Chapter 361

Chapter 361

Eat The World Tree.

Episode 361: Master Student Confrontation (3)

“I have something to say.”

With proper posture, in a non-offensive manner.

Cheondo conveyed her intentions slowly, in a voice as low as possible, so that I wouldn’t be taken aback.

“You have something to say.”

The changed atmosphere completely dispelled my drowsiness. I swallowed.

Cheondo nodded slightly.

“It’s something I have to say.”

Has this person ever been this polite?

Cheondo, who was always serious and never showed her emotions.

But today, her words felt deliberate, each syllable carefully chosen.

“No, um, hehehe, why are you so serious, Master? Between us.”

I tried to brush it off jokingly, but her expression didn’t change.

-Tick-tock.

The sound of the clock ticking could be heard.

“If you have something to say, say anything. I’m always on your side, Master. I could even die if you asked me to.”

That was how much I trusted her.

She’s the one who straightened out my chaotic mind, and I believe she’d always make the right choices.

Cheondo’s lips curved into a small smile.

“You always look good when you’re cheerful.”

“Yes? Um… I guess I am.”

“Yes. No matter what you face, even when something terrifying is right in front of you, you’ve always been like that.”

Her words, spoken calmly, sent a chill down my spine as they went on.

Why was she saying this?

The thought stemming from a single question kept growing.

For someone like me, who didn’t know much, the conclusion of these drawn-out words was already set.

Cheondo, Hwangdo, Baekdo’s disappearance.

One of the futures I had to prevent.

“Master…?”

“When I first took you to Purgatory, I didn’t expect you to do so perfectly.”

“Why are you saying such things?”

“You did well even where I wasn’t. At this rate… it’ll be hard to even call myself your Master.”

Cheondo clicked her tongue and smiled bitterly.

At some point, the surrounding environment disappeared from my sight.

Cheondo’s face was fixed in my eyes.

“What do you mean? Wait a moment. I must have misheard, just waking up from sleep. Haha. What is this?”

A hollow laugh escaped me. I held my throbbing forehead and pondered why Cheondo was saying these things to me.

She said it was hard to even call herself my Master.

Didn’t she know how much she had done for me?

Just the memories from Purgatory alone show she risked her life for me.

Someone who would risk their life for someone they hadn’t known long.

“Shiheon.”

“Yes.”

The smile on her face looked very bitter.

“Am I your Master to you?”

In the unripe early dawn.

Before the moon had even set, a sudden, mocking question from a precious person.

It was still something I didn’t understand, but all I could think about was how to get through this situation.

“I don’t know why you’re saying that.”

As always, to avoid any unnecessary misunderstandings.

I hugged Cheondo. Her body, having just showered, was warm.

Her damp indoor clothes, her faint blush. Her hair still damp.

“If you’re not my Master, then what are you?”

“You said you’d listen to anything.”

“Yes, just say the word. If you don’t have hands, you have a disciple.”

Whether in Dowon or now.

Only our hierarchical relationship has changed; I thought our bond remained the same.

I waited for Cheondo’s answer.

“Yes.”

Her next words fell shortly after.

“Even if I betray you?”

Would calling it a bolt from the blue be right?

-Thump.

I frowned at the boulder that fell below my chest.

“Pardon?”

“Just as I asked.”

“I don’t understand your intention, Master.”

I didn’t have time to feel betrayed or flustered.

I really didn’t know why she said that.

My bewildered brain was still working hard.

Like fitting puzzle pieces without a set direction, only after comparing my situation with Cheondo’s did an answer come to mind.

The single most important event in this world right now.

The Cornus family.

“Even if I kill your friend—”

My face froze.

“Will you still think of me as your Master?”

I slowly pulled away from Cheondo. I wanted to see her face.

Cheondo’s face was stiff. Her cold but guilty eyes were looking at me, and I could faintly feel her shoulders trembling as I held her.

Anger.

I didn’t feel it.

A bit of distortion was always expected.

“Let’s talk.”

I stood up abruptly and returned to the living room.

Some flower tea would be good to drink.

I hoped it would somehow warm the still chilly atmosphere.

Sweets were unnecessary. There was no need to stuff cookies into a sweet mouth.

Cheondo sat at the table without a word. I handed her the tea, and she finally bowed slightly.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

A sip of tea to clear my thoughts. My mind seemed to calm down a bit.

I cautiously brought up the topic of conversation.

“The part about killing my friend, that probably means.”

In this situation, there can only be one person.

“Sansuyu, right?”

“Yes.”

“Why did you make that decision?”

The sound of a cell phone vibrating from the bedroom. It’s obvious it’s Seong Jiho or Mok Taeyang.

Right now, stopping Cheondo was the priority.

“You must know about the Cornus family.”

“Yes.”

The fact that Cheondo was speaking so cautiously must be largely because I had told her so much about myself.

Who Jin Dallae was to me.

What Seyoung was like, what Sansuyu was like.

Even if she hadn’t met them, she knew.

“The Cornus family’s heresy judgment will be announced in a few days.”

That’s information I already knew.

I took a deep breath and waited for the next words. My mouth was parched. My chest felt tight.

My fingers tapping my thigh got faster.

“Your friend will be the same, I presume.”

“Yes.”

“You would try to help, wouldn’t you?”

“That’s right.”

Cheondo and I took a deep breath simultaneously. Her lips trembled.

I didn’t know if Cheondo’s body was trembling, or if my eyes were trembling.

What was certain was that I was trembling right now.

“Shiheon.”

My trembling body stiffened.

“…Yes.”

