Episode 7
After hesitating for a long time, the child didn’t move at all, as if waiting for a response. Finally, Choyeon opened her mouth.
“……A vein of luminous jade has been discovered in Unhansan. Luminous jade is a mineral that emits light even at night and is worth more than gold of the same weight.”
“……”
“In order for the faction to move, they need justification. And the justification they put forth is you, Seomun Cheonoh.”
The child looked at Choyeon with wide, black eyes. Choyeon continued, trying hard to maintain a calm voice.
“Do you know who your father is?”
“……No, I don’t know.”
“Your father is Juyok, the master of the Black Death Sword of the Demonic Cult. Your family members were killed under the pretext of colluding with the Demonic Cult while pretending to be allied with the faction.”
The veins on the small hand stood out starkly. The child bit their lips and stared at the floor, then asked in a voice that barely held together.
“Father…… Juyok, what was he doing without saving my mother?”
“……Well, that much is still unknown.”
Juyok was mentioned in the original novel only in two sentences outside the main storyline. It just stated that later an adult Cheonoh created the largest single organization of the sect, “Black Do Cheon,” without detailing any conversations or backstories he had with his father.
Recalling the original story momentarily, Choyeon looked back at Cheonoh. Cheonoh, who had been gasping in despair, steadied his breath and bowed again to Choyeon. But the child’s voice was already hoarse and trembling.
“Thank you again for taking care of me and saving my life, sage. But I……”
But…
The child closed his mouth and cleared his throat as if he was choked up. Choyeon seized the moment without missing a beat. This was a crucial point.
“Your desire for revenge is natural.”
The sudden words made the child, who was lying face down, raise his head to look at Choyeon. Choyeon matched the child’s gaze as calmly as possible and continued.
“Only those who have not experienced it can say that killing them won’t bring back the dead. That’s entirely unhelpful advice. It’s natural to be unable to forgive the monster that’s alive and well when there’s no one left under the sky from your own people.”
“……”
The child slowly lowered his head again. The sound of swallowing was clearly heard from the cracked throat. Choyeon closed her eyes slowly, knowing how she despised the secondary characters who speak such words to the vengeful protagonist in dramas or movies.
“Your desire for revenge is not wrong. Even if it leads to more bloodshed, what can be done? Human relationships are fundamentally intertwined in such a way that they can’t be severed. I’m not telling you to endure and forgive on your own.”
“……”
“Just look at your hands and feet.”
The child’s eyes instinctively looked at his hands wrapped in fine silk.
“You are young and weak. Your skin is tender and your body immature, enough to get injured by touching a piece of burning wood. Can you survive alone at the foot of a mountain without anyone to help you? Can you grow up strong and take revenge on your own?”
In the original story, Cheonoh was caught as an orphan by the Demonic Cult and dragged to a harsh underground cave where he was trained to the brink of death. During this process, the human emotions and empathy he originally had faded, leaving only brutality and coldness.
Frankly, Choyeon’s influence on the original story was not significant. Without the Demonic Cult’s schemes, one of the main character’s potential girlfriends wouldn’t have been drugged. It would be easy to live comfortably by staying silent and avoiding troublesome matters.
Nevertheless, the reason why she was going so far to hold onto the child’s heart was…
“I will raise you. I will protect you and provide the necessary education. I will do my duty until you grow into someone who can take responsibility for yourself.”
It was because Jung Ha-yoon couldn’t just stand by and watch.
Regardless of preventing the bloodshed that would strike the martial world, Choyeon couldn’t leave the child who was suffering so much unattended.
Even if this child would later become the ruler Jun Cheonoh of Yeomra Army, for now, he was just a child who needed help. Just a child who needed a reliable guardian and a wise teacher.
‘Then this is my duty. Anyway, I couldn’t ignore and brought him here. If you ask whether I have the ability to raise a person… there’s no certainty, but I have no choice but to do my best.’
Choyeon, feeling like a teacher being evaluated for work, kept her mouth shut and waited for the child’s decision. The child seemed to quietly be thinking, then suddenly clenched his fists while scratching the floor with his exposed fingernail. The voice that flowed from his cracked throat was filled with anguished hatred.
“I…”
Yes, say you’ll stay with me instead of the ignorant Demonic Cult! I’ll do my best, I swear I’ll raise you well!
“I want to tear off all their necks.”
What?
Choyeon, who had been inwardly rooting for the child’s choice, stiffened as if frozen on the spot.
“I want to make them suffer all the pains of the world, unable to live or die. I want to rip out their teeth, crush their fingers and toes. I want to skin their flesh and grind their bones. If they die, I want to cut their throats like livestock, open their bellies, and hang them upside down on a hook.”
Who…
Who taught a child such words! Who used such horrendous expressions in front of a child!
Choyeon forced herself to keep her hand from going to her forehead. The reason why cruel slang should not be used in front of children who absorb anything quickly was presenting itself right before her.
Whether aware of Choyeon’s dismay or not, the child slowly lifted his gaze from the floor. His eyes were filled with glistening vengefulness, almost indistinguishable from his pitch-black pupils.
“Sage, can you raise someone like me?”
Did he mean whether she could teach someone harboring such brutal thoughts while living as a recluse in the mountains, or whether she had the ability to train him to such a level for him to exact his revenge?
