The Gathering of the Prodigies
Namgung Seong.
My face grimaced the moment I saw him.
This bastard?
Socheonggeom Namgung Seong. He was someone I had a history with.
Of course, it was more of a grudge than a friendly acquaintance, but we knew each other nonetheless.
He was the guy who had come looking for me at the Anhui branch of the Martial Alliance. We had clashed, and a fight had broken out.
That was probably the turning point. The moment my life began to change completely.
Yoo Chun-gil had defeated Socheonggeom, and rumors had begun to spread because of it.
Of course, the rumors weren't that big back then, but it was the spark that slowly kindled the fire.
So much had happened since then, even though not even a year had passed.
Two seasons had gone by, and we were entering the third.
It had been quite a while since I last saw his face.
So he came too.
Well, considering he belonged to the Namgung Clan, it wasn't surprising that he would show up at the Yongbong Association.
"What do you think you're doing?"
I asked, brushing off his hand from my arm.
My voice carried a trace of heat. I was already starving to death, and being interrupted like this was making my temper flare.
"...Ha..."
He let out a hollow laugh at my words.
"What am I doing?"
His voice was laced with fighting spirit. Watching him, I felt something was off.
What's wrong with this guy?
He felt different.
Was he always like this?
The Socheonggeom I remembered wasn't like this.
If I recalled correctly...
He was someone who cared excessively about what others thought of him.
So what was with this attitude? Thanks to him, all the attention in the restaurant—which was already drifting toward us—had completely locked onto us.
Every eye in the place was focused here.
"Are you asking because you really don't know? Do you have any idea what my life became because of you?!"
Even in this situation, Namgung Seong was venting his fury at me.
And it was genuine, raw anger.
This guy...
He had changed significantly. The Socheonggeom I knew would never act like this here.
No matter how uncomfortable or angry he was, he was the type to put on an act, conscious of the public eye.
But he's completely ignoring the crowd.
He was too busy raging to care about how others perceived him.
He must have gone through something after returning home.
Something major must have happened after he went back.
Otherwise, there was no way he would behave like this.
At that moment, I glanced down at his hand.
It was moving.
His hand was reaching for the hilt of his sword.
Uh...
No way.
Is he going to draw it here?
Did he really intend to draw his sword in a crowded place like this?
It made no sense. No matter how crazy he was, drawing a weapon in front of all these people was madness.
He's out of his mind.
I couldn't comprehend it. That was the first reason I was surprised. The second reason was...
Why is he so slow?
Namgung Seong's hand moving toward his sword felt bizarrely sluggish.
Slowly. Extremely slowly.
Every single movement of his hand reaching for the hilt was perfectly visible to my eyes.
Had Namgung Seong gotten weaker?
Back when we fought, his sword had been incredibly fast.
The Namgung Clan's swordplay, which focused on swift strikes, was renowned for its speed.
And Namgung Seong, whose talent was recognized even within his clan, was definitely fast.
But it's so slow.
It was sluggish. Unlike back then, it looked incredibly slow.
But I quickly realized that Namgung Seong hadn't actually gotten slower.
This was...
He didn't get slower.
I had gotten faster.
Unlike back then, my vision had changed and my realm had advanced, which was why his movements appeared so sluggish.
His hand slowly closed in on the sword.
I narrowed my eyes as I watched.
The world seemed to slow down to a crawl.
It felt as if I were the only one watching his sword in this frozen moment.
Feeling this sensation, I channeled energy into my eyes.
Wuuuung.
My energy circulated, and a faint light flickered in my eyes.
The old man told me not to use it, though.
It was something I had obtained during my closed-door cultivation.
But right now seemed like the perfect time to test it.
Should I?
As always, hesitation should be brief.
Let's do it. Just as I made up my mind and was about to draw my sword—
*Tap.*
Huh?
Something intervened. It was a pale hand.
Was it a woman's hand? No.
The skin was pale, but it was definitely a man's hand.
The hand that slipped in...
*Clack.*
"...!"
"...Huh?"
The newcomer suddenly grabbed the hilt Socheonggeom was trying to draw and forced the sword back into its scabbard.
And then...
"Little brother. Didn't your brother tell you?"
Along with a gentle voice.
"Please, do not overstep your bounds."
*Grab!*
He gripped Namgung Seong's head.
"You always disappoint your brother, and this time is no different."
*BOOM!!!*
He slammed Namgung Seong's head straight into the table.
"Cough!"
Namgung Seong let out a choked groan as our dining table split clean in half, sending food flying.
*Drip.*
Namgung Seong collapsed, blood trickling down his forehead.
