Learning Mugong (5)
Nom nom. The sweet chocolate coating melts in my mouth. Thanks to the mart clerk stuffing the bag full, there's way more than I expected.
"Hey, Heukryeon, want one?"
I held out a Pepero toward Heukryeon beside me.
She glanced at the snack in my hand for a moment, then shook her head.
"I appreciate the kind offer, but I am a spiritual being. I have no need for food."
"It's too much for me to eat alone."
"...If you insist so strongly."
Heukryeon carefully took the Pepero. Her delicate lips parted slightly, and half of it slipped into her mouth.
Crunch.
As she chewed and swallowed, Heukryeon's golden eyes widened just a fraction for an instant.
"...It's delicious."
"Right?"
I grinned a little, watching her quiet admiration. Even a spirit-like entity bound to mugong falls for the pinnacle of modern capitalism's sweetness. No wonder—no one's immune to chocolate flavor.
But what if it was mint chocolate?
Would she still eat it like that? A mischievous thought crossed my mind, but I shook my head.
"By the way, why did that mart clerk suddenly give me all these snacks...?"
Handing them over like that, even dipping into his own pocket. I couldn't figure out what was going through his head.
"Ah! Maybe."
A sudden idea hit me.
"Since I learned the Nongcheonma Shingong, maybe my body unconsciously exudes the dignity of the Heavenly Demon...?"
Could he have sensed my hidden strength, gotten intimidated, and offered these as tribute? That would explain why he was tearing up. Overwhelmed by the Heavenly Demon's presence.
Is this the true bearing of the Heavenly Demon?
I puffed up my shoulders a bit.
"Hmm... Well. To my eyes, it looked more like he was pitying the poor girl."
"Huh?"
"It's nothing. And please remember—I'm invisible to others."
Heukryeon covered her mouth with her sleeve and smiled faintly.
What does that mean?
Just as I was about to ask, "Ah, there it is."
Our destination came into view.
Of course, this is the only spot.
The place I'd arrived at was about a ten-minute walk from my studio apartment. An abandoned building site, devoid of any human presence.
A gloomy space where not a soul was in sight, even in the morning. Heukryeon looked around and tilted her head.
"The area has been utterly devastated. What on earth happened here?"
As Heukryeon said, the surroundings felt strangely out of place. It looked like it had been hit by a missile strike. About two-thirds of the commercial buildings had collapsed into rubble. The ground was cracked in places, and charred concrete debris lay scattered grotesquely.
"About half a year ago, monsters poured out from a gate nearby."
"The work of those mana beasts, then."
"The monsters rampaged, yeah."
I continued.
"But hunters rushed in to take them down. There were some mages too. They went around blasting AoE spells everywhere, so they killed the mobs and wrecked the buildings in the process."
In the end, the monsters' destruction plus the hunters' firepower turned the whole area to shit.
Well, the shop owners got insurance payouts, so they're fine, I guess.
Regardless, reconstruction had been delayed indefinitely due to budget issues and left to rot.
"Thanks to that, I could sign a cheap lease on my studio."
I only learned about it after moving in. No wonder the rent was so low.
"People avoid places with big incidents nearby. Bad luck and all."
Of course, I didn't care. I didn't have the money to be picky anyway.
Point is, with everyone steering clear, it was perfect for practicing mugong.
"Understood. In that case... that spot over there should do nicely."
The middle of a fairly wide open clearing amid the cleared rubble. Heukryeon turned to me and spoke.
"Before we begin proper training, I have a question. Have you ever learned any martial arts before?"
Martial arts. I shook my head.
I went to a taekwondo dojo as a kid for a bit... but all I remember are the tteokbokki parties every time my belt color changed.
"Ah, but I've watched some MMA fights...?"
Heukryeon nodded lightly at my answer.
"A complete beginner, then. For now, pick a weapon from what you bought that appeals to you."
From the mart, I'd gotten a short staff and a practice wooden sword. I grabbed the wooden sword without hesitation.
Sword it is.
