Chapter 105
Chapter 105
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 105
>Chapter Title: Misunderstanding (5)
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How long had she been lost in that trance-like state?
“Whew.”
With a deep sigh, the qi currents swirling around Jeong-hyeon settled down.
Pop.
The eyes she had closed fluttered open, their pupils gleaming with the serene stillness of a lake.
But unlike that calm gaze, she was feeling a completely unfamiliar sensation.
A sensation utterly different from anything she had ever experienced in her life. It felt as if she had been placed in another world entirely.
Even the wind blowing against her back felt dull and distant, and her peripheral vision seemed to stretch out to extremes.
In contrast, everything directly in front of her pressed in close.
A pebble lying just a few feet away felt like it was right under her nose, and a target a dozen feet off appeared within arm’s reach.
Beyond the target, far in the distance. The grand hall situated straight ahead. She somehow knew what was happening inside it.
The faint vibrations emanating from there rode the wind, informing her of the events unfolding within.
Amid that bizarre sensation, Jeong-hyeon released the bowstring she held taut alongside her arrow.
Twang!
The tightly drawn bowstring snapped back, launching the arrow.
Twang!
Before she knew it, she had nocked another arrow, and it flew from her hand once more.
The five arrows she fired in rapid succession gathered at the center of the target, as if they had been one from the start.
Right after the first arrow struck the bullseye.
Pbbbt! Pbbbt! Pbbbt!
The second arrow pierced straight through the first and embedded in the center, followed by the third piercing the ones before it.
Even though each consecutively fired arrow had followed its own distinct trajectory.
She had infused more energy into the later shots, and on top of that, she had felt the flow of the wind at every moment, subtly twisting the arrow’s angle as a result.
“......”
Il-mok stared at the scene, worthy of being called a miracle, with a half-dazed expression.
But that lasted only a moment.
“Whew.”
The moment Jeong-hyeon, having displayed that miracle, let out a deep sigh and lowered the arm holding the bow, Il-mok shot to his feet.
“Congratulations, Jeong Cadet!”
Unlike before, he approached her with genuine words of praise and celebration.
Of course, the Il-mok familiar to Jeong-hyeon didn’t cross any lines. He stopped exactly a few feet away.
In the meantime, after the extreme drain on her mental energy, Jeong-hyeon’s perceptual field was slowly returning to its original form.
Since it was a freshly gained enlightenment, she couldn’t wield it freely yet.
Right after her perceptual field, which had stretched extremely forward, reverted to its original spherical shape.
“!?”
Jeong-hyeon twitched as if seizing, then froze in place.
“What’s wrong?”
Il-mok asked with a puzzled look, but Jeong-hyeon, who had been facing forward, slowly turned her body with puppet-like stiffness and simply stared at him with a face drained white.
The reason Jeong-hyeon suffered from severe social phobia was because the effects of her Ghost Spirit Divine Bow made her senses hypersensitive.
Thus, if anyone approached within a few feet—where her senses were most acute—she would have a panic attack.
Knowing this, Il-mok had stopped at that distance, but both he and Jeong-hyeon had completely forgotten one crucial issue.
The fact that her recent enlightenment had elevated her level of attainment.
Only after her distorted perceptual field returned to its original spherical shape did Jeong-hyeon realize it.
Her nest, the area she sensed so acutely, had grown a bit larger.
And at this very moment, Il-mok, who had approached to within a few feet, was trespassing in that territory.
“B-back, b-back, back...”
For a brief moment, she muttered softly with a face white as if her breath were caught in her throat.
Then, her eyes rolled back white, and she collapsed.
“Jeong Cadet!?”
Startled, Il-mok leaped forward like the wind, catching her just before her body hit the ground.
Looking down at Jeong-hyeon limp in his arms, Il-mok thought to himself.
‘This makes twice now?’
It somehow reminded him of their first meeting.
‘For a guy, she’s awfully light.’
Short stature for a man. Her shoulders were narrow too, probably from always hunching over.
But with her rare short-cropped hair and flat build in this world, plus a height that was decent for a woman.
‘Maybe anemia this time.’
Il-mok wondered if she just hadn’t eaten enough to grow properly.
* * *
Il-mok carried Jeong-hyeon straight to Instructor Eun-ryeo.
It reminded him of their first encounter.
