“…….”
Namgung Seon-jae's expression after returning to his quarters was very dark.
Seonwoo Hyun's constitution was far too bizarre.
He had gone over the various constitutions known in the murim, but Seonwoo Hyun's ran on a track different from all of them.
‘Inner arts that could be built up in a single day take a full ten days of devotion…… What on earth is the reason?’
Seonwoo Hyun's martial talent, needless to say, was heaven-sent.
But as things stood, he had absolutely no future.
Some think of inner arts simply as something needed to produce great power.
But that is not the reality.
Inner arts are vitality and breath, and above all, they serve as the passage connecting mind and body.
Therefore, if one's inner arts do not support it, no matter how excellent one's sword may be, one cannot advance to higher realms.
‘For now, he is somehow overcoming it with talent, but…….’
It was clear that someday he would suffer a great setback because of his inner arts.
‘Once I return to the Alliance, I must make inquiries in every direction to find a way to cure Hyun.’
“Haah…….”
With a long, heavy sigh, Namgung Seon-jae downed the cup of liquor placed before him.
As he gazed up at the moon outside the window, he remembered the time he had brought the boy to the clan.
The day Seonwoo Hyun's mother, Lim Seon-mi, passed away.
She left Namgung Seon-jae, who was keeping vigil at her deathbed, a last request to look after Seonwoo Hyun.
‘Please take care of Hyun, Seon-jae. You're the only one I can trust…….’
Then, one day after he had brought Seonwoo Hyun to the Namgung Clan.
Seonwoo Hyun suddenly told Namgung Seon-jae that he wanted to become a martial artist.
He said he would find the one who had killed his father without fail and take revenge with his own hands.
Namgung Seon-jae could not help but be flustered by his words.
Though he had brought him into the Namgung, a martial house, Namgung Seon-jae had no intention of raising Seonwoo Hyun as a martial artist.
He was a child who had not held a sword even once by the age of twelve.
From the very outset, his starting line was different from that of children who had lived with swords in hand since birth.
Moreover, once one becomes a martial artist, death always follows close behind.
Namgung Seon-jae sincerely hoped that Seonwoo Hyun would not set foot on such a dangerous path.
Even without becoming a martial artist, there were many things he could do in the clan.
But no matter how much he tried to make him understand and reasoned with him, he could not break his stubbornness.
In the end, Namgung Seon-jae let out a deep sigh.
‘…It cannot be helped. As he learns martial arts, he will realize his own shortcomings, and his desire for revenge will soften somewhat.’
Thinking so, Namgung Seon-jae reluctantly enrolled Seonwoo Hyun in the Earth Martial Hall.
But defying expectations, the boy had become the winner of the Heavenly Martial Tournament only three years after taking up the sword.
When he first heard the news, Namgung Seon-jae thought he had misheard.
But when he learned it was true, he was greatly surprised and overjoyed.
However, the fact that the boy clung to martial arts because of revenge soon weighed heavily on his heart.
Namgung Seon-jae let out a deep sigh.
“Haah… What can be done? Now I can only hope that he can govern his heart on his own.”
The wind blowing on that winter night was especially biting.
Namgung Seon-jae gazed sorrowfully at the moon floating outside the window.
As if to soothe his aching heart, he downed the full cup of liquor in one gulp.
“…Do not worry, Sang. Seon-mi. I will cure Hyun without fail.”
Gazing at the sky where the moon hung high, Namgung Seon-jae murmured.
***
Several days passed.
Though he had returned to the clan on leave from the Murim Alliance, Namgung Seon-jae could hardly find time to rest.
That was because many people—the Clan Head, the elders, direct and collateral members alike—came looking for him one after another.
The faces of those who welcomed Namgung Seon-jae had one thing in common.
Respect and trust.
Namgung Seon-jae's skill had already been attested to by the entire murim, and his magnanimous character did not discriminate between direct and collateral members.
But not everyone welcomed him.
The office of the Grand Elder, Namgung Seon-hak.
“The stirrings among those who follow Master Sword Hero do not seem ordinary.”
“…….”
Despite his subordinate's report, Namgung Seon-hak said nothing.
Only his fingertips, slowly tapping on the table, spoke for his inner thoughts.
‘Why! Why did he have to come back now, of all times!’
Namgung Seon-jae was his own blood relative.
But now, he was nothing more than a massive obstacle blocking his plans.
The clan's line of succession was largely divided into two branches.
