The Sword Saint (2)

I sat there for a long while as though I had fallen into a trance.

Long ago, I had heard rumors of a martial art that allowed one to enter a dream and train within it.

It was said to be a mysterious martial art that allowed its user to repeatedly revisit any memory they wished within a dreamscape, or even recreate an opponent they had once fought and spar against them.

Naturally, I could not use that martial art.

However, I could do something slightly similar.

That was to replay scenes I had witnessed in reality exactly as they had been, using my greatest talent—my memory.

Within my meditation, I recalled the astonishing sword strike I had just witnessed.

Then the scenery from before, the Sword Saint’s figure, and that transcendent sword strike began unfolding vividly within my mind once more.

‘In fact, this method was also why I could internalize what I learned from Black Wolf so quickly. The operation of the First Flash of the Divine Responding Wing, and Emptiness Becomes Form as well.’

Especially in Black Wolf’s case, I had not merely watched the movements. My own body had performed them, so being able to recall even the sensations and feelings from that moment had been an enormous help.

And so, even now, I continued watching the Sword Saint’s slashes and thrusts repeat over and over within my mind.

Until the breathing, movements, and sensations were all engraved upon my soul.

After meditating like that for a long while, I slowly opened my eyes with a trace of regret.

That was because I had a dinner gathering later and could not continue training.

‘What a shame. I wanted to watch it at least a thousand times.’

However, as I opened my eyes while thinking that, I was startled by what I saw before me.

The Sword Saint had been waiting directly in front of me until my meditation ended.

And he had been gazing at me with a pleased smile.

“S-Sword Saint, sir?!”

I was so flustered that I could not think of what to say.

Instead, the Sword Saint spoke to me first.

“I was worried we might be late for the dinner gathering, but you woke at just the right time. Come, let us go together.”

Today was the day of our Seventh Platoon’s dinner gathering.

It was both a farewell banquet for Lady Cheong-yeon and me, and a welcoming banquet for Ma Maeng-un and Lady Ya Un-hyang.

It felt a little strange since Lady Na had not yet returned, but because we did not know when she would be back, we had decided that those present would hold the gathering first.

It seemed the Sword Saint had waited so he could take me there.

“Had I known you were here, I would have gotten up sooner. I apologize.”

When I sincerely apologized to the Sword Saint, he laughed heartily and shook his head.

“Hahahaha! I watched because it was good to see you so deeply focused. Had my presence disrupted your concentration, then would I not have been the one who should apologize? So there is no need for you to feel sorry at all.”

“Still, did you not waste too much time because of me? You gave up time you could have spent with Lady Cheong-yeon.”

At that, he glanced around and whispered quietly.

“I love my daughter more than anything in the world, but that does not mean I wish to spend every moment with Cheong-yeon. Should I not have a life of my own as well? Of course, what I just said must remain an absolute secret from her.”

His playful wink as he said that made me chuckle.

He could put another person at ease so quickly. As expected of the Sword Saint.

I suddenly asked him.

“Why do you so generously bestow your teachings upon people like us, who have nothing to do with you? We are neither your disciples nor fellow sect members.”

To a martial artist, martial arts and insights were the greatest treasures, beyond comparison with mere wealth.

That was why it was extremely rare for a martial artist to teach outsiders who were neither disciples nor fellow sect members.

Moreover, the growth of disciples from other sects could potentially threaten one’s own sect in the future.

However, the Sword Saint did not appear to think that way at all.

Although he did not teach his Star-Net Sword Art, he had generously instructed every warrior in the Flying Dragon Unit whenever the opportunity arose.

At first, I had thought he was kind to us because we were Lady Cheong-yeon’s comrades.

However, I later learned that was not the case.

He gave the same guidance to members of the other Flying Dragon Units as well.

His actions were certainly something to be deeply grateful for, but at the same time, it was true that they raised questions.

The Sword Saint fell into thought for a moment, then smiled faintly and began to speak.

“When I was young, my dream was to become the greatest chivalrous hero under Heaven and create a world where benevolence and righteousness prevailed.”

His words came somewhat out of nowhere, but I nodded in admiration.

“Ah, I see.”

It was impossible not to admire that.

He truly had become the greatest chivalrous hero under Heaven, just as he had dreamed in his youth.

A life in which one achieved one’s dream—it was admirable and enviable.

However, the Sword Saint continued with a strangely bitter expression.

“Shamefully, I am now called the greatest chivalrous hero under Heaven. In that regard, one could say that I achieved part of my dream. But you see, even after I came to be called the greatest chivalrous hero under Heaven, a world where benevolence and righteousness prevailed never came. No matter how many vicious demon heads I killed or wicked men I punished, the world remained a difficult place for the weak to live. In fact, after I gained such empty fame, it became even harder to punish them. They began avoiding me like cockroaches.”

After saying that much, the Sword Saint suddenly let out a wry chuckle. It was a laugh tinged with self-mockery.

Then he spoke bitterly.

