Ch.36Chapter 36 – Two People’s Diverging Fates (1)

Time flowed endlessly. In Bi-wol’s case, I bought her a new sword and had her learn the Three Talents Swordsmanship.

It only consists of horizontal slashes, vertical slashes, and thrusts, but precisely because of that simplicity, it can be applied in countless versatile ways.

Even if it’s considered a third-rate martial art, the person learning it is certainly not third-rate.

“This sword bestowed directly from Master… I will cherish it more than my own body.”

Bi-wol embraced the black sword, the same color as her hair, against her chest as she spoke.

The reason I chose a sword as similar as possible to the one she used in the original story was because I hoped she might escape her original fate.

I felt I shouldn’t make decisions for her unilaterally or try to bind her anymore.

If I had given Bi-wol more freedom, perhaps the Inner Demon would never have grown in her heart.

“Master! Don’t I get a gift too?”

Next to the solemn Bi-wol, I taught the cheerful Verdandi the Six Harmonies Swordsmanship. It was a third-rate martial art that contained all three sword principles of the Mount Hua Sect: speed, change, and illusion.

At first, she struggled with training in the mental realm, but it was necessary to preserve my body while teaching her.

Besides, Verdandi’s nemesis, Sieg-hardt, was a swordsman who could turn anything in this world into a sword. When fully grown, he would become a monster capable of slicing opponents by capturing time and space itself.

“Unfortunately, that’s how it turned out. How about this comb instead?”

I showed Verdandi a comb. According to her backstory, she kept one side of her hair braided and valued her hair greatly.

“I love it! Master, you understand a woman’s heart!”

Seeing it, she smiled brightly and immediately took the comb from my hand. The shop owner gave me a strange look, but I figured it was just my imagination.

“Master, do you know that there’s meaning when a man gives a comb to a woman?”

Was there such a meaning? Seeing Bi-wol pulling at my sleeve and giving me silent pressure, I must have made another mistake.

“I’m not sure. I’ve never had much luck with women.”

I shook my head and played dumb. The best way to handle these situations is to pretend to be oblivious.

“…Since you didn’t know, I’ll let it slide this time.”

Bi-wol wore an expression that suggested she’d expected as much, sighed deeply, and then nodded in acceptance.

What meaning could it possibly have? Having lived with a terminal illness, I never thought about taking a wife. After losing Seol-hwa, I never wanted to meet another woman anyway.

“What about my gift?”

At that moment, I felt a presence behind me. It was Azazel, her cheeks puffed out, asking if there was anything for her. I was glad to see her gradually opening up.

“How about something to eat? There are sweet snacks like ma-hwa.”

I gently offered Azazel a sugar-coated pastry similar to twisted bread sticks.

Since Azazel still treasured the rosary that Kang Si-woo had given her, I thought a tangible gift might have the opposite effect.

“Hmm, not bad. Thank you.”

She bowed her head slightly in gratitude. Seeing her like this, I sensed she still needed more time.

“I hope you all continue to work hard in your training.”

People grow tired of repetitive tasks without rewards.

Writing against a wall before launching a web novel (building up chapters without reader feedback) is a lonely and isolating experience.

The reason I stopped serializing during my lifetime was because of the lack of reader response.

They say a writer will continue writing even if only one person reads their work, but after losing Seol-hwa, I wanted more people to see my writing.

“Of course, Master.”

“Yes! I understand!”

“If I could meet Si-woo…”

My disciples each made their own pledges, grateful for their gifts and showing determination to train even harder.

* * *

After finishing their training, the three disciples bathed and gathered in one room. It was originally Bi-wol’s room, now shared with the other two.

“It’s spacious enough here. We won’t be too cramped.”

Bi-wol had given up the best quarters in the Ice Dragon Fate Sect, with sunlight streaming in through the warm floor. She was accumulating favors to cash in with her master later.

“So why did you gather us all in one place?”

Verdandi spoke first to Bi-wol, who was eyeing the other two with a suspicious look. She too thought there must be something special about the three of them being brought together.

“What? Do you have something to discuss?”

Azazel spoke indifferently, but it had been a long time since she’d been among people like this.

“…I’ll hear you out at least.”

She seemed to secretly enjoy this kind of company. It was certainly better than waiting endlessly for someone who would never come while trapped in a cold place.

“Don’t you think we have something in common?”

Bi-wol presented a hypothesis to them. Unlike the children Bing-yeon usually took in, they all possessed enough power to overthrow an entire country.

According to Bing-yeon, who claimed to see the future, perhaps their gathering here together wasn’t against fate after all.

“First, we all have dark pasts.”

Bi-wol extended her index finger as she spoke. In her case, she had been raised in the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect from childhood, tasting blood and slaughter.

Verdandi, with her Eyes that Know Truth, could detect others’ lies and had grown up enduring persecution from villagers.