One was his son, Namgung Cheong-un.
And the other was none other than Namgung Seon-jae.
The greatest talent the Namgung Clan had seen in nearly a hundred years.
A man who strode across the entire murim and raised the family's name high.
Though he was of the same generation as the Clan Head, the gap of more than fifteen years in age meant it was no problem—so claimed those who followed him.
But three years ago, he had declared on his own that he had no interest in becoming Clan Head and left for the Murim Alliance.
And from then on, everything had seemed to go according to Namgung Seon-hak's will.
Until Seonwoo Hyun defeated Namgung Cheong-un.
Namgung Cheong-un had failed to pass the final gate set by the Council of Elders.
But what irritated him more was that, since that day, the eyes of the young trainees had changed.
Into their gazes, which had once admired the direct line, a confidence that they too could do it had crept in.
And right on cue, Namgung Seon-jae had returned.
Naturally, voices exalting him began to rise again.
Moreover, as it became known that Seonwoo Hyun was the child Namgung Seon-jae had brought in, those voices grew even louder.
Namgung Seon-hak thought.
‘Seon-jae will return to the Alliance before long anyway, so things will settle down then. But…….’
“Is Cheong-un still in the cultivation chamber?”
“Yes, he is. He has skipped every meal and will not come out at all.”
“…Very well, I understand. That is enough, you may leave now.”
“Yes.”
As his subordinate quietly closed the door and withdrew, Namgung Seon-hak's eyes began to glint.
BANG!
“Seonwoo Hyun! All because of that one bastard!”
The table he struck shook violently.
Unless Namgung Seon-jae changed his mind himself, he was not yet a direct obstacle to Namgung Cheong-un.
But Seonwoo Hyun was different.
‘I hate to admit it, but the sword that bastard unleashed at the end surpassed Cheong-un's. I heard his inner arts are lacking, but with talent like that, there is no telling how much stronger he will become.’
The Council of Elders would never recognize Namgung Cheong-un, who had been outmatched by a mere trainee, as successor.
Conversely, Namgung Seon-jae's standing would rise even higher.
For he was the one who had brought such a talent to the clan.
As long as Seonwoo Hyun existed, whether Namgung Seon-jae wished it or not, voices exalting him as the next Clan Head would keep arising.
In Namgung Seon-hak's mind, a voice said that this had to be stopped, by whatever means.
A moment later.
Killing intent rose from his whole body, and a chilling voice flowed out.
“Seonwoo Hyun… For a mere trainee who has not even become a collateral member to shake the authority of the direct line—that alone is more than enough to deserve death. So do not resent me too much.”
The moment his unease and rage toward Seonwoo Hyun turned into a single resolve.
He had become a beast that would use any means necessary to achieve his goal.
***
The night grew deep.
Flutter!
A messenger pigeon, flying in from somewhere through the darkness of night, suddenly swept into Namgung Seon-jae's quarters.
Namgung Seon-jae, who had been drinking alone, widened his eyes as if startled.
“Hm? Isn't this an Alliance messenger pigeon? What could it be at such a late hour……?”
He had spent three years traveling across the Central Plains and was finally about to rest—yet they were already sending a messenger pigeon again?
With a sour face, Namgung Seon-jae roughly untied the parchment bound to the messenger pigeon.
But the moment he checked its contents, every complaint vanished without a trace.
- Top Priority.
- Traces of the Demonic Cult have been detected in Sichuan. To verify their authenticity, the Chief Inspector is ordered to return urgently. Burn this letter immediately upon reading.
Namgung Seon-jae read the letter over and over as if unable to believe it.
But that did not change its contents.
‘The Demonic Cult is moving……. Why would they stir again now, after lying dormant for a hundred years?!’
Forcing his pounding heart to calm, Namgung Seon-jae quietly gathered his qi.
Then Samadhi True Fire arose from his fingertips, and the parchment was swallowed by flames in an instant.
After brushing away all the remaining ash, Namgung Seon-jae let out a long, heavy sigh and gazed at the moon outside the window.
And then.
“Haah… I promised Hyun we would visit the graves together, but that will be difficult now.”
The moonlight brightly illuminated the night.
But on his face, a shadow of unease about the coming future was being deeply drawn.
***
Seonwoo Hyun felt like he was dying right now.
He kept wondering what on earth was going on.
No, his body was so exhausted that he couldn't even think straight.
