Smashing Heads. (1)
Before leaving for Henan with Gu Yang-cheon, Gu Jeol-yeop recalled the conversation he had with the First Elder.
—What am I supposed to do...?
A sudden trip to Henan.
Moreover, the purpose was to participate in the Dragon Phoenix Gathering.
Since he had the qualification, he thought he would go eventually.
But from Gu Jeol-yeop's perspective, he never imagined he would be going with Gu Yang-cheon.
—At the Dragon Phoenix Gathering, just show off your talent and return.
That was how the First Elder answered Gu Jeol-yeop's question.
However, Gu Jeol-yeop knew those words weren't everything.
Indeed, the First Elder brought up other words to Gu Jeol-yeop.
—Can you shine brighter than that child?
That child.
Gu Jeol-yeop knew who the First Elder was referring to.
The Patriarch's only son, Gu Yang-cheon.
From the time Gu Jeol-yeop's talent began to bloom, it was a name he had heard countless times.
It was the figure the First Elder had drilled into his ears as a rival.
—You must become the Patriarch.
Words he had heard countless times.
—We cannot let such a mere child lead the Sect.
When he was younger than now.
The duel with Gu Yang-cheon was disastrous. Gu Yang-cheon was so frail.
And he lived with ugly words on his lips.
Gu Jeol-yeop broke Gu Yang-cheon's arm at the end of their duel. It wasn't intentional, but emotion was contained within it.
Why he was so angry back then, is a story he has now forgotten.
Though he broke a blood relative's arm, the Patriarch imposed no punishment on Gu Jeol-yeop.
The First Elder said it was because he had already given up on that child.
He accepted it that way at the time, but thinking about it now, he wondered if that was truly the case.
At the time, Gu Jeol-yeop held the same thoughts as the First Elder.
Is it right for such a person to become the Patriarch?
I am better.
I feel like I could do much better. He was already becoming assimilated into the First Elder's way of thinking.
About a year passed like that.
Gu Jeol-yeop suffered a devastating defeat at the hands of Gu Yang-cheon.
Utterly crushed by the boy he had ignored and mistreated.
'Just... why? How?'
What could have happened in such a short time for Gu Yang-cheon to change so much?
The way he spoke, his gaze, his aura—everything was completely different.
The beautiful attendant who had been clinging to Gu Yang-cheon's side at the time.
For a moment, he was bewitched by that absurd beauty.
But half of his true intention was to separate that attendant from Gu Yang-cheon.
Because he didn't know what kind of miserable fate would befall her beside that scoundrel.
Of course, looking back now, he realized how wrong his childish judgment had been, but that was that.
—You can shine much brighter than that child.
The First Elder says so.
That you can. That it's not difficult.
Is that really so?
—You can, can't you?
The sinister ambition reflected in the First Elder's eyes constricts Gu Jeol-yeop.
Gu Jeol-yeop hesitates as he meets those eyes, then finally answers.
—...Yes. I will strive for it.
It was an answer different from his true feelings.
'Sigh...'
How many days did they spend before reaching Henan? During that time, Gu Jeol-yeop made his own efforts.
He endured Gu Yang-cheon, who picked faults with every word and berated him.
He tried to mingle with the party, who kept their distance both knowingly and unknowingly.
Of course, he did try to approach Dang So-yeol, only to be struck by her contemptuous gaze and groan in anguish for a while.
'Why does she dislike me?'
Gu Jeol-yeop knows he has a handsome face.
At the very least, he's better looking than Gu Yang-cheon.
But Gu Yang-cheon is surrounded by beautiful women.
What could be the reason?
'...Did the standard for men's looks change while I wasn't aware?'
Why else would he have such thoughts?
Gu Jeol-yeop looked at Hwangbo Cheol-wi, who was glaring this way with burning eyes.
Honestly, he didn't move to save the woman who was being tormented by that group.
Such a feeling was certainly there, but the essence was different.
—You can shine, right?
How to shine, Gu Jeol-yeop doesn't know.
So he just does something, anything.
"Did you just yell at me just now?"
"I did."
"Ha."
Kuong-! A heavy body walks this way, pushing through the surrounding group.
"How dare you? At me?"
Along with the growling voice, pressure was felt.
It was a heavy energy befitting his physique, but it didn't feel particularly frightening.
After his defeat by Gu Yang-cheon, he developed a habit of observing his opponents closely.
It was to avoid repeating the mistake of that day.
Thanks to that, he succeeded in gaining a slightly broader perspective.
