The Burden of Rumors
I slowly opened my eyes, dragging my heavy eyelids open.
A wooden ceiling came into view.
It was an unfamiliar ceiling.
That was my very first thought upon waking.
"...Ugh."
I wondered where I was. As I started to push myself up—
Crack!
"—?!"
A searing, white-hot agony flared through my entire body the moment I moved.
It hurt so bad I couldn't even squeeze out a curse. For a second, I thought I was going to black out again.
Gritting my teeth, I barely managed to prop up my upper body.
Even that simple motion made me feel like every muscle was being shredded and torn apart.
My right arm was the worst. I could barely feel it at all.
I looked down to see what was wrong.
Huh.
It was wrapped in thick bandages. I fumbled over my body with my left hand. It wasn't just my right arm—my head and torso were completely mummified in bandages too.
No wonder everything ached.
But why was I in this state?
As I searched my memory, my eyes suddenly widened.
Ah.
Palduyeok.
And the Patheongung.
The events in the Secret Vault came rushing back. Realizing what had happened, I forced myself to sit up all the way, swaying unsteadily.
How did it end?
What was the situation now? If I was waking up here, did that mean everything had been resolved?
I swallowed a groan as I retraced my final memories.
I killed Palduyeok.
Yoo Chun-gil had taken over my body and used sword gang to kill him.
And right after that, the imprisoned Poison Sovereign... wait, did he escape?
And then...
What happened next? I must have lost consciousness right after.
Where is Yoo Chun-gil?
Where did those old ghosts go? Both Yoo Chun-gil and Dok-jon should have been around, but neither was in sight.
Where am I?
It definitely wasn't my usual room. As I looked around, trying to get my bearings—
Rattle!
The sliding door opened, and someone stepped inside.
Our eyes met. The moment the visitor realized I was awake, she flinched in surprise.
It was Dang Ye-ran.
"Young Master B-Bang..."
"Ah, Lady Dang—"
"Are you alright?!"
Before I could even finish greeting her, she rushed to my bedside, her eyes scanning me anxiously.
"Does it... does it hurt very much?"
"Well, I wouldn't say I'm fine. But it's bearable."
Suppressing a groan, I looked at her.
"...What happened?"
Dang Ye-ran wrung her hands.
"You've been unconscious for over three days, Young Master."
"...Three days?"
Three whole days had already passed? I couldn't hide my shock.
Pushing the surprise aside, I quickly asked about the others.
"What about Young Master Cheon and Senior Do-hyeong?"
How did they fare?
"They are both safe," Dang Ye-ran assured me.
"...Thank goodness."
It seemed they had made it out without any major issues.
I figured Do-hyeong would be fine, but I had been a bit worried about Cheon Ui-jin.
Actually, Do-hyeong is a problem too.
I had placed my faith in that mountain-god Guardian Spirit of his.
But it hadn't done a single useful thing.
What was that about, seriously?
Why did it just sit idly by even when we were ambushed?
It made no sense.
Normally, a Guardian Spirit would have gone wild trying to protect its host.
Yet Do-hyeong's spirit had remained bizarrely quiet.
Even as the crisis unfolded, it hadn't budged.
What a useless thing.
What kind of Guardian Spirit behaved like that? It was completely different from any spirit I had ever heard of.
In any case.
Seeing me sink into thought, Dang Ye-ran stood up.
"First... I will go call the others."
"Ah, yes. Thank you."
She slipped out of the room, only to return a short while later with a small crowd in tow.
"Young Master Bang...!"
Cheon Ui-jin gasped as he rushed into the room and saw me sitting up.
I gave him a faint smile.
"...Yes. Have you been well?"
"Are you truly alright?"
"More or less."
"I am so glad you have regained consciousness..."
Do-hyeong followed close behind, his face as stoic and expressionless as ever.
Floating around him was that same Guardian Spirit, drifting lazily through the air. I frowned at the sight.
It looked exactly the same now as it did during the ambush.
Was that thing really a Guardian Spirit? I pushed aside the headache of trying to understand it and focused on the guest Dang Ye-ran had brought along.
She had accompanied a man dressed in the robes of a physician.