Maybe it was both. Choyeon squinted her eyes and spoke.
“Are you testing me?”
“……I need martial arts. Being taught by you would be an honor, but I believe only overwhelming force can make those deceivers pay.”
In other words, he didn’t need a master who seemed only proficient in medicine. Though lowering his gaze as if feeling guilty, the child’s forthrightness brought a slight smile to Choyeon’s face as she held out her hand. In her white and smooth hand was a piece of paper that contained herbs.
As the child’s eyes curiously touched the paper, a formless flame suddenly began to blaze on Choyeon’s palm.
‘It’s better to show simply rather than speak at length.’
The inner energy coiled in Choyeon’s lower abdomen manifested through her palm, via the vital points of Gwanwon, Janzhong, Yubu, and Hyobak. The thin paper blackened and shriveled to ashes in an instant, wafted in the air, and gently settled on the ground. It was Sanmaejinhwa, the pinnacle of flame mastery.
“Se,”
“Mind you, I’m no sage. I’m just an ordinary martial artist with some knowledge in medicine.”
Although ‘Choyeon’ seemed to desire to escape the martial world, Jung Ha-yoon had created such a large connection that his plans were completely overturned. Choyeon preempted the child’s question about whether this was a magic technique.
“Sure, my martial arts don’t aim for dominating the world. It aims for harmony and moderation, so it could be closer to a fairy’s way than a martial way.”
The child listened quietly to Choyeon’s words. It was clear he was showing signs of refusal. But the following casual remark from Choyeon made the child look up abruptly.
“But what does it matter? Martial arts are just a basic framework. When you reach a certain level, you can improve it as you wish.”
“…What?”
“Even I use mostly toxic techniques, so why would I stop you? Do as you like. Create the most brutal martial arts, whatever you want.”
In the martial world, where ancient martial arts are considered the best, tradition was like an inviolable law. To add one’s unique skills to the teachings of the ancestors, one had to be a recognized master of the entire martial world.
Otherwise, it would be considered presumptuous arrogance, tarnishing the ancestors’ martial arts with crude skills.
In such a conservative place, Choyeon’s words were extremely indifferent and rebellious yet… had a refreshing undertone that washed over the child’s heart.
Cheonoh, unconsciously opening his mouth in astonishment, looked up at Choyeon blankly.
“Of course, this is after you’ve reached a stage where you can shed your old self, but I believe you have enough talent for that. You might easily surpass me.”
‘He’s the final boss of a fantasy martial arts novel. Achieving transcendence should be easy.’
Choyeon, whether aware of the child’s amazement or not, continued thinking of the original story’s ruler, Jun Cheonoh of the Yeomra Army.
The inaugural leader of the massive single organization “Black Do Cheon,” uniting all the demonic factions. The god of the Demonic Cult who would’ve conquered the martial world again if not for the protagonist’s cheat skills. The world’s number one martial artist who even pressured a buffed protagonist.
Realizing the enormous responsibility she’d taken on, it was newly burdensome, but it was too late to back out now.
The child seemed to be thinking hard in a short time. Choyeon waited without urging. Finally, just as the child seemed to make up his mind and was about to speak, a bright voice from outside interrupted.
“I…..”
“Master! We’re done with the bath!”
“May we come in?”
Apparently, Sayeong and Sahyeon had finished their medicinal bath and were asking for permission to enter. Judging by the liveliness in their voices, they seemed to have enjoyed it.
Choyeon lightly patted Cheonoh’s head, then turned her gaze towards the door.
“Come in.”
“Yes, Master. Oh, he’s awake?”
“Master, I smell like medicine just like you. Oh, he must have woken up.”
Each child, chattering away, made a comment as they looked at Cheonoh, who was sitting up differently than usual when he gazed into nothing with dead eyes.
Older sister Sayeong first clasped her hands in a polite bow.
“We will leave now, Master. Have a peaceful night.”
“Alright. Make sure to dry your hair properly with your sibling before you sleep.”
“Yes, Master. We’ll close the window tight and keep the quilt up to our chests.”
After bidding their goodnight, the children went back to their rooms. Choyeon looked at the closed door for a moment before turning back to Cheonoh. Gently holding him, she helped the child lie down.
“You should also sleep. The moon is already high.”
“But…”
“There’s no rush to give me your answer. Children are supposed to sleep now.”
Choyeon, with no further words, pulled the quilt up to the child’s neck and gestured to extinguish the lamp that lit the room. In the approaching darkness, her eyes quickly adjusted, and she could see the child’s pale face lit by the moonlight spilling from the window by his pillow.
No matter what he would become, for now, he was just a small, fragile child.
Filled with compassion, Choyeon gently stroked the child’s cheek with the back of her hand and patted his tiny, bird-like chest. The child, evidently flustered at first, slowly closed his eyes in resignation. Clearly exhausted, his breathing soon became steady.
After confirming the child was asleep, Choyeon tugged the child’s hands and arms back under the quilt. The child often had nightmares, and it was Choyeon’s responsibility to rescue him from such bad dreams. Fortunately, a trained martial artist’s body could go several days without sleep without any issues.
Thus, the layered nights in the deep mountains passed.
