Chapter 85
Chapter 85
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 85
Chapter Title: Gossip
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"…Are you alright? You're awfully quiet today."
"Huh? Ah… I'm fine."
I was back in the carriage with the Sword Empress, heading to Shaanxi once more, but I couldn't chat with her as cheerfully as before.
Those words I'd overheard yesterday kept echoing in my ears, filling my head with all sorts of anxious thoughts.
'Destruction…'
I'd never once thought of myself as someone special in my life.
I could consider being dragged into another world on a whim as somewhat special, but it hadn't exactly led to a life of clear benefits. If anything, it was closer to just experiencing something bizarre than being truly exceptional.
A half-baked ability that let me glimpse the future—but never my own.
'Knowing too much isn't always a good thing…'
They say knowledge is power, but that only holds if you have the strength to back it up. The weight on my shoulders right now felt unbearably heavy.
To be honest, I'm not all that altruistic.
I'm definitely not the type to sacrifice myself to save others…
'But the scale has to be this huge…'
Destruction, no less.
I had no idea how vast this world was, but with a population in the hundreds of millions at least, could I really just stand by while they all perished and return to Earth to live comfortably on my own?
If it were before I'd left the mountains—back when I was holed up with my master—I might not have cared. But after venturing into the martial world and building some connections, knowing their lives hung in the balance only made the burden heavier.
'But how am I supposed to stop the destruction…?'
I didn't even know why I'd been summoned as a hero in the first place.
Or why the Lord of Heaven, Earth, and the Gods had snatched that away.
'Aaaah…'
If they'd at least told me I had some hidden power, I could've clung to that and tried something. But in this clueless state, what could I possibly do?
I racked my brains until my hair hurt, but in the end, only one option remained.
Approach Yeo So-cheon, just as the Saintess had suggested.
She was the one with the most clues about this situation right now. Even without the Saintess's advice, she was the only person I could've gone to for information anyway.
"…Something must've happened that day, right?"
"Ah, no. Nothing happened. I just didn't sleep well."
I must've looked pretty rough, because the Sword Empress asked again. I brushed it off with an excuse, telling her not to worry.
I was still debating whether to tell her what I'd gone through yesterday.
It was hard to believe even for me, and explaining it would mean revealing I came from another world.
'Somehow, this feels like something I shouldn't say.'
I couldn't see my own future, but my instincts as a fortune teller were ringing alarm bells.
It felt like I shouldn't tell her I was from another world—or that this body wasn't even originally mine.
'As a Taoist, she might treat me like I'm possessed by an evil spirit…'
And truthfully, I hadn't slept much at all.
"…I see. Then come here for a moment…"
-Rustle
Whether she believed me or not, the Sword Empress pulled me closer,
-Plop
"Are you comfortable? Tell me if it's not."
and laid my head on her lap.
It was the classic lap pillow position.
"…Sword Empress?"
"My disciple used to love this when she was little. Though once she grew up a bit, she started avoiding it out of embarrassment."
"…"
"If it offends your pride, I apologize."
"No… It's not that bad…"
I was used to it thanks to my master, so it didn't bruise my ego or anything.
People from the Central Plains often had strong pride, so anyone else might've taken offense…
'This is comfy…'
But not me.
I could feel the softness of her thigh against my cheek.
Just looking hadn't prepared me—it packed a serious punch up close.
'Still, Master's is better…'
My master's thighs had always felt like an insurmountable wall,
'…but these might actually top them.'
but this time was the exception.
Rationally speaking, and in terms of pure comfort, even my master might have to yield here.
Drowsiness was already creeping in after lying down just moments ago.
"Um…"
"If you're sleepy, go ahead and rest. I'm fine."
Maybe from raising her disciple, she exuded a maternal warmth.
But that wasn't why I'd spoken up.
"What kind of person is Yeo So-cheon?"
Sleeping sounded great, but gathering info on her took priority.
And right now, the Sword Empress beside me was quite close to her.
"Yeo So-cheon, you say?"
"Yes. She seemed… really unique back then."
For reference, I'd glossed over the events of that day with the Sword Empress.
I'd said that while reading the heavenly secrets, I'd made some mistake, and she'd come to warn me about it.
