Deep-Seated Hatred
"If you won’t open it, then throw it into the flames instead. Truly, that sounds just like him."
With a look that seemed faintly bitter, So Gayul turned to look at Cheongwol again.
Her eyes met Cheongwol’s, yet she seemed to be looking not at her, but at someone beyond her.
"You asked me what relationship he and I had."
"Yes. Could you tell me?"
Cheongwol looked at her with hopeful eyes, but So Gayul shook her head.
"I’m sorry, but I don’t think I can. There must have been a reason your grandfather never told you."
"Ah..."
At So Gayul’s refusal, Cheongwol could not quite hide her disappointment, but soon she remembered how her grandfather had hidden his will from her, and she gave a reluctant nod.
"You’re right. There must have been a reason Grandpa did that."
Even if she herself was now defying that very intention.
Seeing Cheongwol’s awkward smile, So Gayul let out a faint smile of her own.
"For now, let’s see what’s in the box. Only then can we understand his intentions clearly."
"Yes."
Cheongwol was just as curious about the contents of the casket, so she nodded at once.
So Gayul studied the casket with a wistful gaze, then gently tightened her hand and opened it.
"...This is..."
Inside was a flower-shaped jade ornament of translucent green, carved so exquisitely that it seemed to bloom in layer upon layer of petals.
"I never knew Grandpa had something like this."
Cheongwol marveled at the craftsmanship, something she had never seen before, but So Gayul’s expression stiffened in stark contrast.
As far as she knew, there were not many in the Central Plains capable of such delicate workmanship.
"There’s a letter in here too."
While So Gayul was lost in thought, Cheongwol found the missive lying beneath the jade ornament.
The paper looked old and worn, just like the will tucked inside Cheongwol’s own robes, and from that she could tell it was the letter her grandfather had left for So Gayul.
"So this letter is what he truly wanted to leave me."
Without realizing it, So Gayul swallowed hard and carefully unfolded the letter.
Even reading a single sheet of paper, So Gayul felt more mentally drained than she ever had before.
She could not bring herself to accept what was written there in full.
"Are you all right?"
As So Gayul’s complexion worsened while reading the letter, Cheongwol asked with concern.
"...I’m fine."
Forcing herself to steady her trembling hand, So Gayul looked at Cheongwol.
"Just in case I’m mistaken, tell me—did he leave a will directly to you?"
At So Gayul’s question, Cheongwol stared back at her with wide eyes.
How could she possibly have known that her grandfather had hidden the existence of the will from her?
"No matter. One look at your face tells me enough. So that’s how it was..."
Before Cheongwol could answer, So Gayul pressed a hand to her forehead and lowered her head.
Even after that, she sighed for a long while, then finally spoke with a drained expression.
"According to what’s written in this letter, he wanted me to see your martial arts completed."
"...Completed?"
"The Im family’s martial arts originally consist of two secret manuals. One of those volumes is with me."
So saying, So Gayul rose and walked over to the window.
"But the fact that he hid the will from you and never gave it to you means he also hoped this letter would never reach me. Do you understand what I’m saying?"
For a moment, Cheongwol thought of her grandfather’s smiling face and bit down on her lip.
"Grandpa wanted me to stop seeking revenge. He never told me about the will, not even in the moment he closed his eyes. So..."
Cheongwol’s gaze met So Gayul’s in the air.
"The contents of the will and the letter were written on the assumption that I would carry out the clan’s revenge."
"...You understand very well."
With that, Cheongwol said nothing more and closed her eyes.
The sole surviving descendant of the Im family, the only blood relative left in the world.
And because of that, he had told her to forget vengeance, yet the very man who said it must not have been able to let go of revenge himself, not even at the moment he drew his last breath.
Just look at that will—unfinished, and therefore never deliverable—still hidden against his chest until the end.
Still, whatever it said and whatever it failed to say, Cheongwol had no intention of following her grandfather’s wishes this time.
She would take the will her grandfather had written with the Im family’s hatred and finish it herself with the blood of their enemies.
Tears ran down her cheeks, but Cheongwol kept her posture perfectly straight as she looked at So Gayul.
"Since Grandpa is gone, I am now the head of the Im family. So I’m not asking as a foolish child anymore, but as the clan head."
Cheongwol rose from her seat, bowed to So Gayul, and clasped her hands in salute.
"Sect Leader. Please help me avenge the Im family’s hatred."
After Cheongwol left the room, Seomun Hwi entered with an expression that somehow looked dark.
"The Seomun Clan’s young clan leader pays respects to the Kongdong Sect’s Sect Leader."
