The Girl Who Was the Mad Demon (2)
"Young lady, please hold still. If you keep moving like that…"
"Quiet. A girl who talks that much is good for nothing."
"…But if you keep squirming…"
"Enough! I'll handle it myself, so just stay put."
"…"
Even after the bath was over, Dokgo Jin and Sua kept bickering through the process of toweling him dry. Every time Sua wiped his body, the alien sensations of his transformed flesh set his nerves on edge, and he kept pushing her away. Sua, determined to fulfill her duty, refused to back down — and so the two of them locked horns.
Dokgo Jin could only curse the body that had reduced him to squabbling with a mere inn maid.
…What a piece of garbage this body is. I've got a long road ahead.
In his original male body, he could have pinned someone like Sua with two fingers. Now even scuffling with her left him winded. A brief tussle over a towel and already his breath was scraping the top of his throat.
"…Damn it."
The more he took stock of himself, the more the Mad Demon's rage boiled over.
The three pillars of a martial artist: mind, energy, and body.
His mind — the heart of a warrior — was unchanged. He was still the same lofty, transcendent master, Dokgo Jin.
His energy was no problem either. The eight extraordinary meridians were blocked for now, but walking a road once traveled was easy work. And after absorbing the inner power sealed inside the Ice Palace's sacred treasure, a pure internal energy beyond anything he could have imagined now filled his body. The moment he learned a suitable technique and began forcing those meridians open, he would reclaim every scrap of martial prowess he had built in a man's body — and more besides.
But the body offered no answers.
I'm supposed to swing a sword with this awkward wreck?
Every time he moved his arms, his chest got in the way. A swordsman's longer reach was an advantage in distance fighting, and even that was gone. His stride had shortened. The long hair was nothing but a nuisance. From one to nine, there was not a single thing about this body he liked.
Except one.
His five senses had grown razor-sharp.
Dokgo Jin closed his eyes and listened. His senses honed to a fine edge, and every detail of his surroundings laid itself bare.
Creak…
The sound of someone stepping on wooden floorboards reached his ears. Dokgo Jin opened his eyes.
"Listen here, girl."
"Yes, young lady?"
"A guest just arrived at the inn. Sounds like they're looking for the staff. That Jang Il fellow is off somewhere else, so you go."
"…Pardon?"
"The owner's dozing in the kitchen. At this rate you'll lose the customer, so get moving."
"…"
Sua eyed her with open suspicion.
…How does she know what's happening thirty jang away?
She strained her own ears on the off chance — and heard nothing at all.
"…Young lady, did someone really come?"
"Never mind. You don't have to go."
"Pardon?"
"The guest is coming this way."
The words had barely left his mouth when a figure appeared from the direction of the inn, walking straight toward Sua and Dokgo Jin. Dokgo Jin narrowed his eyes, checking the visitor's face — and his expression twisted.
Damn it…
A mild-faced man in white scholar's robes came strolling over with an easy swing of his arms and clasped his fists in greeting.
"Good day to you, lovely young ladies. I am looking for someone…"
It was the Lust Demon.
The moment that mild-mannered young master — the Lust Demon, Wi Ilcheong — addressed him, Dokgo Jin went rigid.
…What the hell is that bastard doing here?
The Lust Demon, Wi Ilcheong. A once-in-a-generation master born of a minor house under the Wi name along the Black Dragon River. A strange man whose legendary prowess in the bedchamber was even more famous than his martial arts. When it came to eccentricity in the jianghu, he was the only one who could match the Mad Demon himself.
Dokgo Jin stared at him flatly. Sensing the gaze, Wi Ilcheong turned and smiled.
"Oh my…. What a truly beautiful color of hair you have, young lady."
"Bullshit."
"…Pardon?"
"This looks beautiful to you? I look like some lunatic who got doused in blood."
"…My apologies. It seems this humble one has unsettled the young lady's temper."
"…"
Dokgo Jin wanted to sneer — humble one, my ass — but he bit it back. Picking a fight with this man would gain him nothing, and in his current body he wouldn't last a single exchange. He knew perfectly well how formidable the Lust Demon's martial power was, no matter how thoroughly that infamous title buried the truth of it.
