After that, I received treatment and then fell asleep as if fainting. In my sleep, I vaguely heard Linda making a fuss, telling me not to die, but I had no time to pay attention. I had sunk into the sea of sleep without a moment to spare.

...I had a dream.

In my dream, I was with Tina. We roamed the dirty back alleys, looking for food, sharing it, and enduring the cold nights by sharing each other's warmth. I tried to become strong to protect her, but in the end, I couldn't protect her. Because I was too weak. I had to become stronger.

Was that, without me knowing, the foundation of my desire to become strong? Why was a time I had tried so hard to forget, a time I had erased from my mind, appearing in my dreams?

I had buried Tina in my heart. There were many times when just thinking about her made my heart ache, so I lived as if I had forgotten. But it seems she has always remained in my heart. It seems she had been shining brightly and whitely, all alone in the complete darkness.

Only after losing her did I come to believe in heaven and hell. Heaven, because I hoped she would be at peace, at least in death. Hell, because I hoped the ones who killed her would suffer in a fiery hell for all eternity.

Perhaps heaven and hell were created by those who have lost a loved one.

She was the whitest thing I had. Was it thanks to her that my heart wasn't completely dyed black?

...

The dream continued, as if I was sleeping for a long time. This time, it was a different dream.

I was looking at the moon reflected in a calm pond. A moon split in half was floating in the pond.

"...."

I stared at it blankly, then raised my head to see a dazzling night sky spread out before me. In the jet-black sky, countless stars were twinkling as if they would pour down at any moment, and among them, a modest half-moon was floating gently. A soft wind blew, shaking my hair.

[You've come.]

At the familiar voice, I turned my head to see the Heavenly Demon walking out from between the trees. I stood up from my spot and greeted him politely.

"You've arrived, Master."

[Yes.]

The Heavenly Demon sauntered over and sat on a rock on the other side of the pond.

[Sit.]

"Yes."

I was about to sit on a rock too, but there were no rocks on my side. I had no choice but to sit on the ground.

[...]

"...."

We stared at the pond in silence for a while. Suddenly, the Heavenly Demon looked at the pond and asked.

[Do you know where this is?]

I answered calmly.

"It must be within my mindscape."

[And this pond?]

"It can be seen as the internal energy contained in my dantian."

[Hmm.]

"It was as dry as a desert, but it has filled up quite a bit. That's a relief."

My internal energy had been a trickling stream, then a small but surprisingly deep pond, and then a lake. It was originally a lake, but it had become a desert after fighting the Royal Knights, and now it had become a pond again.

The Heavenly Demon looked at the pond and asked.

[But why the sudden formal speech?]

"It's my business."

The Heavenly Demon glared at me. He might have just been looking, but to me, it felt like a glare. I immediately lowered my eyes, pretending to gaze at the pond.

"What's the problem with using honorifics for a master I respect so much?"

The Heavenly Demon found fault.

[So, you're saying you didn't respect me usually?]

"Of course not."

I replied in a calm tone.

"My respect for you is particularly great today, so I naturally followed that feeling."

[...]

I had been using formal speech to the Heavenly Demon naturally before I even realized it, but thinking about it, I belatedly realized that I was using formal speech because I thought I was going to get scolded. Even though he had told me off so angrily, hadn't I run into the darkness like a frightened deer? A premonition of getting beaten to a pulp made me break out in a cold sweat.

How painful would the fist of an absolute being be?

The Heavenly Demon, who had been staring at me blankly, slowly raised a hand.

Flinch!

Seeing me quickly raise my guard, the Heavenly Demon snorted.

[I'm not going to hit you.]

"Really?"

[Yes.]

I lowered my guard and let out a sigh of relief.

BOOM!

My vision flashed, the heavens and earth shook, and the sky and ground were reversed. Had the world turned upside down? No. I was the one who had been turned upside down. But what I saw was my world, so it wasn't entirely wrong. If I died, wouldn't the world end with me?

...What am I even saying?

'Wow... the performance is certain.'

As expected, the Heavenly Demon's fist is different. Just one hit is enough to make me spout nonsense. How far did I fly? I can't even guess.

