RAP Chapter 1

I Finally Found The Yeouiju

 

“Your destined partner will appear soon. You have no choice but to accept your fate. It is a fate that has waited a thousand years.”

 

These were the words Yeouiju heard at a fortune-teller’s shop, where she had been dragged by her close friend Heeseon after losing her entire fortune of ten years to a fraud.

 

To Yeouiju, who desperately asked whether she would be able to catch the fraudster, this sounded like complete nonsense.

 

“No, wait. Are you saying that my destined partner is the scammer?”

 

“Of course not. That person was born noble, yet could not reach the heavens…”

 

Before the fortune-teller could finish, Yeouiju stood up and dusted off her knees. She immediately grabbed Heeseon’s hand, pulling her toward the exit. Behind them, the fortune-teller called out as if offering a favor.

 

“No need for payment. The spirits say not to accept it.”

 

Well, I wasn’t planning to pay anyway.

 

Clutching her bag, Yeouiju stepped out of the fortune-teller’s shop and scolded Heeseon.

 

“Hey, you said this place was super famous! They didn’t tell me a single thing I wanted to know!”

 

“I know, right? That’s weird. The reviews were really good, though. But at least they didn’t take your money…”

 

“If they talk nonsense and still take money, that’s what you call a scammer!”

 

As Yeouiju fumed, Heeseon answered a call on her phone.

 

“Sis, I’m sorry. I have to go home first.”

 

“It’s fine. Go ahead. I don’t want to take my frustration out on you.”

 

“Don’t worry, Sis! You’ll definitely catch that scammer!”

 

With her fists clenched tightly in encouragement, Heeseon got into a taxi and disappeared down the alley. Left alone, Yeouiju trudged along the winding path.

 

“Why the hell is this road so damn twisty?”

 

Yeouiju was fed up with everything. Just when she thought her life, full of pitfalls, might finally turn into a smooth path, it now felt more like a minefield.

 

She had even withdrawn the deposit for her monthly rental room to supplement her jeonse money, and now, once the contract period ended, she would be thrown out onto the streets.

 

[T/N: Jeonse is a unique South Korean housing rental system where tenants pay a large lump-sum deposit (typically 50-80% of the property’s value) upfront instead of monthly rent, which is then returned at the end of the lease term.]

 

As she wandered with no destination, a pair of shoes—clearly expensive at first glance—came into view.

 

Trying to step around them to the right, she found that they also moved to the right.

 

Frowning deeply, she turned left instead, but the feet mirrored her movement again.

 

“What are you doing?”

 

Annoyance boiling over, she looked up only to see a broad, solid chest of a man towering over her.

 

Because he was significantly taller than her, all she could see was his unmoving chest. Taking a step back, she lifted her head further to get a look at his face.

 

She had planned to let out an earful, thinking she had found the perfect target for her frustration. But when she saw his face—so sculpted and handsome that it made her doubt he was even human—she was momentarily speechless.

 

Her anger dissipated in an instant, and she walked past him without a word. However, after taking a few more steps, she heard it.

 

“Yeouiju.”

 

Hearing her name from the man’s lips, Yeouiju stopped and turned back to face him.

 

“Huh? Me?”

 

“Yes, you.”

 

“Do I know you?”

 

“Of course. Do you know how long I’ve been looking for you?”

 

“Who are you?”

 

Her wariness spiking, Yeouiju’s sharp questioning was met with an even more absurd response than the fortune-teller’s words.

 

“Give yourself to me. I will change your life.”

 

Ha. So today, I get to hear these shitty nonsense twice in one day.

 

Though it was unsettling that he knew her name, her years of part-time job experience told her that the best way to deal with lunatics was to avoid them. Lowering her head, she walked as quickly as possible, just about to exit the alley when—

 

“Ignore me one more time, and I’ll just eat you up.”

 

Though she hadn’t heard any footsteps following her, the man was suddenly right in front of her again.

 

His abrupt proximity startled Yeouiju so much that she couldn’t even scream. And his strange words sounded terrifying.

 

I thought he was just a cultist, but is he actually mentally unstable? Overwhelmed with fear, she discreetly reached into her bag and took out her phone.

 

Just as she was about to press the emergency call button behind her back—

 

Whoosh.

