When Geom Mugeuk went to find Mabul, he was sitting in the great hall, tending to a fishing rod.
At that sight, Geom Mugeuk was startled.
“How did you know?”
“Know what?”
Mabul looked at Geom Mugeuk with an expression asking what he was talking about.
“I mean that fishing rod.”
“What about it? I just have nothing to do. I was planning to fish the time away.”
“Is that the only reason?”
“If not? Must there be another reason?”
Geom Mugeuk sat down next to Mabul with a still-suspicious gaze.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“It’s nothing.”
Mabul turned his eyes back to the fishing rod and asked nonchalantly.
“I heard you’ve been busy meeting with the Majons lately?”
“You know that too.”
Could it be a coincidence that he was preparing to fish? As if!
If Geukak Soma had a fishing rod, it might be a coincidence. But Mabul?
“You are truly amazing. How in the world did you find out that a fishing competition is going to be held?”
Geom Mugeuk was certain that he had figured out about the competition beforehand.
As expected, Mabul was not surprised in the slightest by the mention of a fishing competition.
“Did you not tell me so yourself? That I should return to my old self. Was there anything happening in the main sect that the old me wouldn’t know? I even know the location where the fishing competition will be held.”
“Something even I, the Sogyojo, did not know! Truly magnificent!”
For the first time in a while, Geom Mugeuk heaped praise upon him.
“Our little giant, Lord Mabul, has finally returned to his former self! The very incarnation of ambitious power! Our Lord Mabul has returned!”
An unknowable mischievousness flashed across Mabul’s face, which wore a pleased expression.
“By the way, are you skilled at fishing?”
“I did some in my youth.”
The way he handled the fishing rod was far from ordinary. This was bad. Dokwang needed to take first place. He hadn’t even told Geukak Soma that he was backing Dokwang.
“Are you aiming for first place?”
“Naturally.”
“Did not the Buddha teach us to discard greed?”
“Our Hyeolbul is different. He says to seize and take everything you can.”
Was it only his hands that were quick? Mabul was quick-witted too.
“Why? Is there someone you are secretly rooting for?”
“Of course not. Am I not the very incarnation of competitive spirit?”
He couldn’t be caught backing Dokwang. He had to somehow make him win.
Mabul began tidying the fishing line again. Geom Mugeuk sat beside him, gazing at the sky, then suddenly seemed to remember something and handed him the liquor he had brought.
“Right, save this liquor and drink it later. Lord Chwima gave me some of the liquor he had been cherishing.”
“He wouldn’t give such precious liquor for nothing. What do you want?”
“Even if I don’t say it, you know what I’m troubled by, don’t you?”
Mabul placed the fishing rod he was holding down on the floor of the great hall.
“The only problem remaining for you is the Gyojo.”
Geom Mugeuk asked with calm eyes.
“What should I do?”
“You’ve been bustling about; haven’t you already found the answer?”
If he combined all the solutions the Majons had given him, one answer would emerge.
And Mabul’s thoughts were absolutely necessary to create that answer.
Because he possessed a unique insight that only Mabul had.
“Still, among the Majons, you are the most brilliant and coldly rational one, Lord Mabul. I must certainly listen to your words.”
Even though he knew it was flattery, the golden radiance emanating from Mabul grew thicker.
“There is only one thing I will tell you.”
Mabul did not look at this situation emotionally.
He offered a single-word solution.
“Justification.”
“!”
Without needing further explanation, he knew exactly what was meant.
“You mean I must give Father a justification to abandon the war.”
Mabul nodded.
“He is your father, but to us, he is the Gyojo. It may seem like no one is watching, but everyone in the sect is observing the Gyojo. What decisions the Gyojo makes, and why he makes them. Each and every one of those decisions becomes authority and leads to loyalty.”
Mabul emphasized once more.
“You must give him a justification with which he can abandon it. A justification that everyone watching can accept. That is what is most important.”
Geom Mugeuk nodded. It was the right advice. It was valuable counsel coming from Mabul, who had worked to gain power by navigating between people.
“Thank you, Lord Mabul. You have told me something important that I was overlooking.”
“So? Was it worth the liquor?”
“How could it compare to a single bottle of this liquor? I’ll go steal all the liquor from the Daecheollim right now.”
But Mabul did not even accept that single bottle.
“Take this and give it to someone else.”
“Why? This liquor is incredibly delicious.”
“I’ve already tasted it.”
“Pardon? You’ve tasted it?”
“Yesterday, Lord Chwima came by and we had a drink together.”
