Chapter 60
Chapter 60
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 60
Chapter Title: The Hearts of Two People
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“......”
Ja-seong had already fallen silent, listening to Hwa-ryeon's words with a serious gaze.
And Hwa-ryeon, staring straight back into those eyes, moved in for the clincher.
“This martial world, reshaping it into the form you desire. That's the real reason you're traveling with us, isn't it, Young Master Goon?”
Hwa-ryeon's words, brimming with conviction.
Ja-seong fell silent for a moment upon hearing them, then let out a hearty laugh.
“Hahaha. Hearing you put it that way makes it sound so grand... Yeah, that's the biggest reason.”
A straightforward affirmation, without the slightest hesitation.
“...I see.”
She should have been satisfied with the answer, but instead, what welled up in Hwa-ryeon's heart was, absurdly, disappointment.
‘...What exactly am I disappointed about?’
There was no reason at all to feel disappointed.
No matter what Ja-seong's goal was, she would stick with him to achieve it.
The Nangong Clan, having gained a new technique, would feel immense gratitude toward Ja-seong.
And as long as Ja-seong was with them, that gratitude would benefit her as well.
Yes, everything was perfect.
So why did her chest feel so tight?
‘What kind of answer was I hoping for?’
“...Haa.”
Suddenly feeling uncomfortable sitting beside Ja-seong, Hwa-ryeon rose from her seat with a sigh.
“I have no particular qualms about it on my end. As long as Young Master Goon's goal benefits us.”
“...Yeah?”
Ja-seong's calm response.
Unable to hold back any longer at that impassive tone, Hwa-ryeon moved to leave.
“My story ends here. Then.”
Hwa-ryeon, hastily trying to depart the courtyard.
But the moment she turned, Ja-seong grabbed her hand.
*
“Hold on.”
“...Why? Do you have more to say?”
“Yeah, I do. So sit back down.”
“I'll listen standing.”
“Come on, just sit already.”
I forcibly seated Hwa-ryeon.
Then, gazing at her face—which was subtly sulky, avoiding my eyes—I chuckled.
“You can't just land a solid hit and run off. You have to give me a chance to counterattack.”
“...What counterattack?”
A voice that sounded oddly petulant.
She was startled by her own tone but trying hard not to show it.
Her feelings were plain as day to me.
Thanks to that, I had a vague idea why Hwa-ryeon had suddenly tried to bolt.
She must think I joined this journey solely for my own personal goals.
As if.
What kind of misunderstanding was this?
Pondering how to clear it up, I decided to just lay my true feelings bare.
“You seem to think I joined this trip just for my own sake.”
“...Isn't that right?”
“No, it isn't. Why would you think something so hurtful?”
Chuckling, I locked eyes with Hwa-ryeon, who was sneaking a glance at my face, and continued.
“I've said it a few times already, but we've known each other for ten years face-to-face. Ten years is a terribly long time.”
“So?”
“People say ten years is enough time for rivers and mountains to change, but do you think only the landscape changes in that span? Villages change, people change too.”
“...And?”
Even after all that, Hwa-ryeon still wasn't getting it.
She was usually so quick on the uptake.
Was she pretending not to know...? Nah, probably not.
With no choice, I swallowed my slight embarrassment and spelled it out bluntly.
“Ten years is more than enough time for feelings to grow between us, no matter how we started out.”
“...!”
Hwa-ryeon stared blankly at my words.
That face, now fully that of a grown woman, still held traces of the girl who used to nag me to get out of the training hall and chase after me in a huff when I teased her.
When did it start? When did her nagging stop annoying me?
When did I start being able to read her icy expressions so clearly?
I had no idea.
All I could say was that at some point, it just happened—vague as that is.
But there was one thing I could say for sure.
“If I hadn't followed you and we parted ways, only for me to hear later that you'd died... I probably would've been furious.”
Not at anyone else—at myself.
“I would've blamed myself, wondering what the hell I'd been doing while you were dying.”
“......”
“Because of that, I decided to come along. Saying I joined for my own goals makes it sound like I'm just using you. Do I really come off as that cold-blooded?”
Having heard me out this far, Hwa-ryeon stared at me blankly for a moment before whipping her head away.
Through her jet-black hair, her earlobes—burning bright red—were vividly clear in the moonlight.
