Chapter 12: Nine Dragon Society (6)

Nine Dragon Society (6)

As the Nine Dragon Tournament was about to begin, Peng Ah-hee was suffering from a terrible headache.

It was good that she had subdued Peng Woo-jin with the First Elder’s help, but as soon as Peng Woo-jin got up, he declared he wouldn’t go back either.

Peng Woo-jin, whose cheeks were puffed out like steamed buns, got up and wore a blank expression for a moment.

“Didn’t see this coming,” he said, letting out a hollow laugh.

However, Peng Woo-jin said he would accept it, as his promise hadn’t been broken.

He just felt it was unfair to have come all this way without seeing anything, so he refused to return, insisting he would at least watch the Nine Dragon Tournament.

Peng Woo-jin was, after all, the Young Master.

He held the highest position in the Peng Family, excluding the Family Head and the Elders, and was certain to inherit the position of Family Head in the future.

He was someone whom not only Peng Ah-hee but even the Peng Family’s search parties couldn’t easily deal with.

“I’ll go, but I’m just going to watch this.”

“What is it that you want to see so badly?”

“It’s unfair… coming all this way and not seeing anything.”

“Unfair? What’s unfair about it! They’re just drawing swords, something you do endlessly in the Peng Family anyway. Just hurry back to the family…”

“If you keep pushing it, I’ll go complain to Lord Yeom Ah-gwon? I’ll demand answers, saying this is ridiculous!”

Peng Ah-hee fell silent at Peng Woo-jin’s tantrum. She knew.

This crazy bastard would actually do it.

Since Peng Woo-jin himself had sworn to return obediently after the Nine Dragon Tournament, she grit her teeth and allowed it.

‘…Fine, just a day. A day should be okay.’

Calming her anger, she brought Peng Woo-jin to the training ground where the Nine Dragon Tournament was taking place. The Cheonsil Sangha, seeing his Peng Family martial attire, offered to seat them in a prime location, but…

Peng Woo-jin refused.

He said he couldn’t accept special treatment for an unexpected visit.

In the end, they sat in the general seating area. He could feel people glancing their way after seeing his Peng Family martial attire.

Half seemed to be thinking, ‘Surely not,’ while the other half, being martial artists, couldn’t approach casually.

Peng Ah-hee felt uneasy with this uncomfortable attention, but Peng Woo-jin didn’t seem to care at all.

He was even holding dumplings, as if he’d bought them sometime earlier.

“Oppa… when did you buy those?”

“Huh? I bought them a little while ago.”

“When exactly is ‘a little while ago’…?”

No, he seemed to have been beside her the whole time; when did he even buy them?

Peng Woo-jin was someone whose actions couldn’t be figured out from start to finish. While the elders said his talent as a martial artist was the greatest in the Peng Family’s history…

Separate from that, he was clearly a strange person.

‘How else could he have run away from home just to ‘go play and come back’?’

Perhaps thinking of that time, Peng Ah-hee’s brow furrowed.

“It’s starting, Ah-hee!”

Whether he knew it or not, Peng Woo-jin just cheered with dumplings in his hand.

From Peng Ah-hee’s perspective, the Nine Dragon Tournament wasn’t a particularly amazing sight.

As someone from one of the Four Great Families, Peng Ah-hee had grown up among the renowned martial artists of her family. Watching competitors from small mountain sects or collateral branches of families wouldn’t seem particularly novel.

Of course, there were a few noticeable individuals among the dozens of matches, but none truly caught her eye.

Meanwhile, Peng Ah-hee was watching Peng Woo-jin.

His eyes seemed interested, yet somehow empty.

Peng Woo-jin had always been like that since he was young.

What was he thinking? Why did he pursue only fun with such talent?

Why did he accept the position of Young Master without complaint, despite looking like someone who could leave for anywhere alone?

A person who seemed like he could leave at any moment. Peng Ah-hee found that truly unsettling.

When the Family Head told Peng Ah-hee to go with the search party, her immediate agreement wasn’t solely due to guilt.

It certainly wasn’t just because of guilt that day.

Time passed, and it became night. All the matches of the Nine Dragon Tournament had concluded.

“We have to go now, Oppa.”

Despite Peng Ah-hee’s words, Peng Woo-jin remained motionless.

“Oppa?”

Wondering why, she followed Peng Woo-jin’s gaze and saw someone had stepped onto the empty central training ground.

“That person is…”

A tall height for a girl, a tightly tied ponytail, and a red uniform symbolizing the Gu Family.

‘Gu Yeonseo… was that her name?’

She was a girl Peng Ah-hee had encountered a few times at gatherings of the Orthodox sects. Her older sister, Sword Phoenix, was undoubtedly a prodigy, and she had heard Gu Yeonseo possessed no less talent.

Soon after, Gu Yangcheon also stepped onto the training ground.

Even from a distance, his uncomfortable expression, as if he’d bitten into a bug, was noticeable. Anyone could see the face that clearly read, ‘I don’t want to do this.’

“Why is that guy going up there?”

