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EP.4 Why Are You Here? (2)

Why are you here? 2

One day, even as I grew older, I still caused trouble.

Looking back, there was a time when I thought I went a bit overboard with my antics.

No matter what, my usually expressionless father wore a rare angry face, and the Head Officer, usually very lenient with the clan’s heirs, personally scolded me for my big screw-up.

Because of that, I was punished by the clan and had to train in the Five Sword Team, where my older sister was the Great Lord, for over six months.

Of course, this damn personality of mine didn’t just fade away.

I first faced Wi Seol-Ah there.

It must have been an ill-fated encounter for her.

And such a meeting should’ve happened at least six months later.

But why was Wi Seol-Ah, who should have been at that far-off time, right in front of me, in my own residence?

I almost collapsed in shock the moment I opened the door to find her face greeting me.

Am I dreaming? Is this a dream? Yeah, it must be a dream.

“Right, I did stay up late last night.”

I must be tired.

This is why people need sleep.

As I turned back to go inside without a second thought, I felt someone tugging at me.

Turning around, I saw Wi Seol-Ah pulling on my clothes with her delicate hand.

…Could it be real?

“I… I…”

Wi Seol-Ah stumbled over her words when someone appeared and slapped the back of her hand.

“Ouch!”

With a short scream, Wi Seol-Ah cradled her slapped hand and stumbled backward.

My eyes widened at the sight of the person who appeared.

What a surprise it was to see none other than Sword Sovereign Wi Hyogun there.

‘…Wha—What the heck?!’

I nearly cursed out loud without even realizing it.

If I had let it slip, I might have died of a heart attack right then and there.

Wi Hyogun spoke to Wi Seol-Ah with a stern expression.

“Hey, you! Didn’t the old man tell you not to act carelessly around the Young Master?!”

…Huh?

What did you just say…?

“Quickly apologize!”

“I’m sorry. Grandpa….”

“Ah! An apology is to be given to the Young Master!”

“I-I’m sorry, Young Master!”

“….”

What on earth is happening here? This is absurd.

Amidst the whirlwind of confusion, Wi Hyogun bowed to me. Why is this happening, really….

“I’m Wi Mun, appointed to serve the Young Master starting today by favor from the clan leader. I’m just an old man who may not meet your expectations, but I’ll do my best, so please take good care of me.”

Wi Mun? Not Wi Hyogun?

When Wi Hyogun glanced at Wi Seol-Ah, she hurriedly straightened her posture.

“I-I’m Wi Seol-Ah, and I’ll also serve the Young Master alongside Grandpa. I promise to do my very best!”

Serve? Who’s serving whom…?

“Me…?”

The dizziness that rushed over me blurred my vision. I truly felt like I might lose my mind.

How on earth am I supposed to make sense of this insane situation?

Who is Sword Sovereign Wi Hyogun?

He is one of the Three Eminent Beings in the world. Among the countless martial artists in the Central Plains, he is recognized as the strongest.

His achievements are so many that it would be exhausting to even list them.

The legendary Black Dragon Sword, called the Demon King of the Demonic Faction, couldn’t even withstand ten strikes against him and perished in battle, and he rose from being a wandering swordsman to becoming the leader of the righteous Martial Alliance.

Leaving behind the notable clans and sects like Nangong, Mo Yong, Hwasan, and Wudang, he proclaimed himself the best swordmaster in the Central Plains.

In this moment when the Heavenly Demon is absent from the world, he might very well be the strongest.

‘But suddenly, he’s here saying he’ll serve me?’

Why?

Is there really a reason to go to such lengths to obscure his identity while using a pseudonym?

If he wished for the Three Eminent Beings, he could waltz into any clan amongst the Four Great Clans and be welcomed with open arms at dawn.

There’s no reason for him to hide his identity and do menial tasks in a place like this.

The fact that he was sent here due to a favor from Gu Cheolun must mean my father knows about it.

