The Birth of the Awakened
I bolted upright from my seat and shouted.
“Wake up! The children of the new nation rise early!”
My thunderous cry, which would have drawn a storm of curses in the past, was met with silence. The madheads seemed to have adjusted their attitudes; they simply rose without complaint.
It was earlier than usual, but seeing my comrades follow my wishes like this warmed my heart.
…Well, as the hope of humanity, an Ultra S-Class Awakened and hero, it was only natural they should feel grateful that I was even bothering to deal with these pathetic centipedes.
It was the same daily routine as always.
In the morning I performed qi circulation for the Heaven-Shattering Divine Power Art and the Dark Heaven-Defying Scripture. In the afternoon I poured everything into training the Dark Heaven-Defying Sword.
The madheads, their bodies nearly recovered, joined the Dark Heaven-Defying Sword training as well. Of course, judging by their sloppy form, they looked like they would die five hundred times in a single night if they faced Geomjeong-i in the dream.
At night I performed qi circulation again and stayed awake until dawn. The circulation prevented me from feeling much fatigue even without sleep. But that only lasted one night. The next day I absolutely had to rest. Skipping sleep for two days in a row meant the following day’s training would be ruined.
Still, it was better than nothing. As the Heaven-Shattering Divine Power Art grew and I began the Dark Heaven-Defying Scripture anew, the nightly deaths had become deaths every other day.
This was a tremendous benefit for me, too. Who in the world enjoys dying over and over? I only did it because I had no choice. It was enough to drive anyone insane.
After two days I entered the dream world once more—the place where dreams and hopes were crushed.
This time, instead of fighting, I tried to start a peaceful “conversation” with Geomjeong-i.
Does this bastard really try to kill me the moment he sees me?
“I don’t understand. Why is conversation necessary in a fight?”
“Hey! Fights usually start with an argument. Who draws a sword the second someone suggests fighting?”
“…So what do you want to say?”
“Well… it feels like there’s a misunderstanding between us.”
“Misunderstanding?”
“Yes, a misunderstanding! Think about it. Your purpose can’t be simply to kill me.”
“It is, though.”
“No! No! You’re pushing me so I’ll become stronger. Ah! Don’t speak. I’m not finished.”
I swallowed hard and organized my thoughts.
“You said you were born from my ability and the will of the Dark Heaven-Defying Sword, right? If you were born from my ability, you should follow my will. What is my will and the purpose of the Dark Heaven-Defying Sword? To become stronger—not to commit suicide.”
Geomjeong-i stood motionless after hearing my words. Without facial features, I couldn’t read a single thought from his expression.
“You said last time you were going to raise the attack level. You can’t do that. I won’t grow stronger that way. Even at your current level I already die ninety-five times a night. If you raise it, how many times would I die in one day? Two hundred? Three hundred?”
“What kind of training is that? I’m not a pervert who enjoys pain. So keep the current attack level. That way we can exchange moves enjoyably, I can reduce my death count, my skills will improve rapidly, you’ll feel a sense of purpose, the world will move in a better direction! And also…”
“I understand. So when should I increase the attack level?”
‘Oh! It worked!’
“Um… Right! When your life is truly in danger! Let’s say it’s allowed then. Not just because I got a few scratches. How about that?”
“Understood. Actually, the reason you were injured last time was because I froze, dumbfounded by how ridiculously stupid I acted while being complacent. Like being bitten by a mosquito? I had perceived you as lower than a bug—more like dust.”
“…Why is your wording so rude? Never mind. Then we have an agreement.”
“Agreed.”
He nodded, accepting my words.
“And from now on, stop making me talk. I have to kill you.”
…This guy really has an irritating way of speaking.
That night, I died eighty times. A solid performance.
Even after successfully reaching that important agreement with Geomjeong-i, life in the Repentance Cave remained the same.
One month passed just like that.
Morning: internal energy training. Afternoon: Dark Heaven-Defying Sword training. Two meals a day of unidentified porridge served in bowls. There were still no spoons.
