Chapter 46
Chapter 46
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 46
>Chapter Title: Ward (1)
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Boom!!!!
Il-mok's thrust sword clashed against the spear hurled by Jang-hoe, unleashing a massive explosion.
The three onlookers shared nearly identical reactions to the sight.
Shock was etched on each of their faces. They knew how long Il-mok had been training in martial arts.
But the expressions that followed the shock varied wildly.
'Damn it....'
Jang-hoe, who had aimed for mutual destruction, felt utter despair. Witnessing such tremendous talent only made his failure to kill him sting even more.
Meanwhile, worry clouded the faces of Jin Ha-yeon and Gwan Mu-yeol.
"Cough...."
Il-mok had blocked the incoming spear, but the gap in skill was unavoidable. He was pushed back a zhang before vomiting blood.
"Young Master!"
"Damn...."
Il-mok spat blood and cursed through a face twisted in fury.
As if his pride had been wounded.
'...To reach the Sword Qi Manifestation realm in a mere half-year—more than enough to call him a genius.'
'Did his pride get hurt because he nearly died?'
While Gwan Mu-yeol and Jin Ha-yeon each harbored such thoughts,
"The realm... advanced again...."
Il-mok muttered with a look like he was about to die of injustice, then collapsed to the ground.
"......"
"......"
In the awkward silence, the three who had been locked in fierce combat stared down at the fallen Il-mok with baffled expressions.
* * *
'Familiar ceiling.'
That was the first thought when he opened his eyes.
But it wasn't the ceiling of Wind Rock Hall, where he usually slept.
It was the same place he'd relied on once before—the infirmary ceiling.
"Are you feeling any better?"
Jin Ha-yeon's voice soon pierced his ears.
Turning his head, he saw her bandaged in several places, gazing down at him with her usual stoic expression.
Master was there beside her as well.
"To suffer five ambushes in a mere half-year, survive three brushes with death, and end up in this infirmary twice—truly a fateful hardship."
Il-mok couldn't help but give a wry smile at Master's words.
It had started with his eldest senior brother's rampage, followed by Branch Leader Go Cha-hyeon's outburst while teaching the kids, the bandit raid, the previous assassin, and now Jang-hoe.
His days had been anything but ordinary, but that wasn't why he smiled wryly.
'The old man's slyly omitting his own handiwork?'
The very first ambush—and the most dangerous—was when Master had held a blade to his throat and demanded he become his disciple.
Everything had spiraled from there, and above all,
'Honestly, compared to the pressure I felt from Master back then, everything else feels like nothing....'
It was also the reason his guts had grown unnecessarily large.
"Still, it seems your progress is accelerating because of it—a silver lining. People grow stronger through adversity, so pay it no mind."
"...Yes, Master."
He briefly wondered if Master had sensed his inner grumbling.
But a more pressing issue remained.
'Right. My realm advanced....'
The thought made his entire body itch.
Honestly, he couldn't even clearly remember how he'd produced sword qi. Only a vague sense of it lingered.
Which meant.
―You have to recapture that sensation now!
―Grab a sword!
―This is your only chance!
His obsessive symptoms were kicking in.
As he waged a fierce mental battle with the voice in his head, Master's voice snapped him back to reality.
"You're not fully recovered yet, so I'd order rest, but there's urgent business. Handle that first, then rest."
"Urgent business?"
"I've heard the full story from Wan-pyeong and Ha-yeon. Wan-pyeong's preparations are complete, so shouldn't you inspect the night snacks?"
"Ah...."
Only then did he recall what had happened before passing out.
With Jin Ha-yeon's support, he rose and left the infirmary alongside Master.
Outside, the sky was still dark.
"How long was I out?"
"Less than one shichen, I'd say. Young Master."
As he walked, conversing briefly with Jin Ha-yeon to get up to speed, they soon arrived at the Tea Pavilion.
The place handling tea and refreshments for the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
But the atmosphere was far from usual.