This never happened in my past life.

The only time I saw Wi Hyogun was a brief encounter that didn’t leave much of an impression.

And he probably didn’t view me favorably, thanks to the calamities I created.

My head throbbed.

I was supposed to maintain the current flow until the Righteous-Demonic War concluded.

But now that I’ve resolved to do so, the familiar future has twisted horrifically.

I cautiously glanced at Wi Hyogun.

He looked like a gentle old man with a smile on his face. If I hadn’t caught a glimpse of him in my previous life, I would have just thought him a regular old man.

Especially now, I might have mistaken him for just an ordinary-looking elderly man if not for Wi Seol-Ah’s presence.

‘What should I do?’

What can I even ask?

Should I interrogate him as to why he’s here? Wouldn’t that be a bit strange?

Pretending to know his true identity seems even weirder. Should I act clueless even while knowing?

What frightens me the most is that having them here might alter many things.

‘Where did it all go wrong?’

The only difference is that I treated Wi Seol-Ah more kindly than before in the market.

But could such a slight change really escalate things to this extent?

Should I revert to my old self and throw a fit, claiming I don’t need this old man and child?

As countless thoughts crowded my mind,

“About my granddaughter…”

In the midst of my confusion, Wi Hyogun spoke up.

“Though she may seem lacking in your eyes since she knows little of the world, she is a quick learner, so I’ll ensure she’s educated well enough to meet your expectations.”

At that, I caught sight of Wi Seol-Ah clutching his sleeve.

Her quivering eyes peeked through her disheveled hair.

What could that anxiety hiding within her be? Upon meeting my gaze, Wi Seol-Ah said,

“I’ll try really hard… I’ll really do my best…”

What is she so desperate about? Why is she here with me, when she could be with my father or Gu Yeonseo?

In the end, I had no choice but to respond.

“No… Yes, please take good care of me.”

I see no clear solution. It feels like this life is doomed from the start.

Even though Wi Hyogun requested I lower my voice, that was a little too much to ask.

“Are you really alright?”

At that moment, Gu Yangcheong was training in the Technique of the Flame Wheel at his residence.

Gu Cheolun was having a casual conversation while lighting a single candle.

“What’s wrong with it? This is not the time to worry about that.”

“Elder, if you desire it, surely the Four Great Clans and even the leaders would come to your aid, don’t you think? You don’t have to go through this hardship…”

“I don’t see it as a hardship, Gu Clan Leader.”

Wi Hyogun slowly lifted the now-cold teacup and took a sip.

“This is nothing that could be called a hardship. If it’s for my granddaughter, I could endure even worse, and if it allows me to evade trouble, I’d consider it fortunate.”

“Elder…”

“Actually, Gu Clan Leader, I feel a bit sorry for burdening you because of this useless old man’s ties to you.”

“I…”

“I’ve heard news that they are searching for Seol-Ah in Shaolin and Wudang. I have certainly put a heavy debt on you.”

Looking into Wi Hyogun’s eyes, Gu Cheolun found himself at a loss for words.

“Truth be told, I hadn’t intended to even come to you at all, whether it’s Wudang or Shaolin. If I decided to hermit myself in a mountain, even that greedy monk who has the Heavenly Eye wouldn’t be able to find me.”

“…But why?”

“It’s just a dying old man’s vanity. I don’t believe living alone with a girl would bring her genuine happiness. I hoped just a little that she could experience the world.”

“If that’s the case, you should at least stay at my place; although she is my daughter, she is lacking in many ways.”

Gu Cheolun couldn’t understand why Wi Hyogun insisted on residing in his son Gu Yangcheong’s place.

Unlike his daughters, Gu Yangcheong was still a naive boy. Gu Cheolun wished to correct his son’s twisted temperament as a father, but with all the recent events, he simply had no time.

Besides, upon hearing the story of their meeting in the market, he wondered if Gu Yangcheong had said something foolish and immediately went to apologize to Wi Hyogun.