As I was muttering nonsense while stuck in the ground, the Heavenly Demon strode over.

[Carelessness is forbidden.]

"...."

[Does it hurt?]

"Yes."

[How much does it hurt?]

"It hurts like a bitch."

[Shut up. I'm in more pain.]

I looked up at the Heavenly Demon, who was standing with his hands behind his back, looking down at me, while I was still stuck in the ground.

"Why are you in pain, Master?"

[No matter how much it hurts for a brat like you, can it hurt more than the heart of a master who has struck his disciple?]

"Aha."

The Heavenly Demon looked at my eyes and said.

[Have you come to your senses?]

"I think so."

[Get up, you worthless fool. You're so much trouble.]

I took the hand the Heavenly Demon held out and stood up. I dusted off my clothes and then followed the Heavenly Demon towards the pond.

I walked silently behind the Heavenly Demon for a while, then broke the silence.

"So, what happened?"

I switched to informal speech in an instant, but the Heavenly Demon, unconcerned, continued to walk with his hands behind his back and answered.

[What do you mean?]

"Van Dyke of the Iron Spear. The knight with a magnificent build who looked like he could stop an entire army by himself. A terrifying monster. The cheap bastard who wielded a sword like a spear. How did I win? I heard I cut off both his arms in an instant."

The Heavenly Demon answered nonchalantly.

[What's the big deal? This time, it must have been because that guy had carelessness in his heart.]

"...I don't think it can be explained that simply."

Van Dyke of the Iron Spear was a cautious man. Unbefitting of his size. It didn't seem like such a man would have both his arms cut off just because he was careless. More than that, never mind my physical condition, at that time, I had no internal energy left in my dantian. I had used it all up scraping together what I had to kindle the moonlight. Even that had come to nothing.

But how could I have moved enough to cut off both of Van Dyke's arms?

The Heavenly Demon walked silently for a long time, then asked.

[Do you know about Innate Qi?]

"Uh."

I was flustered. It was definitely something the Heavenly Demon had taught me, but I couldn't remember. I reflexively raised my guard, but the Heavenly Demon just looked at me with pathetic eyes.

[...What are you doing?]

I answered calmly.

"The best defense is a defense that predicts in advance."

[Not offense?]

"I don't think so right now."

[Excellent.]

"You're too kind."

[That wasn't a compliment.]

"...."

Surprisingly, the Heavenly Demon didn't hit me, but just clicked his tongue once and then kindly explained again.

[Innate Qi is the true qi that a person is born with. It is several times purer than ordinary internal energy.]

A question arose.

"Master. Didn't you say I didn't have a speck of ki?"

I remember it clearly. Those were his exact words. I remember it precisely because I was a little hurt at the time.

"You said you couldn't find any internal energy even if you looked with a magnifying glass."

[Did I?]

"How can this be? No matter how meager the talent, one is born with at least a little bit of it innately. I've never seen such a beggar-like talent."

The Heavenly Demon stared at me with a dumbfounded face.

[...You still remember that?]

I did not avoid his gaze.

"The perpetrator never remembers."

[...]

The Heavenly Demon let out a short sigh.

[Innate Qi is, in other words, life force.]

"Life force?"

[A person's fundamental life force. Since you're using your one and only life force, it's only natural that it's much more powerful than ordinary internal energy.]

"Oh."

The Heavenly Demon glared at me.

[You idiot. This is not something to be happy about. It's life force. A part of your life force has flowed out because of this incident. Your lifespan has been shortened.]

"...Gasp!"

I clung to the Heavenly Demon's arm.

"Master. Am I going to die? Am I going to die just like this? I haven't even kicked the asses of those mercenary bastards yet."

The Heavenly Demon frowned and pushed my arm away.

[Get off. What are you doing? So unsightly.]

I sat down like a spurned wife and beat the ground.

"Oh my... to think I would go so meaninglessly after fighting like this. To be born a man and go like this without ever having a proper romance. Does this make sense? What a pitiful life this is."

The Heavenly Demon frowned and kicked me in the stomach.

"Keok!"

