Is It Such a Hassle?
"Ha Seo-hwa has reached Second-class!"
The news of Ha Seo-hwa’s rise to Second-class swept through the Mount Hua Sect like a storm.
She was the first among the third-generation disciples to break through into that realm. Jung Nam-jung and Seo Jin-ah had only ever stood before that wall, never daring to imagine climbing it.
At first, there were even those who dismissed it as nothing more than a groundless rumor.
But once Hyeon So-eun confirmed it and Jin Young-mae put her seal on it, no one could call it gossip anymore.
"Just think about that girl’s usual training schedule. It’s several times more intense than the other third-generation disciples!"
"And with Elder Jin Young-mae as her master, she must have been taking medicinal pills now and then too."
"How on earth did she achieve enlightenment?"
"Senior brother, are your ears going bad? From what I heard..."
To the second-generation disciples, Ha Seo-hwa was a genius blessed with skill, effort, and backing all at once.
There had been a few sideways looks when her breakthrough was announced, but most agreed that the years of effort had finally borne fruit. She had trained with fanatical intensity for that long, after all.
The third-generation disciples, on the other hand, were saying something entirely different.
"Seo-hwa’s been acting weird lately."
"Maybe a demonic sect or the Black Way planted a spy and used disguise arts to fake her out..."
"I heard she might be possessed by a ghost."
Those spreading the rumor all had their own reasons for finding Ha Seo-hwa suspicious.
For one thing, she had stopped training in isolation and started coming back to Hwa-yeon Hall to practice with everyone else.
But what really stood out was that her private training time had been cut dramatically.
She no longer ate meal pills, either; instead, she’d started going to the dining hall and eating proper meals with the other disciples.
And then there was Seo Jin-ah’s report that, recently, she had even started paying attention to self-care.
The news of her rise to Second-class had been pushed to the back burner. Aside from a few people, most were paying far closer attention to Ha Seo-hwa’s change than to her breakthrough.
In any case, both third-generation and second-generation disciples were asking the same question in unison.
"What happened?"
And the destination of that question was, naturally, me.
The point at which Ha Seo-hwa’s strange behavior began was obviously the duel with me.
I was also the only person in Hwa-yeon Hall she regularly associated with.
Because of that, my name kept surfacing now and then in the mouths of the second-generation disciples.
Before long, witness accounts started piling up too—claims that I’d unfolded the Falling Blossom Sword Art in the Library, that the sect leader had been overjoyed, and that Ha Seo-hwa had gained enlightenment.
Even if I had wanted to remain ignorant, it would have been impossible.
Every time it was time to train, more and more visitors began arriving at my master’s quarters with their disciples in tow.
"Senior Brother Yeon-woo, my disciple is also quite gifted. If he trains together with your disciple, I’m sure they’ll each gain a great deal."
"Th-that so?"
"And I hear Seo-hwa has been training with your disciple as well?"
"When Senior Brother Hyeon was away on an assignment, I merely looked after her for a little while. It wasn’t often..."
"That’s fine, that’s fine! Let’s train together!"
It was because their own disciples’ progress had recently stalled, and they wanted to stir them up through joint training with me.
Thanks to that, it also became a chance to build rapport with the other third-generation disciples, who’d previously been a bit awkward around one another.
By contrast, for my master—who lived quietly in quarters built on the outskirts of Mount Hua Sect—this was like a bolt from a clear sky.
The frequency had gotten so bad that even Jeok Mu-ha, after hearing about it, came to ask whether everything was all right.
At first, I welcomed the joint training. I hadn’t had many chances to grow close to the other third-generation disciples.
But as time went on, the inconvenience became impossible to ignore.
When the exact same situation repeated itself every day, there was simply no room left for private training.
"...So the only place I can relax is here in the Library. Master told me to stay here until the commotion dies down, too."
"It’s quiet here. No one comes around because it’s tucked away in a corner."
"Does Senior Sister not feel anything at all? There are all sorts of rumors going around behind your back."
In the corner of the Library where the third-generation disciples had been allotted a space, the Second-class martial artist sitting across from me, Ha Seo-hwa, answered without a care in the world.
"I don’t care what the other disciples think of me. I never have."
"That does sound like something Senior Sister would say."
"I knew there were rumors going around behind my back even before you entered the sect."
Ha Seo-hwa had ears for rumors too.
She didn’t know the details, but she wasn’t ignorant of the gossip surrounding herself.
"Still, I’d like to meet the disciple who spread the rumor that I used disguise arts and was a spy."
"Why only that rumor?"
