Before I End Up as Rabbit Stew - Chapter 4

As befitting their reputation, the Four Guardian Gods each oversaw distinct domains. Among the four, Baihu (White Tiger) and Zhuque (Vermilion Bird) were responsible for the celestial directions. Consequently, they could enroll in the Oreum Academy upon reaching a certain age.

In contrast, Xuanwu (Black Tortoise) governed the underworld, the realm of the dead, making him a figure rarely seen even by fellow deities. The same held true for the Four Guardian Gods, who were said to share a common destiny.

“You’re going to ride that?”

Chaesang was terrified as he watched the smoothly rotating pulley.

The bucket, moving up and down through the thick clouds, was suspended over the Red Earth Realm’s Crystal Lake. Deep beneath the earth, the lake, studded endlessly with crystals, gushed forth clear water year-round. The Moon Palace used the bucket to draw crystal water for making ambrosia.

“Yes.”

Yimae’s face was resolute, as if her mind was already made up.

The palace of the final Guardian God, the Black Dragon, was located in the Red Earth Realm. From ancient times, the Dragon God had ruled the Red Earth Realm, the land of humans. Perhaps the Red Earth Realm was even more dreaded by the celestial beings than the underworld, the land of death. The reason why the Dragon, of all the Guardian Gods, came to be the guardian deity of such a place was unclear.

Even Yimae, who had studied the history of the Red Earth Realm, the celestial gods, and the Four Guardian Gods, couldn’t recall any specific reason.

In any case, being in the Red Earth Realm made the Black Dragon an even more elusive deity than Xuanwu, the king of the underworld. He rarely visited the celestial realm, perhaps once every hundred years, and even then, it was only for a quick, formal visit to the Celestial Emperor’s palace to register marriages or deaths.

“We don’t have wingsuits brimming with spiritual power like the Moon Palace’s Moon Maidens. This is the only way down.”

“We? Me too?”

Yimae grabbed Chaesang’s hesitating shoulders. Her eyes narrowed slyly as she smiled at Chaesang.

“Remember the forbidden herb for becoming human?”

Chaesang quickly looked around, then hunched forward.

“The Other Shore Flower is a poisonous and forbidden herb! Don’t you know you can’t even speak its name carelessly?”

“You just said the name.”

“That’s because you…”

“You have a good rhythm.”

Since ancient times, the celestial realm had used the Other Shore Flower to punish deities who committed grave offenses. Becoming human was an indelible disgrace for deities, a humiliation they would rather choose annihilation over. Thus, whenever someone was punished with the Other Shore Flower, there was an outcry throughout the celestial realm that the punishment was too severe. As a result, it had become one of the least-used forms of punishment.

The Other Shore Flower, once used solely for punishment, was placed on the list of forbidden herbs when the Celestial Emperor changed his mind about punishment. Therefore, even the top graduate of the Oreum Academy, Teacher To, had only seen it in literature or illustrations, never in person.

“If there’s even one root of the Other Shore Flower in the Black Dragon’s palace, becoming human is a piece of cake.”

“You don’t mean you’re going to eat it…?”

“What’s not to eat?”

Yimae smacked her lips. Among the forbidden herbs growing like weeds in the Black Dragon’s palace, surely there would be one or two roots of the Other Shore Flower? She was willing to dig a tunnel in the Black Dragon’s palace wall for seven days and nights if necessary. Her small, dainty, furry ears twitched.

“What if you get caught by the Black Dragon God?”

Chaesang shuddered at the mere thought of the Black Dragon.

Yimae also knew a lot about the Black Dragon. It wasn’t just because she had studied the history of the Four Guardian Gods at the Oreum Academy. It wasn’t even because of the fleeting moment they had encountered each other on graduation day. It was because of the countless rumors surrounding him, a deity who rarely visited the celestial realm.

“They say he’s the most ruthless tyrant in the world, and he drinks blood raw.”

His cold eyes were colder than ice, freezing anyone who met them. He didn’t speak even once a year, so cobwebs grew in his mouth. The rumors had intensified after the death of his mother, the previous Black Dragon. It was even said that the bones of beasts and people littered the Black Dragon’s palace.

“They say he drinks wine from those skulls.”

Yimae’s expression became indifferent.

“Rumors are always exaggerated one way or another.”

“Aren’t you afraid of him?”

“Look at me. I was rumored to be a reckless troublemaker during my Oreum Academy days, but that wasn’t really the case, was it?”

Chaesang frowned, as if unable to easily agree. At least, the Yimae she knew was still a reckless troublemaker, then and now. When no answer came, Yimae, feeling awkward, grabbed Chaesang’s shoulders.

