A Ghost with Feet
Bang Seongyeon, eighteen years old.
There was a set of rules he had repeated to himself ever since he regained the memories of his past life.
At age ten, when he resolved to live this life properly, he established a few guidelines.
Rule Number One.
Never reveal to anyone that he possessed memories of a past life.
There was no telling what might happen if he blabbed. He was determined to keep this secret to the grave.
Rule Number Two.
Do not stand out.
Just because he had past-life memories didn't mean he should do anything foolish.
His family was already a complete mess, meaning he had plenty of unseen enemies.
It was especially dangerous in his hometown of Yoryeong, so he couldn't afford to make enemies by showing off. Even if he were to do something later, he had to endure for now. He decided to make that the foundation of his new life.
And finally, the grand, final third rule.
The most crucial rule for achieving his life's purpose.
My past life.
To not live like Kim Minchel, who had lived in South Korea.
Was it because his grandmother had been a shaman?
In his past life, Kim Minchel had lived seeing things he shouldn't have. He had been caught by those who 'should not be seen,' leading to a miserable life and an equally miserable death.
So he had steeled himself to live differently this time, but...
Damn it all, a problem arose the moment he recalled his past life. His past-life ability had tagged along with the memories.
Yes, that was it.
He could see ghosts.
And that remained true in this life as well.
Whether it was because he remembered his past life or simply a curse bound to his soul, it was his reality. He could see ghosts. That alone sent the difficulty of his life skyrocketing.
Just seeing them wouldn't have been a problem, but the moment a ghost realized he could see them, trouble followed.
Those bastards are a nightmare to deal with.
Ghosts were, after all, entities bound to the world by deep grudges or lingering regrets. If they found someone who could fulfill their wishes, they would cling to them by any means necessary.
I went through so much hell because of that.
And in the Jianghu, a land of blades and bloodshed? The sheer number of ghosts was absurd.
Remembering his past life, he was determined to live a normal life this time around. Pretending not to see what he saw. Pretending not to hear what he heard.
I will live a peaceful life, no matter what.
For years, he had lived like that, deceiving his own eyes. But now, damn it all, he had run straight into a crisis.
A massive build, nearly eight feet tall.
If not for the voice, he would have mistaken the figure for a bear.
Wondering what it was, Seongyeon squinted to get a closer look. Naturally, it wasn't a bear. It was definitely a human.
The figure was a white-haired old man wearing a tattered black martial robe.
What is up with his body...?
Moreover, he possessed an incredibly muscular physique for an old man. He looked extraordinary at a glance.
Seongyeon immediately looked down at the old man's lower body. It was a habit. A habit he could never afford to forget.
Most ghosts were translucent. Perhaps because they were spirits, it was easy to tell they were ghosts, so pretending not to notice was the first rule of survival.
Sometimes, there were those who looked perfectly solid, but in those cases, one only had to look at their lower half. A ghost's feet never touched the ground. Or their feet were missing entirely, leaving them floating. Furthermore, they cast no shadows.
To keep track of this, he had formed the habit of checking the legs of anyone unfamiliar. Thanks to that, he had managed to survive relatively unscathed. There were a few close calls along the way, but since he hadn't been caught, they were just memories now.
Hmm...
The old man's feet were firmly planted on the ground.
Confirming this, Seongyeon let out a silent sigh of relief.
"Ah... ah, look at that. Swinging his arm like that... Ah, that's not how you perform that technique...!"
"……."
The mysterious old man kept lamenting as he stared through the window. If he wasn't even a ghost, what on earth was he? He was suspicious. Suspicious beyond belief.
...Could it be?
Seongyeon's eyes flashed as a thought occurred to him.
Is he one of the high-ranking officials of the Martial Alliance?
Whether he belonged to the Anhui Branch or another branch, he didn't know. But anyone wandering around the Martial Alliance at this hour so casually had to be someone important.
His father had told him once: 'There are plenty of eccentric masters out there, so be careful.' Particularly old men and young children.
