In the early morning, before the sun had fully risen,
I opened the window and inhaled the rather cold dawn air to wake myself up.
Hmm, refreshing.
Rubbing my half-closed eyes, I let out a lazy yawn.
“…Master.”
Is that Nameless, still half-asleep, lifting his body and calling me?
You woke up quickly, huh?
I had thought he would sleep in after tormenting him before we went to bed…
Smiling at the unexpectedly nice situation, I welcomed Nameless.
“Hmm? You’re already up?”
“Yes…”
Now fully awake, Nameless trudged over to me and began boiling water in the kettle on the small desk by the window.
…It’s fascinating every time I see it.
It was a common sight in my past life, but here, everything has been replaced by magical stones, and it’s just amazing.
Well, it’s all part of the novel’s setup…
Of course, since it’s something I’ll eventually use, minor details like whether this is a fictional world or not don’t matter too much.
Actually, it’s nice that things are so developed.
Nodding slightly, I resolved, ‘Let’s bring that back to the cabin.’
Nameless held out a teacup with a low voice.
“Would you like a cup, Master?”
“Hmm, sure.”
“I’ll bring it right away.”
From the start, did Nameless prepare my portion too? Without needing to gather anything additional, he poured some tea into a cup and handed it to me.
The taste of the tea Nameless made was bitter and astringent,
but the aroma was good and warm, wrapping around me and making me smile against the cold wind.
“…It’s nice.”
“I’m glad it suits your taste.”
Slurping, while I held Nameless’s teacup with both hands, a sudden question popped into my mind, and I tilted my head.
“Nameless.”
“Yes, Master.”
“Why on earth are you up so early?”
Hmm, the taste is definitely good… Where do they sell this?
Slurp—
“Oh, the Cheonma Church disciples are coming soon.”
Pfft!
…What did you say?
Nameless, looking like a drowned rat, brushed his bangs aside as he spoke.
“…They should be here in about an hour.”
“An hour…”
No wonder Nameless was brewing tea he usually wouldn’t drink.
No, more importantly,
“Are they really going to arrive that quickly?”
“Yes, Master.”
I rubbed my mouth with the back of my hand and handed a handkerchief to Nameless.
“…Isn’t that a bit fast?”
“Didn’t you say it’s better the sooner the better?”
Sure, I had asked for them to come quickly, but I’m not mentally prepared yet.
“…”
…Well, what can I do about it?
Muttering under my breath, I sighed and shook my head lightly.
Better early than late.
*
“Nameless, how much further do we have to go?”
“We need to go further.”
Looking at Nameless’s back, I frowned slightly.
Although the terrain had changed a lot because I swung my sword around,
this was the cave where the Reaper was hiding, and we’re headed that way.
Surely there must be a reason we chose this place?
Even just glancing around, the vigilance was palpable.
“…”
I tilted my head, struggling to understand the situation, but since I never specifically told them not to come here, I breathed a deep sigh and silently followed Nameless.
After walking like this, we arrived at the eerily familiar cave.
“This way.”
Nameless flashed a smile at me, looking lost as she stood before it.
“…Okay, let’s go.”
Unlike outside, the entrance and passages of the cave seemed to have widened dramatically, but overall, it didn’t seem too different.
Of course, it wouldn’t be long before we got to a very familiar place.
The spot where I had swung my sword and shaken the heavens.
Where the Reaper arrogantly sat while looking down on me.
“…Nameless, back.”
And in front of the chair where the Reaper sat,
a man I had never seen was waiting for Nameless and me to enter.
…Who is he?
That man has unusual energy.
Actually, I even questioned if he was human.
If he were an ordinary person, there should be only one energy cluster two inches below the navel,
but beneath his shadow, hundreds were gathered.
It’s a cave, remember.
That means it’s dark.
But there’s a shadow?
That raises two possibilities.
Either that guy has a method for stealing someone else’s energy,
or there are hundreds of people hiding beneath that shadow.
…This is bad.
Nameless has fallen into a trap.
Sure, the Cheonma Church wouldn’t arrive this early.
I could rule out the possibility that he was a member of the Cheonma Church.
The Church never taught bizarre techniques like absorbing other people’s energy, nor could there be hundreds of people lurking around.
“Tsk.”
Due to the cave’s darkness, the man’s face was barely visible, yet he raised the corners of his mouth, striding over toward me.
I tensed my muscles and placed my hand on the wooden sword.
With my remaining hand, I pulled Nameless back to reduce the chance of her getting hurt.
And just when the wooden sword was almost in range to grab,
“Hmm…?”
“I am Jack, a disciple of the Cheonma Church. I greet you, Cheonma.”
The man bowed respectfully, suddenly taking an impressive stance.
Wait a minute… a disciple of the Cheonma Church…?