“Chaesang, are you going to stay behind and do all the work? Are you going to spend your eternal life as a rice-cake-pounding slave, sometimes on your side, sometimes on mine?”

“That’s…”

Although her words trailed off, Chaesang suddenly seemed to snap out of it. She couldn’t possibly do the work that was difficult even for two people alone without Yimae. Besides, Chaesang was also a talented rabbit who had learned as much as she could at the Oreum Academy. Although she didn’t express it, she might have resented living as a low-ranking member of the Moon Palace in a corner of her small heart.

“But… is this safe?”

Chaesang swallowed hard and looked at Yimae. But even as she spoke, the Moon Rabbits knew it was just a worry.

Since coming to the Moon Palace, they had never heard of the pulley breaking down or the rope snapping. Years ago, a human woodcutter had even come up on the bucket, causing the Moon Palace to be turned upside down in shock.

“Surely we’re not heavier than a human.”

Yimae held out a hand to Chaesang. The important thing wasn’t the safety of the bucket. It was their mindset. The determination to leave the Moon Palace, which they had thought would be their home for life, and to seek a new life.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained! The two rabbits’ eyes were filled with determination.

“We’ll jump on three.”

Yimae said firmly, looking at the approaching bucket. Chaesang hesitated, but held Yimae’s hand tightly.

“One, two.”

And Yimae jumped towards the bucket. Chaesang, expecting three, screamed and came down with her. Yimae, knowing that her friend was the type to tap a stone bridge thousands of times before crossing it, had used her head.

The two rabbits landed safely inside the bucket. Because their weight was so light, the bucket didn’t shake and simply moved quietly towards the Red Earth Realm.

“Three.”

Yimae added, as if nothing had happened.

“You really…!”

Seeing her friend’s stunned expression, Yimae clutched her stomach. The sound of the pulley turning gradually faded away. The Moon Rabbits admired the vast starry sky that unfolded outside the bucket.

The giant constellations that the Celestial Emperor had planted as gatekeepers to separate the Red Earth Realm from the celestial realm occasionally shook their bodies. The gently spreading stardust created an endless Milky Way.

“It’s beautiful.”

Chaesang’s voice was dazed, as if she had fallen in love anew. Yimae, leaving behind the sight of a large eagle constellation preening its feathers, looked down at the ground.

“You know that’s the lake, right? We should get ready.”

Get ready for what? But Chaesang soon knew the reason without having to ask. The Crystal Lake, colder than ice, was right in front of them. Yimae and Chaesang held onto the rope tightly, preparing to face the water.

“Here we go.”

This time, Chaesang spoke first with a determined expression. Yimae took a deep breath. With a splash, the bucket submerged into the lake. The ripples rose to just below their eyes.

They got out of the bucket as quickly as possible. If they missed the timing, the bucket would go back up to the Moon Palace, which they were sick of. The Moon Rabbits swam hard, finally emerging from the cold, damp water.

“We’ll freeze to death before we become human.”

Yimae, who had come out of the lake first, pulled Chaesang up. The two took a moment to catch their breath on a small hill covered with short grass. The clear, yet somewhat salty and humid air of the Red Earth Realm swept through their lungs. After panting for a long time and regaining her regular breathing, Chaesang asked.

“But do you even know where the Black Dragon’s palace is?”

“No.”

“Huh?”

Hearing the confident answer, Chaesang was speechless.

Yimae stretched her short arms. She lay down on the hill in a starfish position and looked up at the sky. The faint moonlight began to swirl in her dark reddish-brown eyes, the light of the Moon Palace, the place they had lived until just now.

“We can just find it from now on.”

I’m never going back there again. Ten years is really enough. So muttered Yimae, and with a shout, she got up. She quickly shook off the water from her snout to her tail, as if vibrating. The rabbit regained her fluffy fur, as if someone had filled her with warm air.

“Let’s go! We’re going to become human before dawn!”

As if intending to use it for self-defense, Yimae managed to find a dead branch. It was much softer and smaller than a wooden sword, but at least it seemed like it could fend off the carnivorous beasts that roamed the Red Earth Realm’s forests.

“Once we get down the hill, there should be some kind of signpost…”

“Yimae, we don’t need to.”

Chaesang calmly grabbed Yimae’s shoulder. Yimae, who had been tapping the ground with the branch to calm her excited heart, stopped. Chaesang’s snow-white paw pointed to just below the hill.

“There.”

There stood a dilapidated building that was hard to call a palace. If Chaesang hadn’t pointed it out, one would have thought it was just an unkempt mountain.

Yimae went closer to get a better look at the sign hanging above the gate. And when she found the black dragon emblem, the symbol of the Black Dragon, she dropped the branch with a thud.

“Could that be… the Black Dragon’s palace?”

Support Before I End Up as Rabbit Stew