After the storm had passed, we enjoyed some tea and engaged in light conversation.
“Haha, so this is your first visit to the capital?”
“Yes! That’s right!”
Though I bluntly stated my thoughts, it seemed that my straightforwardness amused Tang Hochang as we chatted happily.
It felt quite odd to see him, usually so serious, having a friendly conversation with Namgoong Ruby, who was young enough to be his granddaughter.
“I’m glad to see you enjoying yourself, Grandpa.”
But it appeared that Tang Sosu was simply pleased by the scene. Usually, one might feel jealous if their grandfather was getting along better with someone else than with them, but she just looked on with delight. I wondered if I was the one feeling off.
Perhaps I was so accustomed to being treated as an afterthought that I felt no emotions at all.
“Elder, this tea has a lovely fragrance. May I ask which region it’s from?”
At that moment, Baek Yujin, who had been sipping her tea in a calm manner, posed the question, catching Tang Hochang’s attention.
“It seems Baek Soja is quite knowledgeable about tea. This is made from Cheongsong tea leaves, a variety unique to Sachun. If you like it, I can prepare some for you to take home.”
“Hehe, thank you very much.”
Wait a minute, now that I think about it, everyone except Tang Sosu seems to be communicating just fine?
What’s going on here?
“My cup is empty. Would you like another?”
At Tang Hochang’s invitation, I said, “Ah, thank you,” while reaching for the teacup, and pondered if perhaps the issue lay with Tang Sosu after all.
No matter how I looked at it, Tang Hochang’s communication skills seemed perfectly fine.
*
After dinner wrapped up, we dispersed to our rooms.
“Ugh!”
Returning to my room in the annex, I stretched my arms and did some light stretching.
‘I’m tired.’
I guess it’s because I’ve been on my feet for the last couple of days without a proper break.
Rotating my shoulders, I gazed out the window and up at the full moon, reflecting on the past six months.
‘It’s been a whirlwind.’
It all began with the assassination attempt on Dokgorin’s coming-of-age day.
Everyone I was close with died, leaving only Dokgorin, Kyungah, and me to survive.
After that, we traveled all the way to the capital far from Sangam to seek refuge with Tang Hochang, learned new martial arts, and then enrolled in Cheonmu Academy.
But even the supposedly safe Cheonmu Academy wasn’t without its dangers.
I never imagined that the principal, Jeongalgyun, would be a puppet of the royal family.
‘If Baek Yujin hadn’t become our ally, we might not have found out until much later.’
Considering that, forming an alliance with her, the founder of the famous teachings, was nothing short of a stroke of luck for us.
Thanks to that, the timing for our revenge seems to be moving up significantly.
Originally, Dokgorin’s plan was to buy time to train her martial arts in the safe zone of Cheonmu Academy.
According to her, before her regression, Dokgorin had reached a level equivalent to the top martial artists in the world.
Moreover, she noted that based on my advice from the past, “Ichilbok,” she was able to create a special poison using uranium instead of conventional poisons, giving her the power to incapacitate any living being within a ten-li radius at will.
That must be why she earned the title of “Heavenly Poison Sorceress.”
Of course, the royal family likely possesses extraordinary martial artists, but if Dokgorin were to regain her original strength, she would undoubtedly have the power to rival an army.
Even the Golden Army would be feasible to face, considering Dokgorin’s abilities specialize in one-to-many combat.
‘Don’t rush it too much.’
If I’m too eager and try to rush ahead, I’ll trip over my own feet.
And our enemies certainly aren’t the kind that can be easily dealt with through impatience either.
Wangjik, Yangbang, and Mangwibi.
They’re the kind of figures that, with the Emperor backing them, we martial artists like us couldn’t even hope to challenge.
But we will find a way to kill them.
For the fallen Dokgo clan.
Lost in thought as I gazed at the moon outside, I suddenly realized someone was standing in the courtyard of the annex.
‘Who is it?’
I couldn’t see their face as they stood with their back to the moonlight.
But the moment I caught sight of the enormous greatsword held in their shadowy hand, I recognized who it was.