Upon hearing Gu Cheolun’s words, Wi Hyogun laughed heartily.

“I’ve heard the rumors, and though I worried a bit, wasn’t he a much more respectable child than you assumed?”

Word about the clan’s third child had reached Wi Hyogun in Shanxi.

Could it be that the rumors of Gu Clan’s young noble being violent had spread widely across Shanxi?

Was it that, though the clan leader had many daughters, he had no luck with his son? Wi Hyogun pondered.

Amid all this, meeting Gu Yangcheong by chance in the marketplace was purely coincidental.

He had been unable to stop his granddaughter, who was excited after a long time, from running around.

At that moment, he saw his granddaughter speaking to a boy of the same age.

It was easy to tell that the boy was a Gu Clan member.

The energy flowing within him was identical to that of Gu Clan Leader.

While his aura was a bit weaker than that of the clan leader’s child, it was undoubtedly the Technique of the Flame Wheel.

Gu Yangcheong’s first impression was that his sharp eyes suggested a persona of confrontation.

His granddaughter brightly offered a potato to the Gu Clan child.

What if he turns out to be as violent as the rumors suggest?

Wi Hyogun thought if it didn’t involve life-threatening matters, he wouldn’t even think about stepping in to rescue his granddaughter.

It was a necessary experience to realize that not everyone in the world would offer kind words.

However, contrary to his expectations, the boy neither spoke in an unpleasant manner nor did anything to harm her.

Instead, he held back a guard who tried to shove his granddaughter while offering her rice cakes.

Seeing Wi Hyogun approach long after, he even went through the motions of greeting him. Considering his scruffy appearance, the boy must have thought him to be of lowly status.

‘Hyogun, you’re still lacking in self-training.’

Hearing the title of Sword Sovereign made him think of himself as a complete human being.

He criticized himself.

It seemed rather foolish of him to have judged merely based on the child’s appearance and the rumors he had heard.

“That child should suit you just fine. In fact, it’s the Gu Clan’s child who should be warming up to us.”

Had the child been like the rumors suggested, how would things have progressed?

If Gu Yangcheong had indeed done something bad to Wi Seol-Ah back then, would he have made a different choice now?

“…Alright, Elder. If by any chance problems arise, please do let me know.”

Gu Cheolun couldn’t comprehend why Wi Hyogun viewed Gu Yangcheong positively, but he chose not to question it any further.

As the conversation came to an end, Gu Cheolun asked once more.

“But are you really alright?”

It was a different question from the first.

Wi Hyogun found himself unable to answer easily, knowing the meaning behind it.

“If the Sect Leader has spoken, then…”

It was said that the leader of Shaolin had the Heavenly Eye, enabling them to read the flow of causality.

Wi Hyogun smiled wryly as he answered.

“Indeed, if that friend said something, then surely, some event will occur. But do you think you could understand it easily?”

In that moment, a gust of wind blew through the window, extinguishing the frail little candle that was barely standing.

“As for Seol-Ah being at the center of the impending Blood Calamity, it means our Seol-Ah must wield a sword to endure it.”

Wi Hyogun chuckled.

With his words, a deeply etched furrow on his brow seemed to deepen.

“That’s why I ran away. I don’t care if I’m called selfish. Why was it Seol-Ah of all people? Isn’t it ironic? There are old men who are hailed as the Three Eminent Beings, and numerous prestigious families that walk with pride as pillars of the righteous faction.”

“Elder…”

In the sight of the weary Wi Hyogun, one could sense the Evil Spirit that plagued him.

“While offering her flowers is already stretching it, how could I possibly hand her a sword amidst the Blood Calamity?”

Wi Hyogun repeatedly washed his face with his wrinkled hands.

“So even if I must die down to my very soul, I will never let Seol-Ah hold a sword.”

If Gu Yangcheong had heard this, he would have despaired profoundly.

 

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