The Heaven-Slaying Sword - Chapter 47

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Order

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◈ The Heaven-Slaying Sword ◈

Chapter 47: Chapter Five - Dragon-Phoenix Assembly (20)

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Despite the crowd packed into the martial arena, the surroundings were silent.

The result had been that shocking.

No one present had expected such a lopsided match, so it was only natural.

As the announcer's cry faded, Mok Ri-won stood at the center of the silent arena, catching his breath as he sheathed his sword.

A smile rested on his lips.

'I overcame it.'

He had cleanly overcome the impulse that had surged within him.

He had not added Killing Intent to his sword. He had merely read the Killing Intent coming from Namgung Jin-cheon, and in the final moment, he had not driven his sword forward.

It was such a perfect victory that a shiver ran down his spine.

Both in his battle against himself and in his battle against Namgung Jin-cheon.

Mok Ri-won's gaze rose to the highest seats in the audience.

Namgung Hyeok sat there, watching him with an indifferent expression, as though he had expected this outcome.

'Just a swordsman.'

Mok Ri-won felt that he understood Namgung Hyeok's words a little more clearly now.

Then.

"...I lost?"

Namgung Jin-cheon's voice reached him.

Only then did Mok Ri-won turn to look at him.

'Ah.'

He briefly thought he should apologize for provoking him, but when he saw Namgung Jin-cheon's appearance, he could not bring himself to say it.

He looked utterly blank.

After hesitating, Mok Ri-won abandoned what he had meant to say and offered a cupped-fist salute.

"It was a good match."

To apologize now would only be mocking him.

Namgung Jin-cheon lifted his head.

Many emotions passed through his eyes as he looked at Mok Ri-won. Then he spoke hollowly.

"...A good match."

Namgung Jin-cheon looked at his own hand.

The tremor that had not yet left it resembled that of a coward.

Displeased by the thought, he clenched his fist tightly.

"How did you do it?"

"...What do you mean?"

"How did you forge a sword like that? How could you..."

How could you wield a sword with such certainty?

Namgung Jin-cheon swallowed the rest of those words.

His expression gradually twisted.

Mok Ri-won watched him quietly before answering.

"I simply did not want to lose."

"Is that a method?"

"It is for me."

Namgung Jin-cheon's gaze returned to Mok Ri-won.

Mok Ri-won met his gaze and said, "To be honest, it was not a victory I can be completely satisfied with. I won by provoking you, not through pure skill. It was a victory that used my opponent's emotions, and I do not believe it suits Chivalry."

It was an undeniable fact.

The execution may have been precise, but there had still been something lacking in the method.

"But even so, I wanted to win. I wanted to prove that a sword wielded for ambition breaks so easily."

"Are you saying I am wrong?"

"You are not wrong. But neither are you right."

Only after saying it did Mok Ri-won clearly understand why he had wanted to win.

"...Yes. I believe that was why I wanted to win. Sword Dragon, you have not yet become anything. I only hoped that what you become from here might carry at least a little Chivalry. You are such an extraordinary person, so I wanted you to use that strength to protect others."

Mok Ri-won had always been taught such things.

A sword was terribly cold, so the heart of the swordsman who wielded it had to be warm.

Only then would the sword be wielded where it belonged.

Mok Ri-won hoped the teaching that had moved his own heart would move Namgung Jin-cheon's as well.

Namgung Jin-cheon blankly turned those words over in his mind.

Yet the more he did, the deeper his frown became.

It was only natural.

His first defeat in life.

On top of that, all the values he had built throughout his life had been crumpled like paper. He had no room to think of anything else.

'Prove...'

Mok Ri-won had proven it.

And he had failed to do so.

Had he been wrong all along?

Had this been a match he could never have won?

Countless questions rose in his mind.

Like Mok Ri-won's sword from moments ago, none readily revealed an answer.

"...Congratulations on your victory."

Namgung Jin-cheon said that and left the arena.

He needed time.

Time to sort through the turmoil rising within him.

* * *

The Dragon Phoenix Gathering's award ceremony would not be held for another three days.

That meant the only thing Mok Ri-won had to do now was leave the arena and go to Dang Hwa-seo.

"Miss! I won!"

Mok Ri-won ran toward Dang Hwa-seo with a broad smile.

At the sight of him approaching, Dang Hwa-seo suddenly froze.

Only when she saw that foolishly blank face did the truth finally begin to sink in.

"...Yes. You really did win."

Mok Ri-won had defeated Namgung Jin-cheon.

Just as he always had, he had kept the words he spoke.

A strange ache suddenly touched her heart.

She felt proud of him, and his bright innocence was so dazzling that it almost felt as if she had won herself.

