Chapter: 524
[What are you?]
The moment when Goseon, Baekryeon Sword, and Namgung Bi-ah, who were in the residence, went outside.
This was what Shin Noya asked while looking at Noya.
Upon hearing that Namgung Bi-ah was going to the North Sea, I was half-asleep and asked Namgung Myung about it, but he didn’t answer.
As the silence dragged on, my anger gradually intensified.
At that moment, I was already half out of my mind.
Should I say that my blood and heat were boiling to the very tip of my head?
It was a level of rage so dense that it was difficult to control.
Thinking back on it now, it’s just peculiar. Even with the unexpected circumstances, there wasn’t really enough to be that angry about.
Emotions I find hard to control are always a nuisance.
The real problem is that, even knowing this, I can’t control them.
“What is it?”
Just before I could scream in a heated voice, Shin Noya interrupted me, allowing me to cool down a little.
What are you?
I recalled what Shin Noya had said to Namgung Myung.
It was the day before, or perhaps the day before that. Noya had similarly told Namgung Myung.
– You’re not Myung.
Shin Noya, who quietly observed as Namgung Myung raised his voice to Noya, reached a firm conclusion toward the end.
The author is not Namgung Myung.
“Then who the hell is it?”
If that isn’t Namgung Myung’s consciousness, then what exactly is it?
[… drag drag…]
After Shin Noya’s question, a light laugh escaped from Brainia.
[What do you mean, “What am I,” Shincheol? That’s a ridiculous joke.]
[Does it look like a joke?]
Woof.
I felt heat in my heart. It wasn’t mine.
The scent of plum blossoms began to flow gently through the blood vessels.
Light yet dark, dark yet somewhat translucent porcelain.
This was unquestionably the energy of Shin Noya.
[You are not Myung, are you?]
[… ha…]
Namgung Myung smiled at the firm words.
[Then who am I? I am Namgung Myung.]
Namgung Myung spoke coldly, as if telling her to stop with such nonsense, but Shin Noya reacted the same way.
[You might have deceived your descendants, but do you really think it makes sense trying to deceive us?]
[Shincheol…!]
[You are not Myung.]
Wooooow—!
At Shin Noya’s words, the Brainia in his hand began to tremble.
[Stop spouting nonsense! I am Namgung Myung! If I’m not Namgung Myung, then who am I?]
Dduk dduk—! The tremors were strong enough to make his hands shake.
Tick tock! Sparks flew through the air due to the shallow brain fog spreading from Brainia.
[Are you trying to insult me after all this time? Me?]
[Yes, it must have been a long time.]
Noya’s memory is empty.
For some reason, it was filled with a sense of disconnection. He claimed that the memories left in the gaps were torn, as if in pieces.
What did he say?
When I woke up, I was sealed inside a ghost house.
It was a story somewhat different from history.
In the recorded history of Mount Hua, it is said that the Volcano Sword ended its life right after fulfilling its long-term duties.
In fact, during conversations with the consciousness I actually encountered…
I was able to tell that something about that history was wrong.
It seems to have become twisted somewhere.
Whether it was actions taken by those related to Yeonilcheon, or perhaps by the Blood Demon, I could not confirm.
There was undoubtedly an issue.
Probably, the one most worried about that was Noya.
[Indeed. It was a long time. You, who have not experienced such a long time, what do you know to say that?]
Namgung Myung’s voice was overflowing with anger.
It was the same last time.
Namgung Myung had been angry at Shin Noya, who had not experienced the same duration of time.
[You still don’t know anything.]
The anger was justified.
Even for someone like me, if I had spent all that time stuck in consciousness, waiting for someone who might come at any moment, I might have gone half crazy.
However.
[You’re right. I don’t know.]
Shin Noya seemed to think differently.
[But at least, I know that you are not Myung.]
[This guy really…!]
[It must have been a really long time. Long enough for mountains to collapse, and for nameless streets and countless people to appear upon it.]
Shaolin’s Huang Abulyeong was in a state of exhaustion, crushed by the passage of time, barely keeping his senses.
Dangjemun had endured his entire life with the single purpose of serving Noya.
The Tang Clan he wanted to protect has rotted away.
It was such an extensive period.
To endure that time, mixed with decay and degeneration, was difficult.
Was this world truly just in the eyes of those who had the intention of saving it?
It’s impressive that it hadn’t driven someone mad by now.
But.
‘There’s no way Noya wouldn’t know that.’
Why does Noya express such a sentiment, and not Namgung Myung?
I still couldn’t comprehend it.
At that moment, Noya continued speaking.
[Time is just that way. So even if you lose what you’ve seen, it can’t be helped.]
[Are you saying that, myself, who knows that, is insulting you now?]
[Even that tough Cheolyeong has lost hope. I suppose it can’t be helped.]
[Then, at least…!]
[But.]
What.
‘…this.’
These two were talking. For some reason, cold sweat trickled down my back.
The air felt heavy. This is not about Namgung Myung. It’s something else.
‘Is this Shin Noya’s sense of foreboding?’
The atmosphere swayed according to Noya’s rising emotions.
‘Whoa.’
Realizing that, I began to truly understand the magnitude of this old man’s power.
This gentleman, who remains only as a consciousness, can hold this much presence merely by mastering his emotions.
Though he seemed like a grumpy old man, he exhibited a remarkable presence at times like this.