“I had been arrogant. I believed I could change the world through my strength alone.”

A sigh escaped me.

His confession resonated deeply with me as I was now.

Had I not also made it my goal to change the future through my own strength?

Yet even the Sword Saint had failed. Had my own thinking also been arrogant?

My thoughts grew complicated.

Then he grinned and spoke to me.

“So I pondered it for a long time. Eventually, I reached my own conclusion. My conclusion was this: to create a world where benevolence and righteousness prevailed, my strength alone would never be enough. It was absolutely impossible. There are wicked people even among commoners, and there are wicked people even among third-rate martial artists, are there not? Yet the only people I could deal with were the experts who had become famous.”

He then continued with a mischievous expression.

“So I thought, even if it is difficult for me alone, could it not become possible if I increased the number of people working toward the same goal? If there are wicked people among commoners, I could make good commoners stronger. If there are wicked people among third-rate martial artists, I could make good third-rate martial artists stronger. If people who possessed benevolence and righteousness increased within every group, would a world where benevolence and righteousness prevailed not eventually arrive?”

As he said that, his eyes burned intensely. He looked like a passionate young man, or a conqueror filled with ambition to rule the world.

“Did you say I passed on teachings to outsiders who had nothing to do with me? Nonsense. That statement is gravely mistaken. You have everything to do with me. Are you not all comrades who will help me achieve my dream?”

My chest tightened, and I could not speak.

I had been overwhelmed by his passion as he smiled like a boy, and by the greatness of a man who called everyone his comrade.

He truly was the greatest chivalrous hero under Heaven.

“There must, of course, be many reasons why all of you are at the front. Even so, this is what I believe. Those of you who devote the precious years of your youth to fighting the Blood Cult are more than worthy of being called chivalrous heroes. Therefore, is it not only natural that I help you grow stronger?”

After asking that, he looked at me with warm eyes.

It was a warmth I could hardly remember ever receiving from an adult.

Then, as though he had just remembered something, he exclaimed, “Ah!” and spoke again.

“Of course, there are probably people like Ma Yugyeom at the front as well. But did you not stop him after receiving my teachings? Is that not proof that my dream is being realized? Hahahaha!”

My throat had tightened for a moment, but I finally managed to smile and speak.

“I see. You truly are working toward a magnificent dream.”

He beamed and replied.

“Exactly! You understand me! In truth, whenever I tell my friends such things, they only scold me, saying I have grown so old and still have not matured. Hahahaha! As expected of my so—anyway, thank you! Hahahaha!”

After laughing heartily for a long while, he suddenly asked me.

“However, I am curious about you as well. May I ask what your dream is?”

At his question, I smiled awkwardly and shook my head.

“It is a small goal that cannot compare to yours. I am too embarrassed to speak of it.”

He grinned and shook his head.

“Do not say that. If there is one thing I learned after living this long, it is that every person is different. When those who cannot acknowledge that become powerful in martial arts, they often become a scourge upon the world.”

Those who could not accept people different from themselves became harmful once they gained power.

The words resonated strongly with me.

He continued.

“So do not be ashamed. What does it matter if your dream is to become the greatest under Heaven and rule the world alone, or to build a loving family and live happily? Each is one’s own dream. So long as the dream is not to live by exploiting the weak, is that not enough? Do not be ashamed of your own dream. In my opinion, that would be something for which you should apologize to the dream itself. Ah, of course, that is merely my opinion.”

I could not help admiring his final remark once again.

I had seen many powerful masters proclaim that their beliefs were justice and truth, but I had never seen one say that it was merely his own opinion.

The tolerance and consideration to acknowledge differences and not force his views upon others—how could one grow old like him?

He was truly someone worthy of profound respect.

For a moment, I felt the urge to tell him my dream.

It was because I felt certain that he would support my dream and tell me he would help.

I cautiously opened my mouth.

“My dream is to erase the Blood Cult from the world. To make it so that no one around me ever dies because of them again. That is my current dream.”

He patted my shoulder with a pleased expression and said.

“As expected! I knew from the beginning that you were a chivalrous hero! Yes, I sincerely hope you achieve that dream. I shall help you as far as my strength allows!”

His words could not have been more reassuring.

Filled with pride, I sincerely bowed my head in gratitude.

“Thank you. Truly, from the bottom of my heart, thank you.”

He thought for a moment, then suddenly spoke again.

“But you see, perhaps I am mistaken, yet somehow, I do not see you anywhere in your dream. Where is your place within that dream?”

“…Pardon?”

I could not help being startled by his question.

I was absent from my own dream?

It was a question I had never considered.

“You destroy the Blood Cult and save those around you. It is a most admirable dream. But what are you doing in the world after the Blood Cult is gone?”

Only after thinking for a moment did I understand what he meant.

His dream had been to become the greatest chivalrous hero under Heaven and create a world where benevolence and righteousness prevailed.

Thus, his own life as the greatest chivalrous hero under Heaven had been included within his dream.

