A Winter That Is Not Cold. (3)
I woke up early in the morning, finished light training, and wiped away my sweat.
My muscles, which had been about to cramp, loosened up, and with my internal energy circulating naturally, I felt much more refreshed than usual.
As I was stretching my body in that refreshed state, a strange sound came from behind.
“...Krrgh...”
Meanwhile, from behind, Gujeollyeop was lying on the floor, drooling all over.
He had quite the handsome face, yet after training, he was always in that sorry state.
Seeing that, a sigh escaped me before I knew it.
“Why are youngsters these days so frail...”
“...I... compared to the First Young Master...”
“Oh, right, you must be older than me. Then endure it for a bit.”
“Krrgh...”
Had it been since I returned from the Hwasan Sect?
Because I had followed Yeongpung’s training there, my body had grown accustomed to it.
The Hwasan Sect’s uniquely brute training methods had become ingrained in my body.
[Ignorant, you say...! You rotten bastard.]
The old fossil of Hwasan flared up at those spotless words devoid of a single lie. It seemed the barb had struck home.
[A most excellent omen indeed!]
‘A good omen...’
Right, if it was a good omen, then it was a good omen.
After all, more training was a good thing no matter what.
I glanced sideways, turning my head to look at Muyeon.
Muyeon also looked full of exhaustion like Gujeollyeop, but unlike Gujeollyeop, she wasn’t rolling around on the floor.
If there was a problem, it was that she wouldn’t meet my eyes.
She still seemed to be sulking over yesterday’s matter.
‘For a grown woman to sulk...’
Even if I thought that, it was clearly my fault, so there was nothing I could say.
Still, I could see the corners of her mouth subtly rising.
That was probably because of the sword she was wearing preciously at her waist.
Was it because I had slyly given the sword bestowed by the Alliance to Muyeon?
Muyeon, who had been filled with disappointment and hurt toward me, upon seeing that—
‘Young Master, do you think I am someone who would be so easily swayed by something like this?’
—had spat out what she thought was a reasonable retort, but...
Refusing had seemed too much for her.
‘Sheesh, she really likes it.’
She looked like she was doing her best to suppress the corners of her mouth from rising to keep up appearances, but from my perspective, she was already visibly beaming.
[A sword is the most important thing to a swordsman; it can’t be helped.]
At Sin Noya’s words, which seemed to be in agreement, I asked,
‘Isn’t there a saying that a true master does not mind his tools?’
At my words, Noya snorted and answered.
[Hmph, nonsense. This is why I can’t talk with fist-users.]
‘Why are fists suddenly brought up here...?’
Why is this old man suddenly talking nonsense?
This is clearly discrimination against martial arts.
[It is common sense that a better sword holds one’s internal energy better. A true master does not mind his tools? That’s all nonsense spouted by arrogant bastards.]
It was a bitter pill to swallow, but I nodded slightly at Noya’s words.
I had said it while knowing full well. In actual combat, the reality was that one became more obsessed with the performance of their weapon than anyone else.
[I used the sword of the most famous master-smith of the era.]
The difference between a situation where you have to cut twice because of a dull blade, when one cut should have sufficed, was extreme.
For it could be the very moment that determined life or death.
[That aside. Brat.]
‘Yes.’
[What do you plan to do with that one...?]
At Sin Noya’s words, I looked at Gujeollyeop, who was wriggling on the floor.
Along with his disheveled appearance from finishing training, his eyes full of rebelliousness caught my attention.
The reason for those impudent eyes.
Because I had given a sword to Muyeon, he was acting like that since he hadn’t received one himself.
From my standpoint, it was quite a funny situation.
‘...As if I would give that to him under any common sense.’
Muyeon belongs to the Gu Clan, so she isn’t entirely my person, but she is a bodyguard.
I have at least some measure of trust in her.
What are you?
“Hey, get up.”
I approached and nudged Gujeollyeop.
“How long are you going to lie there?”
“...Mind your own business.”
“What, punk?”
“Anyway, someone like me... First Young Master... Krrk!”
He was talking nonsense, so I roughly stepped on him.
