Chapter 262
Chapter 262
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 262
>Chapter Title: Into the Painting's Past
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“Mia…”
Yushin let out a troubled sigh.
“She’s not in a condition to meet anyone right now. Especially not someone she doesn’t even know, like you.”
Kang Seol nodded in easy acceptance, surprisingly enough.
‘Well, that makes sense for Mia.’
Mia was full of wariness, so she hardly ever interacted with outsiders.
She was a woman who had opened her heart to only one person in her life.
The fact that she not only knew Yushin but had even visited him recently felt strangely out of character.
But that didn’t mean he could give up.
“Could I at least talk to her?”
“If it’s something that might harm Mia, I wouldn’t recommend it.”
“Hmm…”
Yushin had seemed like such a kind person while watching over the children, but now he came across as utterly cold.
Still, Kang Seol couldn’t judge him harshly for the change.
The Eternal Eye Clan had dwindled in numbers compared to their glorious past. Their caution was only natural.
Just then, as Kang Seol pondered what to do next, Seolhong stepped forward.
“Yushin, Kang Seol isn’t a bad person.”
“How can I trust that? Mia is…”
“Trust me.”
“……”
“If you can’t trust him, then trust me.”
Seolhong pleaded earnestly with her eyes fixed on Yushin.
“Will you do that for me?”
Yushin glanced back and forth between Kang Seol and Seolhong.
Haa…
Finally, he sighed and replied.
“Tomorrow, I’ll bring Mia to the spot where you parked your carriage today. She’ll probably resist meeting you… but if she’s someone you trust, Seolhong, maybe it’ll do her some good. Mia’s in a situation where she could use some help right now.”
“Wait, the carriage? You know where ours is?”
“Yeah, there was a bit of a commotion earlier. I passed along that it was your carriage, Seolhong, so no other issues arose.”
If it hadn’t been Seolhong’s carriage, they might have run into serious trouble.
Kang Seol had momentarily forgotten this was Goblin Street. Some thugs had probably tried to ransack it.
‘From now on, one of us should stay with the carriage.’
Assuming they’d have another chance to come back.
In any case, Seolhong’s group had successfully secured the promise and promptly left Goblin Street. No one dared interfere, perhaps because word had spread that they were Yushin’s guests.
Kkiiik…
Upon reaching the carriage, the coachman poured out his grievances.
“Lady Seolhong, that was dangerous. Whew, these vicious thugs started shaking the carriage and threatening me—I didn’t know what to do…”
It was just as he’d suspected.
“I heard. Let’s get out of here first.”
“Oh! I’ve been waiting to hear that!”
The coachman clearly wanted to escape this foul-smelling, dangerous street as quickly as possible.
Seolhong asked,
“But why do you want to meet this Mia? From what I’ve heard, she’s a woman.”
Seolhong had stepped up to help Kang Seol without knowing his reasons for seeking Mia.
Some might call it irresponsible, but it also showed just how much she trusted him.
“Mia is a special person. There’s something I need to confirm with her.”
“Is it important?”
Kang Seol nodded.
“Very important.”
* * *
The next day, the carriage returned to the same spot.
The only difference from yesterday was that everyone waited outside for someone.
Soon, the people they’d been expecting appeared.
A man and a woman, both wearing deep hoods over their robes and eyepatches over their eyes.
Kang Seol couldn’t tear his gaze away from the woman.
‘…Mia?’
The reason Kang Seol was so shocked was that Mia looked nothing like the image he remembered.
“W-who… who wanted to see me? I-I really didn’t want to come…”
Mia stuttered, looking utterly deflated.
- Hye-myeong! Look at that, pretty, right?
- What am I supposed to look at? Where? What’s there?
- It’s nothing, just stars!
- Stars, huh, stars!
The Mia Kang Seol knew had been far more lively and bright than this.
“I-I wanna go back.”
“Mia, you’ve come this far. At least talk to them.”
“No. It’s definitely…”
Mia hung her head low.
“They want me to draw a picture…”
Picture.
At that word, Chiwu and Seolhong’s eyes filled with confusion. What could a painting possibly have to do with making a woman tremble in fear?
Yushin glanced at Kang Seol.
“You want Mia to draw a picture?”
Kang Seol shook his head.
“No.”
Yushin smiled faintly and turned to Mia.
“Did you hear that, Mia? He says he doesn’t want you to draw anything.”
