Chapter 28
Chapter 28
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 28
Chapter Title: Sword Empress
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It was back when I was living with Master deep in the mountains.
"Master. Lately, I've been having these strange dreams. Someone hugs me from behind and gropes my body. I'm worried it might be a bad omen."
It started from some day I couldn't pinpoint.
Someone would tie me up so tight I couldn't move a muscle, then grope me all over. No matter how I struggled, I couldn't break free. And even though it was a dream, the sensations were so vivid it gave me chills, like some ominous force was at work.
For the first few days, I suffered in silence, racking my brain over it. But there was no sign of it letting up—in fact, it only grew more intense. In the end, I decided to consult Master.
"..."
"Master? Why so quiet?"
"...Has my chamber door been locked all this time?"
"Pardon?"
"Ah, just muttering to myself. Sit down for now and tell me the details exactly as they happened."
At Master's words, I sat and began describing the dream.
"First off, I can't open my eyes. Then, something—maybe an arm, I can't tell—binds my body."
"Hm."
"After that, what clearly feels like hands roam all over me. Head, chest, stomach, legs... um, my whole body, anyway."
I couldn't bring myself to mention the more embarrassing parts.
"The sensations are too clear for a dream. It's like it's real. I try to resist, but I'm bound so I can't do a thing. Do you know what's causing this?"
"..."
Master pondered for a moment, her expression troubled, before speaking up.
"It seems an evil spirit has attached itself to you."
"An evil spirit?!"
"Yes. Even with your weak body and shattered dantian, you've learned from me all this time. It can't be some lowly imp. Since I didn't notice, it must be a particularly strong one."
"Eek..."
My face went pale at her words.
An evil spirit—the kind that drives people to ruin or seizes their bodies by force.
And if Master, who slept nearby every night, hadn't noticed, it had to be a powerful one.
Far beyond anything I could handle.
"W-what should I do?"
"First, don't resist at all. No matter what it does to you, hold your voice and don't fight back."
"I-is that enough?"
"Endure it like that for a few days, and a gap will open. I'll prepare a potion to drive the spirit away—drink it before bed. It should retreat then."
I pushed down my anxiety and went to sleep as Master instructed.
For the next three days, the touches grew even more lascivious and stimulating. I'd wake up and immediately check inside my pants.
Finally, when I could barely sleep through the night and dark circles hollowed my face...
"It should be about time now."
Master arrived with a solution, looking oddly vibrant lately, full of energy.
"Here, it's bitter, but drink this before bed. You should sleep soundly starting tonight."
"...Every night?"
"Try it just for today. We'll decide after seeing how it works."
It wasn't just a little bitter—it was horribly so. But that night, just as Master said, no ghostly hands touched me, and I slept deeply.
"Master. I slept like a rock, just as you said."
"I'm relieved to hear you slept well."
"But strangely, my body feels drained, like my vitality's been sapped. Is this a side effect of the medicine?"
"...That's how that potion works—nothing to be done but endure it."
That day, Master's skin looked unusually radiant, but I chalked it up to imagination.
"Anyway, the effect's proven. Take one every week from now on. Evil spirits are tenacious—they'll come back if you give them even a moment's opening."
After that, every weekly dose left me utterly exhausted. But Master started bringing back game more often, so I managed to hold on.
She must've hated seeing her disciple suffer from the spirit.
"Mm..."
Before dawn broke, the chill woke me.
Dawn was still far off, but sleep wouldn't come. Resigned, I stepped outside for some fresh air.
Come to think of it, I stopped taking that potion after leaving the mountains, and nothing strange has happened since. The spirit must've left.
It vanished right after Master entered secluded training...
'Could it be...'
Did she do something before retreating?
Her personality's prickly as ever, but she's got a hidden soft side. Wouldn't put it past her.
'Speaking of, who's on night watch...'
Rubbing my eyes as I crawled out, I spotted the woman in the Bloodstained Cloak gazing at the moon from behind.
