Chapter 890: I missed you.

The blood in my head went cold.

No, it felt like the blood in my entire body had gone cold, not just my head.

“What are you talking about…?”

Did I hear wrong? No, I don’t think I heard wrong.

Madam Mi’s expression proved it.

“You didn’t send me a letter…?”

“No. I sent a letter.”

Madam Mi denied my words. More accurately, she corrected me.

“It’s true I sent you a letter…. When did you receive it?”

“I received it two days ago.”

“Two days…?”

Madam Mi’s eyes widened further.

“No way, in just two days…. You came here from Sichuan?”

“Yes.”

“…”

“More than that right now….”

Grip.

Madam Mi suddenly grabbed my shoulder. I should have been startled by the sudden touch.

“Are you alright?”

“…Huh? Ah, yes.”

I should have been even more surprised by the change in her tone.

Madam Mi, perhaps realizing her slip-up, let out a cough and then recomposed her voice and tone.

“…Even if it was urgent, you shouldn’t travel such a long distance so quickly. It’ll harm your body.”

“…That much is fine.”

Actually, it wasn’t particularly difficult.

My energy had increased, and furthermore, controlling it had become easier.

The problem of my explosive increase in firepower being difficult to manage had been resolved.

Anyway.

“Moreover, if you’ve just returned from the Alliance, what on earth did you go through…. Are you really alright….”

“Madam Mi.”

I cut her off. There was something more important right now.

“Please continue what you were saying earlier. I’m truly alright.”

I didn’t know why she was so agitated, but I calmed her down and continued speaking.

“You’re saying it’s true you sent me a letter, but the one I actually received wasn’t from you, Madam Mi, is that correct?”

“…Yes. The timing is off. Even if it arrived early, it should have arrived today.”

“…”

Even at the earliest, today.

But I received the letter the day before yesterday. I left as soon as I got it, and now it’s this.

‘…What happened?’

I frowned.

No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t understand.

‘The handwriting was perfect. The situation fit exactly.’

It was set up so I couldn’t help but be mistaken. The circumstances and justification fit perfectly, and even the handwriting was the same.

And yet, it was fake?

As I lowered my eyes, pondering the question, Madam Mi reached out to me.

“The letter you received, do you still have it?”

“Ah, yes.”

That’s right. I had it.

I quickly took it out from my inner pocket and handed it to Madam Mi.

She took the letter, opened it, and confirmed it, then furrowed her brows deeply.

“…Indeed. It’s understandable you were mistaken.”

She admitted it herself. The handwriting, the seal, and even the paper she frequently used were all the same.

“How….”

What happened? Neither Madam Mi nor I could understand.

‘What kind of bastard is it.’

Just what kind of bastard could it be? The one who did this to me.

And, the one capable of doing such a thing.

As I pondered that deeply, a tingling sensation ran down the back of my neck.

“…!”

It was the shittiest assumption I could think of, but at this point, it was the most probable.

I hoped it wasn’t true, but the possibility seemed slim.

So. I first asked Madam Mi.

“…May I ask, Madam Mi. When did you hear the news that Father…. the Family Head, was imprisoned?”

“Three days ago.”

“…Three days ago.”

It was hard to say it coincided with the time he was imprisoned.

This was purely the time Madam Mi found out the information.

This means.

‘The letter I received must have been sent a day or two earlier than this.’

If that’s the case.

‘…He knew Father would be imprisoned and sent the letter in advance.’

That was the conclusion reached.

‘What a fucked up situation.’

If so, the one who pulled this shit must be someone from the Alliance.

Annoyance welled up.

That Father ended up like that.

And that it was even the result of someone pulling strings.

Forcing myself to suppress my emotions, I said to Madam Mi.

“…First, please explain in a bit more detail what happened.”

For now, I needed to grasp the situation.

******************

After hearing the full explanation, I rubbed my brow.

I could still feel the frown lines.

“Are you alright?”

Madam Mi asked worriedly.

I tried to brush her hand away and managed my expression.

“Yes, I’m fine.”

Truthfully, I wasn’t fine, but I pretended to be. Otherwise, I felt like I’d spew all sorts of curses in front of Madam Mi.

‘…So.’

To roughly summarize what I heard.

‘Father stormed into the main Alliance and tried to kill Mu Yeon.’

The Sword Master and the Dragon Lord Commander blocked him, and as a result, he’s imprisoned.

This was the same information I had heard just before.