 

The phone literally floated up and landed smoothly in the man’s hand.

 

“Ahhh!”

 

Staring at her now-empty hand and then at the phone in the man’s grasp, Yeouiju finally let out a proper scream.

 

Goosebumps ran up her entire body. Shutting her eyes tightly, she clenched her trembling fists.

 

I have to get my phone back somehow. Counting down in her head, Yeouiju suddenly lunged at the man.

 

In an instant, she snatched her phone from his hand and dashed away like a cheetah, escaping the alley in record time.

 

“Strange. Why isn’t it working?”

 

Alone in the alley, the man stared blankly at his stiffened hand, his murmured words dissipating into the wind.

 

***

 

Do-cheol was beyond furious.

 

He had gathered all the wealth he could, tasted the finest delicacies from around the world, and just when he had grown sick of life on this land, the heavens sent down a decree.

 

—Only the one who possesses the Yeouiju shall ascend and become a dragon.

 

Their father, who had birthed Do-cheol and his eight brothers, had ascended to become a dragon the moment they were born.

 

Because of that, none of the brothers knew how to become a dragon or if they even could. With no choice, they remained on earth.

 

Unlike Do-cheol, his brothers adapted to the changing times. When kings ruled, they worked in royal palaces; now, they had settled into careers they enjoyed.

 

Only Do-cheol scoffed at them, dragging out his weary existence in defiance.

 

After 1,500 years, a decree finally revealed the way to ascend. For Do-cheol, who had been suffering from overwhelming lethargy, his eyes gleamed with newfound determination.

 

It took 29 years after the decree for the energy of the Yeouiju to appear, and he had rushed to its source like a bullet.

 

“Where is the Yeouiju? Why is there only a human woman here?”

 

Instead of the Yeouiju he sought, he had found a woman exuding its energy.

 

The human woman, who exuded the aura of the Yeouiju instead of the Yeouiju he was searching for, disturbed Do-cheol.

 

He couldn’t tell whether the Yeouiju was inside her body or if the woman herself was the Yeouiju. The way she had just asked if he had called her made him vaguely suspect that she might actually be the Yeouiju itself.

 

Despite being merely human, she had the audacity to completely ignore his words, and though he hadn’t even laid a finger on her, she screamed at the top of her lungs.

 

Frustrated to the point of exasperation, he thought, ‘To hell with it,’ and simply decided to eat her.

 

“Why won’t it work? Why?”

 

It was as if she was protected by a barrier; he couldn’t even touch her, nor did his powers reach her.

 

Yet, when he snatched her phone, his power had worked, proving that there was no issue with his abilities.

 

“Hmm… What should I do…?”

 

It was the first time in 1,500 years that he had encountered such a situation.

 

Do-cheol wandered around the alley, lost in thought, his expression cold and menacing.

 

He had found the Yeouiju, but it seemed to be inside a human woman, and eating her was not an option.

 

No matter how hard he racked his brain, he couldn’t figure out how to obtain the Yeouiju under these circumstances.

 

“Screw it. I’ll just follow her and see.”

 

Do-cheol, who always acted before thinking, swiftly followed the lingering energy of the Yeouiju that the woman had left behind.

 

The aura was so thick that he wondered why he hadn’t been able to find it for the past 29 years.

 

As he followed the stretched-out energy guiding him, he soon arrived in front of a small house.

 

The Yeouiju is in this house. Certain of this, Do-cheol knocked on the door heavily.

 

“Who is it?”

 

Yeouiju, who had recklessly swung the door open without a hint of fear, stiffened on the spot.

 

She barely managed to compose herself and tried to shut the door again, but Do-cheol was faster.

 

As he wedged his foot between the door, Yeouiju desperately pretended not to see it and gripped the doorknob tightly.

 

“This kinda hurts.”

 

“Then move your foot…!”

 

Unlike Yeouiju, who was exerting all her strength to shut the door, her face flushed red, Do-cheol’s smooth face remained relaxed, even amused.

 

“Seriously, what do you want?! I’ll call the police!”

 

Yeouiju’s heart pounded violently with fear.

 

How did a stranger she had only encountered on the street know her name and even find her house?

 

If she had known this would happen, she wouldn’t have opened the door in the first place.