Should he just avoid him and get out of here?
Despite making that judgment, his feet were already moving toward the old man.
"Excuse me. Elder."
It was out of a greedy desire to make a good impression if the man turned out to be a high-ranking official. He called out to the old man, but...
"Aigoo... putting his waist into it like that will just ruin his back. You need to shift your weight and make it lighter, you foolish brat."
The old man ignored him completely, as if he weren't even there.
"Elder...? Excuse me?"
"And what is wrong with his grip? He's going to ruin his wrist like that. Tsk, tsk..."
"Elder. Can you hear me?"
"Kids these days have no foundation, which is why they're so lackluster..."
"Hey, old man!"
"Huh?"
"……."
He heard that.
At the words spat out in irritation, the old man immediately turned to look at him. Their eyes met. Strangely, the old man's eyes were blue.
"Ah, well..."
"……?"
The moment their eyes met, the old man quickly looked away and began scanning his surroundings. It was as if he were checking to see if anyone else was nearby.
"Elder...?"
Seongyeon called out to him again, puzzled by his behavior. Only then did the old man seem to realize Seongyeon was indeed calling him, and he looked back.
"What...? What is this?"
"Pardon?"
"Child. Can you see me?"
"Well, of course. You're standing right in front of me, so why wouldn't—"
He stopped mid-sentence.
Wait a minute...
A sudden sense of dissonance washed over him, freezing him in place. This is bad. The survival instincts he had honed over two lifetimes screamed at him.
"Oh?"
Amusement flickered across the old man's face at Seongyeon's reaction. And seeing that, goosebumps erupted all over Seongyeon's body.
He lowered his gaze. He stared at the old man's legs. He had checked them earlier, and they were definitely there. They were there, but... why did it feel so wrong?
"Where are you looking?"
"……."
Seongyeon didn't answer. He immediately turned his back. I'm screwed. Utterly screwed. He had definitely made a mistake.
"Hey. Child?"
Ignoring the voice, Seongyeon tried to walk away.
"You there."
This time, a voice came from ahead. Startled, Seongyeon looked up to see a sweat-drenched Yeon Socheon. Hearing the noise, Yeon Socheon had stepped out of the training hall to investigate.
"Uh... well..."
Before Seongyeon could even come up with an excuse, Socheon asked,
"...What are you doing out here by yourself?"
A cold sweat broke out at Yeon Socheon's words.
By myself.
He had just said Seongyeon was alone. Which meant Seongyeon's suspicion was absolutely correct. The moment he realized this—
A chilling sensation crept up behind him as a massive face suddenly popped up over his shoulder.
I'm dead.
What is this...?
Seriously, what is going on? He shifted his gaze to look at the old man's feet once more. No matter how many times he checked, it was the same. The old man's feet existed, and they were clearly touching the ground. Then what was this?
What is he?
This distinct sensation. The unique, eerie dissonance of facing a ghost was vibrating through his entire body.
Rolling his eyes back to the front, he forced himself to look ahead calmly. Before him stood Yeon Socheon, staring at him with a bizarre expression.
"...Do you have business with me?"
Yeon Socheon asked, his eyes filled with wariness.
His eyes are on me.
His gaze was fixed solely on Seongyeon. There was an eight-foot-tall muscular old man standing right next to him, yet he only looked at Seongyeon? That was impossible.
He's a ghost.
He had feet and a solid body, but the old man was undoubtedly a ghost. Seongyeon was certain of it. He didn't know how it was possible. He had seen plenty of vivid ghosts before, but never one so perfectly solid down to the tips of his toes. He had to keep his wits about him.
Seeing Seongyeon frozen solid, Yeon Socheon furrowed his brow.
"Excuse me, if you have something to say..."
"If your watch is over, you should go get some sleep."
"...Pardon?"
Yeon Socheon's expression shifted slightly at the remark. Seongyeon pressed on.
"It's already been seven nights."
He had to spit it out without giving him a chance to think. He needed to hide his panic as much as possible.
