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Elder Hwang, the chief steward of the Hwangbo Clan who had served the family for many years, was thoroughly sick of the men camped outside the clan grounds.
"Our young ladies... to those beggarly bastards?!"
Were these men here seeking marriage, or were they beggarly bastards using the marriage as a pretext to latch onto the Hwangbo Clan?
Not even the beggars of the Beggar Sect would sit there so brazenly, utterly without shame! As chief steward of the Hwangbo Clan, Elder Hwang was truly enraged.
'Those dog-like Sex Demons!'
All of his fury was directed at the Sex Demons who had caused this entire disaster.
If the Sex Demons hadn't stirred up so much trouble, the clan head would never have rushed to marry off the Seven Princesses, and as a result, this horde of men would never have swarmed near the Hwangbo Clan.
"Does the Hwangbo Clan treat guests from afar with such cold neglect?!"
"I heard the Hwangbo Clan was the strongest in Shandong, but it seems their fame was empty after all!"
"Indeed, the foremost family of Shandong is the Jegal Clan!"
The Jegal Clan is in Hubei. The one in Shandong was merely a branch family. Suppressing the anger boiling inside him, Chief Steward Hwang simply wished for tomorrow to arrive sooner.
The first 'preliminary round' would end tomorrow. Then all the ragtag riffraff gathered outside would vanish, and only those with true skill would remain to compete in martial prowess.
"It must be hard on you, sir."
A lively voice rang out from behind. The cool aura that approached him made Elder Hwang choke up for no reason.
"Second Young Lady...!"
"I'm sorry. It's because of us."
"Hng, not at all. This disaster was caused by the Sex Demons running rampant—how could anyone blame the young ladies?"
Elder Hwang accepted the water flask Hwangbo Hye-ji handed him. Seeing three small ice chips inside it, he felt even more overcome with emotion.
Ah, were martial prowess and character truly proportional to one another?
To think that the woman with the kindest heart in the entire clan, and the one who embodied the Hwangbo spirit more than anyone else, must be 'forced' into marriage in the bloom of her youth.
Elder Hwang knew better than anyone the sorrow hidden behind Hwangbo Hye-ji's bright smile.
"Young Lady. I know this is a discourteous time to bring it up, but I must say it."
"I have a feeling I'll regret this terribly if I hear it, but if you don't say it, you'll be the one who suffers, sir."
Hwangbo Hye-ji already had a fair guess at what Elder Hwang was going to say. With tears in his eyes, Elder Hwang drew a single letter from his breast.
"This is the last letter from 'that person.'"
"......."
Hwangbo Hye-ji shut her eyes tightly as she received the letter. Her trembling hands and wistful gaze made it impossible for Elder Hwang to hide his choking sorrow.
"What a pity.... He promised he would greet me again once he became one of the Six Phoenixes."
"Young Lady...!"
"It's all right, sir. I've already steadied my heart. ...I am the second daughter of the Hwangbo Clan. I must repay the debt for being born into this clan, for eating good food, wearing fine clothes, and learning strong martial arts."
Elder Hwang felt unbearably sorry for Hwangbo Hye-ji, who had chosen the path of a daughter of the Hwangbo Clan rather than the path of simply a woman.
If she had been born in a man's body, she would have openly taken whichever woman she desired, backed by her formidable martial strength.
If the man she held affection for had been a warrior whose standing matched the prestige of the Hwangbo Clan, then Hwangbo Hye-ji could have spent a hundred years of bliss with the man she loved.
But reality was cruel.
She had to bury the one she held in her heart deep within her mind and forge a new bond with the man decided by her family.
"...Yes. I am not someone's Hye-ji. I am Hwangbo Hye-ji."
Even so, Hwangbo Hye-ji accepted her fate.
Long after the Two Phoenixes Decisive Battle, she had attained fist techniques at the level of a Peak Expert, yet she calmly accepted a fate essentially no different from being a prize for the winner in a tournament full of men vying for her hand.
"So, Steward, what do you make of the potential husbands for us seven sisters?"
"They are all people of outstanding martial ability, every single one. Perhaps because everyone knows this is the last chance, all those below the second-rate have been eliminated."
Only first-rate experts—the kind you could search far and wide to find—numbering several hundred, had passed the first trial. It was proof of just how immense the popularity of the Hwangbo Clan and the Hwangbo Seven Princesses was.
In particular, the interest in Hwangbo Hye-ji had reached its pinnacle.
Many men who had seen her withstand over a hundred exchanges against Dokgo Yeon, daughter of the Murim Alliance Leader, in the Two Phoenixes Decisive Battle—displaying not only charm but real skill—had taken a spark from her sun-like vitality deep into their hearts.
"Who would you say is a strong candidate for victory... or rather, for groom?"
