Don't Do It
I heard a sound like someone tossing and turning, as if telling me not to do it. Immediately after, I felt my master’s presence right in front of me. I adjusted my body as comfortably as possible so my acting wouldn’t be exposed.
“….”
Finally, the gaze that had been fixed on me broke away. Then came the soft sound of footsteps quietly leaving the tent.
Swish—.
As expected. I knew she would do this. The years my master and I had spent together were considerable, which also meant she had long since figured out my habits. So I had used that against her. I pretended to be lost in deep sleep, luring her into action. If there was something she needed to handle in secret, now was the chance. With her disciple blissfully unaware in front of her, she could quickly take care of it and return.
—Just as I thought, there’s something.
She wanted to do something secretly but couldn’t do it inside the tent. That meant it had to be hidden at all costs. And if it was something that needed hiding, it was surely related to her personally.
I didn’t rise right away. I continued pretending to sleep. Only after my master had moved far enough away would I move, slipping beyond the range of her senses if she happened to check.
After some time passed, I too slipped out of the tent in complete silence. I followed the faint traces she had left behind. The crashing waves conveniently masked any small sounds I made.
“…Khuk.”
How long had I been tracking her while suppressing every sound and sign of my presence? From up ahead came my master’s faint groan.
The moment I heard it, my heart plummeted and I nearly rushed forward. I forced myself to stay calm. There was no one in this area who could harm her. That meant she was simply enduring the pain on her own. No need to hurry. I would approach quietly, just as I was, and observe the situation.
I moved forward until my master finally came into view.
She sat in lotus position, drenched in sweat. Her elegant face was twisted in agony, her tightly pressed lips trembling violently. Just how severe must the pain be for my master—the Heavenly Demon—to react like this?
Curiosity, frustration, and a storm of other emotions surged through me, but I couldn’t carelessly disturb her while she was circulating her energy. So I stood behind her and stood guard.
Normally, anyone concentrating this deeply would have someone watching over them. Yet our master had chosen to do this alone. What would she do if an enemy invaded?
—Could she have anticipated that I would follow?
The thought crossed my mind, but I quickly shook my head. She must have checked the surroundings first before choosing to circulate her energy. If she had truly expected me to come, she wouldn’t have done this. She would have simply sat in meditation and greeted me when I arrived.
“Kuk! Keok!”
My master’s body shook even more violently. This was clearly a serious condition. For the Heavenly Demon, the supreme ruler of the martial world, to writhe in pain like this? It meant the agony was beyond anything others could even imagine.
Without realizing it, I loosened my stance and started toward her. But I caught myself, shaking my head and forcing my body to stay rooted in place.
I must neither move nor interfere. Not until my master finished everything herself and opened her eyes. All I could do was wait for her, trust in her, and follow her lead.
“Huk! Heo-eok! Heo-eok….”
I’m not sure exactly how much time passed. The only noticeable change was that the moon and stars shone even brighter. The ferocious circulation of my master’s inner energy gradually began to subside. Though she still breathed with obvious pain, a faint sense of relief now lingered around her.
Even in that horrific state, it seemed she had found the path she needed to take.
By now she should have sensed my presence. Yet even with me standing right behind her, my master hadn’t noticed. She simply steadied her ragged breathing and composed herself.
“It’s over, isn’t it?”
I spoke in the calmest tone I could manage. Almost at the same moment, my master turned around.
“….”
“….”
Our eyes met. My master froze solid. She stared at me as though she never imagined I would be standing right there, as though she were asking exactly when I had arrived and how much I had seen.
“It’s been a while.”
“…You bastard.”
“You were regulating your energy alone with no one around, so I stood guard for a bit.”
“Shut your mouth. How much did you see?”
“I don’t know where the beginning was, but I saw everything from the middle onward.”
“A disciple dares to tail his own master? You deceived this Lord!”
Anger and betrayal flared across my master’s face. She was probably furious that I had pretended to sleep and then secretly followed her. But if we were keeping score, I had something to say too.
“You were the one who deceived me first, Master.”
“What?”
“Why did you hide it? Why did you keep it from me?”
Our power structure naturally included my master. Only by managing that power efficiently could we move one step closer to victory. If we failed to operate it properly, we would lose outright. That was why I had stressed it so heavily to my disciples: if any of them were hurt, they must not hide it. They had to tell the truth so we could pull them back for treatment and fill any gaps.
“When I warned my disciples, you were there too, Master.”
“….”
