A Brief Parting and Reunion
The twin sisters—Third Young Mistress Yeon Da-eun and Fourth Young Mistress Yeon Da-hye—had received answers to every question they had brought with them.
Second Young Mistress Yeon Seo-rin had answered each one with wholehearted care.
It was time to leave.
"…"
Yet for some reason their feet refused to move. The twins could feel their curiosity about their eldest brother, First Young Master Yeon So-hyeon, only growing stronger.
Yeon Seo-rin watched them finish their farewells and still stand rooted in place; a wry smile touched her lips.
"If you're that curious, why not just go see him yourselves?"
The sisters started, then shook their heads vigorously.
"G-go see Eldest Brother ourselves? That would look like we were taking his side."
"It's impossible. The Business Support Department has to maintain political neutrality no matter what."
Even children this young had to weigh political neutrality merely for the act of meeting their own brother. All they wanted was to see the blood kin they had nearly forgotten and learn how he fared—and even that was difficult. Once again Yeon Seo-rin felt a wave of revulsion for the family, a bitter taste rising in her throat.
"Hmm. From what you've told me, though, the scales in the Business Support Department already seem to be tipping toward the Second Young Master."
She kept every trace of that bitterness from her face and spoke only words of persuasion for the adorable younger sisters who so clearly wanted to see their eldest brother.
"That is…"
"It's plain that the Support Division has already colluded with the Second Young Master's faction."
"But if we—as Young Mistresses—start moving around, won't things get bigger?"
Yeon Seo-rin flashed her usual carefree smile and winked.
"Aren't you temporarily attached to the Support Division?" She leaned closer. "So if the two of you pay a visit to the Valley of Sin—which the Support Division is involved with—and meet the person in charge there, that wouldn't be strange at all."
"Oh!" the twins cried in unison.
"Th-that's true!"
Third Young Mistress Yeon Da-eun cleared her throat with an exaggerated, helpless air.
"Well, if that's the case, I suppose we have no choice."
"The Director of the Business Support Department would surely find such a reason perfectly natural."
Yeon Seo-rin's smile came from the heart. She reached out with one large hand and ruffled both girls' hair.
"Wh-what?!"
"Is this sudden violence?"
She withdrew her hand awkwardly and coughed.
"Ahem. My master will be back any moment. You should be gone before then."
The Guard Pavilion Master who had let them in without permission had been casting increasingly anxious glances from a distance for some time now; that alone was proof enough.
"Th-the Guard Pavilion Master?!"
Yeon Seo-rin's master was also the twins' aunt, yet merely hearing the name set them dancing from foot to foot.
"Th-then, Sister! I hope we can see you again soon!"
"Please take care of yourself…"
They hesitated a moment longer, then steeled themselves and took turns giving their second sister a quick, shy hug.
"…Thank you."
Yeon Seo-rin felt a sting at the bridge of her nose.
"You two have it hard because of useless adults like us."
The twins shook their heads.
"You're the one who's having a hard time, Sister."
"We're Yeons too, but among all those who call themselves the Yeon bloodline, there's not a single one we actually like."
Yeon Seo-rin's eyes widened.
"If those people ever harass you too much, don't think about the consequences—just beat every last one of them into the ground!"
"We'll back you up when that day comes."
It was a reference to the darkness that hung over the Yeon bloodline of the Luoyang Sword Family, and to the chains those same relatives had bound around Second Young Mistress Yeon Seo-rin. Yeon Seo-rin had thought the truth too heavy and dark for such small children to know. But then again, their cleverness has always been famous. At first she looked a little taken aback; then she gave a bitter smile.
"…You don't need to worry about me."
Any further mention would have felt like an insult to Heavenly Robe Without Seams herself, so the twins offered a polite farewell and turned away.
"…"
Third Young Mistress Yeon Da-eun had taken only a few steps when her feet stopped.
"Did some new question occur to you?"