It all happened in the blink of an eye.
Reacting instantly, Do-hyeong and Cheon Ui-jin moved.
They were about to draw their swords, but—
"Oh my! I am terribly sorry about this!!!"
The young man who had just smashed the table with Namgung Seong's head bowed his head repeatedly.
"I will pay double for the table and the food, so please forgive us...!!"
*Rub rub rub rub rub!*
The young man kept his head low, rubbing his hands together so vigorously they made a loud friction sound.
The display was so pathetic that Do-hyeong and Cheon Ui-jin, who had been about to draw their swords, froze in sheer bewilderment.
At that moment...
"Sigh..."
Cheon Hye-in, who had remained silent until now, let out a deep sigh.
"I didn't expect to see two faces I despise in a single day."
Her voice was thick with annoyance.
Hearing her voice, the bowing young man slightly raised his head to look at Cheon Hye-in.
My eyes widened as I saw him.
This guy...
His sheepishly smiling face resembled someone.
I didn't even need to search my memory.
...Namgung Seong?
His face was a spitting image of Namgung Seong's.
Which meant...
This guy is...
This young man was none other than—
"...Thunder Dragon. Your face is as annoying as ever."
Cheon Hye-in spoke the answer for me.
I knew it.
This young man's name was Namgung Cheon.
He was Namgung Seong's twin brother and one of the current Seven Prodigies.
However...
"Ah, Lady Cheon. It has been a while."
Looking at the Thunder Dragon, the sense of dissonance was overwhelming. His face was identical to Namgung Seong's, but his sly smile and tone of voice were completely different.
"How many years has it been? I've been wanting to see you, so this is wonderful."
"...I didn't want to see you at all."
"Oh, come now... Surely you jest?"
He laughed heartily, completely unfazed by Cheon Hye-in's cold response.
Then, he kicked the collapsed Namgung Seong.
*Thud!*
He sent him sliding across the floor.
It looked like the area where the Namgung Clan members were gathered, and as soon as Namgung Seong landed, someone rushed over to tend to him.
Ah.
I knew who that was too. Her name was...
Namgung Hyeon, right?
The precious daughter of the Namgung Clan, who was a year older than me.
She flinched when she saw me while tending to Namgung Seong.
I didn't pay her much mind.
There was only one person I needed to focus on right now.
Thunder Dragon.
The young man standing before me. He was the only one who mattered at this moment.
"My little brother has caused you trouble. I am truly sorry. He's handsome, but he still lacks maturity."
Calling him handsome when they shared the exact same face was a bit odd.
"I will compensate you for all the damages, so could you find it in your hearts to forgive us?"
"And what if we don't?"
Cheon Hye-in asked. At her words, Thunder Dragon's eyes shifted toward her. Watching this, my body momentarily stiffened.
The eyes stripped of their smile were far colder than I had expected.
Cold enough to make me flinch instinctively.
But...
"Oh... Well then,"
Perhaps it was only for a split second, as Thunder Dragon quickly put on a troubled expression.
"If I get down on my knees... will you let it slide?"
He actually began to bend his knees as if to kneel.
Seeing that, I quickly stopped him.
"...There is no need for that. It is fine."
"Oh, really? Thank you, young hero."
The moment I stopped him, he straightened up as if he had been waiting for me to say those words.
Then, he smiled brightly at me and continued.
"As expected of the famous young hero of late. Your magnanimity is truly vast."
"..."
My face contorted slightly at his words.
How did he know?
How did he know I was the Young Sword Saint? He had already figured it out.
"Hoho. Look at this kid..."
At that moment, Yoo Chun-gil spoke, looking at Thunder Dragon with fascination.
"First the kid from the Paeng Clan, and now this one."
His voice was filled with deep interest and surprise.
"I wondered how impressive they could be to be lauded as the Seven Prodigies, but they truly deserve the title."
It was a clean, straightforward compliment.
"Even that pathetic one reminded me of the Thunderbolt Sword, but this one..."
He compared him to the Socheonggeom he had just crushed, then changed his tune as he looked at Thunder Dragon.
"...is on a whole different level."
Praise that couldn't even be compared to what he said about Socheonggeom.
Was Thunder Dragon really that incredible?
Well, it made sense.
The way he shut down Socheonggeom was incredibly clean.
His movements were so fast and precise that even I had trouble tracking them.
It felt similar to when the Black Great Saber slammed Dongnyong.
Which meant...
Does Thunder Dragon possess that level of strength as well?
Strength comparable to the Black Great Saber.
