Episode 27

It was the afternoon after lunch, and as usual, I had just finished external martial arts training with Bisa-yeong and Bae Jong-gwan.

I was shirtless, pouring water over myself when suddenly, a young lady approached me.

Her cheeks were flushed bright red, and she was quite cute.

“Um…”

Huh, not again?

I grinned and asked her, “Is there something you need from me, young lady?”

She blushed even deeper and shyly handed me a handkerchief.

“Please use this to wipe your sweat…”

It was a pretty handkerchief embroidered with the name ‘Song Yeong-yeong.’

From behind me, Bisa-yeong muttered loudly enough for everyone to hear, clearly annoyed.

“Jong-gwan here was the one sweating buckets, though.”

But she either didn’t hear or didn’t want to hear it.

Her trembling hand kept offering the handkerchief.

Unable to ignore her gesture, I reluctantly took it.

“Thank you kindly, Young Lady Yeong-yeong.”

Her face instantly lit up, and with a squeal of delight—like ‘She said my name!’—she dashed away.

I watched her retreating figure for a moment, then wiped my sweat with the handkerchief, murmuring to myself.

“What a sinful man I am. It’s a shame I can’t return her feelings.”

At that moment, Bisa-yeong smacked the back of my head hard.

Whack!

“Stop laughing and say something useful, you idiot!”

Thanks to the external martial arts training, it didn’t even hurt much.

I just smiled and teased him back.

“Jealous again? You should be used to it by now.”

“Hmph! I’m used to this situation. It’s you who got used to it way too fast that I can’t stand!”

He spat out his frustration like he had a lot bottled up.

I smiled and handed him the handkerchief I’d just received.

“Here, calm down and wipe your sweat with this.”

“You jerk! I don’t need it!”

Just then, Bae Jong-gwan, standing nearby, said in amazement.

“This is strange. It’s already the fourth day, right? And all different young ladies each time. Jin’s been losing weight and looking way better for a while now, so why are they only starting to notice now?”

Bisa-yeong answered irritably.

“Obviously, it’s because of the duel with Joo Tae-kyung. Before, he was handsome but kind of a weird guy who only practiced external martial arts. But after beating Joo Tae-kyung, he looks like a martial artist with both good looks and skill. No matter how handsome you are, if your martial arts are weak, you’re just a fool in this frontline.”

Bae Jong-gwan looked hurt.

“You said ‘only external martial arts.’ Say you didn’t really think that, right, Sa-yeong?”

“No, not me! I meant the other young ladies thought that!”

“Ohhh, the other young ladies.”

He nodded as if he understood, then suddenly asked again.

“So, if I get stronger in martial arts, will I be popular like Jin?”

With a childlike, innocent expression, he asked.

Bisa-yeong glanced between me and Jong-gwan, then couldn’t bring herself to answer.

Instead, she scolded him.

“Jong-gwan! You don’t seriously wish to be popular with any young lady other than Cheon, do you?! Cheon would be so disappointed if she found out!”

Flustered, Jong-gwan quickly shook his head.

“No, no! Of course not! I was just asking!”

“See? I knew you wouldn’t think that.”

Watching the two of them, I smiled softly.

A ‘martial artist with both looks and skill’…

Honestly, it felt like an awkward phrase.

In my past life, I’d never once been the object of a woman’s attention or had any deep relationships.

When I was alive, I was just a pig struggling to survive.

After I died, I was too busy training myself, and the frontline situation was too urgent to have time for such relationships.

And now, to think I’m becoming popular with women…

I couldn’t help but chuckle bitterly.

It felt strange and a little embarrassing.

But somehow, it wasn’t unpleasant.

“Are you done training?!”

A bright, clear voice suddenly called out.

I turned to see the three young ladies from our squad finishing their own training and walking toward us.

Among them, my gaze naturally settled on Noh Sa-yeo, standing in the middle.

My heart started pounding.

In my past life, while I was alive, I was just someone who received care.

I was barely able to take care of myself, and the thought of boldly expressing my feelings to her was unthinkable.

But after she died, I changed.

I became a completely different person.

Of course, she couldn’t see that…

And now, at last, I was beginning to have a little confidence in myself.

Maybe that’s why I sometimes found myself wondering,

‘If it were now, could things have turned out differently back then?’

Not long ago, after much thought, I decided to give her one of the elixirs I had originally planned to take myself.

My internal energy was nearly at the first-grade level.

With just a few more years of cultivation, I could reach full first-grade mastery.

So, it felt a bit wasteful to take the elixir right now before reaching my peak.

Of course, saving it for later wouldn’t have been a bad choice either, but then I’d feel guilty toward Bisa-yeong, who had already given up half of her elixir for me.

After much deliberation, I decided to give one of the two elixirs my father had given me to Noh Sa-yeo.

She was kind enough to be surprised and initially refused.

