The Echo of the Hammer
It happened when Dang Ye-ran was around six or seven years old.
As was always the case with direct bloodlines, she was bound to learn the family's martial arts.
Dang Ye-ran was no exception.
The martial arts of the Dang Clan were built upon sheer brutality.
Since poison arts and hidden weapons were the foundation, she received rigorous training from a young age.
The process was excruciatingly cruel.
It was a level of pain that children under ten could not possibly endure.
Yet, it was a path every true bloodline of the Dang Clan had to walk.
During this ordeal, Dongnyong endured every single trial, earning him the reputation of being the spitting image of the young Dok-jon, who was the clan leader at the time.
"A genius."
"The future of the Dang Clan rests on that boy's shoulders."
Everyone who saw Dongnyong said as much.
It was only natural.
Since he had survived every single one of the clan's brutal training regimens, the elders and all the martial artists of the family praised him.
"A brilliant light."
That was how they saw him.
But then, an anomaly occurred.
It was none other than Dongnyong's sister, Dang Ye-ran.
When she emerged from the bloodline trial known as the Abyss of the Poison Rift, those who inspected her condition gasped in sheer disbelief.
For Dongnyong, surviving the trial was already a monumental feat.
But Dang Ye-ran had not only survived; she had absorbed all the poison poured into the chamber, developing a complete immunity to it.
"A body truly blessed for the poison arts."
"Not just Dongnyong, but his sister is gifted as well."
"The future of the Dang Clan is so bright." Having witnessed this miraculous hope, the clan placed immense expectations on the two siblings.
However.
Those high expectations were shaken one day.
It was a cool autumn day under a high, clear sky.
The day Dang Ye-ran defeated her older brother, Dongnyong, in a sparring match.
Dongnyong lay collapsed on the ground, gasping for breath.
And Dang Ye-ran watched him with trembling eyes.
In the heavy silence, her hands shaking, Dang Ye-ran spoke.
"I... I don't want to do this... anymore..."
Her frightened eyes brimmed with tears.
A single droplet rolled down, brushing the tip of her chin.
On that day.
Dang Ye-ran declared that she would no longer learn martial arts.
It was from that moment.
The moment Dongnyong began to look at Dang Ye-ran with contempt.
And the moment Dang Ye-ran began to throw herself frantically into blacksmithing.
Furthermore.
The day the greatest elder of the Dang Clan, the one they called the sky—Dok-jon—passed away.
It was only a few days apart from that fateful day.
Clang!
Putting strength into her shoulders, she struck down hard.
Clang!
With every ring, beads of sweat dripped from the woman's face.
Though the sweat fell continuously, she did not wipe it away. As if such a thing were beneath her concern, she focused entirely on what lay before her.
A little more.
A little harder.
Clang!
Just a little more...
Just a little more precisely.
Clang!!
The clear, crisp sound echoed repeatedly in a steady rhythm.
The small room was already stiflingly hot, filled with intense heat.
Clang! Clang!!
The woman.
Dang Ye-ran grit her teeth and swung the hammer.
She gradually fell into a rhythm, her focus deepening.
What lay at the end of this act, enduring such scorching heat?
What did she want to create?
Her undecided mind left only questions.
Yet, she did not hesitate.
Whatever it was, it didn't matter.
She was fine with whatever was born from her delicate fingertips.
Clang!!
Her grandfather had once said.
Rather than the final product of what one wished to create...
What do you imbue within it?
How much, and what, could she pour into it?
He told her to find that.
That, he said, was what made a true blacksmith.
However.
What is that, exactly?
Dang Ye-ran had yet to discover what she was supposed to imbue.
She was young and inexperienced.
Still busy being stubborn, she had not found her destination.
How could someone who hadn't even found her bearings dare to imbue anything?
Dang Ye-ran knew herself well.
She was not yet ready to contain anything.
And yet.
Clang!!
Still, she did not stop.
Clang!!
Beyond focus, it was obsession.
Dang Ye-ran was obsessed with her work.
This is all I have.
She had to do what she could.
Blacksmithing was everything to her, and it had to be her path.
Therefore, she could not stop, not even for a moment.
Just as she thought this and prepared to swing the hammer again—
Are you running away again, after all?