"There's Yeom Cha-seung, who made a name for himself in Shaanxi with his Wolf Fang Fist; Bang Do-rim, the former Azure Heaven New Dragon of the Sichuan Qingcheng Sect; and...."
Even mentioning him annoyed Elder Hwang, but he suppressed his feelings and lowered his voice.
"...There is the legitimate heir of the Hyeoncheon Baek Clan, Baek Bo-jun."
"The Hyeoncheon Baek Clan? Isn't that a clan based in Anhui?"
"Yes, that's correct. Even before the first trial began, he was... already causing a nuisance, loudly proclaiming that he would take the Young Lady as his wife."
"Pfft."
Hwangbo Hye-ji laughed softly and shook her head.
"What an amusing person. If he knew what the final trial really was, he would be in for a severe shock, wouldn't he?"
"Young Lady, do not let your guard down. I believe in you, but they say to never rule out the unexpected."
"Don't worry. I am a woman who withstood over a hundred exchanges against Yeoni. Unless it's someone as strong as Yeoni, no one can beat me."
Confidence overflowed from Hwangbo Hye-ji. But even as she spoke, her expression darkened, and she sighed.
"Yeoni... will she truly be all right?"
"Are you still worried about Lady Dokgo Yeon?"
"No, that's... uh, hm, Yeoni is—"
Hwangbo Hye-ji swallowed the rest of her words. Seeing her stammer and try to change the subject, the steward silently lowered his head.
"You are truly an honest person, Young Lady. You simply cannot tell a lie."
"......."
"Far be it from me to pour cold water on the friendship between you two. ...Lady Yeon, who was 'abducted by the Sex Demon,' is surely alive and well without any problems. Isn't that right?"
"Yes. ...Thank you, Steward."
Elder Hwang smiled at Hwangbo Hye-ji, whose ears were flushed red and head bowed. His heart was heavy, though. He only wished for the happiness of this woman who was like a granddaughter to him. Why was reality so grueling?
"Ah, yes. Sir, you don't mean my father is really going to insist on that?"
"Yes. The Clan Head... regrettably, seems inclined to give the tournament participants the right to choose."
"What? We agreed not to do that last time."
"Yes. But since the candidates participating in the tournament so far have proven far more formidable than expected, he said he will decide on the final plan after seeing the candidates chosen by tomorrow."
"...The Seven Grooms Contention!"
Hwangbo Hye-ji's eyes blazed with fury.
"That insane plan where the strongest martial artists, starting from the top, each choose one of the seven! Absolutely not!"
"Well... but."
Elder Hwang answered in a gloomy voice.
"The Clan Head wishes to expand this martial tournament to a scale rivaling the Nine Dragons Struggle for Supremacy."
* * *
After packing large quantities of Heavenly Rejuvenation Pills in case of unforeseen events, we traveled north from Hefei to Jinan.
We didn't forget our promise. With time pressing, I took Dokgo Yeon in my arms and raced northeast, folding the earth beneath our strides and skimming across the heavens.
"Wow, Gaga! Over there, there's a patch of water stretching to the edge of the horizon! Could that be the sea?!"
"Regrettably, it is not. It is a freshwater lake fed by the inflow from the Huai River."
At one point, it was so vast we mistook it for the sea, but I kept running endlessly across the plains toward the northeast.
We passed through Anhui and arrived in Jiangsu Province.
It lies just south of Shandong, and was originally a spot we planned to pass right by.
It isn't home to any famous clans or sects, nor does it have any notable features, but it was a place I had always meant to visit one day.
The sea.
A place that held a different kind of wonder entirely compared to the broad Yangtze River or the Yellow River.
"Waaah!!"
For Dokgo Yeon, who had spent her entire life on land, confined within the manor, the sight of the vast, wave-swept sea was an entirely new spectacle.
"Yeon, hold still."
I stopped her in the midst of her excitement and slipped off her shoes. Startled by the sudden exposure of her bare feet, she glanced nervously at my expression. I, just like her, tossed my own shoes aside.
"Though we can't soak our bodies and go, we can at least dip our feet for a moment. Let's go."
I took Dokgo Yeon's hand and stepped onto the sandy beach. On the white sand, dampened by the waves, Dokgo Yeon moved as cautiously as if she were treading through a trap-laden formation.
"Gaga, the feeling is strange...."
"You'll get used to it."
A wave brushed past our ankles and crumbled into foam.
We had arrived quite late at night, so regrettably we couldn't take in the vivid scenery of the sea by day. Still, the nighttime sea, with nothing but the sound of sand crumbling under the waves, possessed a considerable atmosphere of its own.
"Gaga, I can't see the end. Will there be land past this too, just like that freshwater lake earlier?"
"Who knows? You'd have to pick your direction well, wouldn't you?"
I had a rough knowledge of the geography of the Central Plains and its surroundings, but if you charged blindly into the vast ocean without knowing where you were going, you could end up spending the rest of your life at sea.