‘It’s still unknown why he did it…. The trial is tomorrow?’

This also wasn’t much different from the information I learned from the Alliance.

The problem was.

“The current acting Family Head is Elder Il-nim?”

“Yes.”

As Father’s situation changed and he could no longer perform the duties of Family Head, Elder Il became the current acting Family Head.

It wasn’t strange.

‘He is in a suitable position to act as a substitute.’

The Steward cannot leave the main family residence, and the acting Family Head must attend the trial. But.

‘I was in Sichuan, and not the Young Family Head either.’

Therefore, the closest person to act as a substitute was Elder Il.

“…Then, where is Elder Il-nim right now?”

“Elder Il-nim? He’s just outside for a moment….”

Just as Madam Mi was about to speak.

-Hoo, that little guy sure eats a lot.

Elder Il’s voice was heard from outside.

He must have just arrived.

I quickly got up and headed outside.

“Elder Il…Huh?”

“Hmm?”

What appeared was, as always, the immensely large Elder Il, and.

“Oh.”

Riding on Elder Il’s shoulder.

“It’s Dad.”

It was Ddolddol-i.

“…”

“Hi.”

The kid waved at me with a bright smile.

He was holding so many things in his hands, skewers of all kinds.

He still looked exactly like I did in my childhood.

No, that’s beside the point.

“…Why are you riding up there?”

“Huh? Great-Grandpa told me to ride.”

Great-Grandpa.

It was obvious who the word referred to without even looking.

“Yes, I told him to ride.”

“That’s right. He told me to.”

“…”

He was even clutching Elder Il’s hair with one hand.

As soon as I saw the sight, I let out a sigh.

“Get down quickly!”

“Nnngh…Why!”

“Why?”

I glared at him intensely, and Ddolddol-i flinched.

Then he crouched down and hid behind Elder Il.

This little brat?

I tried to grab him and pull him down, but Madam Mi darted out before me.

It was the first time in my life I’d seen Madam Mi move so fast.

She approached Elder Il and reached out her hand towards Ddolddol-i.

Then, as if he had been waiting, Ddolddol-i nestled into Madam Mi’s embrace.

“Welcome back.”

“Yes. Grandma.”

‘Grandma….’

How should I deal with that strange choice of words?

And how about the way he was nestled comfortably in her arms, behaving so obediently?

‘A monster being held in a human’s arms.’

He was even acting cute.

Anyone who saw this would be utterly shocked.

“Don’t scold him too much.”

“…Yes?”

“I believe it’s right to let them be spoiled when they’re young.”

Madam Mi said something out of the blue, wearing a somewhat sad expression.

“I regretted not knowing that…. I hope you won’t have that regret.”

“…No.”

What is she talking about?

Anyone who saw this would think I was trying to discipline Ddolddol-i.

I was dumbfounded and about to say something, but.

“But, how come you are here? You should be in Sichuan?”

Elder Il interjected and cut off my words.

“…The situation became strange, so I came in a hurry.”

“Ah.”

My answer made Elder Il understand what I meant.

“It seems you heard the news.”

“Yes….”

“Hmm.”

Hearing this, Elder Il made a strange expression.

Then he patted my shoulder.

What is it?

“This means I was wrong.”

“What are you talking about?”

“It seems you’ve matured much more than I thought.”

“So, what…?”

It was a nonsensical statement.

What did he mean by maturing?

I couldn’t understand at all, so I asked him.

“As soon as I heard the news, I thought you would storm into the Martial Arts Alliance and cause a ruckus.”

Huh…?

I flinched at Elder Il’s words.

“Seeing as you came straight here, it seems you’ve finally matured a bit with age…Why the expression?”

“…No, that’s just….”

Seeing my reaction, Elder Il’s brow furrowed.

“…Yangcheon-ah. Perhaps.”

“It wasn’t quite a ruckus.”

“…You went and did it.”

Elder Il’s expression changed to one of realization.

Then, with a hopeful tone, he asked me.

“…You didn’t cause any trouble, did you?”

“It wasn’t quite trouble…. Just.”

I said, awkwardly avoiding his gaze.

“I fought the Sword Master and scorched the floor a bit.”

-If that’s not trouble, then what is.

Elder Il tried to retort, letting out a breath, but.

“What? You fought the Sword Master?”

Madam Mi reacted even more strongly to my words.

“Fought the Sword Master? You mean that old geezer fought you? How could a decrepit old man fight a child…!”

