Chapter 237
Chapter 237
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 237
>Chapter Title: The Apology of the Dragonflower
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With Daesan gone, Daeha would see it through.
The two were two, yet one—and having received grace from Kwak Seong, they had to repay it all.
Taaang—!
Taaaaang—!
Daeha’s strikes grew sharper by the moment, but Kang Seol wielding Night Raven possessed a power from an entirely different realm than before.
Smacking a shield with a staff might be a tactical move, but smashing a stone wall with one was sheer folly.
And yet Daeha kept committing that folly.
Kang Seol gradually adapted to his shifted senses as he gazed at Daeha.
“I can’t lose! I mustn’t lose!”
An obsession with victory.
Kang Seol could sense Daesan’s shadow in him, along with a will to surpass it.
No one else noticed, but Kang Seol knew.
This was no longer a battle to decide a winner.
It was a stage for the younger brother to show his efforts, his sweat, his tears to the brother who had gone first.
And a place to bear witness to it.
So Kang Seol intended to wait for all of it.
Kaaaang—!
Kwaaang!
Letting Daeha give his all.
Letting him pour out everything he had.
‘That’s what he’d want, too.’
Daesan would want the same, so Kang Seol, honoring him, had to respect that legacy.
“Nothing changes! Aaaah!”
No—everything had changed.
Daeha could no longer reach Kang Seol.
That frustration, that despair—it fueled his growth.
“Uoooooh!”
Like painting the air with a massive brush, Daeha’s staff whipped through the void.
Whoooong—!
Whooooong—!
Even Daeha didn’t know why.
His body had simply known before his mind did, and acted.
Kang Seol was the first to sense that this movement would bring unnatural consequences.
‘…Dangerous.’
Something greater than his current power was coming.
‘Should I block it?’
A moment’s hesitation.
This power was still beyond what Daeha could handle.
Kang Seol set aside his doubts and spoke to Karuna.
‘Karuna.’
- …From here, I’ll take over.
Srrrrk…
Control of Night Raven shifted from Kang Seol to Karuna.
“Haaaaah!”
In that instant, Daeha shattered his own limits, evolving once more.
He was stepping into an unknown realm just beyond his grasp.
The moment when one’s skill exploded in growth came not in quiet training, but against a worthy foe.
In all his life, Daeha had never faced anyone stronger than Kang Seol.
Kikikik…
Unused muscles screamed.
Whoooosh…
Winds and rain gathered around Daeha.
Patapat…
This time, rock fragments joined them.
Rain and stone intertwined.
Whoooosh…
Whooo…
Certain Eastern martial arts emitted specific lights based on their nature.
Crimson, violet, golden, and more.
“Take this… too!”
Whoooong!
Golden light gleamed from Daeha’s eyes, bathing his staff in gold.
Kwaaaaang—!
The conqueror of this age.
Such majestic power!
The staff struck the ground.
[Daeha uses ultimate technique: Twin Dragon Barrage.]
[Two elements strike the target. On hit, inflicts powerful status ailments accordingly.]
Kwaaaaaaaa—!
Two dragons entwined and lunged at Kang Seol.
Seolhong sat right behind Kang Seol in the stands.
Everyone around her tried to flee.
“Uwaaaah!”
“D-Danger…!”
Seolhong should have fled, too.
If Kang Seol failed to block, the stands would be swept away.
But she didn’t budge an inch.
Because her dragonstone was fighting there right now.
At that moment, Kang Seol assumed a strange stance.
He lowered his body, gripped his sword with both hands, and let it hang down.
Hwaaaaang—!
[Moonlight Ascension Stage 3: Enters Full Moon.]
A blue light erupted from Kang Seol’s body.
At the same instant, he slashed his sword upward from below.
An ordinary motion.
But what followed was shocking.
Seolhong, in particular, had a vivid view of Kang Seol’s movement. Black energy spread along the sword’s path.
As if space itself tore open, spilling the night sky.
[Ultimate technique: Night Sea activated.]
Chwaaaaaak—!
The two dragons didn’t just split in half from Kang Seol’s single stroke—they were caught in the black energy and hurled back at Daeha.
The moment they cleaved apart, Daeha sensed the fight’s end.
Death.
“No! No, Daeha!”
“…Lord Seong. Forgive me…”
Kwak Seong shot to his feet and shouted.
He couldn’t help recalling the nightmare of the day he lost Daesan.
Today’s weather was eerily similar, too.
Kwak Seong realized it then.
Why he could never be satisfied.
Why a man who didn’t dream of lost fortunes after the fact now suffered nightmares since that day.
Why he kept yearning for something more.
Why his chest felt so hollow.
‘Now you’ll take Daeha from my arms, too!’
Because he had lost his son, Daesan.
How could a parent who lost a child ever find peace? They’d live with a hole in their heart forever.
Kwak Seong finally understood.
In that instant, the black wave’s trajectory reversed.
Kikikikikikik—!
Chwaaak—!