As for Azazel, she had lost her parents, lived with her twin sister, and suffered the humiliation of losing the man she secretly loved.

“Yes! That certainly seems true!”

Verdandi nodded in agreement with Bi-wol’s reasoning. Their master, Bing-yeon, seemed to understand and embrace all their pasts in the same way.

“…Is that so?”

Azazel tilted her head slightly, looking puzzled.

Anyone’s past could be considered unfortunate depending on one’s perspective, and she believed she had been saved by a man named Kang Si-woo.

“Second, we all possess enough power to overthrow a country. That’s different from the children who usually enter the sect.”

Most people taken in by the Ice Dragon Fate Sect were children of parents who fled after being taxed murderously by local officials, people who lost their jobs after losing limbs in accidents, or those left homeless due to famine.

In other words, there was no need to accept such inherently powerful women as disciples. If Bing-yeon truly wanted to change the future, it would have been better to support them from behind the scenes with minimal interference.

“We might be connected to Master’s death!”

At that moment, Verdandi raised her hand and shared her opinion with Bi-wol.

The vision Bi-wol saw in the mental realm while fighting her Inner Demon—the future shown by the karma of the Star of Heavenly Murder—clearly showed someone familiar being beheaded.

“No. If he wanted to preserve his life, he wouldn’t have saved us. He would have chosen to kill us instead. That would leave fewer loose ends.”

She shook her head, expressing disagreement with Verdandi’s opinion. It was something she had learned during training.

Even among those at the Transcendence Realm, Bing-yeon had been stuck at that barrier much longer, making it impossible for the three of them to defeat him even if they attacked together.

“When you put it that way, it is strange.”

Azazel rested her chin on her hand, deep in thought. If they were truly connected to the negative future Bing-yeon had seen, couldn’t he have just killed them?

– That man is strange even to me. Someone influenced by an Outer God yet maintaining sanity can’t be normal.

The tentacles behind her back writhed as Morgidian offered his opinion.

Not just any Outer God, but Shub-Niggurath. The Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young, also known as the Lurker in the Provinces, wife of Yog-Sothoth.

– You are the daughter-in-law of the “Dull Father.” Do you think someone touched by her hand could be an ordinary human?

Since the higher being, Azathoth, was often described as transcending reason, she could effectively be considered the consort of the leader encompassing the Outer Gods.

“Third, Master refers to us as daughter-like beings and seems to feel guilty about it.”

Upon hearing this final commonality, the women looked at each other’s faces and felt something familiar. Despite their different hair and eye colors.

There was some resemblance that was difficult to articulate. They might not have noticed it separately, but together, they shared many small similarities.

“But we all have different parents!”

Verdandi rolled her eyes wide, expressing her confusion. Bi-wol sighed deeply, as if sympathizing with her words.

“Yes, Master has no partner. Though occasionally in winter, he visits somewhere with flowers.”

She had wondered if perhaps he was projecting lost children onto them, but that didn’t make sense age-wise.

“But there are similarities in our appearances.”

“Similarities…?”

Bi-wol said this while stroking her hair. The disciples before her all had the same length of flowing hair.

“Long straight hair, unusual eyes, and we’re all taller and better built than others our age.”

All three had long straight hair, special eyes, and were taller and better built than their peers.

Almost as if they were modeled after someone.

“……”

“Now that you mention it, we really do look alike!”

Could such coincidences exist? They were born continents apart, hundreds of miles from each other.

In reality, it was because the final bosses in the novel all had appearances similar to Seol-hwa’s description.

“…Could we actually be long-lost sisters?”

With Azazel’s wild guess, their misunderstanding only deepened.

* * *

I couldn’t sleep tonight. Was it because I was entertaining the possibility that Seol-hwa might actually be alive?

It could be that the Outer God Shub-Niggurath was trying to deceive me by imitating her handwriting or memories.

“Even after all these years, I can’t forget you.”

I covered my face with my hands and frowned. Love is like a deadly poison, tormenting people no matter how much time passes.

Both before and after my possession, Seol-hwa remained in a corner of my heart, asserting her presence.

“…If you’re really alive, why haven’t you shown yourself to me?”

I had left the sect and was now walking alone in the mountains behind it. Unable to stay still without feeling like I would go mad, I didn’t care that my breathing was rough and my body drenched in sweat.

I wrote to gain her attention, to commemorate her. Admiration turned to love, and now only ugly attachment remained, leading me to accept the final bosses as my disciples.

What more could be taken from me? Why try to destroy even my last remaining memories?

“You know the reason better than anyone, don’t you?”

At that moment, a familiar voice brushed past my ear, making all my nerves stand on end.

It couldn’t be.

It absolutely couldn’t be.

This cute, slightly high-pitched voice belonged to…

“…Do-hyeon. It’s been a long time.”

It was the voice of Seol-hwa, whom I had longed for my entire life.