Rumors of Poison
"Danmok Ryeon's stance is almost like a textbook, so always keep an eye on it."
I feel my face burning red all the way up to my neck from embarrassment. But Danmok Hyeon-u just looks at me like he's said nothing wrong—what's the problem with stating the facts?
Uncle could demonstrate it himself!
Danmok Hyeon-u might be overshadowed by his brother Danmok Hyeon-seong's brilliance, but he's no slouch in talent or skill. Still, what can I do? He wants to showcase his exceptional niece's prowess to inspire the children's growth.
Better they learn from my proper form than pick up some weird habits.
My stance is precise, after all. Nothing could be more accurate than forms learned through the Divine Eye and executed with Harmony.
Ryeon takes a deep breath, steadying her breathing, then begins to smoothly wield the wooden sword in her hand.
Everyone here knows the basics of the Falling Star Twelve Swords, but their eyes sparkle with anticipation. Surely the direct descendant of Danmok Cheon-gi will show something special!
When Ryeon's demonstration ends, an awkward, somber silence settles over the training ground.
"Whew...! That's... the end. Huh?"
Everyone stares at Ryeon with slightly deflated expressions. She'd expected at least flushed, excited faces if not full cheers, but seeing them all so intimidated sparks a moment of alarm.
Did I take it too seriously? No, they need to grow strong!
Danmok Hyeon-u clears his throat and points his guiding staff at the ground near Ryeon's feet. It's perfectly smooth bare earth, without a single footprint.
"See that? Where a strong sword passes, nothing remains. You must contemplate the mysteries of footwork and forms together."
"Yes, sir!"
"Practice diligently step by step, and you'll reach this realm in no time."
"R-Really...? We can... get there...?"
Danmok Wan asks in her timid voice. She rarely speaks up, but Ryeon's swordplay has deeply touched her heart.
"Of course! You're the finest talents of our clan, aren't you?"
Danmok Hyeon-u says cheerfully. Finally, a flush of hopeful excitement spreads across the children's faces, including Danmok Wan's. Only one boy with a somewhat fierce expression—Mae Sin-yu—furrows his brow deeply, alternating glances between Ryeon's hands and feet without a word.
"But... those Heukgokdan pills... Are we sure it's okay for us to really eat them?"
Danmok Gyu, a sturdy boy among his peers, asks cautiously. Born into a well-off branch family with solid talent, he's come to the main house this time to train diligently in swordsmanship.
"Uh... 'okay to eat'? Or... not...?"
Danmok Wan echoes timidly.
After dinner, as they huddle in the courtyard in front of their lodging for chit-chat, Danmok Gyu glances around and leans in, whispering.
"I heard once that some murim clans raise branch kids like us, brainwash them into loyalty, and control them by... slipping poison into what they call 'elixirs'."
"Gasp... Really?"
"Yeah. So if you don't obey... you're done for! Keel over!"
"But poison just kills you outright. How would that even...?"
"Uh..."
Caught off-guard, Danmok Gyu trails off, then quickly adds,
"W-Well, not kill you outright, but make you suffer? And if you don't get the antidote, you die. So you'd have no choice but to do what the main family says to survive...!"
Having patched up his logic, Danmok Gyu beams proudly. But another child's words deflate him again.
"Would they go to all that trouble just to order you around?"
At Mae Sin-yu's cynical remark, Danmok Gyu tilts his head blankly.
"Huh?"
"You think they could even order you to do anything?"
Danmok Hyeon-u is a fun, good teacher, but not lax. The kids know they're still barely walking.
"N-No... that's not it."
"Then why bother feeding you expensive poison?"
"Is poison expensive?"
"Ever heard you can't buy something like an immortality herb even with gold bars?"
"Uh, yeah."
"Poison's the same level. Killing people costs as much as saving them. If we had money for that nonsense, they'd be buying their own inner pills first."
"Oh... Makes sense? But what if we grow up and become, like, the world's best martial artist?"
"Looking at you, picking us was already a loss. Even the world's best needs brains."
"Y-You! You already got bought off by the main family?!"
Mae Sin-yu eyes Danmok Gyu with undisguised pity.
"Then why'd you come here?"
"Uh... To learn martial arts... and become the world's best."
"Oh, really? Then why's Danmok Clan teaching you for free?"
"No, that's not— If I become one of the Yuseong Sibalsuk and shine as the clan's sword, it's good for them too..."
"Who do the Yuseong Sibalsuk obey?"
"Uh, the family head...?"
"Family head's not main family—what, some elder?"
"Uh... Huh, yeah?"
Danmok Gyu scratches his head. Mae Sin-yu clicks his tongue and stands abruptly.
Danmok Gyu looks awkward.
"I-I just thought it was fun gossip..."
"Fun for you to go around calling people who might poison you 'poisoners'?"
"No..."
"What if the main family hears and gets offended? Think a bit now that you're here."
With that, Mae Sin-yu stalks off. A chill settles among the kids.
"Uh... I-I'm gonna go... review today's lesson..."
"Me too..."
Soon only Seo Geuk-rim and Danmok Gyu remain. Danmok Gyu looks at Seo Geuk-rim helplessly.
"D-Did I mess up bad?"
Seo Geuk-rim stares bluntly, then sighs.
"What the young miss gives us every week isn't whatever you were imagining."
"...?"
Danmok Gyu's eyes widen.
"If you'd grasped even a bit of the heart method, you wouldn't have said that."
"B-But we just learned the incantation the day before yesterday..."
"Sin-yu figured out the heart method's mystery that very evening. That's how he knew what the Heukgokdan really is."
Seo Geuk-rim recalls what Mae Sin-yu had worried about—not poison, but something else.
—Heard they made a fortune with Qinglian Water, but enough to feed us little spirit pills every week?
In Seo Geuk-rim's eyes, three out of ten had grasped the heart method: himself, Danmok Wan, and Mae Sin-yu. The moment they sensed its mystery, even faintly, they realized what they'd been eating weekly.
The quiet energy circling their dantian. Small, but incredibly soft, gentle, and yielding—true qi waiting patiently for them to digest it.
Mae Sin-yu, with his sharp instincts, had approached Seo Geuk-rim first.
—The young miss wears the same training clothes as us, or just plain worn robes otherwise, but we're getting a spirit pill each week?
Only then did Seo Geuk-rim notice Ryeon's attire. He'd only glimpsed her face before, or bowed his head too low to meet her eyes.
—What if they invest this much in us and can't get a return?
The word "invest" snaps Seo Geuk-rim alert. Yes—the main house is investing heavily in branch kids like them.
Mae Sin-yu had been anxious since grasping the heart method, like someone buried under an unwanted debt mountain.
Danmok Wan, meanwhile, had changed. Still timid, but her eyes gleamed with a fierce light. She was first to run to Ryeon at the training ground.
Maybe Wan's the happiest among us?
Seo Geuk-rim recalls the little gold osmanthus branch Danmok Wan bragged about. A gift from the young miss, still fresh and fragrant.
"No, really, I just... heard the story and thought it was cool and fun. Not saying our clan does that, honest."
"Then since everyone finds it unfun, just don't say it anymore."
"O-Okay, I won't, promise!"
"Good. Night."
"Wait, Geuk-rim! Hold on. You grasped the heart method too? Teach me? Please~!"
"Even if I did, you wouldn't get it."
"Still, come on? Pretty please~!"
"Fine..."
The word "invest" lingers in Seo Geuk-rim's mind. Imagining Ryeon's disappointment if it failed tightens his chest—he can't shake off the clinging Danmok Gyu and brings him along.