Swords are the classic weapon. And I've seen them the most in media. Better than puzzling out how to use a staff.
"Grip that sword and swing it however feels natural. Imagine an enemy in front of you that you need to cut down."
Heukryeon stepped back and said.
I gripped the wooden sword with both hands.
"........."
The feel of the sword in my hands was awkward as hell. Obviously. I'd never seriously held a wooden sword before.
I got into a rough stance and swung at the air.
"Hya!"
Whoosh-!
Swish-!
Even to me, it looked less like swordplay and more like baseball practice. Just wild flailing.
"Whoa."
My feet even tangled. With this smaller body, keeping my balance was tricky.
After a few clumsy swings like that—
Huh?
Suddenly, a strange sensation from my body. Like remembering something forgotten, the basics of handling a sword started coming back to me.
My sloppy footwork widened to a proper stance. The unnecessary tension in my shoulders melted away. The dull whooshes cutting the air sharpened into a piercing shing!
"Your grip has stabilized nicely."
As I stopped, Heukryeon approached with a faint smile.
"It's because you've learned the Cheonma Shingong."
She added calmly.
"It's still immature, but since you've taken in the world's greatest martial art, your body instinctively assumes the basic forms."
Heukryeon scanned my posture.
"Of course, applying this foundation in real combat is another matter entirely. But your starting point is on a whole different level from others."
So my body unconsciously absorbed the basics.
Huge win, having a solid foundation.
But.
"I don't get anything else."
"What do you mean by 'anything else'?"
"I definitely learned the Cheonma Shingong, and my body reacts... but nothing comes to mind clearly."
That was the issue.
"It feels like something's there, but... like a dream from a few days ago, super faint? I try to recall, but it just won't stick."
Shouldn't learning a skill cram forms and techniques into my head? But my mind was all foggy, like it was shrouded in mist.
"That's because the Cheonma Shingong is such a vast martial system."
Heukryeon looked at me.
"The Cheonma Shingong isn't just one art. It starts with heart methods for handling qi, then footwork, fist techniques, sword arts, spear methods...?"
"It's the comprehensive system encompassing all of the Demonic Cult's martial arts."
Heukryeon's golden eyes gleamed seriously.
"The content is inevitably immense. It's only natural that the memories don't fully surface right away."
I tilted my head.
What did that even mean?
"Your brain, as the Heavenly Demon, has activated a defense mechanism to protect itself."
Heukryeon warned in a quiet tone.
"If that vast information flooded in all at once... your body couldn't withstand it. Your brain would burn out, and you'd lose your sanity on the spot, turning into a madman."
Eek. My head going haywire? As expected of demonic arts. Way more terrifying than I thought.
"As you understand the principles and your body grows proficient, the fog will lift, and knowledge of higher arts will naturally emerge."
So the foggy memory was a safety feature. Made sense once explained, but one question lingered.
"But... the skillbook I got in the mail just looked like a normal, worn-out book."
It was decently thick, but not enough to hold brain-melting amounts of text.
Heukryeon let out a soft laugh.
"It merely took the form of a book. The words on the paper aren't everything."
So it was an info blob disguised as a book. First skillbook I'd seen, so new info.
In short, it's doing segmented downloads so my head doesn't explode. It'll unlock as my body gets stronger.
"Now that your questions are answered... shall we begin learning mugong in earnest?"
Finally, time to learn mugong. Imagining slashing sword qi everywhere made my heart race a bit.
"Of course. Sword arts first?"
But Heukryeon smiled faintly and asked something offbeat.
"When first encountering mugong and learning forms and stances, do you know what you learn first?"
A zen-koan kind of question. What comes first?
"Guess right, and I'll pretend I didn't see you sneaking your smartphone under the covers."
My pupils trembled. I thought she'd forgotten? She saw everything?
"Uh, well."
Anyway, for forms and stances, sword or fist arts seem key. Hand movements and such, I figured.
After pondering, I spoke up.
"Footwork. Maybe?"
At my short answer, Heukryeon's lips parted slightly.