"I have come to examine you. Please excuse me for a moment."
The physician approached and began to carefully examine my injuries. I remained still and let him do his work. I couldn't help but recall how every physician I had met in my past life had been an arrogant, insufferable prick.
...I guess a man really needs a proper title.
Now that I had a bit of status, the way people treated me was night and day.
After finishing his examination, the physician turned to Do-hyeong.
"His external wounds are quite deep, but fortunately, his internal energy and organs are unharmed. Since Young Hero Bang is a martial artist, his natural recovery rate will be swift. He should make a full recovery before long."
The diagnosis wasn't bad.
The external wounds looked terrible, but my internal state was fine.
That was all that mattered.
For a martial artist, internal damage was far more terrifying than any flesh wound.
"Thank you," Do-hyeong said, bowing slightly.
The physician returned the gesture and quietly excused himself from the room.
Only then did Do-hyeong turn his gaze back to me.
"How do you feel?"
"I'll live. How are you and Young Master Cheon?"
"I am perfectly fine," Cheon Ui-jin said, though his eyes drifted toward Do-hyeong's chest. "But Senior Brother..."
Following his gaze, I noticed white bandages peeking through the collar of Do-hyeong's martial robes.
"Are you hurt?" I asked.
"Just a scratch," Do-hyeong replied flatly.
"Senior, people don't wrap themselves like mummies for a mere scratch."
It was obviously a sword wound. He must have taken a hit during the battle.
Still.
All his limbs were intact, and he wasn't missing any facial features.
That was good enough.
It wasn't like he had been crippled.
Well, except for me.
Though my right arm feels like it's been through a meat grinder.
But since the physician said it would heal, I decided not to worry.
Now that I knew Cheon Ui-jin and Do-hyeong were safe and there were no immediate crises, I turned to Dang Ye-ran.
"How is the overall situation?"
"What happened after I passed out?"
Dang Ye-ran spoke softly.
"...Thanks to the incredible efforts of you and the other young heroes, the raid was successfully repelled."
So the attack had been crushed.
Well, of course.
Palduyeok was dead, and the Poison Sovereign himself had made an appearance at the end. It would have been stranger if they had failed.
"And the Family Head?"
"My father is... currently dealing with the aftermath of the raid and rooting out the spies within the clan."
I nodded slowly.
Spies.
Given what had transpired in the Secret Vault, purging the traitors was indeed the highest priority.
The only question was...
Is that even possible?
It wouldn't be an easy task.
If even the ones who followed us into the Secret Vault were spies...
Those were supposed to be the elite guards the Poison Sovereign trusted most. If even they were compromised, how deep did the rot go?
Could they truly weed them all out?
I had my doubts.
Well, that's for the Dang Clan to figure out.
It wasn't my place to worry about their internal security.
There were more pressing matters at hand.
"So... it will be difficult to meet with Lord Dang right away?"
"Yes... I am afraid it might be difficult to see him today."
"I understand."
I had wanted to speak with him the moment I woke up.
There was the matter of the Secret Vault, not to mention my reward.
But it can't be helped.
If he was unavailable, I just had to accept it.
His reasons were more than valid.
"Ugh..."
I swung my legs over the edge of the bed and tried to stand. Seeing this, Dang Ye-ran hurriedly reached out to support me.
"Young Master...!"
"Ah, it's alright..."
I gently waved her off, insisting I could stand on my own.
My upper body was the problem; my legs felt fine.
Or maybe not. Seeing how they trembled, my legs weren't in great shape either.
Still.
I could manage to walk, so I slowly shuffled toward the door.
Cheon Ui-jin and Do-hyeong watched me with deep concern.
"I'm fine, so stop looking at me like that."
I waved a hand dismissively.
Truthfully, my head was spinning and I felt incredibly dizzy, but I pushed through it and stepped outside.
"L-let me come with you. The physician said it is dangerous to move around recklessly."
Dang Ye-ran quickly followed, trying to offer her shoulder.
I wanted to decline, but the pleading look on her face made me relent.
As she stepped close to support me, a sweet, floral scent drifted over.
What is that?
