Chapter v9c10

Hidden in the scaffolding of the past – love and hate

“I understand your childish desire to overestimate your own strength, but perhaps it’s time to stop?”

Yong Cheon Myeong said in a gentle voice.

However, Bi Ryu-yeon, who was listening, felt quite displeased.

“Overconfidence? Why would I need to be overconfident?”

Bi Ryu-yeon retorted with a tone implying he couldn’t understand.

“Are you saying that’s not the case?”

“Overconfidence is a meaningless struggle made by those who lack or do not possess something, in an attempt to appear significant. Why would I, who is perfect in every way, engage in such acts reserved for fools who can’t even properly see themselves?”

Yong Cheon Myeong, who had been silently listening, was taken aback.

“It seems I was mistaken. You’re not arrogant but delusional! I have never seen someone as universally delusional as you in front of me. Should I be thankful for this novel experience?”

“If you feel grateful, I won’t refuse it.”

Yong Cheon Myeong regarded him as a very stiff-necked man. He had never seen a junior holding his head so stiffly before him.

“An unavoidable man! Do you realize that you are daring to refuse my words right now?”

“Of course I know. But, as much as my mouth hurts to say it again, I have absolutely no desire to release this young lady before receiving an apology.”

Yong Cheon Myeong’s elegant eyebrows twitched with displeasure. It seemed impossible to subdue him with words. His left hand naturally reached for the scabbard, ready to draw his sword at any moment.

“I will make you let go soon.”

His gentle tone and smile were directed at Maha Ryeong. However, her reaction was unexpected.

“I don’t need it!”

Her voice was as sharp as a frosty blade!

Maha Ryeong rejected Yong Cheon Myeong’s offered hand with an icy coldness that was almost cruel, much to the shock of those around her.

“Is it okay for her to act like that?”

“Isn’t that too much? After all, he is the head of the Gu Jeong Hoe… “

“Ugh, such temperament…”

It wasn’t unreasonable for such cautionary opinions to emerge, given the intensity of her response.

“What do we do if she refuses?”

Bi Ryu-yeon smirked, seemingly finding satisfaction in aggravating others.

“Haryeong.”

Yong Cheon Myeong called out to her with a cautious tone.

“Don’t pretend to be close to me! I don’t need your help.”

The coldness was biting, as if ice spines were emitting a chilling coldness. The situation had become awkward for Yong Cheon Myeong.

“What exactly is the problem?”

Yong Cheon Myeong was completely clueless. Despite the competitive relationship between their factions, he had no memory of doing something so terrible to warrant such a cold rejection.

“I will never accept your help. I’d rather die as I am. It would be great if the head of the Gu Jeong Hoe didn’t bother about me.”

Her voice was filled with a mix of cold Qi and venom. She was indeed someone whose pride was unmatched.

“Who would want your help anyway!”

The wounds in the young girl’s heart had not yet healed. That’s why she didn’t want to accept his help, which was also a disgrace to the Gun ung hoe.

“Sorry to interrupt your anger, but could you not accuse someone of a murder plan so carelessly? Who’s dying? I’m just asking for an apology.”

Bi Ryu-yeon interrupted to caution Maha Ryeong. He didn’t want to be falsely accused.

‘Something’s definitely there!’

What had happened between Maha Ryeong and Yong Cheon Myeong in the past? What kind of atrocious event had occurred that Maha Ryeong was showing such an irritable response to Yong Cheon Myeong? Without any context, such a deep emotional rift could not have appeared out of nowhere.

Cold qi was still flowing from Maha Ryeong’s eyes.

It was when Maha Ryeong was about ten years old. Na Baek Cheon, the leader of the Martial Alliance, had visited her home at Cheonmu Academy with his daughter. At that time, Maha Ryeong had already started to gain weight, looking much chubbier than other children her age.

‘Hello, I’m Na Yerin.’

She was excessively cute!

To Maha Ryeong’s young eyes, Na Yerin’s greeting, which did not seem to suit a ten-year-old with her unusual eyes and her quiet voice, was incredibly enviable.

Na Yerin, although very young, already possessed a beauty so enchanting that it seemed not of this world skin as clear and flawless as a fantasy, eyes blacker than obsidian and deeper than the night sky, and a visage that seemed like the very embodiment of purity.

Even to Maha Ryeong herself, Na Yerin appeared so cute and lovely that she wanted to bite her and rub her cheeks. But Na Yerin was even quieter back then.

Maha Ryeong could not know how much she envied Na Yerin, who was always praised for being cute like a celestial fairy. No one ever gave her such compliments. It seemed as if everyone first sought beauty in appearance before giving recognition. This was a deep scar on her young heart.

The adults always paid attention only to Na Yerin, not showing much interest in her. That might have been why she always played tricks on Na Yerin out of spite. She harbored feelings of injustice and resentment.

