Chapter 124: It Won’t Happen With That. (1)

The first day I went underground. I asked my father.

What are all these people, and are they even human to begin with?

To my question of what purpose, and why there was such a place beneath the Sega, my father told me.

-These are all sacrifices.

-And we are vessels.

Vessels for what?

I didn’t know. Even when my father led me by the hand, opened another door, and I truly faced the truth.

Even then, I didn’t know.

Only later, after facing the Heavenly Demon, reaching the demonic realm, and living a different kind of time than others, could I understand even a little.

I could dare to say.

Father was wrong.

We weren’t vessels.

I can’t hold anything. To call me a vessel would be a stretch; I was broken here and there, not in any shape to hold anything.

I should have realized sooner, and I should have given up.

That it wasn’t something I could escape from in the first place.

-If you wish, I’ll take it out for you.

So I shouldn’t have fallen for those words.

-Is the yoke heavy? If you want, I’ll break it for you; it’s not particularly difficult for this venerable one.

I shouldn’t have taken his hand. But, I didn’t know that back then.

It was a natural consequence, as I wasn’t in my right mind enough to think of anything else.

Looking back now, it would be more accurate to say the Heavenly Demon didn’t break it, but rather endured it in my stead.

Perhaps, just perhaps, the reason I could travel back in time is also related to this.

Such doubts arose.

Like the thought that perhaps it was to make me pay for my sins, having run away without completing the yoke.

“…Hnnngh…”

I woke up from a long sleep.

I barely lifted my heavy eyelids to open my eyes. My head throbbed as if I’d had nightmares all night.

Moreover, as if I’d been sleep-paralyzed, I couldn’t move my body easily.

“What the….”

Fortunately, it seems my voice works.

Sleep paralysis is something I could force myself awake from by jolting my neck, but the subtle feeling of something clinging to my body was confusing me.

Something touched my hand; it was soft and squishy.

The sensation tickling my nose made me shake my head. The scent was somehow familiar.

As I gradually regained consciousness, I realized I wasn’t sleep-paralyzed but was being hugged from both sides.

“…Huh.”

What was tickling my nose was hair.

Pale blue hair…? On closer inspection, strands with a faint brownish hue were mixed in.

There was no need to ponder. I had already recalled who would likely be beside me like this.

I tried to move my fingertips somehow, but they were held so tightly that even the slightest movement sent a sensation through my skin.

Where is it…? Where is touching me?

“Mmm…”

“Mmm…”

Was it because I tried to move? The ones on both sides stirred in their sleep and tightened their hold slightly.

‘…Shit, this is bad.’

How did it end up like this? I frantically tried to recall the memories from before I went to bed yesterday.

I remembered Namgung Bi-ah and Wi Seol-ah being there when I entered the room.

I think Namgung Bi-ah said something as soon as she saw me.

‘Ah….’

It came back to me.

-…Well, uh, Father… told me to come here….

She definitely said Namgung Jin told her to come. No, why would that father figure send his own daughter to my room in the middle of the night, that crazy bastard…?

Of course, it was also my fault for passing out cold, no matter how tired I was.

‘How do I get out.’

Since I was held tightly, as if my body was surrounded, escaping wasn’t easy.

[…Why escape? Just stay put.]

To No-ya’s brusque voice, I replied half-gladly.

‘You’re awake.’

[Awake or not, what does it matter? I don’t sleep.]

Indeed, he had mentioned before that he didn’t sleep.

[You’re enjoying the squishiness quite well, aren’t you? Why bother trying to leave?]

As if angered again, No-ya’s voice wasn’t pleasant.

It’s unfair; it’s not like I’m enjoying this either.

[Unfair…! Un-depressed!?]

The old man’s hearing is sharp…

‘Speaking of which, it’s not like I’m enjoying this either….’

[Then you dislike it?]

‘…’

[Y-you, you damn brat? Look, you can’t even answer this! You’re enjoying yourself too, yet-!]

‘E-enjoying? What kind of vulgar words does a Taoist master utter!?’

[Vulgar? What bullshit! Your face is even more vulgar!]

‘This old geezer…!’

In the end, he lands a critical blow with my face.

Seriously, how good-looking does he think he is to pick on my face every day?

Seeing me scowl, No-ya spoke confidently.