A voice pierced her mind.
"..."
Clang...!
The moment she recalled those words, the hammer struck the wrong spot.
Clatter.
With the sound of something shattering, Dang Ye-ran let go of the hammer.
"*Pant... pant...*"
Only then did she release the breath she had been holding. The fatigue she hadn't noticed while concentrating began to wash over her.
"*Sigh...*"
Exhaling deeply, Dang Ye-ran sank to the floor.
Since she hadn't used any internal energy, it was pure physical labor.
Her arms could barely lift.
How long had she been hammering?
Wiping the sweat with the back of her hand, she looked down.
The object she had been hammering was now unrecognizable.
What had she been trying to make? What was her goal in the beginning?
She couldn't even remember.
Perhaps she had just been swinging the hammer aimlessly.
"..."
For some reason, her vision grew blurry.
Dang Ye-ran rubbed her eyes.
Moisture clung to her fingers. It was sweat. It had to be sweat.
"*Ugh...*"
Suppressing a trembling breath, she lifted her head.
Should she rest for a bit? Yes, she would rest a moment and then finish.
With that thought, she shifted her gaze.
"...Huh...?"
Through her hazy vision, someone was standing there.
Who was it? She couldn't see clearly. All she could discern was a blue light.
What was it that glowed so brightly before her?
And how could it be such a beautiful shade of blue?
Looking at the light, Dang Ye-ran recalled her childhood.
...When was it?
She had seen that exact same light once before.
She couldn't remember exactly when.
But it was likely before she turned ten.
Is she that old bastard's granddaughter?
A large, rugged frame. A height that seemed to block out the sky, and a fierce downward gaze.
Fortunately, she doesn't look much like him.
His wide, grinning face was enough to terrify any young girl.
Yet, for some reason, Dang Ye-ran had not been afraid.
Oh? Look at this. You're smiling?
Was she too young to know better?
Or was she just simple-minded?
It was probably both.
At the time, Dang Ye-ran had reached out her hands as if asking to be held.
Seeing this, the old man had let out a dry laugh and lifted her up.
"You've got quite the spirit. You'll grow up to be someone great."
"Hehe."
"Do you even know who is holding you right now?"
"Hehehe!"
She had simply laughed, pleased to be lifted so high.
The old man had burst into hearty laughter at her reaction.
How shocked she had been years later when she finally learned the identity of the old man who had held her.
She had remembered that light ever since, unable to forget that moment.
And now, the exact same light that the old man had possessed was floating right before her eyes.
Rubbing her eyes, Dang Ye-ran spoke.
"...Elder Sword Saint...?"
She spoke hesitantly.
At her words, the shoulders of the figure in front of her trembled.
As she rubbed her eyes repeatedly, her vision gradually cleared.
The figure standing there came into sharp focus.
It was definitely not an old man.
It was a young, handsome man.
He had a rather gentle impression, but he was currently looking at Dang Ye-ran with a somewhat awkward, reluctant expression.
"...Ah..."
Recognizing him, Dang Ye-ran let out a soft exclamation.
She knew who he was.
"...Young Master Bang."
"..."
He was the subject of the rumors currently spreading through the Murim.
Not only had he defeated the Namgung Clan's Young Blue Sword in a single strike, but he was also the rising star who had slain the Mountain River Ghost, one of the unorthodox masters.
...The successor of that man.
The World's Greatest who had stopped the Demonic Cult and saved the world.
The successor of the Sword Saint, Yoo Chun-gil.
And.
My mother's first love.
His son.
It was an incredibly complicated web of relationships.
Recalling this, Dang Ye-ran smiled despite herself.
It was such a random, sudden thought.
"...Why are you suddenly smiling?" Bang Seong-yeon asked, looking at her with a puzzled expression.
"Oh, it's nothing... I just had a funny thought all of a sudden."
"While looking at my face?"
"Yes."
"...Well, aren't you bold?" Bang Seong-yeon narrowed his eyes, amused.
Every time she saw him, she found it fascinating.
He looked gentler than anyone, yet he could deliver such playful or slightly cheeky remarks without batting an eye.
Moreover, he seemed to know how capable he was, as he didn't seem bothered by her words at all.
Is that why?
Her mother's constant warnings flashed through her mind.
