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EP.19: The Unforgivable Touch (1)

Look at this bastard.

Those red-stained cheeks, those trembling eyes, and that gaze he can’t dare meet.

Seeing that handsome brat act so annoyingly, it’s obvious he’s smitten at first sight.

It’s no wonder; Wi Seol-Ah’s slightly damp hair and anxious expression are overwhelmingly destructive.

Only those who have mastered the art of the sages or the Dao could instantly break down walls and penetrate hearts like that.

Even I feel like I’m floating, so how can that guy endure it? In the end, he was completely taken down by Wi Seol-Ah.

“Tsk.”

Wi Seol-Ah stares at me with a blank expression, not even knowing the situation.

Feeling unexplainably irritable, I pulled her back a bit more.

Gu Jeolyub, having witnessed the scene, hurriedly tried to mask his expression while managing to turn his cheeks red.

Elder Lee beside him couldn’t hide his twitching lips as he glanced at Gu Jeolyub.

‘I want to tease him, but he’s trying hard to hold it in.’

What a grumpy old man.

“Ahem! Ahem!”

Realizing the awkward atmosphere, Gu Jeolyub repeatedly clears his throat. But somehow, I doubt this will make the situation any better.

“Um, once again, I, Gu Jeolyub, request a sparring session with the bloodline of the main family.”

‘Look straight at me when you speak, you bastard…’

His eyes were subtly shifting toward Wi Seol-Ah, and I waved my hands dismissively to indicate he should leave.

“Sparring? I’m not interested, so go back.”

He looked like a nuisance at first glance. Coming here uninvited and demanding a spar was hardly courteous. It was closer to outright ignoring me.

I had plenty of reasons to refuse his request. Agitated by my attitude, Gu Jeolyub’s tone shifted.

“Are you afraid?”

“Yes, I’m extremely afraid.”

“You’re still weak; are you really running away over something like this…?”

“Yes, yes, I’m indeed very weak. Of course, I am.”

I listened half-heartedly, letting it go in one ear and out the other, while Gu Jeolyub’s eyes began to twitch noticeably. His breaths were ragged, clearly indicating he was quite angry.

So what? I said I wouldn’t do it.

A relative arriving at dawn to demand a spar was a blatant breach of propriety.

As he found himself nearing his boiling point, Elder Lee stepped in to ask,

“Jeolyub, what’s the reason for demanding a spar like this? Is it perhaps because of Elder Il?”

‘Elder Il?’

Gu Jeolyub paused at Elder Lee’s question but remained silent.

However, from Gu Jeolyub’s silence, I’d gathered enough to form an opinion.

‘It was a stupid political maneuver.’

So that’s why all this out of the blue?

‘I should’ve never caused that incident during my sparring with Gu Yeonseo.’

Everyone in the clan knows Elder Il is an ambitious man. The reason why they can’t deal with his ambitions is entirely because of me.

A bloodline without talent and barely worthy of being a leader due to being a mere branch descendant.

Elder Il’s ambitions were a sort of holdover for the clan. He’s been trying to transform that holdover into certainty.

But that stability was beginning to shake.

Word of my victory over Gu Yeonseo in our duel had gotten around.

Most people would dismiss it as just luck, but even a slight ripple like that wouldn’t have been welcome news for Elder Il.

“So you’re pulling this childish stunt?”

Feeling rather irritated, I turned to leave the training grounds when Elder Lee spoke to me.

“Since he came all this way, why don’t you give it a shot?”

Elder Lee’s expression was filled with a peculiar ‘interest’ as he looked at me. It felt like he was cooking up something strange again.

“Elder, are you hoping that I’ll be beaten into the ground? Why are you pushing me like this?”

Elder Lee looked back and forth between Gu Jeolyub and me, smiling as he replied.

“I don’t think Yangcheon will fall easily to the ground.”

What a slippery old man.

I glared at Gu Jeolyub with narrowed eyes.

Just that short glance was enough to tell me.

‘This could be a bit tough.’

It’s certain. This annoying guy is stronger than Gu Yeonseo.

While I couldn’t accurately gauge just how strong he was due to my lack of resources, my instincts told me something was off.

In terms of inner strength or martial arts proficiency, Gu Yeonseo must have been better.

