Gasp! Did You Flee a Beating and Throw Yourself into the Machun-gyo?
'Gasp. So that's why you got beaten and ran away to throw yourself into the Machun-gyo?'
As Ryeon inwardly put weight behind her own speculation, Hwaryun scowled at her and whispered in a lowered voice.
"Why would I go telling this stuff somewhere else?"
"No... I mean... I'm just worried about you."
This cheeky brat!
As Ryeon grew anxious, Hwaryun just pouted and grumbled.
"You've been like this for a while now. What, are you telling me to go somewhere else?"
"Then you won't go?"
Ryeon had half-asked without thinking, but in that instant, her eyes flew wide open. The starlight scattered across her pitch-black irises sparkled softly.
"What are you suddenly..."
"You're gonna stay here forever? With me?"
It seemed she'd been subconsciously thinking Hwaryun might leave someday. But that was only natural. Shaking off the shadow of the Machun-gyo's Young Cult Master from him wouldn't be easy. But if Hwaryun really was going to stay with her from now on? If he'd keep living together with her in the Danmok estate forever?
"...If you don't like it, just chase me out or whatever."
"I'm never chasing you out, ever. So you won't go, right?"
"I'm not going anywhere, I said."
"You'll stay here forever, right?"
"Yeah, yeah."
Hwaryun answered in a somewhat annoyed, placating tone, like he was humoring her. But Ryeon kept pressing for confirmation.
"You won't go, right? You've decided to stay. Promise me."
Hwaryun looked at her with a reluctant expression before nodding.
Ryeon laid down the law.
"You know what happens if you break that promise?"
"What, like what...?"
She'd started off strong, but blurting out whatever came to mind left her short on retorts. Ryeon quickly racked her brains. What do kids that age hate?
"Uh... I won't give you any tasty stuff, yeah? And I won't talk to you. I'll hate you forever. Got it?"
"Yes, yes."
She'd deliberately dumbed it down to a kid's level, but Hwaryun nodded maturely, as if he were the one playing with a child.
Ryeon made a sulky face but let it go. The thought that Hwaryun wouldn't go anywhere filled her with a warm, fuzzy feeling.
A future where this boy—who would have been the Machun-gyo's Young Cult Master—settled down in a fine manor in scenic Hangzhou, lived leisurely and happily, and much later passed away peacefully in his sleep.
What's happiness if not that...?
There'd be no need to force him to learn martial arts if he didn't want to. He could just do what he liked. Sure, it was a waste of talent, but forcing someone into what they hated was even worse.
His brain seemed quick enough—he could study for the imperial exams and become an official. Maybe he'd take up music as a hobby. Poetry or painting would be nice too. Or as he said, he could join a merchant house.
The Machun-gyo's future Young Cult Master? Let them find their own.
Ryeon simply felt contented. Just knowing this little kid wouldn't have to wander ten thousand li away eased her heart immensely.
* * *
In a dim alley of Sichuan Province's provincial capital, two elderly men with deeply wrinkled faces stood stock-still in the dark, damp corner between buildings, endlessly peering into palm-sized bronze basins.
One had hair white as snow without a single black strand, the other pitch-black without a single white one. Their stark black-and-white contrast should have stood out even in the alley, but no one passing by so much as glanced their way.
As if nothing existed there at all.
"This... how in the world did this happen, Heukdam!"
"That's what I'm asking you, Baekdam!"
The reason they were wandering the heart of Sichuan like this was that no light shone from the basins in their hands.
"Just... just a little while ago, it was shining so clearly, wasn't it?"
"That's why we left the cult. But what in the world is this...?"
"Maybe he's dead?"
"A child born under the Thirty-Six Heavenly Gang Stars—how could he die so easily?"
"Then why did the light appear and then vanish!"
"For now, let's head back to the cult and..."
"Ridiculous!"
The white-haired elder, Baekdam, cried out in alarm.
"We left the cult carrying the Constellation Basin, and you want us to return empty-handed?!"
The Constellation Basin came in a set of three, sacred relics said to have been bestowed upon the Machun-gyo by the Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady they revered. When the time came, the Cult Leader handed them to trusted elders and sent them out into the world—to find his successor.
