Memories in the Rain
Dark clouds hung low as sheets of rain hammered down without mercy.
In Qinghai, usually a dry and arid region, this was an unusually torrential downpour—an event so rare it felt almost like a divine punishment.
She walked slowly through the empty streets, wearing the gat hat she rarely used here, having finished her business and now returning home.
Her dark red hair swayed gently beneath the brim, and her white mourning robes, reminiscent of those worn at funerals, clung to her form.
Beautiful in appearance, yet carrying an inexplicable shadow that seemed to cling to her very soul, she moved with a mature grace that belied her years.
Her expression remained calm and dignified as she walked side by side with her servant through the pouring rain.
“What kind of rain is this? It’s as if the heavens have torn a hole in the sky…”
“…Indeed. It has been a long time since I’ve seen rain this heavy.”
“!”
Her voice carried a quiet, dark emotion as she spoke softly.
The servant, realizing that her mistress had not forgotten the events of that day, felt a deep sense of guilt for her earlier words.
“I… I’m sorry. Mistress, I was wrong to speak of such unnecessary things…”
“It’s fine. Now… I won’t be sad about it anymore.”
“Miss…”
“Let us go. The meeting has already dragged on too long, and Yeoncheol will be waiting.”
With those words, she quickened her pace, leaving her servant behind.
Watching her mistress’s retreating figure, the servant felt a bitter ache in his heart, unable to shake the lingering sorrow.
*She still… even though the Heavenly Demon is dead, her heart remains heavy…*
Following quietly in her wake, he could only watch with quiet sympathy.
Meanwhile, the woman ahead continued walking.
As the acting leader of the Kunlun Sect and the strongest expert in Qinghai—Yuseonggeom, Ha Sowol—she had once been known as the one who could bend even Heuk-su.
Yet now, as she walked through the relentless rain, memories of that fateful day resurfaced.
*That day… it was raining just like today.*
In Qinghai, where the rain was once praised as a blessing from heaven, it now served as a cruel reminder of the most horrifying moment in her life.
That day, when the sky seemed to have split open and rain poured down like never before.
She had witnessed the death of the most precious person in her world.
*
On that day, torrential rain fell in endless sheets.
She lay among the cold corpses, her body mangled beyond recognition.
Her fellow warriors lay dead around her, eyes unseeing, blood pooling from their wounds.
No matter how desperately she tried to move, her injuries were too severe—bones shattered, meridians twisted, everything broken.
Yet she refused to stay down.
In that moment, the scene before her eyes was unbearable.
It was her husband.
The man she had vowed to spend her life with, the one who had brought her immeasurable happiness.
Seo Mun Gyeong, the sect leader of Kunlun, had been cut down by the Heavenly Demon’s hand.
In his final moments, he had looked at her with deep concern before his heart was torn from his chest.
After that, he had left without regret, the Heavenly Demon himself.
The leader of the Demon Cult, the man who would later be called the source of all Murim disasters.
He had announced the beginning of their blood feud by slaughtering over three hundred warriors, including Seo Mun Gyeong.
And among all the survivors, Ha Sowol was the only one who had witnessed it from beginning to end.
From that day forward, she had lived with nothing but grief for her husband, her only purpose a burning desire for revenge in the depths of despair.
Before her marriage, she had already reached the Hwaryeong realm.
She had poured every ounce of her strength into training, determined to defeat the Heavenly Demon and avenge her husband.
She had been obsessed with rumors of stronger power, and even pushed her body to its limits in training.
But no matter how hard she tried, she could never reach the level of the Heavenly Demon.
The power she had witnessed with her own eyes—the power that had torn her husband apart—was beyond her reach.
Yet she had refused to give up.
With nothing left but this, the only thing she could do was train until her body broke.
In the depths of despair that grew clearer with every effort, she had pushed herself to the brink.
Then, one day, he appeared.
A man from the Unorthodox Faction who claimed to be gathering information on the Heavenly Demon and wanted to hear her story.
She felt a deep distaste for the idea of listening to a lowborn Unorthodox warrior rake up her painful memories, but she accepted.
Even though she knew she could never reach the Heavenly Demon’s level, she accepted the challenge.
With a confident smile, she faced the foolish man in battle.
And the result?
It was her second defeat—the first at the hands of the Heavenly Demon, the second at the hands of someone she had never even heard of.
The man who had defeated her with overwhelming force was none other than Yang Soyu.
The frustration of facing an opponent she had never imagined was crushing.
It shattered the last remaining will to live in her heart.
“Kk… Kill me…”
Her despairing plea, born from the realization that she had no reason left to keep living.
But instead of killing her, the man spoke to her with calm composure.
“Don’t say that. Even if you die, you should at least see the revenge on your husband before you go.”
“…”
Confused by his words, she looked up at him.
He continued in that same steady voice.
“I said I would defeat the Heavenly Demon. Once that is done, your grudge will be resolved as well, won’t it?”
“!”
The words carried genuine emotion, not a casual joke.
To the woman who had been wandering endlessly in the darkness of an impossible revenge, he offered a single ray of hope.
She told him everything she knew about the Heavenly Demon.
For the first time since losing her husband, she relied on someone else.
The man who had taken the heavy burden from her shoulders felt genuine gratitude.
After that day, instead of tormenting herself in pursuit of power, she waited with a sincere heart for the news of the Heavenly Demon’s defeat.
She waited for the day when Yang Soyu would bring her the news that her husband’s killer was dead.
*
“Hoo…”
After the natural thoughts faded, Ha Sowol let out a deep sigh.
Even though the rain had brought back the memories, she knew she could not remain trapped in them forever.
The Heavenly Demon was dead. There was no longer any target for her revenge.
Though it was said he had fallen to the hands of Murim Alliance experts, and though she knew his absurd power, she had long suspected the truth.
*Yang Soyu… It had to be him. He kept his promise to me. Now my husband can rest in peace.*
At this point in her life, she began to think about moving forward once more.
Although she had no clear idea what she should do as the acting leader of the Kunlun Sect, she felt grateful for her current situation.
*Let me think slowly. There is plenty of time ahead… It would be nice to learn more about the Yang brothers…*
With those thoughts in mind, she quickened her steps through the pouring rain, heading home with her servant.
Suddenly—
“!”
“Eh?”
The next moment, a strange aura made Ha Sowol stop in her tracks.
Through the rain, something on the ground caught her eye.
A person sitting on the ground, head bowed.
Her servant tried to step forward cautiously, but Ha Sowol immediately stopped her and approached the figure herself.
*This aura… This feeling… Could it be?*
Kneeling down, she examined the face.
In the next instant, she felt a surge of shock and spoke in a stiff voice.
“…Heuk-su… Kali?”
“Yuseonggeom… Ha Sowol…”