Geom Mugeuk was surprised. He had never imagined that Chwima would come find Mabul for a drink.
In fact, the two had grown close while fighting the Dark Palace Lord. Chwima had been deeply moved, especially by Mabul’s willingness to sacrifice himself in the battle within the painting.
“Truly, Lord Mabul is a man blessed with many ties. Lose one person, and another appears.”
“Whom did I lose?”
“Ah, you haven’t met him yet? If you meet Lord Dokwang showing his true colors, you’ll know who the greatest con artist in the martial world is. You must go and see for yourself. And take back all the poisonous herbs you’ve given him until now, too.”
Mabul could tell that Dokwang had shown Geom Mugeuk a new side of himself.
“It’s all a matter of fooling each other and playing along.”
Leaving behind Mabul, who acted like an enlightened monk, Geom Mugeuk gathered the liquor and stood up.
“Then I’ll take this back with me. I won’t need to stop by home.”
“Who are you taking it to now?”
“I’m going to Lord Geomjon.”
“You heard my advice, but you need different advice?”
Geom Mugeuk spoke as he headed outside.
“I plan to ask Lord Geomjon something different.”
* * *
When Geom Mugeuk arrived at Ilhwa Geomjon’s residence, she too showed a new side of herself.
She wore beautiful clothes and splendid makeup.
“It’s been a while since I put on makeup. How do I look?”
“You are too dazzling to look at.”
For some time, she had not paid the slightest attention to her appearance. She wore nothing but martial robes, let alone makeup.
Yet today, she was exceptionally elegant and splendid.
And there was a reason for this attire today.
“Since there’s an event tomorrow as well, I thought I’d dress up after a long time and practiced in advance.”
“What event is there tomorrow?”
“You still don’t know?”
Just then, a subordinate brought her a fishing rod.
“Huh? How did you know, Lord Geomjon?”
“Know what?”
“I mean the fishing competition.”
“The Gyojo sent someone to inform us earlier. He said we’d all go fishing together with the Majons tomorrow. He said there would be prizes for whoever catches the biggest fish.”
Geom Mugeuk blinked. Now he understood. That Mabul had played a prank on him. He had pretended to figure it out when he’d already received word from the Cheonmajeon.
The little giant title is revoked! Give back my praise! And Father, if you set a date, you should inform your son first! I was the one who brought up the fishing story!
How typical of his father.
“What is it?”
“The world is full of swindlers.”
“There’s one in front of you right now.”
Understanding it as a warning to beware of women wearing makeup, Geom Mugeuk laughed along with her.
“By the way, this is liquor that Lord Chwima cherished. He gave me a whole box, and I’ve been giving each of the Majons a bottle as a gift.”
“I know this liquor.”
“How do you know it?”
“He never used to give this even if I begged for a single bottle. And he gave you a whole box.”
And not only that, I took it to Lord Mabul and we drank it together.
Unable to bring himself to tattle like that, Geom Mugeuk smiled and said.
“In the end, I suppose he knew it would come to you like this.”
“Don’t side with that drunkard.”
Ilhwa Geomjon and Chwima were friends, so she could speak so frankly.
“Sogyojo.”
“Yes, Lord Geomjon.”
“I know what you want from the Majons. You want them to support you and dissuade the Gyojo. Am I wrong?”
“You are correct.”
“If I say this, our sparring friendship may sound like empty words, but I cannot help you. I shall follow the Gyojo’s will.”
Ilhwa Geomjon clearly stated her position.
“I understand your heart, Lord Geomjon. I will not resent you for it. Our sparring friendship is not just for show; we will remain good friends in the future as well.”
Ilhwa Geomjon smiled pleasantly. Just as she was feeling grateful for his words, at least.
“In that sense, shall we spar?”
Ilhwa Geomjon’s pupils trembled slightly. She had said clearly that she couldn’t help him, yet the Sogyojo was trying to help her.
“Sparring is always welcome.”
Her skill had been continuously improving.
But there was no one to verify that skill, to confirm how she should proceed. She couldn’t spar with the other Majons, nor could she approach the Gyojo. Now even the enemies with whom she could fight life-and-death battles had disappeared.
Geom Mugeuk was fulfilling that most important role in her life. Even at this very moment when she had uttered the words that she could not help him.
If it were not for the matter with the Gyojo, she would have definitely stepped forward for the Sogyojo.
The two came outside.
Both Geom Mugeuk and Ilhwa Geomjon had reached a different realm than when they had last sparred.
“My heart always flutters when I spar with you, Lord Geomjon.”
“Not as much as mine.”