‘Namgoong Ruby.’
Despite the late hour, she was practicing her swordplay alone.
It was hard to believe she was swinging that colossal sword with such speed, executing a dizzying array of movements that felt almost like a dance, her golden hair swaying beautifully in the moonlight.
Her training resembled that of a beautiful foreign dancer performing under the moonlight—the sheer elegance left me momentarily spellbound.
Just then, Namgoong Ruby halted her sword practice and stared straight at me.
“Who are you?”
It seemed she had sensed my gaze.
Now that I couldn’t pretend to be unaware, I awkwardly opened the window.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to spy. I just happened to see you.”
“Hmm—”
Namgoong Ruby squinted at me as if she found my remark amusing.
“You do know it’s rude to eavesdrop on someone else’s martial arts training, right?”
“Well, you know…”
It seemed I couldn’t avoid a lecture, so I meekly nodded as she suddenly grinned and extended her hand toward me.
“Then, how about you join me in my training as compensation?”
“What?”
“Do it quickly.”
While saying that, she kept waving her hand.
I stared at her outstretched hand, feeling a bit dazed, but it hit me that I probably didn’t have the right to refuse, so I let myself be pulled outside.
Once we were in the courtyard, Namgoong Ruby planted her sword, the “Bichun Sword,” into the ground and leaned against it, humming a tune.
She seemed in a rather good mood.
Observing her demeanor, I ventured to ask,
“Do you think I’d be any help in your training?”
After all, she used a sword while I practiced hand-to-hand combat.
If we were to engage properly, she would hold a tremendous advantage with her weapon.
Given that all I had for ranged attack was my memory, it felt a bit doomed.
However, in response to my question, Namgoong Ruby insisted I shouldn’t worry, claiming she wouldn’t use the sword against me.
“Don’t worry. I won’t be using my sword when we spar.”
“…….”
When she said she wouldn’t use a sword, it felt a bit insulting, to be honest.
After all, I am also a high-level martial artist.
But since I had no confidence in winning a serious match against her with a sword, I decided to graciously accept her handicap.
“Alright, let’s get started.”
*
Namgoong Ruby without a sword.
It felt somewhat strange, but she wasn’t lacking in confidence, as she struck a stance I had never seen before in hand-to-hand combat.
‘Is this the style of the Namgoong Clan?’
It appeared that compared to their swordsmanship, their martial arts were less well-known, making it impossible to guess what kind of style she was employing.
So, I decided to throw a tentative jab while adopting a sideways stance from the Tang Mun Kwon.
A subtle tension filled the air between us.
In the next moment, I hunched down and lunged forward like a bolt of lightning.
“Jab flying like a butterfly, needle-like stinger!”
The first move of Tang Mun Kwon.
As I have mentioned before, the importance of making the first move cannot be overstated.
Securing the initiative in a one-on-one duel allows one to interrupt the opponent’s flow and, in some cases, even incapacitate a part of their body.
For martial artists, the four limbs they train are akin to weapons, and disabling one of them benefits the opponent immensely.
However, my decisive strike was thwarted with ease by Namgoong Ruby.
With her elbow, she deflected my punch aimed at her upper left arm.
‘Did she react in that split second?’
Realizing too late to counterattack, I tried to pull back, but Namgoong Ruby had already closed the distance.
‘Oh no!’
I felt her grip on my collar, and in an instant, my body was flipped over.
“Ugh!”
Thud!
I barely managed to roll with the fall, but the impact left me feeling achy all over.
As I quickly rolled away from her striking distance, Namgoong Ruby blinked in astonishment.
“…Why do you stare like that?”
“No, I’ve just never seen someone execute that maneuver so naturally.”
“Pride doesn’t fill one’s stomach, so what does it matter?”
As I stood up, she chuckled and nodded.
“True enough, pride doesn’t fill one’s stomach.”
I learned something valuable from that.
Namgoong Ruby resumed her stance, and since we’d just exchanged blows in a somewhat playful manner, the real match was about to begin.
I charged at her again, fueled by her apparent eagerness.