Despite the pranks, Na Yerin showed no reaction.

Even when Maha Ryeong cut off the head of the doll Na Yerin was holding, or when she smashed the crown she was wearing, Na Yerin just looked at her with an indifferent gaze, neither crying nor tattling. But despite this non-reaction, Maha Ryeong couldn’t stop; she couldn’t stop. She didn’t show any clear reaction to praise or mischief, Na Yerin

Despite having everything she wanted, she seemed to find it all bothersome, and Maha Ryeong could never forgive her for that. She always tried to torment her whenever she saw her. She wanted to be mean.

But whenever she saw Na Yerin’s deep-set eyes, which seemed too mature for her age, she felt ashamed as if her inner feelings were exposed and could not carry out her intentions properly. A bit of mischief was her limit.

And then another child visited CheonmuAcademy, holding his father’s hand.

“Haryeong! Let me introduce you. This is Yong Cheon Myeong, the successor of the Twin Dragons Sect. Since you’re the same age, get along well.”

He was a boy with a smile as if carved from jade. Maha Ryeong fell in love with him at first sight. It was her first love. And breathed a sigh of relief when Na Yerin returned home, glad to be away. She didn’t want to be compared by staying together.

“Hello! I’m Yong Cheon Myeong!”

Hesitantly!

When they first met, Maha Ryeong was too shy to speak a word. Until this moment, Yong Cheon Myeong had been a very polite boy. However, as soon as the girl’s father, Ma Jin-ga, disappeared, the boy’s attitude changed drastically. It was hard to believe that this was the same boy who had been smiling radiantly just moments ago.

“Um…”

It was the moment Maha Ryeong was about to say something. The boy turned his head and looked at the plump Maha Ryeong. Her cheeks turned rosy under his piercing gaze.

Then, the boy blurted out a cruel word without any hesitation.

“Fatty!”

That single word was a shock beyond imagination to the young girl, who was at the peak of her sensitive emotions. The last thing she wanted to hear! She heard that cruel word, “fatty,” from the boy she thought was the coolest, the boy she had a crush on, her first love. The meaning behind this word was monumental. It was a weight too heavy for the young girl to bear. The boy left without another word after plunging the sharp word into the girl’s tender heart. Tears streamed down the face of the girl left alone in the fragrant flower garden.

“I’ll definitely become a slim beauty! And… And…”

The girl vowed.

However, no matter how much she focused on martial arts training and regulated her diet, whether due to a mutation or an abnormal constitution, her body fat showed no signs of decreasing. On the contrary, it seemed to be increasing exponentially. When her expenses for managing her weight became at least twice the normal amount, it was only then that Ma Jin-ga realized the severity of the situation and felt threatened. As her weight multiplied, she became reclusive and stopped meeting anyone.

Ma Jin-ga’s worries were no small matter. It seemed as if she might never marry, and it would be a relief if she didn’t develop autism. His daughter wouldn’t even try to see sunlight, stuck in her room. They needed a solution to this problem.

From that point, Ma Jin-ga recognized the severity of the issue and began looking for solutions. For the head of the Heavenly Martial Arts School, Iron Fist Ma Jin-ga, there was almost nothing impossible in this world.

And finally, he discovered the legendary Qi Gong technique ‘Cheon Chuk Dae Seun Gyu Gong’ that allows one to control every part of the body with the mind.

For Maha Ryeong, trapped in the deep, dark abyss of her self, this was a brilliant ray of light.

From then on, she began to practice the technique fiercely, with the determination of someone prepared to die. Her father, Ma Jin-ga, spared no support to help her master the technique as quickly as possible. He provided all kinds of medicinal elixirs and even shared some of his own inner power to assist in her achievement.

After 6 years of grueling training that felt like shaving off bone and flesh, she finally mastered the Cheon Chuk Dae Seun Gyu Gong. She was able to control the fat on her body at will.

Her waist, once too wide for two people to encircle with their hands, became as slim as an ant’s. Her face, which looked as big as a watermelon, became as slender as an egg. Her legs, which once resembled hundred-year-old logs just cut for timber, became as thin as wires. It was like a miracle.

And when she emerged from her long, dark, and difficult retreat, she had transformed into a person with a body and beauty that everyone admired. It was a complete transformation.

After 6 years, the sun she saw anew was dazzlingly bright. Everyone who met her could not help but be amazed by her beauty. She could finally hear the praises of beauty she had so longed to hear, to the point of becoming deaf to them.

“Was the world always this bright, warm, brilliant, and full of beauty?!”

The world seemed different. The world she had seen in the past was a dull, monochromatic grey, but the world she saw now was shining with the colors of the rainbow. The girl who had been called “fatty” had died, and a new one was born.

But then… But then…

Suddenly…

someone who wanted to dig up the nightmares of her past suddenly appeared before her.