[Hmph, back in my youth, it wasn’t my sword, but the bridge of my nose that held sword energy; it was incredibly sharp. Women from all over the province lined up from the foot of the mountain to the sect’s main gate just to see it, you punk!]

‘But why couldn’t you find romance?’

[Fucking brat…]

‘…What?’

At my half-innocent question, the old No-ya cursed and disappeared.

I called out to him several times after that, but whether he was sulking or not, No-ya didn’t answer.

It feels like No-ya’s language has been getting rougher lately, but is that just my imagination?

‘Seriously, what should I do.’

Meanwhile, as if murmuring in sleep, their breaths grew closer.

Thinking I shouldn’t let anyone see me like this, I closed my eyes tight and tried to push myself up with all my might.

Creak.

“Young Master Gu, I apologize for suddenly showing up….”

“Huh.”

“Ah.”

The one who burst through the door was Tang Soyeol. Upon seeing the situation unfolding, Tang Soyeol’s face instantly flushed red, and she hastily covered it with her hands.

“Tang So…!”

“I-I’ll leave. I’m sorry….”

Without even a chance to make excuses, Tang Soyeol closed the door and disappeared.

When only awkward silence remained.

[Heeheehee…!]

Only the quiet, sly laughter of the old No-ya echoed in my ears.

---

To put it simply, when I hastily got up and went outside, Tang Soyeol had already left the residence.

When I asked a servant, they said she had come with some business, but perhaps it wasn’t anything important.

She must have had a reason to visit, but for now, there was something else I needed to do first.

Still half-asleep and staggering, I gave Wi Seol-ah and Namgung Bi-ah a light smack on the head, scolding them first.

Seeing the two avoid my gaze when I told them to wait until I got back, I almost smiled but held it in.

[You should be bowing and thanking me, yet why are you scolding them? You useless brat.]

I listened to No-ya’s words with one ear and let them out the other.

Leaving my residence, the place I headed to from the morning was the medical office within the Gu family’s territory.

More precisely, it was where the Namgung family’s warriors were receiving treatment.

The warriors I had wrecked naturally didn’t look kindly upon my appearance.

And among them, the one glaring the most fiercely was none other than the divine physician performing the treatment.

“What on earth are you doing? Why is a young brat going around beating up grown adults… Tsk, tsk.”

“I apologize….”

His words seemed quite strange, but since I had caused trouble, I had nothing more to add.

“Amidst it all, you beat them up terrifyingly cleanly. Was this intentional?”

Faced with the divine physician’s words, I had no particular response and could only choose silence.

“Even seasoned interrogators can’t do this. It made treatment easier, though….”

“Are there any who will suffer after-effects?”

“The ones who lost teeth will have a tough time for about three months, but there won’t be any major problems. Your father paid quite a bit.”

That’s a relief, at least.

The compensation my father mentioned yesterday must have been for things like this.

There are probably spirit pills and other alternatives besides that.

“Thanks to you, this old man stayed up all night.”

“…Thank you.”

“Your thanks are noted. I don’t know the circumstances, but you didn’t beat them senseless without reason, did you? Besides, I wasn’t happy about you freeloading anyway, so this makes up for your room and board.”

Leaving the divine physician, I approached those lying on the sickbeds.

I couldn’t bring myself to curse at my own kin, and though I saw their displeased gazes, the atmosphere eased somewhat when I bowed my head, apologized, and discussed compensation.

In fact, upon hearing about the compensation, I could see their lips twitching, trying not to smile.

Even from my perspective, it was quite a generous offer.

It was worth the effort of finding the chief steward first thing in the morning to find out about the compensation for the victims.

The Namgung family agreed to take external responsibility, and the Gu family implicitly agreed to provide compensation to the victims accordingly.

I couldn’t find out who was responsible for causing this mess, but since both the Namgung and Gu families simultaneously requested information, I just had to wait for now.

From my perspective, I didn’t think they could catch the culprit.

Especially if the culprit possessed the same power as that guy.

Whoosh! Swish!

The sound of the blade cutting through the air echoed clearly.

After meeting the Namgung warriors, I was half-dragged to the training grounds in the annex. Namgung Jin was practicing his sword.

“You seemed quite busy yesterday.”

Namgung Jin asked me.

“A rather urgent matter came up.”

