ESTC Chapter 16

Surely I must have had some romantic tension with quite a few older women in my previous life?

I even had a bit of something going with a fairly famous actress.

She was three years older than me, and would occasionally contact me after broadcasts, and we even met privately for meals.

At first, I thought that was just her personality.

But after our second dinner together.

At a cozy wine bar, tipsy on wine, she asked me:

“Fabre-ya, would you like to date your noona? I’ve taken quite a liking to you.”

“What!?”

A heavy curveball. No, more like a nuclear fastball.

At the time, I was just a relatively small-time YouTuber with a hundred thousand subscribers.

Caught off guard, I asked for a few days to think about it, and my eventual answer was an apology.

“I’m sorry, noona. I’m just a YouTuber with a hundred thousand subscribers, and moreover, I’m just a regular person. You’re a celebrity. Since I’m just an ordinary person broadcasting what I like, I don’t think someone insignificant like me could date you. It would be disrespectful to you…”

Then, after staring at me intently, she replied with a disappointed expression:

“I’m a bit disappointed…”

“I-I’m sorry for giving such an answer…”

“No, I’m not disappointed about being rejected. I’m disappointed that the person I like has such little confidence in himself.”

I had thought she was disappointed about being rejected by me, but her response indicated that I was the disappointment.

It felt like being hit on the head with a hammer.

“Even if someone’s unemployed and has nothing, if they have their own vision, their own dreams, and they’re working toward those dreams – that’s what makes them attractive. If you were sorry for being nothing special now, you could have at least said you’d become the world’s greatest poison YouTuber, that you’d make me regret my choice. Even if it sounded absurd, that would have been cool…”

Now, recalling that memory from the past, I faced the young lady before the pavilion and asked.

Since it seemed the young lady was asking me to present my vision.

“I thought hard about it yesterday. About being a Ten Poisons Body. Only being able to accept ten poisons. The highest realm an untalented commoner could reach, you said?”

“Th-that…”

“So I had this thought. If I can only accept ten poisons, what if I filled those ten poisons with the poisons of the Ten Great Venomous Creatures?”

“The Ten Great Venomous Creatures!?”

“Yes, if I filled all my Ten Poisons with the Ten Great Venomous Creatures, would that give Miss Hwa-eun confidence? If I promise to fill my Ten Poisons with the poisons of the Central Plains’ Ten Great Venomous Creatures, what would you say?”

Following the advice of that noona from my previous life.

I went for it.

Whatever the reason, I couldn’t let myself get rejected without even making a confession, could I?

At my question, the young lady’s ears slowly turned bright red.

She slowly turned her head to the side and asked in a slightly flustered voice:

“D-do you understand what you’re saying right now?”

“No, I don’t!”

I answered honestly.

How could I know? I just said I’d fill my ten poison slots with the Ten Great Venomous Creatures.

The young lady continued to explain:

“That path will be incredibly difficult and challenging. And it’s not something that can be achieved in just a year or two. Ten years, twenty years, thirty years – no, it might be something you’ll have to strive for your entire life. That’s what you’re proposing right now.”

‘It, it takes that long? But didn’t you say to make a big declaration even if it sounds absurd, noona!’

Just when I thought I’d failed after confirming that the tastes of the noonas from my past and present lives were different.

The young lady slowly nodded and answered.

“Very well, Young Master Soryong. I heard you’re fifteen years old. Three years until you come of age and can be married. If you can succeed with even just one of the Ten Great Venomous Creatures within three years, that would be enough to give me certainty. Even one would be sufficient to show your po-potential.”

‘This is actually working?’

The young lady’s okay.

Just as I was thanking the noona from my previous life for giving me sage advice, the young lady suddenly stood up and began quickly distancing herself from me.

Though the situation was completely thrilling, I couldn’t just let the young lady leave like this.

After all, there were still things that needed to be taken care of in this situation.

I quickly called out to stop the young lady.

“Hwa-eun!”

She halted her swift retreat.

Maintaining her retreating posture, she answered while looking anywhere but at me:

“D-do you still have something to say?”

Though she seemed quite embarrassed, I couldn’t let her leave just yet.