"Someone once said: you see as much as you know. Beyond the world we live in, there could be yet another land, and there might be an ocean twice as vast as the ground we stand on."
"I've never heard such a thing in my life. If it hadn't come from you, Gaga, I would have dismissed it as wild boasting."
Even Dokgo Yeon, who trusted my words without reservation, didn't believe it. As someone who, as a Blood Jiangshi, had wandered not just the Central Plains but this entire continent, I smiled.
"Whether it's boasting or not, you'll find out later. Isn't it intriguing? The Central Plains is already so vast—what do you think would happen if there were lands even larger?"
"Hmm, but I doubt anywhere is as populous as the Central Plains."
Dokgo Yeon let go of my hand and lifted her skirt with both hands. As she ran along the white beach splashing through the waves, she pulled up her hem with one hand and waved the other toward me.
"Gaga---!!"
From the center of the wide-open white beach, Dokgo Yeon shouted in her pure, natural voice, without infusing Inner Energy:
"Thank you so much for showing me the sea, and the world!!"
"I'm grateful too."
Did she hear me? The distance between us was fairly wide, so she probably couldn't catch what I said quietly.
She beamed.
Yet, as if she had heard my gratitude, Dokgo Yeon smiled more brightly than ever before and stretched both arms out wide toward me.
"You know I like you this much, don't you?!"
It wasn't a Lion's Roar, and she hadn't used any Inner Energy, so how did it ring out so thunderously? In response to Dokgo Yeon's confession, I raised my voice even louder than before.
"I like you too."
"What did you say?! I can't hear you well!!"
Dokgo Yeon cupped her hand around her ear, provoking me. I kicked through the waves and ran. Dokgo Yeon grabbed her skirt and fled as if trying to escape me.
"Kyaa! The Sex Demon is coming to catch me!"
"You little."
I quickened my pace further, intent on catching Dokgo Yeon.
"Gaga, if you catch me, eek?!"
Splash.
Dokgo Yeon, who had been running straight ahead, suddenly plunged straight down with a splash. I threw myself after her and caught her.
"........"
Looking utterly dazed and like a drowned mouse, Dokgo Yeon landed in my arms. I lightly rapped her on the head and pointed toward the white beach.
"I guess I forgot to mention this. Unlike rivers, the sea has many spots where the depth drops off suddenly."
The direction Dokgo Yeon had been running was the opposite of where the beach angled inward—meaning she had run straight toward where the sea grew deeper.
"...Seawater is really salty."
Having plunged into the water without warning, Dokgo Yeon gave a hollow laugh at the taste of seawater filling her mouth.
"I had no idea it would be this salty."
"It's the sea."
I cradled Dokgo Yeon and swam us out of the water. Taking off our shoes to keep them dry was now meaningless; we were both soaked all the way to our undergarments.
"Ugh, I'm sorry."
"Nothing to be sorry for. We still have plenty of time."
Even if we dried our clothes, we would never be late. Conveniently, there was a sheer cliff near the white beach. I grabbed the shoes we had taken off and pointed to a small cave at the base of the cliff.
"Let's dry off in there."
"Hm? I mean, won't they just dry naturally as we walk?"
"You need to dry your hair too. ...Mm."
I stripped off my outer coat and upper garments in one swift motion. Dokgo Yeon flinched in surprise at my sudden undressing, but I simply slung the soaked coat over my arm and led her into the cave.
"This is perfect."
There was no trace at all that anyone had ever been inside the cave, and I spread the clothes out wide across a hard rock face.
"...Gaga, don't tell me?"
"We have to dry the clothes, don't we? Take them off, Yeon. There's no one here."
"Ugh...."
Dokgo Yeon hesitated, lowering her head.
"...I can take this as that kind of signal, right?"
She lightly licked her lips, her violet eyes shining. Then she twisted her wrists this way and that and smiled as if troubled.
"Ahh, I think I hurt my hands in surprise when I fell into the sea earlier. Gaga, you'll have to undress me."
Dokgo Yeon drew her body close to me, and I took hold of the collar of her clothes.
"No need to say it twice—I'd just be nagging."
I stripped every bit of clothing off Dokgo Yeon, and in the dark cave, we stood before each other exactly as we were born.
"Gaga...."
With one hand covering her chest and the other hiding the bud of her flower, Dokgo Yeon pressed her upper body against my chest and arched her waist back.
"You're such a rogue. To gaze at me with such eyes."
From the angle where I was looking down at her, her vital areas were kept out of sight.
"The night sea air is cold, so let me warm you up."
Rustle.
"It looks like we'll have to stay up all night... until the clothes are dry."
Under the glow of Dokgo Yeon's violet eyes, shining in the dark, I quietly surrendered everything to her.