The next day.
Today, I decided to play with Soo-oh.
Because today marks the end of the preliminaries, and the main promotion battle is about to take place. On this day, Cheonma is busy.
Of course, everyone else is busy too.
First, Gapjae and Byeongil are participating. Gapjae is burning with enthusiasm to rise up, while Byeongil is fiercely defending his position.
Jungjae-woo is attending just to guard the Cheongung lord, and Woljedang typically doesn’t show up for these matches.
Unhappy?
No one from the Cheonma Church is dissatisfied with Woljedang. If you’re the lord, there’s no need to bother with Woljedang at the lowest position, and if you go below that, you might just disappear.
So, it’s being run by taking offerings processed for the Hematoma Mystic Art and tossing them into the spot where severing relationships happens—splash.
It was being operated in such a sinister manner.
I wondered if I might need to learn these methods someday.
A suitable cult to acquire warmth.
I’ll think about that slowly, but since no one is coming today, I started a big clean-up.
“Do we really have to clean on our only day off?”
“Yes. This is when we should do it. I’ll teach you a thing or two.”
I’m packed with the cleaning expertise from Joanna and others. I know all about cleaning. Unlike food, cleaning doesn’t vary across worlds.
So, instead of making her work, I taught Soo-oh as we diligently cleaned the small house together.
I showed her how to erase stains, how to store clothes properly for long periods, and various living tips that might be needed someday.
It’s good to learn as much as possible while I can.
Because, let’s be honest, I’m not learning what I really need to.
How to talk to people.
How to distinguish what to say and what not to say in conversation.
How to rise again after being hurt.
How to wrap around someone’s wounds.
All of these are collectively known as social skills.
Unless you’re in a more advanced society, you can’t go far alone.
For the sake of giving me warmth, I hope to live long.
You know the saying, right?
To either die young and become a hero or to live long and become a villain.
Neither Cheonma nor I, nor anyone from the Cheonma Church, are getting the typical social skills we need.
So I should either teach them in advance or pick things up later.
While thinking that, I finished cleaning the entire house.
And just when that was over…
Under the reddish sky, a person stood before the crumbled fence.
A guest had arrived.
A woman dressed in the original attire of the Cheonma Church.
It’s Gumi Mil.
It’s the very outfit that Cheonma had worn once and then discarded in a corner. I thought there was some lingering sentiment attached to it, remembering how it had been handled back then.
But seeing the person in front of me, I began to understand.
It seems Cheonma had some thoughts about Gumi Mil.
“Welcome, Gumi Mil.”
When I greeted her, she looked very surprised.
“You’re the kid who was here back then?”
Looks like she finally recalled it.
I have changed quite a lot, to say the least.
“Who?”
Soo-oh jumped down from the roof after I sent her there to tidy up. I wonder if she finished.
“There was a person who gave medicine to rid the bugs from Soo-oh, right?”
“Oh! That person! Were they a grandmother or something?”
Soo-oh gasped, looking at Gumi Mil. But surprisingly, there was no expression of gratitude on Soo-oh’s face—mostly just interest.
I gestured to the porch with my hand, and Gumi Mil stepped inside.
Gumi Mil tried to enter the room.
Huh?
Oh, come to think of it, that’s right. Normally, guests should go into the room, but…
“You’d better not go in there.”
“Is it because the house is old? I don’t care about that, eek!”
As soon as I opened the door, a moan escaped her lips.
It’s exceedingly hot in there.
Good in winter, but a struggle in summer. It’s not just empty talk; if you were in there, you’d seriously risk heatstroke.
With a stunned expression, Gumi Mil pointed to the room.
“Are you trying to stew me alive?”
“Due to the structural flaw of having the kitchen connected right next to it, it’s harsh in summer, especially.”
“You can’t even go in at all!”
I pointed at the porch, and Gumi Mil nodded and sat down.
“Soo-oh, fetch some water.”
“Choseol, we only have one ladle in our house!”
When I think about it, we never used cups separately.
As long as the water jug is kept near the hearth, it gradually heats up with residual heat, making it unnecessary to boil separately. And oddly, nothing coagulates in the water.
With just a bit of tinkering, I feel like I could create a steam engine, but having a flame that never goes out is a bit too conspicuous…
I guess I need to go get it.
I left Soo-oh seated in my place and headed into the kitchen.
Going out the back door, I grabbed two stones off the ground and twisted them together.
Cup complete.
I had to look closely to spot the cracks in the air. I should ask Cheonma for some utensils.
Thinking that, I opened the lid of the suitably hot jar and poured two cups of transparent water. Then, I returned straight to where Gumi Mil and Soo-oh were.
Some say you should serve it on a tray here, but we aren’t living well enough to sweat the small stuff.
Gumi Mil certainly isn’t one to expect too much from a poor place either.
As I came out with the water, I saw Gumi Mil and Soo-oh chatting.