But when she insisted she couldn’t accept it, I said,

“Young lady, of course, I could give this to Jong-gwan or Cheon to raise our squad’s average strength. But through this experience, I realized that besides the squad leader, we need at least one more expert at the peak level. You heard about it—the leader was in real danger this time. So I decided that either Cheong-yeon, you, or I should quickly reach the peak to support the leader. That’s why I’m giving this to you. Please don’t refuse.”

After a moment’s hesitation, she accepted the elixir, thanking me repeatedly.

Watching her take the elixir, I felt a deep sense of pride.

It was as if she had accepted my feelings.

Of course, even with no experience with women, I wasn’t foolish enough to think it meant that.

But I did have a small hope.

A tiny hope that maybe, just maybe, my feelings had been conveyed.

Noh Sa-yeo approached me with a bright smile and noticed the handkerchief in my hand.

She laughed and asked,

“You got another handkerchief? Who was it from this time?”

“Ah, th-this is…”

I was startled.

What an idiot—I showed that in front of her.

Before I could make an excuse, Bisa-yeong answered gruffly.

“Today it was from Song Yeong-yeong of the third squad.”

Noh Sa-yeo’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Song Yeong-yeong? Oh, I heard she’s quite popular with the men.”

Her words made me secretly hopeful.

Maybe she’d get a little jealous.

But she just smiled brightly and congratulated me.

“Wow, Sunwoo Gongja, you’ve really become popular! I’m so proud. Is this what it feels like to be a mother watching her successful son? You’re amazing!”

…So she was like a mother figure.

Then the elixir I gave her…

Did that make me a filial son?

Just then, Cheong-yeon gently tapped my shoulder.

I wondered if she understood something, but it still comforted me.

Unaware of my feelings, Noh Sa-yeo suddenly seemed to remember something and said cheerfully,

“Oh, our new squad member will definitely join after the Bloodline Conference. They said it’s too stressful to bring in new members before the conference, so in about three weeks, we’ll have a new family member.”

Everyone nodded with bright smiles.

“That’s great!”

“Great only if the right people join.”

“Come on, there’s no way someone like Joo Tae-kyung would join again. I’m sure a good person will come.”

Listening to her, I sifted through my past memories.

Hmm, if it’s someone joining after the Bloodline Conference, could it be that guy? I don’t know much since he’s from another squad, but I vaguely remember he was very polite and energetic.

Based on my past life, I was sure he wasn’t like Joo Tae-kyung.

After losing the duel and having to serve me as his senior, Joo Tae-kyung showed his usual cowardly behavior.

Instead of serving me, he begged the leader of the fourth squad, Mayu-gyeom, to transfer there.

Rumor had it he even cried while pleading.

Thanks to that, we witnessed the rare sight of the proud Mayu-gyeom asking the leader of Seopung for a favor.

Originally, Mayu-gyeom only asked to take Joo Tae-kyung, but we ended up sending the rest of his lackeys as well.

I insisted it was better to have no untrustworthy members at all.

Anyway, our seventh squad was now severely understaffed.

Compared to other squads averaging ten members, we only had seven.

But I didn’t feel the least bit sorry about it.

‘Seven strong members are better than ten divided ones!’

There was no need to say more about how a tight-knit seven was better than a scattered ten.

Moreover, with Noh Sa-yeo having stepped up a level after taking the elixir, we now had three first-class or higher warriors besides the leader.

So, in terms of combat power, we were better off than before, not worse.

That was the only thing I regretted.

If only we had more elixirs, we could raise the rest of the squad’s level too.

It was one of those moments when I suddenly regretted that old man Seok Gyeong-dal had died, taking with him the knowledge of how to make antidotes from poisons.

‘Even if it wasn’t a miraculous elixir, his knowledge could have been invaluable for dealing with the Blood Sect… It’s such a waste that he passed away so soon…’

The day we killed Ji Gwang-ok, we lost any chance of meeting Dakam again.

Following Seok Gyeong-dal’s instructions, Dakam and his siblings vanished without a trace. And the younger brother, Rakun, who had been forcibly married off, had already been killed by Ji Gwang-ok.

There was no sign of them inside the secret chamber. It seemed Dakam had taken all of Seok Gyeong-dal’s materials with him.

Thankfully, I had managed to learn some knowledge about poisonous and antidote herbs, but still, there was so much left unknown—it was frustrating.

Just then—

Suddenly, someone swooped down like a swift bird and landed beside us.

It was Seol Poong, the squad leader who had attended the officers’ meeting.

“Leader!”

“Did it go well?”

“Anything special happen?”

Seol Poong gave a bitter smile and apologized.

“I’ve got one good piece of news and one bad. Which do you want first?”

Cheon Ju-eun was the first to raise her hand cutely.

“Bad news! It’s twice as sweet to hear the good news after the bad!”

Seol Poong chuckled softly and said,

“The bad news is, we’ve been assigned another cleaning duty. This time, it’s the entrance path.”

