The Fox Deity's Pride
The sight of the brown fox raising its head and puffing up its chest, convinced that Baek Hwaryeong was someone remarkable, stirred something deep within her heart. What was this? This small, adorable creature. It was fascinating that it could speak and wield Dosul, but what truly captured her interest was that the fox did not flee. Whether beast or divine spirit, any creature should have chosen to run the moment it laid eyes on her. Yet this tiny thing stood its ground, brimming with pride. Judging by the potent energy it radiated, it was no ordinary beast. If she asked for permission later, would she be allowed to pet it?
“Even if this seat is ignorant of worldly affairs, I am not so uninformed as to not know of you, Heavenly Demon.”
Oh dear. Having one's name spread so widely was troublesome in many ways. Baek Hwaryeong clicked her tongue lightly and studied the fox's face, which was filled with hostility. She had spent quite a long time detached from the secular world, thinking her face might have been forgotten by now, but it seemed the years she had lived were still insufficient compared to the weight of her deeds.
“You claim to have come as a guest to the very Mount Hua you once destroyed with your own hands. Do you expect me to believe such words?”
What to do? As she gazed at the fox through the smoke of her pipe, Baek Hwaryeong considered knocking it unconscious for convenience, but touching such a cute creature felt wrong. She decided to try persuasion first. If she caused trouble here and earned its hatred, she would lose any chance to pet it later.
“The reason this seat destroyed Mount Hua back then was purely for revenge. Now that those I sought to avenge are gone, what reason would I have to be hostile toward this place?”
“I cannot believe you.”
“Think about it. If this seat truly intended to destroy this place, would we be having this conversation?”
When Baek Hwaryeong subtly released her inner energy, the fox lowered its body and grew wary. The malevolent nature of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art was so fierce that even from a distance, it could be felt.
“Then answer me. Why have you come here?”
“Did I not say it already? I came as a guest. I heard that a child called Min-ga uses the Heavenly Demon Divine Art here, so I came to meet them.”
“Min-ga?”
“Yes. I wished to speak with the very child who brought down Mount Hua and crushed the Murim Alliance.”
The moment the name Min-ga was mentioned, the fox's wary demeanor noticeably softened.
“If that is the case, will you leave once you have met Min-ga?”
“That is my intention.”
Baek Hwaryeong had no plans to strike first, though she might consider sparring depending on the circumstances. If she did something like that, her disciple would surely be horrified. She did not want to bring more bad news to the child who was already displeased about being given responsibilities; it might cause him such distress that he would faint from worry. Though she might injure her disciple's bones and muscles, she had no desire to wound his heart.
“Min-ga is not at Mount Hua right now.”
“Then I shall wait.”
“Mount Hua has only recently been rebuilt, so we cannot offer proper hospitality to guests.”
“It is fine. I can simply smoke my pipe and watch the moon.”
After exchanging a few more words, the brown fox turned its gaze away from Baek Hwaryeong and leaped into the air. Smoke swirled around the fox, and when it cleared, a young girl with fox ears and a tail stood in its place. A transformation technique, perhaps. Baek Hwaryeong felt a pang of regret at the disappearance of the adorable fox, but this form was not bad either. The perky ears on her head and the swaying tail remained the same.
“Follow me.”
Baek Hwaryeong followed the fox up the stairs. Though she clearly heard the small child's footsteps ahead, there were no footsteps following behind.
“Fox. What sort of person do you think Min-ga is?”
While they walked, Baek Hwaryeong, growing bored, suddenly asked. Without stopping, the fox replied.
“An unpredictable human.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Kind yet cruel, foolish yet admirable. That is why the child is so entertaining.”
The answer was vague, but it was clear that the fox liked the child called Min-ga. Whenever the name was mentioned, the fox's tail would sway. It seemed the fellow called Min-ga had earned the fox's trust. How enviable. How wonderful it would be if this seat could also receive affection from such fluffy creatures.
Before long, the grounds of Mount Hua came into view. The gate separating the Hwasan Sect from the outside world, the various buildings beyond it, and even the ground itself—all were far more intact than Baek Hwaryeong had expected.
“How curious. I heard that when Mount Hua was destroyed, the grounds were reduced to dust. How is everything still standing?”
When Baek Hwaryeong voiced her question while surveying the grounds from the entrance, the fox answered nonchalantly.
“I restored it.”
“You did?”
Restoring things that had been turned to dust to their original state? Was such a thing even possible? Baek Hwaryeong had encountered and defeated many practitioners of Dosul in her time, but she had never seen anyone perform such a miracle. She had dismissed the fox as an ordinary Dosul practitioner because it seemed so defenseless, but it appeared she was mistaken.
As Baek Hwaryeong followed the fox across the grounds, she realized that this place preserved the exact appearance of the old Mount Hua. She had expected some changes since it had been rebuilt by someone who had mastered the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, but this was no different from simply reconstructing the destroyed sect. This seat had anticipated a more blasphemous sight, but this was rather disappointing. Perhaps that fellow Min-ga was more moderate than she had thought.
