The royal family.
It was indeed a blind spot.
She never imagined there would be any group that could meet all the conditions she had considered aside from the Murim Association.
Under the pretext of non-interference, the military and Murim had not meddled with each other for hundreds of years.
But it would be more accurate to say that during the Ming Dynasty, when the capital was moved to Beijing, the Murim Association was established in the military focal point of Chang’an, and the orthodox factions were entrusted with the task of repelling foreign invasions instead of standing guard.
However, it turned out that Weijichun, the leader of the Murim Association, was actually a spy planted by the Ming royal family, secretly ambushing various influential families and sects to gather their hidden techniques?
If she had shared this suspicion with someone else, it would have been dismissed as a ridiculous conspiracy theory, but the circumstances aligned so perfectly with too many pieces of evidence.
‘Now that I think about it, Weijichun appeared at just the right moment.’
Thirty years ago, during the battle of the orthodox factions, when they were getting utterly crushed, he appeared like a comet and defeated Cheolhyeol Majon, the focal point of the unorthodox factions.
People bestowed upon him the nickname “Absolute Lance” after witnessing his ghostly spear techniques, yet in fact, the spear was the weapon most adeptly handled by the imperial army.
‘So the Ming royal family had already seated the spy Weijichun in the position of Murim Association leader thirty years ago, while ostensibly declaring non-interference, they were actually scheming behind the scenes?’
Thinking this far sent chills down her spine.
How much time had they spent on these machinations? She couldn’t even begin to fathom.
‘My brother told me not to seek out my enemies.’
But she had her own pride to uphold.
It simply wouldn’t sit right with her to just stand around and take hits.
So,
‘I will make those who dared to touch Dokgorin pay dearly.’
She would track down the enemy responsible for this and kill them, even if it meant going to the ends of the earth.
*
“Um…”
“Big sis! Are you awake?!”
How long had it been since she removed the arrow from her back and applied the healing ointment to her wounds?
Kyungah, who had fainted, finally opened her eyes.
“…Where is this?”
“It’s the secret training chamber in the Dokgo family’s main residence. The second young master hid us here.”
“What? The young master?! Ouch!”
She startled and tried to sit up, but grimaced due to the wound on her back.
Seeing Kyungah in that state made me smile wryly.
“You’re a patient right now, so you shouldn’t move too vigorously.”
Kyungah cautiously leaned against the wall and asked me,
“What the hell is going on? Why did I get shot by a bow, and why are we hiding here?”
“Well, it’s a long story. It might actually be better if you don’t hear it.”
“I’ve been through everything imaginable, so I’m not likely to be shocked by anything. Just tell me quickly.”
As she urged me on, I realized I could no longer hide the truth, so I explained honestly.
“Unknown assassins attacked the Dokgo family. Most of the people are trapped in the shrine, and I have no idea what’s happening now. The second young master hid us and went straight to the shrine.”
“What? Then we have to help!”
But it was not me who replied to her outburst; it was Dokgorin, who, having cried for a while in the corner, had swollen eyes.
“How are the three of us supposed to help?”
“That’s…!”
Stuck for words, Kyungah couldn’t say anything more.
Though Dokgorin and I had learned martial arts, we had no idea how many enemies there were.
Considering the fact that the Dokgo family, which included Dokgojin, one of the ten great masters of the world, was brazenly attacked, it was reasonable to suspect that at least one high-level opponent was on the other side.
“At this rate, if we go out, we’ll all be done for. So just stay put.”
After saying that, Dokgorin sat down next to me.
Cautiously, I asked her,
“Have you cried it all out?”
“Yeah.”
“What… do you plan to do now?”
Dokgorin gazed at the ceiling and replied,
“First, I’ll go to the Sacheondang. My maternal grandfather is there, so I can rely on him for a bit. And as originally planned, I’ll enter Cheonmu Academy in spring. There, I can train in martial arts while keeping myself safe from all kinds of dangers. It’s a two-for-one deal.”
After that—
“I will definitely track down and kill the enemy who annihilated our family. Not just them but their entire family will suffer and die in agony.”
With a face filled with vengeance, Dokgorin looked at me.
“So if you want to leave, you can. I can’t put you at risk for my revenge.”
I stared into Dokgorin’s face and chuckled softly.
“Do I look like someone who would run away just because I’m scared for my life?”
“…….”
“Since we’ve come this far, we’ve already shared the same boat, my lady. And besides, the second young master asked me to protect you.”
Smiling, I assured her.
“I have no intention of breaking the promise made with the second young master. Right now, the most important person to me is Lady Rin.”
Could I really sit idly by while someone like her threw herself into danger?
“Chilbok…”
Dokgorin looked at me with a touched expression.
Honestly, I was aware that it was embarrassing to say such things, but if I didn’t express this, I feared I wouldn’t be able to stop Dokgorin, who appeared to be on the brink of darkening.
It suddenly occurred to me that my duty was to support her, to ensure she did not go astray.
Otherwise, what reason would I have to be reincarnated into the world of the Thunder Witch?
At that moment, Kyungah, who had been silent, spoke up.
“My lady, can I join in on that revenge?”
“What?”
“I owe a lot to Young Master Seok. So I can’t just sit still.”
Kyungah eagerly expressed her intentions.
I could honestly understand her feelings.
Someone she had served almost like a brother for half her life had died, so of course, she would want revenge.
But—
“That’s not allowed. No, sister.”
Before Dokgorin could speak, I interjected first.
Kyungah’s face contorted in annoyance.
“Why not? Both you and Chilbok, why do you say I can’t? I have the right to seek revenge too!”
Hearing that, Dokgorin asked coldly.
“What can a mere commoner like you do?”
“Well, I could do the laundry or cook or take care of chores.”
“Those things can be handled by hiring others. And even if it came to that, we could do them ourselves.”
To begin with,
“The reason my brother hid you here was because he hoped you would survive and be happy. How can you be happy following us around seeking revenge for my brother?”
“But! I’m frustrated! If it were up to me, I would tear apart Young Master Seok’s enemy with my own hands!”
Kyungah burst out, releasing her pent-up anger at that moment.
It felt like she wanted to grab onto something, anything, in the face of her own helplessness.
“Sister….”
As I watched Kyungah with sad eyes, Dokgorin spoke in a calm voice.
“So you should return home and live life to the fullest. If possible, take care of my brother’s wife too. I will take care of the revenge.”
“……”
Kyungah seemed to understand as she slightly nodded.
“Sigh, what the hell are we doing?”
Muttering that, Dokgorin ruffled her hair and told me to take a nap when I had time.
“What about you, my lady?”
“I plan to read this book called ‘Guchun Hyeon Geom.’ I want to know why they targeted it.”
She shook the book and said, “Oh,” as if remembering something.
“If you get hungry in the middle of the night, check that big jar over there. It’s full of cliff grain pills.”
I glanced at the jar she pointed to.
It was the jar of cliff grain pills mentioned in the novel.
By estimation, it looked like there was enough to last for months.
It could also serve as emergency rations if needed.
I responded that I understood and looked over at Kyungah.
“You should also sleep when you can.”
“…Fine.”
Kyungah said that, but she didn’t look like she would fall asleep right away.
I smiled bitterly and struck a flint against the portable stove nearby to start a fire.
It wasn’t too bright, but it was warm enough to maintain body heat.
The cold stone floor was sending chills up from below, so I leaned against the wall and closed my eyes, using exhaustion as my pillow.