"Did you know? It's been seven nights since you started monopolizing this training hall after the first watch."
"What are you suddenly talking about...?"
"A person needs to learn how to share. How long are you going to keep this up? Just go inside and sleep already!"
As Seongyeon began to make unreasonable demands, Yeon Socheon listened quietly before responding.
"...I was not aware that the training hall had a designated owner."
He was right. The training hall had no owner. If one had to be pedantic, the Martial Alliance owned it, but...
"Owner or not. Recruits aren't supposed to use the training hall during their first year."
"What...?"
Yeon Socheon's eyes widened. Since his eyes were already quite large, the reaction was highly pronounced.
"I... have never heard of such a rule..."
"Of course you haven't. Everyone is walking on eggshells around you, Recruit Yeon. Who would tell you?"
"……."
The rule that only second-year members could use the training hall was an absurdity in itself. They simply weren't enforcing it on Yeon Socheon.
"Honestly, I don't get how a rookie like you got assigned to the first watch either. I've been here a year, and I'm still stuck with the last watch or the one right before it..."
"That... I was merely following the orders I was given..."
"Orders, my foot. It's obvious everyone is bending over backward to cater to you. You've just received so much special treatment that you've started taking it for gran—!"
Ah.
He shut his mouth, cutting himself off. He had gotten worked up and crossed the line. He should have kept those thoughts to himself. He had only intended to exchange a few words to deflect attention, but he had gone too far.
Stealing a glance at Yeon Socheon, he saw the recruit's face had stiffened into a cold mask.
I'm screwed.
This was a man who likely had the Namgung Family backing him. He had just run his mouth to a martial artist who could easily toy with a Second-class expert. What if he gets stabbed for this? A cold sweat broke out at the chilling thought.
"...Special treatment..."
Fortunately, Yeon Socheon didn't draw his sword. He merely muttered the words to himself. Though Seongyeon had now branded himself as a crazy person who picked fights in the middle of the night, he didn't dwell on it and quickly turned to leave.
"Ah... anyway. I just came to tell you as your senior. That's... all."
He didn't even know what he was saying anymore. He just babbled and bolted.
He felt gazes on his back. Was it Yeon Socheon's, or was it the old man's? He ignored it. Would pretending not to know work at this point?
Of course not. Damn it, it really wasn't working.
He ignored it anyway. He returned to the Alliance quarters. He could see Yu Hyeongin, who had gone in earlier, fast asleep. Seongyeon casually squeezed into the spot next to him.
"……."
I can't hear him. I hear absolutely nothing.
The old man's voice echoed chillingly in the dead of night. His pounding heart felt heavy. Was he afraid that the peaceful life he had built would crumble? For that very reason, he could not get involved.
The old man's blue eyes glowed in the darkness, staring down at him. Seongyeon didn't look. Afraid his gaze might wander, he closed his eyes tight.
"……."
Bullshit. That was the classic trick ghosts used all the time. Begging him to listen to their tragic stories, pleading with him to resolve their grudges. If he felt pity and helped them once, it became twice, and twice became ten times. He had experienced it countless times. He had done everything in his power to avoid this.
But what is up with this old man?
Of all things, to see a ghost with actual legs. It was a first, not just in this life, but in his entire existence. Thanks to this, things had become complicated. Extremely complicated.
If that old man mentions me to other ghosts...
He might end up spending his entire life surrounded by ghosts again, just like in his past life. They would swear up and down that they wouldn't tell anyone, but the moment he helped them, they would blab to every spirit they met. For dead people, they sure had loose lips. So, he had to ignore him for now. He couldn't let himself get dragged into this mess in this life too.
He tried desperately to fall asleep. Falling asleep wasn't that difficult. Sleeping through loud noises was one of his specialties.
The old man's laughter echoed.
A playful tone seeped through his deep voice. Hearing that, Seongyeon couldn't help but feel a shiver of anxiety. It had been nine years since he reincarnated. He had just run into the second greatest crisis of his life in the Central Plains.
