A Regressor's Three Goals
Dokgo Rin had three major objectives after returning to the past, eighteen years before the events of the novel. First, to restore her own martial arts to a level close to the Transcendent realm she had reached before her regression. Second, to create the ultimate poison—uranium—that would kill the Murim Alliance Leader, Wiji Cheon. Third, to teach martial arts to Chilbok, the man who held her heart.
Of the three, the one she valued most was the third: teaching Chilbok martial arts.
In her previous life, Chilbok had been a complete ordinary person who had never once practiced martial arts. By the time she realized she should teach him, he had already missed the ideal age to begin. She had given up, only to regret it bitterly after his death. But now that she had returned to the past, eighteen years earlier, teaching Chilbok was no longer impossible.
That was why she had used the excuse of loosening his stiff muscles to perform acupressure and examine the condition of his body. The acupoints through which qi flowed would gradually narrow with age if not used regularly—like the Baihui point on a child’s head—until they closed completely in adulthood. This was why martial artists trained their acupoints from a young age through habitual qi circulation and breathing exercises. The saying that martial arts should be learned young existed for a reason.
Fortunately, he isn’t a mundane bone.
Upon inspection, unlike in her previous life, Chilbok’s acupoints were wide open. Moreover, despite not being from a martial family, his bones and blood vessels were remarkably sturdy. If she taught him personally and built his foundation properly, she believed she could raise his skills to a respectable level.
There’s no need to make him an absolute master like me. It’s enough if he can protect himself in an emergency.
She would protect him most of the time, but she couldn’t stay by his side every single second. Having roughly set her goals for this journey, Dokgo Rin stole glances at Chilbok, who was looking around with wide-eyed wonder since it was his first time leaving the village.
So cute~~~
Grateful that she could once again witness the childhood of the boy she hadn’t truly cherished in her previous life, Dokgo Rin began plotting a large-scale Chilbok remodeling project.
Three weeks had already passed since we began our journey to Shaanxi Province to attend the Murim Alliance Leader’s sixtieth birthday banquet. Traveling on foot would have taken much longer, but thanks to riding horses continuously since leaving the village, we had finally left the vast lands of Sichuan and set foot in Shaanxi.
But not all of Shaanxi was the same. From this remote border region to Wiji Cheon’s residence in Chang’an, we still had another two weeks of travel ahead. As a result, we had spent yet another full day on the road. At dusk, we finally stopped in front of a shabby old inn.
“We’ll stay here for the night,” Dokgo Seok said.
“Yes, Young Master.”
The escort warriors who had heard Dokgo Seok’s order dismounted first and entered the inn. We, who had been following behind, got off our horses as well.
“Chilbok, is your backside no longer sore?”
“Ah, yes. I’ve gotten used to it now, so I’m fine, Lady Rin.”
I reassured Dokgo Rin with those words, then followed Dokgo Seok—who was fanning himself lightly—into the inn.
“Welcome! Welcome to the Small Lake Inn!”
A bright voice greeted us from the doorway. It belonged to a young waiter.
“How many in your party?”
“We have companions who arrived first,” Dokgo Seok replied, pointing at the escort warriors who had already taken their seats with his fan.
The young waiter brightened. “Ah! So you’re with those gentlemen!” He quickly led us to our table.
“Will you only be dining? Or staying the night as well?”
“We’ll stay one night. And since we’ve traveled a long way and are quite hungry, please bring us the best dishes this inn has to offer, in portions to match our number.”
“Yes! I’ll prepare them right away!”
The waiter dashed off toward the kitchen. His quick, efficient movements showed this wasn’t his first or second day on the job. With the order placed, I could finally relax a little.
As usual, the escort warriors who had come with the family sat at a separate table. At the table with Dokgo Seok and Dokgo Rin sat me—the servant—and Sister Gyeong-a.
Who is Sister Gyeong-a, you ask? She’s Dokgo Seok’s personal maid, the one who had spoken to me first back then. At twenty-three this year, she was nearly a full generation older than me, who had just turned twelve. Perhaps because of that, she treated me like her own little brother. I heard she had a younger brother around my age back home. Thanks to her, even though the other servants treated me like an outsider who had rolled in from nowhere, I could speak comfortably with her.
While we waited for the food, Dokgo Seok, who had been sipping the tea that came out first, suddenly asked as if he had just remembered something.