"Because they were saying the master and the elder grandmaster wouldn’t be able to see through the disguise arts of nothing more than a child."
Her cold voice had a distinctly eerie quality to it.
"That’s true. In a way, it’s even an insult to our ancestors. I agree it’s something that should be taken seriously if we can identify who said it."
"You think so too?"
"But there are also rumors that Senior Sister was possessed by a ghost. Most children are childish enough to spout ridiculous stories when something sudden happens. So why don’t you let it go with a generous hand?"
"...If you say so, I’ll restrain myself."
Ha Seo-hwa’s speech and emotions had become much richer.
But it would be wrong to say she had changed.
It was more like she was in the process of recovering the self she had lost along with her parents.
Of course, I couldn’t expect a normal reaction from her.
No matter what kind of personality she’d had before entering Mount Hua, Ha Seo-hwa had never been particularly eloquent to begin with.
If anything, the change felt like her replies had gone from one-word answers to full sentences, just barely enough to keep a conversation alive.
Still, it was truly rare for her to take the initiative and try to involve herself with someone.
And that someone, now, was me.
At some point, she had begun following my schedule.
Whenever I came to the Library, she showed up without fail and willingly joined me in reading tedious manuals.
Though to her, it seemed less like reading manuals and more like leaving her eyes on the text while her mind and mouth wandered off into aimless chatter.
"So I’ve changed that much?"
Ha Seo-hwa continued with a blank expression.
"I’ve always just done what I wanted. I only thought training was something I had to do."
"You reached Second-class before the other senior brothers, though. In just two years of martial training. I heard from Master that cases like yours are extremely rare."
"But aside from my realm, I don’t think I’ve changed that much in other ways."
"The others probably thought the fact that you reduced your training alone was already a huge change."
"Is that so."
"It is."
What had changed wasn’t limited to training, of course.
But if I told her that, she wouldn’t understand anyway, so I reduced it to a simple explanation: the change in her training.
That was the thing she herself considered the biggest difference.
"...Right. To be honest, I don’t know what I should be doing."
"How many hours a day do you train now, excluding practice in Hwa-yeon Hall?"
"Two hours."
"It may be a tremendous reduction in your own eyes, but it’s no different from the training time of the other third-generation disciples."
At my answer, Ha Seo-hwa muttered,
"What do the other disciples do with the rest of their time?"
Inside, I silently objected.
You really shouldn’t be asking me that.
I knew she had been nothing but a training machine ever since entering the sect.
Still, the sight of her genuinely struggling over the question was pitiful enough that I answered her.
"They play."
"...Play?"
Her tone made it sound as if she were asking what exactly "play" even was.
That one short reply told me enough about the life she’d led up to now.
"Yes. They spend time with their fellow disciples, or read manuals like this. That’s what play is. Other than that, they receive separate instruction from their master."
The instruction ranged from the basics, like writing and pressure points, to deeper teachings on the righteous spirit a swordsman should possess.
"Whatever it is, everyone gathers in little groups and chats away. That’s why rumors spread everywhere like this."
"You’re right."
"I’ve heard most of the rumors floating around too. Looks like you’ve been good at keeping quiet about what happened that day."
In other words, she hadn’t been running around telling everyone why she had changed.
At my words, Ha Seo-hwa nodded.
"I haven’t told anyone. I did tell Elder Grandmaster that you’re the child of a physician, though."
"That much doesn’t matter. They already know. It’s fine as long as you don’t mention the important parts."
If anything, it was helpful, since it could deepen the misunderstanding surrounding my background.
Ha Seo-hwa tilted her head and asked,
"Then why did you tell me to keep it secret?"
"What do you mean? That I beat Senior Sister in a duel? Or that I’m hiding a lot of things in general?"
"All of it. Especially your skill. That wasn’t your full strength when you dueled me in Hwa-yeon Hall."
I shook my head.
"I wasn’t exactly hiding my skill. As for striking at Senior Sister’s dantian on purpose, that really was the best course of action at the time."
If she brought up the second duel, I had nothing to say.
Because that one, I really had let her win on purpose.
In fact, I’d beaten Ha Seo-hwa several times later that evening in the woods.
"There’s something Senior Sister is misunderstanding."
"What is it?"
"I don’t particularly want to hide myself."
"You told me to keep it secret, though."
"I’m not planning to hide forever. Why would I, if it’s beneficial to me? I’m simply waiting for the right moment."
"What happens if you don’t wait for the right moment?"
"I’ll probably look like a weirdo."
In truth, wasn’t that already how other people saw me?