Around age five or six, the basin would glow from within for a child born under one of the Thirty-Six Heavenly Gang Stars. They followed that light like a compass to find the child who would become the next leader.
"Damn it, we need something to show up in this thing before we can hunt down the Young Cult Master—or even a candidate! I'm sick of Sichuan food too. These lunatics can't handle spice like they hold a grudge against the dead or something..."
Heukdam, who couldn't handle spice well, shuddered as he spoke. Baekdam let out a groan. He felt the same about Sichuan cuisine.
"I heard the others already found their candidates and went back to the cult..."
Three basins meant three candidates. And the elders' own rise or fall hinged on the child each basin found.
The other elders had already located theirs and returned, but they couldn't even catch a glimpse of the shadow of the child born under the Heavenly Noble Star. They could only wander aimlessly in circles through central Sichuan.
"Let's head east for now."
Until a few months ago, the light in this Constellation Basin had consistently pointed east. But just as they reached Sichuan, it suddenly vanished.
Both Heukdam and Baekdam had been flustered and quietly searched the area, but they found no child bearing an ominous star anywhere.
The successor clearly wasn't here. But neither could they believe the child had died so easily. There had to be some other change...
Heukdam asked sharply.
"And if there's still nothing even after going east?"
Baekdam replied.
"Henan Province has the Murim Alliance, doesn't it? We can contact the cult through them. Ask for more people or whatever—we'll report back then."
East of Sichuan lay Shaanxi, and beyond that, Henan. Baekdam's words sounded reasonable enough.
"I don't wanna go into the Murim Alliance."
Feeling queasy about murim folk was basic for any Machun-gyo member. And it hadn't changed even after their cult joined the Alliance.
"Sticking around Sichuan longer might cause friction with the Tang Clan anyway."
Of course, they believed they could handle that with force or rhetoric, but this was the sacred period of seeking the cult's successor.
"Yeah. Who knows when those Kunlun Sect bastards might tail us."
The Machun-gyo's headquarters was closest to Kunlun Mountain, so they knew each other well. Being in the Alliance together meant no incidents just from existing, but they weren't the type to sit down for friendly chats either.
Baekdam continued.
"And while we're at it, let's stop by Hangzhou too."
"Hangzhou?"
Heukdam's eyes sharpened. There was something in Zhejiang's Hangzhou that these two were after.
"Dongpo pork?"
"Dongpo pork!"
Heukdam and Baekdam exchanged looks and nodded. Heukdam dumped the water from his Constellation Basin onto the ground, wrapped it in silk, and handed it to Baekdam.
Baekdam tucked the basin into his robes, and the two strode out of the alley side by side—but not a soul in Sichuan spared them a glance.
* * *
As Danmok Hyeon-u finished packing the Qinglian Water for the Mansong Merchant Group, he muttered wistfully.
"It'd be nice if people could tell at a glance that our Ryeon made this Qinglian Water..."
"Pardon?"
Ryeon blinked wide-eyed and tilted her head, so Danmok Hyeon-u added sheepishly.
"No, just... your uncle here thinks... since you have such outstanding talent, it'd be great if everyone knew... Maybe engrave a mark on the bottles or something."
Ryeon shot to her feet.
"A trademark!"
"Oh... trademark? Yeah, that must be what they call it."
As Ryeon lit up and seemed to welcome his idea, color finally returned to Danmok Hyeon-u's face.
Ryeon's eyes sparkled as she chattered on.
"What should it be? Something good for long-term use, to put on everything sold by the Danmok estate..."
Does Uncle have a knack for this stuff after all?
It wasn't just pharmacy master material. He might fit better in Rejing Pavilion.
Unaware of her thoughts, Danmok Hyeon-u shrugged nonchalantly.
"It's not the estate selling—it you selling them. You're the only one in our family with the talent to create things like this."
He was right. If even one person had had talent for making money instead of martial arts...
"Ah..."
"Ah! How about a duck? Draw a mallard. Two of them, like this... Hmm, maybe one as a duckling."
"...A duck?"
Grandfather had teased her countless times about her pouting habit making her look just like a duck.
"Perfect! Spot on! That's you, Ryeon!"