Did she always smell like this? I remembered a faint scent of sweat and soot from her blacksmithing, but this was different.
It was a delicate, floral fragrance I hadn't noticed before.
I found it strange, but I chose not to ask.
Leaning slightly on her, I walked out into the courtyard.
"Where would you like to go...?"
"...Just a short walk. My head is a bit foggy from lying down for so long."
"Ah! A walk?"
Her voice suddenly sounded a bit brighter.
...Hmm.
Seeing her reaction, that nagging suspicion from before flared up again.
Does she...
...actually like me?
All signs pointed to yes.
I briefly considered asking her bluntly, just like last time.
...No, let's not.
I held back. If she confessed, dealing with the aftermath would be a massive pain.
With those thoughts in mind, I strolled through the pathways of the Dang Clan estate.
"...Look over there."
"What? Where are you looking... Oh."
I felt eyes boring into me from all directions.
It wasn't entirely unusual. People had been staring at me ever since I arrived at the Dang Clan.
Between my association with the Sowol Squadron and the rumors of me being the Sword Saint's successor, I was used to being watched.
But this time...
Something is different.
The atmosphere had shifted.
It wasn't just the martial artists; even the ordinary servants and residents stopped in their tracks to stare as I passed.
Their gazes went far beyond simple curiosity.
Awe? Disbelief?
It was something much deeper.
Why were they looking at me like that?
As the question crossed my mind, Dang Ye-ran spoke up in a quiet voice.
"...It is likely because word of your victory over the Demonic Leather Spear has spread."
She had read my expression perfectly.
"Ah..."
So that was it. They knew I had slain Palduyeok.
That explained the stares.
Someone must have leaked it.
Only a handful of people had witnessed what happened in the Secret Vault.
Yet the news had spread like wildfire in just a few days.
No wonder they were looking at me like I was some sort of mythical beast.
"...I heard he manifested sword gang."
"Manifesting sword gang... does that mean he has already reached the Peak Realm?"
"Reaching the Peak Realm before even coming of age? Not even the Seven Great Talents managed that..."
The whispers drifted over. They even knew about the sword gang used to defeat Palduyeok.
Thanks to that, everyone was treating me as a Peak Realm master.
Well, it's a natural misunderstanding.
Common sense existed for a reason.
Not only had I defeated Palduyeok, a master who could manifest qi, but I had supposedly unleashed sword gang to do it.
It only natural they assumed I was a Peak Realm master.
I did my best to ignore the murmurs and kept walking.
But no matter where we went, there were people.
And every single one of them reacted the exact same way.
Just how far had these rumors spread?
It seemed the entire Dang Clan was talking about me.
This is bad.
At this rate, the rumors would leak out of the Dang Clan and spread to the rest of the Murim.
No, it wasn't just a possibility. It was a certainty.
Tsk.
I clicked my tongue. While this sudden fame was annoying, I had a much bigger problem to deal with.
Found him.
I stopped in my tracks as I spotted what I was looking for.
Turning to Dang Ye-ran, I spoke.
"I have a quick matter to attend to. I will be back shortly."
"Pardon?"
"I'd like to take a look at that flower over there by myself."
"...Ah?"
She looked utterly bewildered by my sudden urge to examine a flower, but I gently slipped my arm out of her grasp and walked forward.
My body was still stiff and aching, but I forced myself to move.
I approached the patch of grass where the flower grew.
As I drew closer—
A mischievous face suddenly popped out from the bushes.
"..."
Yoo Chun-gil clicked his tongue at my deadpan expression.
Normally, I would have thrown a curse his way.
But I wasn't in the mood for banter.
I stared straight at him and got straight to the point.
"What is your goal?"
Yoo Chun-gil tilted his head.
"I know why you handled things this way, old man."
I leaned down slightly, locking eyes with the ghost.
Staring into his glowing blue eyes, I continued.
"Just as you intended, I've gained quite the reputation."
At the mention of his name and fame, the playful smirk vanished from Yoo Chun-gil's face.
I watched his expression harden as I spoke.
The look on my face was probably cold enough to freeze water.
"Tell me. What are you really after?"
It was a gaze of absolute, chilling gravity.