A Changed Silhouette
"Ugh."
"Are you all right?"
As I vigorously rubbed both arms, sacrificed to Moyong Hu's bear hug, Nari approached with a worried look on her face.
"That Moyong Hu. I was thinking of sending him some kind of gift as thanks for the Tiger Dragon Body Pill, and now..."
I won't lie—I thought my arm was going to break. If Wang Inho's message hadn't arrived in time, it might genuinely have snapped.
I suppose reaching the Peak Realm had made me a little cocky. I never imagined I couldn't endure a single hug from Moyong Hu.
Then again, maybe that man is just absurdly strong.
There are few people alive who nearly shattered a Peak Realm master's arm with a simple embrace. Moyong Hu is one of them.
In any case, having finally escaped Moyong Hu, I was on my way to the Patriarch's hall. The moment I returned, word had apparently already spread everywhere, and a summons came down immediately.
"......"
So here I was, bringing Nari along just like the old days—but it felt strangely awkward. I'd grown used to walking with Seonhwa at every occasion.
Ah, and back then it was Ansong who got stuck with the odd jobs. With three of us in tow, there was always plenty to do. He couldn't very well assign them to young Seonhwa, so naturally they fell to Ansong.
"Hm-hm-hm~"
Her worry for me lasted only a moment before Nari began humming a tune.
Wondering if something good had happened, I asked, and she widened her eyes into round circles before breaking into a beaming smile.
"You're home, Sogaju-nim~"
"Is that really such a big deal?"
"Of course it is~ I get to walk behind you again, just like this? It feels like a dream I've only ever dreamed has finally come true."
When Nari clasped her hands together, her eyes sparkling, I felt my cheeks grow warm.
"Come on. It's not that much."
"Hehe."
Watching her laugh, I found my own mood lifting along with hers.
Nari had been by my side ever since my reincarnation. Then I'd suddenly left the clan for closed-door cultivation, and now, four years later, of course she'd be giddy.
It really has been a long time, hasn't it.
Come to think of it, she was right. It genuinely had been ages. Nari used to follow at my back without fail.
And I fell over, and made a proper fool of myself, too.
I was nodding along to that thought when Nari spoke, her face faintly flushed.
"Your back, Sogaju-nim. It's gotten so much broader."
"Time passed, that's all."
Nari had only ever seen me as a child, so I supposed it felt strange to her. Back then we'd been nearly the same height—there was no comparison with now.
Suddenly, I felt Nari's gaze on my hand.
"Um..."
"What is it?"
"Ah—! Nothing at all!"
Having hesitantly called out to me, Nari hastily shut her mouth. She clearly wanted to say something, but didn't seem to have the nerve.
Hmm.
In the end, I decided to muster a little courage on my side.
Gotcha.
"Aah!"
"Was I wrong?"
Her face dyed scarlet, Nari gave a small shake of her head.
Which meant I'd guessed right.
It had been so long since I'd seen her. Every now and then, this wasn't so bad.
Nari kept glancing this way and that, anxious about who might be watching. Why bother, when everyone already knew?
"If you were going to worry that much, you shouldn't have thrown such a fit about following me to Dansewon."
"Ngh."
I couldn't help but chuckle at the absurdity, and Nari's ears turned bright red. Apparently even she found herself embarrassing.
"So what exactly happened while I was gone? You told Seolha nothing happened, and Ran—well, I can guess what she did."
I was curious what on earth had happened to make Wang Inho urge me to come home so quickly. Judging from the scuffle I'd witnessed before entering the estate, I could tell Wang Yeomsu and Yi Uigang had suffered quite a bit.
Nari deliberated for a moment over whether she should tell me, then squeezed her eyes shut and spoke.
"Lady Seolha froze the entire estate, so the Vermilion Bird Pavilion Master had to thaw it out day after day. Lady Ran turned the grounds into a wasteland, and the White Tiger Pavilion Master cleaned it all up. And then—"
The longer I listened, the wider my jaw hung open.
Unbelievable.
What did they do while I was gone? I never imagined Wang Yeomsu and Yi Uigang would end up as an ice-melter and a janitor.
Grateful in my heart for their labors, I turned to Nari, who had slyly skipped over her own part.
"And you?"
"Me? I... I didn't do anything."
But the way she turned her head away made it obvious to anyone that she'd done plenty.
When I stared her down, Nari finally caved under my gaze.
"I just... kept begging the Royal Sword Brigade Commander every day to send me to Dansewon. That's all."
"Is that really all?"
At my suspicious look, her freshly closed mouth opened again.
"I may have... brought it up a little, each time I paid my respects to the Patriarch or the Pavilion Masters...?"
Did she deserve to be beaten for that? Telling them that?
Seolha and Ran are royalty, so they could be let off with a fond chuckle—but Nari isn't even nobility. And she doesn't have a personal rapport with them like Moyong Hu does. If they'd deemed it disrespectful and struck her down, it would have been entirely within reason.
Good grief.
At my small sigh, Nari bowed her head deeply.
"I'm sorry..."
"Next time, just don't—"
"Which is precisely why you must renew your oath of fealty to your Lord at once, no?"