...What do I do now?
As the night deepened toward dawn, the young man sat on his bed with a troubled expression. This was the private quarters provided by the Martial Alliance, a room he used all to himself. It was a spacious room, far too large for a mere recruit. Luxurious bedding, and amenities prepared specifically for him. Staring at all of this, the young man recalled the words.
"You've just received so much special treatment that you've started taking it for granted..."
A boy whose name he didn't even know. The words spoken to him by a fellow recruit, someone who looked to be around his age. Recalling them, he scowled.
Special treatment.
The phrase lodged itself deep in his chest. After repeating the words in his mind, the young man, Yeon Socheon, opened his mouth.
"Pung Yeon."
At the quietly uttered name, a figure materialized behind him. It was a pale man dressed in black martial robes.
"Yes, Young Master."
Pung Yeon, Yeon Socheon's bodyguard. He was an expert assigned to him by his family.
"Is it true?"
"What are you referring to?"
"...That recruits cannot use the training hall until their second year."
At Yeon Socheon's question, Pung Yeon replied in a calm tone.
"It is true."
"!"
Yeon Socheon's eyes snapped open at the confirmation. He opened his mouth to speak, but Pung Yeon cut in first.
"However, that is merely a petty hazing ritual common in any organization. It is not an official rule, so you have no need to concern yourself with—"
"Even so, it means everyone else is abiding by it, does it not?"
"There is no reason for you to follow such things, Young Master."
Such rules were meant for those who had no choice but to obey them. A noble personage like him had no need to bow to them. Pung Yeon stopped himself before he could say it aloud. He knew well that his master detested such talk.
"Did the words of that recruit bother you?"
"……."
Pung Yeon clicked his tongue inwardly.
"Young Master. He is someone beneath your concern."
A nameless recruit of the Martial Alliance. At best, he was merely a Third-class martial artist. He had been loitering around the training hall his master used for seven nights, which had initially drawn Pung Yeon's attention. But after looking into him, he realized the boy wasn't worth a second thought.
What was his background again? An illegitimate son of some obscure family in Yoryeong, was it? Yoryeong was the home of the Moyong Family, one of the Five Great Families. He had wondered if the boy was connected to them, but that wasn't the case. Of course. If he were of Moyong blood, he would never have come to Anhui. The Namgung Family and the Moyong Family were on notoriously bad terms, after all.
"From what I gather, he was the one who used to train at that hour. He was likely just venting his frustration because you took his spot. If it troubles you, I can personally..."
At Pung Yeon's suggestion, Yeon Socheon shot him a freezing glare.
"Pung Yeon."
"My apologies."
At the cold look, Pung Yeon immediately bowed his head.
"I was caught off guard by the sudden confrontation, but his words were not wrong."
Whether it was hazing or a bad habit, it was something everyone else abided by. Yet, he had 'taken special treatment for granted.' Perhaps that boy was right.
"...I will speak to the Squad Leader later."
"Young Master... But..."
"Even if I came here with a purpose, I must still observe the rules."
He wanted to live a life without shame. That was why he had left his sect, and he could not let it all go to waste over this.
"Please respect my wishes on this matter."
"...Understood."
Faced with his master's stubbornness, Pung Yeon acquiesced without further argument. Seeing this, Yeon Socheon withdrew his gaze and asked about something else.
"What of the matter we were investigating?"
The object of their search. When asked, Pung Yeon answered as if he had been waiting for the question.
"We have found a trace."
Yeon Socheon's eyes lit up.
"A mountain in northern Anhui... It seems his sword is located there."
"……."
Yeon Socheon nodded slowly at Pung Yeon's words. A burning passion began to ignite in his quiet eyes.
...Finally!
The reason Yeon Socheon had come all the way to Anhui and was enduring this. The greatest of all time, the world's greatest. The legacy of the former leader of the Martial Alliance, the Sword Saint Yu Cheongil. They had finally uncovered a clue to his whereabouts.