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Chapter 203: I’m Off

“I’m off.”

For a moment, I thought I was seeing things.

And it made sense, considering Wi Seol-Ah shouldn’t be sitting here in this situation.

“Why are you here?”

It was the most bewildering moment I faced recently.

Perhaps even more shocking than the time I saw Gu Huibi through the Orb of Heavenly Road yesterday.

Why on earth is Wi Seol-Ah, who should be asleep in her residence by now, here?

“You…”

“Where are you going?”

“What?”

Before I could ask, Wi Seol-Ah shot the question back at me.

“Young Master, where are you going?”

On a dark night where even the moonlight barely shone, her swollen eyes met mine.

In that moment, I considered running away silently, but looking into those eyes made that impossible.

“Just a quick trip…”

“Where?”

“You wouldn’t understand even if I told you.”

“Then why are you going to a place I wouldn’t understand all alone?”

Wi Seol-Ah’s statement made my lips seal shut.

There was something about her tone, which felt more serious than her usual childish chitchat.

It made me uneasy to speak freely as I normally would.

“We’ve all been worried about you, including the sisters.”

“…”

Somehow, it felt like Wi Seol-Ah was scolding me.

I wasn’t sure if the Wi Seol-Ah I knew would say something like that.

Feeling a strange emotion, I stared at her.

She continued speaking while looking at me.

“Young Master, why do you always try to do things alone?”

“What do you mean I’ve been trying to do things alone?”

“You’re trying to do it by yourself again right now.”

“This is a place too dangerous for you all to go.”

“Dangerous?”

“Yeah. There’s no other choice…”

“Then what about me, who sent you off to such a place…?”

Our back-and-forth tangled around endlessly.

Ultimately, I wanted to ask if this was all equivalent to that, but…

…

…

Looking at Wi Seol-Ah’s face made it hard for me to open my mouth.

Tears streamed down her cheeks, and she looked incredibly pitiful.

“I’ve been trying hard too… I practiced diligently and learned to wield a sword…”

As Wi Seol-Ah spoke with tears, I had to ponder the meaning behind her words.

“…What have you learned?”

Practicing and learning a sword? Wi Seol-Ah?

From whom?

‘Could it be the Sword Sovereign?’

The only person that came to mind was the Sword Sovereign.

In her previous life, Wi Seol-Ah was obviously the Sword Sovereign’s successor.

And the martial arts she used were also those of the Sword Sovereign. So, in a sense, it was expected.

The issue was, she had picked up a sword even in this life.

I really wished she hadn’t.

The one who wanted her most not to wield a sword in this life was me.

I thought about how my life now existed for that very purpose.

She shouldn’t be wielding a sword at this juncture.

“Why are you learning to wield a sword?”

“Because… that’s how I can protect you, Young Master.”

“What?!”

Wi Seol-Ah’s words hit my head like a hammer.

‘Are you saying it’s for me?’

Where did this tangled mess start?

As I tried to slowly track back, I found too many knots to untangle it all.

“That’s a ridiculous statement! Why would you protect me?”

Even if it was her past self, the current Wi Seol-Ah could only be considered a servant.

She was bright and had strength beyond her peers, but still ended up as a servant.

And even if that was the case, I preferred her life to continue that way.

I wanted her to live amidst peace.

I couldn’t keep her as a mere servant forever.

But at least for now, that was how I felt.

Whether or not she knew my thoughts, she kept speaking, her voice quivering.

“I too… I believe I can do it… I can do it, I was told.”

“Who? Your grandfather?”

“…”

Wi Seol-Ah fell silent at my question, unable to respond.

Among all people, the only one who could say something like that to her was undoubtedly the Sword Sovereign.

But…

‘Did he really say that to Wi Seol-Ah?’

Honestly, I found it hard to understand.

While I was thinking about it, learning that Wi Seol-Ah had been training with a sword made me realize the reason she had vanished a few nights ago.

Was that all just for practice?

Then… could it be that she came out to train and just happened to find me?

‘At this late hour?’

That seemed rather unlikely.

In the midst of my countless thoughts, Wi Seol-Ah spoke to me.

“Can’t… you not go?”

Her voice, filled with sobs, was enough to put me in a precarious position, yet I knew my answer wouldn’t change.

What was happening just made sense.

“If I go… it’s dangerous, right? So, if I don’t go… uh.”

I attempted to reply that it wasn’t possible, but Wi Seol-Ah’s mouth clamped shut.

Her tears were refrained, and the words she’d been planning to speak were also stuck.

What was going on?

As I pondered, Wi Seol-Ah opened her mouth again.

“…I understand now…”

“What are you…?”

Did she realize I was trying to refuse something and said she understood?

Wi Seol-Ah wiped the tears from her eyes.

“If this isn’t possible, then let’s go together…”

At that moment, she flinched slightly as if she recalled something else, but then she hesitated, closing her mouth again.

After repeating that a few times, the tears that had gathered around her eyes looked ready to spill out with a mere tap.

The current Wi Seol-Ah appeared unstable.

“What can I possibly do…? If I don’t, then I won’t have done anything!”

Seeing her like that made me feel something was off, but I was thinking of taking a step closer when…

“…!”

I felt a presence nearing from the direction of her clan.

It seemed they noticed I was missing.

If I continued this way, I’d be in trouble.

I quickly grabbed an item from my pocket and forced it into Wi Seol-Ah’s hands.

This was a red ornament I received once from Elder Lee, presented as a gift through Maehwa Seon.

“Take this with you.”

“You, Young Master….”

“Sorry, let’s talk when I get back. I’ll be right back.”

I ruffled Wi Seol-Ah’s hair a bit before leaping off the ground.

The farther I got, the more I sensed Wi Seol-Ah’s presence worry me, but I couldn’t go back.