A bizarre sound came from Kang Seol’s arm, and blood sprayed.
Ududuk!
Hwaaaak—!
The black energy veered from Daeha, shooting skyward instead.
Kwaaaaaaaaaaa—!
The dragons rode the wave into the heavens.
Even the relentless rain halted for a moment from the impact.
“……”
“My God…”
“What did we just see?”
The crowd froze in stunned awe.
Kwak Seong rose and shouted.
“I admit defeat! I concede!”
“……”
“……”
“So please… don’t kill Daeha… don’t kill Daeha…”
The arena fell silent.
Kwak Seong was the only one shouting.
Everyone held their breath to hear him clearly.
Even the announcer forgot his role, clamping his mouth shut. In that moment, Kwak Seong groaned.
“O Khan… why must you strip me of everything?”
Everyone felt the truth, the sorrow in his voice.
“Daesan… he wasn’t my gladiator… he was my, my…”
With the rain, his tears fell to the ground.
“…son.”
At that moment, Seolhong stood and cried out.
“Lord Kwak Seong!”
“……”
“We have won the blood match by the slimmest margin.”
Whooo…
In an instant, the announcers’ small clouds drifted to Seolhong and Kwak Seong. They amplified voices.
With the gladiators’ fight over, their patrons now took center stage.
“W-Wait, that woman’s Kang Seol’s owner?”
“She looks way younger than him…”
“Who is she anyway? Never seen her in Yocheon before…”
As the crowd buzzed about Seolhong’s identity, she revealed it.
“I am Seolhong of the Dragonflower clan, descendant of the great Dragon Emperor.”
“Dragonflower?”
“My God! Why’s a Dragonflower here?”
“Is it because of the dragon strife?”
“Ah! So Kang Seol’s her dragonstone?”
“Dragonflower—watch your mouth!”
Kwak Seong ignored the murmurs and asked Seolhong politely.
“…Seolhong, I concede defeat. Your blade stood alone in a warrior’s heart and conquered it. Now, speak your desire. Do you claim the warrior’s heart?”
No one who produced a conqueror had ever passed on the warrior’s heart.
Nothing else the arena master could offer matched its value.
‘…It’s all over.’
Relief that Daeha lived mingled with hollow resignation in Kwak Seong.
He looked up at Daeha.
Daeha met his eyes.
A faint smile—contentment.
‘That’s enough, then…’
Kwak Seong had never once raged at Daesan or Daeha for losing.
He’d wondered how he’d react, since they never had lost.
But now, no anger—just relief they survived.
Swoosh…
Kwak Seong turned to Seolhong.
Like every Dragonflower before, she would surely take the warrior’s heart from him.
Just as Khan had taken Daesan.
But Seolhong began differently than expected.
“What I desire is no material thing like the warrior’s heart.”
“What?”
“…What’d she say?”
The crowd murmured, but her compelling words gradually hushed them.
She continued.
“We live chained by hatred and regret. You and my homeland of Khan are no different. Long ago, Daesan lost his life due to Khan’s failings.”
“……”
“We sought to convey our sincerity your way. I deemed this the best method, foolish as I am. My sole wish: do not doubt my heart.”
“What nonsense is this… what are you saying?!”
As Kwak Seong shouted, Seolhong bowed her head.
An odd posture for a victor.
“Long ago, on Khan’s behalf, I apologize for Daesan’s death and beg forgiveness.”
“……”
“……”
The crowd went utterly still at Seolhong’s words, then turned to Kwak Seong.
“…You planned this from the start.”
“My wish as victor is this alone.”
All eyes fixed on Kwak Seong’s response.
No one could imagine Seolhong forgoing the warrior’s heart, let alone do it.
She’d shown Khan’s might, and Khan’s mercy. Kang Seol’s unprecedented dragonstone made it possible.
Arrogant at first glance, yet utterly unlike past Dragonflowers.
The crowd held their breath, waiting.
Refusing the apology would tarnish Daesan, the warrior’s heart conqueror.
His life as conqueror.
As his guardian—no, as his father—he couldn’t choose that path.
A masterful checkmate.
“Puheheh… You got me good.”
Kwak Seong said.
In his own way, he yielded to the outcome.
He bowed his head in answer.
“The victor is always just. I’ll do my utmost for your wish. I, Kwak Seong, accept your sincerity—and Khan’s apology.”
“Waaaaaaaaah!”
The stands erupted at Kwak Seong’s words.
Today delivered the ultimate match and spectacle.
A historic moment etched into the warrior’s heart forever.
Waaaaaaaah…
Kwak Seong watched Daeha retreat through the rain.
“…Daesan, are you listening? We’ve all let you go.”
Daesan left on a rainy day; they sent him off on a rainy day.
Kang Seol’s eyes, still in place, met Kwak Seong’s.
“…Farewell, my son.”
A single banner didn’t carry just one meaning.
If you have words to say, take up arms.
Realize your desires.
They won’t be tested for truth.
So…
If you have words to say, take up arms.