Episode 19
“Gasp!”

I jolted upright, drenched in cold sweat.

I’d just woken from a nightmare.

Glancing around, it was still the dark of night.

Beside me, Bisa-young and Bae Jong-gwan were sound asleep, and Captain Seol Poong was nowhere to be seen—probably off training again.

Only after confirming that I hadn’t lost anything yet did I let out a sigh of relief.

My nightmare was a memory from my past life.

Memories of everyone around me disappearing.

And perhaps, a glimpse of what might repeat again in the future.

At least up until now, I was confident I was doing my best.

In my past life, I had saved my friend Bae Jong-gwan, who I had lost before, and I was training with all my might to regain the martial prowess I once had—to reach the pinnacle, the minimum condition I believed necessary to act independently.

Because until I reached that level of martial skill, there was almost nothing I could do.

But was that really enough?

Was this truly sufficient?

The dangers on the front lines only grew with time.

Soon, the Iron Ghosts would appear, and later, the Venomous Ghosts.

In my past life, we lost comrades one by one but somehow endured.

Yet enduring it all was ultimately meaningless.

All the demons were merely steps toward creating the final product—the Blood Demon.

In five years, the Blood Demons would emerge.

Masters at the peak of martial skill, but with the bodies of demons.

And two years after their appearance, the front lines completely collapsed.

The Blood Sect gradually released the power it had amassed, expanding its territory beyond Yunnan into Sichuan, Guizhou, and Guangxi provinces.

As if mocking the non-aggression pact with the Martial Alliance…

I died during that time.

So I don’t know what happened afterward.

Whether the entire martial world united to stop the Blood Sect, or if the Blood Sect truly ruled the land.

Of course, despite all that, the only thing I could do now was to grow stronger myself.

So I focused solely on training, determined to take it one step at a time.

But whenever nightmares like this plagued me, I found myself asking again:

Is this really enough?

……

It couldn’t be.

---

With the duel between Jomchang Geombi’s Ju Tae-kyung and Seon Woo-jin just two days away, today was the evening patrol duty for the Seventh Squad.

Since training was paused during patrol hours, we skipped the evening sparring session and went out on patrol instead.

Na Seo-yu, the squad’s vice-captain, felt a twinge of regret.

Evening sparring was her favorite time.

Lately, after breaking through her stagnation, she felt like she was finally seeing a path forward.

And sparring one-on-one with him every day was the happiest moment of her day.

Smiling wryly at herself for thinking such things while on the front lines, Na Seo-yu recalled how, when she was first assigned here, she thought she’d die as soon as she arrived.

“You can’t send your four younger brothers to carry on the family line, can you? For the sake of the squad leader, you’ll have to sacrifice yourself.”

Her second mother’s voice was cold and utterly devoid of remorse.

When Na Seo-yu was seven, after her mother passed away, her second mother took control of the squad leader’s authority.

She openly favored her own son, three years younger than Na Seo-yu, while hiding this from their father.

It was painful and difficult, but Na Seo-yu thought she had to endure it.

She believed her sacrifice was for the sake of her father and the squad leader.

So when her second mother demanded yet another sacrifice, Na Seo-yu answered obediently:

“Yes, Mother. I understand.”

Though she knew she’d likely die, Na Seo-yu didn’t know how to refuse or rebel.

She’d lived that way for so long.

“And I almost died on my first patrol.”

While tracking the demonic essence-absorbing Ju Gui, she was ambushed and kidnapped by a Blood Sect demon leader.

Paralyzed by poison, she still vividly recalled the monster’s greedy gaze scanning her entire body.

That terrifying face sometimes haunted her.

Maybe she never fully overcame that memory.

Or perhaps she never should have survived.

If he hadn’t saved her.

He had appeared like a shooting star, kicking the demon leader away.

Blood splattered as the demon fled, but he chased it down faster, relentlessly beating it.

Then he returned to her side, wearing the innocent expression of a mountain village boy, awkwardly asking if she was okay.

Na Seo-yu could never forget that foolish, helpless look.

At that moment, she forgot her fear and let out a small laugh.

Later, when he was chosen as the newly formed Seventh Squad’s leader and she followed him there, life was tough.

But Na Seo-yu could confidently say this was the happiest time of her life.

Even if she were to die tomorrow.

After briefly watching his back as he led the way, Na Seo-yu looked over her squad members.

If it was his job to defeat enemies and protect the squad, then it was hers to look after the members.

Something she was best at, and something that could make up for his shortcomings.

“Lord Bi, you seem to be looking even better these days. You were manly before, but now it really stands out.”

“Hmph! Praise from the vice-captain is so common, I hardly believe it.”

“Oh, but I’m serious!”

I said this to Bisa-young, who was grumbling to Bae Jong-gwan about how his body had bulked up from external martial arts training, making him less agile.

Though he said he didn’t trust my compliments, I saw his lips twitch as he gave up complaining, and I smiled.

Then I sent a private message to Bae Jong-gwan.

— Lord Bae, women don’t like it when you’re too obvious. They find it more attractive when you care in subtle, almost imperceptible ways. You know what I mean, right?

Bae Jong-gwan, who couldn’t take his eyes off Cheon Ju-eun even today, looked at me gratefully and tried to act brave, scanning the surroundings.

Lately, Cheon Ju-eun had been a little uncomfortable with how much he stared.