For one thing, the fact that I kept hanging around with Ha Seo-hwa alone was enough to brand me as a strange, unusual sort of fellow.
A tragic thing, really.
"...Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Nothing. I was just realizing that when you rush ahead so quickly, people end up looking at you in all sorts of ways."
"I know what you mean. I felt the same thing when I beat Senior Brother Jung Nam-jung and Senior Sister Jin-ah."
"Let’s call it the sorrow of geniuses."
Ha Seo-hwa was aware that the eyes turned toward her were different from the rest.
In truth, Mount Hua’s senior figures had very high expectations of her.
Just as they did of me.
I, too, wanted to receive that same kind of expectation.
I still had the grand task of restoring the Violet Mist Divine Art to the sect.
"...Isn’t it a hassle?"
I gave the brush in my hand a slight shake, careful not to flick ink.
"You mean this?"
"Yeah. You come here every day, look through manuals, and copy down the formulas."
"Haha, as sages say, the path of martial arts has no end, and learning should not be confined merely to moving the body..."
"Liar. It’s a hassle, isn’t it?"
Before my nonsense could go on too long, Ha Seo-hwa cut it off.
"Or is it only that way in my eyes?"
"Yes. It seems that way only in Senior Sister’s eyes."
No.
To be honest, it was a tremendous hassle.
When I’d become a wreck in my previous life, I’d holed up in the Library because it was the only thing I could do.
And because it was wartime.
I had learned a great many things and become adept at scheming, but in truth I wasn’t the sort of man who enjoyed plotting from the shadows.
I was the kind of martial artist who picked up a sword and swung it first.
When the destination was right in front of me, I wasn’t the type to choose a detour for the fun of it.
But if I just put the Violet Mist Divine Art right out in the open, I’d have no choice but to talk about regression too...
For there to be an outcome, there had to be a process.
Because I had regressed, I had no process.
That was why I’d been making these tedious trips to the Library, filling in the missing steps.
At first, I had considered telling them outright that I had regressed.
I wasn’t worried about whether they’d believe me. If I demonstrated martial arts known only to the Mount Hua senior leadership, they would have no choice but to believe, even if it sounded impossible.
But I gave up on that quickly.
Because the future I knew could change in absurd ways.
And not in a good direction.
The sect leader was one of the Ten Supreme Swords of the martial world.
Both in status and in skill, he held a powerful position in the jianghu and carried immense authority.
The moment he heard me out, he would inform the Martial Alliance.
The Martial Alliance would immediately begin preparing for the war that would come roughly twenty years later...
And if signs of the righteous faction preparing for war were discovered?
Not only the mountain bandits and the Changjiang river pirates, but even the Demonic Alliance would likely misunderstand and sharpen their blades.
If a righteous martial artist went to the demonic sects and told them that war would break out twenty years from now and that righteousness and evil should join hands, who would believe that?
The righteous and demonic factions were always watching each other’s backs with suspicion, each waiting for the chance to strike.
If the two sides wasted strength fighting unnecessarily, it was plain as day that they’d become helpless before the Blood Sky Demon Sect’s attack.
Pick at healthy flesh and you create an abscess.
If I didn’t keep my regression secret, we might end up losing the war even more shamefully than before.
I said to Ha Seo-hwa, who had taken on a slightly dissatisfied look,
"I want to learn more martial arts. The more I learn, the more interesting it gets. And since Senior Sister keeps me company, it’s not that boring either."
"...Really?"
"Yes. You even tell me stories from time to time."
The stories I meant were those from before she’d entered the sect.
Since that day, Ha Seo-hwa had occasionally told me about her parents.
And whenever she finished her own story, she always asked about mine. I had never actually been the child of a physician, so my answers were always improvised on the spot.
In any case, we were people who could speak to each other with a certain amount of ease.
As we chatted, a commotion rose from somewhere far off.
It was too distant to hear clearly, but after a moment I could make out voices of greeting.
Not long after, with the rustle of robes, Jin Young-mae appeared before us.
The elder opened her eyes wide and looked at the two of us.
More surprised than offended, if anything.
At the very least, I couldn’t sense any ill will.
Ha Seo-hwa greeted her in a familiar tone.
"Elder Grandmaster. Welcome."
"Third-generation disciple Yoo Sung-woon greets Elder Jin."
I, meanwhile, bowed with a formal clasp of my hands.
It was my first time meeting Jin Young-mae in this life.
Even though we belonged to the same sect, the elders were busy enough that they rarely crossed paths with the third-generation disciples.
"What brings you here?"
