman, thinking it was a lost cause, quickly raised her hand and asked, but Jun-sang did not answer. Instead, he intensified the Gaze of Fear, the Evil Eye, and the Mad Dog’s Dignity.

“Hic!”

Overwhelmed by Jun-sang’s pressure, the short-haired woman couldn’t dare to speak anymore. She bowed her head to the ground and begged for forgiveness. “S-sorry. Please forgive me.” She had been given a great favor with just the opportunity, and she had dared to ask a question. The short-haired woman felt the urge to sew her own mouth shut and apologized fervently, but Jun-sang was merciless.

“Two chances left.”

“…”

The long-haired woman, who had been silent, turned her head slightly and glared at the short-haired woman with a resentful look. It was due to her anger at having wasted one of their three precious chances.

The long-haired woman glared at the short-haired woman for a moment and then cautiously opened her mouth. “Could you… be Pagun-seong, or Alkaid?”

Pagun-seong, the seventh star of the Big Dipper, presides over battle, destruction, and annihilation. In terms of attributes, it corresponds to metal, which roughly fit Jun-sang’s appearance holding two large iron balls. The long-haired woman had answered by piecing together everything she knew and didn’t know, but through her answer, Jun-sang was able to confirm that the “seven stars” referred to the Big Dipper.

Jun-sang answered quietly.

“One chance left.”

“…”

They had been overjoyed when they received three chances, but now with only one chance left after having wasted two, the two women were sweating profusely and agonizing over their choice.

Of course, Jun-sang had no intention of letting them live from the beginning. Asking them to guess his identity was only a means to get more specific information about the masters of the seven stars. But the two women, who knew nothing of this, agonized over their choice. They exchanged looks and gestures and then answered in unison.

“A-are you the eighth master… the star Sajo-seong… or Alcor?”

Even they themselves had no confidence in that answer. However, they had a hunch that since he was here secretly to sanction those who had broken the taboo, he might be the master of the eighth star, the most secretive and ominous of the seven stars.

Of course, Jun-sang’s answer was simple.

“Wrong.”

As his words fell, the two women felt as if a thunderclap had struck inside their heads, and they fell into a swamp of despair. It was too shocking that all three chances they had painstakingly obtained were gone.

But as Jun-sang slowly raised the iron balls, the short-haired woman urgently grabbed his leg and begged.

“P-please, please spare me. I will do anything you want. So…”

Saying that, the short-haired woman took off the rest of her shirt, revealing her fair skin without filter. In her final moments, she had decided to abandon all the pride she had maintained until now and use the only remaining means she had: her body.

As the short-haired woman came at him with a physical appeal, the long-haired woman also thought it was a good idea and quickly threw off her clothes and clung to Jun-sang’s feet. “I will be your slave. No, you can treat me like livestock. Just please spare me.”

Although they had minor wounds and dirt from the battle just moments ago, the women’s bodies were attractive enough to make any man take a second glance.

But Jun-sang’s gaze was as cold as ever. Of course, it wasn’t that he hadn’t considered using the women as his subordinates to get information or to operate in the shadows. But most of all, Jun-sang had no way to monitor them or force their actions. He had already used up all his pet collars to make the fairy queen Lyches obey him.

Moreover, even if he had a spare pet collar, Jun-sang could not trust these women at all. When their survival was at stake, they had brutally murdered their comrade without a moment’s hesitation. Of course, from their conversation, he could understand that there had been friction between them, but even so, the fact that they had abandoned their comrade like a worn-out shoe did not change.

In the end, even if they were to obey Jun-sang, they would surely betray him again for their own survival if the same situation arose. What could Jun-sang possibly see in them that would make him trust them?

The women begged as if they were going to lick his shoes—they were actually licking Jun-sang’s boots with their tongues—but Jun-sang looked at them with a cold gaze and brought the iron balls in his hands down upon them.