The little ones would be hungry, and we still needed to perform the “treatment” that was really a curse removal.

“Yes, we still need to do the treatment, don’t we? Won’t you stay for at least an hour?”

“…”

Unable to either leave or stay, the young lady slowly made her way back and sat down.

Still looking everywhere but at me.

Now it was time to begin the treatment.

I reassured the young lady with words that no pet owner should ever say.

But there was nothing else I could say.

“Our children absolutely won’t bite, so don’t worry. Come on, kids. Go to mommy instead of daddy.”

The little ones, who remembered cuddling with their mother who had the young lady’s face in last night’s dream visitation.

They climbed onto the young lady’s body without any resistance.

And I could feel them breathing more deeply than usual.

Then came the young lady’s startled voice:

“D-Daddy? M-Mommy!?”

The young lady, startled by the words daddy and mommy, now had not just her ears but her cheeks and nape turning bright red as she looked up at me with shocked eyes.

“No, that’s not what I meant… They’re just the kids, so…”

I really didn’t mean anything else by it.

***

The Blue-spotted Centipede, who had lived for three hundred years and formed an internal core, becoming a spiritual beast, had been observing what was happening inside the woman’s body.

That’s why it rejoiced greatly as soon as the dream visitation occurred again at midnight.

“Th-this is amazing, Benefactor!”

The amazing person who said to leave it to him and handled things in a righteous way.

Remembering how the woman’s heart had been beating wildly at Benefactor’s words.

That meant she had surrendered.

So there was nothing to do but bow deeply in gratitude.

Now the children could absorb the energy flowing from the internal core that had melted into the woman’s body at any time.

The Blue-spotted Centipede thought that while there were many greedy people, righteous ones were rare, and it was truly fortunate.

“Haha, well, a man must have guts and determination…”

As the Benefactor spoke with false modesty, the Blue-spotted Centipede repeatedly expressed gratitude and promised to help with anything that might be needed.

Before ascending to heaven after having its grudge resolved.

Now that its grudge was resolved, and while it might have been different if the internal core was intact, but having almost completely melted inside the woman’s body, it could no longer hold onto its soul.

If the grudge had been deeper it might have clung to the body, but with the grudge gone, it could feel itself slowly being pushed out of the woman’s body.

This would probably be the last day.

“Might there be anything I could do for you? This is my last day. Though I’m in this state, if there’s anything I can do for you, I’ll do whatever it is before I go.”

Then the Benefactor stared intently.

The Blue-spotted Centipede flinched and trembled upon sensing strong desire in that gaze.

Then came the Benefactor’s apologetic voice.

“Ahem… There is one thing…”

The answer that there was one thing.

The Blue-spotted Centipede became flustered at the gaze scanning its body.

This strong desire seemed to want something from this woman’s shell.

It seemed the Benefactor was weak to carnal desires.

Something felt off about someone it had thought righteous.

As the Blue-spotted Centipede worried about what to do if the Benefactor wanted to engage in cloud and rain pleasures with its dream-visited self.

“If you could just take that off once…”

Sure enough, a request to undress.

Thinking it couldn’t be helped for the daughters’ sake, just as it was about to undo the clothing’s knots.

“Do I need to undress?”

“Sh-shouldn’t you? But how else would you…?”

“Can’t I just return to my Blue-spotted Centipede form without undressing?”

“What?”

This made no sense at all.

Then came the Benefactor’s passionate explanation:

“Actually, I’ve never seen the great Blue-spotted Centipede form. I’d have to wait for the children to grow to see it now. So I was hoping to see it just once, even if in a dream.”

A giant centipede… It’s hard to contain my excitement.

“The children will take quite a while to grow. And seeing the fully grown form would help with raising them too. Would that be alright?”

Surprised by the sudden request to see its true form, the Blue-spotted Centipede nodded blankly and shed the woman’s body it had borrowed.

Then came an exclamation of wonder.

“Wow! It-it’s real! Does it repel water? Do the front legs step where the previous legs stepped when walking? Can I touch it? How strong is the poison? The eyes? Can you actually see with them? Are those really antennae?”