Now that Jeong-hyeon belonged to the A-Group, it might have been proper to seek out Chu Il-hwan, the A-Group supervisor, but for various reasons, Instructor Eun-ryeo seemed better.
And upon seeing Il-mok arrive carrying Jeong-hyeon, Instructor Eun-ryeo let out a faint sigh for some reason.
“Haa. What did you do to Jeong Cadet this time? Let’s hear it.”
“......”
Il-mok felt unjustly accused by that gaze full of suspicion.
Instructor Eun-ryeo snatched Jeong-hyeon from Il-mok’s arms, laid her on the bed, and stepped out of the room with him.
Then, as if making an explanation, Il-mok recounted everything that had happened that day to Instructor Eun-ryeo.
How Jeong-hyeon had gained enlightenment, then suddenly fainted right after. And just before fainting, how she had muttered something incomprehensible like “Back, back.”
After hearing Il-mok’s full account, Instructor Eun-ryeo nodded and spoke.
“It’s not certain, but it seems to be due to that enlightenment. Her realm has advanced, making the side effects even more severe, I suspect.”
At Instructor Eun-ryeo’s explanation, Il-mok nodded with an admiring look.
“That seems the most plausible reason.”
Instructor Eun-ryeo gazed at Il-mok with a complicated expression for a moment before saying,
“What’s certain is that I’ll speak with Jeong Cadet myself, so you should head back. And for any unexpected issues, keep a bit more distance from now on.”
“I’ll be careful.”
After Il-mok bowed with clasped hands and left, Instructor Eun-ryeo turned back toward the room where Jeong-hyeon lay sleeping.
But wary of startling the newly awakened Jeong-hyeon, she only closed the door partway and stopped at a distance from the bed.
In the room, empty save for the fainted Jeong-hyeon and herself, Instructor Eun-ryeo dropped her usual fabricated cold expression and looked at Jeong-hyeon with a face full of worry.
‘Whew. I truly can’t tell if getting tangled up with the Youngest Young Master is good for that child.’
From the story, it seemed Jeong-hyeon’s enlightenment this time was largely thanks to the Youngest Young Master.
As a martial artist, a comrade who led to enlightenment was the best kind there was.
But.
‘Being so frail, she’ll just keep getting swept along by that lecherous Youngest Young Master.’
As a fellow woman, Instructor Eun-ryeo worried for Jeong-hyeon’s future.
* * *
The next morning’s training session.
Fortunately, Jeong-hyeon participated looking healthy.
“I heard from Instructor Eun-ryeo. For any mishaps, stay a bit further back and train.”
“Th-thank you, In-Instructor.”
At Chu Il-hwan’s instruction, Jeong-hyeon, already training apart, widened the distance even more before starting.
It was a brief exchange, but from listening, Il-mok grasped the situation roughly.
‘Looks like the enlightenment made the side effects worse.’
And so the training session began.
Today, as always, Il-mok swung his sword half-heartedly while glancing at Jeong-hyeon’s training, and he realized a new fact.
‘Hm? She’s fine today?’
Jeong-hyeon displayed archery close to the divine, just like she had in the clearing yesterday.
Even with over a dozen fellow cadets training nearby.
But that too only lasted a moment.
After firing her bow a few times, Jeong-hyeon let out a deep sigh and lowered her arm.
“Eek.”
With a startled face, she anxiously scanned her surroundings.
Il-mok couldn’t understand why Jeong-hyeon, who had been shooting fine, was acting up, but for her, it was unavoidable.
She had gained enlightenment, but she was still too unskilled to control it freely.
Every time she circulated her inner energy to distort her perceptual field, it consumed a massive amount of mental energy.
In the end, she could only concentrate her perceptual field forward and shoot while in peak condition, then revert to normal and tremble in anxiety when her mental energy waned.
‘Hmm. Guess she’s not fully accustomed to people’s gazes yet.’
Having made his judgment, Il-mok averted his eyes from Jeong-hyeon and swung his sword idly.
* * *
That afternoon.
Il-mok headed to the clearing with Joo Seo-yeon.
“Yesterday we only watched Jeong Cadet’s archery, so how about some sparring today?”
It was training tailored for Jeong-hyeon, who still struggled against people.
Thus, Jeong-hyeon and Joo Seo-yeon took positions a few feet apart.
