Episode 110
Two days later, I finally got to leave the Flying Dragon Thirteen again—this time for a vacation.
And, surprisingly, I was going with Deputy Tang Yue’en.
Of course, we couldn’t leave together from the Thirteen’s base because of the prying eyes around us.
So, Tang Yue’en set off early in the morning, and about half an hour later, I slipped away from the front lines as well.
We met shortly after on the outskirts of Yunnan Province, and only then did it really hit me—we were finally traveling alone, just the two of us.
“Deputy Tang!”
I called her name cheerfully as I landed beside her, but when I glanced around, there was no one else in sight.
Just the two of us, deep in the heart of the forest.
“Huh?”
I looked around, suddenly flustered, and swallowed hard.
gulp
And then, an awkward wave of emotion washed over me.
“What’s going on? Why am I feeling like this all of a sudden?”
I was completely thrown off.
I couldn’t even think of what to say.
My mind went blank.
When I looked at her, I realized I wasn’t the only one feeling this way.
She avoided my gaze, her eyes darting nervously around.
It was unbearably awkward.
I felt like I had to say something, but nothing came to mind.
Desperately racking my brain, I finally managed to blurt out,
“Uh, Deputy Tang, you didn’t have to wait long, did you?”
She quickly waved her hand and replied,
“No, not at all! You actually arrived much earlier than I expected.”
“Oh, that’s a relief.”
Then silence fell again.
My usually sharp mind felt like it had turned to stone in that moment.
After a brief, awkward pause, I finally broke the silence.
“Well… shall we get going?”
“Ah, yes. Let’s.”
And so, our journey together began.
An incredibly awkward start.
Even after we’d been traveling for quite a while, we barely spoke.
Or rather, we couldn’t.
We caught each other’s eyes a few times, only to quickly look away, unsure of what to say, and kept moving forward in silence.
It felt strange.
“Why is this happening? I’ve never felt this way with Deputy Tang before… Could it be?”
I wondered if my feelings for her had deepened.
But I shook my head.
I hadn’t even fully sorted out my feelings for her yet—if I were already falling for someone else, that would be just pathetic.
I didn’t want to think so little of myself.
“Maybe it’s just because this is the first time I’m traveling alone with a woman in this life. That’s probably it.”
I decided to chalk it up to that.
Around lunchtime, my stomach started to grumble, and I thought it might be a good idea to grab a quick bite.
“Deputy Tang, would you like to eat something before we continue?”
“Huh? Ah, yes. That sounds good.”
Nearby, a fairly wide stream flowed.
I figured we could catch some fish and cook them.
I asked her,
“Deputy, I’ll catch the fish if you could start a fire for us?”
“Uh… start a fire?”
Her expression looked a bit troubled.
I asked cautiously,
“You’ve never started a fire before?”
She blushed deeply and bowed her head.
“Sorry, I’ve never done it.”
I suddenly remembered that before she was the leader of the Flying Dragon squad, she was the precious jewel of the Tang family.
She probably always ate meals prepared for her, even in the Flying Dragon squad, so she’d never had to start a campfire herself.
Nodding, I said,
“In that case, I’ll start the fire. Could you catch the fish?”
She smiled confidently, as if that was no problem.
“Okay, I can do that!”
As I went to gather dry leaves to start the fire, I noticed her pulling a small ceramic bottle from her pack.
A small ceramic bottle? Could it be…?
I asked,
“Deputy Tang!”
“Yes?”
“How do you plan to catch the fish?”
She smiled brightly.
“Oh, this is a poison called Haxinghong. Just one drop in the water will kill all the fish within about ten meters. I’m going to use this.”
So it wasn’t a joke.
I blinked in surprise and asked,
“Are we really going to eat fish caught with poison?”
“…Yes?”
“Uh…”
“…”
Judging by her embarrassed expression, I figured I didn’t need to press further.
In the end, I asked her to gather dry twigs and leaves while I caught the fish myself.
It wasn’t difficult.
After all, I’m a top-tier expert now.