"You did wonderfully."

"Brother Mok! I am here too! Look at me as well!"

"Leave him alone. I don't think he can even see us right now."

As Jegal San and Hye-un grumbled, Mok Ri-won finally looked their way.

"Ah! Thank you for cheering for me! I expanded my Qi Sense and heard everything!"

"I wasn't cheering for you."

"Ah...!"

Mok Ri-won looked at Hye-un as though he were hurt.

A strange guilt rose within her.

'Wait. Why should I feel sorry?'

After thinking it over again, she saw no reason to feel guilty. Hye-un snorted and turned away.

"Anyway, you worked hard, so get some rest. I'm tired, so I'm heading in."

"Take care!"

Mok Ri-won waved at the departing Hye-un.

Dang Hwa-seo watched for a moment, then smacked his raised hand.

"Let us go eat. We can finish celebrating there."

"Ah! All right!"

Jegal San watched the entire exchange and thought to himself.

'She has it bad.'

Dang Hwa-seo's possessiveness was intense.

Whenever Mok Ri-won got involved with another woman, she practically had a fit. There was no more serious case than that.

Of course, he could not say it aloud.

Jegal San never wanted to experience being poisoned and suffering diarrhea for days again.

* * *

Even while an uproar large enough to turn all of She County upside down raged outside, Mok Ri-won and his companions remained peaceful.

They sat at the out-of-the-way inn they always visited, ordering the dishes they always ate and chatting away.

"The Dragon Phoenix Gathering naturally has prizes. Brother Mok, did you not know that until now?"

"I-I did not...! Then what is the champion's prize?!"

"The Shaolin Rejuvenation Pill."

"The Shaolin Rejuvenation Pill! One of Shaolin's most famous spiritual medicines?"

"That is right. The very Shaolin Rejuvenation Pill that raises one's inner power by half a gapja after a single dose."

"Oh...!"

Mok Ri-won's eyes shone with joy.

After all, had his lack of inner power not been why he had resorted to such an unsuitable tactic in his match against Namgung Jin-cheon?

'And I am on the verge of an insight!'

The words, just a swordsman, had sparked an insight that continued to stir his mind.

With just a little more progress, he would be able to light the fourth star of Star-Linking.

Now that he had a way to replenish his inner power in step with that, how could he not be delighted?

"So I receive the Shaolin Rejuvenation Pill during the award ceremony three days from now?"

"That is right. Ah, but you must consume it before a Shaolin representative immediately after the ceremony. It is to prevent anyone from making off with it."

"They are quite thorough."

"Naturally. It is one of Shaolin's treasured secrets. Monk Il-un will likely help with that on the day."

As Mok Ri-won smiled brightly and nodded, a question suddenly came to him.

"Ah, then what do the runner-up and the semifinalists receive?"

Mok Ri-won looked at Dang Hwa-seo.

He was curious about the prize she would receive.

Dang Hwa-seo gave a quiet laugh before answering.

"The runner-up receives Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Iron. The semifinalists receive one of the Martial Alliance's secret martial manuals, though they are not especially useful."

Mok Ri-won's face went blank.

"Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Iron...? A secret manual...?"

He could not understand.

The Shaolin Rejuvenation Pill.

It was certainly a precious treasure, considering it was a spiritual medicine, but for a first-place prize, it did not seem especially outstanding compared to the other prizes he had just heard.

Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Iron, of all things.

How could the toughest steel in the Martial World be worth less than the Shaolin Rejuvenation Pill?

And what about a secret martial manual?

Even if it was supposedly useless, it was still a secret manual from the Alliance. It surely contained much that could be learned, so how could it rank below the Shaolin Rejuvenation Pill?

Seeing the open confusion on Mok Ri-won's face, Dang Hwa-seo explained further.

"It is because of the Dragon Phoenix Gathering's nature. Everyone who has reached the higher ranks so far has come from prestigious factions, so they place more value on spiritual medicine than Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Iron or secret manuals. The other two can be acquired with money, while the Shaolin Rejuvenation Pill cannot."

"Ah...!"

"And does Young Hero Mok not need the Shaolin Rejuvenation Pill more?"

"That is true... Still, Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Iron is tempting."

Mok Ri-won stroked his worn longsword.

He had used it for over ten years and grown attached to it, but he could not say he would use it forever.

Mok Ri-won was a martial artist, after all.

He had no shortage of desire for a fine sword.

Dang Hwa-seo laughed softly at his bitter smile.

"If you need a sword, tell me. I can buy you one."

"R-Really?!"

"Would I joke about that?"

A warm mood bloomed between them.

