Kirin reaches Namgi’s body in the river, nudging his shoulder with his nose. When Namgi opens his eyes, I sigh with relief. With Kirin’s prodding, Namgi grabs on to Kirin’s neck and pulls himself onto the beast’s broad back. Slowly, so as not to let Namgi fall, Kirin begins heading back to shore.
A loud screech draws my gaze to the sky. A sea snake circles in the air above the river, eyeing Kirin and Namgi. If it attacks, it will be disastrous. Even if Kirin can fight in his beast form, he can’t risk dropping Namgi.
With one hand, I grab my great-great-grandmother’s knife, and my skirt with the other. Turning, I sprint from the river, back toward the city. When I hear the scream in the air, I know the sea snake has spotted me. I pump my legs, moving as fast as I can.
I know what I’m doing is reckless. Namgi and Kirin would never ask me to risk my life for theirs. But I can’t help it. It’s true that people do the most desperate things for those they love. Some might even call it a sacrifice—maybe that’s what people believed when I jumped into the sea in place of Shim Cheong. But I think it might be the other way around. I think it would be a terrible sacrifice to do nothing.
And never was it for anyone’s sake but my own. I couldn’t endure in a world where I did nothing, where I let those I love suffer and be hurt. If I had stayed home, if I had never run after Joon, if I had never jumped into the sea, there would have been such a hole in my heart—the emptiness of having done nothing at all.
Still, as I look at the snakes chasing me, the snakes in front of me, blocking my way, I wish the circumstances weren’t always so dire.
I’ve reached the main boulevard outside the Sea God’s palace. The wide-open space is overrun with sea snakes slithering down every alley and climbing over the many rooftops. I’m surrounded. My chest pounds with the pressure from my lungs. My shoulder aches from the wound left by the assassin.
The sea snakes converge upon me, large and terrifying. I brandish my knife with two hands. I can see the faces of people watching me from the buildings. Earlier, a boy had called me the Sea God’s bride and asked me for a kiss. I won’t disappoint him now. After all, I am a Sea God’s bride. Maybe not the Sea God’s bride, but a girl who wished, in a world far distant from this one, for a different fate from the one I’d been given, one I could grasp on to and never let go.
A tremendous roar shakes the city.
I look up.
The dragon crashes down from the sky.
The dragon is massive, three times the size of the largest snake. It sweeps its long tail through the street, hurtling Imugi against buildings. As a pack, the Imugi attempt to close in on the dragon, but it lashes out, thrashing and flailing. A freezing wind picks up. Shards of ice like glass whip out from the air, piercing the thick hides of the snakes. One by one, the snakes fall to the ground, transforming into men. The rest take to the air, screaming their defeat.
The dragon, terrible and bloody, lets out another roar. It twists its head wildly in search of a new enemy.
I take a step back, only to trip on the steps of the Sea God’s palace. The dragon catches the movement. Unlike on the boat, when my anger gave me courage, my fear overwhelms me. The dragon prowls across the distance between us, all four of its curved claws digging great holes in the broken ground.
“Mina!”
Shin stands on the roof of the nearest building. He leaps off, rolls on the ground, then sprints toward me. Reaching me, he pulls me into his arms. He smells of sweat, blood, and salt. I hold him close and draw strength from his heartbeats.
He releases me, placing his body between the dragon and me. “I won’t let you hurt her.”
I catch my breath, reminded of Joon and Cheong on the boat.
The dragon lowers its head, baring row upon row of deadly fangs. Shin unsheathes his sword, his hand opening to reposition itself, grasping the hilt strongly. His shoulders tense, ready to strike.
A new voice interrupts. “My soul would never hurt my bride.”
The Sea God stands on the steps of the palace.
He’s dressed in full ceremonial robes. The gilded seal upon his chest depicts the dragon as it appears now, powerful and ferocious. The god himself looks pale, but undeniably awake.
Then the rumors are true. The Sea God woke because of that night, when I held him in my arms as his sorrow rained down upon both worlds.
My hands begin to shake, and I hide them in my skirts.
“I have served you well, my lord,” Shin says, lowering his sword. “I have guarded your home. I have guarded your person—”