Just then, Baek Hwaryeong spotted a child practicing martial arts in the training ground. The technique the child was using was clearly one of the Hwasan Sect's arts. She remembered it was called the Hwasan Sword. The Hwasan martial artists used to boast that it was a sword that embodied Mount Hua itself. Baek Hwaryeong recalled their words.
“Fox, may I ask you something?”
“What is it?”
“Are you teaching the Hwasan Sect's martial arts here?”
“If not the Hwasan arts at Mount Hua, then what else would we teach?”
“Does that fellow Min-ga teach them personally?”
“Sometimes it is entrusted to others, but Min-ga also teaches.”
The Hwasan martial art the child was displaying was by no means crude. It was the result of proper guidance from someone. Though the child was still clumsy in handling the Hwasan arts, the one who had taught them had clearly achieved a considerable level of mastery in those techniques. To think that someone could wield the Heavenly Demon Divine Art at a level capable of destroying the Murim Alliance while also mastering the Hwasan arts to such an extent. Just what was the true identity of this person called Min-ga? At that level, it was not merely a matter of being exceptional among outsiders—it was a talent that would require searching the entire Murim to find a comparison.
“Baru-nim, who is this person?”
The child who had been focused on training seemed to notice Baek Hwaryeong's presence. Lowering the wooden sword, the child approached them.
“Oh? This person is...”
The moment their eyes met, Baek Hwaryeong saw the seed of fanaticism embedded in the child's gaze. It was so faint that it was difficult to notice at a glance, but it could not deceive her eyes. Having lived beside fanaticism, how could she not recognize it? However, what was strange was that this fanaticism was not directed toward her. The fanaticism had briefly brushed past Baek Hwaryeong before losing interest. The object of the child's devotion must be someone similar to her, yet different. Given that this child belonged to the Hwasan Sect and was repeating training with trembling hands late into the night, perhaps the one they believed in was that fellow Min-ga. To think that in all her life, this seat would encounter someone else who became the target of fanaticism. That fellow Min-ga must have quite the ordeal as well.
“Na-seol.”
“Yes.”
“Try contacting Min-ga. Tell them that someone looking for them has arrived, so they should return quickly.”
...So this child was also an outsider? An outsider fanatically devoted to another outsider? Was that even possible? Having not met many outsiders until now, Baek Hwaryeong found Na-seol fascinating. The path to the Heavenly Demon Cult was treacherous, and the cult itself was extremely closed off to outsiders. If the cult had actively accepted outsiders, could there have been outsiders among their followers as well?
“They should be on their way in now.”
“Did you contact them in advance?”
“Someone other than me did.”
“Hmm. Then it will not take long. When Min-ga arrives, guide the guest to the reception area.”
“Understood.”
After parting with the child called Na-seol and following the fox, Baek Hwaryeong arrived at a room where the moon floating in the sky was clearly visible. Beyond the wide-open door lay a garden with a small lake, the wall separating the mountain from the Hwasan Sect, and above it all, a night sky filled with stars and the moon guarding its center. It was a place with charm. Baek Hwaryeong had seen a place like this before. Though faded with time, it remained one of the unforgettable memories within her.
How strange. How could there be a place in this barren Mount Hua grounds that reminded her of the Ice Palace?
“Min-ga. Have you ever been to the Ice Palace?”
Baek Hwaryeong spoke while gazing at the lake. As if waiting for this moment, a voice answered from behind.
“I have, and I have not.”
“A contradictory answer.”
“Then what would you have me do? That is the truth.”
When the deliberately made footsteps to announce their presence reached her side, Baek Hwaryeong turned her head. Black hair tied halfway up, black eyes that gazed at the world with indifference, a black robe contrasting with pale white skin. Standing there was someone who resembled her endlessly. If this person had not been an outsider, she might have suspected that her mother or father had hidden a child away.
“Who are you?”
“The Min-ga you were looking for.”
“You know that is not what this seat asked.”
When Baek Hwaryeong questioned back, Min-ga let out a laugh and tapped the air. Recalling how her disciple had done something similar multiple times before, Baek Hwaryeong realized that the person called Min-ga was touching some kind of function.
“Do you wish for an answer from me?”
“Yes.”
“Since you were born and raised in the Heavenly Demon Cult, I believe you already know what answer I will give.”
Mentioning the cult in such a way carried only one meaning. A single principle that anyone from the Heavenly Demon Cult must always hold in their heart. The strong reign supreme.
“If you want an answer, you mean I must defeat you?”
“Yes.”
Baek Hwaryeong blinked at those words, then smiled and extinguished the flame in her pipe before tucking it away. The moment Min-ga extended a hand toward her, Baek Hwaryeong grasped it without the slightest hesitation.