I always say this, but whenever talented guys say those kinds of things to me, it really gets on my nerves.
“You’re rich, yet you’re whining about not receiving a single sword.”
“Where... do I have any money!”
“That’s funny.”
Right, you might not have any.
But the First Elder probably has plenty, no?
‘I know that man’s wealth.’
I was in a position to know, through my previous life, how much money the Gu Seon-mun—the main family of the Gu Clan—earned, and how much the First Elder had accumulated here.
Even from the standpoint of having seen a bit of how Gujeollyeop usually lived.
This guy had definitely lived in abundance.
In some ways, hadn’t he lived more lavishly than me, a direct descendant?
[More lavish than a direct descendant? What the hell has he been doing?]
Even so, it seemed he had lived quite luxuriously in his own way.
His father was the type to give him anything he asked for.
It’s just that he blew it all on entertainment expenses as soon as he received it.
“Ah, seriously, stop whining.”
“...I haven’t whined.”
He really hadn’t whined, strictly speaking.
He had already looked half-dead since the start of training. I thought about stepping on him again like this, but held back.
I don’t think this guy was originally such a bothersome personality.
Why is he acting like a child?
I had dangled it in front of him like I would give it to him, then didn’t, so of course he’d feel that way.
But seeing him continue to whine like this was unsightly.
“I’ll give you something similar later, so stop throwing a tantrum and get up.”
In the end, unable to overcome the annoyance, I added those words, and light returned to Gujeollyeop’s eyes.
Then he raised his body.
As if he had been waiting for exactly that.
“What are you?”
“Ahem...”
I looked at him dumbfounded, and Gujeollyeop cleared his throat a few times before speaking.
“...Aren’t you going to train more?”
“...”
I burst out laughing at his shameless reaction, whether he knew it or not.
This crazy bastard.
After finishing training and taking a light bath, I returned to my quarters.
Since I had started in the morning, it was probably past noon by now.
‘The internal energy doesn’t seem to be a problem.’
I circulated it here and there throughout my body to check, but fortunately, there didn’t seem to be any major problems.
There were as many as four energies circulating in my body right now.
The mere fact that they were circulating well in my body without causing conflict was an amazing thing in itself.
[What have you been stuffing yourself with again since I last saw you?]
...
Noya spat out words as if at a loss, but I didn’t really have anything to say either.
[This is that guy’s energy, right?]
The Blood Demon’s energy that had forcibly entered my body at the martial arts tournament.
It was the energy that Jang Seonyeon and Namgung Cheonjun had used.
“What do you think?”
[...Hmm.]
If I had to describe its characteristics, it seemed to be the type that maximized physical capabilities for a short time.
It also strengthened martial arts further, but...
The problem was that the duration wasn’t very long, and the flame’s color changed, making it conspicuous.
And the backlash that the body would suffer afterward was also a problem.
Thinking of Jang Seonyeon, this might be a matter that applied only to me.
He didn’t seem to feel as extreme a backlash as I did.
‘I should probably avoid using it if possible.’
[It is his energy, after all, so that would be for the best.]
I didn’t know what intention he had in implanting this in me, but if I had known he was the Blood Demon, I wouldn’t want to use it needlessly.
‘Didn’t he call it a gift.’
What utter bullshit.
Just as demonic energy was like a brand to me.
The power given by the Blood Demon was no different.
‘That aside...’
I took an item out from my bosom.
It was none other than the ring that the Second Elder had secretly slipped to me.
It was presumed to be the item of the late head.
Digging deeper, it was a ring regarded as a treasure of the Alliance.
Amazingly, having been swept by time, it had shaken off its rust and returned to its original state.
When I first took it out, it was an antique itself.
For the record, I had done nothing to it.
That was an oddity I had discovered in my room last night.
[It seems Cheolyeong did something after all.]
I nodded at Noya’s words.
[Do you feel anything different?]
“About one thing.”
What I felt was—
exactly that I had been able to recognize the one wearing Heeyeong’s mask yesterday.
I thought that was thanks to this ring.
[Why do you think so?]
“It just feels that way.”
