Chapter 72: At the tip of Destiny’s Branch (4)
Translator: hwarang
Editor: Kidyeon
It was around noon when Song Hwa Rin awoke from her sleep.
Her head was screaming in agony.
She barely managed to get up after washing her face with the cold water that Soo Ran had brought to her.
“Ah... how much did I drink.”
As soon as she finished speaking, she heard a voice from the door, “You drank until you dropped.”
She turned around to see Byuk Lee Dan standing near the door.
“Are you alright?”
“No... my head feels like it’s going to split. I don’t remember anything from yesterday.”
“You don’t remember biting me either?”
“What?” She said, surprised. “I bit you? Me? You?”
I simply nodded my head.
“Why would I do such a thing?” She was so surprised that she didn’t know what to say. ‘How could I bite someone? I’ve never done that before….’
“Should I tell you everything that happened?” I said jokingly to her.
She shook her head and replied, “No, please forget everything that happened.”
After saying that, she smiled. Although she had a splitting headache, and even though her feelings were all mixed up, she felt better than ever; she’d told me everything that she’d had pent up—the things that she couldn’t tell anyone else. Although she somewhat regretted it, she felt much better.
I asked her carefully, “Are you going to meet your master?”
“No. I don’t want to.”
“I think that you should meet him.”
“What?”
“If you don’t, you’ll never be able to escape that nightmare.”
She looked me in the eyes.
I proceeded to ask her, “Do you think that he’s someone amazing?”
“No, my master is… a terrible person.”
Even though he might not have done it in the end, he was still a terrible person for thinking of raping his apprentice.
There isn’t always a pretty flower at the tip of destiny’s branch. Sometimes there are rotten fruits and ugly flowers.
I said to her calmly, “For something like this, it’s better to solve it when you get the opportunity, rather than delay it.”
“Alright... but, can we do something before that?”
“What?”
“Let me get over this hangover. My stomach’s killing me.”
“Hahaha!” I burst out laughing.
Song Hwa Ring began laughing with me. She looked the most beautiful when she was laughing.
****
Ho Yeon Nam was in his room cleaning his sword when his disciple, Ho Yeon Tak, returned.
He was a man that was in his late fifties, had greying hair, and a stubborn look. The way he looked at his sword gave him a dark aura.
“Teacher, I’ve returned.”
“How was it?” He asked without taking his eyes off of his sword.
“The Decimator, Yeom Hwa, is currently staying in an inn with one of the five subordinates he brought. The subordinates in question are known as the Five Divine Swords of the Heavenly Dao Gate; their skills are well-known.”
Ho Yeon Tak had a worried expression on his face. There were fifteen of them that had followed their master to San Dong. Although they might have the advantage in numbers, many of his brothers were lacking real battle experience. On the other hand, Yeom Hwa and the Five Divine Swords of the Heavenly Dao Gates were experts who had years of experience under their belt.
Even if his master were to take on the Decimator, he still wouldn’t have the confidence to take on the Five Divine Swords.
“I think we need to ask for some a.s.sistance from the Dark Guild.”
Ho Yeon Nam stopped cleaning his sword and asked him, “Are you afraid?”
Ho Yeon Tak quickly replied, “No master. I’m just suggesting it in case they call for help from more experts.”
“They won’t; the Decimator isn’t the type of person to ask for other people’s help. He knows that he’s the best person for this sort of work.”
“I’m sorry master, I didn’t think this matter through.”
“...Do you know why I chose to accept this a.s.signment?”
“Why, master?”
“Because someone like Ma Bong Gi doesn’t deserve to become the Mengju. How dare the Heavenly Dao Gate believe that they can do whatever they want in Kang Ho. I’ll never forgive them!”
Ho Yeon Tak knew how much his master venerated the previous mengju; Chunhajin had been akin to a G.o.d to him.
But then Chunhajin had died, and Ma Bong Gi had become the mengju. This had caused his master’s hate for the Heavenly Dao Gate to rise to another level.
When the Dark Guild had requested help, everyone else but Ho Yeon Nam had declined.
“I will kill Yeom Hwa with my own hands.”
Yeon Ho Tak was surprised at his master’s last sentence. They mustn’t kill them. The only reason that they were here was to deter the Heavenly Dao Gate’s aggression. They’d received an order from the school master Ho Yeon Sae to try to appease Yeom Hwa with money.
But to eliminate Yeom Hwa? This was something that should never happen.
His master was someone who took great pride in his martial arts. But for him to be blinded by his pride and not know the limits of his power made him worried.
The reason he venerated Chunhajin so much wasn’t because he liked him, but because he’d had the t.i.tle ‘strongest under heaven’.
This was the t.i.tle that his master had strived for his entire life, yet hadn’t even managed to get close to. He venerated the person who possessed such a t.i.tle—one which was reserved for only a single person in all of the Kang Ho.
But when Chun Ha Jin had died, his master had become both fiercer and colder. Even though he hadn’t been the nicest person, he still became even darker than before.
“Master, your disciple has a concern. I know that you’re fully capable of killing Yeom Hwa by yourself, but what would happen if you did so? He is from the Heavenly Dao Gate.”
Although they were from one of the four great powers of the Kang Ho, there was no way that they could contend against the mengju.
Killing Yeom Hwa would only create a bigger problem.
“It’s not something that you need to worry about.”
There wasn’t anything he could say since his master had answered like this.
“I’ll excuse myself for now.”
As he was about to leave, he suddenly said, “By fortune, I met Hwa Rin-ee.”
