Chapter 19
Chapter 19
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 19
Chapter Title: A Dream Awakened
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A bright, sunny day unfolded.
Birds were chirping, and the grass and flowers swayed gently in the sunlight, fresh and vibrant.
Unmyeong looked at his father, who was smiling brightly at him.
"Haha, what should we do for fun today, son? Want me to give you a piggyback ride like yesterday?"
Watching this scene, Unmyeong's mother smiled softly.
"Son, I bought some delicious fruit. Shall we eat it together when we get home after playing?"
"Yes, let's!"
Unmyeong answered with a bright, childlike smile.
He was now happier than ever.
Unmyeong had even forgotten what kind of dream he'd been having.
Things like Blood Demons or the Sword Demon.
At present, he couldn't quite recall what they were.
This was because he was so immersed in this happy reality that his thoughts and actions had become childlike.
A dream so sweet, he never wanted to wake up.
A dream he had wanted and wished for his entire life, but could never achieve in reality.
A dream is a person's driving force.
But when a person realizes that dream cannot be fulfilled in reality, how do they react?
Denial, avoidance, despair, anger.
There might be various reactions, but losing the will to go on is a common thread.
That was why Unmyeong had looked away.
Telling himself that what he truly wanted was none other than power.
But of course, power was not what he truly wanted, so no matter how much he amassed, he could never be satisfied.
That insatiable heart was what made him the Sword Demon.
But now, he no longer wished for anything.
Just like this, forever.
The thought that he just wanted this moment to last a lifetime dominated his mind.
Unmyeong had never once in his entire life experienced what it was like to be a child.
No one had ever loved or understood him.
He had to prove his own worth by himself.
No one ever saw Unmyeong for who he was.
Everyone saw only his power and authority; no one saw what was inside him.
Because that is the role of a parent.
"Well then, shall we go to the lakeside Myeong likes today?"
"Yes!"
Unmyeong held his mom and dad's hands and headed for the lake.
And a short while later.
Unmyeong's family arrived at the shore of a lake that sparkled transparently under the bright sky.
"Here, Myeong! Look at this. If you throw the stone low like this, it skips across the water, see?"
His dad picked up a flat stone and threw it at an angle, and just as he said, the stone skipped across the water several times.
"Wow! That's amazing! Me too! Let me try!"
Unmyeong quickly picked up a nearby stone and threw it like his dad had.
*Skip, skip, skip*
But unlike his dad's, which had skipped ten times, Unmyeong's only skipped three, and he spoke with disappointment.
"Aw, only three times...!"
Unmyeong worried that his parents would be disappointed in him for only managing three skips.
He cautiously turned his eyes to his dad, but his father instead laughed heartily and encouraged him.
"Haha, Myeong, three times on your first try is a lot! Who's good at something from the very beginning? You did great, my son!"
Unmyeong stared blankly at his dad.
Everyone is clumsy at first. Even the most exceptional masters were once novices.
No one in the world is perfect from the start.
But Unmyeong, having always been placed in harsh situations, could never forgive his own mistakes.
This was because the slightest mistake would bring out those around him who sought to tarnish his 'perfection'.
Thus, a deep-seated anxiety was rooted in his subconscious—the fear that since he hadn't done well, his parents would surely look at him with disapproval.
But upon seeing his dad smiling brightly at him, he erased his fear.
"Again! I'll try again!"
"Go on. There's always another chance, so do it as much as you want!"
There is always a chance.
If you fall, there's a next time. If you fall again, you can just try again after that.
And so, Unmyeong played excitedly, throwing stones at the lake.
*Skip, skip, skip, skip, skip*
"Fi-five times!"
"Wow! That's incredible! To get this good in a single day is amazing. You're my son, after all! Haha."
As Unmyeong played happily with his mom and dad, he noticed the day was already drawing to a close.
"Myeong, it's starting to get dark. Should we head in?"
"That's right. You've played to your heart's content, so let's go rest now."
Looking at his mom and dad, Unmyeong showed a hint of disappointment.
"I... I want to play a little more."
"But it's gotten dark. It's dangerous to go home when it's too dark."
"B-but..."
When Unmyeong wouldn't leave the lakeside, his mother approached, smiling kindly.
"Myeong, we can just play again tomorrow. You have so much time ahead of you."
This time, his dad came over and patted his head.
"That's right. You can keep playing with Mom and Dad from now on, so let's go rest for today."
The words "from now on" reassured Unmyeong.
"Okay! Then let's come back and play tomorrow! I'll definitely beat you tomorrow, Dad!"
"Haha, look at this kid! Trying to beat his old man already. Alright! Tomorrow, it's a match!"
And so, Unmyeong followed his mom and dad, ready to go home.
It was then.
[Unmyeong. My master.]
"..."
A voice, unfamiliar yet somehow familiar, echoed in his ears.
Unmyeong hurriedly looked around, but no one was there.
