[They say a strange letter flew in.]
[What kind of letter?]
[A bizarrely folded black paper was left at the mansion.]
[The Shadowless Thief? What did they steal this time?]
[That’s the problem! After leaving the paper, they came to steal! Thanks to that, the rich families who received the letter are now in a frenzy looking for guards!]
“Is the way to solve Un-hyeon’s worries involving a strange letter? Announcing you’re going to steal? What kind of thief does something so crazy?”
Why did the Shadowless Thief send out a strange letter? I can’t understand it. But I’m curious. The young man kept reading the text.
[Recently, children from the slums have been disappearing. Since it’s a slum, the constables don’t want to get involved, and the martial artists have no reason to step in, so I must take action, right?]
[I’ve heard that because of the strange letter, there are many places looking for guards every night due to a thief called the Shadowless Thief. Isn’t it the job of a hero to protect the common people from thieves?]
If Un-hyeon is left alone like this, he could get hurt badly. Reluctantly, Un-hyeon decided to take on the safe custody of a vault under the pressure of two women.
——–
[Un-hyeon, just guard the front of the vault. If the Shadowless Thief comes, pull the handle here.]
[So you’re the one running the gambling house?]
Un-hyeon knew who his employer was. Someone running a large gambling house banned by the state. He was already familiar with their infamous reputation.
[Isn’t this something someone has to do? People like me take action so that there are plenty of donations to the temple and help for the poor.]
Whatever he heard was nonsense. It was a misunderstanding. It was true that he ran a gambling house, but he was doing many charitable activities.
His employer laughed off Un-hyeon’s hostility and skillfully praised himself.
[…Understood.]
So he’s someone who donates a lot to the poor. Could I have misunderstood? What I saw and heard is certain, but lost, Un-hyeon couldn’t find his bearings.
“Un-hyeon! What’s going on! You should just slice him down… Ugh! When did I say to endure in the face of injustice!”
He had felt a bit frustrated about the concept of a hero. The young man was astounded at the image of himself gradually turning into Un-hyeon.
——
[Long time no see.]
Before Un-hyeon stood the disguised Shadowless Thief, as if it was a given.
“Was sending the strange letters your way of meeting Un-hyeon? The level of your love letter is quite different.”
As the Shadowless Thief, how are you planning to solve Un-hyeon’s concerns?
[Go back. Even if you are a life-saver, I have no intention of letting you take anyone’s belongings.]
[But I don’t want to. You can either stay quiet while I open the vault or quickly let go of that handle you’re holding!]
“Did you even notice the trap!”
[…Was that what you wanted? What?!]
As Un-hyeon let go of the handle, the floor of the vault room suddenly gave way.
[Catch him!]
The pit’s end was lined with deadly blades. The Shadowless Thief immediately caught Un-hyeon and launched into a safe area in the pit.
“Changing direction while falling? How excellent is your light body movement?”
[What is this…?]
Un-hyeon muttered in astonishment as he looked at the blades that might have turned him into a beehive.
[If I could kill two troublesome pests at once, wouldn’t it be a win-win? Did you not know that the martial artist you killed was working under that guy?]
[You said he was a merchant who gives a lot to the poor.]
[Even now?]
In the basement. Rooms lined along a long corridor. The Shadowless Thief revealed children making something in a pitiful state.
[What is this?!]
[They say they need the delicate hands of children to create tools for fraudulent gambling.]
“What a truly wicked man!”
[Intruder! Catch him!]
[Bladed weapons behind me, swords in front. Do you know what to do if you want to live?!]
Un-hyeon calmly drew his sword. But it wasn’t the usual sword of Un-hyeon.
The man who whipped the children could be someone’s family too. Is it really right for me to wield my sword?
Could my sword create another grudge?
Un-hyeon’s sword wavered, but it wasn’t the sword that wavered; it was Un-hyeon’s heart, lost and unsure.
“Un-hyeon! This isn’t the time! There’s a bunch of the Black Knife in front of you!”
Even in a situation where he could die, he debated. Of course, it was understandable for someone who had lived his entire life dreaming of being a hero. But one must be alive to worry, right?
[Why are you hesitating?!]
The Shadowless Thief caught on to Un-hyeon’s plight.
[I, I am…….]
The Shadowless Thief could never speak of his own struggles. If it was foolish, it was indeed a foolish struggle. But it was something that others could never comprehend.
[No way, are you looking for a perfect reason to wield your sword?]
[How could I?]
In that brief standoff, Un-hyeon looked at the Shadowless Thief in surprise.
[What kind of hero spends time weighing things like this? Isn’t that no different from a merchant?]
Is a hero someone who thinks about profit and loss? Is fearing grudges what makes someone a hero?
Sharp words pierced Un-hyeon’s wavering heart like a hidden knife.
[From the moment you gripped the sword. From the moment you stepped into the Martial Arts World. You’re diving into the river of enmity and gratitude. But do you know the difference between you and me?]
[What is it?]
I’ve thought of you as nothing but a thief. But it seems this woman might just provide an answer to my question.
Lost, Un-hyeon asked in search of an answer.
