Nagi

On a sacred night when the stars stretched in a perfect line across the sky, the daughter of the leader of snakes was born.

The shaman Hyeonui brought her daughter into the world with her final breath. When Naun had returned from the battlefield, his wife was still and silent, her corpse cradling a child cloaked in white scales. He reached to touch the newborn's hand, but the moment his fingers touched hers, he recoiled in surprise. He had sensed and ominous, chaotic, lonely power within her.

The child was named Nagi. She was her mother's final hope, and under the love and care of her father, she was raised as the heir to their clan.

But on that same first night, a Kumiho shaman also gave birth to a daughter, and so, Nagi and Mina entered the world together.

When Nagi was young, her father was her world. She was overjoyed whenever he returned home after defeating demonic beasts. However, her mother's absence could not be filled. Nagi would open her mother's nacre powder case and gnaw on okchun candy, which her mother liked, and imagine the warmth she'd never experienced.

Every year, she watched Miho, the Kumiho Divine Maiden, and her daughter, Mina, spend time together from afar. She didn't like that she had to bow her head to Mina, a child of the Council of Empyrean Fangs, although she felt a kinship with the girl who shared her birthday.

However, each time Mina made a mistake in her divine summoning dance, she furrowed her brows thinking, "I could do that better."

The year she turned ten, Nagi's life changed forever.

Following the War of Beasts, the victors began dividing the reclaimed territories. But the snake clan and their kin, the reptilian and amphibian beastkin, were given nothing but the Toxic Mire, a wasteland. Outraged, Naun attempted to poison all the clan leaders, but his plan was thwarted by Sangun. While attempting to stop Naun, Sangun accidentally blinded him. In the aftermath, the Council of Empyrean Fangs called for all the clan leaders to sign a secret pact to bury the incident. So, at only ten years old, Nagi was named the leader of snakes.

Nagi was unable to understand why her father had suddenly lost his sight, why their land now reached all the way to Goldwave Shore, or why she had to bear the burden of leading her people at such a young age.

Even many of Nagi's own people doubted her ability to lead. Every decision she made, big or small, was picked apart and criticized. Too busy from her duties to even process her pain, she wept alone in the solitude of night.

Her father purposely didn't interfere in political affairs, but he did offer her comfort, including words of advice that she would remember forever.

"When your heart feels small, rise higher and look down from above."

At thirteen, watching Mina perform the divine summoning dance at the Sacred Soul Ritual, Nagi became determined. She would rise above everyone and rule from the highest throne.

Nagi punished those that had mocked her and crushed dissent with unflinching resolve. She embraced her beauty and used it to enchant all those around her. The more she did this, the more she could feel her authority grow.

Soon, Nagi's rule extended beyond the snakes to the amphibian and reptilian beastkin. She bewitched the masses with her beauty and gentle words, but held them at a distance with her cold personality, leaving them wanting more. Using her divine power, she charmed those who attempted to challenge her with strength and converted them into her devoted "followers."

And finally, she no longer bowed to the Council of Empyrean Fangs. She became more and more independent, and, at times, arrogant. However, her love and dedication to the snakes, amphibians and reptilians was genuine, as she believed them to be her only allies.

On a night bathed in silver moonlight, Nagi met a girl in mysterious clothing.

The girl spread her giant mechanical arms out like wings and turned to Nagi. She remained still even at Nagi's command to kneel. Instead, Nagi felt her own body stiffen. The girl introduced herself as Ran and stated she would answer Nagi's questions.

She revealed the real reason her kind and caring father became blind, why Nagi was forced to shoulder the burden of leading her clan, and, finally, how she could take her revenge. By the time Ran finished speaking, Nagi was weeping uncontrollably. In a storm of rage, she repeated the names of her enemies one by one:

The clan leaders who had shamed her father, and the Council of Empyrean Fangs.

Nagi wiped away her tears. Then, slowly, she smiled.

Imagining the world of Baek-Ah crumbling at her feet, she pulled her robes aside and brought something out. A red okchun candy. And as it touched her tongue, she realized that it was time to crush "fate" beneath her heel. Fate had brought her nothing but misery. To the Council of Empyrean Fangs, "fate" was accepting the flow of nature and the world, but Nagi felt differently.

Having suffered so much, she decided not to accept any future besides one she chose herself. Even if it meant violating the natural order. She was convinced she could change her own circumstances, and she wouldn't be limited by means or methods to achieve this.

"I will make everyone love me. That's all I desire." Nagi was finally ready to forge her own fate.