He spins on his heel and walks out of the cave, and my heart sinks. He’s so angry with me.
“He is worried more than anything,” Dangun says quietly.
“I know, but I shouldn’t have lied to him.” I kick at the pebbles on the ground. “He sensed something was wrong, and hiding it from him only made him worry more.”
“Then that is a good lesson learned.” My father chuckles. “My parents always told me that marriage is a lot of work, even though theirs was a love destined by the heavens like yours. But they also said that it was worth every bit of effort they put into it.”
“Your ... parents?” I blink. “Hwanung and Ungnyeo?”
“Yes.” He smiles. “Your grandparents.”
“Wow.” It’s strange that my grandparents are characters from old stories. I can’t wrap my head around it.
“You would have liked them,” he continues. “Your grandmother was the first animal spirit.”
“But the folklore says she became human ...”
“And you believe everything in human folklore?” Dangun arches his brow. “To be fair, your grandfather granted her wish to become human first. But later in their marriage, he saw that she missed the freedom and power of being a bear, so he gave her the ability to shift—to be both a human and a bear.”
“It sounds like he loved her very much,” I murmur.
“Yes, every part of her,” he says softly. “He loved her so much that he cut ties with his father, Hwanin.”
“Cut ties?” My stomach sinks. “Why?”
“Hwanin did not approve of his only child marrying an animal spirit.” His lips twist with bitter memory. “But his prejudices cost him his beloved son.”
Come to think of it, whereisHwanung? Other than in Korean folklore, I have never heard of the god of Earth. As far as I know, there are only the four gods of each life source.
“Wh-what happened?” I ask.
“When I was still a young boy, my mother moved on to the next life, and my father’s heart became untethered, setting his soul adrift. He could not go on without his fated love.” Dangun takes a pained breath. “I was not born a god. I was a being of the Shingae with the blood of the gods running through me. Like you, I stopped aging at eighteen and wasnearlyimmortal.”
“That’s why,” I gasp as relief courses through me. I can’t believe I finally got an answer to that mystery. A part of me had been afraid that I’d been subconsciously stealing nature’s life force, like the Shinbiin. I shake my head and ask, “Then how did you become a god?”
“Soon after I turned eighteen, my father asked me to absorb his divinegiso he could be with my mother. I couldn’t bear to watch him hurt for an eternity, so I agreed.” His eyes take on a faraway look. “I became the god of Mountains, and my father ... A bond destined by the heavens is unbreakable. Once he became mortal, he simply faded away.”
My heart breaks for Hwanung. “How did Ungnyeo die?”
“My father never told me.” He rakes his fingers through his hair, the old frustration unforgotten. “I assumed she died from old age or illness, because she was mortal. But as the years passed, I began to have doubts, and those doubts kept growing. Living in the Realm of Four Kingdoms should have granted my mother near immortality. She should have lived for hundreds of more years.” Then fury ripples across his face. “I believe Hwanin and the other gods had something to do with her death.”
“What?” I gasp.Is this the atrocity those gods spoke of? The wrongs they were trying to right?“How?”
“I do not know.” Dangun wipes a weary hand down his face. “With my father gone, I couldn’t prove anything. Then I left the Realm of Four Kingdoms and that selfish lot behind.”
“I’m so sorry you had to lose your parents like that,” I whisper.I need to find out what happened.What did those arrogant godsdoto my grandmother? “The grief never fades, does it? Time only makes it hurt less often.”
“Your grandmother was strong, noble, and brave.” My father cups his hands around my shoulders. “You remind me so much of her.”
I glance away from him with an embarrassed snort. “Why? Do I look like her?”
“You are her mirror image, but your strength, courage, and capacity to love also come from your grandmother.” He grasps my chin and turns me to face him. “Do not be afraid, Daughter. Trust yourself as I trust you. You will choose correctly.”
“You speak in riddles, Father,” I say softly, even though I understand him. Whatever happens next, I will choose to do good—regardless of the price I have to pay. “I hated it when the Seonangshin, the ancient cypress trees, did that.”
Daeseong’s undead assassins would probably have gotten Ethan and me if the lone cypress tree hadn’t told me about the darkmudang’s return. The Seonangshin helped me face my destiny when all I wanted to do was run from it. That ... was my father too. He was never far.
“Even a god cannot speak the secrets of the Shingae, but I did my best to help you figure it out on your own.” Dangun smiles, looking every bit the proud father, but he swiftly sobers. “I wish I could hurtforyou, Daughter. But the best I can do is hurtwithyou from afar.”