I floated lightly above the stream.
“Hup!”
I caught sight of the fish swimming below in the clear water.
I focused my eyes and struck like a ray of light.
The Seventh Step of the Fourteen Sword Technique.
Black Sky Sword Rain.
Shush shush shush!
A shower of sword energy rained down on the fish of a certain size within ten meters.
Splash!
Soon, the fish pierced by the sword energy struggled and floated to the surface.
Exactly eleven fish.
I asked Deputy Tang to skewer them on sticks while I went to build the fire.
That wasn’t hard either.
Again, I’m a top-tier expert.
In the past, I might have used flint or a fire striker, but now that wasn’t necessary.
I gathered dry leaves, focused only my yang energy into them, and when the temperature rose enough, I quickly rubbed them with my fingers.
Whoosh!
The leaves caught fire immediately.
“Wow!”
Deputy Tang watched me with wide, amazed eyes and gasped.
She seemed genuinely impressed.
I shrugged and smiled casually.
“It’s nothing. Anyone can do it once they know the trick.”
Of course, I left out the part about being a ‘top-tier expert,’ but it wasn’t a lie.
Someone with Deputy Tang’s skill level could easily learn it.
After a while, as the fire burned steadily, we sat quietly roasting the fish.
Sizzle!
Deputy Tang, staring blankly at the cooking fish, suddenly asked cautiously,
“Where did you learn all this? You seem really skilled.”
I gave a slight, wry smile.
“Mostly from Chief Seolpung. He said he lived in the mountains for a long time before joining the Flying Dragon squad.”
“Oh.”
That was true.
Though I’d learned most of it in my previous life, not this one.
In my last years on the front lines, life was very different.
By then, too many comrades had died, and the number and strength of the attacking demons had grown so much that we spent most of our time wandering the forest, fighting like hunters or warriors, rather than staying in the barracks.
If we stayed comfortably in the barracks, we’d be slaughtered by the demons.
Those days were incredibly hard and bleak.
I had to get used to the constant death of comrades, with no hope for improvement.
Only hatred and a thirst for revenge kept me going.
And this life might not be so different if the Blood Demons appeared again.
That’s why I had to destroy the Blood Sect within five years, no matter what.
Just as I was lost in thought, Deputy Tang asked,
“Are the fish done now?”
Her voice snapped me back to reality.
The fish were mostly cooked.
“Yes, the smaller ones should be ready to eat.”
Her eyes lit up with anticipation as she carefully brought a skewer with a small fish to her lips.
Her sparkling eyes and the way her small lips nibbled on the fish were incredibly cute.
I smiled faintly and asked,
“Is it good?”
She grinned brightly.
“Yes! It’s delicious!”
I suddenly remembered how cold and distant she’d been yesterday in front of the squad, radiating a chill like a winter wind.
Almost like the daughter of the Northern Sea Ice Palace.
Compared to that, she looked even cuter now.
Watching her enjoy the fish so happily, I took a bite of one myself.
But my smile quickly faded.
“What the… this is way too bland.”
The fish tasted incredibly plain.
Only then did I realize I’d forgotten to sprinkle salt.
I had it with me but completely forgot.
Without salt on freshwater fish, it tasted like nothing but plain water.
I found it strange that Deputy Tang seemed to enjoy it so much.
Maybe she just preferred bland flavors.
I asked her,
“Deputy Tang.”
“Yes?”
“Isn’t it a bit bland? I didn’t put any salt on it. Should I just leave it as is?”
“…?”
Apparently not.
Once I sprinkled salt on the fish, she started eating it eagerly, far more than before.
Watching her eat the fish so deliciously, I felt a mix of guilt and affection, and couldn’t help but ask.
“You should’ve said something if it was bland. You were eating it so happily, I really thought it was good.”
She smiled and shook her head.
“No, it really was good earlier. I guess I just liked everything about it.”
I chuckled softly and asked again.
“What’s so great about it? It’s just a bland fish grilled over a campfire.”
