The Child of a Friend
The reason I had come to see Sagong Rin in person was simple.
I wasn't quite comfortable leaving it entirely to Sagong Cheon.
That was because this treatment had one particular complication.
Even if I had obtained the Under-the-Moon Four Yin Herb, feeding it to her recklessly could disperse its energy or make it clash with the Yang energy inside her body and injure the child.
That meant someone had to stand by her side and guide the flow of energy with qi guidance.
I had heard that Sagong Rin had learned the basics of the Samjae Simgong from Sagong Cheon when she was little, enough to handle qi at a rudimentary level….
If I simply led the way for her, she should be able to control the energy of the Under-the-Moon Four Yin Herb.
"Are you my daddy's friend?"
Sagong Rin asked, her big eyes shining.
At that, her mother, Ye Ha-eun, went pale with shock.
She knew who I was, so that reaction was only natural.
"M-my apologies, Young Lord. Rin-ah. This is Young Master Jin Muyeol, the Young Lord of the Northern Heavenly Sword Sect…."
"No, she's right. I am your father's friend."
I cut in, smiling lightly at Ye Ha-eun.
It wasn't even all that wrong.
If Sagong Cheon and I weren't friends, then who was?
"So I've come here at your father's request. To fix your constitution, Rin."
"Fix my constitution?"
"That's right. You've suffered from fevers again and again until now, haven't you? After today, that won't happen anymore."
"Really?"
"Really. I promise."
I gave her an easy smile as she asked, barely able to contain her excitement.
As I remembered it, that child hadn't lived very long in my previous life.
She hadn't been able to overcome her constitution and died young, before she even reached twenty.
But this time would be different.
I sincerely wanted Sagong Rin, the daughter of my friend, to live in happiness until she grew old.
"Madame Ye. I'll begin treating Rin's constitution now. Please make sure no one disturbs us."
"Y-Young Lord. Can this really cure Rin-ah's body?"
"Of course. Trust me and leave it to me."
I answered with confidence.
I had always been sure of my control over qi, and if things went wrong, I could protect the child with the Vajrayaksha Divine Art.
In the end, Ye Ha-eun nodded with a resolute expression.
"I'll trust you, Young Lord."
The root of that trust was probably Sagong Cheon.
Because he trusted me so deeply, Ye Ha-eun trusted me too.
I sat Sagong Rin down inside the room and said to her,
"Rin-ah. From now on, move your qi exactly as I guide it. You can do that, can't you?"
"Yes. I'll do my best."
Sagong Rin seemed to understand that this was important, because she nodded with a slightly stiff face.
Woooong.
The Geumgangyachagi pulsed.
A warm, golden energy seeped into Sagong Rin's body.
Once inside, it settled in place to protect her meridians.
Thankfully, there's almost no rejection.
That was only natural. It was a pure martial art of Buddhist origin.
I had Sagong Rin swallow the Under-the-Moon Four Yin Herb I had prepared in advance.
The moment she did, a cold energy began to stir inside her.
I carefully guided my Geumgangyachagi so that the chill wouldn't harm her body.
Sagong Rin truly had talent.
Following my qi guidance, she managed to control the herb's energy properly.
One circulation.
Two circulations.
Then three….
As we continued cycling her internal energy, the power of the Under-the-Moon Four Yin Herb completely settled inside the child's body.
"Huff… huff… haa…."
Sagong Rin breathed hard, clearly exhausted.
I asked her gently,
"Are you all right?"
"I-I'm okay. But I'm a little sleepy…."
"Then go to sleep. While you rest, the energies in your body will come into perfect harmony."
"Okay…."
Apparently she couldn't hold on any longer, because Sagong Rin's eyes slowly drifted shut.
I spread the bedding for her and laid her down carefully.
After that, I called in Ye Ha-eun, who had been waiting outside in anxious suspense.
"Madame Ye. The treatment is finished. Rin's constitution should be corrected now."
"Ah… Young Lord, I don't even know how I could ever repay this kindness…!"
Tears spilled freely from Ye Ha-eun's eyes.
I answered her with a faint smile.
"I told you, didn't I? I've received a great deal of help from Escort Sagong. Compared to what he's done for me, this is only a small thing."
Of course, the Sagong Cheon of the present hadn't actually done all that much for me yet.
We hadn't known each other very long.
But the Sagong Cheon of the past had helped me many times.
So I was repaying that debt now, while I could.
"Young Lord. Even so, I can't simply let this pass. Please wait just a moment."
With a determined look, Ye Ha-eun hurried off somewhere.
A little while later, she returned with a tag engraved with the name Ye Ha-eun.
"Madame. This is…?"
"My personal token. Of course, I'm not a martial artist, so by itself it may be useless…."
Then, with a serious face, she said,
"But if you show it to my younger brother and explain the situation, he will surely lend you his strength, Young Lord."
"Your younger brother is a martial artist?"
This was news to me.
In my past life, Sagong Cheon had rarely spoken about his wife's family.
Ye Ha-eun nodded.
"Yes. Have you heard of the Soft-Smiling Sword, Ye So-ha?"
"You're his elder sister?"
I looked at her in surprise.
Soft-Smiling Sword Ye So-ha.
