episode_0144

Poof…!

“Master..! Master..! Pull yourself together! Open your eyes! Master, you’re not dead..!”

“Pfft..!”

Thump thump thump thump..!

At the sound of Heeseon’s voice, the breath that had been caught in his chest finally burst out, and his heart began to beat rapidly.

Slowly opening his eyes, he saw Heeseon’s beautiful face.

He found himself leaning against Heeseon, who had prevented him from falling when he collapsed.

Completely relying on Heeseon, who was sitting, I tried to get up, but my strength drained away, making it impossible to muster any energy.

But this situation… It feels like I’ve experienced it before…?

When I was hit by that tiger…

“Hahaha..! Squeak! Oh, how cute… Hehe.. Do you know it’s a fake? Squeak! Hehehe.. The master wouldn’t hurt you, right..! Squeak! Squeak!”

“……”

There’s something different from back then.

Back then, Heeseon cried a lot, but now she’s teasing me with a smile?

Confused. Perplexed..

Unconsciously, I ran my hand over my chest.

There wasn’t a single scratch on the cloth I was wearing.

It wasn’t because I successfully blocked the sword strike with the cloth imbued with Qi.

I sensed failure and accepted death.

I succeeded in conveying emotions.

Thinking death was imminent, imagine how intense the emotions were at that moment.

However, for some reason, I couldn’t draw out the Qi…

Moreover…

“In the first place, the master didn’t even strike the cloth with the sword.”

If the master had struck the cloth with the sword filled with dangerous energy, I’m sure both the cloth and I would have been cleanly cut.

But the fact that both the cloth and I are unharmed means that the master withdrew the sword at a crucial moment.

Phew…

Even now, recalling the recent events sends shivers down my spine.

The moment when time seemed to slow down as the master approached me in a single step.

The overwhelming force descending upon me

The pain was so vivid that I thought I had truly been cut in half.

Realizing that the master hadn’t touched me made me wonder why I thought I was in pain at that moment…

Ah! Right, this feeling was similar to being stabbed by a knife in a dream.

When you wake up, everything is fine, but in the dream, you scream in agony.

“Hehehe.. What a shame…”

As I shivered in Heeseon’s embrace, the master approached with a slightly regretful expression.

“Oh, Master..! I didn’t understand earlier why you swung the sword at me, but now I get it… Ah… But I should have succeeded since I caused you such trouble….”

“Don’t say such things. When a master imparts a lesson to a disciple, where is the trouble in that? However, it is a bit regrettable that we didn’t succeed in one go. It’s most effective when you truly believe in all of this.”

Yes, I believed everything the master intended.

Pressuring me as soon as I entered the training ground was probably to prevent me from having other thoughts.

If I had thought about it a little, I would have realized that the master wouldn’t harm me.

Wasn’t that Taiil’s application?

Anyway, in the end, I truly felt the threat of death as the master intended, and thanks to that, I succeeded in conveying those emotions onto the cloth.

It’s unfortunate that the Qi didn’t follow.

“By the way, Master! At first, I really thought I was cut, but it was just a misconception?”

“It’s understandable. You put the will to be truly cut by the sword. Although this master’s physical body only cut through emptiness, your will actually cut you, so it’s natural for you to be mistaken…”

“…with determination, I wield the sword.”

Ugh..! My heart pounds. It weeps!

Is this the Heart Sword? It’s so cool..!

I felt the fear of death just a moment ago, but even then, I couldn’t contain this excitement!

Realizing the romantic ability I possess, I briefly mistook it for impending death and couldn’t stop being amazed!

Not a scratch on me, let alone close to dying, yet I should hurry and train to try out such an ability myself!

Eagerly wanting to resume training with my master in my excitement, my master spoke with a slightly hoarse voice.

“I’m sorry… Seems like the shock was quite significant… Shaking all the way to your core…. Perhaps this old man was a bit too ambitious… You succeeded in reaching the Thousand Days stage in such a short time, and you were elated… Hah… If I had such ambition, I should have properly guided you towards awakening…”

Was my revelry with the Heart Sword that lengthy?

Thinking I was shocked, my master kept apologizing in a subdued tone.

“Oh! No, Master! I wasn’t that surprised! I just wanted to learn something like that too… Although I did succeed in conveying those emotions! Of course, the Heart didn’t react at all to the emotions…”

“What..? Even though emotions were conveyed, the Heart didn’t respond? That can’t be right? Hah… I simply forgot that you needed to infuse emotions into the Heart, which is why I thought I failed! Here, try infusing the Heart once!”