Yeon Da-eun turned carefully to look at her sister. Fourth Young Mistress Yeon Da-hye had halted as well.
"Um, Sister…"
The face Yeon Da-eun showed Yeon Seo-rin looked fragile enough to shatter at a touch. She opened her mouth several times, then hesitated. Yeon Seo-rin never once pressed her; she simply waited with a gentle expression.
In the end it was Yeon Da-hye who spoke.
"…If Eldest Brother sees us, do you think he'll be glad?"
Yeon Seo-rin nodded—once, firmly, with every ounce of certainty she could put into the motion.
"Of course."
Only Yeon Seo-rin remained on the outdoor training ground.
The faces of the departing twins had been bright; their steps had grown so light they almost seemed to be using light-body technique as they raced away.
"…Cute little things."
They had been like a pair of tiny whirlwinds. Remembering them, Yeon Seo-rin let out a short laugh, then reached for the true sword she had set beside her.
An ancient longsword. No ornate fittings, no unusual shape—only pure practicality. The sole remarkable thing about it was how meticulously it had been maintained.
Yet anyone who knew its original owner would have been stunned, for despite its plain appearance it was one of the greatest famous swords under heaven.
"…Father."
It was the sword of the Grand Family Head. She pressed the hilt to her forehead and thought of the man who had been both father and master.
"…When will I ever reach that One Sword?"
Luoyang, the old city district.
The Mercy Hall branch that housed the headquarters of the Fairy Cult.
As always the place thronged with the poor seeking aid, yet the room where the man and woman waited was empty of traffic.
"Mmm…"
For some time the large man had been fussing with his clothes, straightening this and that.
"Aaagh! You're driving me crazy—just stand still for once…!"
The strikingly beautiful young woman kicked him hard in the shin. The blow carried internal qi and showed no mercy.
"Gah…!"
The big man hopped in place, clutching his shin with his one remaining hand. He would have liked nothing better than to rub the pain away with both hands, but misfortune had left him only one. Fortunately his long years of training meant the pain faded quickly.
"Y-you little brat. We're about to meet the First Young Master of the Sword Family—if we don't at least look presentable, do you think he'll take us seriously?"
The girl clicked her tongue.
"Idiot. That First Young Master is the one who runs this Mercy Hall. You think someone like him judges a person by their clothes?"
"Ah… well, you've got a point."
He scratched the back of his head, looking sheepish. She clicked her tongue again.
"…Ugh. And this is the guy stuck as my assistant."
He bristled.
"Partner, not assistant!"
"If I weren't such a generous young lady, do you think I'd have taken in a one-armed unemployed wreck like you?"
"If I weren't such a generous man, do you think I'd have partnered with a lunatic like you?"
They snarled at each other like natural enemies, but only for a moment. Occupational habit kicked in; both began scanning their surroundings.
"Something feels different from the Mercy Hall I know. Were the facilities always this good? Or is it just because this is the headquarters branch?"
The girl shook her head.
"No. I've been here before, and it wasn't this clean. This has definitely been renovated recently."
The Mercy Hall they remembered had always spent every spare coin helping one more beggar rather than repairing crumbling buildings. Yet the Mercy Hall before them now had been so thoroughly restored that the old cracks and collapses were almost impossible to find.
"And they haven't neglected the poor, either."
"If anything, the staff seems to have increased noticeably."
Not only the numbers— their clothes and medical equipment looked subtly better than before. The two reached the same conclusion almost at once.
"…So it's the influence of that First Young Master after all."
"Nothing else explains it."
Since ending his seclusion, the First Young Master of the Luoyang Sword Family had moved with such ferocious speed that his long silence now felt like a lie. The actions of a single day had already set rumors racing across all of Luoyang.
"…Just as the Master of Hyeonwol Pavilion said, I really hope he'll cooperate with us."
By "us" the big man of course meant the Spring of Luoyang.
