Chapter: 661
I left the streets of Hanam and headed to my lodging.
By that time, the sun was gradually setting.
Since I remembered the way to the accommodation, it wasn’t too difficult to find.
However, I only spent a little time buying this and that.
‘He said he wouldn’t eat it, but he’s eating like there’s no tomorrow now that I bought it for him.’
I ate so much that I wondered why I bothered taking it away in the first place.
Still, it was better than not eating at all, so that was a relief.
The sun was setting.
The sunset was fading, and night was approaching.
Both hands were full.
After buying all sorts of things, I was just like that.
To be honest, I was too lazy to carry everything and thought about using some energy manipulation, but I had to resist because it would have drawn too much attention.
Even—
‘She’s carrying more than I am…’
Wi Seol-ah, who was walking next to me, was loaded down even more.
Seeing her bright smile, it seemed like she was genuinely enjoying it.
Looking at that expression, I felt like nothing else mattered.
‘Rather than that now…’
As I walked, I thought back to what had just happened.
It was about that little incident with Bi Hyeon-hwa.
‘I was so surprised that I completely forgot.’
Because of Wi Seol-ah’s sudden appearance, I forgot to channel magic energy into Bi Hyeon-hwa.
‘What a waste.’
Since I had already planted something in Beomdong, it didn’t matter if I skipped the whole thing with Bi Hyeon-hwa according to my plans.
Still, the regret was hard to shake off.
What’s more—
‘…That damn woman, you ran off without even paying for tea?’
She was so frantic that she didn’t even give me any money, which left me covering her tab.
‘Just wait until we meet again.’
I’d make her pay me back at least ten times over. Just thinking about it now makes me want to scream.
‘Damn it, why is tea so overpriced?’
It’s not even liquor! It’s just tea, yet it costs a fortune. What kind of folks say it tastes good while drinking it?
I guess Mo Yong-hee anticipated all this and still went ahead and offered it, but I honestly didn’t expect it to take off like it did.
‘Who on earth would spend that much on snacks and tea at a guest house?’
But surprisingly, they really enjoyed it.
The taste was quite delicious.
I bought a pile of it even though I knew I was getting fleeced.
‘Do you think she’d actually like it?’
Wi Seol-ah claimed it was tasty, but since that’s just her nature, I wouldn’t read too much into it.
I wondered if the others would eat well.
Of course—
‘If they don’t eat, Wi Seol-ah will end up polishing it all off.’
I had no worries about food going to waste.
Should I consider this a blessing?
As I walked slowly along…
Sabak.
Passing through a lantern-lit forest path, I suddenly felt a presence.
I turned my gaze.
“Eww!”
Out of the bushes sprang Tang So-yeol.
Leaves were stuck all over her head, probably from not following the path.
I wasn’t surprised by her appearance.
I had already sensed her energy long before she showed up.
“Master!”
As soon as Tang So-yeol spotted me, she broke into a bright smile.
I couldn’t use my hands at the moment, so I channeled some energy to brush off the leaves stuck on Tang So-yeol’s head, then looked at her and asked,
“Where have you been?”
I had felt her presence around the guest house not long ago, but at some point, it had vanished.
I had thought she must have been busy, but it seemed she had been wandering around instead of heading back.
“Oh, just had something to do.”
Tang So-yeol replied with a cheerful smile.
I nodded in response, but my inner voice wasn’t completely calm.
‘She smells like blood.’
There was a faint but undeniably strong scent of blood coming from Tang So-yeol. She must’ve tried to erase it, but—
Having leveled up and shed my skin, my senses were now heightened to their peak.
I could easily catch a whiff of that faint scent.
So, I might not know exactly what Tang So-yeol had been up to, but I could tell she hadn’t just come back from a peaceful outing.
It just didn’t show on her.
‘There must be a reason she’s not saying anything.’
After considering this, I asked Tang So-yeol,
“Did you eat?”
“I didn’t.”
“Why? It’s this late, and you still haven’t eaten anything?”
“I was planning to eat with you, Master.”
“What kind of nonsense is that? There are three meals a day! If I’m not here, will you starve!”
“Maybe…” Ugh!
I smacked her on the head for that ridiculous remark.
Since I lacked hands, I had to resort to using my energy to do it.
“Stop saying weird things.”
“Ow…”
Tang So-yeol whined, pretending to be hurt, but I ignored it.
I acted as though I had no idea what was going on, and finally, Tang So-yeol grimaced but then bounced back and quickly walked alongside Wi Seol-ah.
