Yeo-won: Savior to the Emperor

by Hanhong

The stench of death fills the nation built upon blood, rising all the way to the heavens. The karma of spilled blood now stains the earth—alas! In the season when life should return, the dominion of death has overturned the land. Who shall bear the weight of this karma? * To end the great drought afflicting the empire, a yeowon—a shaman named Seol—came before the Emperor. Kneeling before the throne, Seol’s voice trembled as he spoke. He said he had been born to take on misfortune in others’ stead, and that if His Majesty were to take him, all calamities would cease. "Unfortunately, I find myself unable to be aroused by men." "If it were covered... would that work?" The Emperor looked down at the shaman’s pale, quivering face and let out a bitter laugh. To think that the fate of the nation rested upon spending a night with this yeowon— how utterly absurd.

Officially licensed English translation