...She's embarrassed, isn't she?
Whoa, I've never seen Hwa-ryeon's ears turn that red before.
A compelling urge rose in me to commit her face to memory right now.
I circulated my internal energy, preparing to move.
If I lunged forward before she could turn back, I could get a full-frontal view of her embarrassed face...
“...me too.”
“Huh? What'd you say?”
Just as I was about to kick off the floorboards, I heard Hwa-ryeon murmur softly.
Reflexively asking her to repeat, it came through clearer this time.
“I... didn't ask you to come along just because I coveted your skills either.”
“...Huh?”
“I didn't want to part from you... That's why I asked you to join us...”
Her half-mumbled words somehow didn't compute.
Uh... so, in other words... this means... right?
I suddenly felt like a total idiot.
My brain, usually sharp, was grinding to a halt like rusty gears.
Struggling to process the meaning as my mind stalled,
“Th-the night's gotten late. I'll be going now.”
Hwa-ryeon abruptly shot to her feet and fled like an arrow.
Leaving only the empty night breeze behind.
“...Wait, you're just gonna leave like this?”
I stared in bewilderment at the empty spot where Hwa-ryeon had been sitting.
*
“...Why the hell does your face look like that?”
The next morning.
I'd gone straight to my master upon waking, intending to apologize for yesterday's blunder, only for him to hit me with that right off the bat.
Had my sleepless night shown that much?
“Well... I didn't sleep well...”
“Tsk tsk tsk... What worries could a young punk like you have to keep you up all night?”
Tell me about it.
I never imagined I'd be agonizing over something like this.
Last night.
Even after Hwa-ryeon fled like that, I sat dazed on the floorboards for ages, mulling over her words.
-I just... didn't want to part from you... That's why I asked you to join...
So, does that mean she has feelings for me too...?
No matter how I turned it over, I couldn't pin down the exact meaning.
In the end, I lay down late without reaching any conclusion, but her words kept circling my mind.
To put it bluntly, I hadn't slept a wink all night.
Her words kept resurfacing, making me bolt upright in bed only to flop back down, until dawn crept in before I knew it.
“Haa...”
“Why are you sighing first thing in the morning after coming to see me?”
I looked at my master, who was reacting testily to my sigh.
Then it hit me—maybe I should consult him?—but I immediately shoved the thought to the back of my mind.
It didn't feel right asking a lifelong bachelor who'd never married.
“...That subtly disdainful look is making my fist itch. Better tell me why you came before it plants itself in your skull.”
Sharp as ever.
Grumbling inwardly, I straightened my expression and offered my apology to my master.
“I'm sorry, Master. I heard from Hwa-ryeon about the Threefold Tiger Art. You went to such trouble preparing it, and I disregarded that effort.”
“...That damn girl must've blabbed unnecessarily.”
Clicking his tongue briefly, my master waved it off.
“Never mind. Water under the bridge. I'm not holding onto it, so forget it yourself.”
“...As if you're not holding onto it—you showed it plain as day.”
“What'd you just mumble?”
“Nothing at all. As expected, Master's heart is as vast as the sea.”
I met my master's glaring eyes—having caught my mutter—with a resolute stare of my own.
He eyed me sternly for a moment before softening, then asked casually,
“So, you thinking of giving the Threefold Tiger Art a try now?”
“No, that's still not happening.”
I recounted to my master my conversation with Hwa-ryeon last night about the Protective Aura Technique.
After hearing it all, he accepted why training the Threefold Tiger Art would be tough for me, though his eyes held a strange hint of regret.
“Still, thanks to the Threefold Tiger Art, I got a lead on a new technique. I'll show you something impressive soon enough.”
“Keep talking big.”
Flashing a grin at my head-shaking master, I left the room—only to run smack into Hwa-ryeon, as if some scheming fate had arranged it.
“......”
“......”
We froze, staring at each other.
Seol-i, standing beside Hwa-ryeon, looked at us with a puzzled gaze.
“...What's going on?”
“Huh? W-what do you mean? Nothing's wrong with me, right?”
“Y-yeah... Nothing's wrong. Of course not, since nothing happened.”
Silence again.
After an awkward pause, I finally spoke up.
“W-well then, I'll get going.”
“Yeah, me too...”
And just like that, we parted hastily without even properly looking at each other.