She then picked up a side of the load Wi Seol-ah was carrying.
I had to tilt my head at how natural that looked.
“When did you two even say hello?”
“Huh?”
“What?”
Upon hearing my question, both Tang So-yeol and Wi Seol-ah widened their eyes in shock.
They didn’t even ask how each other was doing or greet each other warmly.
Their oddly natural exchange while taking on the load felt strange.
As far as I remembered, there hadn’t been any situation where they had the chance to greet each other.
I stared at them, baffled.
“No, um… that…”
Tang So-yeol seemed flustered for some reason.
What could possibly be so embarrassing?
“We said hello earlier.”
On the contrary, Wi Seol-ah simply responded with a nonchalant tone.
“When?”
“Uh, before going to where Master is.”
“…Huh?”
If we were talking about the guest house, that would be where I last met Bi Hyeon-hwa.
But when did they exchange greetings then?
No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t wrap my head around the situation, so I just gave a confused nod.
“Yeah, we did then.”
Wi Seol-ah said while grinning widely.
Don’t ask any more questions. That smile said it all.
“Oh, uh-huh. Yeah, I guess that could be it.”
My instincts sensed it.
This is a topic I shouldn’t press further on.
So, I decided to just let this slide too.
Nothing unusual must have happened… or at least I hoped so.
After returning to my lodging, I changed my clothes and quickly finished eating.
As soon as I got back, I was busy strategizing escape routes because of Shin-ui, only to find out he wasn’t even around.
He apparently claimed he had something to do and would be back later.
What a relief!
Afterward, some people showed surprise when they saw Wi Seol-ah suddenly join our group.
Since I recognized the faces, I just thought, “Oh, okay,” and moved on.
Moreover, the higher-ups seemed to have already anticipated Wi Seol-ah’s arrival, as they allocated her a room as well.
Since there were also folks coming from the North Sea, we had to split the group up a bit.
However, the patients Namgung Bi-ah and Goeseon had to be placed in a secure setting.
“You show up after a month and start bossing around an old man. Are you out of your mind?”
That led Shin-ui, who had to deal with all the sudden chaos, to wear an annoyed expression.
“You were just feeling kind of lonely anyway. Isn’t this a good opportunity to get busy?”
“That’s exactly what ‘enjoying free time’ means!”
“Wouldn’t it be better if you were a little busier in your later years? I heard you mostly just dally around playing baduk.”
“You little brat…?”
Though Shin-ui seemed quite ticked off at my silence, I knew from experience he would treat me well anyway.
“How’s it looking then?”
“What’s it looking like?”
Thump thump.
Shin-ui spoke while vigorously grinding the herbs.
“Both of them are unmanned, which means their regenerative powers are high, so there shouldn’t be any major issues. They might have a few scars, but since the treatment is solid, it’s nothing that will give me headaches.”
“…Got it.”
I had helped with the treatment on the way here and made sure things were in order before departing, so it looked like that would suffice.
“It’ll probably take both of them about three months to fully recover… but even after just a month, they should be able to move without issues.”
“Thank you.”
Three months?
It’s a duration that feels both short and long at the same time.
For a martial artist to need that much time indicates it was quite a serious wound.
‘…Phew.’
Should I have hit harder?
I figured doing so might have been a good idea.
As I pondered over Woohyuk and clenched my fists, I heard—
“By the way, Ahya.”
Shin-ui called out to me.
“What’s up with you? Your body, I mean.”
“Huh?”
“Your body.”
“Ah.”
Right.
I recalled how I hadn’t been feeling well before our departure.
I was certain it was going to be a close call to smooth out before hitting the martial arts competition.
But now that I thought about it, I was not only healed but feeling healthier than before—I could see why Shin-ui would be puzzled.
“Oh, it’s just a little coincidence.”
“You keep saying that, and yet you come back fit as a fiddle… Tsk tsk. If this keeps up, how would all those doctors survive?”
No matter how absurd the world got, I doubt the healers would actually vanish…
Especially creatures like Shin-ui, who barely did any work but still made those comments—it was a little perplexing.
‘Luck isn’t something you run into every day.’
Luck is something that can come around once or not at all over a lifetime.
And thinking back, it felt a bit strange having something like that come my way as easily as I did.
“Regardless… I suppose everything’s fine?”
“That’s a strange question for someone who vanished into the North Sea.”
“…Well…”
I scratched my cheeks awkwardly.
I had things I needed to ask of him, but troubles arose, and I had to leave for the North Sea urgently.