“…Madam Baekhwa. Calling the Sword Master a decrepit old man… that’s a bit….”

“Are you hurt? Are you injured anywhere?”

“Damn it.”

As my words were completely ignored, Elder Il finally cursed.

Yeah, given his temper, he must have held back for a long time.

“…Madam Mi. I’m perfectly fine. Look. I’m not injured anywhere. It was just a minor argument.”

“An argument that scorched the floor?”

“…”

I easily ignored Elder Il’s words.

“Are you really alright?”

“Yes.”

I meant it.

The fight with the Sword Master had no repercussions on me.

After all….

‘We weren’t fighting to kill each other.’

We were just testing each other, not truly engaging in combat.

If we had both been serious….

‘The Alliance should have been in chaos already.’

Given our levels, it would have turned into a mess.

But the fact that the Alliance was intact meant we both fought while holding back.

I turned my gaze from the still-suspicious Madam Mi to Elder Il.

“So, I heard the trial is tomorrow. Is that correct?”

“Yes, they say it’s tomorrow.”

“I heard Elder Il-nim will be attending as the acting Family Head. Then, how should we prepare?”

“Hmm?”

Elder Il tilted his head at my question.

And then he asked me, sounding puzzled.

“Prepare for what?”

“…What?”

“Is there anything to prepare for?”

“No, if you’re attending, don’t you have some kind of plan?”

“No, I don’t.”

“…”

My head started to ache.

“…Why?”

“Why? Because there’s no need.”

“How can you say there’s no need, not knowing what situation might arise….”

“The former Family Head told me to do so.”

“…!”

Elder Il’s answer left my mouth agape.

“He told me not to worry. He said it’s fine, so don’t do anything. Therefore, I will simply follow his words.”

“But….”

“If you went to the Alliance, Yangcheon, I presume you also heard something from the former Family Head. Am I correct?”

“…That’s correct.”

“What did he say?”

I recalled my father’s words from the Martial Arts Alliance.

‘Did he say he was fine?’

Whether he told me not to worry, or that he was fine.

I couldn’t recall precisely.

The exact words weren’t important.

Rather, the meaning behind them was important.

“…He said he was fine. And to take care of Madam Mi.”

Hearing this, Madam Mi, who was beside me, flinched.

“Really?”

Elder Il, on the other hand, smiled.

“This time, that guy spoke clearly, unlike him.”

That guy.

It was the first time I saw Elder Il refer to Father that way.

“If the former Family Head said he’s fine, then he is. So, Yangcheon, you should think the same and stay put. There must be a reason for everything.”

“…What if there is no reason?”

“Even if that were the case, it’s not something for you to interfere with.”

Elder Il’s expression suddenly turned serious.

“It means there’s no place for you, who isn’t even the Young Family Head, to meddle.”

“…”

I bit my lip at his irrefutable words.

“Therefore, you should do what you need to do. Leave this matter to the former Family Head and me.”

What I needed to do.

Thinking of that, I wrinkled the bridge of my nose.

‘What I need to do.’

I shifted my gaze.

I looked at Madam Mi’s hand.

In her hand was the letter I had given her.

What I need to do now.

Isn’t it that, no matter how I look at it?

Not only did they mimic Madam Mi’s handwriting and the merchant guild’s seal.

‘It seems finding the bastard who interfered in this matter.’

Thinking of that, my eyes lit up.

Thinking about it alone wouldn’t lead to a conclusion.

Then there’s only one way.

‘Use the smartest guy I know.’

I had to go find Je gal Hyuk.

******************

“Star King has arrived in Hannam.”

A woman wearing a veil, Mu Hui, spoke while looking at someone’s back.

At her words, the man who was putting on his clothes slightly turned his head.

A smile played on the man’s lips, and his eyes shone blood-red.

“Faster than expected. Did he gain something else in Sichuan?”

Hyeolma laughed.

Every time he laughed, Mu Hui’s shoulders trembled slightly.

“Not bad. Actually, it’s good.”

Nodding, Hyeolma adjusted his clothes.

Then he took a breath.

He looked as if he were feeling excited.

“I’ll be back shortly.”

“You mean….”

Hyeolma said, looking at Mu Hui.

“The time has come. So, I must bring back what needs to be brought back first.”

Hyeolma said so with a smile.

As he spoke, he vanished into red smoke.

“…”

Seeing that, Mu Hui carefully bowed her head as if showing respect.