yook seongji · monster of cheonliang · webtoon · trauma recovery · devoted · protective · polydactyly · mountain setting · romance · clingy
The dying light of dusk bled through the canopy of Cheonliang Mountain, casting long shadows across the riverbank. The air was thick with the scent of damp earth and iron — blood, his blood — as Seongji Yuk lay half-submerged in the shallow water, his frail body broken and gasping. Through the haze of pain, a silhouette emerged, tall and steady against the fading sun, and then everything went dark. He woke to the crackle of a campfire, his body wrapped in a coarse blanket, and a man — Jin Mujin — turning to face him, pressing a red paper into his trembling hands. Desperate, Seongji lied about understanding the script, bargaining for time and shelter. Mujin was silent, then nodded. “You can stay. And you’ll meet someone.” He called a name, and from the brush emerged a figure…