Thus their sparring began.
Just as their realms had changed, this sparring was different too.
It wasn’t fierce like other days. The sparring was calm and elegant. It was the least intense sparring they had exchanged until now.
Their swords never drew the same trajectory twice. Like a painter endlessly creating new pictures, the swords continuously drew new lines.
The one leading today’s sparring was Geom Mugeuk. Just as his father had guided him, he guided her.
She felt it. The Sogyojo’s sword was constantly asking her.
What is a sword?
How could she, called the Geomjon, not have an answer to that?
There were many answers. That answer had changed throughout her life.
At times the sword had been power, and at times fear. At times it had been a wall, and at times freedom. At times death, and at times life. At times honor, and at times guilt.
The meaning of the sword in her life had changed endlessly.
And now, to the question asked by Geom Mugeuk’s sword, she could not answer.
Being unable to answer meant there was still a road left to travel.
Thus the sparring ended.
It was not a long sparring, but it was one that left the most with Ilhwa Geomjon.
Ilhwa Geomjon recalled the sparring they had just finished. The exchanges that she would have vividly remembered in the past were not coming to mind clearly. How had she survived with such a spirit? Had the Sogyojo gone easy on her?
“Sogyojo, I thought the more I swung my sword, the clearer the world became.”
“Is it not so?”
“But the more I swing, the blurrier the world becomes. Is it I who am aging? Or is it the sword that ages?”
Ilhwa Geomjon looked down at the sword she gripped. Had she not ascended to the next level but regressed? Why did everything feel so vague and hazy?
Geom Mugeuk’s gaze was deep and calm, as if guessing what was in her heart. The confusion of that moment when everything seemed to disintegrate was a path he too had walked.
“I like it when thick fog blankets the mountain. It is mysterious and beautiful. It has a feeling all its own that cannot be expressed in words. In that moment, I think of the fog as part of the mountain too.”
Ilhwa Geomjon interpreted those words thus.
Do not try so hard to find a perfect realm.
What if it is blurry? What if fog settles?
If a part is unseen because of the blur, you will see the whole better.
In youth, those parts are so clear that instead you cannot enjoy the deep haziness of the world like fog.
The moment she arrived at that thought, strength left from the hand that gripped the sword in impatience.
The moment she held the sword gently, Ilhwa Geomjon could vaguely feel it.
That a new sword path had been granted to her sword once more.
Ilhwa Geomjon clasped her hands in a respectful martial salute. Setting aside their relationship as Majon and Sogyojo, it was the respect one martial artist offered to another who walked ahead.
“Thank you truly for showing me that there is an endless new road before me.”
Geom Mugeuk also returned the greeting respectfully.
“I am happy that my path is not lonely.”
The two smiled at each other.
“Now I’ll wear makeup when I want to and not wear it when I don’t.”
Not caring about one’s appearance was, after all, still a matter of caring about it.
Before parting, Geom Mugeuk had something to ask her.
“There is something I would like to ask.”
“What is it?”
“It is about my mother.”
For a moment, Ilhwa Geomjon’s expression stiffened visibly.
“Why do you ask so suddenly?”
“During this closed-door training, I asked Father about my mother.”
“What did he answer?”
Geom Mugeuk conveyed it to her exactly as it was.
“He said she was the one he uniquely loved.”
Ilhwa Geomjon nodded slowly.
“Yes, she is the one the Gyojo uniquely loved.”
Geom Mugeuk could feel it. That she was flustered at the mention of his mother.
After a moment of silence, Ilhwa Geomjon sighed and spoke.
“To be honest, I did not like the Mahu.”
It was a difficult thing to say to Geom Mugeuk, but she did not want to lie.
“In fact, I was closer to hating her. That is…”
Ilhwa Geomjon spoke no further. Various complex emotions could be felt from her.
“I have brought up unnecessary words. I apologize, Lord Geomjon.”
It was clear that Ilhwa Geomjon had not hated her merely out of jealousy for liking his father. Her loyalty toward his father had always been pure and clear. There must certainly be another story behind it.
“Then I will see you at the fishing grounds tomorrow. Please come in an even more beautiful appearance tomorrow and give Elder Doma a surprise!”
Just as Geom Mugeuk bowed and turned to leave, a low voice from Ilhwa Geomjon came from behind.
“She was incomparably more beautiful than I.”
Geom Mugeuk turned back toward Ilhwa Geomjon.
The light in Ilhwa Geomjon’s eyes deepened as she recalled that day long ago.
“I still vividly remember that splendid floral palace gown that the Mahu loved to wear.”