Chapter 45: Sword Phoenix (5)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 45: Sword Phoenix (5)
How long had I been out?
The lingering fatigue suggested I hadn't slept for very long.
“You need to grow, so you have to eat! What do you mean you won’t!?”
A voice sharp enough to pierce my eardrums forced me awake.
When I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was a dumpling.
…Why is there a dumpling here?
Is this a dream? That would make sense, considering I’ve eaten nothing but dumplings for days.
“…Dumplings, huh. Are these beef-filled?”
“Little brother, are you still talking in your sleep?”
The sudden voice was accompanied by a familiar pair of red eyes.
The sight of them finally kickstarted my brain. My blurry vision rapidly cleared, sharpening to reveal the distinct facial features before me.
“Sister…?”
“Yes, it’s your incredibly awesome and beautiful sister.”
I chose to ignore the last part of her statement.
“Why are you here?”
“Am I not allowed to be here?”
“No, because this is my room.”
“Which makes it my room, too.”
“…What are you talking about? Are you drunk?”
Gu Huibi raised her hand to bonk me on the head for my remark, but I dodged swiftly.
One of her eyebrows shot up at my evasion.
“Huh… You dare dodge me?”
“Why are you trying to hit me the moment you step into my room?”
“You have the nerve to speak to your older sister like that? I came to check on my little brother who refused to eat!”
“…You could have just sent a servant.”
I was tempted to ask if she came all this way just to annoy me, but I held my tongue. The resulting immolation wasn’t worth it.
Gu Huibi lifted her hand again, but this time, she lowered it without striking.
Did she just give up?
Instead, she slowly handed me a plate of dumplings.
“I picked these up on the way. Don’t starve; eat.”
“You just ‘happened’ to come across this many dumplings…?”
“You talk too much. Do you want to be charred to a crisp alongside these dumplings?”
Deciding it was wiser not to test her patience, I quickly started eating. They were still warm, freshly steamed.
“…Thank you.”
Even though our relationship was still awkward, I couldn’t deny she had come here thinking of me.
Gu Huibi chuckled, seemingly amused by my gratitude.
“‘Thank you’? These dumplings must be truly exceptional. I can’t remember the last time my little brother said something so polite.”
Really?
Well, I suppose that’s not surprising.
Around this time in my past life, I probably despised everyone in the clan, especially my own family.
“I meant it sincerely, but it seems you always have a retort, even when I’m just expressing thanks.”
“Your crude way of speaking hasn’t changed, yet something about you has shifted so drastically… Is it because of that Namgung girl?”
I choked on the dumpling in my mouth, sputtering.
“Cough… cough…”
“My, so lovesick you’re choking over her.”
I could feel her sharp gaze on me as I coughed. What nonsense was she spewing?
“Why bring up Namgung out of nowhere? I thought I was going to die.”
“Was she pretty?”
“…For heaven’s sake.”
Gu Huibi wasn’t listening; she only cared about what she wanted to hear. Still, ‘was she pretty?’ Objectively speaking, Namgung Bi-ah was widely considered a beauty. A stunning one.
To compete with her looks, one would need to be at least on Wi Seol-Ah’s level. In my previous life, I’d grown accustomed to seeing her, blood-soaked and cutting through enemy lines, yet still managing to look breathtaking. I’d seen her so many times I’d become numb to it.
“The Lightning Sword said she’s pretty.”
“…You know him well?”
“I’ve seen him a few times. We never spoke much. He always looked suspicious, anyway.”
Given the limited number of prodigies who could rank among the world’s Dragons and Phoenixes, their paths must have crossed. What was strange was Gu Huibi calling him ‘suspicious.’ That Namgung bastard was a decent actor. Were Gu Huibi’s instincts that sharp?
As I was about to finish the dumplings, Gu Huibi pulled something from her pocket. I was rendered speechless by what she produced.
“…Sister.”
“What?”
“What is that?”
“Can’t you tell by looking?”
I can, which is precisely why I’m asking.