Just as I was about to look at Thunder Dragon again with that thought in mind—
"...Hey... young heroes?"
This time, a voice drifted down from above.
Everyone's head turned in that direction.
"It's good to be full of youthful vigor, but please calm down a bit. If you cause any more trouble, I'll have no choice but to report it."
Two young men were sitting on the second-floor railing, looking down at us with their chins resting in their hands.
One was a clean-cut youth wearing a pale gray Taoist robe, while the other did not share the neat appearance of the prestigious clan heirs gathered here.
He wore clothes that looked like literal rags.
His hair was completely disheveled and greasy.
He looked like a beggar to anyone who saw him.
Someone muttered upon seeing him.
"The Fighting Beggar Dog."
Hearing that, I nodded.
So that's the Fighting Beggar Dog.
The Fighting Beggar Dog, O Un-chu.
A beggar belonging to the Beggar Sect, and one of the Seven Prodigies.
And next to him...
"...Wudang Cloud Dragon."
Ha.
I let out a dry chuckle upon confirming his identity.
I had wondered who the clean-cut guy was, and it turned out he was no different.
He was the Wudang Sect's representative among the Seven Prodigies, the Wudang Cloud Dragon, Seo Pyeong.
At this rate...
Almost all of the Seven Prodigies are gathered here.
Dongnyong of the Tang Family.
The Moon Dance Beauty of Cheongwol Gate.
Thunder Dragon of the Namgung Clan.
The Fighting Beggar Dog of the Beggar Sect.
The Wudang Cloud Dragon of the Wudang Sect.
Now, if only the Black Great Saber showed up—
*BOOM!!!*
As if on cue, the entrance doors shattered. Everyone's eyes widened in surprise at the sudden impact.
"Oh! What in the world is going on here?!"
A boisterous voice echoed through the restaurant.
Hearing the booming voice, I clicked my tongue.
Speak of the devil.
It was the other weirdo I had met earlier today.
"Long time no see, everyone!"
The Black Great Saber, Paeng Do-jin, had arrived.
The rare sight of six of the Seven Prodigies gathering in one place drew everyone's attention.
As interest and curiosity peaked at this unprecedented gathering...
"Ah, we happened to run into each other on the way in. Perfect timing."
The Black Great Saber stepped aside as if to introduce someone.
At that moment...
"...!!"
"...!"
—!!!
What is this?
All sound in the room vanished.
The Prodigies, who had been sizing each other up, locked their gazes onto the entrance in unison.
These were people who hadn't even blinked when the Black Great Saber came crashing through the door.
Yet, for some reason, wariness and tension seeped into their auras.
Ah.
Naturally, my eyes drifted toward the entrance as well.
Could it be...
Is it...
...that person?
I wondered if the person I was thinking of had arrived.
If six of the Seven Prodigies were already here, it wouldn't be strange for the last one to show up.
Just then...
*Tap.*
Footsteps echoed from beyond the entrance.
Because of the absolute silence in the room, the sound was incredibly distinct.
*Tap.*
*Tap.*
As the rhythmic footsteps drew closer and closer...
"...Tsk."
Cheon Hye-in suddenly clicked her tongue.
With that sound as the cue, a figure fully emerged from the entrance.
Straight black hair fluttered in the breeze.
She wore a white martial robe adorned with light red trim.
Her skin was pale white, and a cloak made of white fur rested over her shoulders.
She looked slightly shorter than me, yet she didn't feel small at all.
An expressionless face, pitch-black pupils.
Even a tiny black mole on the bridge of her nose.
She was a woman anyone would call beautiful.
But her beauty was not the reason the room had fallen into dead silence.
It's her.
The entity Cheon Hye-in, Moyong Yeong-sun, and even Dongnyong had mentioned.
And...
The last of the Seven Prodigies.
The final member of the current Seven Prodigies.
The moment she appeared—
"Hahahahahahahahaha—!!!"
Yoo Chun-gil burst into roaring laughter. His wild laughter was so loud it felt like my eardrums would burst.
"That Plum Blossom bastard—!!! That stubborn old fool! Just what on earth did he create?!"
It was the first time Yoo Chun-gil had reacted this intensely.
Was she really that outstanding?
It was highly likely. There was even another title used to describe her.
The intelligence reports had clearly stated:
The Foremost Prodigy.
She was described as the most outstanding expert among the current generation.
A martial artist whose mere presence put everyone on edge.
...The Plum Blossom Sword Phoenix of Mount Hua.
The Plum Blossom Sword Phoenix.
Yu Yeon.
The monster of Mount Hua had finally revealed herself.