I didn’t even know there were disciples in the Cheonma Church,
yet I’ve never seen a guy like him in the slums?
I glanced at the man introducing himself as Jack.
His head was lowered, so I couldn’t see his face, but I could make out his hair color.
He had red hair and seemed well-built, perhaps from eating well and constant training.
…Is this guy the same person from the slums?
Looking at him with a dazed expression due to my shock…
“Master, this is Jack, the one we brought in.”
Flashing a smile, Nameless moved next to me and removed my hand from the wooden sword.
“…Is that so?”
“Yes, Master.”
I stood awkwardly in front of the man named Jack.
“I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you.”
It was genuine regret.
Establishing the Church was my choice, so I should have more responsibility, yet I couldn’t even remember the child I had brought in.
Naturally, I expressed my apology with a guilty look.
“You don’t have to apologize.”
From Jack, still bowing, a calm voice reassured me.
Hmm, that only makes me feel worse.
“I don’t know if this’ll be comforting…”
Mumbling a bit, I made up an excuse.
“You’ve changed a lot since I last saw you.”
Then I smiled and patted Jack’s back.
I could feel he was sturdier than he looked.
“You’ve been training hard, huh?”
“Yes.”
“Excellent… Now, lift your head.”
“Yes,” Jack replied softly, lifting his head to look at me.
“I still remember the favor you bestowed upon me last time.”
“…I see.”
Jack wore a grateful smile, yet my expression grimaced.
His half-squinted eyes? Is there really a face like that?
No matter how much one should avoid judging people by appearance,
anyone would say he looks shady and like a villain.
For some reason, a chill ran down my spine at his smile, but I kept my feelings hidden.
It’s funny to say, but thinking it over, this situation needs to appear more villainous, so those inscrutable half-closed eyes might actually be useful.
…Well, good is good.
Clearing my throat, I stretched my neck and took a couple of steps away from Jack.
“Nameless…”
Then I moved my elbow, nudged Nameless in the side, and whispered in her ear.
“Master?”
“…So those under the shadow are the Church’s kids…?”
I asked, half in disbelief, but Nameless nodded calmly.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“I see…”
I can’t even grasp how much has changed in my absence.
And since I never taught anything like hiding in shadows, it must be one of the teachings from Lili or the Demon King’s side.
Should I thank them when I see them next…?
Honestly, rather than being grateful, it’s more of a creepy impression, but still, it’ll be helpful for me…
Ugh, I don’t know.
*
The disciple, Jack, was constantly admiring from within.
‘It’s on a different level.’
At the time he first laid eyes on her, he knew nothing of martial arts,
but ever since joining the Cheonma Church and going through intense training and taking elixirs, he now realized just how monumental the existence he served was.
Jack rolled his eyes, subtly squinting, watching Cheonma as she spoke to the vice leader.
Feeling a small annoyance, Jack bit his lip.
‘Could it be that she’s displeased about something?’
He thought she might have been satisfied if he showed how he had grown, but Cheonma seemed to feel he was still lacking.
After all, there would be no need for her to frown like that otherwise.
“…”
‘But.’
This was also part of Cheonma’s will, so he wouldn’t take offense.
How could he be offended,
when she had instilled hope and purpose into his previously miserable life?
Even though he often heard negative comments, he certainly wasn’t that ungrateful.
It was just that,
he felt frustrated about not yet having grown more.
Feeling slightly anxious, Jack suddenly felt the urge to show something and opened his mouth.
“Cheonma.”
“What is it?”
With a cold and emotionless expression, Cheonma continued to look down at him.
Swallowing hard, Jack forced a smile as he spoke.
“May I introduce some members of the Cheonma Church to you?”
“…”
Cheonma still looked at him with her emotionless face.
But Jack thought he saw the corner of her mouth quiver for just a moment.
‘…She’s interested!’
Taking that as an unspoken positive response, Jack beamed and immediately acted.
“Let me introduce you.”
The shadows at Jack’s feet writhed and began to convulse.
Soon, the shadows rose into the air, gradually taking on human forms.
“Leading the charge and slashing enemies, the Blood Sword (血劍)”
The figures swelling on the right morphed into massive shapes wielding gigantic swords.
“Collecting various bits of information, the Chaos Sword (渾劍)”
The figures swelling on the left transformed into short sword-wielding, masked forms.
“Only three of us, including me, the Ghost Sword (鬼劍)”
Two figures swelling behind Jack morphed into the shapes of two women.
“Once again, we greet you.”
Jack, standing up, smiled and bowed deeply.
“Though we are still insignificant, soon we will flourish as the Tri-Sword (三劍), we greet you, Cheonma.”
“Greetings, Cheonma!”
Watching all this, Cheonma, Cheon Ha-rang, raised the corners of her mouth.
*
Keeping a strained smile, I desperately fought to hold it together.
…What the heck is this?