The item in Gu Huibi’s hand was unmistakably a bottle of clear liquor.
Why is she bringing alcohol into someone else’s room?
Gu Huibi giggled at my expression.
“Want a drink?”
“…Be honest. Did you come here just to drink?”
She’s definitely not right in the head.
Ignoring me, she produced a glass and began drinking by herself.
“Are you going to leave after you finish?”
“No? I’m sleeping here.”
Hmm…
That was arguably the most insane thing I’d heard in days.
“Then you sleep here. I’ll find another place.”
“How can you be so cold? Wouldn’t it be nice for us siblings to sleep together for the first time in ages?”
“ ‘Ages’ my foot. When have we ever slept together?”
We had never been that close. Still, I braced myself, ready to dodge if she attacked again.
Strangely, Gu Huibi simply smiled and gazed up at the moon.
What the…? Did we ever?
I had no such memory, even from my previous life. So why did she have that odd expression?
As if only just hearing my words, Gu Huibi suddenly started laughing.
“Yeah. We never slept together even once. You’re so cold.”
“…When are you leaving?”
“Little brother, why are you so eager to kick me out?”
“Because this is my room?”
Isn’t it obvious?
Gu Huibi continued drinking as if she hadn’t heard me.
- Drip, drip…
After drinking at an alarming speed, she finally drained the last drops. She retrieved the glass, stood up, and sighed disappointedly.
Was she finally leaving?
“Little brother.”
She suddenly called out. She seemed a bit tipsy from drinking so fast.
Wait, is she actually drunk?
I tilted my head in confusion. If she had reached the Fifth Star in the Gu Flame Wheel Art, her level should far exceed that of a first-rate martial artist. Alcohol shouldn’t affect her much. She must be letting herself get drunk on purpose. Martial artists who enjoyed drinking often did that, but did Gu Huibi even like alcohol? I had no memory of it.
“Hey.”
She waved her hand, signaling me to come closer.
The moonlight, previously hidden behind her, now illuminated Gu Huibi as she waved. Her red hair seemed to shine even brighter under its glow.
“The moon is beautiful. How about a duel with your sister?”
“You drank three bottles…?”
Is she insane?
What does a duel have to do with the moon?
Her random words stunned me so much I dropped a dumpling.
Gu Huibi maintained her smile. I didn’t like how her face was flushed from the alcohol.
“Little brother.”
“Yes.”
“Are you going to be okay?”
“About what?”
Is she referring to her beating me up?
Frankly, I wasn’t keen on getting pummeled, nor was I prepared for it. I was still tired and just wanted to go back to sleep. After sleeping, I wanted to wake up and…
“That. Are you going to be alright, leaving it unmerged?”
“…!”
Gu Huibi’s sudden question made me drop my dumpling. I stared at her in shock. Her finger was pointing directly at my dantian.
…How does she know?
I had organized the qi gained from the giant snake, but the portion that hadn’t fully incorporated with my own still lingered in my body. For a martial artist, such lingering foreign qi was like poison. I knew this, yet I couldn’t bring myself to risk absorbing it—the potential for severe damage or even death was too terrifying.
Why did I always find myself in situations where I had the choice to absorb power?
…Maybe because I go to places or do things that lead me straight to them.
The reason I hadn’t released the lingering qi was simple greed. The greedy thought that maybe, just maybe, I could absorb this qi, too. That was part of why my body felt exhausted when it shouldn’t.
The solution was simple: let go of the lingering qi. I could do it during training or in a fight.
I spoke to Gu Huibi. “…Is that why you want to fight me so late at night?”
“Not really. I just want to teach a little brat a lesson.”
“What are you…”
Then, something occurred to me. It seemed impossible, but I had to ask.
“Is this also why you gave me such a hard time earlier today?”
When Gu Huibi had appeared at my place radiating overwhelming heat, I’d been forced to use some of the lingering qi to withstand her pressure.
Gu Huibi flinched at my words but quickly reverted to her usual expression.