Early dawn.
On the training ground of the Earth Martial Hall, where a thin fog lay low, trainees were absorbed in strength training with large sacks of stones slung over their shoulders.
“Nnngh…….”
A pained groan escaped Seonwoo Hyun's mouth as sweat poured down like rain.
Seonwoo Hyun couldn't understand.
Why the other trainees carried only one sack of stones, while he had to carry double that.
But he could not disobey an order given personally by the Principal, Namgung Woon.
Some time later.
“Huff, huff…….”
Having finished the dawn training, Seonwoo Hyun collapsed right onto the ground, gasping roughly.
Just then, Han Man-ho came up to him, poked Seonwoo Hyun's cheek, and asked:
“You alive?”
“…No, I'm dead. All that's left is an empty shell with its soul gone.”
“You punk. Your mouth's moving, so you're alive. Still, you do look like a corpse. Heheh.”
“…….”
Just as Seonwoo Hyun grabbed the hand Han Man-ho held out and barely pulled himself up.
Namgung Ki, who had come back into the training ground, approached him.
“Hyun, come with me for a moment. There is someone who has come to see you.”
“Pardon? Ah… understood.”
‘Who'd come looking for me this early in the morning?’
Tilting his head, Seonwoo Hyun followed Namgung Ki.
A little while later.
The place he arrived at with Namgung Ki was the rear garden behind the Earth Martial Hall.
There, Namgung Seon-jae stood with his hands clasped behind his back, gazing up at the sky with an indifferent expression.
Sensing someone's presence, he slowly turned his head.
And he spoke in a delighted voice to Seonwoo Hyun as he entered the rear garden:
“Hyun.”
“……Uncle?!”
Realizing that the person waiting for him was Namgung Seon-jae, a smile bloomed on Seonwoo Hyun's face as if nothing had ever been wrong.
Namgung Seon-jae smiled gently as he looked at Seonwoo Hyun, whose whole body was covered in sweat and dirt.
“Haha. Judging by your state, the dawn training must have been quite grueling.”
“Well, that's… the Instructor said that starting today I have to do double the training. So I had to haul two sacks of stones…….”
Though Seonwoo Hyun grumbled, Namgung Seon-jae laughed heartily and continued:
“Is that so? Actually, doubling your training was something I specially asked Woon to do.”
“What?! You did, Uncle?”
“Indeed.”
Seonwoo Hyun's eyes went round in surprise.
Then Namgung Seon-jae wiped the smile from his face and spoke in a serious tone:
“Hyun, you know that your inner arts are drastically lacking compared to the other children, do you not?”
“Yes…….”
“Let me say it clearly. You were born with a heaven-sent talent for martial arts.”
“……!”
In that instant, Seonwoo Hyun's eyes grew as wide as lamp saucers.
But the surprise was only momentary.
Hearing the words that followed, his face darkened again.
“However, if your inner arts cannot support that talent, you will ultimately fall behind the other children.”
“…….”
“But if your outer arts give enough support, you can close the gap in inner arts to some extent. What you are doing now is building your body in preparation for that time. So even if it is hard, you must bear it and endure!”
Seonwoo Hyun's eyes shone with a peculiar light.
His uncle was telling him what he needed to do right now.
Realizing his intention, Seonwoo Hyun nodded with a face full of resolve.
“Yes, Uncle! I'll never disappoint you!”
When Seonwoo Hyun answered, Namgung Seon-jae smiled with satisfaction.
But soon, with a face full of apology, he placed both hands on Seonwoo Hyun's shoulders.
“Hyun, the truth is, I must hurry back to the Alliance today.”
“What?! So suddenly? Didn't you say you'd leave after the holidays?!”
“Something serious has happened at the Alliance. I promised we would visit the graves together… I am truly sorry.”
“…….”
When disappointment showed on Seonwoo Hyun's face, Namgung Seon-jae's heart ached.
For he knew well how much the boy had been looking forward to visiting his parents' graves with him.
But his gaze was firmer than ever.
“Keep in mind that even if your inner arts are lacking, your spirit must never break. When I return to the Alliance, I will use any means necessary to find a way to increase your inner arts. So.”
Namgung Seon-jae's grave voice cut through the air and spread.
“Believe in yourself. And no matter what happens… do not break, and endure.”
He looked at Seonwoo Hyun with eyes that were very tender yet stern.
And finally, he spoke with force:
“Without fail.”