A word I managed to utter with difficulty. No sooner had I said it than the next words were pronounced.

“If you still think of me as your Master, please listen to this unworthy Master’s words, even once.”

“What are you talking about? No, why are you being so humble, Master? I’m the one who should be taking the blame.”

“This time, absolutely…”

Cheondo’s words trailed off. She closed her lips, paused, and then closed the eyes that had been gently looking at me.

“Stay out of it.”

The atmosphere, which had barely warmed, cooled in an instant.

The dark room had an air of elegance, but it felt unreliable.

Why was the tablecloth with its unique spiral pattern so irritating?

Even though Cheondo was dressed simply, she seemed infinitely distant.

“Ah…”

I had so much to say, but nothing came out.

I could have rattled off all sorts of flowery words, but for some reason, I couldn’t bring myself to utter empty phrases.

We had a bond. Because we did, I knew.

No matter what I did, I couldn’t break Cheondo’s resolve.

“Master—”

“I know how much you cherish the people around you. But just as you think of that child—”

Her appeal was intense.

Could it be expressed in such words?

“…I think of you too.”

Cheondo’s words were stern and harsh as usual, but they contained a subtle, melancholy emotion that was more clinging than ever.

“You’ve done things that defy logic until now, but this is even more so. It’s dangerous, it’s treacherous. I don’t even want to imagine what your actions to save that child will bring.”

A Master worrying about her disciple.

It was natural and proper.

If it weren’t for this lingering feeling, I might have felt genuinely grateful to her.

“…So. You’re saying I should just let her die?”

“…….”

“What? Kill her painlessly, is that it?”

Sweat beaded on my furrowed brow. My Adam’s apple moved repeatedly, and my heart pounded roughly.

It was because I understood that it was even harder.

On parallel lines that never intersected, only emotional battles remained.

Even when we went to Dowon, we always clashed over trivial matters.

Neither my Master nor I could fix our damn stubbornness, even when we parted.

“I don’t think I can do that.”

“Shiheon, I—”

“I know. I understand. But to me, it’s all the same now. Even if the situation were reversed between you and her, I’d probably think the same thing.”

“…….”

Cheondo lowered her head. But then she raised it again and looked at me with clear eyes.

“…You mean even that short connection is so precious that you can’t let it go?”

“I learned that from you, Master.”

I had so much to say.

“Wasn’t it you who hugged me even when I was blinded in the dungeon and on the verge of death? I still don’t understand. Why did you give such excessive kindness to just one disciple, someone you’d only known for a little over a month?”

“You are the one who will succeed me. It was only natural for me as a Master to risk my life.”

“I succeed you? For just that reason?”

“It’s not ‘just’!”

Her voice grew louder.

I was startled and widened my eyes.

It was rare for Cheondo to raise her voice.

“Please, know the weight of the position you hold.”

The last of the Cheonma bloodline.

The last martial artist.

With Dowon destroyed, what Cheondo carried on her shoulders was the lifeline and the last sliver of hope for all of Dowon.

It’s not just a Master-disciple relationship.

Cheondo carried a great weight.

The Cheonma power she managed to bring back, having lost everything and even enduring the family curse.

It was natural that she cherished it so much.

Even I, who would succeed her, even if it went against my will.

“Is continuing the Cheonma lineage so precious to you?”

“…….”

“To me, you’re much more precious than that petty successor position.”

Cheondo didn’t answer my reproachful words.

“Young Demon, Shiheon.”

“Yes.”

“Don’t bring in personal feelings.”

Her words were cold.

“It’s a power that must be carried on no matter what. You were just the suitable person by chance, and I showed the proper attitude as a Master.”

“…….”

“Don’t betray my expectations. Crouch and move forward. You are still a hidden dragon that hasn’t even embraced the gutter.”

By chance.

We met by chance, and we became entangled like roots.

I was annoyed to hear words that seemed to deny everything Cheondo and I had shared so far.

Nevertheless, I somewhat sympathized with Cheondo’s cold attitude.

Perhaps I have become a little more mature than before.

“Ha. Is that so….”

But I guess I was still a childish fool.

I awkwardly raised the corners of my lips.

My head wouldn’t calm down.

“As you said, Master, we met by chance. We became Master and disciple by chance. Are you saying it’s all just chance?”

With each word, Cheondo’s face grew paler.

Was this what it felt like to drive a stake into your Master’s heart?

“I understand perfectly that all the feelings I’ve felt while spending time with you have no use under the pretext of continuing the lineage.”

“…….”

“You said you didn’t want me to be in danger? Was that just because you were afraid the Cheonma lineage would be cut off?”

“Listen to me.”

Emotion was mixed in her voice.

“Isn’t that what you said?”

“Shiheon.”

“Yes?”

“Shiheon!!!”

A voice loud enough to shatter eardrums echoed through the hotel.

A voice that struck like thunder.

My body stiffened.

But my words didn’t stop. My will had been set long ago.

“Now I’ll go my own way.”

My voice filled with strength. Black mana erupted in accordance with my will.

“I’ll kill all the bastards who piss me off.”

“….”

“I’ll never let go of what’s in my grasp. I’ll crush those who exploit the innocent.”

“….”

“Isn’t that what Cheonma was?”

At least, that’s what the Cheonma I knew was like.

The person I went to learn the Cheonma Divine Art from in the past.

A strange light appeared in Cheondo’s eyes as she looked at me.

“But if you still can’t bear to watch, Master.”

“…….”

“I think it’s time for me to leave the cradle.”

It felt like something inside me had snapped.

“Thank you for teaching me so much, Master.”