She was a good person and appreciated his interest, but if the discomfort continued, it could lead to bad outcomes for both of them.

The front lines were a place where romance was freer than anywhere else in the martial world, given the constant threat of death.

But that also meant that awkward feelings between men and women could disrupt squad unity, and in severe cases, one party might have to transfer to another squad.

Na Seo-yu wanted to prevent that at all costs.

And if possible, she hoped good people would develop good feelings for each other.

At least for this moment, while they were still alive.

Having handled the matters she could, Na Seo-yu shifted her gaze to someone she wasn’t sure how to approach.

Cheong-yeon was staring at one person with an unreadable expression.

“Lord Seon Woo.”

Seon Woo-jin, who had appeared like a comet and completely changed the Seventh Squad’s atmosphere, had been a bit gloomy lately.

He didn’t show it when interacting with others, but when he was lost in thought like that, the difference was clear.

Everyone assumed it was because of the upcoming duel with Ju Tae-kyung and pretended not to notice, but his mood did bring down the squad’s spirits.

After all, Seon Woo-jin had become someone who could sway the entire squad’s atmosphere.

And then there was Cheong-yeon.

After recently seeing her face, I even thought it was right for her to cover it up because of her overwhelming beauty.

Not long ago, she had made a bombshell declaration in front of me and Cheon Ju-eun.

It was when we heard that Seon Woo-jin was in love with Dang Yeo-eun.

The three women of the Seventh Squad were training in the afternoon when Cheong-yeon suddenly spoke up.

“You know, when Seon Woo-jin and Yeon first came, I thought they were a couple. Or maybe one was secretly in love with the other. Especially when Yeon followed Seon Woo-jin to the Seventh Squad, I thought she was in love with him.”

Cheon Ju-eun, listening nearby, burst out laughing in agreement.

“Pffft! You too? Me as well. But after seeing Yeon’s face later, I felt a little sorry.”

“Really? Hehe. Me too.”

The only two who truly knew Cheong-yeon’s real appearance in the Thirteenth Generation laughed like that.

Then Cheong-yeon, expressionless, spoke up.

“That’s true.”

“Huh? What’s true?”

“That I like Lord Seon Woo.”

“…Huh?”

Na Seo-yu and Cheon Ju-eun were taken aback by Cheong-yeon’s calm declaration, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

“Of course I like Lord Seon Woo. He’s a precious squad member and someone I can trust.”

“Right. Lord Seon Woo is really a good person. And he’s become surprisingly handsome after losing weight. But, sister, that’s not what we meant…”

But Cheong-yeon cut off Cheon Ju-eun and spoke again, this time with rare firmness.

“I know what you mean. And I’m talking about that too. I admire Lord Seon Woo as a man.”

“…What?”

“…Really?”

The two were confused.

Why on earth did Cheong-yeon admire Lord Seon Woo?

And why did she say it like that?

Her tone made it sound less like a confession of admiration and more like a vow for revenge.

Na Seo-yu struggled to regain her composure and asked Cheong-yeon.

“No, Yeon, why? Wait, that’s not it. And if it’s true that Lord Seon Woo admires Dang So-jeo, why are you so calm about it?”

Cheong-yeon answered as if it were obvious.

“Because it probably isn’t true. It seems like he’s interested, yes, but not in a romantic way. If anything, he’s more like…”

She trailed off, glancing briefly at Na Seo-yu before changing the subject.

“And I actually started liking him when he was still overweight. I’ve always been drawn to round shapes, you know? But what attracted me was his roundness, and even after he lost the weight, my feelings didn’t fade. I guess I started seeing what was inside him, beyond just his appearance.”

Her confession came out calmly, as if she were simply stating an observation from nature. Na Seo-yu and Cheon Ju-eun were left speechless.

It was only after some time that Cheon Ju-eun found the courage to ask again.

“Th-then why don’t you do anything about it?”

“Do what?”

“Like, get closer to him, or—yeah! Show him your true self!”

Cheong-yeon smiled faintly, a rare expression, and asked back.

“Why do I have to do anything? Just watching him from beside him is enough for me.”

Na Seo-yu and Cheon Ju-eun couldn’t help but realize once more that Cheong-yeon was an enigma beyond their understanding.

After that, Na Seo-yu found it difficult to get involved in their affairs.

So, without saying a word to the two of them, she set off on patrol.

About halfway through their route, as the western sky turned a deep red, Seol-pung, who was leading the group, held out his palm.

It was a signal to stop—something had appeared.

The team halted in perfect unison, eyes scanning the surroundings. Then, in an instant, Seol-pung became a streak of light, darting into the dense jungle.

Shhhhk!

Suddenly, a scream pierced the air.

“Help! Please, save me!”

The unexpected cry left the seven team members wide-eyed in shock.

Help? Hearing the screams of ordinary people here? On this front line?

Seol-pung barely managed to stop the attacker and subdue him—a lithe young man with dark skin, clearly of the Miao tribe.

What surprised them even more was that the Miao youth spoke to them in halting Korean, bowing his hands in earnest pleading.

“I am not a demon turned by the blood curse. I am simply a Miao living deep within the forest.”

The team was taken aback.

All the Miao they had encountered on the front lines had been possessed by the blood curse, turned into demons.

This was the first sane Miao they had ever met—and here he was, begging them desperately.

“Please, I beg you. Release us. Tokno, our benefactor, is coughing up blood and dying.”