Chapter 26
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Part 1. Fragments of the Past
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Ak Ung fidgeted restlessly. The family head, Ak Bi-hwan's eyes blazed fiercely. And that fiery glare was directed straight at Ak Ung.
"How many times have I told you to fix that hot temper of yours!"
Ak Ung flinched at Ak Bi-hwan's shout, shrinking his neck slightly. Ak Bi-hwan rarely settled things with words. He was the type to strike first and ask questions later. But right now, with eyes watching, he was holding back.
Ak Ung glanced at Dan Hyeong-u, a mix of guilt and gratitude in his eyes. Dan Hyeong-u stood there impassively, his face expressionless as ever.
"So, you're my Se-gi's friend from the same generation?"
"Yes, sir."
Polite speech flowed naturally from Dan Hyeong-u's mouth. Hyeong Pyo, standing beside him, was utterly stunned. Until now, he'd thought Dan Hyeong-u didn't even know how to use honorifics. But that wasn't it. He could—he just chose not to. A strange sense of betrayal washed over Hyeong Pyo.
"How did you come to know Se-gi?"
Ak Bi-hwan's question was only natural. It had been over ten years since Ak Se-gi vanished. For the first three years, they'd pulled out all the stops to find him. But he was nowhere to be found.
Just when they'd given up on Ak Se-gi, fortune had smiled on the Ak Family Manor.
They'd acquired the martial arts of the Heavenly Qi Master.
It was a swordsmanship based on dominance, unnamed at the time. Ak Bi-hwan dubbed it the Moon-Breaking Blade Art and taught the first three forms of its first half to the manor's warriors.
The Ak Family Manor grew stronger by the day, and Ak Bi-hwan tried to bury the pain of losing his son through rigorous training.
But no matter how hard he tried to forget, he couldn't erase Ak Se-gi from his heart. The boy had been so exceptional that it would take far too long for memories of him to fade from people's minds. Or perhaps it was mere obsession.
Ten years passed like that. Just as the family was beginning to emerge from their grief, Dan Hyeong-u arrived—bearing the dreadful news of Ak Se-gi's death.
"We were comrades."
Ak Bi-hwan nodded at Hyeong Pyo's answer.
"Comrades... comrades, you say."
Ak Bi-hwan couldn't comprehend it. What in the world had his son been doing all these years?
"If Se-gi were still alive, he'd be twenty now. About your age?"
"Yes, sir."
Ak Bi-hwan nodded at Dan Hyeong-u's reply and glanced at the two beside him. Hyeong Pyo was one thing, but Umun Hye's presence was quite the surprise.
But this wasn't the time for such thoughts.
"So... how did my Se-gi die?"
Deep sorrow welled up in Ak Bi-hwan's eyes. Dan Hyeong-u felt it viscerally and paused for a moment.
It was grief. Etching this new emotion into his body, Dan Hyeong-u spoke.
"He died saving my life."
Ak Bi-hwan squeezed his eyes shut at the answer. Then he nodded vigorously.
"A death worthy of my son. I see... so that's how it was."
Everyone in the room caught the glint of tears in Ak Bi-hwan's eyes. The atmosphere grew solemn.
How long had they lingered like that? Suddenly, Ak Bi-hwan's eyes snapped open. He stared straight at Dan Hyeong-u.
"So, you're my son's friend? Dan Hyeong-u, was it?"
"Yes, sir."
"From today, you're my son too. Call me Father from now on."
Ak Ung's eyes widened and his mouth fell open at Ak Bi-hwan's abrupt declaration. It was utterly unprecedented. He shot Dan Hyeong-u a shocked look.
Dan Hyeong-u nodded lightly, his expression unchanged.
"Understood."
Everyone in the room gaped in stunned silence. They couldn't grasp how events had unfolded so quickly.
"Ha ha ha! As expected of Se-gi's friend! What boldness!"
Ak Bi-hwan's booming laughter shook the room.
Watching his father, Ak Ung nodded inwardly. He understood the sentiment. It was probably the desire to give his son what he'd been denied, even if through his friend.
These were emotions bottled up for a full decade. Today, they were finally released. Ak Ung felt the same.
"Come on, my son has returned after ten years—we can't just sit here. Let's go!"
Ak Bi-hwan shot to his feet and strode out.
Ak Ung stared at his father's back and grinned.
"Booze, huh."
The smile on Ak Ung's lips deepened until he burst into laughter.
"Ha ha ha! It's been ages! Booze! Booze!"
Laughing uproariously, Ak Ung left without so much as glancing at the three remaining in the room.
Hyeong Pyo stood awkwardly and rose slowly. Umun Hye did the same.
"What now?"
Umun Hye asked Dan Hyeong-u.
"Who knows."
Dan Hyeong-u's mind was a whirlwind of chaos. It stemmed from the time discrepancy. Just ten years. Ten years.
This defied understanding. One comrade had counted the days obsessively until his death. Even by his reckoning, it had exceeded ten years. Though gauging time in that gray world wasn't easy, that friend had been confident in his method.
It had taken a long while for that friend to die, and then for all the others to follow. The timekeeper had perished relatively early.
And yet, merely ten years? Then what was that gray realm, that ashen hell?
Even after all his comrades died, wandering alone and battling monsters had taken several times longer than his time with them.
Dan Hyeong-u shook his head. The more he thought, the more confused he became.
"You alright? Did that blow to the head scramble your brains or something?"
