Chapter 8 – What One Wishes to Protect, What One Must Protect

“I do not take on disciples lightly.”

Seolhwa stared at Seop Mugwang as he prowled lazily in front of her.

She had come to the training hall to refine her swordsmanship, only for him to appear after a long absence and throw her into this situation.

“Do you know why?”

Seop Mugwang raised a single finger.

“Because to me, one’s character comes before martial prowess!”

“...”

“A sword, after all, always reveals the heart of the one who wields it. If their intentions are base, the sword follows suit in disgrace. But if their intentions are upright, the sword will be as well.”

He came to a halt.

“And so!”

With a sudden whirl, he turned to face Seolhwa.

“Which are you?”

Seolhwa blinked.

Which...?

Was he asking whether her intentions were disgraceful or righteous?

“Why do you wield a sword?”

She looked down at the blade in her hand.

Even now, she could not answer.

She had never thought about the reason. She had always drawn the sword to win, always swung it to kill. Nothing more.

Could that be called a reason?

“I don’t know.”

Her honest answer made Seop Mugwang nod, as if he had expected it.

“You really don’t know yourself at all. That’s your problem.”

“Is it so important to know who I am?”

In her past life, she had fought just fine without knowing.

“Of course it’s important. The most important thing!”

He pointed directly at her.

“You said you wanted to find your path, didn’t you? Then first, you must know yourself. How can you understand what you want or find your direction if you don’t even know who you are?”

Seolhwa nodded slowly. But it was still difficult.

Just as he said, she did not know what kind of person she was.

I didn’t even know I was part of the Namgoong family until after I died...

How was she supposed to know what kind of person she was?

Seop Mugwang looked at her, visibly burdened by thought.

Maybe this was a bit too much for a child...

Namgoong Mucheon had said the same. Cheongun as well. Even the Administrator had once mentioned it. And Seop Mugwang, too, remembered her childhood clearly.

She was a child who hated being separated from her parents more than anything.

A child who toddled after her grandfather’s back with tiny, quick steps.

A child whose bright, sunny smile took after her parents.

A child whose teary face puffed up like a dumpling when she cried.

So lovable that even someone like Seop Mugwang—who hadn’t cared much for anyone in Namgoong outside of Mucheon—had remembered her.

And such a child had lived as a nameless assassin for eight years, without even her memories.

Though she had returned to Namgoong, it did not mean she had truly come home.

“Don’t worry too much. These are things you can come to understand slowly.”

Clearing his throat for no reason, Seop Mugwang glanced at her.

“That’s what I’m here for, isn’t it?”

“...Pardon?”

The moment he decided to become her teacher, he had resolved to help her find that lost self.

To restore her sense of self and let her walk forward without hesitation.

That, surely, was what a master ought to do.

With a chuckle, he reached out and tousled her hair.

“A proper teacher, you little rascal.”

Seolhwa’s eyes lit up.

“You’re really going to teach me swordsmanship?”

At last?

“That’s right. I don’t know how you sweet-talked the clan lord into it, but he gave his full approval. So if you end up messed up by the end of this, don’t blame me.”

She nodded eagerly.

To think she would truly learn the Sword of Wind and Thunder.

In her previous life, he had died too early for her to ever witness it properly.

Finally...!

“What do I learn first? Footwork? Movement techniques? Internal arts? Forms?”

“What first, she says.”

He pointed at the sky.

Under the fierce sunlight blazing from the zenith, she squinted upward to see a sky without a single cloud.

“?”

Seop Mugwang grinned slyly.

“Lunch first.”

****

After their meal, the two made their way toward Mount Huang.

Training with Seop Mugwang never took place within the Namgoong estate—it always happened at Mount Huang, where he often practiced in solitude.

Since his martial art was entirely self-developed, a secret discipline of his own, he could not afford to have it seen casually.

With a show of pride that this would be her first time here, he led her to a wide clearing in the forest.

Hidden deep within dense trees and brush, the place was his private training ground—rarely visited by others.

The cave where he helped me purge my internal energy block was here too. So he really does train here often...

Come to think of it, she had never once seen him train within Namgoong.

Perhaps he did use a private hall, but this spaciousness... this was ideal.

Before passing down anything, Seop Mugwang said he would first demonstrate, and took position before a massive tree on one side of the clearing.

“Watch carefully.”

Exhaling deeply, he took the starting stance of his personal sword technique: the Sword of Wind and Thunder.

Whooosh—

As he released his energy, a blue aura veiled in white light surged around him.

Unlike Namgoong Mucheon’s martial presence, this one was violent and devastating—pure lightning and thunder.

The energy spiraled about him, creating fleeting illusions of flickering light.

It felt as though lightning itself coursed over his body.

Seop Mugwang’s eyes sharpened in an instant.

KWANG—! The forest rang with the blast, sending birds scattering into the sky.

Half of the massive tree before him was simply ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) gone.

Seop Mugwang’s sword pursued the ultimate in speed.

“Did you see that?”

Seolhwa nodded.

“...You saw that?”

This?

That speed?

She nodded again without hesitation.

For the ordinary observer, the strike would have happened in the blink of an eye—unseen.

But she had seen it.

Like a flash of heaven’s fury bursting forth—within it, Seop Mugwang’s sword had danced.

Thunder and lightning purge the darkness of the world in an instant.

And his sword was just the same.

“What did you think?”

“It was awe-inspiring.”

His body stiffened at her calm reply.

He turned away with a cough to hide his reaction—but the corners of his lips were lifted.

“Hmph. Well, yes. My sword is awe-inspiring, I’ll grant you that. But it’s nothing to marvel at. You’ll be learning it soon. Now then...”

He strode toward the center of the clearing.

“Let’s begin with footwork. Come here.”

“Yes, sir.”

Seolhwa stepped in front of him.

At some point, he had picked up a small palm-sized stone from the ground and was holding it in his hand.

“I’ll give you one quarter-hour.”

“?”

“Do whatever it takes...”

He placed the stone gently atop his own head.

The flat pebble settled there with perfect balance.

“Knock it off. Without touching it directly. The sword is allowed.”

She stared at the pebble perched on his head.

Anything goes, so long as she didn’t touch the pebble itself? Seemed simple enough.

I think I can do it.

“If you manage it before the time’s up, I’ll buy you as many tanghulu as you want on the way back.”

Her eyes sparkled.

Around her, a red aura began to rise.