“They say it’s a direct lineage match.”

Wondering what that meant, she looked, and Peng Woo-jin held a strange piece of paper.

[Following the Nine Dragon Tournament, the Gu Family’s Brilliant Stars’ sparring ceremony will take place.]

[We ask for your great support.]

“…When did you get that?”

“They were handing them out when we came in?”

When, exactly?

Peng Ah-hee shifted her gaze back to the training ground.

Gu Yangcheon and Gu Yeonseo seemed to be talking about something, but the distance prevented her from hearing.

Even amplifying her hearing with internal energy yielded the same result.

Peng Woo-jin said.

“You won’t be able to hear. There’s a barrier set up around the training ground.”

“A barrier?”

“To enclose an area that large at once… that must be the work of Lord Yeom Ah-gwon.”

Peng Ah-hee understood Gu Yangcheon’s awful expression. It looked like a fight with no chance of victory.

She knew Gu Yangcheon’s martial prowess better than anyone.

Compared to the boy’s lineage, it was utterly insignificant. If he fought Gu Yeonseo, he would likely be miserably thrashed.

Moreover, if he experienced such a thing amidst such a large crowd, Peng Ah-hee felt she would surely hang herself.

Gu Yangcheon, whom Peng Ah-hee had never pitied before, now seemed somewhat pitiable.

While the two were still conversing, the observing First Elder shouted, channeling his internal energy.

Then, Gu Yeonseo leaped towards Gu Yangcheon without hesitation.

Peng Ah-hee’s eyes widened at Gu Yeonseo’s speed.

‘Fast…!’

The wooden sword swung in sync with her leaping speed had no unnecessary sway. It spoke of excellent foundational ability.

One step, then another.

The seamlessly continuing techniques told how relentlessly Gu Yeonseo had trained.

‘…Could I win if I fought her?’

Honestly, she wasn’t confident.

Peng Ah-hee didn’t feel confident she could receive Gu Yeonseo’s smooth sword strikes right there.

She felt her pride as a member of the Peng bloodline gradually diminishing.

“She’s Sword Phoenix’s sister?”

Peng Ah-hee suddenly noticed Peng Woo-jin’s eyes sparkle as he watched the match.

The eyes that had seemed empty all day now held vitality.

Seeing that, Peng Ah-hee suppressed the unpleasant feelings slowly rising within her.

“…Yes, she’s of the Gu family lineage, so she’s Sword Phoenix’s sister.”

Still, she couldn’t hide the curtness in her voice.

Even to her own eyes, Gu Yeonseo was amazing. Enough to make her jealous.

“Such smooth sword strikes, isn’t she amazing…?”

“It’s hard to do that at her age.”

“That’s right. Her handling of internal energy moment to moment also seems incredible.”

“Exactly, she’s dodging all of that.”

Huh?

Peng Ah-hee felt something strange in Peng Woo-jin’s reply. Did Gu Yeonseo dodge anything?

Gu Yangcheon wasn’t even able to counterattack and was just groaning.

Peng Ah-hee followed Peng Woo-jin’s gaze again.

Following his gaze, Peng Woo-jin was looking at Gu Yangcheon, not Gu Yeonseo.

‘He wasn’t looking at Gu Yeonseo?’

What exactly was he looking at to feel that way? Peng Ah-hee couldn’t understand.

“He’s half a beat fast.”

“What?”

“Watch closely. He moves half a beat before the sword reaches its destination. He already knows where to aim and how to swing.”

Listening to Peng Woo-jin’s words, she finally examined Gu Yangcheon closely.

He was indeed peculiar. Gu Yangcheon’s movements were much slower than Gu Yeonseo’s.

If she had to fight Gu Yeonseo, she wouldn’t be confident.

However, if she fought Gu Yangcheon, she could cut him down immediately with that speed.

‘That’s right? But how…’

Gu Yangcheon was slower than her, and Gu Yeonseo was faster than her.

The match should have ended long ago, but the two had been sparring for over ten exchanges.

“What in the world is going on.”

Peng Ah-hee couldn’t figure it out at all.

As time passed and the match showed no sign of ending, Gu Yeonseo took a stance, seemingly wanting to end it.

She could see a faint internal energy gathering on Gu Yeonseo’s wooden sword.

Unlike the sword energy (劍氣) used by top swordsmen, or…

The sword aura (劍罡) used only at the peak of mastery.

Even to Peng Ah-hee’s eyes, it looked like profound internal energy was condensing.

Seeing that, Peng Woo-jin uttered firmly.

“It’s unusable.”

“Why? It looks impressive.”

“It is impressive, packing it in that tightly. Even if I were to receive it directly, it wouldn’t be easy.”

Even if Peng Woo-jin received it directly? Peng Ah-hee couldn’t help but be surprised by that statement.

“But even so, it’s useless if it doesn’t land. Trying to use something unfamiliar ruins her stance and twists her breathing. Movements made solely out of impatience are worse than trash.”

It was a cold critique that chilled even Peng Ah-hee, who wasn’t involved. But generally, Peng Woo-jin’s discussions on martial arts were never wrong.