[...What a convincing answer indeed.]
Sin Noya added sarcastically to my answer, but that was truly how I felt.
A subtle sensation, as if the ring were telling me.
This too suggested that it was indeed a treasure after all.
[Then what will you do? Are you going to return the ring?]
“Are you crazy? How would I return this?”
It wasn’t a matter of it being a favor from Hwang-a Bulyeong or a useful treasure.
‘At a glance, something big might happen if I returned it just like this.’
The Blood Demon was clearly connected to the Alliance.
I wasn’t sure if the Alliance Lord and others knew of this.
[So, you’re planning to pocket it for now?]
“Yes. I’ll hold onto it for now.”
Fortunately, the ring seemed to show its effects even without wearing it.
There might be a difference between wearing it and not, but if carrying it in my bosom was enough, that was fine.
Above all.
I had found that there was more than one person who could use another’s face skin at will.
I had also learned that they were scattered in more places than I thought.
In that it could detect such changes, it was a treasure that would be considerably helpful.
The last thing was...
“This book is the problem...”
A book found in the bosom of the one wearing Zhong Yi’s disguise, whom I encountered at Shaolin yesterday.
No matter how I looked at it, it seemed to be a book recording Shaolin’s martial arts.
It was even written so clearly that even I, who knew nothing of Shaolin’s martial arts, could understand it easily.
‘It seemed to only note the characteristics appropriately, but the movements were expressed very well.’
There didn’t seem to be talk about the operation of internal energy or Shaolin’s ultimate technique, the Baibu Shenquan (Hundred-Paced Divine Fist), but...
‘Even just this.’
Simply being caught by Shaolin with possession of this book could cause a huge problem.
The very fact that an outsider from a completely different family possessed a book recording Shaolin’s martial arts in such detail was a problem in itself.
‘It seemed I couldn’t even burn it, so should I just throw it away somewhere?’
Giving it to Shaolin was out of the question.
Possessing it was too dangerous, so that was also impossible.
I learn this?
That was practically telling my dantian to twist up and die, so this was likewise impossible.
[How about selling it to the Beggar’s Union or somewhere like that?]
That was one kind of method, but there was no guarantee I wouldn’t be traced.
“In the first place, it would be easier if I knew what that guy was carrying something like this around for.”
Was it something direct?
If so, for what purpose.
It was a martial arts manual made with considerable effort.
It seemed roughly made, but anyone who had read even a little of its contents could not be unaware of its value.
No matter how I looked at it, it didn’t seem to have been made by Shaolin.
[If you’re going to rack your brains that much, just bury it roughly in the woods. Don’t bother using your head.]
“...”
That seemed like the perfect answer.
But because it was Noya who said it, it felt extremely unsatisfying.
“...I really should bury it in the back mountain...”
I stopped speaking and quickly shoved the book into my bosom.
Because I sensed someone’s presence nearby.
Knock, knock.
“—Young Master Gu.”
Who else would it be? A voice came from beyond the door.
It was Dang Soyeol’s voice.
“...Just a moment.”
I cleared my throat a few times and opened the door.
I opened the door slightly and peeked, and Dang Soyeol’s dark green hair was the first thing to catch my eye.
And following her, Wi Seol-a and Namgung Bi-a as well.
The three people who had glared at me yesterday were gathered in front of my door.
Through the slightly opened crack, Wi Seol-a dashed at me.
She burrowed into my chest, so I carefully received her to soften the impact.
“Why are you rushing at me all of a sudden?”
Does she really think she’s a dog?
It was gradually becoming burdensome to hug her like this, as Wi Seol-a had lost weight and was growing rapidly.
It was even more so because she was regaining her former appearance.
“Young Master! It’s about time to go!”
“...”
At Wi Seol-a’s words, I exhaled through my nose without anyone noticing.
Namgung Bi-a and Dang Soyeol in the back also had subtly expectant gazes.
Is that so... It’s time to go.
“I haven’t even eaten yet. If we eat before we go... right? We can’t, can we? I already knew.”
I can just eat when I get back.