However, in my dream of creating a world without the Blood Cult, I had no particular place.

It was something I had only just realized.

He spoke to me with a somewhat serious expression.

“This, too, is merely my personal opinion. However, I believe that I myself should be as important as the world. Those who value themselves more than the world may become wicked, but I have often seen those who value the world more than themselves eventually fall into emptiness. It is the emptiness that comes when the world they considered more important than themselves turns out to be different from what they expected.”

A world I considered more important than myself turning out different from my expectations?

The words did not immediately resonate with me.

Has the world not always been a place different from my expectations?

The Sword Saint seemed to read my expression and explained with an example.

“This may be an extreme example, but suppose you succeeded in destroying the Blood Cult, only for others who gained control of the world because of it to become villains no better than them. What would you do then? What if those who survived thanks to you threw the world into chaos just as badly as the Blood Cult?”

This time, I understood perfectly.

The Martial Alliance immediately came to mind.

What if I destroyed the Blood Cult, only for the Martial Alliance, now free of all restraint, to kill the people precious to me?

Just imagining it felt unbearably empty.

I suddenly asked him.

“Have you ever felt that kind of emptiness yourself?”

Earlier, he had said he had seen others like that, but somehow, it had not sounded like someone else’s story.

He smiled bitterly and answered.

“Well, the results of acts of chivalry are not always beautiful.”

I merely nodded at his reply.

The weight contained in his expression did not seem light enough for me to ask further.

Instead, I asked something else.

“Then how did you overcome that emptiness?”

He grinned and answered.

“In my case, it was family.”

“Family?”

“Yes, family. Even if I could not change the entire world, I could at least change the world in which my family lived into one where benevolence and righteousness prevailed. And even if I failed, knowing I had somewhere to return to, somewhere I could rest comfortably before beginning again, gave me tremendous strength.”

His expression looked so happy as he spoke of his family.

It was enough to make even my heart feel happy as I watched him.

He continued.

“Some say that family is merely a weakness to a martial artist. But I do not see it that way. If they can become a weakness, does that not mean they are that important to me? To me, my family was the pillar supporting my life. Without them, I might already have become disappointed in the world and abandoned my dream. Look at me even now. Was I not betrayed by a friend in the Martial Alliance whom I had known and trusted for more than ten years? If I had not had my family, how could I possibly have endured that?”

I nodded in admiration at his words.

I had never thought deeply about it before, but Zhuge Jigang’s betrayal must certainly have been a tremendous shock to him.

To make a comparison, would it not have felt as though Bi Sayoung or Bae Jonggwan had betrayed me?

The thought alone was horrifying.

“Family…”

To me, family had never been a word that carried particularly pleasant meaning.

However, if I could build a happy household like the Sword Saint’s, it did seem as though it could become a great source of strength.

While I was thinking that, the Sword Saint glanced at me and asked in a subtle tone.

“Speaking of which, is there perhaps a woman you have chosen as a prospective marriage partner?”

For some reason, there was a strangely burdensome heat in his voice.

Lady Na suddenly came to mind, but I soon shook my head and answered with a smile.

“No, I have not thought about anything like that yet. Right now, I am too busy simply trying to survive…”

The Sword Saint nodded with a strangely disappointed look.

“Hmm, is that so?”

For some reason, I felt apologetic.

He had been teaching me so diligently, and yet had I not somehow disappointed him?

I felt as though I had done something terribly wrong.

So I hurriedly said.

“I shall begin looking diligently from now on. Just as you said, I also feel that there should be a place for me within my own dream.”

His expression immediately brightened, and he smacked my shoulder several times.

“Oh! I am grateful that you think so! As expected of my so… Ahem, ahem. I meant that you are like a martial nephew to me.”

“Ah, yes. Thank you.”

It was a tremendous honor that the Sword Saint of all people regarded me like a martial nephew, even if not quite as a disciple.

The Sword Saint cleared his throat for a moment, then spoke again in a subtle tone.

“Ahem, ahem. And you see, this is based on my own experience, but the best woman is always the woman already by your side. So take a careful look around you.”

Hearing his words made me think of Lady Na again.

I nearly grew a little bitter, but merely smiled and nodded.

“Yes, that certainly seems true.”

At that, he burst into hearty laughter and smacked my shoulder several more times.

…It hurt a little.

“Hahahaha! So you were thinking the same thing! I knew it. Foolish men often develop fantasies about women they have only just met, but is that not truly foolish? The most precious person is always already beside you! Hahahaha!”

“Yes, that really does seem true.”

“Wahahahaha! As expected, we understand each other perfectly! You are truly like my so… martial nephew! Hahahaha!”

After that, the Sword Saint and I continued discussing many things on the way to the dinner gathering.

We spoke of martial arts, life at the front, and even love with women in one’s youth.

A thought suddenly came to me.

How wonderful it would have been if someone like him had been my father.

How wonderful it would have been if I could have spent such time with my own father as well.

It was a day when I felt deeply envious of Lady Cheong-yeon.