“Eh? Yes… Of course… What? The legs… Well, I never thought about it…”

After thoroughly examining the Blue-spotted Centipede’s true form, the satisfied Benefactor expressed gratitude, and the Blue-spotted Centipede had to feel another worry in its heart as it vanished.

The worry of ‘Will the daughters really be alright?’

Because the Benefactor’s gaze and touch had been unusual.

Somehow, it seemed the Benefactor preferred its centipede form over the beautiful woman’s shell.

***

The next day, I’m not sure what the young lady said, but the elders of the Tang clan were overjoyed.

They kept smiling throughout the meal, and afterward, during tea, they suddenly acknowledged me as their son-in-law.

“Yes, Young Master- no, Soryong, we heard from Hwa-eun. From now on, you’re our son-in-law.”

“What? But, the three years…?”

“Of course, the wedding can’t be held until you come of age.”

“No, that’s not what I…”

“Oh my, son-in-law! Welcome again, Soryong. I’m your mother-in-law.”

“Hahaha, now that our Hwa-eun’s match is decided, only good things will happen to our Tang clan.”

Though the young lady had clearly said I needed to succeed with at least one within three years, the elders spoke as if I was already their son-in-law.

I looked at the young lady with eyes asking for an explanation, but she calmly sipped her tea with flushed cheeks.

‘What’s this? Is this a hint to act accordingly? Ah! Perhaps they’re speaking this way in case there would be an uproar if they mentioned the condition? Then, to avoid causing trouble for the young lady, I should probably play along.’

In this era, if the clan head and father pushed for something, it would be asking for a beating if the young lady were to say absolutely not or attach conditions.

Since we couldn’t hold the wedding until I turned eighteen, the legal age of adulthood in this era, and if I succeeded in the meantime our condition would naturally become moot, that seemed to be how they wanted to proceed.

Also, since the young lady would continuously evaluate me while watching my efforts to reach the goal, I answered perceptively:

“Yes, I look forward to your guidance, all three of you.”

After that somewhat awkward situation ended, the Tang clan members must have been the impatient type, as they began introducing me to their clan and martial arts training that very afternoon.

Now that I was family, they needed to start education right away, apparently.

Grandfather Ten Thousand Poisons Divine Sovereign sat down with brushes, an inkstone, and numerous books piled up.

He wrote characters on paper one by one while explaining:

“There are three main elements that are most important in our clan: the Art of Using Poison, Poison Energy, and Poison Creation. Remember these well.”

“The Art of Using Poison^[1], Poison Energy^[2], and Poison Creation.”

“Yes, the Art of Using Poison teaches the types of poisons and methods of using them. Of course, this includes antidote techniques as well. So don’t be lazy and study hard. Since our clan uses poisons, if you don’t know about poisons, you could harm yourself too.”

“I understand, Grandfather.”

“And I’ll initiate you into Poison Energy tomorrow, so keep that in mind… Poison Creation is, as you know, the work of making poisons. It’s either creating new poisons from collected poison from toxic plants, mushrooms, venomous insects, and snakes, or processing those poisons into usable forms.”

I listened carefully as the explanation I’d been waiting for finally came.

While I didn’t know about the Art of Using Poison or Poison Energy, the part about Poison Creation using venomous insects and snakes to make poison was what I’d been most eager to hear.

To create poisons from venomous insects and creatures, breeding facilities would be absolutely necessary, and I was curious about what this era’s breeding facilities would be like.

The clan head had shown the most interest in my breeding techniques when I came here, and said he wanted me to help develop the clan’s breeding facilities further, so I’d been constantly imagining what they might look like.

“Look how his eyes are sparkling. Would you like to see it directly?”

“Yes, Grandfather.”

Grandfather, who must have heard from the clan head, asked if I wanted to go see.

When I quickly answered grandfather Ten Thousand Poisons Divine Sovereign’s question, he smiled and said:

“Very well, shall we go then? I’ll show you our manor’s Hall of Ten Thousand Poisons.”

“Yes, Grandfather!”

The manor’s Hall of Ten Thousand Poisons.

My heart was pounding.

The Hall of Ten Thousand Poisons seemed to mean they had gathered ten thousand venomous creatures.

I was curious about what kind of venomous creatures there might be.