Though the Demonic Path Academy forbade private spars between cadets, for some reason, none of the four present paid it any mind.
‘Th-this isn’t allowed... U-Instructor Eun-ryeo clearly said we mustn’t...’
In truth, Jeong-hyeon was concerned about it but couldn’t bring herself to speak up.
And neither Baek-cheon nor Joo Seo-yeon were the types to care about rules.
‘What’s the big deal if we don’t get caught?’
Il-mok was the sort who invoked rules only when it suited him.
In the end, unable to resist the trio’s pressure, the spar began.
“Hmm.”
Watching the spar, Il-mok let out a small hum.
‘Still, after three months immersed in martial arts, her skill has improved.’
Joo Seo-yeon’s movements were definitely faster and more concise compared to when they’d first been grouped.
But Jeong-hyeon held the initiative in the spar.
Right after Joo Seo-yeon slapped away incoming arrows with her flashy spearwork.
“Eek!?”
Letting out a strange scream, she executed a somersault and rolled across the ground.
Amid the straight-flying arrows, one arrow—fired who-knows-when—arced in, aiming for Joo Seo-yeon’s head.
Watching Joo Seo-yeon get toyed with one-sidedly, Il-mok was convinced.
‘As expected, she couldn’t show her true skill at the last sparring match because of all the people.’
No matter how much enlightenment Jeong-hyeon had gained, the gap with her performance at that sparring event was too vast.
Back then, he’d thought she’d lost pathetically because the open space and mere few-feet starting distance disadvantaged an archer.
But now it seemed the spectators watching the spar were the real issue.
As Il-mok reminisced about the sparring event, it continued.
Joo Seo-yeon wielded her spear with emphasis on feints and changes, flashing it brilliantly to deflect arrows and hurriedly closing the distance with her legs.
Clang!
While she swung her spear and dashed forward, Jeong-hyeon swiftly shot arrows and repositioned, widening the gap further.
In the end, failing to close in, Joo Seo-yeon spent a moment endlessly batting away arrows.
Thud!
The spar ended with the sound of a blunted arrowhead thumping Joo Seo-yeon’s side.
“Hahaha. What an excellent spar.”
At the same time, Baek-cheon, assigned the master role, stood up and spoke in exaggerated tones.
Like a master from some play.
“Jeong Cadet’s handling was splendid. If you just practice looking further ahead, it’ll be perfect. For example, instead of always dodging back like this, move in a big circle like so...”
On top of his earnest explanation, Baek-cheon even demonstrated with lightness skill and thrown projectiles.
And for some reason, Joo Seo-yeon nodded vigorously beside him, absorbing the lesson.
She seemed to be seeking counters through Baek-cheon’s instruction for Jeong-hyeon, inversely benefiting herself.
Watching the three chatter earnestly, train, and spar, Il-mok nodded in satisfaction.
‘I don’t need to do a thing now.’
With things running themselves, it was exactly the situation Il-mok wanted.
As Il-mok grinned, pondering ‘What should I do now to slack off alone?’ for quite a while.
“Whew.”
“Seems best to call it here for today. Hahaha.”
Jeong-hyeon’s deep sigh and Baek-cheon’s hearty laugh reached Il-mok’s ears.
“Yaaawn. Then we should head back.”
Il-mok stretched his stiff body from sitting idly as he said this, and Joo Seo-yeon, covered in sweat and dirt from rolling on the ground multiple times, beamed.
“Great idea, Young Master!”
Then, smiling at Jeong-hyeon, who had made her roll so much, she said,
“We’ve sparred together, so it’s fate—how about washing up together for old times’ sake, Jeong Cadet?”
At Joo Seo-yeon’s words, Il-mok’s expression twisted oddly.
“What are you talking about, Joo Cadet? Washing up together?”
“??? I meant bathing together, Young Master. We’ve run into each other in the bathhouse before.”
“Don’t they separate the bathhouse at Black Dragon Pavilion by gender?”
At Il-mok’s question, the other three looked at him as if wondering why he’d ask something so obvious.
Amid their stares, Il-mok’s mind grew tangled in confusion.
Recalling past events, Il-mok finally realized he’d been mistaken about something.
With a bizarre expression, Il-mok cautiously asked Jeong-hyeon.
“Jeong Cadet... perchance, are you a woman?”