Irritating bastard. A womanizer with martial arts that strong.
Dokgo Jin's face stayed twisted shut. Sensing the awkwardness, Sua tried to smooth things over.
"G-guest, if you'll be staying at the inn, I can…"
"Ah, no. I am looking for someone."
"Is there a person you're seeking?"
"Well…. Hmm…. I am not particularly close with the individual, but did a guest not stop by yesterday?"
Wi Ilcheong raised a hand above his own head, sketching the person he was after.
"I was told of a giant roughly a head and a half taller than myself, red light blazing from his eyes, hair wild and unbound, carrying a sword the size of an ordinary man."
The description grew more familiar with every word, and Dokgo Jin's mouth slowly fell open. Sua, noticing none of it, answered with a bright smile.
"Ah! He did stop by yesterday."
"Just as I thought…. Might I be able to meet him?"
"Well… I heard he went out for a walk. But…"
"Wait—!"
Before Dokgo Jin could clap a hand over her mouth, Sua pointed straight at him.
"This young lady here is his daughter."
"…"
Dokgo Jin pressed a hand to his forehead.
I'm going to lose my mind…
He glanced up at Wi Ilcheong. The man was studying him with open interest.
"Oh my…. So even he had a family."
"Pardon?"
"Nothing. Miss Dokgo, might I trouble you for a word?"
"…"
He had never introduced himself, yet the man called him Miss Dokgo. Dokgo Jin gave up. For whatever reason, the Lust Demon was hunting the Mad Demon Dokgo Jin, had tracked him to this exact place, and had already figured out who the woman in front of him was. He was not going to let go easily.
No getting out of this.
Wi Ilcheong smiled and offered his hand. Dokgo Jin slapped it aside and strode past him.
"I don't have a habit of holding men's hands. If you've got something to say, come find me in my room."
"What a bold young lady. Truly the daughter of that man."
"Haa…. Girl. Bring up some breakfast separately."
"Yes, young lady."
Dokgo Jin walked ahead. Wi Ilcheong followed with a cheerful smile.
That stupid maid…
Dokgo Jin's head throbbed.
Back in the guest room, he ate breakfast in total silence, never once opening his mouth. In the end, it was Wi Ilcheong who broke first, unable to bear the stifling quiet.
"…The more I look at you, young lady, the more mysterious you seem."
"What."
"Everything you do is so thoroughly mannish. Just like his daughter would be."
"Stop saying 'that man, that man.' Just call him the Mad Demon. Talking around it grates on my ears."
"…If that is what the young lady wishes."
Wi Ilcheong kept smiling as he sipped his tea with a soft slurp, and Dokgo Jin's temper flared higher.
Why the hell is this bastard looking for me?
He could not fathom a single reason the Lust Demon would seek him out, and it was driving him mad. If the vermin from the Ice Palace, the Tang Clan, the Namgung, the Moyong, Wudang, Mount Hua, Zhongnan, or the Beggars' Guild had come hunting him, that he could understand. He had personally ground every last one of those bastards into the dirt; if they showed up frothing for revenge, fine. But a man he had crossed blades with once in passing, parted from cleanly with no lingering grudge — that man coming to find him now was unsettling in the extreme.
So Dokgo Jin went straight at it.
"So. Why are you looking for m— for my father?"
"Ah, I have been remiss with introductions. I am…"
"The Lust Demon. Lust Demon Wi Ilcheong."
"…"
Wi Ilcheong's eyes narrowed.
"So the young lady already knew of me."
"A martial artist in scholar's robes walking around with half a dozen flexible soft swords hanging off him — who else would it be but the Lust Demon?"
"…I rather thought I had concealed them well. To see through it at a glance — most impressive."
"I've got good eyes."
Pleased at having scored a hit, Dokgo Jin knocked back his tea and pressed on.
"I heard you and m— my father had no grudge between you."