So, it wasn’t surprising to see Shin-ui as he displayed his annoyance.
“Still, you managed to block it to some extent, didn’t you?”
“….”
Shin-ui didn’t say much at that.
“That’s why I’m curious. What exactly happened?”
“Oh, you know, I just handled it in my own way.”
“Hah.”
Shin-ui had asked me to stop a rebellion that descendants of the Zhuge family were supposedly planning.
I merely complied.
At least on the surface, anyway.
“Don’t worry. I’ll ensure that what you’re worried about won’t happen.”
I said this as I subtly got back to my feet.
“Regardless, please take good care of things.”
After brushing off my clothes and thinking about Namgung Bi-ah, Shin-ui looked at me curiously.
“Are you leaving?”
“Yes. I need to get back to work.”
“Work?”
It was around that time.
‘Honestly, I wish I could rest longer.’
It felt like ages since I had a moment to breathe.
I’d only just returned a day prior.
I wanted to unwind and take it easy for a bit.
‘I really need to move.’
That wasn’t going to work out.
I knew enough to avoid wasting time.
To protect, I needed to act. That one thought was enough to get me up and moving.
“If that’s the case, I’ll take my leave first.”
After paying my respects to Shin-ui, I moved on.
Less than a month remained until the martial arts tournament.
‘In that time…’
I needed to finalize all my preparations.
As the setting sun faded away, a crescent moon rose in the dark sky.
When the moon reflected in the lake, guiding my path…
Sabak.
I walked along the way.
It was a route I had traveled before.
A little distance from Hanam.
It was still an underdeveloped area.
Chirp chirp—!!
The sounds of crickets tickled my ears.
It was quiet and serene. Yet peaceful.
The forest had always exuded this kind of ambiance.
But—
‘How well-crafted this is.’
I was aware that the whole situation had been carefully orchestrated.
Thump.
As I walked straight ahead, I slightly altered my angle.
Seongyul was trailing behind.
I had brought her just in case.
One.
‘Maybe next time, it’d be fine to come alone.’
It seemed I wouldn’t need to bring Seongyul along again.
Now, I knew the way.
No, to be exact—I was just now beginning to see the path clearly.
In this artificially distorted space, the way was becoming ever clearer.
I proceeded along that path.
I started recognizing things that hadn’t caught my eye before and sensing things that used to elude me.
Is this simply the result of my elevated skills?
No, it couldn’t be.
I intuitively understood that.
‘This doesn’t seem to be a mere technique.’
I gently stretched out my hand and swept the air.
Wooo.
Something prickled at my senses.
‘Is this sorcery?’
The peculiar force I’d encountered in the North Sea—
I thought this distortion and space were magical in nature.
Though I wasn’t entirely sure yet.
As I walked, gradually uncovering my way…
Sabak.
I sensed an energy presence ahead, and then someone appeared and knelt down before me.
“…I’m honored to be in your presence, my lord.”
A woman with light green hair and purple eyes akin to Tang So-yeol.
Now, it was Nahida who had become a pure spirit.
I smiled at her.
“Long time no see. How’ve you been?”
I figured she probably hadn’t been doing well.
I had assigned her so much work after all.
I didn’t wait for Nahida’s answer and simply brushed past her.
She quickly picked up her pace, as if it were second nature, and followed me.
“Looks like you did well with your tasks. Not bad at all.”
“…Thank you.”
“As for the situation… I’ll sort it out later and bring it to you.”
As we walked, I pulled out a cracked mask from my robe.
At that moment—
Wood creak-!
I began to expand my body using my power to manifest.
In just a couple of seconds, I morphed into a figure nearly eight feet tall.
Since I had initially chosen to wear a larger outfit, it fit my expanded body quite nicely.
Click.
I donned the mask, completing my transformed appearance, and it hit me—
It was time to return to business.
[Nahida.]
Speaking in a deeper voice to Nahida, I commanded,
“Yes, Master.”
[Go and inform the Heavenly Lord.]
To the former Demon Lord, now hidden away in seclusion.
Deliver my message to Pilduma.
[Tell them that I’ve arrived, so prepare to welcome me.]
“…I shall obey.”
Soon, Nahida dissipated into smoke and disappeared.
…
I halted, raising my head to gaze at the crescent moon.
And thought to myself—
‘…That was actually a pretty cool moment, wasn’t it?’
I felt that it had come off a little stylish.
With a hint of satisfaction, I nodded to myself.
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