Their conversation was about whether Soo-oh’s body was feeling better. Soo-oh was responding awkwardly with polite speech.
The silver lining is that Soo-oh has learned how to interact appropriately with adults from Cheonma.
So they were cautiously chatting without feeling too awkward. Thank goodness she had obtained at least a bare minimum of social skills.
“Here you go.”
“Thanks. But you two, why are you hanging out in a place like this? Wouldn’t it be better to go to the village if you can?”
Though it seemed like a careless question, Gumi Mil was watching me and Soo-oh keenly as she asked.
Is she attempting to be considerate enough to deflect any potential negative reactions from someone?
“No way. We can’t go there and eat bugs again.”
“Ah, right. That makes sense.”
The Cheonma Church essentially lives with bugs parasitizing their bodies. It’s a tough place for Soo-oh, who has an aversion to bugs.
“Rather, it would be too hard to live anywhere else…”
Gumi Mil’s gaze subtly landed on Soo-oh’s hair. That’s right. Right now, it’s the harvesting season for the wicked Mad Dog in Murim.
When the monks filled that place, Oh Myeong-seong was driven away as soon as he fully entered the harvesting period. It’s likely they have the ability to distinguish between harvesting periods.
Would it be worth targeting that if we manage to escape?
Anyway, let’s refocus on Gumi Mil.
“You came to hear about the mutation of Oh Myeong-seong, right?”
“Yeah, that’s right. You mentioned that you know about it. Does that mean you understand this reverse Cheonma aura?”
Uh-huh. Now that I think about it, the monks used such specific terms on occasion.
“What’s the reverse Cheonma aura?”
“You don’t know? It’s the energy originally only Cheonma could use. It’s a very distinctly wicked aura that even my father could never fully grasp.”
Guseongyong didn’t speak about the traces left by Eunjai to Gumi Mil.
So she wouldn’t know exactly. But for that ominous name to be tagged onto me—
Pretty accurate, I’d say.
Alright, let’s start revealing the reasons one by one.
“First, the reason Oh Myeong-seong mutated is that he used the Heupsung Grand Law.”
At that, a knife sprang from Gumi Mil’s hand.
No, it came out but then stopped.
“What are you?”
Soo-oh’s hand stopped just in front of Gumi Mil’s carotid artery, right before killing intent could explode.
I raised my hand to halt both of them.
“Calm down. Soo-oh. The Heupsung Grand Law is something that gets labeled as a public enemy in the Murim community just for having been learned. It’s natural for Gumi Mil to respond so sensitively.”
Soo-oh furrowed her brow, but when I waved my hand, she pouted and drew back her hand from Gumi Mil’s neck. Then she distanced herself and drew her sword.
“In just a year, you’ve become quite the master.”
Gumi Mil looked at Soo-oh in surprise as she slowly put away her sword. She must have realized immediately because she had a chance to examine Soo-oh’s insides while getting rid of bugs here last year.
“You have a good teacher, don’t you?”
I deliberately swallowed my answer of Cheonma. Instead, I shifted the conversation elsewhere.
“Oh Myeong-seong stole that ability you’re referring to, the reverse Cheonma aura, from someone. Therefore, if he’s become mutated, do you understand?”
Gumi Mil frowned at my words and shook her head in denial.
I see.
Then it’s time to reveal the truth.
“I share myself with people. Those who receive me heal all their wounds, become smarter, grow stronger, and their hair turns purple.”
Gumi Mil looked at me with a confused expression, not understanding what I meant.
And after a long pause, she finally grasped what I was saying.
“You’re the reverse Cheonma aura?”
Gumi Mil understood.
“Is that what you’ll call yourself?”
So I responded to her in kind.
A demon who rebels against the heavens.
That’s one way to look at it. I was about to explain the contract to Gumi Mil. But faster than I could, Soo-oh interrupted me.
“Choseol isn’t like that!”
Soo-oh shouted loudly.
Soo-oh came close to me, hugging me from behind and pointing her bluntly held sword at Gumi Mil.
“She’s my benefactor and my family! Don’t call her that!”
Somehow, Soo-oh lost her honorifics in the mix.
A chill wind blowing out of season flowed by, and Gumi Mil adopted a posture used for greetings in this world.
“I sincerely apologize, Soo-oh.”
Then Soo-oh stared at Gumi Mil silently for a moment before she reluctantly lowered her weapon. After a small sigh, she pointed at me.
“Apologize to Choseol, not me.”
Well, she returned to using honorifics. Gumi Mil does indeed seem very grown-up. She’s a couple of years older than me, after all.
“I’m sorry, Choseol. Is it alright if I call you that?”
I nodded.
“Yes. I don’t really care how others call me. Anyway, let’s get back to our discussion. Gumi Mil, I’ll let you know what you want to know.”
And I returned to talking about Oh Myeong-seong.
Wishing for this story to severely shake the Cheonma Church as much as possible.
