Chapter 137
Chapter 137
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 137
Chapter Title: Faintly, Vanishingly (7)
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After taking over that day, I started working under Hong Yeon.
Following her around to learn the ropes and getting hands-on experience. Do-won had plenty of problems, but given the unique nature of the martial world, I didn't bother bringing them up.
Not only was there a lack of funds, but there were so many things that needed fixing I had to carefully consider which to tackle first.
Of course, I wasn't slacking on my original plan either—gathering information on Do-won without missing a beat.
"The materials you requested."
I crammed every old record I could get my hands on straight into my head.
Where did Do-won come from, and how did it end up representing the vast martial world?
And I needed to dig into the Paper Mulberry Clan and the Heavenly Demon too.
"Is this enough?"
Hong Yeon walked into the office and plopped a few more books on the stack.
"Yeah, good job."
"Never thought I'd live to hear praise from a guy like you... You are sleeping properly, right? I have no idea how many all-nighters this makes."
What's with this woman and her sudden concern?
I snorted and took a sip of peach black tea.
Hong Yeon, who had treated me like a slave at first—like King Sejong dealing with Prime Minister Hwang Hee—had completely changed her attitude after a week.
"Eh, at some point I just stopped needing sleep."
"You'll ruin your health like that... Not that I have any room to talk. But you're a talented asset, so I'd hate to lose you."
So that's why she was so fired up teaching me on the first day.
But I wasn't pushing myself—it was just that my body held up fine without sleep.
Motivation killed off any drowsiness, I guess.
During training, I mentioned this to the Heavenly Demon and got a pretty convincing explanation.
"The Heavenly Demon said it too. All these powers I have tangled together and changed me."
The authority of the Healing World Tree boosts physical immunity and regeneration too, so maybe as that power grew stronger, this happened.
"...Are you some kind of monster?"
"Shut up. I still get tired after training to death. I'm just grinding through it."
Even so, I was powering through a hellish schedule, no denying that.
If I had to describe my daily routine in Do-won:
Wake up at dawn, meet the Heavenly Demon for sparring, get feedback on my reaction speed and judgment. Once the sun rises, head straight here and handle work with Hong Yeon. Since I could handle a wide range, I even helped with outside tasks when possible.
Next, chow down a massive meal at an inn with Hong Yeon. Not like we'd see each other forever, so I sucked her wallet dry.
After eating, back to work. Finish that, train. Then more work.
Late evening, grab some snacks and barge into Cheon-do's room.
Once Cheon-do falls asleep, come back here and wrap up my tasks.
"You should still get some rest."
"Why's the Demonic Cult leader so nosy?"
Hong Yeon used to flinch every time I cursed her out, but now her guts had grown—she was starting to talk back a bit.
"Feels like you're running from something."
Now she was hitting the nail on the head like this.
The leader had grown a lot. I looked up from the papers at Hong Yeon.
"I am running. From you, who sticks to me all day barking orders and now even into the wee hours."
"...Do-won just doesn't have many talented people."
I'd noticed it looking around myself, but yeah, I'd admit it.
The folks here hadn't gotten proper education, and more than that, raw power ruled everything.
By modern standards, it was barbaric beyond compare.
"Fair enough. At least Hwang-do and Baek-do get basic training from Do-won's women. But the others can't."
Sure, there were occasional sharp, quick-witted smart kids, but they were always a minority.
In this era, most geniuses die without even realizing their own talent.
"So, what happens when I leave in two months?"
I closed the documents and asked her.
"...What?"
Hong Yeon's eyes went wide. She was so shocked she dropped the teapot she was holding.
-Crash.
"Ah! Damn. Sorry. What do you mean leaving in two months?"
"Exactly what I said. Training with the Heavenly Demon ends in two months. After that, I go my own way."
"You little shit..."
Hong Yeon shuddered like she'd taken a huge blow.
"How could you raise a talent like that just to lose him."
"You raised me?"
"Well, no, but you're really leaving? Everyone knows you as the Little Heavenly Demon."
"I'm leaving. Quitting this job in a few weeks too."
At "quitting," her pupils shook violently.
From her perspective, it must feel like a versatile, high-performance slave was slipping from her grasp.
She was so stunned she couldn't even catch her breath.
"Ha, ha, haha."
Letting out a hollow laugh, Hong Yeon crouched down, picking up the shattered teapot pieces with trembling hands as she muttered.
"...Guess I need to change plans. Things just got complicated."
"Complicated?"
"If you're really leaving... succession might become an issue."
Succession. Cheon-do's story.
I immediately closed the book and stuck the quill back in.
"Tell me."
"The Heavenly Demon has two heirs right now, room for conflict. If you hadn't done anything, maybe not, but you have."
"So you're saying I've gathered some support while working? That's something one word from that old man can fix anyway."
"Even so, you can't just silence all the discontent."
I knew my visibility had grown helping Hong Yeon.
On inspections or patrols, no mercy for wrongdoers, cutting out flawed systems without hesitation—so naturally, warriors started backing me.