But that didn’t mean Gu Yeonseo was stronger.

Right now, the reason I was able to evade Gu Yeonseo’s attacks and win was precisely because of that.

“Regardless, I won’t spar with you. I don’t want to get caught up in these tedious political games.”

Upon hearing that, Elder Lee puffed out his lips in disappointment.

A massive old man resembling Mount Tai sporting that kind of face sent chills down my spine.

Gu Jeolyub’s expression soured as things didn’t go his way.

Then, the brat started to talk to Wi Seol-Ah.

“By the way, you’re a servant from the main family, right?”

While he didn’t stutter, I could hear a slight tremor in his voice. Wi Seol-Ah, covered in a blanket, tilted her head at his question.

That movement seemed to hit Gu Jeolyub like a major blow.

Why the heck is this guy suddenly having a duel with himself?

“Yup! I am a servant!”

Gu Jeolyub straightened himself up at her reply. Then he spoke to me.

“Young lady, wouldn’t you want to come with someone like me instead of serving such a weakling? I can provide you a much better environment.”

What a ridiculous proposal in this situation. What could he possibly offer? Maybe feeling embarrassed for himself, his cheeks were getting redder by the moment.

Even I could tell that wasn’t right, so I jumped in to interrupt.

“What kind of bullshit….”

“I like the Young Master!”

Wi Seol-Ah’s surprisingly firm tone caught everyone off guard, myself included.

“I won’t go to anyone but the Young Master.”

I felt a jolt in my chest at Wi Seol-Ah’s words.

‘….This isn’t good.’

This isn’t good at all. I started rubbing my chest with my hands. This was definitely a bad situation in the making.

It was a curse placed upon me by the Heavenly Demon, one even worse in some respects.

I thought I could escape through death, but that should not happen again.

Wi Seol-Ah was looking at me. What kind of emotions were captured in her gaze? I knew one thing for sure: I shouldn’t look her in the eye for too long.

I shifted my gaze to Gu Jeolyub. He appeared to have been shocked, barely managing his earlier expression.

I felt uneasy.

I took a deep breath, then stood up, dragging my sluggish body past Gu Jeolyub.

“Come along; I’ll give you that spar or whatever.”

I heard a weird sound of awe from behind. Didn’t even need to look; it had to be Elder Lee.

Gu Jeolyub gritted his teeth and followed me. Was he happy to have someone to vent his frustrations at?

‘Why do I always get dragged into troublesome situations?’

Of course, I get myself into trouble; it’s no surprise. Yep! That’s definitely it.

….Damn it.

“Was it a mistake?”

That was the thought that crossed my mind as I entered the training grounds for sparring. Why did I always end up regretting after making a decision?

I really wasn’t fond of who I was.

Crack crack—

As I moved my body around, I could hear sounds coming from my joints. I asked Elder Lee, who was staring at me weirdly.

“Why did you tell me to spar?”

“I didn’t say it; Yangcheon did.”

“You were the one who suggested it at first, and since you didn’t stop me and seemed happy about it, it’s also your fault, Elder.”

I was throwing back Elder Lee’s words from when I pummeled that Peng guy at the previous Gathering of the Nine Dragons.

He chuckled heartily, seeming to agree.

“Right! I suppose I’ve got some blame in this.”

“So why did you press me into this?”

[Elder Il is behind it.]

That did not sound too good; Elder Lee used telepathy. I felt a slight headache from hearing it after a long time.

“What do you mean by that?”

Right now, I wasn’t in a condition to answer through telepathy, so I relied on my raw voice. Elder Lee looked at me as if taken aback.

[Shouldn’t you be more cautious while responding through telepathy?]

“It doesn’t really matter, does it?”

…Ugh.

Elder Lee let out a low groan.

[Elder Il is a very ambitious man. I’m sure you’re already aware of it; to some extent, ambition is good, but using your bloodline for that isn’t favorable for the clan.]

As Elder Lee pointed out, this spar felt like a very political move.

If I lost, Gu Jeolyub’s position in the clan would definitely rise. Conversely, if Gu Jeolyub lost to me.

‘That would have a huge impact.’

From Gu Jeolyub’s perspective, such an outcome was utterly unimaginable.