The Shadowless Thief, holding the hidden knife at Un-hyeon’s desperate gaze, opened her mouth while looking at the Black Knife before them.
[I won’t turn a blind eye to children drowning in the river, even if my body gets wet.]
Even if you curse me as a thief, it doesn’t matter. I will judge the great evil in my own way, with my own hands, even if it makes me evil.
[Shadowless Thief…….]
I thought you were just a petty thief.
In front of Un-hyeon stood another hero branded as a righteous thief.
“Coo! So that’s it! A hero named the Shadowless Thief! You sent those letters to advise Un-hyeon as a senior in the Martial Arts World!”
[Un-hyeon! There seems to be a misunderstanding! If you help me catch the Shadowless Thief right now! I’ll fill your pockets with gold!]
As half of the enemies fell, the master feeling a sense of crisis appeared and shouted at Un-hyeon.
[Master. The children…….]
[The children? That’s a misunderstanding! I’m raising those who might starve to death tomorrow!]
An unskilled novice of the Martial Arts World. He thought he could bluff his way through, if he just dressed it up enough. The master smiled inwardly, full of confidence.
Not noticing that Un-hyeon had changed.
[The kidnapped children from the slums.]
[Ha…. you knew? It can’t be helped then. Attack!]
At the man’s command, the basement was filled with members of the Black Knife. Even if there weren’t any high-ranking martial artists, the numbers were intimidating to face for a novice of the Martial Arts World.
[I will no longer be swayed by illusions.]
But Un-hyeon wasn’t shaking. He wasn’t wavering. For the first time today, Un-hyeon firmly gripped his sword.
[What are you mumbling about! Attack!]
“Gulp.”
What would happen next? The young man turned the page with a tense heart as if he were on the brink of an explosion.
Un-hyeon stood in the midst of the river.
The sword certainly cut down the enemy, but Un-hyeon found himself in the middle of the river.
In the river of enmity. He stood with a sword in the raging waters.
If he loosens his footing now, he’ll be swept away by the river. If he lets go of the sword, he cannot rise above the current.
[He cannot become a hero.]
The sword aimed at the rushing waters trembled endlessly. He was caught in an illusion and was frozen, unable to advance.
He needed to find a way. But how?
[Even if my body gets wet, I won’t turn a blind eye to children drowning in the river.]
Right. I will not be afraid. I will not fear the grudges forged by being a hero. I will not be swayed by illusions.
Though my sword may waver, I am the one who judges all, and I am the one who forges or breaks the enmity.
With unshakable feet, I will swim against the river.
[Even if the sword quivers thousands of times, I will not waver.]
From my childhood days until now. An unchanging belief that will never change. No matter what changes, I will remain the same.
[At the center of the Eight Trigrams is myself.]
It was another secret to move on to the next level of the Eight Trigrams Swordplay.
[W-What the heck is this! Ugh!]
The moment Un-hyeon stepped into a new realm, the room filled with members of the Black Knife dropped to their knees.
[Go out into the world and build merit. So, it was because you told me to wield a sword, one I could never achieve for a lifetime on Mt. Wu Dang!]
The blade born for those who reject all illusions and strive to be a hero.
That was the Eight Trigrams Swordplay.
“Indeed, the Great Ancestor! Indeed, Un-hyeon! To think you’d gain such clarity once again! That’s insane! Really!”
The young man rejoiced as if he had shaken off his own illusions.
———————-
[There are many interesting things in the vault.]
The Shadowless Thief emerged from the underground and opened the vault door.
[What was your reason for helping me?]
Un-hyeon watched the Shadowless Thief open the vault in a daze and asked. Why on earth did they help him? He was grateful but utterly confused.
[Here, take this.]
[What is this?]
[It’s a secret ledger. There are things I can and can’t do. Those guys always seem to arrive one step too late.]
[Maybe we’ve met somewhere before?]
[Is this the time for flirting?]
[N-No, that’s not it… The front is blocked by merchants and martial artists. Behind us is a lake. We have no retreat. If you take off your disguise now, I will help you.]
[You say there’s no retreat? Who do you think I am?]
The Shadowless Thief took a leap towards the lake.
[What?! How can you walk on water?]
“People walk on water? Not even the Great Master can do that; what the heck?!”
Does she really use the legendary technique “crossing the river on a reed” that the Great Master did to cross the Yellow River? As the legendary scene unfolded, Un-hyeon and the young man could only share the same expression.
—–
“I thought talking about heroes was an old-fashioned tale like the Guardian’s words.”
The discussion of heroes wasn’t boring at all. The beautiful thief known as the Shadowless Thief. The tension-filled moments lead to enlightenment through dilemmas and solutions.
To watch Un-hyeon, having shaken off his illusions, defeat his enemies in an instant.
Everything was so thrilling it made them sweat.
“I want to swing a sword to become strong like Un-hyeon right now.”
The young man struggled to contain the excitement bubbling in his heart. The only reason he didn’t dash out to the training ground was that he hadn’t finished reading Vol. 3 of the Chronicles of the Wind and Cloud Heroes yet.
“Is Vol. 3 coming to an end soon? It feels like drinking salty water.”
The young man turned the page.