That giant is weaker than himself. The Hwangbo Sect was a prestigious family he had heard of at least once.
Because of that, Gu Jeol-yeop actually felt his spirits lift.
It meant he wasn't falling behind compared to the rising stars of renowned families.
This was not intuition, but certainty.
"Where does a nobody like you get the nerve to raise your voice to this Hwangbo? Do you want to be disciplined?"
Crack.
Hwangbo Cheol-wi's muscles make a vicious sound as if in anger. Gu Jeol-yeop naturally grasped the sword at his waist.
So that he could strike at any time.
'That's enough.'
Isn't that a fairly good look? The sight of defeating a ruffian who was pressuring a woman.
Not a bad feeling.
Hwangbo Cheol-wi approaches with snorting fury, and Gu Jeol-yeop slowly draws up his qi.
A hair-trigger situation.
However, unlike Gu Jeol-yeop's expectation that it would erupt right then and there.
Hwangbo Cheol-wi stopped his body with a startled expression.
The direction he was looking was not toward Gu Jeol-yeop.
What is it?
Gu Jeol-yeop moved his head following Hwangbo Cheol-wi's gaze.
Then, at the end of the line of sight, someone was looking this way from the stairs descending to the first floor.
"What are you doing here?"
A girl with deep green hair, one eye dyed with green light.
Gu Yang-cheon's companion and Sichuan Dang Clan's precious jewel, the Poison Phoenix Dang So-yeol.
"Dang... So-yeol."
Hwangbo Cheol-wi also seemed to know her, calling her name with a slightly trembling voice.
Dang So-yeol looked at such Hwangbo Cheol-wi with a contemptuous gaze and scoffed.
"I wondered who it was, and it was you."
"You..."
"You seem big enough, but you still haven't fixed that stupid disposition of yours?"
Even at Dang So-yeol's freezing words, Hwangbo Cheol-wi clamped his mouth shut.
"I heard from the Hwangbo Sect's side that they were sending you this time. So I thought, surely not..."
Dang So-yeol stops mid-sentence and lets out a deep sigh.
Then, Hwangbo Cheol-wi staggered and fell to his knees.
What's going on? Suddenly kneeling? Before Gu Jeol-yeop's questions could form, Hwangbo Cheol-wi shouted.
"You bitch, how dare you...!"
It seemed involuntary. Did a commoner do that, or was it Dang So-yeol?
'...What did she do?'
...
Could this be the famous Dang Clan's poison arts? If so, it was a chilling thought.
Because Gu Jeol-yeop hadn't seen even a bit of what Dang So-yeol did.
'Is this... the Five Dragons Three Phoenixes?'
All sorts of so-called geniuses of this era.
Gu Jeol-yeop could newly realize just how high their level was.
He had thought she was just a pretty girl following Gu Yang-cheon around.
She was clearly a rising star called the Poison Phoenix.
"How dare you?"
At Hwangbo Cheol-wi's words, Dang So-yeol's brow furrows in an instant.
At that gaze, Hwangbo Cheol-wi flinched and trembled.
"Hwangbo Cheol-wi, do you know who you're facing right now when you say that?"
"...Ugh."
At Dang So-yeol's words, Hwangbo Cheol-wi clenched his teeth.
The Hwangbo Sect may be a prestigious family in its own right, but it couldn't compare to the Dang Clan, known as one of the Four Great Clans.
"I don't think 'mere Hwangbo' is a word that should leave your mouth. If you have neither skill nor backing, at least know your place. Or you'll die. You."
Attaching the word 'mere' to the prestigious Hwangbo Sect.
The sharp rebuke contained a terrifying aura.
Even though the words weren't directed at him, Gu Jeol-yeop's heart thumped wildly.
"And."
Dang So-yeol's gaze turned toward Gu Jeol-yeop.
"The same goes for you."
"Yes?"
"It's proper etiquette to maintain an appropriate distance from each other until the Dragon Phoenix Gathering begins. That meathead over there has muscles for brains, so he can't help it, but what's your excuse?"
"...No, that's."
It was unjust. He had just wanted to save the woman from Hwangbo Cheol-wi.
As if she didn't care about such things at all, Dang So-yeol spat out bitter words.
"If you're ugly, at least be smart."
"Pfft...! Cough, cough!"
The one who reacted the most to Dang So-yeol's words was Gu Yang-cheon.
Gu Jeol-yeop had a dumbfounded expression as if he'd heard something strange. And Gu Yang-cheon spewed out the tea he was drinking.