I had misspoken and thought the same gazes as yesterday would come, so I immediately changed the subject.
To explain the situation, the problem was that we had all decided to go to Shaolin together.
I had brought it up, but I didn’t know it would be today.
‘No, there are so many good places in Hanam, why Shaolin again?’
That was what I was most curious about, but asking would have gotten me nowhere, so the only thing I could do was nod.
[Living the good life, aren’t you? Saying you’re busy to death, yet here you are playing around with not just women on each side, but three at that.]
...
At Noya’s words, the corners of my mouth trembled.
If you asked whether this looked good, it was because I had at least some conscience.
[Hehe, damn. If only I had a physical body.]
‘If you had one?’
[Why ask? If I could cut you down right now. It wouldn’t matter if I were called the Hwasan Sword Demon instead of the Hwasan Divine Sword.]
Already a man of foul mouth, now he was pulling out lines about killing me at the drop of a hat.
This was definitely because of that Moyong family woman talk last time...
[Gaaaaack!]
As Sin Noya screamed in my head, I screwed my face up fiercely.
Then the three people in front of me flinched and trembled.
“Young Master...”
“Hmm?”
“Th-that, do you hate going that much...?”
Wi Seol-a asked me with glistening, tearful eyes.
What was she talking about? It was a hassle to go, but I didn’t hate it.
“...Your expression... looks scary.”
“ ”
Only then did I realize it was because I had furrowed my brows.
They seemed to be watching my reaction, worried that I really disliked it.
And here I was being called scary; that hurts.
[How frightening must you look for them to react that way, tsk tsk...]
“I’m already self-conscious about it, so please be quiet.”
[Look at this wretch talk? What else can I do but talk when I’m dead?]
...Absent, he worried me; present, he only bickered. What was I to do with him?
‘Hiss...’
I swallowed my saliva looking at the three people cautiously gauging my mood.
I hadn’t meant to make them make such expressions.
Meanwhile, Dang Soyeol was huffing with a strange expression, so I deliberately ignored her.
“It’s not like that. I just felt like coughing.”
“Really?”
“...Yeah. If we said we’d go, we should go.”
Who knows when we’ll come to Hanam again.
Honestly, I had thought we could just go separately.
But I was trying not to think that way now.
Because I somewhat knew why they were doing this to me.
‘Truly a burdensome blessing.’
Along with a ticklish emotion from a corner of my heart, I felt some indescribably complex emotion.
“But, are we really able to go to Shaolin today?”
I was saying that we needed to contact them beforehand to go to Shaolin.
At this, Dang Soyeol smiled widely as if she had been waiting, hooked her arm through Namgung Bi-a’s, and said,
“We already took care of that...!”
Dang Soyeol made a bright, refreshing gesture with her fingers.
Namgung Bi-a, who had been watching blankly, subtly tried to follow.
But it didn’t suit her because her expression was blank.
At Dang Soyeol’s words that she had taken care of it, I recalled a fact I had forgotten.
‘Right, they’re from the Four Great Families.’
I had forgotten because we ate and chatted together every day.
The Dang and Namgung were two of the Four Great Families that could be called pillars of the orthodox faction.
These two were direct blood descendants.
Even Moyong Hui-a had secured a place at Shaolin through her name yesterday.
So it wasn’t something those two couldn’t do.
Of course, Dang Soyeol probably took care of everything on her own.
I laughed hollowly and asked, wondering if she wanted to go this badly.
“When are we going?”
“Now! Big Sister Hongwa is waiting outside!”
“Now?”
I was slightly flustered, wondering if we were leaving right away.
[Um... brat.]
Sin Noya spoke to me. His voice seemed somewhat hesitant.
‘What is it?’
[Aren’t you going to call that child?]
“A child? Who?”
[You know, the pretty child of the Moyong family.]
“Moyong Hui-a?”
I tilted my head at Sin Noya’s words. Why call her? We had just gone together yesterday.
[Ah, no. I was just saying; don’t mind it.]
I was puzzled, wondering what he was talking about.
But Noya only let out a few dry coughs at my reaction.
What is this, it’s really bothering me...?