'Whoa... like a scene from a historical drama?'
Torches blazed in the center of the Tea Pavilion, where dozens of warriors stood guard with stern vigilance.
In the midst, several men and women knelt like criminals.
Just like a scene from a drama where suspects face interrogation.
Master crossed the tense scene and seated himself in the chair at the head position before issuing the command.
"Begin."
Il-mok thought the interrogation was starting, but what followed was unexpected.
Two of the kneeling figures—a man and a woman—stood and began brewing tea and preparing refreshments.
"From now on, Il-mok, examine the ingredients and tea they handle closely."
Finally grasping the situation, he approached them with Jin Ha-yeon's help and began inspecting their ingredients.
Watching the night snack preparation, one thought hit him first.
'This looks bad....'
Maybe his head wasn't working right from the injuries, but honestly, he had no clue what was what.
To him, they were just making ordinary snacks from ordinary ingredients and brewing regular tea.
'...Should I just point at someone randomly and pin it on them? Or admit I don't know?'
Yeah. With Jang-hoe's sudden ambush and all, something was definitely off.
Fudging it might work.
As such thoughts crossed his mind, the refreshment table was fully set.
"Well?"
Master's question pierced his ears, and an eternity seemed to stretch out.
After endless deliberation, Il-mok made his choice.
"No issues that I could see."
He couldn't risk stirring up trouble with baseless nonsense.
At his answer, Master wore a peculiar expression and turned to Third Senior Brother, who had been waiting by his side.
"Taste it."
"As you command."
Third Senior Brother glanced at Il-mok before approaching the spread.
"First, the appearance matches what came up that day. Master."
He took a bite of the refreshment, then lifted a teacup for a sip.
"...The taste and aroma are completely different from that day. Master."
Il-mok inwardly sighed in relief at Third Senior Brother's words. Good thing he'd been honest this time.
Master, observing, spoke with an angry face.
"Are you daring to mock this seat right now?"
The two who had prepared the refreshments prostrated themselves and cried out.
"We're innocent!"
"W-we made it exactly the same as that day! Taste varies with one's mood. Since you suspected us, Third Young Master perceived it differently!"
At their defense, murderous intent flickered across Third Senior Brother's already gloomy face.
"Are you calling me a fool in front of Master? The appearance and taste were similar to that day's, but something was missing. The sweetness and flavor were much stronger then, and the tea was the same—though it felt thicker and more bitter."
Hearing that sparked a sudden memory.
'Come to think of it, sensitive people can get heart palpitations from too much coffee or soda, right? Maybe they didn't use 'that,' but brewed the tea much stronger for the effect?'
Possible, but it felt insufficient.
'Senior Brother said the snacks were missing something too, so there must be more.'
Amid the kneeling pair and Third Senior Brother shouting injustices at each other, as he pondered intervening,
Several men emerged from the darkness.
One face was familiar to Il-mok.
'Master's personal escort.'
The man who had driven the carriage when Il-mok was first abducted by Master—the finest personal escort in the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, leader of the Silver Guard Pavilion.
They each pulled something from their bosoms and presented it forward.
"These are from searching the Tea Pavilion and their quarters indiscriminately."
At the Silver Guard Pavilion leader's report, Master nodded and ordered Il-mok.
"Come examine them."
Supported by Jin Ha-yeon as he approached Master, a thought struck him.
'Thorough as ever.'
He'd swiftly rounded up suspects to prevent evidence tampering, then dispatched his direct subordinates to gather proof.
Il-mok inspected the evidence they presented one by one.
Most were unfamiliar, but one—he recognized it.
'...Whoa. Didn't expect this to exist in this era.'
Dark brown, bean-like, with a sweet-bitter aroma. Coffee beans.
* * *
Like salarymen crushed by work in Korea, civil servants enjoyed coffee in the mornings or after lunch as routine.
Il-mok had often shared it with colleagues like Officer Lee Ji-yeon.