'Never asked her name.'
Shouldn't she have a title to go before "young lady," at least? Or a nickname.
But why's she out here alone?
"Young lady? Not sleeping?"
"Ah, you're up."
"I heard the merchants and escorts were handling night watch..."
"I sleep little, so I volunteered. Don't worry about it. The air's still cold—go back inside."
[The air's still chilly. I'll head in soon too, so keep sleeping. Just couldn't sleep for a bit.]
She looked nothing like Master, but for some reason, her profile in the moonlight overlapped with Master's image.
"..."
"...What's wrong?"
"Here."
I tossed a dry branch into the crackling bonfire and sat nearby.
Warmth seeped into my skin and spread through my body.
"Can't sleep either. Might as well borrow some fire."
"...Do as you like."
Crackle, crackle.
The woman kept silently gazing at the moon, leaving only the fire's pops to fill the air.
The awkward silence broke from my side first.
"If it's not too rude, who are you searching for?"
Shaanxi and Anhui border each other, sure, but the Central Plains are vast. Plenty live and die in one spot their whole lives.
Unless you're leisurely traveling like me, a merchant hawking wares, or a wandering warrior chasing coin, people don't venture far without good reason.
She'd mentioned searching for someone, but curiosity got the better of me.
I'd trailed her in Henan before—better ask now to avoid slips later.
"..."
She showed only her back for a long while after my question.
Just as I thought to apologize for prying...
"...Someone I owe a debt to."
"A debt?"
"A massive one."
I figured "debt" meant vengeance, but it was literal.
"Truth be told, I'm not even sure if the person in Anhui is the one. Everyone similar I've chased down so far turned out to be mistakes."
"You don't know exactly who it is?"
"...I do. Name, gender, every detail... but no matter how hard I search... I can't find them."
"Hmm... You've been at it a long time, then."
"Long... Over ten years."
That's an eternity.
A debt from ten years ago at her age—maybe a childhood benefactor?
Crackle, crackle.
"Must be one hell of a debt. You haven't given up."
"...Enormous. I can't even fathom how to repay it."
What kind of person inspires that kind of debt in someone at peak realm so young?
'Kinda jealous.'
She screams future powerhouse. Wonder what she could possibly offer for a debt like that.
Probing deeper might hit a nerve, so I held back.
Honestly, after that long, they might be dead—but I wasn't tone-deaf enough to say it.
"Whoever it is, they're lucky. A beauty like you searching that hard? No man could ask for more honor."
"...Pfft."
"You'll find them someday, I'm sure. After all that time, even heaven should lend a hand."
Couldn't see her face, but I swear she just laughed.
'Honor, huh...'
I wondered if that boy could still feel desire for women after what he'd endured. But strangely, his words eased my heart.
I wonder if that peculiar man would say the same if he knew who I was.
'Still, thanks for the compliment.'
Praise for my looks from a stranger—no reason to take offense.
I'd heard none like it during my time at Mount Hua.
Shing.
One hand fanned the breeze from my face; the other drew my sword.
"Come out. You've already decided to attack—what's the hesitation?"
"..."
"Three behind the trees. Five atop them. Two lurking behind the wagons. Show yourselves peaceably, and no blood needs spilling."
Even given the chance, the night raiders didn't stir.
Familiar pattern.
"You, stay put and keep your head down..."
I reached for the Faceless Golden Ghost's shoulder—frozen with his hand in his robes—but...
Vmmm.
'...?'
A faint, translucent barrier shimmered around him.
I didn't test it, but it looked sturdy enough.
Plenty to stop a blind swing.
'Not a protective aura, obviously. Quite the mystical item.'
Auras don't envelop objects like that—they form around the body.
Anyway, less worry for him now.
Shing.
Time to handle my business.
By the time the merchants burst out at the bandits' screams, it was over.
Not a drop of blood stained my blade.