Ho Yeon Nam stopped cleaning his sword once again. “Is she doing well?”
“Yes. She was with her fiancée, Byuk Lee Dan.”
Ho Yeon Nam continued to clean his sword as if nothing had happened.
Feeling the dense atmosphere in the room, Ho Yeon Tak left the room.
****
I was currently eating hot soup with Song Hwa Rin.
Although we could’ve eaten at her house, we’d decided to go out to a restaurant.
After emptying her bowl, she made an expression like she’d regained her happiness.
“I finally feel alive.”
I felt relieved as well. “That’s good.”
When I was still the Mengju, I’d always circulate my energy whenever I drank to ensure that I remained sober. However recently, I’ve liked getting drunk with Kw.a.n.g Du, Baek Pyo, and Song Hwa Rin.
“So you carried me back home?”
“Yeah.”
Her cheek started to turn red.
“Wasn’t it hard? Didn’t you drink just as much as I did?”
“I was looking out for both of us, so I didn’t get too drunk.”
“Why?”
“Because you were getting drunk out of your mind. One of us had to stay somewhat sane.”
She gave me a light smile. “Thanks for yesterday.”
She lowered her head so that I couldn’t see her eyes. However, it seemed like she was crying.
“After my mom died… this is the first time that I’ve cried.”
“...You feel better right?”
She gave nodded slightly.
“You asked me why I hate the mengju, right?”
“You said you hated him because the person you hate loves the mengju…could it be?”
“Yes. My master loves the mengju.”
“So that’s how it was….”
You old wretch. I felt disgusted when I heard that that old wretch actually liked me.
I felt once again that fate was playing a trick on us; how Byuk Lee Dan’s life was intertwined with my previous one.
She then asked me with a scared and worrisome expression, “What should I do when I meet my master?”
“You should ask for an apology. A proper apology.”
“Will that help?”
I nodded. “It will.”
A single word can make a mountain of difference.
“Will he really apologize?”
“We’ll know after we meet him.”
The reason that she needed this apology was to cure her of her nightmares.
But I will also investigate this on my own; I’ll find out whether or not he should be punished by me. If he had any ill intent towards her, I’ll kill him after she receives his apology. If he didn’t, then he’ll eventually rot away with the pa.s.sage of time.
“I’ll find a good time for us to go and meet him. Will that be alright?”
She nodded.
“Then there’s something that we have to do before that.”
“What?”
“Follow me.”
We left the restaurant and went around to the back of the mountain. After making sure that no one else was around, I took out my sword.
“What do you want?”
“Let’s spar.”
“What?” She looked at me with a surprised expression. “Do you want to beat me up again?”
“Hahaha….”
“This is no joking matter!”
“Sorry. Really, I’m sorry for that day.”
She finally revealed her playfulness. The barrier between us finally crumbled, and I was finally able to see her true self.
“Why do want to spar with me?”
“So that you can fully master that technique.”
She finally understood my intention.
“Wait!”
“You have to beat him with the skills that he taught you.”
“That’s impossible!”
“No, it’s possible!”
“How?”
“Did you forget? The weakness in that martial art. You can use it against him.”
“Ah!”
Seeing that her master wasn’t going to give her a sincere apology, this was the best option that I’d thought of for her.
To get out of it completely, she needed to overcome him. In other words, she needed to beat him up personally. That was the only way that she could escape from her master.
“The words that I’m about to say may hurt, but you need to listen to them.”
She nervously nodded.
“After you finish beating him up, forget the martial art that he taught you.”
“What?”
She was surprised to hear me say something so ridiculous.
“How can it be a good martial art if there are flaws?”
“But...!”
“You’re going to say that ‘you’ve learned it for five years’, and ask ‘how am I going to forget it?’, right? Just forget it! The Song Clan probably paid a large sum of money for you to learn that martial art.”
This was one way to earn money for a decent school. Usually famed master from different schools would rear many disciples. Later they could call upon their disciples to earn some money.
“That martial art isn’t Ho Yeon Sae’s personal technique, right?”
She nodded.
“That martial art is worthless. Where did they get such a worthless martial art to teach you? If you want to remain in the backwaters of San Dong, you can keep learning it.”
But of course, this was my standard. If my father or Song Wu Kyung saw it, they’d believe that it was a decent martial art, since it wasn’t all that bad.
However, since I’m getting involved in this, I wanted her to start fresh.
Song Hwa Rin’s face darkened. She didn’t want to forget her memories of the past. After a minute, she finally opened her mouth. “Whenever I think about my master, I get sad and angry. Yes, I want to forget it. But if I do forget it… the last five years will have been for nothing.”
“If you can’t forget it, then this will go on for the next five years, then ten… for your entire life.”
The truth hurt, like a sword piercing her heart.
“Fine. Let’s say I forget it. Then what?”
“Are you certain? Will you really forget it?”
“Yes, I will.”
She had finally started trusting me. Thus, I need to return her trust.
“If you truly forget it, think about it as if you’re starting fresh—learning something new. I’ll teach you something better than that worthless piece of s.h.i.t.”
There are few martial arts that I know of that can be very beneficial for women, and are definitely better than the one that she’s practicing right now.
Of course, she still hadn’t made her decision yet. This was obviously because she didn’t believe that my martial art would be better than the one her master had taught her.
“Rin-ah.”
“Yeah.”
There was no need to drag this on. I simply said two words.
“Trust me.”
After a few moments, she nodded her head. “Alright, I’ll trust you.”