Hyeong Pyo asked worriedly. Dan Hyeong-u met his gaze. Hyeong Pyo's eyes held only genuine concern, pure and untainted by ulterior motives.
Dan Hyeong-u turned to Umun Hye. She wore a similar expression. The corners of his mouth twitched faintly—a smile that Jo Seol-yeon would have delighted in calling one.
"Huh? No way..."
Umun Hye's face lit up in surprise.
"That wasn't... a smile, was it?"
At her words, Dan Hyeong-u turned and walked out. Umun Hye and Hyeong Pyo hurried after him.
The attendant waited outside the room. He fell in behind Umun Hye the moment she emerged. One look at her expression, and his own hardened. Her emotions were plainly written on her face—something he'd never seen in the ten years escorting her.
The attendant's mind grew chaotic as well.
While the Ak Family Manor reveled in drink, a girl at an inn in Chengdu, Sichuan, soothed her heart with a sigh.
"Sigh... why hasn't he come back yet?"
Jo Seol-yeon propped her chin on her hand and gazed out the window. Her room on the inn's second floor offered a wide view of the street below.
Since Dan Hyeong-u and Hyeong Pyo vanished, her eyes hadn't left the window. She'd seen them leave; surely she'd see them return.
Thinking of Dan Hyeong-u brought a faint blush to her cheeks. She knew she shouldn't indulge such frivolous feelings, but she couldn't stem the flow of her heart.
Jo Seol-yeon fiddled with her hair. She recalled Dan Hyeong-u placing his hand on her head before departing. The profound sensation lingered vividly, as if filling her body completely—and still protecting her.
"Hee hee."
A soft laugh escaped her lips. She looked out the window again.
"Hm?"
In that brief moment, the street had changed dramatically. The crowds were gone, with only a few scurrying out of sight.
"What's going on?"
A group appeared on the now-empty street. Men in bluish martial robes, swords at their waists, scanned sharply in all directions as they moved in a pack. About twenty strong, they searched restlessly.
"Over there!"
One shouted, and the twenty leaped forward in unison. Their speed marked them as experts far beyond the ordinary.
Jo Seol-yeon gasped. They were heading straight for her inn.
Crash!
Something shattered—the inn's front door. Jo Seol-yeon kicked open her room door and rushed out. She worried the Jangja-su members might be downstairs drinking.
She hurried to the railing for a clear view of the first floor. Sure enough, Jong Chil and a few others stared in shock at the entrance, drinks forgotten.
"Hmph, this dump?"
One blue-robed man sneered. His gaze fixed on three middle-aged men beside the Jangja-su group.
The three looked utterly defeated, but their eyes burned with defiance.
"You won't get away with this either. Think the Tang Family will stand idly by!"
The blue-robed man's sneer deepened at the middle-aged man's words.
"Hmph, the Tang Family? You think we fear them? Haven't you heard of their predicament?"
The man's face twisted. He knew the Tang Family was in dire straits lately—and that these blue-robed warriors from the Black Escort Agency were the cause.
"What grudge does Great River Sect bear us to harass us like this!"
His cry brimmed with rage. They couldn't stand against the Black Escort warriors. Even the agency's lowliest were overwhelming for Great River Sect disciples.
"You know why you're asking? You defied the chief's orders."
"W-When did we...!"
Slash!
The man couldn't finish. A blue-robed warrior had closed in and severed his head.
Blood sprayed everywhere, filling the inn with a thick metallic stench.
The Jangja-su members recoiled in surprise but held their ground. Having witnessed Dan Hyeong-u's slaughters and cleaned up after, their composure barely wavered.
Seizing the moment, Jo Seol-yeon slipped to their side.
"Get inside, quickly."
The Jangja-su nodded and retreated cautiously. Jo Seol-yeon turned to follow—when one blue-robed man spotted her.
"Well, hello. What's a flower like you doing in a dump like this?"
He leered with a sleazy grin and sauntered toward her. Jo Seol-yeon froze briefly, then bit her lip. Averting her eyes, she tried for the stairs, but his swift movement blocked her path. The Jangja-su had already fled upstairs, leaving her alone on the first floor.
Cornered, she spoke calmly but firmly.
"Step aside."
"Why should I? Think about it. Play nice, and you might turn your fate around."
His eyes roamed her face and body with a smug leer. He trusted his judgment. She hadn't fully bloomed, but she'd clearly become a world-shaking beauty.
"Sang-il! What're you doing? It's done!"
A comrade's call made Sang-il glance back. The others noticed Jo Seol-yeon too.
"Damn. No choice."
Sang-il grumbled lowly. As he'd feared, his comrades swarmed, surrounding her.
"Oho, not bad at all."
Encirled by twenty blue-robed warriors, Jo Seol-yeon trembled slightly. Escape seemed impossible. Tears welled in her eyes. Dan Hyeong-u flashed in her mind, but he wasn't here.
Lust flickered in the men's eyes. Had her attire been finer, they might've hesitated. But her clothes, though clean, were plain and cheap.
After long flights and escorts, with more travel ahead, she couldn't splurge on finery.
These were the Black Escort Agency's Blue Moon Unit—the agency's lowest rank, yet formidable in Sichuan due to their organization's dominance.
Judging by appearances, they deemed her fair game. Their recent atrocities in Sichuan were infamous; this was tame by comparison.
Three corpses littered the inn floor. Blood-drunk and lust-crazed, the men advanced on Jo Seol-yeon with bloodshot eyes, one step at a time.