While it seemed like I had a lot to discuss with her, I could deal with that later.

First, I had to put out the urgent fire.

Right now, I had no choice but to think that way.

As Gu Yangcheong moved far away,

left alone, Wi Seol-Ah was wiping away her tears without pause.

Clutching the ornament Gu Yangcheong had given her tightly in her hand.

Staring blankly at the direction I disappeared into.

Someone called out to Wi Seol-Ah.

[Child….]

Upon hearing the voice, Wi Seol-Ah made a rarely seen angry expression.

“Why can’t I?”

Her questioning voice was quite sharp.

[…]

“Telling me not to go is one thing, and not letting me follow is another… why can’t I do anything?”

Her words spilled out like sorrow, leaving the voice owner no choice but to remain silent.

Especially since they understood Wi Seol-Ah’s feelings better than anyone else.

“Didn’t you say… if you work hard, you can do it? You can protect the Young Master. So why can’t I do anything…?”

[Right now… there’s nothing you can do.]

“I don’t understand.”

[You came all this way just to see him because you desperately wished to.]

Knowing that Gu Yangcheong was leaving to some unknown destination,

she was determined to seek him out with someone’s help.

“Is this only something I wish for?”

[…]

Wi Seol-Ah was confused.

“Isn’t it something you wish for too…?”

At Wi Seol-Ah’s question, the voice owner had nothing to say.

Because, after all, Wi Seol-Ah was right.

[…I.]

The words struggled to leave the lips, which were heavy with silence.

Thinking back to her, Wi Seol-Ah said, “You’re being cowardly.”

Wi Seol-Ah felt she was being lied to.

“You like him too, don’t you?”

She liked him.

Wi Seol-Ah knew that better than anyone.

Perhaps her feelings for Gu Yangcheong were more intense and profound than anyone else’s.

“But why do you keep hiding?”

Therefore, Wi Seol-Ah couldn’t comprehend her silence.

If she liked him so much,

couldn’t she express those feelings?

In the eyes of the younger Wi Seol-Ah, she seemed foolish.

[How strange…]

“What is it?”

[That just because the circumstances are different, I could have been like you…]

From the very beginning, subtle differences changed everything.

In Wi Seol-Ah’s view, she had become someone completely different from her.

If there was something she wanted to say, she wouldn’t hesitate to do so.

She was honest with her feelings and didn’t shy away from expressing them.

As if she was certain that even if Gu Yangcheong treated her that way, he wouldn’t hate her, nor would he push her away.

The one who fashioned the younger version of herself into this state was Gu Yangcheong.

Even so, even if she envied the current Wi Seol-Ah,

she felt sorry.

Wanting her to endure under the guise of caring for him,

wanting her to hold back her emotions.

Let alone wishing for this world.

She had no words for the younger Wi Seol-Ah.

“…”

Even as Wi Seol-Ah cursed at her and attempted to say something, she too closed her mouth.

They both shared each other’s emotions.

Wi Seol-Ah understood what sort of feelings she had towards her, so all she could do was squeeze the ornament Gu Yangcheong had left for her tight.

Wi Seol-Ah recalled the boy whose back she couldn’t catch.

“…Young Master.”

In that final moment, she remembered Gu Yangcheong’s comforting hand ruffling her hair.

Wi Seol-Ah gently brushed her own hair with her hand.

Though it was hard to understand her words,

and though she felt pity watching Gu Yangcheong busy and getting hurt,

“I miss you…”

For now, she simply longed to see the one who had left.

The green mountains to the north of the front line.

The massive mountains filled with ancient trees and rocks.

A place brimming with vitality from the vibrant emerald glow.

But now,

most of that green beauty had vanished,

leaving only the charred remnants of ancient trees and the dark remnants of life behind.

In the center of the mountain range,

where now not even a trace remained of the massive mountain range,

a scorching heat that seemed to burn up everything was swirling violently.

Flames ascended into the air, fueled by the heat, resembling a massive whirlpool.

Devouring everything around it as it expanded, the flames

were merciless and unyielding.

As the flames raged on and devastated the surroundings,

they gradually dissipated, vanishing without a trace.

With the disappearance of the flames, the thick blaze that consumed the mountain range melted away like a lie.

When all the flames had vanished, where the whirlpool once was,

a huge crater had formed, and a heavily muscled man stood behind with his arms folded.

The area around the crater was filled with blackened corpses, so charred that their shapes were unidentifiable.

It seemed there were dozens of them.

All of them had perished without even a breath of resistance against the man’s hand.

They were all martial artists belonging to the Black Night Palace, and this place was originally where a branch of the Black Night Palace was located.

Now, however, not even a trace remained.

Burned to ashes by the man’s hand.

“…”

Scanning over the charred bodies nearby, the man slowly turned his head, gazing behind him.

There, someone who hadn’t been there originally was kneeling down before him.

The competent individual cautiously presented a letter to the man and said,

“Clan Leader, a letter has arrived from Elder Lee.”

The man, Gu Cheolun, immediately took the letter and unfolded it.

The contents of the letter were briefly scrawled out in Elder Lee’s rough handwriting.

Reading the words made Gu Cheolun’s eyebrows twitch briefly.

The letter contained the information Gu Cheolun had longed for.

Upon reading it, Gu Cheolun immediately issued an order.

“To the Sword Team Leader.”

“Yes, Clan Leader.”

“Reform the formation.”

The expression of Gu Cheolun, who had maintained a neutral demeanor, began to turn crimson.

A dense energy sank into the surroundings, crushing everything around.

Even the massive mountain range had to hold its breath in the presence of the man.

Gu Cheolun stepped forward, declaring,

“I’m heading to the Mudong Mountain Range.”

With that, flames erupted, and Gu Cheolun disappeared.

 

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