"Young Master, are you okay?"
"I'm fi... Cough!"
"Towel! Towel!"
While Wi Seol-a was cleaning up, Dang So-yeol clicked her tongue once as she looked at Gu Jeol-yeop and Hwangbo Cheol-wi.
Tsk-!
"What kind of behavior is this, making things so unpleasant... Take your group and get lost quickly."
"You bitch..."
"Do I need to burn your tongue off for your mouth to behave? I'm quite good at that. Very much so."
Contrary to her gentle face, a fierce aura poured out.
Hwangbo Cheol-wi trembled wildly, seemingly mad with fury.
But soon, as if realizing he had no power to oppose the Dang Clan, he jumped up and passed by Dang So-yeol to go upstairs.
The group of Hwangbo Cheol-wi, who had been noisily chatting, also hurriedly followed.
In the quieted tavern, only Gu Jeol-yeop remained with a dumbfounded face.
"...This is why I didn't want to come. So uncouth."
Saying that, Dang So-yeol, who had looked like a beast, as if she had become a tiger, instantly changed her expression when she saw Gu Yang-cheon.
"Master Gu!"
She approached the table with a bright smile. Gu Jeol-yeop could clearly see.
Gu Yang-cheon slightly pulling away with a frightened expression.
Seeing that, Gu Jeol-yeop also awkwardly rose to his feet.
'...In a way, did it work out well?'
He had suffered an embarrassing incident, but he had saved the woman, so wasn't it okay?
Honestly, nothing had gone well, but his mind was too overwhelmed by embarrassment to function properly.
Gu Jeol-yeop carefully approached the woman who had been suffering at Hwangbo Cheol-wi's hands earlier.
"Ugh! That bastard...!"
He heard Gu Yang-cheon muttering something from behind, but Gu Jeol-yeop had already arrived.
"Are you alright, Miss?"
The woman wearing a veil said nothing. Was it because she was too startled?
"What happened just now is now..."
"Sigh..."
The woman let out a deep sigh. At first, Gu Jeol-yeop thought it was a sigh of relief.
"Miss..."
"So annoying, seriously."
If only those hadn't been the words that followed.
"Yes...?"
"Your kind heart is appreciated, but, ah, you don't even have a kind heart, do you?"
The voice coming from beyond the veil was completely different from before.
Much colder than the appearance Dang So-yeol had shown earlier.
Much harder.
It felt like talking to a block of ice.
"My plan just flew out the window... So annoying."
"Miss... what do you mean by this."
Through the veil, sky-blue eyes flickered briefly.
Along with a sharp gaze.
"Do you remember what the Poison Phoenix said earlier?"
The woman slowly rose from her chair.
Standing up, she was quite tall.
About the same height as Namgung Bi-a, who always looked like she was sleeping.
"If you don't know your place and step forward, you die. That's really true."
"What do you mean suddenly..."
"It would be best to read the situation before acting from now on. If that young master behind you hadn't been there, you would have been in danger."
Behind...? At the woman's words, Gu Jeol-yeop turned around and saw Gu Yang-cheon in a direct line.
The woman briefly surveyed her surroundings and whispered quietly.
"...The plan was ruined, but fortunately, it seems like it won't be today. Then it must be tomorrow."
Leaving Gu Jeol-yeop, who couldn't understand what she meant, the woman walked away.
The woman paused slightly as she saw Namgung Bi-a, who was watching with interest next to Gu Yang-cheon.
"..."
However, she only flinched as she looked, and didn't speak to her as she went upstairs.
Gu Jeol-yeop, who stood still for a while trying to grasp the situation, covered his burning ears and thought.
'I don't know anymore.'
He decided to give up trying to understand.
As Gu Jeol-yeop returned to his seat, clutching his throbbing head, he heard a gentle voice.
"Jeol-yeop."
Gu Yang-cheon was looking at Gu Jeol-yeop with a gentle smile.
That Gu Yang-cheon, no less.
"Should we talk a bit later, hyung?"
...First Young Master?"
For reference, Gu Yang-cheon is younger than Gu Jeol-yeop. Both in height and appearance.
But no one around mentioned this.
"Oh, right."
Gu Yang-cheon, who had finished eating the remaining dumplings, looked at Gu Jeol-yeop and asked.
"Do you know how to smash heads?"
"Yes?"
"If you don't know, I'll teach you. Because I think you need to know."
Looking at the smiling Gu Yang-cheon, Gu Jeol-yeop realized.
He didn't know what it was, but he was screwed.