 

But regret was useless. The door was already open, and with his foot wedged in, she couldn’t close it.

 

Was this how she would leave this damned world?

 

When she realized she had been scammed out of her deposit, she had wanted to die. But now that she was facing actual danger, she desperately wanted to live.

 

After five minutes of struggling, her strength completely drained, Yeouiju finally gave up trying to shut the door.

 

“Haah… Just say what you need to.”

 

Clack. She latched the security chain and took a few steps back, her voice tinged with resignation.

 

But in her hand, hidden from Do-cheol’s view, she firmly gripped an electric flyswatter mounted on the wall.

 

“I’m not going to hurt you, so you can put that down.”

 

“Huh?”

 

“I’m not a fly or a mosquito.”

 

“Oh…”

 

She was sure the angle had hidden it from sight. How did he know? Her grip weakened, and the electric flyswatter slipped from her hand. At the sound of it dropping, Do-cheol raised both hands in a gesture of reassurance.

 

“I will never harm you. I can’t even if I wanted to. So you don’t have to be so scared.”

 

At his words, Yeouiju felt a surge of emotions and snapped.

 

“How am I supposed to not be scared in this situation?! I’m terrified! Who even are you?! Why are you doing this to me?!”

 

Tears welled up in her eyes as she screamed at him, her voice shaking with genuine fear.

 

Realizing that she was too frightened to have a proper conversation, Do-cheol withdrew his foot from the doorway.

 

“I didn’t mean to scare you. If you’re afraid, you can talk to me through the door.”

 

At those words, Yeouiju hurriedly removed the security chain and slammed the door shut, locking it with every bolt available.

 

Click. Clack. Hearing the sound of the locks engaging, Do-cheol chuckled.

 

“You can still hear me, right?”

 

“Yes.”

 

Imbuing his voice with power, he ensured she could hear him clearly even through the door. Standing closer to the door, he softened his tone slightly as he introduced himself.

 

“I’m Do-cheol.”

 

“…What?”

 

“My name. Do-cheol. You seemed shocked that I knew your name, so I figured if you knew mine, it might help.”

 

“Oh… okay.”

 

Yeouiju’s voice lacked any soul as she responded to his introduction. Do-cheol could clearly picture her expression and smirked before adding,

 

“And I’m neither a cultist nor a lunatic.”

 

How did he know what she was thinking? She hadn’t spoken those thoughts aloud. Goosebumps rose on Yeouiju’s arms.

 

“Uh, I didn’t read your mind. It’s just… everything is written on your face.”

 

Once again, he read her exact thoughts. Faced with such an absurd situation, she blurted out something she normally never would’ve said.

 

“…Are you a ghost?”

 

Do-cheol’s eyebrow twitched at the question.

 

Being mistaken for a ghost was irritating, but human imagination was always limited. For the sake of his grand plan, he decided to let it slide once.

 

“I’m not a ghost, but I’m even less of a human.”

 

“Then what are you?!”

 

“I’m a dragon.”

 

Yeouiju placed a hand on her forehead at the sheer ridiculousness of his words.

 

Where had things gone wrong? The fortune teller? The rental scam?

 

Even though she was wide awake, it felt like a dream. She even slapped her cheeks a couple of times, but the sting proved this was reality.

 

“Dragon, dragon… You mean like the Azure Dragon, the Yellow Dragon?”

 

“Yeah. And I’m the only Black Dragon among my siblings.”

 

“Siblings? You have siblings…? Dragons have siblings?”

 

Upon hearing that he even had siblings, Yeouiju’s mind went blank, and she collapsed onto the floor.

 

“Yeah. Out of the nine brothers, I’m the fifth. But how long are we going to keep talking like this?”

 

“The more I listen, the more absurd this gets. I can’t bring myself to open the door.”

 

“Alright, then there’s no helping it. Do you have any more questions?”

 

“No… This is already too much…”

 

“Then I’ll say what I need to now. Just listen.”

 

Too drained to respond, Yeouiju weakly nodded, even though she knew he couldn’t see it.

 

“I need you.”

 

“Huh? But why… I mean, you’re a dragon. Why would you need a mere human like me?”

 

“To ascend, I need the Yeouiju.”

 

[T/N : Yeouiju – A mythical dragon’s pearl that grants immense power. ]