In the oppressive tension, Shin Noya spoke to Namgung Myung.
[At least, he hasn’t lost his conviction.]
[…!]
[I can’t feel that kind of belief from you. So, are you really Namgung Myung?]
There was something clearly contained in the voice that spoke so casually.
A belief so profound that I dared not even recognize it.
A distant quality that made one capable of firmly asserting the word ‘belief.’
[…]
Was Noya’s comment problematic?
Namgung Myung fell silent for a moment before soon beginning to speak in a dry tone.
[…And you say that now, knowing how many years have passed.]
Even if there had been conviction, it would have caved in ages ago.
Those years had passed.
Thinking that he still has a belief seemed peculiar.
[What’s strange?]
[What can a bastard, who has experienced nothing, say? At least… at least you shouldn’t say that.]
Unlike others, who have endured that long time, Shin Noya shouldn’t be allowed to say such a thing.
I understood Namgung Myung’s argument.
It was vexing for him to struggle while someone who had only just awakened after hundreds of years came asking why everything had changed.
The issue is…
‘I feel as if something ominous lurks behind his words.’
There was something unsettling in Namgung Myung’s voice as he spoke.
It seemed that Shin Noya had sensed that as well.
[…Beliefs? Yes, they can be lost. I don’t have the right to criticize that.]
[…]
[Yet if you do something, you need to be certain in what you do.]
[What do you mean…?]
Somehow, it seems like Noya’s voice was gradually lowering.
[If you were going to abandon your beliefs, then you should have acted decisively. Isn’t desire filling the space left by lost beliefs now?]
[…!]
[Are you going to deny this too?]
Another smothering wave hung in the air with those heavy words.
There is desire where belief has evaporated. What could that mean?
I couldn’t comprehend, but there was an inkling Namgung Myung might have an idea.
[All I can sense from you is desire. The ambition to restore the Namgung Clan. The impatience to fix broken swordsmanship. That’s all it is.]
[What… what’s wrong with that? Am I bound to want peace and leave Namgung behind? How could you say something so selfish?]
The world has long rotted.
Rather than sitting here dumbly shouting for peace, I’d rather save my own kin.
In some respects, it could be considered the most rational thought.
I had said this before as well.
The volcano, which has lost nothing, had allowed Shin Noya to understand Namgung Myung.
That’s the truth, but after hearing such words, Shin Noya’s voice only grew clearer.
[That’s right. It’s a selfish thought, to be honest. Anyone would do the same.]
[But how…!]
[If it weren’t for Namgung Myung.]
There was a palpable energy in the tone of voice interrupting him.
[There’s something he often repeated. If you are Namgung Myung, you should know.]
[…]
[Do you know? He once said this while covered in drenched blood.]
Namgung Myung held his tongue.
Is it because he doesn’t know? Or because he can’t say it?
I couldn’t figure it out either this time around.
[There’s no need for a Namgung clan left all alone in this crumbling world.]
[…!]
[He said the Namgung family sword was a weapon meant to protect someone. But what good is a sword with nothing to defend? That is what he said every day.]
A monarch without subjects is meaningless.
It was a pretentious and obnoxious declaration, yet there was such heartfelt emotion woven throughout those words that it left an echo of resonance.
[If Myung had lost his belief, he would have taken his own life right then and there. To fill an empty space with desire? That’s laughable.]
Only now did I understand.
The reason Noya’s voice became gradually darker and colder was not because his emotions were drying out.
Rather.
‘Oh, he’s angry.’
The anger was so profound that it led him to become even more cold and composed.
[So please, do not insult my dear friend any further.]
Perhaps due to the strength in the subtext of his voice, it felt for a moment as if my breath had ceased.
I wanted to join in on the conversation, but was so overwhelmed by Noya’s aura that I couldn’t utter a word.
I couldn’t help but feel amazed at that belief.
‘How could this be?’
Even if my friend has fallen, I firmly believe he wouldn’t have reached that state.
The confidence that could have been forged only by a history of shared experiences.
What kind of life have you lived? What kind of ties have you formed to trust so implicitly?
It’s a relationship I couldn’t begin to fathom, as I’ve never lived like that.
[Let me ask again. Who are you?]
[…Shincheol.]
The call of Namgung Myung seemed to tremble somehow when addressing Shin Noya. Or perhaps it seemed resigned.
After a lengthy silence, Namgung Myung began to speak once more.
[I am… I am… Namgung Myung.]
It was just like before.
[This fact will endure, regardless of what transpires.]
[This guy truly… .]
[Simply…]
[It’s just that I’m not the original body.]
With those final words from Namgung Myung, Shin Noya, who was about to explode in fury, fell silent.
[…What? What did you just say?]
The original body? What in the world does that mean?
At the outlandish statement, my eyes widened.
As I rolled my eyes in confusion, Namgung Myung continued.
[What remains is Namgung’s lingering attachment to the original body. That is who I am.]
[…What? An afterthought? Then where has the real Myung gone?]
Let’s push aside the talk about ‘original body’ and everything else.
If what I’m being told now is merely dregs, where in the world is the genuine Namgung Myung?
Even Shin Noya appeared flustered as he posed this question.
Namgung Myung answered.
[…North Sea. He is in the North Sea.]
Of all places, the name of that damned land arose once more.
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