“R-really?”
Mia looked up at Kang Seol.
“Yes.”
“Then… talking is okay.”
Kang Seol convinced the group that he needed to speak with Mia alone.
Seolhong and Chiwu, who trusted him, agreed immediately, but Yushin didn’t.
More precisely, Mia refused.
“S-stay with me. Yushin.”
“Mia?”
“I’m… scared alone.”
Yushin looked at Kang Seol with a gesture that said, *What now?*
Kang Seol nodded in response.
“It’s fine.”
Kkiiik…
Kang Seol boarded the carriage, sitting across from Yushin and Mia. Given Mia’s fragile state, the conversation would have to be led by Kang Seol and Yushin.
“I’ll get straight to the point. How do you know Mia?”
“I-I don’t draw pictures anymore… I can’t…”
Mia kept mumbling about not being able to draw. She looked completely like a shut-in.
Kang Seol chose his words carefully.
“I’m looking for the Wilderness Spirit.”
Flinch…
In that instant, Mia’s clouded mind cleared as if struck by lightning.
“The Wilderness Spirit…?”
“Yes, the Wilderness Spirit.”
“…Mia?”
Yushin noticed the sudden change in her. What she said next was shocking.
“Yushin, could you step out?”
“…You sure?”
“Yes, please go.”
“Uh… okay.”
As if her entire demeanor had been an act, the moment Yushin exited the carriage, Mia spoke.
“Looking for the Wilderness Spirit from me…?”
“I judged that I could find out its whereabouts from you.”
“Why?”
“Because I know.”
“……”
“I know that he handed the Wilderness Spirit to you last.”
“How… how do you know that? Did you… meet him?”
“…Yes.”
- Who’s this guy?
- That phrasing again!
- Tell us plebs some info too!
- I want his brain implanted with that knowledge…
“Where is he now?”
“He left very far away.”
“……As expected. Did he achieve what he wanted?”
“I don’t know that much.”
No, he did know.
But he couldn’t say that.
“Hye-myeong… Did that man tell you about the Wilderness Spirit?”
“I can’t say that far.”
“Fine… But it’s too late.”
- Who’s Hye-myeong?
- No idea, probably tied to some big shot again.
- Why do they all freak out just from hearing a name lololol
Rustle…
Mia pulled something from her bosom.
An orb the size of an egg.
“No way, this is…”
“Yes, it’s the Wilderness Spirit that Hye-myeong left behind. But as you can see…”
The Wilderness Spirit had lost its power.
The once-shining form was now dulled and decayed.
“Why did it end up like th… I get the gist.”
“You know more than I expected.”
Kang Seol twisted his lips bitterly.
‘He used it once back then and exhausted all its power.’
Hye-myeong had unleashed a miraculous feat with this Wilderness Spirit just once.
“After he left, the Wilderness Spirit lost its power. Just like… me right now.”
“…Mia? Lost its power…?”
Mia possessed far greater strength than other Eternal Eye clansmen. In fact, one might wonder if any among them surpassed her.
‘But she lost that power?’
Mia could draw special paintings.
“I can’t draw anymore… That act earlier was partly intentional, but I really can’t draw them now.”
“Is it your hand?”
“No. Even if I draw, I can’t create those special paintings anymore. My power is gone.”
“…I see. Were you pretending to be a shut-in because someone might be looking for you?”
“I’ve been through some close calls… but luckily, they brought disaster on themselves and vanished. Still, old habits from that time die hard.”
Kang Seol mulled over the conversation for a moment before sighing.
‘In the end, it won’t be easy.’
Just like everything else lately, this was falling apart too, as if scripted. This time was no different.
“Whew… Looks like I’ll have to give up on the Wilderness Spirit. Nice meeting you.”
“W-wait…”
“……”
“What kind of life… did Hye-myeong live after leaving me…?”
This much, at least, Kang Seol could tell her honestly.
“He walked on silently, without a word.”
“…That sounds like him.”
“Then…”
“Actually…”
Mia revealed what she’d been hiding.
“Actually, there’s still one painting left.”
“…What?”
“There’s still one painting left that Hye-myeong and I made.”
“…My god.”
Mia said to Kang Seol,
“I’ll give you that painting, so will you grant me one request?”
* * *
Two days had passed since Kang Seol made contact with Mia. He had already explained the future plans to Seolhong and Chiwu on the day they met.
“Is that really true?”