Yet even within this identical daily routine, many changes had taken place.
First, the number of deaths in the dream had dropped to forty. Even by my own standards, my swordsmanship had become quite usable.
The madheads’ internal energy had recovered significantly as well. The aura they gave off while training the Dark Heaven-Defying Sword was no joke.
Especially Cheondok No-ong. The movements I had once called “old-man calisthenics at the mineral spring” now genuinely resembled those of a true martial artist.
‘See? You can do it if you just follow my magnificent instructions!’
…But why has my face been so itchy these past few days? Sometimes the itching was so bad I thought I would lose my mind. I was enduring it with superhuman patience.
And the most important change was that an Awakened had finally appeared among the madheads.
Ok-myeon Eum-ma, Gapjil Jijon, and Hyeolbu Mak-ga were the stars.
The first was Ok-myeon Eum-ma. Perhaps because he was the youngest among them, his reaction came fastest.
One day he spent the entire time whining that his eyes stung.
“Aigoo, my eyes! It feels like my eyeballs are about to fall out!”
The other madheads scolded him for being noisy, but that night he suddenly began babbling in an ecstatic voice.
“I… I can see it! I can see Gapjil hyung-nim’s nose hairs beyond the wall! And… oooh! The figure of that beautiful… lady over there…!”
‘He’s finally lost his mind.’
I thought he had gone crazy, but then a hunch hit me.
“Hey, Ok-myeon Eum-ma! Guess how many fingers I’m holding up!”
He guessed the exact number of fingers I held up behind the wall that should have blocked his sight.
“…Three! …Now it’s five!”
X-ray Vision
Ok-myeon Eum-ma’s awakened ability was X-ray Vision.
…What was I supposed to do with this? It truly was an ability befitting a pathetic madhead—a power that perfectly reflected his perverted nature and offered zero help in combat.
But Gapjil Jijon’s awakened ability was even more worthless.
One day after Ok-myeon Eum-ma’s awakening, during breakfast, Gapjil Jijon suddenly started ranting while scooping porridge with his fingers.
“Damn it all! This porridge has boiled too long—the ingredients have lost their original flavor! The green onions are mushy and the carrots are rock-hard!”
“…?”
“Carrots must go in first, and green onions only right before serving to preserve the aroma! And these carrots are clearly from the barren yellow soil fields of Henan! They lack sweetness!”
Had the old man gone senile?
But the fake monk Hye-yul, who happened to enter at that moment, heard him and delivered the confirmation.
“How did you know…?”
Absolute Taste
Thus, Gapjil Jijon’s awakened ability was revealed to be Absolute Taste.
‘Just go open a restaurant already.’
I was deeply disappointed. X-ray eyes and Absolute Taste… a useless old man and a perverted gigolo.
But then a miracle occurred.
“Why is my face so itchy today of all days?”
I had sat down in lotus position to fuse the Heaven-Shattering Divine Power Art and Dark Heaven-Defying Scripture, but I couldn’t concentrate at all.
‘Ah, I’m going crazy!’
I grumbled and scratched my face furiously. It had been itchy for days, but today the urge to peel my own skin off was overwhelming.
“You wench! Scratch any harder and you’ll flay your own face!”
…Hyeolbu Mak-ga?
‘I’m dying from this itch and he’s picking a fight? Where does he get the nerve!’
Irritated beyond reason by the itching, I was about to snap back when I sensed something strange.
‘…What?’
Hyeolbu Mak-ga was locked in the cell diagonally across from mine. So why was his voice coming from right in front of my door?
I stopped scratching and lifted my head.
There, standing right before my eyes, was a massive figure.
“Hek!”
It was Hyeolbu Mak-ga. The bastard was standing boldly outside my cell.
“Huk!”
At the same time, Cheondok No-ong in the opposite cell let out a groan of shock.
‘What is this? Am I dreaming? Or has the mental stress finally given me dementia like Gapjil Jijon?’
“How did you do that? Why—why are you outside?!”
When I shouted, Hyeolbu Mak-ga scratched the back of his head with a hearty laugh.