She smiled happily and replied,
“It’s just… being with you, Seonwoo Gongja.”
But as she answered so naturally, she suddenly froze like a stone.
And I, who was listening without much thought, felt the same shock.
Wait—did she just say she likes being with me?
Thinking I must have misheard, I asked again.
“…What?”
“Yes?”
“…”
We blinked at each other, both caught off guard, when Dang Sojeo’s face flushed bright red and she hurriedly blurted out.
“I mean! What I’m trying to say is—when I’m with you, Seonwoo Gongja, I don’t have to pretend to be perfect all the time, and that’s what I like…”
“Oh! Ah, so that’s what you meant?”
“Yes, yes! That’s exactly it!”
Watching her nod vigorously, I realized that made perfect sense.
For someone like her, who usually acts so cold and aloof, it must be hard to show a softer side.
I breathed a quiet sigh of relief, glad I hadn’t misunderstood.
‘Gotta be careful. Almost jumped to the wrong conclusion.’
Then I asked her, still flushed, “Is it really uncomfortable to show that side of yourself?”
She flinched slightly, thought for a moment, then gave a faint, bittersweet smile.
“I guess it’s because I’m deceiving everyone. The real me is weak and insignificant, but I pretend to be perfect and strong. If people found out who I really am, they’d feel betrayed.”
She looked deeply sad as she spoke.
It seemed like a feeling she’d carried for a long time.
“Dang Sojeo…”
Just as I was about to say something to comfort her, a voice rang out from afar.
“There! Get him!”
“Don’t let him escape!”
Though the shouts came from quite a distance, the two of us—masters of martial arts—heard them clearly.
Our eyes met.
She asked me, “What should we do?”
We were near the border between Yunnan and Sichuan provinces, far beyond the front lines. It was probably nothing to do with us.
Still, I quickly stamped out the campfire and answered,
“Let’s go check it out first.”
If it really wasn’t our business, we could just pass by.
But we couldn’t ignore it without knowing for sure.
There might be some connection to us, or we might be letting someone die unjustly by walking away.
At least, having been taught by the Sword Saint elder to create a world where humanity lives on, I believed we must never turn a blind eye.
We ran lightly over the branches toward the source of the noise.
Soon, we spotted a man surrounded by a group of warriors.
“This is the end, Domunseung!”
“Did you really think you could run from us?!”
The man’s name was probably Domunseung.
He looked to be in his late twenties, with a serious expression, and seemed to know his captors.
He asked them grimly,
“Wonwang, Upo. Do you truly intend to kill me?”
One burly man sneered in reply.
“Hah! That’s rich! You’re the one who refused the council’s orders because you wanted to die. Why ask us about it?”
“And you even ran away! Do you still expect to live?”
Domunseung looked frustrated and shot back,
“You know as well as I do that if I go, the future of my clan, the Yeongnam Sword Sect, will be in jeopardy! How can I enter the council alone in such a situation? And to be sentenced to death just for not attending the council? Where’s the justice in that?”
Though I didn’t know the full story, it was clear Domunseung felt wronged.
But his desperate words only earned more scorn from his captors.
“You break the rules because your sect is struggling? Isn’t that just selfishness? Because of your selfishness, you’ve broken the sacred rules that have protected Sichuan from the Six Ghosts Hall. It’s only right you be executed as an example! No more talk! Seize him!”
“Yes, sir!”
At the big man’s command, the warriors advanced on Domunseung with fierce intent.
He clenched his sword, resigned, while the large man sneered and shouted again,
“Capture him alive if you can, but if he resists, cutting off an arm won’t be a problem!”
“Yes, sir!”
At once, the warriors drew their swords.
Clang! Clang!
The tension was electric.
Then I heard Dang Sojeo’s voice in my ear.
“Seonwoo Gongja, what do we do?”
We still didn’t know the full situation, so I wasn’t sure if we should intervene.
But I answered her anyway.
“Let’s step out first. We need to see how they react once they notice us.”
Without hesitation, we leapt down beside the group.
Crack!