Elder Il, knowing that, still forced Gu Jeolyub into this absurd situation, thinking I would definitely come out on top.

‘He’s just being too impatient.’

I didn’t understand why Elder Il, who had plenty of openings, had chosen to pull such desperate moves.

Was there something urgent? I listened quietly as Elder Lee spoke, then I continued.

“…Well, if I’m going to deal with such a troublesome situation, shouldn’t I gain something from it as well?”

[What do you mean…?]

“If I win, you must grant me one request.”

[Why should I grant your request if you claimed victory…?]

“If you don’t, I’ll just roll around on the ground right now and lose.”

[You’re saying some bizarre things; if that happens, it would tarnish your future chances of becoming the clan leader…]*

“Elder Lee, you keep expecting me to desire to become the clan leader.”

Feeling loose enough, I started rotating my wrists and walked toward Gu Jeolyub.

“I don’t particularly want to be the clan leader.”

[…!]

Elder Lee choked on my shocking statement. Did everyone just assume I wished to be the leader?

‘All those desires were left in my previous life.’

I thought to myself. Was it greed? Was I considering it too good for myself? No, it was merely useless to me.

What even is a leader, and what should I be aspiring to uphold?

Right now, I was all too aware of how disgusting that sounded.

“You seem to have loosened up.”

“About enough.”

Gu Jeolyub stood there ready with his wooden sword. Facing him head-on made it clearer.

This brat was definitely stronger than Gu Yeonseo.

When preparing for the spar, Gu Jeolyub unexpectedly apologized.

“I apologize to the First Prince.”

“Out of the blue, what’s this about?”

“I was too harsh during my duel with the First Prince last year.”

“Did we already have a match?”

“Indeed, the First Prince was bedridden for a month because of that.”

How long did he lie down… I wonder why I have no memory of that?

“The First Prince is too weak.”

“Now you’re being rude.”

“I heard that you defeated the Second Lady, but that was just a matter of coincidence.”

“True, I think so too.”

“However, it seems my grandfather doesn’t share that sentiment, which is a problem.”

“Right, right, I also think so.”

Upon hearing my vague reply, Gu Jeolyub had a very puzzled look. Did I slip up a bit?

Gu Jeolyub quickly shook his head back and forth, resuming the conversation.

“I don’t wish to bully the weak, but I wouldn’t want someone weak as the clan leader.”

“You know you’re saying this right in front of the clan leader’s direct bloodline, right?”

That was a dangerously reckless statement.

Hoo!

A wave of heat brushed against my cheek. It was emanating from Gu Jeolyub. Unlike the Technique of the Flame Wheel, the method he inherited was the Gu Seonyeomgong (俱先炎功).

While heating up was similar, the soul technique of the Gu Seonyeomgong focused on compression and speed rather than destruction.

‘Is his martial arts… at three stars?’

It was on par with Gu Yeonseo, and the hot energy emitted by Gu Jeolyub clearly stated that. Ah, maybe I should just forfeit right now.

[You just mentioned that.]

At that moment, Elder Lee’s voice echoed in my head.

[If you win this spar, I promise upon my name to fulfill one of your requests.]

‘Not an easy way to back down, is it?’

…This is just how I always seem to end up.

With a resigned acceptance, I started to channel the Technique of the Flame Wheel, causing it to swirl within me.

The energy swirling within my body began to push aggressively against Gu Jeolyub’s spirit.

An unusual light flickered in Gu Jeolyub’s eyes.

“Elder Lee.”

The unexpected voice calling Elder Lee was none other than Gu Jeolyub.

“Why do you call?”

“If I seize the advantage in this duel, I too have something I wish to acquire.”

This guy was listening closely to what we were discussing earlier.

Quite the little eavesdropper he is…

Elder Lee shot me a glance before answering Gu Jeolyub.

“Sure, the terms must be fair. Jeolyub, what do you want?”

Gu Jeolyub pointed towards Wi Seol-Ah, who had been slipping a rice cake into her mouth.

“I want that servant.”

The desire in Gu Jeolyub’s eyes was unmistakable. It leaned further towards lust rather than mere attraction.

At that moment, I felt.

“Haha.”

Very annoyed.

“What the hell!”

Suddenly, I felt something snap inside me.

 

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