“It just… worked. I don’t know either.”
He grinned and added, “Since I’m already out… should I leave by myself?”
“Don’t you dare! You disloyal bastard! If you go alone I’ll kill you!”
My lion-like roar made Hyeolbu Mak-ga flinch.
“Heh heh, your eyeballs are gonna pop out. It was a joke, a joke.”
By then the entire Repentance Cave had already erupted.
“Hyeolbu! Brother Hyeolbu! How did you get out?!”
“If you leave alone I’ll split your skull open!”
“Take me too! Me first!”
Similar cries burst out from every direction, almost identical to what I had just said.
‘Their standards really are… tsk tsk.’
As if Hyeolbu Mak-ga would actually leave alone.
…He wouldn’t, right?
…Surely not?
Feeling uneasy, I shouted again.
“Hey! If you go alone I really will kill you!”
Even the shameless Hyeolbu Mak-ga finally roared back when everyone kept making a fuss.
“Ah, shut up! I said I’m not going alone! Do you idiots think every madhead is as selfish as you?!”
Then, with a slightly sullen expression, he muttered, “You guys are too much.”
Once the atmosphere finally calmed, Cheondok No-ong asked calmly.
“Just how… did you get out?”
“I don’t know. I was doing qi circulation but I couldn’t focus…”
Hyeolbu Mak-ga said he had grabbed the iron bars the same way I had been scratching my face.
“If only I could bend these bars like taffy, I could get out right away… That’s what I was thinking, and…”
“…”
“The bars I was holding really bent like taffy.”
“….”
‘What the hell is that? He definitely awakened an ability… but what kind?’
I immediately began testing.
“There! The pebble rolling on the floor! Try moving it with your will alone!”
“Uuuuughk!”
Hyeolbu Mak-ga strained until the veins on his half-bald head writhed like earthworms, but the tiny pebble didn’t budge.
He wiped the sweat from his flushed forehead.
“…Doesn’t work.”
‘Hmm… so not telekinesis… then what?’
Just in case, I told him to grab the bars of my cell again and try bending them like before.
‘If my guess is right, this is an incredibly rare ability…!’
Hyeolbu Mak-ga gripped the bars once more.
And then—
Creeeeeeak…
The bars began to bend like taffy—no, like clay!
“How are you doing that?”
“I don’t know! I just thought it would be nice if the bars turned soft, and they really did!”
◈ Freely alter the hardness and shape of metal
◈ Can turn iron into diamond or soft clay at will
This was it! With this we could escape this damned Repentance Cave far faster than I had expected!
I reached through the bars and patted Hyeolbu Mak-ga on the shoulder.
“Uncle Hyeolbu! You are a truly magnificent Awakened!”
The huge, half-bald Hyeolbu Mak-ga looked uncharacteristically shy.
“Don’t be embarrassed! This ability is a miraculous power that will bring our freedom closer!”
At my declaration the other madheads finally exploded.
“Ooh! Brother Hyeolbu, amazing!”
“I always knew you’d do something great one day!”
“Wow! Hyeolbu Mak-ga is the best!”
“Hehehe…”
Basking in the shower of praise, Hyeolbu Mak-ga laughed like an idiot.
I seized the momentum and declared, “Good! We will attempt our escape within one month!”
I pointed at Hyeolbu Mak-ga without restraint.
“Behold this great and majestic Awakened! How could his power possibly be compared to the trash abilities of those pathetic madheads who crawled up from the countryside?”
I thrust my fist into the air and proclaimed, “It is on a completely different level from perverted ‘X-ray tricks’ that only spy on people or ‘Absolute Taste’ that only identifies where porridge ingredients came from!”
“What did you say, you ugly bitch?! What’s wrong with my ability?!”
Gapjil Jijon flared up, but I simply ignored him. Just go be a cook.
For now I told Hyeolbu Mak-ga to return to his cell in case the fake monk came unexpectedly. Watching the excited man shuffle back inside, I clutched my pounding chest and tried to calm down.