“Yes, Master.”

Sigh..

While I responded energetically, I seemed to forget that my body was drained.

Partly due to Heeseon’s warm embrace…

No matter how hard I tried to move my body to remove the cloth, it was incredibly difficult as it wouldn’t budge.

Still, since this training was stealing precious time from my master, Heeseon couldn’t remain wrapped around me forever; I had to get up somehow.

“Hehe.. Struggling, aren’t you? Let me help you, Lord!”

At that moment, noticing my predicament while casually embracing me and stroking my head, Heeseon smiled and planted a kiss on my forehead.

Ahh…

As soon as Heeseon’s lips touched my forehead, a refreshing energy surged through me, making me feel lighter.

Perhaps it was due to the emotional training I was undergoing?

Within it, I could sense Heeseon’s affectionate nature, which I hadn’t noticed before, making my heart incredibly warm.

“Ah… Thank you, Heeseon…. You’re truly a perfect wife.”

“Isn’t that right? That’s why I’m your true wife hehe.. So, please look after me at night, okay? Hehe..!”

“…….”

Heh heh… How did she know I promised to bother her a lot at night?

Fine! I’ll indulge her just a little.

‘Oh no! Now’s not the time for this!’

Feeling fully recovered, I quickly removed the cloth and politely handed it over to my master.

“Hmm….”

Upon receiving the cloth, my master closed his eyes and concentrated, trying to read the emotions infused within.

Truth be told, I wasn’t sure what emotions were contained within.

At the time, it was too urgent, and later, I didn’t think to check as I was busy regaining my composure after a brief hiatus.

“Hmm.. It must be protected.. I have the will to live… but the direction seems to be the issue.. Ah, this is..!”

It seemed my master had identified a problem.

Muttering to himself and suddenly exclaiming in admiration….

Curious about what my master felt from the cloth, I patiently waited for him to gather his thoughts.

With a faint smile, my master slowly opened his mouth…

“Haha.. You are quite… or maybe this could be my mistake.”

“Excuse me? Your mistake? What mistake have you made..?”

“Um… I hoped that you would evoke a strong defensive instinct in a moment of crisis. That’s why I showed you my determination to actually bear it all.”

“Yes! So, I definitely felt some intense emotions, and I desperately tried to convey them, remembering the teacher’s advice not to forget to imbue emotions into the cotton cloth… But I can’t quite remember what they were.”

The teacher chuckled as if approving of my words.

“Hahaha! You recalled the teacher’s teachings in a moment of crisis! How could this not be an exceptional student! Haha… Anyway, I should point out the issues from now on.”

“…Yes!”

“For starters, there are too many emotions poured in. Each of those emotions was intense. If only one of them had been strong, even if it lacked purpose, it would have been fine…”

“…Hmm.”

Ah… I did tend to overthink things a bit.

Someone might ask how one could overthink in a situation where death is imminent, but really, with moments of life flashing by like a flickering lamp, how could one not?

“So, it must have been my mistake. Haha… It’s fascinating… Having lived through all those long years, I never knew that, as a human being, apart from the survival instinct at the moment of death, one could yearn so intensely for something else. While other emotions may arise, ultimately, the strongest emotion for everyone was the instinct for survival.”

Does that mean that at the moment when I sensed death, I felt another emotion as strongly as the survival instinct?

“Um… Teacher? Can I confirm it once? It’s my own emotion, but I don’t really know myself…”

“Oh! Yes! That’s a good attitude. Understanding oneself is the beginning. It’s not unusual that people don’t know themselves well, surprisingly.”

The teacher kindly patted my shoulder and handed me the cotton cloth.

I politely accepted the cloth with both hands, closed my eyes slowly, and felt the emotions within me that I didn’t know.

‘I want to live.’

This is the survival instinct.

‘I can’t die like this.’

Resistance against death.

‘Heesun… Sari… Hyangdan… Yomi… and our baby….’

Worry… Regret… Love….

Tears flowed without my realizing it.

In that final moment.

What my emotions intensely desired were my family.

“Ah… Father.. Our father….”

Memories of my father suddenly surfaced.

The reason my father came to mind so abruptly… Perhaps it was because within that cotton cloth, there existed a man who fought fiercely for his family at the end of his life.