Chapter 42
Chapter 42
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: The Clan's Sword Heart
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Throwing a weapon right in front of the Cult Leader's face.
Normally, that would be a grave offense warranting the extermination of one's entire nine clans, but Hyeok Mulin calmly let the sword drop nearby and stared straight ahead.
In response, Hyeok Gyo-jin—the Hyeok Clan's young master and Hyeok Mulin's younger brother—replied in a cold, clipped voice.
"...Greetings to Your Honorable Holiness, the Cult Leader."
Hmph. Spouting words he didn't mean from the heart.
Nothing's changed about him.
"Have you been well?"
"What trouble would there be? You're the one who must be busy, Your Holiness. What brings you to this humble place?"
Hyeok Gyo-jin grumbled in a deeply sullen tone.
At that familiar sight, Hyeok Mulin chuckled softly.
"How could I forget my own blood? To think you're even restricting my visits to the main house now—truly heartless."
"That's not what I meant...!"
Hyeok Gyo-jin raised his voice for a moment before letting out a deep sigh and trailing off.
"Hah, forget it."
Conversations with his brother always felt like this—constantly hitting a wall.
He slowly walked over, picked up the fallen sword, and inspected the blade for any damage.
Hyeok Mulin watched him intently from the side.
His first reunion with his brother since his return.
A faint nostalgia welled up in Hyeok Mulin's heart as he gazed at him.
...I didn't notice back then.
That you had a face like this.
In his previous life, Hyeok Mulin had no spare energy.
Just charging forward was exhausting and painful enough; he had no time to pay attention to those around him.
Yet the people by my side were suffering just the same.
Some things are felt without words.
Just like now.
"Do you still resent me?"
Hyeok Mulin asked, eyes fixed on his brother's profile.
For a moment, it was as if time had frozen—Hyeok Gyo-jin's movements halted completely.
"Why..."
Standing stock-still, Hyeok Gyo-jin trembled, shoulders shaking, before speaking in a subdued voice.
"...Why did you abandon the clan and leave?"
To Hyeok Mulin, it was a perfectly reasonable question from his brother's perspective.
His eyes weren't fully open yet to truly grasp the Hyeok Clan's dire situation.
Seeing him become Cult Leader, it was easy to misunderstand that he'd abandoned the patriarch position for the Heavenly Demon's throne.
Of course, he probably knew about the clan's crisis and the political marriage's purpose, but the allure of the Heavenly Demon's status was enough to make one forget all that.
I myself thought it might be fine until I experienced it firsthand.
But the reality was entirely different.
The Heavenly Demon wasn't a position that created power; it was forged by martial prowess and influence.
A Heavenly Demon without strength or followers was nothing but a sacrificial pawn.
My previous life's tale was just a pathetic tragedy.
Unless you've experienced it yourself, it's impossible to understand.
No one else could feel that helplessness and loss.
So instead of rambling to persuade his brother, Hyeok Mulin chose silence.
Hyeok Gyo-jin bit his lip hard and continued.
"And... why did you get divorced?"
His question could be interpreted in two ways.
One: Why choose divorce, worsening relations with the Cheon Clan and plunging the main house into crisis?
The other: Why divorce and fight tough battles from the Cult Leader's seat?
Worry for the clan, and worry for him as Cult Leader.
And Hyeok Mulin knew.
That his brother's concern was squarely aimed at him.
"It was the best choice. And I still believe that."
"What about it was the best choice?! The Cheon Clan treats you coldly, and the other clans keep their distance, watching and waiting. You knew this would happen—why make that decision?!"
"You'll understand in time."
"...You've always brushed it off like that, Your Holiness. Nothing's changed."
Denied a proper answer, Hyeok Gyo-jin turned his head away, clearly hurt.
"Fine. I won't concern myself anymore, so do as you please."
Won't concern yourself anymore.
Meaning he'd been keeping close tabs on my movements until now.
How cute.
With a smirk, Hyeok Mulin said to him,
"It's been a while. I'd like to see what you've achieved."
As Hyeok Mulin subtly suggested a spar, Hyeok Gyo-jin's eyes lit up like it was exactly what he'd hoped for.
His brother still wouldn't open up completely, even after all this time.
How could one person have so many secrets?
"Perfect timing. I was thinking the same."
Unable to fully grasp the burdens his brother carried, Hyeok Gyo-jin wanted to vent his frustration through a spar.
"It won't be like before."
The brothers had sparred hundreds of times at least.
Yet Hyeok Gyo-jin had never won once; the victor was always Hyeok Mulin.
The age gap wasn't a big factor—Hyeok Gyo-jin was exceptionally talented.
But Hyeok Mulin's obsessive immersion in the sword was on another level, so he always had to hold back.
"Let's do a real-sword spar for old times' sake."
"Not a bad idea."
As Hyeok Gyo-jin drew his sword, Hyeok Mulin slowly unsheathed his own.
Hyeok Gyo-jin lunged first.
Gripping his sword with firm resolve.
Full power from the start.
The pinnacle of his swordsmanship.
And the technique he'd only been able to learn after becoming young master.