‘I can do this. Within a month I can leave this wretched Repentance Cave!’
Now I had to think carefully. When would be the best time to leave? How much had the madheads recovered? Where was my own level? If the Shaolin monks learned we had escaped, they would definitely pursue us. But I didn’t even know the geography here. Where should we go after escaping? Should we stay together or scatter? What was the optimal escape route?
I would have to move with at least one or two madheads. If I ran into the mountains without knowing the area, how would I eat?
Oh, right. To shake off pursuers I would need a lightness skill. So far I had only learned the Heaven-Shattering Divine Power Art and the Dark Heaven-Defying Sword…
‘Since I thought of it, I should solve it right away.’
I immediately drew the madheads’ attention.
“Everyone, listen. You haven’t forgotten, right? You all promised to teach me one martial art each.”
The moment I finished speaking, an awkward silence fell over the cave.
‘These bastards!’
The same men who had been sucking up to Hyeolbu Mak-ga a moment ago suddenly clamped their mouths shut. Now that escape seemed possible, they didn’t want to teach me anymore.
‘Once we’re out, we’re strangers, huh?’
‘Not a chance. I’m taking everything I can get.’
I deliberately gave them a sly smile.
“Wow, look at these people’s reactions. Now that escape is on the horizon your hearts are pounding, right? Once we’re out you can just ignore me and never see my face again, correct?”
“…Ahem.”
“But what should we do? I’m so upset that I feel like telling that fake monk about the miraculous ability Hyeolbu Mak-ga just showed us…”
“…!”
“Shall we all get screwed together?”
My threat worked. The madheads jumped in alarm and began pouring out words.
“Huk!”
“No, you madwoman! Why do you have to speak so brutally?!”
“I’ll teach you my family’s secret technique, so please don’t even joke about that!”
“Aigoo, I’m not asking for anything else. To escape and run away I need to know at least one lightness skill, but I don’t know any. Doesn’t anyone here have confidence in lightness techniques?”
I blinked innocently.
“Anyone? Raise your hand!”
“…What martial artist doesn’t know lightness skills?”
Some no-name madhead tried to ruin the mood with a snide remark.
“Shut up.”
After I cleanly shut him down, the no-name madhead shriveled.
Then a greasy voice cut in.
“Miss. If it’s a lightness skill… I shall teach you.”
It was Ok-myeon Eum-ma. The man who seemed the least serious and the lightest was offering to teach me lightness arts; somehow it felt trustworthy.
“Ooh~ I wonder what kind of lightness skill you’ll surprise me with~”
Feeling excited, I answered brightly. Ok-myeon Eum-ma’s voice came back, clearly puffed up.
What a simple guy.
“Miss, look forward to it. It is none other than the divine skill known as the Phantom Butterfly Soul-Bewildering Steps. It is considered one of the top five lightness techniques of the unorthodox path.”
‘Ooh~ That name sounds impressive.’
“Phantom Butterfly Soul-Bewildering Steps!”
“One of the five great unorthodox lightness skills!”
“That lecher has such a profound movement technique!”
‘What are these reactions? What?!’
From the madheads’ reactions, it seemed to be quite a good technique.
“Teach me right now. If we’re leaving this place within a month, I need to start learning diligently from today.”
“Of course. However… the cells are too narrow to properly learn lightness skills…”
“It’s fine. I know a wide place.”
“Pardon?”
Worrying is also a talent. Didn’t I have the ‘dream space’? That infinitely vast white expanse. I could learn the theory of the Phantom Butterfly Soul-Bewildering Steps here and practice it in the dream.
I would just have to endure with my body.
‘Surely if I learned a lightness skill, Geomjeong-i wouldn’t appear and try to kill me again, right?’
At most we would have something like a running competition. I should speak nicely to Geomjeong-i and ask him to let me learn lightness skills instead of sword fighting today.
Ah~ What a happy premonition that everything would go smoothly.
However.
During the evening meal distribution, the fake monk uttered words that struck like a bolt from the blue.