Left out of it all, Jegal San silently tipped back his cup of liquor and forcibly swallowed the thought that came to mind.

'Now she's even trying to win him over with money...'

Jegal San was afraid of Dang Hwa-seo.

* * *

The meal ended in a pleasant atmosphere.

Jegal San had spent the entire time casting meaningful glances at Dang Hwa-seo, only to be poisoned by a toxin she had secretly administered and leave first with diarrhea.

Dang Hwa-seo stopped before her quarters, a gentle breeze brushing past her.

"Then go in and rest. You worked very hard today."

It was late at night.

The next three days would be quite difficult.

Would people of the Martial World leave Mok Ri-won alone after he became the new champion of the Dragon Phoenix Gathering?

Dang Hwa-seo had said it because she thought he should rest before being pulled in every direction, yet Mok Ri-won did not leave at once.

He simply stood there, beaming.

"Young Hero Mok, are you not going?"

"Is there not something we need to do first?"

"Something we need to...?"

Dang Hwa-seo's body jolted.

Mok Ri-won had taken a step closer.

Late at night.

They stood before their lodging.

And he had said there was something they needed to do.

Surely he did not mean that.

Dang Hwa-seo's thoughts spun.

Thinking about it, it made sense.

Mok Ri-won might look innocent, but what kind of man was he?

Whenever lecherous fiends or seductive temptresses came up, he blushed and looked so pleased. Was he not a perfectly healthy man?

'T-Too soon...!'

They had not even properly begun a relationship. Was it not far too soon for such things at night?

Just as that thought crossed her mind...

"Have you forgotten the promise?"

Only then did Dang Hwa-seo remember what she had forgotten.

"Ah..."

First came the realization that she had forgotten, then shame flooded in.

She was the one who had made him that promise, yet she had forgotten it. Worse, she had judged Mok Ri-won to be a lecher while she herself had been imagining indecent things.

"Mm? Miss?"

"...No, wait. Just wait a moment."

Dang Hwa-seo covered her face with both hands.

The heat against her palms was fierce.

"...Please wait a moment."

Her body trembled.

There was nothing she could do about the self-loathing rising within her.

It took quite a while for that self-loathing to fade.

Her head slowly cooled.

The heat, too, gradually faded in the night air.

Only then did Dang Hwa-seo open her mouth.

"Ugh... I apologize."

"For what?"

"...It is nothing."

Something was clearly wrong with her head.

Even with such an important matter at hand, her first thoughts had been so improper. There could be no other explanation.

"Miss."

Dang Hwa-seo raised her head.

Mok Ri-won was still smiling brightly.

No, there was also a faintly troubled look on his face.

"Um... If you do not wish to tell me, you do not have to. Perhaps I have pressed you too much."

Dang Hwa-seo felt something stir inside her.

Again.

He was making her weak again with this warm consideration.

"...Why would you say that? I was the one who asked this of you first."

"Even so, you never know when feelings might change..."

"No."

Dang Hwa-seo shook her head.

Then she clenched her fist tightly.

"...No. Perhaps I may be asking Young Hero Mok for something discourteous instead."

No, it would certainly be an imposition.

Why would it not be, when it would bind another person's life for the sake of her own desire?

Now that the moment to say it had come, anxiety rose within her as well.

The love she had only just realized had a delicate side that did not suit her nature. Dang Hwa-seo even worried that Mok Ri-won might be disappointed by what she said.

Perhaps he noticed the unease in her expression.

Mok Ri-won spoke gently.

"Miss, whatever you ask of me, it would not be an imposition. As long as it does not go against Chivalric righteousness."

"...Pardon?"

"You have done far too much for me."

Mok Ri-won spoke sincerely.

"You taught someone who knew nothing of the Martial World about it. You also showed me your gallant spirit, how you try to protect others even in the most difficult circumstances. Is that all? When I think of the meals I have eaten, the lodging where I have stayed, and all the help I received even after coming to the Dragon Phoenix Gathering, I could spend my entire life and still never repay the debt I owe you."

"..."

"So you have the right to ask anything of me."

Mok Ri-won reached out.

With an exceptionally careful motion, his hand settled over the back of Dang Hwa-seo's hand.

"So do not feel burdened. Tell me, if only for the sake of my wish to repay you in this way."

Dang Hwa-seo's expression wavered.

A strange tremor began to fill her eyes.

The man before her, moonlight at his back, was so beautiful, and his words were so gentle that her heart began to creak.

It was truly strange.

The worries that had filled her only moments before melted away like snow after just a few words from him.

Every word he spoke made her so uneasy, then so happy.

Dang Hwa-seo bit down on her lip.