It was during the time Namgung Jin was giving me information that I cut him off and ran to the head of the family, so Namgung Jin had reason to be angry, but…

He didn’t seem particularly angry.

[Doesn’t it look like he’s holding back? That’s how it seems to me.]

“…By the way, I heard you sent your daughter to my room?”

“That’s correct.”

“Why did you do that?”

“Hmm…?”

At my question, Namgung Jin wore a puzzled expression.

“Wasn’t that the bet we made, hoping for something like that?”

“What kind of crazy talk is that….”

I was about to say that, but I remembered telling Namgung Jin, ‘I’d like to have your daughter,’ so I shut my mouth.

“I said I would agree to that.”

I tried to argue that she was still his daughter, but considering what Namgung Bi-ah had done to the Namgung family in her past life, it didn’t seem like they had a particularly good father-daughter relationship, so I didn’t want to bring it up.

Besides, Namgung Jin himself wasn’t exactly a great person.

“The engagement is already half-confirmed, and you do like my daughter, don’t you, Young Master?”

“…”

I could have denied this, but I didn’t.

Because I already knew it myself to some extent.

“Seeing as you don’t deny it, I guess it’s true.”

As if it didn’t matter, Namgung Jin spoke while continuously moving his body.

From the sound of him cutting through the air, I could somewhat feel Namgung Jin’s martial prowess.

It’s just that his opponent was who he was; Namgung Jin was an outstanding warrior, renowned enough to earn the epithet Sword King.

Perhaps sensing my gaze, Namgung Jin spoke.

“Does it look insignificant? Of course, it would seem that way to your eyes now.”

That wasn’t the intention behind my gaze. I was actually quite surprised.

The swordplay performed without any bets was the Namgung family’s pride, the Chang Gung Mu Ae Sword style.

Incidentally, it was also the sword style Namgung Jin had tried to perform before it was shattered by the old No-ya’s single strike.

[With so many openings visible, how could I not strike and let it pass?]

Watching Namgung Jin’s swordplay, I asked.

“Is it alright to show me?”

Namgung Bi-ah is originally a strange woman, so she probably doesn’t care whether her martial arts are shown or not, but Namgung Jin is different.

Especially for a prestigious family, they are usually reluctant to show their martial arts training to others.

Upon asking that, Namgung Jin, who had been moving quickly, stopped and looked towards me.

“Who else but you? Is there any reason to hide it from you, Young Master? I am currently trying to obtain your sword technique.”

Indeed, Namgung Jin’s swordplay just now seemed slightly different from before.

He seemed to be striving to obtain those subtle movements that the old No-ya displayed.

Though it didn’t seem to be going well.

“So is that why you dragged me here?”

“Dragged me? You say things that could be misunderstood if someone heard.”

…Misunderstood? He was waiting at the entrance right after I came out of the medical office?

Seeing my expression, Namgung Jin snorted. It seemed like a substitute for sighing, as he couldn’t quite manage it.

“As I told you before, Young Master, if it means obtaining that sword technique, I could even kneel before you.”

Namgung Jin’s eyes were resolute. Of course, that’s why he was setting aside his arrogant nature and pride to act like this towards me.

[Although signs of enlightenment are inherently precious, this child is particularly steeped in impatience.]

He meant it wasn’t just about reaching a higher state.

“So please, I hope you’ll teach me… If you wish, I could truly call you master and follow you.”

“I’d prefer if you stopped that.”

Imagining someone my father’s age clinging to me and calling me ‘Master’ wasn’t a pleasant sight.

Namgung Jin kept pleading for me to teach him the sword, but there was no way I could possibly know how.

‘What are you really going to do.’

[Seeing you flustered makes me so happy.]

‘No-ya, did you really just blurt that out? Without thinking?’

[What do you think?]

This old man must know something.

His playful voice seemed to hint at the answer.

[I don’t know everything about the techniques. I’m not a renowned physician, after all. However, I know enough to open the path.]

‘Are you planning to tell me that?’

[Enough playing around. I said I’d tell you, so I must keep my word. Is there perhaps something bothering you now?]

It wasn’t just ‘something’; there were many problems.

Still, it was fortunate that there was something I could tell him.

“Hmm….”

Namgung Jin’s expression tried to appear calm, but it was mixed with earnestness.

It seemed partly due to my disappearance yesterday because of that incident.