No place to spend money anyway, so I'd buy meals for the hungry ones clutching empty stomachs.
If some kid seemed talented, I'd bring them in, slot them as adopted heirs into suitable clans, and nurture them.
Even negotiated decently with sects that clashed often with the Demonic Cult, so my rep among factions wasn't bad.
'Compared to an heir no one's seen face or name, of course I'd stand out.'
But Do-won was ruled by the Heavenly Demon's dictatorship.
An absolute monarch.
Who'd dare challenge someone who could smash the whole place solo?
"Doesn't make sense."
Hong Yeon started to say something, then clamped her mouth shut.
"You're hiding something."
"You don't need to know."
"Spill it. I've helped you a ton."
"You and that attitude... Fine, I'll tell you. Your master, the Heavenly Demon, is trying to wash his hands of Do-won."
Wash his hands of Do-won?
"No idea what that old coot's thinking... Abandoning the place he built himself."
"Details."
From past investigations, I knew how Do-won started.
The Paper Mulberry Clan. They had some renown in the martial world back then, built a small village in the mountains.
One man from that clan left the village, made it big outside, and came back.
The man who couldn't adapt and grew disillusioned: the Heavenly Demon.
For whatever reason, he returned from the outside.
Upon return, he ousted the power players and rose to dominance through sheer force.
The village, once just the Paper Mulberry Clan, gradually drew in other warriors under the Heavenly Demon's lead. That's how the Do-won we know formed.
Do-won's history splits into two eras.
The small Do-won of one clan before the Heavenly Demon.
And the grand Do-won after, drawing all martial artists.
But according to Hong Yeon, the Heavenly Demon was trying to leave the Do-won he'd built.
"No idea why. Don't know where he's going, leaving his two daughters. Even if he leaves, his lifespan's short anyway. The Heavenly Demon's death is all but fated."
Two hundred years old this year, right?
Even accounting for Wood People's longer lives, that's ancient.
...Wait, daughters at 190?
Wood People have other reproduction methods, but if he did it human-style, respect.
"Guess I need to ask him directly."
"He hasn't told me. You... who knows. He seemed to favor you."
"Favor? That guy?"
The same bastard who nearly stopped my heart this morning?
A scoff escaped me, but excluding training, it wasn't wrong, so I held my tongue.
Hong Yeon muttered wistfully in a voice full of regret.
"If the Heavenly Demon had meddled in internal affairs from the start... the sects wouldn't be splintered and fighting now."
So he's completely hands-off from Do-won affairs now.
No wonder the sect elders strut around like they own the place.
"Foxes running wild where the tiger's gone."
"...That's why. I thought if you became the Heavenly Demon, you could fix this place."
That's why all the worrying.
I thought this punk had grown fond of me, but she was hiding ulterior motives.
"But won't the Heavenly Demon step in when picking the successor?"
Hong Yeon shook her head at my question.
"Not his style. Even backing you like this is unusual for him."
All the conveniences he'd pulled for me.
That's why work was smooth.
The Heavenly Demon, who never interfered in Do-won, had vouched for me—no one dared mess with me.
"Ah, so that's why people see me as a power player. The guy who never meddled singled me out."
"Yeah. You're producing results, unlike some faceless heir. And I think you're capable too."
Hong Yeon didn't skimp on praise. Obvious she feared I'd change my mind.
Even if I wanted to stay, I had to leave anyway.
And I wanted out ASAP.
Too much mess with Se-young and Azalea waiting.
"Anyway, that's the story."
With Hong Yeon's words done, silence fell over the office.
I pondered for a while, then pulled out the quill and voiced a sudden thought.
"...If the original heir's more capable than me, isn't it fine?"
"If they can show it in front of everyone, sure."
"Then no problem."
"You know who it is?"
I nodded.
"She can do anything. Way more capable, talented, and less potty-mouthed than me."
"If true, I'd be grateful. Whoever it is, they know by now. Their position's in danger."
I paused there.
...Their position as Heavenly Demon's heir is in danger.
Does Cheon-do really think that?
I stopped brainstorming there.
Overthinking just complicates things.
Action gets results.
"Guess I need to meet that old man and the heir."
Hong Yeon’s eyes flashed at my words.
Ah, the teapot pieces I'd just gathered scattered again.
"If possible... please. I don't want to see this place fall."
"Why?"
"That old man picked me up as a kid, raised me here. This is my home, he's my benefactor. If you do that, and things go well, I can apologize a hundred times for mistreating you."
I approached Hong Yeon.
My shoe crunched the teapot shards.
-Crack.
I grabbed the head of the bowed woman and yanked it up.
Her pale face, resolute, met my eyes.
Still gauze over her nose—her fault, no healing from me.
"Was gonna anyway."
Hong Yeon's expression twisted into something complex.
Still, I'd grant the request. Tell her to treat Cheon-do well before I go—she'd listen obediently.
Hong Yeon's a good person deep down. No backbone, but.
Besides. What I wanted to know might be that old man's situation.
I could ignore it, but no.
What I was digging into now might be the real reason I was sent to the past.