[Get up, will you? What is this disgraceful behavior?]

I muttered blankly while lying on the ground.

"...They say life is worth living. What value is there in a life of just fighting like this?"

The Heavenly Demon clicked his tongue and said.

[You're not going to die. You're not going to die, so get up.]

"What?"

I shot up and looked at the Heavenly Demon.

"I'm not going to die?"

[That's right. Are you making a fuss over a little bit of Innate Qi flowing out? You're not going to die.]

"Then?"

[It will hurt like hell. You probably won't wake up for a while.]

"...."

The Heavenly Demon walked ahead with his hands behind his back. I followed him, wondering if I should be happy or sad about this.

[Still, it's a relief you came back before it was too late. If you had gone just a little further, you would have crossed an irreversible line, to the point where recovery would have been impossible.]

Come to think of it, I remembered the Heavenly Demon getting angry, saying the line was not far. So, the deeper I went into the darkness, the more I was slowly dying. If I had crossed the line, I would have fallen into the abyss that lay beyond. It was thanks to Tina grabbing me in front of it and turning me back towards the light that I was safe.

The Heavenly Demon looked at me.

[Do you understand? This is how scary Qi Deviation is.]

I nodded silently. Having experienced it myself, I could feel the terror of Qi Deviation. It was a terrifying thing that could make you fall into the abyss with a single mistake. Only then did I fully realize how dangerous a technique the blood-red world was. And why the Heavenly Demon had told me to refrain from using it. And the words about it being an ultimate skill on the border of Qi Deviation.

So, all this time, I had been dancing with a Heart Demon on the border of Qi Deviation. Without any fear. How dangerous must it have looked from the Heavenly Demon's perspective? They say ignorance is bliss. That was exactly my case.

[No matter how strong you become, the Heart Demon will always visit you from time to time. Qi Deviation is a battle with yourself. Always be vigilant and careful.]

"Yes."

We walked down the quiet forest path. The Heavenly Demon, as he walked, said as if reciting.

[Life is worth living...]

The Heavenly Demon seemed to be lost in thought for a moment, then nodded and muttered.

[Those are good words.]

I also agreed.

"They are good words. Though I'll have to see for myself if they're really true."

[My disciple.]

"Yes, Master."

[It seems that white-haired girl was the one who drew the line in your heart.]

I nodded.

"It seems so."

The Heavenly Demon did not ask any more.

We walked for a long time after that and returned to the pond. The Heavenly Demon went to the rock he had sat on before and sat down, and I sat on the ground opposite him.

[My disciple.]

"Yes, Master."

[Do you know where the path we walked is?]

I tilted my head.

"In my mindscape?"

The Heavenly Demon nodded.

[That's right. It's in your mindscape. And it's also the path you were running away on, being chased by the Heart Demon.]

"...!"

I looked back with startled eyes.

The Heavenly Demon continued in a calm tone.

[If you go deeper from here, you will find the darkness you were wandering in. That place was also in your mindscape.]

The Heavenly Demon stared at my shocked face and asked.

[What has changed?]

"...Nothing."

The Heavenly Demon slowly nodded.

[That's right. Nothing has changed.]

"...."

[But your mindset is different from back then.]

"Yes."

[Even if you walk the same path, it will look completely different depending on your mindset. If you think someone is chasing you, it will only feel darker. Isn't that so?]

"I think so."

The Heavenly Demon looked at me with quiet eyes.

[My disciple.]

"Yes, Master."

[The situation doesn't create the attitude. The attitude changes the situation.]

"...."

[In any situation, choose the right attitude.]

"I will keep that in mind."

The Heavenly Demon looked around and said.

[Look. How is it?]

I followed the Heavenly Demon and looked around. This place was my mindscape. This quiet pond must be my internal energy. The jet-black night sky must be the Night Sky, the stars sprinkled like salt on it must be the Star, and that pale moon must be the Moon. The coolly blowing wind is the Floating Step.

"Wow..."

It was beautiful. Don't I have a rather nice mind? What was I so afraid of that I wandered in the darkness?

"Not bad."

I smiled faintly.

(End of Chapter)