“Yes, I think it’s worth the adventure.”
“You’re not wrong, but to think such power exists in this world… I can’t believe it.”
“Exactly! Does that even make sense?”
“What will you do, Lady Seolhong?”
“……”
In the end, they decided to proceed with the next trial according to Kang Seol’s suggestion.
The unusual part was that Chiwu had decided to join the schedule as well.
The reason was simple.
“It sounds fun!”
From Kang Seol and Seolhong’s perspective, there was no reason to refuse. Chiwu’s help would make things much easier.
On the second day, they arrived at Mia’s hideout. A shabby wooden house deep in the wild mountains.
“Hmm… Smells like paper everywhere.”
“Yeah…”
Kang Seol nodded in agreement with their words.
If it smelled like paper, they were in the right place.
Knock knock…
Kkiiik…
“You’re here… I’ve been waiting. Let’s begin.”
Mia hurriedly prepared something.
With Kang Seol and Chiwu’s help, most of the furnishings inside the house were moved outside.
Only then did the stacks of scrolls crammed into the storage space become visible.
“This is the painting I mentioned.”
“…It’s genuine.”
A painting unfolded, showing Hye-myeong smiling in monk’s robes, though his hair wasn’t shaved short.
Chiwu and Seolhong’s expressions turned strange.
“This painting… no, this guy looks familiar…”
“Feels like a famous person… really famous…”
Ignoring them, Mia continued with her instructions.
“There are a few precautions. First…”
Mia carefully explained to Kang Seol’s group what would happen next.
Chiwu’s mouth gaped wider with every detail.
“This is really going to happen?”
“Get ready. Everyone, join hands.”
“Is Mia not coming?”
“I can’t exist there. There’s already a me there.”
“…Understood.”
Kang Seol stood in the center, gripping Chiwu and Seolhong’s hands tightly. Letting go could lead to disaster.
“Then, here we go.”
Swoooo…
A strange energy emanated from Mia.
No, precisely from the painting in her hands.
“Reveal the true face of the world overlaid with pigments, allowing us to face the world beyond the paper.”
Flarararak-!
The surrounding scrolls fluttered wildly.
It felt like wind was blowing from somewhere.
In that moment.
Shwaaaaaaaa-!
Light burst from the scroll in Mia’s hands, engulfing Kang Seol’s group.
Kuuuung-!
A jolt like falling from a great height.
Birdsong echoed from somewhere.
“Urgh… What? Did it fail?”
“Doesn’t seem like it.”
Kang Seol pointed to the scenery before them.
A vast highland stretched out, grass swaying in the wind, filling their chests with openness.
“Huh? This place…”
Then, Seolhong pointed somewhere.
“Kang Seol. Could that be who we’re supposed to find…?”
Her finger stretched toward a distant man and woman.
“Are those them?”
“…Seems like it.”
Kang Seol had been hoping for this deep down.
This moment was something he’d expected much later, now happening right before his eyes.
It might be an early encounter.
“…Huh?”
A man in monk’s robes and a girl in an eyepatch, painting.
They eyed Kang Seol’s approaching group warily.
The monk in particular was outright hostile.
“Who are you? Where did you come from?”
“……”
“I said, who are you! If you don’t answer…”
Kang Seol was at a loss for words.
Before him stood a sturdy young monk gripping a long staff, poised to thrust at any moment.
The ten horses he had raised, pursuing ultimate strength.
One of them.
Though incomplete now, destined to be called Great Virtue someday—the defrocked monk Hye-myeong stood right in front of Kang Seol.
“I said, who are you!”
Was he his master, or another self?
[You have obtained additional information for the hidden adventure ‘Wilderness Spirit.’]
[A sudden adventure ‘Wilderness Spirit’ has occurred.]
[This adventure is extremely dangerous.]
……
Chiwu, standing beside Kang Seol, gaped in shock.
“Does… this make sense?”
The reason for Chiwu’s astonishment was the little girl hiding behind Hye-myeong.
A girl even younger than Seolhong, not yet fully grown.
Strangers at first glance, yet instantly recognizable.
“Hye-myeong… who’s that?”
It was Mia.
Mia as a child.
A time when young Mia and incomplete Hye-myeong existed.
The group had entered Mia’s painting.
[A bizarre power has triggered the sudden adventure ‘Those Days Back Then.’]
[This adventure is extremely dangerous.]
……