[Unmyeong, come to your senses. This place you're in is not reality, but a dream.]
As Unmyeong looked around in confusion, his dad and mom turned back and called to him.
"Myeong! What are you doing over there?! Come on!"
"The sun is setting! We need to get home!"
[Unmyeong, have you forgotten your promise to me? I am asking if you have forgotten our goal.]
Only then did unpleasant memories begin to surface.
He squeezed his eyes shut and shouted.
"Sh-shut up! Don't talk to me!"
[Unmyeong, my master...]
"I said shut up! I'm staying here!"
[But outside, your companion is...]
"—I said, shut up!"
He squeezed his eyes shut and hunched over.
"Myeong, what's wrong?!"
"Myeong! Come over here, quickly!"
The loving voices of his mom and dad reached him.
[Unmyeong, are you afraid to face reality?]
Hearing those words, Unmyeong tried his best to ignore them.
But the voice didn't stop, continuing to speak to him.
[My master, do you intend to turn away from reality and chase an illusion? Are you truly that afraid of the truth?]
At those words, Unmyeong screamed as if in agony.
"Yes! I'm afraid! I'm so scared I could go mad!"
He remembered.
The harsh reality where everyone held him to a strict standard.
The cruel reality where no one loved him.
The heartless reality where no one would look his way without power and authority.
The miserable reality where he, as a child, had no parents.
He couldn't bear it.
Having already felt the precious existence of parents, and now realizing what he truly wanted, he could not escape this dream.
"Even if I go back to reality, I can't chase my goal anymore! Because what I truly want is right here!"
Unmyeong chose to turn away from the harsh reality and select the dream steeped in happy daily life.
"So just leave me alone! Get lost! I'm staying here! I don't care what happens outside! So stop bothering me!!!"
His desperate cry echoed.
Then, the voice answered him, its tone now completely different, remarkably warm.
[I see. You've grown fond of this place.]
Someone wrapped their arms around Unmyeong.
"!"
And he felt a familiar sensation.
Back when he had nightmares.
When someone had comforted him with warm words.
It was the same feeling he'd had back then.
[There can be no perfect person in this world.]
The voice, too, had changed from an unpleasant one to that of a kind woman.
[Now that you wish to rest, our short journey, regrettably, comes to an end here.]
[I do not blame you. That night you fully understood the pain I had suffered. I met someone who understood my heart for the first time. So I, too, will understand you.]
Unmyeong remembered.
The conversation he'd had with his sword by the moonlit lake.
[Though it was but a fleeting moment, to me, it was an unforgettable, dreamlike memory. I want to thank you.]
[For seeing me not as a sword, but as a person.]
[For asking me my real name.]
[For seeing all of me.]
[Thank you, Unmyeong. Now, you too can dream in peace.]
Unmyeong opened his tightly shut eyes.
"Myeong! What are you doing?! Come over here!"
"Son, we have to play together again tomorrow! Let's go home!"
As the warmth of the woman who held him vanished, his hands trembled.
If he remained in this dream, he would surely be happy, but...
If he did, what about her, left behind in reality?
From what could she possibly find comfort?
The sound of footsteps grew more distant.
When the sound of footsteps finally faded into the water, he took a sharp breath, spun around, and lunged toward the lake, embracing the woman.
Though he was seeing her form for the first time, he was certain this woman was the true form of the demonic sword.
"I... I've... I've never been loved! So I don't know how to love someone else...!"
[Everyone is clumsy at first, so it's alright.]
"I'm not perfect! I'm full of flaws...!"
[There is no one perfect in this world. So do not blame yourself.]
"But if I'm not perfect, no one will..."
[I was not perfect either, and yet, did you not see me? So it's alright.]
It's alright.
Those words melted Unmyeong's heart.
Unmyeong's small body had, at some point, returned to that of an adult.
His voice, too, was no longer that of a child.
"At this rate, I can't stay here any longer..."
The inner demon in his heart completely shattered, and he entered a new state of being.
Those who have been corrupted into demons enter the state of 'Demonic Possession,' suffering from the inerasable pain in their hearts.
But when they somehow overcome it, they...
...enter the state of 'Demonic Transcendence,' gaining a mental fortitude stronger than anyone else's.
They gain the strength to get back up when they fall.
The strength to rise again and again, even when broken and shattered.
A hardened heart that had conquered its inner demon settled into Unmyeong's will.
*Crack*
Cracks began to form in the world of Unmyeong's illusion.
"Myeong! Tomorrow, again...!"
"Son! With Mom and Dad..."
The false voices running toward Unmyeong lost their power and faded away.
*CRACK*
The ideal world he had wished for began to collapse with increasing speed.
For what he truly desired now existed not in a dream, but in reality.
[Will you be alright with this? If you had stayed here, you would surely have been happy.]
"Not anymore. Because I can find true happiness in the place where you are."
With those words, the world of Unmyeong's illusion completely shattered.
"I will be with you."