"Among the powerful, people willing to become our comrades are rarer than spirit beasts…"
The girl gave a bitter smile. Why would anyone who already held privilege want to join hands with people determined to overturn the existing order?
The man stroked his short beard.
"Still, he's the Medicine Fairy's own son, he runs this Mercy Hall, and he's standing against that bastard Second Young Master. At least we can hope he'll speak the same language as us."
Their expectations of First Young Master Yeon So-hyeon were not actually high. Had certain members of the Spring of Luoyang not recommended him so strongly, the two of them would never have come as official representatives—though they might have come privately.
"…If he's even half the man we've heard about, that'll be enough."
The girl wore a strange expression at his words.
"Hmm. My gut says this is going to be huge. That First Young Master smells like a jackpot."
He looked openly skeptical.
"The last time you said that, we almost got killed in the underworld succession war—"
Another merciless kick buried itself in his shin. While he was still clutching it and whimpering, the door opened.
"Thank you for waiting."
The woman who entered was a beauty so radiant the whole room seemed to brighten.
"…?"
The moment her unusually pale eyes met his, the big man shot to his feet.
"Hahaha. Ah—greetings. I am…"
That was when the girl shouted.
"Aaaah?! You're—?!"
Jeong-a's features were distinctive enough that anyone who had seen her once found it harder to forget her than to remember her; of course the girl recognized her. Jeong-a recognized the girl as well and smiled.
"Ah! You're the gallant lady who lent me the gauntlets that day. I was greatly in your debt."
Jeong-a still remembered receiving those gauntlets and putting them to excellent use in the battle against Geumju.
"N-no, no. You were the one who saved us when we were trapped in the formation—we should be thanking you."
Thus the two parties who had met during the final battle against the Black Bone Sect were reunited.
"…But you're with the Mercy Hall? Your clothes that day didn't look like it at all."
Jeong-a covered her mouth with a graceful smile.
"I am not. I am Jeong-a, chief maid in service to the First Young Master of the Luoyang Sword Family."
"Eh?! The First Young Master's chief maid?! Then why were you there that day?!"
The girl asked with rabbit-wide eyes, stunned by the revelation.
"Se-a, Master of Hyeonwol Pavilion, is my elder sister."
Understanding dawned.
"Ahh, so that was it…! You were looking for Sister Se-a—no wonder!"
She nodded, then realized she had been firing questions without even introducing herself.
"Ah! How rude of me. Let me introduce us…"
She brought her hands together to bow, then noticed how unnaturally quiet her partner had become and glanced sideways.
"…"
The big man was staring at Jeong-a with a completely vacant, smitten expression. The girl sighed softly and delivered another solid kick to his shin.
"We are Su-ran and—"
Enduring the pain shooting up his leg, the man managed a greeting.
"Cheong Ho-wi."
Jeong-a received their introductions with flawless elegance.
"The fame of the two of you—grievance-settlers for the poor, the last hope of the common folk—is well known even within our main house."
She stepped back and gestured toward the door.
"Please, this way. My master, the First Young Master, welcomes your visit."
The two remarkable figures belonging to the Spring of Luoyang—resolvers of the common people's injustices—followed Jeong-a.
Come to think of it… Su-ran mused as they walked. Meeting Jeong-a had inevitably dragged the final battle against the Black Bone Sect back into her mind. And once that day returned, there was one presence she could never forget no matter how hard she tried.
Amcheonjonza.
The indescribable being who had brought the night with him and held a banquet of blood and slaughter—the one who, in place of an indifferent heaven, had carried out heavenly punishment upon the earth. A figure who belonged in legends and fairy tales.
If someone like that were on our side, nothing could be more reassuring…
Not once did it cross her mind that Amcheonjonza and the First Young Master she was about to meet might be the same person.
No, no. My gut says the First Young Master is a jackpot too—no doubt about it.
Guided by Jeong-a, they strode without hesitation down the passage that led into the Underground Great Waterway.