Would it be beneficial to teach Namgung Jin the sword? If I had to pinpoint the issue, it was that.

I didn’t know or care about Namgung Jin’s circumstances. While I had concerns about cleaning up the mess, the biggest reason was likely Namgung Bi-ah.

‘If only that weren’t the case.’

Perhaps I could have used Namgung Jin’s considerable inner demons to create various branching paths, but…

The face of the woman who had slept embraced in my arms that morning came to mind, making that impossible.

In the past, she had annihilated all her kin with her own hands. Would the future still lead to that?

My wish was that it wouldn’t.

If possible, I even wanted to make it so that it wasn’t me.

“Patriarch.”

I said, looking at Namgung Jin.

“Shall we start by signing a contract?”

I said it with the brightest smile I could manage. Upon seeing my smile, Namgung Jin scowled as if he’d seen something he shouldn’t have.

…Why?

---

While Gu Yangcheon was having a pleasant time with Namgung Jin, Namgung Bi-ah took the time to look for someone.

Wi Seol-ah was beside her. Usually, Wi Seol-ah would stick close to Namgung Bi-ah, chattering about this and that, but…

This time, as if nervous, she merely sipped the tea placed before her.

As they spent time drinking tea, creak. The door opened, and someone entered.

It was none other than Tang Soyeol.

Tang Soyeol, who entered the room cautiously, flinched in surprise upon seeing Namgung Bi-ah.

“Unni… Did you put on makeup?”

She was so surprised that her voice trembled.

Today, Namgung Bi-ah looked different, as if she had applied a bit of makeup.

Adding color to her already beautiful face made her shine.

“…A little.”

Namgung Bi-ah replied, avoiding eye contact as if embarrassed.

“What’s this about…? You always said you couldn’t be bothered when I told you to dress up.”

To Tang Soyeol’s words, Namgung Bi-ah averted her gaze again and replied.

“…He said I was pretty….”

As she spoke, perhaps out of shyness, her ears grew hotter and turned bright red.

No one asked who said it. All three of them could think of only one person.

“Y-yes. You are pretty… truly.”

It wasn’t a lukewarm reaction. Tang Soyeol genuinely thought Namgung Bi-ah was beautiful.

Anhui’s Number One Beauty isn’t enough. Someone like Namgung Bi-ah could actually be called the World’s Number One Beauty, couldn’t she?

‘But then again, the attendant beside her is pretty too….’

I think she said she was Gu Yangcheon’s attendant. The girl subtly glancing beside Namgung Bi-ah was also exceptionally beautiful.

Even considering she was still young, her beauty was striking enough to make one’s eyes widen.

Is that why Gu Yangcheon keeps her nearby? Their relationship seemed like more than just master and attendant.

Because that girl was also present in the scene I saw this morning.

The embarrassing scene from that morning flashed back, and Tang Soyeol cooled her cheeks slightly with her hand.

Tang Soyeol had done her homework regarding ‘that sort of thing,’ but seeing it firsthand made rational judgment difficult.

Hiding her rising heat, Tang Soyeol asked.

“Ah, anyway. What’s this about…?”

At Tang Soyeol’s question, Namgung Bi-ah composed herself. Her flushed ears seemed to have cooled down.

“…I have something to talk about.”

With her serious gaze, Tang Soyeol also bit her lip slightly and sat demurely opposite.

Tang Soyeol felt increasingly thirsty, so she drank the slightly cooled tea.

“…I slept with him yesterday.”

Pfft-!

Just as she was about to take a sip, Tang Soyeol immediately spat out the tea she had in her mouth upon hearing the shocking statement.

“Aargh… it splashed…!”

“Ah…!, S-sorry.”

Wi Seol-ah let out an displeased sound, as if a few drops had hit her.

“Unni… What did you just say?”

Despite Tang Soyeol’s reaction, Namgung Bi-ah calmly continued her story.

“…I slept holding his hand.”

“Wait…”

From Tang Soyeol’s perspective, this was not something she wanted to hear. The emotion slowly rising beyond embarrassment was definitely not a warm feeling.

It was cold and chilling. Tang Soyeol didn’t want to feel this way towards Namgung Bi-ah.

“Unni, I don’t want to hear about that kind of thing….”

“Now, I might be pregnant….”

“…Huh?”

…What did she say?