"I had some business in the Library. Since I was here, I thought I’d come see your face too. I was also curious about what you were doing in here."
"I was reading manuals with my junior brother."
"I see. I’m relieved to see you spending time with another child."
Jin Young-mae’s gaze shifted to the table.
Several manuals were stacked to one side, and the blank paper scattered about was somewhat disordered, though not terribly so.
She picked up one of the papers lying around.
"This sheet has rather a lot of empty space, doesn’t it?"
I looked at the sheet Jin Young-mae had lifted.
It was the page where I had organized the formulas of the Violet Mist Divine Art.
Unlike the other sheets, it had only five formulas written on it, which made it stand out.
"‘Blue clouds rise, red clouds sink’... If you wrote this because you couldn’t understand it, I can explain it to you now."
I almost said I understood, but then corrected myself.
Wasn’t this exactly the moment I’d been aiming for?
I steadied my breathing for a moment and opened my mouth.
"It’s fine. I already understand those formulas. That paper is simply where I copied down the formulas that caught my eye while I was reading the manuals."
Jin Young-mae asked in obvious curiosity,
"Caught your eye? In what way?"
"I had the impression they were subtly connected. For example, if you circulate inner energy from the 'blue clouds rise' line into the 'red clouds sink' line you mentioned, the energy flows without any sticking points."
Jin Young-mae closed her eyes.
Not long after, perhaps after actually following the formula with her internal energy, she showed a rather startled expression.
"So it is."
"Once the 'red clouds sink' line ends, it continues into Clouds and Mists Respond to One Another, and then into Yin and Yang Mutual Union. Yin and Yang Mutual Union then leads to Blue and Red Transform into Violet."
I went on without pause, as though my mouth had been greased with oil.
"The blue clouds rise into the sky, the red sunset sinks to the earth, and clouds and dusk resonate with each other until yin and yang merge. Red and blue harmonize and transform into violet..."
At the word violet, Jin Young-mae’s brow twitched.
That had been my intention.
Any Mount Hua elder would have trouble not reacting to that.
"Don’t you feel it? The path of inner energy indicated by the formulas and the meaning contained within them all seem to connect into one. That’s why I copied them out separately."
Listening to me, Jin Young-mae stared at the sheet of formulas with a meaningful look.
"Yoo Sung-woon."
"Yes, Elder."
"I’m curious whether you’ve found anything else."
I said in a tone that made my disappointment sound genuine,
"I’m sorry, but no. The manual on our founder that I’m allowed to read is the last one on the table here..."
"Did you just say the manual on our founder?"
"Yes. I thought that to become a proper disciple of Mount Hua, one must first understand one’s roots. So I looked through the martial manuals created by our founder, and happened to discover it."
A strange light appeared in Jin Young-mae’s eyes as she looked at me.
She ran her fingers over the formulas of the Violet Mist Divine Art, then said to me,
"I like your handwriting. May I take this paper?"
"Of course. I can rewrite it anytime."
"Thank you. I was already considering whether I should personally repay you for giving Seo-hwa such a good experience. In addition to taking this writing, I’ll give you one Nine-Leaf Pill."
The Nine-Leaf Pill is a medicinal pill that grants a year’s worth of inner energy when consumed.
I had been wondering whether I’d have to pay a visit to the Medicine Hall, but Jin Young-mae took a wooden case straight from her sleeve.
I immediately brought both hands together and raised them high.
"If you’re giving it to me, I’ll gratefully accept without complaint."
"Good."
With that brief reply, Jin Young-mae naturally stroked Ha Seo-hwa’s hair.
"Child. Then I’ll see you this evening. I have urgent matters, so I must be off now."
"Yes. I’ll be back before it gets late."
Seemingly satisfied with Ha Seo-hwa’s answer, she smiled faintly and left the Library, walking a little faster than when she had arrived.
It had only been a brief glimpse, but even that was enough to show how deep the bond between the two of them ran.
Ha Seo-hwa had also been training hard all this time in hopes of earning Jin Young-mae’s attention.
I’d been worried that receiving a medicinal pill from Jin Young-mae might wound her pride, but she was, surprisingly, genuinely pleased.
"That’s great. Elder Grandmaster doesn’t speak lightly. It means your efforts are being recognized."
"Yes. It’s deeply gratifying."
Ha Seo-hwa may have been talking about the pill, but that was only a secondary reward.
At last, the line is biting.
Today, a little over half a year after I’d entered Mount Hua Sect, the sect’s senior figures had finally begun to take notice of my activities in the Library.