But one day, she stopped touching it.
―I'll cover coffee today.
―Officer Seo Ji-hoon, then I'll have chamomile tea instead.
―Huh? Come to think of it, Officer Lee hasn't had coffee lately?
―Oh, yeah.... It just doesn't agree with me anymore.
Odd for someone who'd drunk it fine for months.
That afternoon, he heard from her同期 Officer Kim Chang-wan.
―Stress from dealing with complainants got to her bad. She saw a psychiatrist recently—diagnosed with depression and panic disorder.
Shocking and saddening, but puzzling too.
―But what's that got to do with coffee?
―Not sure exactly, but she said coffee makes her heart race when depression's bad, heightens sensitivity. Feels like panic attacks coming on.
―Ah....
* * *
He vaguely recalled searching online out of curiosity afterward—caffeine's side effects, foods bad for depression.
Back then, not being depressed himself, he'd skimmed and moved on. Details were fuzzy now.
Nor was there proof they'd fed Third Senior Brother coffee. He hadn't even known it existed here.
He'd worried about missing something, but of all things, it was coffee.
Absurd in every way, but more urgent matters pressed.
"Third Senior Brother. Does the missing taste and aroma match this?"
As Il-mok held out the coffee beans, Third Senior Brother approached, sniffed, and popped one in his mouth.
"Yes! This was the missing taste and aroma!"
Il-mok turned to Master.
"Master. This is an ingredient used by pouring boiling water to make a type of tea. The tea sharpens the mind and boosts focus, but as side effects, it causes insomnia, heightens nerves, and can induce depression."
"Is that what you learned from that innkeeper?"
"Yes."
Sorry to the late Uncle Tae-hyeon, but he passed it off as innkeeper knowledge—not past-life memories.
Seemingly convinced, Master nodded and issued orders.
"Imprison them immediately and interrogate to uncover their backers. Investigate their past actions fully, root out all accomplices, and trace the source of these wicked beans."
"As you command!"
As those gathered bowed to Master's command, the proven guilty cried out in injustice.
"This is a frame job, Heavenly Demon!"
"Third Young Master! I've served you for over ten years—how could I? And I ate the night snacks that day too! I'm innocent!"
"Didn't you hear? It amplifies depression! Medicine for the healthy, poison for me—revealed now. How dare you wag your tongues!"
But the enraged Third Senior Brother saw through their act.
Watching them dragged away for a moment.
'Guess my part's done?'
Il-mok sighed in relief.
Interrogations and investigations would follow to expose backers, but that wasn't his domain. He had no talent for it anyway.
Above all, he had no time for that now.
"Master."
Something far more urgent demanded him right now.
"Speak."
With Master's permission, Il-mok replied in a gravely serious tone.
"Then, this disciple shall return to Wind Rock Hall for training."
Since waking, memories of manifesting sword qi haunted his mind.
He itched to swing a sword immediately, but this bizarre interrogation was driving him mad.
But Master furrowed his brow, as if unable to comprehend.
"Training?"
"Yes. Right now, to make that recent insight my own...."
Before he could finish explaining,
His vision plunged into darkness.
* * *
Thud.
"Young Master?"
Jin Ha-yeon, supporting Il-mok, murmured puzzledly as he suddenly lost consciousness mid-sentence.
Snapping her back was the voice of the Heavenly Demon—godlike to her.
"I've sealed his acupoints."
Only now did she see the Heavenly Demon had knocked out his youngest disciple.
"Overwhelming talent is a problem too. Suffering backlash like this."
Gazing pityingly at the unconscious Il-mok, the Heavenly Demon instructed Jin Ha-yeon.
"Until his injuries from today fully heal, wake him only for meals, then force him back to sleep. Overzealous training could ruin his body."
Jin Ha-yeon, supporting Il-mok, replied to the sky-high command.
"I shall obey."
Il-mok wouldn't suffer insomnia for a while.