She didn't know how to read the heavenly secrets directly anyway, so it was a decent cover story.
Of course, I hadn't mentioned the kiss.
I couldn't erase the weird scent from my body, though, so until we parted at the inn, she'd kept pointing it out.
'I scrubbed hard today, so it should be fine.'
"Yeo So-cheon… she's quite the odd one. Blue hair you don't see in the Central Plains, a youthful appearance that doesn't fit someone who's supposedly returned to their prime… and a cranky personality unbecoming of a Taoist. Full of secrets, that one."
"Cranky personality?"
"Mm… She's got a foul mouth and can't be honest about her feelings. She never says she likes something good outright—instead, she dodges around it and ends up snapping for no reason. Back in the day, teasing her became a game among our comrades. Her girl-next-door looks made her pretty cute, after all."
One word came to mind from her description.
'Tsundere?'
I wasn't sure if it fit perfectly, but it matched the Sword Empress's account closely enough.
Not immediately useful, though, so I shelved it and asked something else.
"Do you know what she likes or dislikes, by any chance?"
"Likes or dislikes?"
"Yeah. Since our fates are tied by the heavenly secrets, I might run into her again…"
"Hmm…"
The Sword Empress pondered for a moment before speaking.
"Not sure about that, but I do have one bit of helpful info."
"Oh? What is it?"
"Have you heard of the Shadowless Divine Thrower?"
Shadowless Divine Thrower.
A hero from the war against the Blood Cult twenty years ago—who immediately became a public enemy of the martial world right after.
A weirdo who'd swung from one extreme to the other in an instant.
"I've heard of him. After the war, he stole treasures and manuals from sects and families alike, landing him on the most-wanted list…"
"That's right. But what he stole wasn't just that. He took our weapons too."
-Crack
My jaw dropped.
To think someone had the guts to steal from these people.
"What… did he take?"
"Everyone's cherished blades. Our favorite weapons. And right after the Heavenly Demon slew the Blood Cult Leader and the war ended—the very next day."
Ah, I thought he was just another lunatic, but this guy was a great lunatic!
"You just let him get away with that?"
"What could we do? Even if we were hailed as heroes, he was a hero too—and called the Divine Thrower. None of us could catch him. Besides, everyone was too dazed by the sudden appearance of the Heavenly Demon to muster any real anger. After witnessing that overwhelming might, who could focus on their own weapon?"
What can I say? Truly an impressive figure.
To exploit that exact moment to swipe their swords.
"But Yeo So-cheon was the exception. While the rest of us sighed in resignation upon realizing our weapons were gone, she… well, let's just say she unleashed curses too vile to repeat. 'I'll tear his limbs to shreds if I catch him' was actually the mildest of them."
"…She must've really treasured that sword."
"Probably. Even for a martial artist, not many hug their sword in their sleep."
"Hmm…"
I wasn't sure exactly how to use it yet, but it wasn't bad intel.
The kind that might come in handy somewhere down the line.
"And what happened after makes for an amusing anecdote too. Want to hear it?"
"What else happened?"
"Something hilarious."
The Sword Empress began recounting the tale.
"When she first learned the Thrower had taken her precious sword, she denied it."
[No way. Even if that guy's a maniac, he wouldn't pull something like this right now, would he? It's probably just a prank. He'll bring it back any minute.]
Stage 1. Denial.
"Once reality sank in, she flew into a rage."
[Aaaargh!! That bastard!! If I catch him…!! Forget comrades—he won't even be able to hold a spoon!! I'll shatter his bones and scatter them across a flower field!!]
Stage 2. Anger.
It felt oddly familiar.
"Does she try bargaining next?"
"No, she burst into tears."
"…Huh?"
"She didn't care who was around—she just sobbed right there on the spot. Pretty memorable scene, too, with her pleading into the air between wails: 'Come out now and I'll forgive you! Please, just come back!'"
"Ha… ha…"
It was unexpected, but thinking back, her eyes had nearly welled up and overflowed when I'd teased her before.
A cool exterior, but surprisingly quick to tears, maybe.
Anyway, this could prove useful next time we met.
And as time passed,
we finally arrived in Shaanxi.