He was a master of the Transcendent Realm whose name was known throughout the Hebei region.
If memory served, people feared him because he always wore a gentle smile while cutting down his enemies.
And yet a man like that was family to Ye Ha-eun.
That was unexpected.
"That child has wandered the Central Plains searching for a way to cure his niece Rin-ah's body. If he learns that you helped her like this, Young Lord, he'll surely want to express his gratitude."
"Then thanks to you, I've been given the chance to forge a valuable connection. Thank you, Madame."
"No, I'm the one who should be thanking you. Honestly, I don't even know how I could repay this."
"There's no need to repay me. Looking after my people is only natural. If any other problem comes up, please let me know."
With that, I rose from my seat.
Ye Ha-eun urged me to at least stay for a meal, but I declined.
There was no grand reason for it. I'd already spent quite a bit of time here.
And with work piling up, I had no time to rest.
"Then I'll visit again another time."
"Please go safely."
Ye Ha-eun bowed deeply.
I returned her farewell and headed back to my office.
Some time later, Sagong Cheon returned from giving his report to the Head of the Elders' Council.
"Young Lord."
The skin around his eyes was red, as if he had been crying.
The moment he saw me, Sagong Cheon dropped to his knees and bowed.
I was so startled that I immediately hauled him back up.
"Good man, what's this all of a sudden?"
"I checked on Rin-ah's condition. Her Yin and Yang energies truly are in harmony now, balanced perfectly."
"Of course they are. I'm the one who made it that way."
"Young Lord, you are nothing less than the benefactor of my family. I wanted to express my heart, if only in this way."
"Don't do that again. Knees aren't something you bend lightly."
I smiled and patted him on the shoulder.
"Understood. I will never kneel before anyone except you, Young Lord."
"I just told you not to kneel to me either. More importantly, did things go well with the Head of the Elders' Council?"
"Yes. I have something to report regarding that."
"Mm. Go on."
"It seems the Head of the Elders' Council is planning to poison you, Young Lord."
"Is that so?"
Perhaps my calm tone caught him off guard.
Sagong Cheon hesitated before asking,
"Shouldn't we prepare some sort of countermeasure? You could start buying food outside instead, or perhaps I could cook for you myself…."
"Are you any good at cooking? I'd like to try something you've made."
"At home, I often help my wife with it."
"Really? Then I'll have to taste it someday. But there is no need to prepare any special countermeasure."
"Why not?"
"Because I already have my own method."
The power of the Vajrayaksha Divine Art strengthened both body and spirit.
It toughened the bones and muscles, naturally, but it also heightened resistance to poison and vile energies.
To someone like me, ordinary poison wouldn't work.
And besides, I have theJeonghwagyeol.
Any poison the Vajrayaksha Divine Art failed to filter out, I could simply expel with that.
In fact, I had already been purifying my body every night.
When I explained that, Sagong Cheon's jaw fell open.
"Y-Young Lord… so you had already prepared for everything."
"I don't intend to be pushed around until I die ever again. I can't live like that a second time."
"Pardon?"
"It's nothing. Is that all you had to report?"
"Ah, there is one more thing."
I tilted my head.
"What is it?"
"The moment I learned that you had healed my daughter, it felt as though something blocked inside my head had suddenly cleared. If I had to put it into words… it was like my heart demon vanished."
"And then?"
"After that… suddenly, I became capable of this."
Sagong Cheon stepped back a little and drew his sword.
A vivid aura wrapped around the blade.
"Hah."
A disbelieving laugh escaped me.
Judging by its density, it was most certainly not mere Sword Qi.
"Sword Gang…."
"Of course, I still can't maintain it for long. At best, it vanishes after the span of a few blinks."
"Even that is tremendous. Simply being able to use Sword Gang means you've already stepped into the threshold of the Transcendent Realm."
I had always known Sagong Cheon was talented, but I hadn't expected him to reach the Transcendent Realm years earlier than he had in the original course of events.
Was this the effect of my intervention?
Whatever the reason, it was good news for me.
My most loyal escort had just become stronger.
"I can't afford to fall behind either."
"If it's you, Young Lord, you'll surpass my level in no time at all."
I smiled at Sagong Cheon's words.
Because I knew it wasn't mere flattery.
At this rate, I'll become far stronger far faster than I did in my first life.
I might even reach the level I attained back then within a single year.
The real issue came after that, of course.
But I was confident.
Right now, I'm in a better position than I was in every respect during my first life. If I find the right trigger, I'll rise to the next realm quickly enough as well.
Of course, that would require training brutal enough to grind away bone and flesh.
But I had already resolved myself to that from the moment I returned to the past.
It didn't trouble me in the least.
In any case…
Now that Sagong Cheon's problem has been resolved, shall I move on to the next step?
After a brief moment of thought, I said,
"Escort Sagong. Would you care to go out with me for a while?"
"Yes. I'll prepare at once. But where do you intend to go?"
"Somewhere a fair distance away. It'll take a few days. There's someone I intend to meet."
"Meet someone?"
"You've probably heard of him too."
I curled the corner of my mouth into a grin.
"Blue-Eyed Sword Demon Moyong Hyeon-rak."
"…!"
"We're going to meet him."