“Little brother, aren’t you going too far? Why would I put myself through all that trouble?”
“Are you sure?”
“You just keep talking. Maybe you’ll shut up once I burn all your hair off?”
Burn all my hair… How violent.
Without me noticing, Gu Huibi was already holding a wooden sword.
…Where had she gotten that from?
Had dueling been her main reason for coming here all along?
“Does your sister seem like a joke to you because you haven’t seen her in a while? You haven’t grown an inch taller, but your confidence has skyrocketed.”
She delivered the mean words with a wicked smile, but I didn’t take them to heart. It was the same as when we’d met again after a few months for her, and a few years for me. Some things never changed.
I finished the dumpling in my mouth, stood up, and walked towards Gu Huibi.
Her expression shifted to one of visible surprise.
Why was she shocked? She was the one who called me over.
“…Wow, little brother. You’re not running away this time?”
“You don’t even want to beat me up that badly, so stop trying to scare me.”
I walked past her and headed towards the training grounds. Turning my head, I spoke to her.
“If we fight here, the whole building will be destroyed.”
“How funny that you’re worried about the building when you’ll be finished after one blow.”
Gu Huibi giggled after saying that. I ignored her and continued walking slowly to the training area.
Normally, I would have talked back, but even if I lived my whole life as a jerk, it wasn’t easy to retort to someone who had died for me.
* * *
What does it mean to share the same blood?
In my previous life, I never believed sharing blood meant anything. It was the same with my father and my sisters. I’d simply been unlucky enough to be born to the same father.
To make matters worse, we didn’t even share the same mother. The woman who gave birth to me was different from theirs.
And as if to twist the knife further:
The girl hailed as the most talented sword wielder in the Gu Clan’s history.
And on the other hand, the most pathetic Young Lord in all of the Gu Clan’s history.
That comparison shattered me.
I couldn’t blame all my sins on it, but it played a significant part. That’s how terrifying, selfish, and pathetic self-pride can be.
When I was young, I always thought of Gu Huibi as a monster who wanted me dead. Why was she so obsessed with me? Back then, I assumed it was because I, a male, could easily take the successor’s spot, while she, a female, could not.
How vile.
Why would I ever think Gu Huibi desired the successor’s position when I was the one blindly walking into hell?
I stood straight, facing Gu Huibi in the training ground as she pointed her wooden sword at me. The grounds were dark due to the late hour, but that posed no problem for those with Gu blood.
- Blaze!
Gu Huibi slowly enveloped herself in a crimson aura of qi.
A feat only possible after achieving the Fifth Star of the destructive Gu Flame Wheel Art. It wasn’t merely about generating and containing heat; it was about harmonizing that process with one’s own qi, causing it to manifest visually. It looked like an ignited flame.
Fear not the dark, for the martial artists of Gu will shine with their own light.
Those were the words left by the ancestors of the Gu Clan.
As if to prove their point, the flame engulfing Gu Huibi extended to her wooden sword. Thanks to her overwhelmingly vast qi, the entire training area was now brightly lit.
I observed Gu Huibi slowly and clearly. She didn’t look much different from the image of her in my memories from my previous life.
A martial artist’s body aged slower than that of an average human. So, looking at Gu Huibi now brought back memories of that tragic past.
Her arm, rendered useless after being brutally trampled.
And me, gazing into those red eyes as they lost their light, slowly surrendering to death’s embrace.
Had it been raining that day, too? I only remember the weather being foul.
“Little brother.”
[Little brother.]
I heard both versions of her voice.
Is it because I’m tired?
Probably not. It was more likely because I could never forget that moment.
Time after time, if only I could have met Gu Huibi after my death, there was one thing I always wanted to ask her. The words she said to me with a smile, even as she was dying.
I wanted to ask her.
Why did she say those words to me?
And why did she go so far for someone like me?
…Not that I would ever hear her answer.
“Aren’t you going to come at me?”
[Please, be happy.]
I just wanted to ask.
“No. I’m coming.”
I stepped towards Gu Huibi.