"Ah, of course not. I have no desire to cross blades with the Mad Demon elder a second time either."
"Then why look for him?"
"…There is a favor I wish to ask. I shall explain when your father arrives."
"…"
The Lust Demon refused to talk and went back to sipping tea, and Dokgo Jin's rage climbed another notch. Oblivious, the man picked at a few dishes and beamed.
"Oh my, the cook here seems quite skilled…"
"The Mad Demon isn't coming. I can promise you that."
"…Pardon?"
"He's not coming. He's gone very far away."
"…Is that true?"
"Yeah. I don't know what business you have, but you should just leave today."
"…"
Wi Ilcheong rested a hand on his chin and fell into thought.
…Just go already, you bastard.
But contrary to Dokgo Jin's hopes, Wi Ilcheong did not give up.
"I find that hard to accept."
"…What, you bastard. If I say he's gone…"
"And leave a daughter suffering from blocked meridians behind?"
"…What?"
At the words blocked meridians, Dokgo Jin went still.
"I… have blocked meridians? Me?"
"You were not aware?"
"That's impossible…. If your meridians are blocked, you can't use internal energy at all — you die young."
"That is true of a severe case like the Nine Yin Meridian Block. I would need to take your pulse to be certain, but the young lady does not appear to be that far gone."
"…"
Blocked meridians. An excess of Yin energy sealing the energy channels shut, life force draining away year by year until, sooner or later, an early death — the worst affliction imaginable.
Fuck…
Between the sudden, absurd surge of internal energy and the shock of becoming a woman, he had missed it. But the more he thought, the more his current condition matched the symptoms of meridian blockage, and Dokgo Jin's face hardened.
"Miss Dokgo."
"…Speak."
"Would you care to make a deal with me?"
Clang!
The words were barely out before Dokgo Jin hurled his teacup at the man's face. Wi Ilcheong did not dodge. He took it full on. Dokgo Jin lunged, seized him by the collar, and hauled him close.
"You son of a bitch! You think I'm a whore?!"
"…Please calm yourself. I am well aware of my reputation. But I ask that you trust me. I have never once laid a hand on a woman first."
"Bullshit, you bastard."
"Haa…"
Wi Ilcheong caught Dokgo Jin's hands and gently pried them free.
"…And a deal of that nature would only be possible while Miss Dokgo is still a virgin, in any case."
"Get lost, you lunatic."
"…It would be to Miss Dokgo's benefit as well."
"I'd have to be out of my mind to give my body to some man—"
"I have cured blocked meridians before."
"…What?"
"I have even cured the Nine Yin Meridian Block."
"…"
Dokgo Jin's thoughts stopped cold.
"Who? Can you prove it?"
"I can. I will even arrange a meeting."
"…"
Wi Ilcheong answered with total confidence. Dokgo Jin, somewhat quieter now, sat back down.
…He cured the Nine Yin Meridian Block? This bastard?
Blocked meridians meant the energy channels were sealed — no circulating internal energy. But if whatever was clogging those channels could be cleared… if the blockage could be cured… then with the pure Yin energy sitting in his dantian, Dokgo Jin could reclaim his former overwhelming martial power at once — perhaps surpass it entirely.
"…How do you cure it?"
"That is a secret. I will discuss it only once a deal has been struck."
"…Tell me what you want."
"I need the extreme Yang heart method in the Mad Demon elder's possession. The Nine Yang Divine Art."
"You're insane. You think a martial artist hands over his own technique?"
"That is not it. I do not need it for myself — another child does. I came to ask whether he might at least take that child as a disciple."
"Nonse—"
Dokgo Jin started to cut him off — then his senses snagged on something wrong.
"Young lady?"
"Shut up. Don't even breathe."
"…"
He closed his eyes and poured every scrap of focus into his hearing. The breathing of every person inside the inn came through crystal clear. He pushed his senses farther still, reaching outward.
Many footsteps… no. Hoofbeats. The clatter of weapons and armor…. And…
Dokgo Jin's eyes snapped open.
"Fuck."
The Ice Palace pursuit party had arrived.