Everyone frowned and shouted in protest.

“What?! We just cleaned there a few days ago!”

“They even trimmed the trees neatly!”

“Yeah, I said the same, but the squad leader said cleaning and tidying up are supposed to be done every single day.”

We all let out hollow laughs.

Cleaning every day?

Bi Sa-yeong exploded in anger.

“What nonsense is that?! Why didn’t they do it even once in over ten years, and now suddenly it’s a daily chore?! With the Blood War possibly breaking out again, they want us to waste time cleaning? Are they crazy?!”

His words were harsh, but everyone nodded in agreement.

Commander Heon Yeong-bo really seemed to be putting his fate on the line with this summit between the Martial Alliance and the Blood Sect.

But recalling the summit from my past life, I clicked my tongue and shook my head.

Even then, Heon Yeong-bo had desperately prepared for the Blood Sect talks, but in the end, gained nothing.

After that, he remained as the commander of the Thirteen Great Sects.

It was pathetic, yet somehow pitiful.

The summit between the Martial Alliance leader and the Blood Demon had everyone on edge, fearing the Blood War would erupt again, but it ended weakly with meaningless talks.

‘Honestly, it was so pointless that I still don’t understand why they even met.’

Back then, I had been biting my nails in worry, but when nothing happened, I sighed in relief.

Yet, the real troubles began after that.

Thinking back, I swallowed hard without realizing it.

‘It felt like we were cursed.’

It started when Mae Yeogyeong, the deputy leader of the Fourth Sect, was found murdered—her blood drained by the Blood Demon Ju-gwi.

And it happened near the Thirteen Great Sects’ headquarters.

We were horrified and issued an emergency alert, searching for Ju-gwi, but found no trace.

Around that time, Ma Yu-gyeom, the Fourth Sect leader and Mae Yeogyeong’s lover, began to unravel.

Though arrogant, he had been a skilled warrior and capable leader, but after her death, he started to fall apart.

Even those who disliked him felt sorry, blaming it all on Mae Yeogyeong’s death.

Moreover, the incident where Myung Sa-hyeon, deputy leader of the Third Sect, was forcibly married off to the Blood Sect, and Third Sect leader Dang Yeo-eun had to kill him, also happened then.

These consecutive tragedies dragged the morale of the Thirteen Great Sects to rock bottom.

Looking back, I suspect many other later events stemmed from this period.

Like the sudden fact that Dang Yeo-eun became Ma Yu-gyeom’s woman, or when Ma Yu-gyeom, who once claimed to be the chief disciple of the Point Shop, defected to the Blood Sect during the front line’s collapse, shocking everyone.

‘Hmm, then…’

A chill ran down my spine.

I had a strange feeling that all these events were connected by something I didn’t know.

But there was no way to prepare for it.

At that time, the Seventh Sect was on leave, so no one knew anything about these matters, and I had no ties with them to coordinate any response.

While I was lost in thought, Cheon Ju-eun called out again.

“Leader! So what’s the good news?!”

Seol Poong smiled brightly and answered,

“Our leave has been moved up to next week. So we can go out then.”

Everyone’s eyes widened in surprise, then erupted into cheers.

“Yay! Leave?! Really?!”

“Wow! That’s awesome!”

“Hahaha! That’s great news, leader!”

But I was stunned, my mind blank.

Leave moved up to next week?

That never happened in my past life.

Flustered, I asked the leader,

“Uh, how did that happen?”

He smiled and explained,

“Ma Yu-gyeom from the Fourth Sect gave it up. Since the Seventh Sect is short on people, he thought it better to take leave before accepting new recruits. Seems he feels indebted because of Ju Tae-gyeong.”

“Oh, I see…”

Huh, a future I didn’t know about.

It was unsettling, even a little scary.

But after a moment’s thought, I realized it wasn’t bad at all.

In my past life, I was on leave during those critical events and couldn’t respond at all.

Granted, I lacked the ability and awareness then.

But now, things were different.

This time, I could watch closely and maybe create a new variable.

No, I had to.

Suddenly, another memory surfaced.

Wait a minute.

Wasn’t there something interesting happening in Guiju Fortress around this time?

In my past life, I only learned about it after everything was over, during leave.

But this time, if I played it right…

A sly smile crept onto my lips.

I asked the leader,

“Leader! What are you planning to do during this leave?”

“Hm? I don’t really have anywhere to go. I was thinking of staying and training.”

That figures.

I jumped up, opposing his plan.

“No, you can’t, leader!”

He looked startled.

“Huh? Why not?”

“Didn’t you say rest is part of training?”

“Ah, yes, but I just don’t have anywhere to go…”

“Let’s go to Guiju Fortress!”

“Huh?”

“I’ll take good care of you there!”

Seol Poong blinked in surprise, and I smiled warmly.

If I could just take the leader with me, this leave could be truly worthwhile.