"...Come in."
Their greeting was brief, but each of them was thinking about someone else entirely.
In particular, Seomun Hwi could not stop thinking about Cheongwol’s face as she silently passed by him.
"Is the clan head well?"
Only after So Gayul asked after his father first did Seomun Hwi finally come back to himself.
"Yes. Thanks to your concern, he is well."
"Concern, is it? Well, I’m glad to hear that, in any case."
After draining the cup of tea that had long since gone cold, So Gayul looked at Seomun Hwi.
"Before we speak, I’d like to ask you something."
"Yes."
"I hear you and the child who came here first are friends. Is that true?"
Worried that his answer might somehow ruin matters for the clan, Seomun Hwi hesitated for a moment before nodding slowly.
"Yes. That is correct."
Watching his straightforward reply, So Gayul felt a flicker of interest.
"Is that so? Can you tell me how the two of you met?"
"It isn’t difficult. However..."
An unusual force far beyond his years passed through Seomun Hwi’s gaze.
"I would like to know first why Sect Leader is so curious about Cheongwol."
Even if he was the young clan leader of the Seomun Clan, that was not a proper manner to show before the head of a sect.
Seomun Hwi knew that too, but regretting it now was already too late.
Cheongwol had come out of her conversation with the Sect Leader with reddened eyes, and that kept nagging at him. What else was he supposed to do?
Still, since So Gayul understood that his rudeness came from concern for a friend, she only gave a snort of a laugh.
"Because she’s going to become my disciple. Isn’t it natural for me to be curious?"
"...Pardon? A disciple?"
"Yes. Ah, but that doesn’t mean I intend to bring her into the Kongdong Sect. I have no intention of teaching her Kongdong martial arts."
Seomun Hwi only grew more confused by the increasingly inexplicable words, but So Gayul had no intention of explaining further.
"Just understand it roughly as that. Now then, it’s my turn."
As So Gayul looked at him in prompting expectation, Seomun Hwi had no choice but to recall the day he first met Cheongwol.
"...And that’s how it happened."
When Seomun Hwi finished speaking, So Gayul looked at him with an equally puzzled expression.
"So you’re telling me that it’s only been three days since the two of you met?"
"Yes."
Watching Seomun Hwi answer without a hint of embarrassment, So Gayul felt utterly dumbfounded.
"You glared at me like you were about to kill me. I thought you’d at least known each other for half a month..."
"It wasn’t quite that serious... I apologize. But the length of time we’ve known each other isn’t what matters, is it? She is truly a precious friend, so I couldn’t help myself."
"Is that so? Well, there are people you can know for your entire life and still never understand, while with others a word or two is enough to get by."
With that, So Gayul finally accepted it, and Seomun Hwi quietly let out a breath of relief.
He was in a position of responsibility for the clan, so the rudeness he had just shown So Gayul might well have turned the whole matter into a disaster.
"Then I’ll now explain why we came to the Kongdong Sect. Here, this bears the clan head’s seal..."
Seomun Hwi reached into his robes, intending to take out the letter, but So Gayul waved him off and shuddered.
"Forget it. I’ve had my fill of letters today. I don’t even want to look at one for the time being."
"Then, what should I..."
"I don’t need to read it to know why you’re here. You’ve come because you need a definite answer, haven’t you?"
So the Sect Leader’s place was not determined by martial skill alone after all.
At So Gayul’s sharp words, as though she had read the letter already, Seomun Hwi also nodded with a serious expression.
"That is correct. The clan head awaits the Sect Leader’s answer."
"In that case, there’s no need to wait any longer. Tell the clan head that Kongdong will stand with you."
Then So Gayul tossed something toward him, and Seomun Hwi reflexively reached out to catch it.
It was a token engraved with seven dragons bearing the energies of yin, yang, and the five elements. At a glance, it was clearly no ordinary object.
"It’s the Sect Leader’s token."
Hearing that the item in his hand was the Kongdong Sect’s Sect Leader Token, Seomun Hwi sprang to his feet in surprise.
"How did you..."
"Don’t make such a fuss. Of course, this isn’t the real thing. Though that doesn’t mean it’s something I can just hand to anyone. Since I can’t give you the genuine one, this is a duplicate I had made instead."
"...I see?"
Looking a little embarrassed, Seomun Hwi tucked the token into his robes.
"Thank you. I will be sure to deliver it to the clan head."
But just as Seomun Hwi was expressing his gratitude, So Gayul shook her head.
"No, there’s no need. I gave the Sect Leader’s token to you, not to the Seomun Clan head."