It was then. Gu Yangcheon’s expression changed. Gu Yeonseo, having finished her preparation, leaped fiercely.

Gu Yangcheon didn’t make any special moves upon seeing that.

Just one step back, and a slight turn of his head.

That was all. Yet, with just those small movements, he neutralized Gu Yeonseo’s sword strike.

And then.

-Swaaak!

‘What was that?’

Peng Ah-hee hadn’t looked away even once. But she heard a sound like something breaking, and Gu Yeonseo was slumped down.

“What the… How did that happen?”

“Amazing…!”

At the excited voice, Peng Ah-hee shifted her gaze. Peng Woo-jin wore an expression she hadn’t seen in years.

“The Gu Family doesn’t just have Sword Phoenix.”

It was a bright, childlike expression, as if he’d discovered something truly interesting.

---

-My sister should have been born a man.

This was a thought Gu Yeonseo harbored alone around the time she turned ten.

Her sister possessed not only talent in martial arts (武) but also the dignity befitting a scion of a prestigious family.

Just fifteen. At the same age as herself, her sister inherited the moniker Sword Phoenix.

Her sister had taken on the Sword Phoenix title, previously considered exclusive to the Four Great Families and the Nine Clans.

It was so cool and made her proud.

Around the time her sister graduated top of the class from the Divine Dragon Academy, she was appointed the Gu Family’s Fifth Sword Commander at the young age of just over twenty.

It was something not easily achieved, yet everyone acknowledged it.

She received recognition because she possessed the necessary ability.

She’s an amazing person. Perhaps she’ll become even more outstanding as time goes on.

However, she cannot become the Gu Family Head.

Gu Yeonseo thought of her younger brother then.

Her sister and herself were children of the main wife, while Gu Yangcheon was the child of a concubine. But Gu Yeonseo liked Gu Yangcheon’s mother.

She was a kind person.

That’s why she liked Gu Yangcheon too. It was a time when she didn’t care if he was the child of a concubine or her half-brother.

But one day, she disappeared. It happened in an instant. Even when she searched for where she had vanished, her father commanded her not to look.

No one in the family searched for her.

That was when it started.

Gu Yangcheon began to fall apart.

He only showed violence towards the household members, and his sharp words and gaze spared no target.

He became lazy and idle. She even heard rumors that he laid hands on the pretty household servants.

He grew distant from effort. His inferiority complex worsened with each passing day.

The family headship is passed down to men generation after generation.

Her father didn’t take any more concubines after that, and since Gu Yangcheon was his only son, he would become the family head if things continued this way.

With such an outstanding sister.

And with me working so hard.

Her sister should have been born a man.

Or perhaps I should have been.

She hated Gu Yangcheon, who was only getting fatter without knowing what he possessed.

She felt disgusted by Gu Yangcheon, who was only deteriorating without knowing what he possessed.

‘What is this?’

Her hazy consciousness slowly returned.

Her memory had become blurry around the time she channeled the Gu Flame Wheel Technique into her sword.

Gu Yangcheon stood before her eyes. Gu Yangcheon, who should have been much smaller than her, seemed immensely tall.

‘Is this a dream?’

Drip. Drip.

Something was flowing. When she wiped her nose with the back of her hand, it was covered in blood. Why was she bleeding? This wasn’t a dream?

Then what? Why had Gu Yangcheon become so big?

As her vision and mind gradually cleared, Gu Yeonseo noticed the contradiction.

Gu Yangcheon hadn’t grown bigger.

Her field of vision had lowered.

Gu Yeonseo was sitting slumped on the training ground floor.

“How… how could this happen…”

“I understand you, Noona.”

Hearing the voice, Gu Yeonseo lifted her head.

“You must dislike it. I understand. It doesn’t matter if you hate me; it won’t change much.”

Due to the bright lanterns, shadows fell across Gu Yangcheon’s face, making his expression hard to see.

However, Gu Yeonseo could clearly see Gu Yangcheon’s eyes.

She felt nothing. Gu Yangcheon’s eyes were numb. There were no distinct emotions like ecstasy or anger.

He was simply looking down at Gu Yeonseo.

The chilling sensation made Gu Yeonseo want to flee, but her trembling body wouldn’t move.

“What you said earlier was pretty fucked up, but I understand that too.”

What did I say? At Gu Yangcheon’s words, Gu Yeonseo recalled what she had uttered.

‘You should have just disappeared, like your mother.’

Her heart turned ice cold.

Even if she wasn’t in her right mind, that was definitely something she shouldn’t have said.

What should she say? Should she ask for an apology now? Amidst it all, the thought of having to apologize to Gu Yangcheon made her feel like vomiting.

Whether he knew Gu Yeonseo’s thoughts or not, Gu Yangcheon continued speaking.

“Since I’ll understand you, you should understand me doing this too.”

She couldn’t ask what that meant.

The last thing Gu Yeonseo remembered was Gu Yangcheon’s palm.

Slaap!