He hadn't done anything, yet there was something subtle about him.
A sense of incongruity in his very existence. The confusion one felt when encountering something unknown.
Bang Seong-yeon was a young man who carried that kind of presence.
If so, had his father been the same?
If that was why her mother still couldn't forget him...
I can understand a little.
Dang Ye-ran thought that might indeed be the case.
However, it was merely a passing thought.
She had no intention of dwelling on it further, nor did she want to.
Untying her bound hair, Dang Ye-ran asked.
"What brings you here? It must have been difficult to get in."
"Ah, I came to speak with the Clan Leader, but... I suddenly heard a sound."
"A sound?"
What sound was he talking about?
"You know, that clanging sound."
"Ah."
Dang Ye-ran nodded.
"But you came all this way just because you heard that?"
It wasn't as if there was only one clanging sound.
The entire area was filled with the noise of hammers.
Look.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Even now, the noise continued to echo from all directions.
Yet he said he had followed the sound here. Dang Ye-ran expressed her doubt.
"That couldn't be—"
"The sound coming from here was the most pleasant to listen to." Bang Seong-yeon finished his sentence with a casual face.
"..."
Hearing that, Dang Ye-ran fell silent.
"I was going to just pass by, but it sounded so nice that I wanted to come take a look."
"...That... uh..."
Her words came out broken, as if her gears had jammed.
Dang Ye-ran lightly covered her mouth with her hand.
It was just a simple comment.
Clang.
Clang.
Clang.
The surrounding noise registered fully in her mind.
The monotonous clanging strangely sounded like the ringing of bells.
Was her body signaling danger? In any case, it felt like a warning.
If so, what was it warning her about?
Dang Ye-ran did not know.
"...It sounded pleasant?"
If she had known, she wouldn't have asked.
"Yes."
"Specifically, what about it...?"
"Specifically...? Does saying it sounded nice require a detailed explanation?"
"I-If possible, yes..."
"It just felt nice. It felt like you were truly sincere about blacksmithing... and it felt like there was something imbued in the sound—"
"...Gasp..."
"...Lady Dang?"
At Bang Seong-yeon's words, Dang Ye-ran now covered her mouth with both hands.
It felt like there was something imbued in it.
Those words made her heart race.
"Is something wrong?"
"No... it's nothing..."
Clang! Clang!
The ringing in her ears grew louder.
Was it because she had never heard those words from anyone else, yet had yearned to hear them so desperately?
"...Are you alright?"
"Did it... did it really sound like that?" Dang Ye-ran asked in a trembling voice, looking at Bang Seong-yeon.
"Did what...?"
"Did it really sound like that to you? Like something was imbued in it?"
"...Well... uh... Yes, I suppose so." Bang Seong-yeon stammered slightly as he answered her question.
For some reason, he seemed to be avoiding her gaze.
His eyes darted back and forth.
Why was he reacting like that? Normally, she would have found it strange, but right now, Dang Ye-ran was in no state to notice.
"I was surprised by how sincere you are. I didn't expect you to work this hard."
Bang Seong-yeon looked down at the object Dang Ye-ran had been working on.
It was the ruined piece she had struck incorrectly.
A wave of embarrassment washed over her. Dang Ye-ran wanted nothing more than to hide it from view.
Then.
"When the time comes, would you mind forging a sword for me as well?"
"...Pardon?" Dang Ye-ran froze.
"...A sword...?"
"Ah, if it's rude of me to ask or if it's too difficult, you don't have to."
"No... it's not that, but... why...?"
"Pardon?"
Bang Seong-yeon was the one taken aback by her counter-question.
He pondered for a moment before speaking to Dang Ye-ran.
"Just... because I feel like you'll make a good sword."
"..."
"Am I wrong?"
Only then did Dang Ye-ran realize.
Those eyes were the problem.
Those gentle-looking eyes that stared straight at her.
That gaze that somehow seemed to believe in her.
And even his calm tone, which unerringly picked out the exact words she wanted to hear.
Dang Ye-ran realized that the clanging sound in her ears had completely vanished.
Her mother had once told her.
"My daughter. You must remember this."
"Never get involved with men surnamed Bang."
For some reason, those words came back to Dang Ye-ran now.