“The enemy is strong. We cannot afford to hide things from one another. No matter how embarrassing or shameful, we must speak everything. Didn’t I clearly tell my disciples that?”
“This Lord is different from your disciples. Even if injured, it does not hinder me in battle.”
“From what I see now, it looks like it will hinder you quite a bit.”
At my words, my master bit her lip and stepped right up to me. She seized my collar with a vicious grip and growled.
“Stop your useless worrying. This Lord will handle it. There will be no hindrance to the battles you’re so concerned about. So drop it and mind your own business—and your disciples’.”
She shoved me aside in irritation. Without thinking, completely against my own will, the words tumbled out.
“It’s not only because of any hindrance to battle.”
“Is that so? Then what else are you dissatisfied with? What is the problem?”
“…Master. You yourself are the problem.”
The moment the words left my mouth, I regretted them. I shouldn’t have gone this far. We couldn’t get any closer than this. Yet before my head could stop it, my heart had already moved my lips.
“…What do you mean?”
“Master, you were injured, weren’t you?”
“What of it?”
“…How could I possibly overlook that?”
“What?”
“How could I just let it pass as if it were nothing? You are the one who raised your sword for my sake. It must be an injury from that very act, yet you hid it from me. How could this disciple possibly stay at ease? How could I not worry? Master.”
“….”
I no longer knew what I was even saying. I was simply speaking whatever came to mind, whatever my heart wanted to say. These were words I would surely regret come morning. I could already see the future where I cursed myself as a madman and blamed my own foolishness. Yet my mouth kept pouring out the words until the very end.
“….”
My master remained silent. The eyes that had been coldly frozen with rage now trembled faintly. Perhaps she was shaken by the sincerity I had unwittingly revealed.
Silence. More silence. Still more silence.
In that heavy quiet, I desperately tried to create a new topic.
“…You sweated quite a lot.”
“…Yes, I suppose I did.”
“Let’s go. We can heat water with one of Daisy’s magic scrolls. Wash off the sweat quickly and change into fresh clothes. You might catch a cold otherwise.”
My master, who had been quiet for a moment, slowly nodded.
Splash—!
The sound of warm water being poured echoed behind me. I stood with my back to the tent, quietly waiting for my master. In my hands I held a towel and the fresh clothes she would change into.
“Is the water temperature all right?”
“Yes. It’s perfect. That Daisy girl really developed something useful.”
“The cooling magic installed in the carriage is the same. Her skills are undeniable.”
“If only we could fix that clumsy personality of hers.”
“You can say that again.”
I let out a soft chuckle and gazed up at the sky. I was simply waiting for my master to finish. Suddenly the sound of pouring water stopped, and her voice reached me again.
“…Disciple.”
“Yes, Master.”
“You said you were curious why I deceived you, didn’t you?”
“…I was, but it’s all right now.”
“And the reason?”
“Because when the time comes, you will tell me everything anyway.”
At my answer, my master let out a short “Kuk” of laughter.
“You’re still doing it even now, aren’t you?”
“…Disciple. Let me ask you one thing.”
“Please ask.”
“That thing called the Enemy’s Will—the one you and your disciples faced, the existence I wanted to cut down myself. Could your disciples not have handled it on their own?”
“…It would be difficult for them right now, but later they should be able to deal with it without much trouble.”
“Then there is no need for you to search for a way to cut those beings, is there?”
“Pardon?”
I couldn’t help but show my confusion. Not long ago, it had been my master who said she could reach them, that she could cut them. We who were not beings of this world could not surpass its laws. When I had said that, she had replied that we simply needed to cut down the laws themselves. And in truth, she had succeeded in doing exactly that.
“I know what you are thinking. It must be confusing since I said I could cut them and now say this. But there is a reason, Hyeon-a.”
“…Are you unable to tell me?”
My master remained silent for a long time. Then came the sound of water being poured once more.
“My dantian has been damaged.”
She spoke the unimaginable words as casually as if commenting on the weather.
“Pardon?”
“It is exactly as you heard. My dantian is damaged.”
“Is… is it serious?”
“I’m not sure. I don’t know whether it is serious or not. This is the first time something like this has happened.”
“How on earth… Master. Perhaps… it couldn’t be…?”
“Hyeon-a.”
At her calm call, my body flinched involuntarily.
“Don’t do it. That thing—just don’t do it.”
Her voice was so fragile, so precarious it seemed it might shatter at any moment. For an instant I wondered if this was truly the master I knew—the Heavenly Demon.
“Breaking the laws set by the heavens and receiving divine punishment… this master alone is enough.”