He unleashed the Hyeok Clan's hereditary art, the Eight Displays Heart-Soul Sword—now mostly lost, with only the first three forms remaining.
"Ho."
Hyeok Mulin parried the assault and let out a faint exclamation.
His swordsmanship wasn't perfect yet, but he seemed to grasp the essence of the art well enough.
He hadn't just been slacking since becoming young master.
Satisfied with his brother's growth, Hyeok Mulin's lips curved slightly.
But.
"No, this can't be...!"
Hyeok Gyo-jin swung back fiercely, but he felt like he was dying.
Despite his gritted-teeth onslaught, Hyeok Mulin casually deflected every attack from the same spot, light as could be.
He'd thought his swordsmanship had advanced enough, yet the gap felt even wider than before.
"Hah, hah, haaah."
In his furious barrage, he'd reached the end of the Eight Displays Heart-Soul Sword's remaining forms: the third.
But he hadn't even grazed his brother's clothes, leaving him with a hollow expression as he panted heavily.
I can't reach him at all.
His brother had always been superior, but this was the first time he'd felt his sword could never touch him, no matter what.
What the hell happened in the meantime?
Clutching his knees as he struggled to breathe, he stared at Hyeok Mulin like he was a monster.
Then.
"Done already?"
"...?"
"My turn now."
The moment Hyeok Mulin finished speaking, he moved.
Before Hyeok Gyo-jin could react, he closed in tight and countered with the Eight Displays Heart-Soul Sword.
First form: Soul-Severing Sword.
It was a technique that interrupted any opponent's motion midway, regardless of what they did.
Hyeok Gyo-jin desperately swung defensively, but Hyeok Mulin slipped his blade into the gaps.
Hyeok Gyo-jin's sword path stuttered to a halt, leaving him in an awkward limbo—neither attacking nor defending.
Is this the true Soul-Severing Sword...!
If he'd followed up on the openings it created, he'd have died dozens of times over already.
As the spar turned into Hyeok Mulin going easy like a teacher, Hyeok Gyo-jin gripped his sword tighter in frustration.
Yet his eyes never left his brother's swordsmanship.
This was the ideal he aspired to.
He had to learn, to steal it with his eyes. Wasting this chance would be a shame.
Second form: Soul-Halting Sword.
Hyeok Mulin executed a single, refined downward cleave from upper to lower guard.
A straightforward path anyone could predict.
Hyeok Gyo-jin naturally tried to block midway.
But his effort failed instantly.
The descending force was like a mountain. Ignoring his guard, the blade advanced on him.
I-I'm gonna die...!
Eyes bulging at the mortal threat, but Hyeok Mulin's sword merely flowed past his body harmlessly.
He'd withheld internal energy and power, showing only the pure form.
Then, Hyeok Mulin transitioned straight into the third form: Soul-Shifting Sword.
It mirrored the opponent's sword path exactly, like a reflection in a mirror.
Its power varied wildly by the foe's level, and since Hyeok Gyo-jin's was lower, even following it yielded little force.
Still, Hyeok Gyo-jin's eyes widened in awe at the display.
It wasn't just mimicking his path.
Breathing, footwork, muscle tension—even the sword grip—all perfectly matched.
Incredible.
This wasn't mere earlier mastery of the family art.
It clearly stemmed from profound understanding, talent, and grueling effort.
So respect surged over jealousy.
Though he'd never admit it aloud, of course.
"Hoo, so this is the true Eight Displays Heart-Soul Sword. As expected of the former patriarch..."
Clang!
With the third form complete, Hyeok Gyo-jin assumed the spar was over and lowered his sword.
But Hyeok Mulin pointed his blade at him again, forcing a hasty block.
What? It wasn't over? What's going on?
The Eight Displays Heart-Soul Sword was supposed to end there.
Clueless, he raised his sword again.
But as Hyeok Mulin continued seamlessly, his eyes nearly popped out.
This is...!
Sword strikes painting the sky, thousands of illusory blades converging into one, strikes too fast to follow like thunder.
Fourth form: Flying Soul Sword.
Fifth form: Illusory Soul Sword.
Sixth form: Thunder Soul Sword.
Forms that didn't exist in the version he knew.
Yet they matched exactly the lost techniques from clan legends he'd heard and imagined.
The vanished forms of the Eight Displays Heart-Soul Sword.
Astounded, he lost his words, but Hyeok Mulin's movements didn't stop.
...Huh?
Unseen forms kept unfolding.
All unheard-of sword arts in his life.
Yet they cohered perfectly as one style.
At some point, they transcended his level—beyond comprehension even to witness.
He could only stare blankly at Hyeok Mulin's flowing display.
Click.
With the demonstration finished and sword sheathed, silence fell between them.
Time passed before Hyeok Gyo-jin regained his wits, barely moving his slack jaw.
"What... what is this?"
It was the Eight Displays Heart-Soul Sword, yet not.
Familiar, yet utterly unknowable.
To his question about the mysterious art, Hyeok Mulin replied clearly.
"This is the swordsmanship that will now become the heart of the main house."