A voice rang out from ahead. I hastily let go of Nari's hand, and she let out a small sound of disappointment.
Being seen from a distance was one thing, but flaunting it right in front of someone was another matter entirely.
Turning to look, I saw two men walking side by side. As they drew near enough for faces to become visible, a man with a cloth wrapped around the lower half of his face started in surprise.
"Oh! My Lord?"
Hm? My Lord?
There's only one person who calls me that.
"Don't tell me—Hanmuk?"
"My Lord!"
It really was that rascal Hanmuk. The face covering had thrown me off.
The moment Hanmuk confirmed it was me, he dropped to one knee. The tall warrior beside him scrambled to follow suit.
And who's this one supposed to be?
"My Lord. I heard word of your return. I hereby renew my oath of loyalty."
"Uh, right... good..."
He hasn't changed a bit.
I could forgive anyone else, but this rascal was the one I'd hoped would change. A shame.
"Where might you be headed? Now that you've returned, I shall accompany you from here on."
"No, I'm just stopping by the Patriarch's hall briefly, so there's no need to—"
"What?!"
"Huh?"
What now?
Hanmuk, who had suddenly raised his voice, gave a twisted smile. I couldn't see it behind the cloth, but I could somehow feel it.
"Heh heh. How very like you, my Lord. Scheming to seize the Patriarch's seat the moment you came of age. You've taught me a lesson."
This lunatic.
There was no need to hear more. I channeled internal force into my fist and hurled it at Hanmuk. Caught off guard by the sudden strike, he took it square on the head and crumpled.
Thwack!
"Kgh!"
Thud.
Seeing this, the tall warrior quickly hid himself behind Hanmuk's fallen body. What a useless shield he made.
And yet, somehow, his face looked familiar.
He hung around with Hanmuk, and if he was the timid type, then surely...
"Seonwoo?"
"Yes! It's Seonwoo!"
Good grief, when did he get this big?
He looked a full head taller than me. His shoulders had filled out broad and square—I'd always considered myself fairly well-built, but Seonwoo somehow seemed to surpass even that.
His muscles are balanced, too... This isn't the Seonwoo I knew.
"You rascal. Did you pull some trick, or what? You've turned into a complete monster."
Seonwoo scratched his head sheepishly, then looked me straight in the eye as he spoke.
"I... trained hard. Thinking of how you became the bait in our place at Byeokrando, Sogaju-nim."
For someone who used to avert his eyes every time we spoke, he'd grown remarkably dependable.
I nodded with satisfaction, and Hanmuk, who had been sprawled on the ground, rose while clutching his head.
"Ugh."
I'd hit him hard enough to knock him out, yet he was getting back up.
He'd grown, in a different sense entirely.
"You've grown incomparably stronger than four years ago. At this level, you truly could covet the Patriarch's seat."
When I raised my fist again, Hanmuk retreated to a safe distance.
Tsk.
"By the way—that cloth over your face. What is it for? Are you sick?"
Covering your mouth and nose like that is something you only do during a pestilence, like we did back in Yushin Village. Or when an assassin is carrying out a contract.
There was no way Hanmuk was playing assassin inside the clan, so I naturally assumed it was the former.
"Ah, this?"
The rascal answered with a shameless grin in his eyes.
"It looks cool, doesn't it?"
Knowing him, I suspected he wouldn't stop spouting nonsense until the day he died.
One way or another, I gave Hanmuk one more beating and entered the Patriarch's hall. Despite the four years that had passed, Wang Inho looked no different—much like Wang Yeomsu and Yi Uigang.
"Why are you so late?"
That was my first exchange with Wang Inho in four years. Apparently, while not quite as much as the other two, he'd been put through the wringer as well.
"My apologies. Something came up."
I considered mentioning Yushin Village, but if I misspoke and the Kim Clan of Sacheon came up, it would be a disaster. So I decided to gloss over it.
"Hm. If you say so, then so be it. Very well—sit."
As I carefully took my seat, Wang Inho wiped his face dry with a hand and studied my body with curious eyes.
"Hmm. You've gained a great enlightenment."
"Yes. In fact, I attained it on the very first day. After that—"
I lost all track of time as I told Wang Inho everything that had happened during my closed-door cultivation. I hadn't planned to, but somehow the words kept spilling out of me.
Perhaps it was the feeling of seeing my father after so long?
Don't tell me I've actually come to think of Wang Inho as a father.
Four years ago, that would have been unthinkable.
When my story was finished, Wang Inho stroked his beard and spoke.
"So this Mugeuk Hoijin Sword of yours is what brought you to the Peak Realm. It would have been better if it had been our family's inherited arts."
Wang Inho clicked his tongue, sounding faintly regretful. Understandable—the young lord of the Wang Clan had ascended to the Peak Realm through inspiration drawn from martial arts other than the family's own.
Still, he seemed pleased that I had reached the Peak at all, and a rare smile crossed his face.
"I expected you to reach the First-Rank realm. I never imagined you would surpass it."
"It's all thanks to you, Father."
"You've grown quite the adult, too."
Then, looking satisfied, Wang Inho suddenly made me an offer.
"I'd like to attach a personal unit to you. What do you think?"
Refusal was never an option.