“Now that I think about it, Chilbok. I heard from Gyeong-a that you’re quite good with calculations. Who taught you?”
“Pardon? Calculations, sir?”
“Yes. I heard you gave some truly impressive advice when they were organizing the kitchen inventory last time.”
When I heard that, a strange sense of embarrassment washed over me. I scratched the back of my head and avoided Dokgo Seok’s gaze.
“That’s all exaggerated. I only did some simple arithmetic.”
“Hehe, no need to be so humble. I’ve also heard the head cook going around saying he owes you a great debt for that incident.”
Dokgo Rin, who had been listening from the side, smiled brightly as if she herself had been praised.
“Just as my brother said, Chilbok’s mind is exceptionally sharp. For someone who has never received any special education to be this clever, he’s sure to become someone great no matter what path he chooses in the future.”
“Wait, I didn’t say it quite like that…?”
Dokgo Seok looked flustered at his sister’s sudden display of extreme favoritism, but Dokgo Rin paid him no mind and continued singing my praises.
“It’s a bit awkward to say this as his master, but Chilbok is also excellent at cleaning. Not a single speck of dust remains where he has passed. He will surely make a wonderful husband someday.”
“I… I see.”
Perhaps startled by the faint madness radiating from his sister, Dokgo Seok answered with a slightly awkward expression. At this rate, even I was starting to feel sorry.
Just as an awkward atmosphere threatened to settle over the table—
“Guests! Your ordered dishes are here!”
Nice timing!
The waiter who had run into the kitchen reappeared with both hands full of food.
“I’ve brought only our inn’s best dishes—wheat noodles, dumplings, fish-fragrant shredded pork, and kung pao chicken!”
He declared proudly as he set the dishes down. While I could understand the noodles and dumplings, the other names were completely new to me. I could only blink in confusion until Dokgo Rin kindly explained from beside me.
“Fish-fragrant shredded pork is a dish made with thinly sliced pork, and kung pao chicken is chicken stir-fried with various spices.”
“I see.”
It was such an easy-to-understand explanation that I found myself nodding in admiration without realizing it.
“Anyway, we’re all hungry, so let’s eat.”
Dokgo Seok, seated at the head of the table, picked up his chopsticks. The others who had been waiting immediately did the same.
Just as our plentiful dinner was about to begin—
“Ugh, I’m tired.”
“What kind of town only has one damn inn?”
“Hey! Waiter! Bring us some cold water!”
A group of men wearing black martial uniforms barged into the inn. When I instinctively flinched at the sight, Dokgo Rin reached under the table, took my hand, and whispered softly.
“Chilbok, focus on eating your meal.”
I understood what she was trying to say and nodded. Even at a glance, they looked like bad news. Getting involved with them would clearly lead to nothing good. Knowing this, the others also ignored them and quietly continued eating the food in front of them.
As a mere servant, there was nothing I could do in this situation, so I obediently buried my face in my rice bowl.
But human affairs rarely go as planned.
“Oh, looks like there are guests already here.”
“Is that the young master of some rich family out for a stroll? He looks awfully delicate.”
“And the girl next to him is pretty cute too, huh?”
With few customers on the first floor of the inn, their attention naturally turned toward us.
“Tsk.”
Dokgo Seok clicked his tongue with an annoyed expression. No matter how much we tried to avoid drawing attention, if the other side showed interest first, we couldn’t help but get involved.
“Young Master, shall we take care of them?”
The escort warriors who had been eating nearby touched their sword hilts and asked in low voices. Dokgo Seok waved his hand and said, “I’ll handle it. Stay seated,” then continued moving his chopsticks as if nothing had happened.
Meanwhile, the thugs had reached our table. They laughed crudely and asked,
“Looks like you’re a pretty wealthy young master. How about buying a meal for these poor travelers?”
The way they demanded money as naturally as breathing showed this wasn’t their first time. Watching their arrogant behavior, I grew curious about how Dokgo Seok would respond. Would he smile friendly like when we met the bandits last time and resolve it with money? Or would he draw his blade as a martial artist? Whichever he chose, the situation was sure to become interesting.
At that moment, one of the thugs finally noticed Dokgo Rin sitting beside Dokgo Seok and whistled.
“Not bad for a kid. Give her a few more years and she’d be worth taking to bed.”
That was the instant—
BANG!!
Dokgo Seok, who had been smiling brightly just moments ago, slammed the thug’s head down onto the table with a deadly serious expression.