A snake is usually considered a creepy and loathsome animal. But in this folktale, a snake turns out to be a handsome young husband.

Once upon a time, an old couple lived alone in a small village. The wife was too old to have a child, but the couple earnestly prayed to God for a baby since they were anxious to have their own child. As if receiving a response from God, the old woman miraculously gave birth to a baby. The husband and wife were overjoyed, of course. But their smiles disappeared when they saw their baby, who, in fact, wasn’t a human boy. To their shock, it was a snake. The parents didn’t want to see the repulsive animal, but they couldn’t bring themselves to kill the snake baby. So, they just put the creature in a big jar in the yard and raised it.

Now, a family with three little daughters lived in the neighborhood. Hearing the news about the old couple, the girls came to see the new baby. When they saw a snake in the jar, the first and second daughters screamed and ran away. But the third daughter was different. She smiled at the snake and even petted it. She said to the snake baby’s mother, “How cute it is! You have a sweet, healthy snake son.” The little snake was also very docile in front of the young girl. The two seemed to share each other’s feelings.

The snake baby grew up very fast. One day, the snake told his mother that he wanted to marry the third daughter in the neighborhood. At first, the mother thought it would be impossible for a human girl to marry a snake. But the third daughter was willing to accept the snake’s proposal. Of course, the girl’s parents were vehemently opposed to the ridiculous idea. But they couldn’t break through their daughter’s obstinacy. They finally gave in and consented to the marriage.

On their wedding night, the bride helped her snake husband bathe in warm water. After cleaning, the snake shed its skin. To her amazement, the snake was transformed into a handsome young man. The husband, now a human, thanked his wife for marrying him and sang for her. “Dear moon, if you see my wife, please bring her to me. I miss her so much.” From that day, he began to study hard as he wanted to take a state-administered exam to become a government official. Before he left for Seoul to take the exam, he handed his skin to his wife. “Honey, this skin is very important. Never show it to other people and don’t lose it.” The wife put the skin in a small bag and tied it to her waist to carry it around with her all the time.

One day, while she was at home alone, her two older sisters came to see her. They found her small bag and wondered what it was. The youngest sister tried to hide it, but her sisters, who had already been jealous of her nice husband, forcibly took the bag from her. They believed something valuable was in it, but they only found a creepy snake skin there. Disappointed and disgusted, they threw it into a fire pot. The skin burned to ashes and disappeared in the smoke. At the same time, at the exam site in Seoul, the husband disappeared in smoke as well. The wife waited and waited for her husband to return, but he never came back home.

The wife thought the misfortune had something to do with the lost skin. Thinking that it was all her fault, she decided to find her missing husband herself. While on her journey, she happened to meet a crow. She asked the crow if it had ever seen her husband. The crow promised to tell her where he was if she decorated it with hundreds of fireflies. So, she caught hundreds of fireflies to do exactly what she was told. The crow was pleased and pointed in one direction. So, she began to walk toward that direction. On her way, she met a woman. She asked the woman the same question, and the woman requested that the wife wash her clothes. As instructed, the wife washed the woman’s clothes. Satisfied, the woman showed her the way. As she continued walking, she met a farmer this time. He said he would tell her where her husband was if she plowed the whole field for him. She felt tired but she didn’t complain. The only thing she thought about was her husband. She diligently worked on the field, and as promised, the farmer told her where her husband was.

After a long and rough journey, she arrived at a house. Much to her joy, she finally found her lost husband there. She hid herself behind the tree and began to sing softly, “Dear moon, if you see my husband, please bring him back to me. I miss him so much.” The snake husband was stunned to hear the song and the voice. At last, they were finally reunited. It turned out that the husband believed she had burned his skin on purpose and that was why he was reluctant to return. But hearing what had happened, he promised her not to leave her ever again. They hugged each other tightly and shed happy tears.