Chapter 38

I looked down from the Twin-Sword Wolf’s back. My eyesight had been strengthened, and maybe that was why their astonished faces came through so clearly.

Hm. So they knew how to make faces like that.

I took in the novel expressions for a moment, then hopped down.

“…How?”

Moyong Jin-seong was so astonished he couldn’t get the words out properly. The other heads were in no better shape.

“There were all sorts of things. It’s a long story. Ah, and don’t worry, that fellow won’t attack.”
“No, what on earth….”

Moyong Rin and Yeon Seo-ha, the Plum Blossom Swordsman, climbed down off the wolf’s back after me.

— Snap.

Yeon Seo-ha went straight up to the Mount Hua Sect’s sect leader and gave the fist-and-palm salute.

“Yeon Seo-ha, Plum Blossom Swordsman. The mission is complete.”
“What— what is the meaning of this…? How is that monster here….”

The Mount Hua sect leader’s voice shook like an aspen.

Yeon Seo-ha paused as though ordering the situation in her head before she made her report, and glanced up to meet my eyes. Her lips worked for a moment. Then she let out a deep sigh and spoke.

“…I’ll report once we’re back.”

She was keeping faith with me. She would need time to sort out what to leave out and what to put in.

And anyway, whatever she said now, there’s no explanation that would satisfy that lot.

Not that they were particularly hidebound or anything. Put myself in their place: if somebody suddenly turned up riding a giant wolf monster and said, “There’s no time! Get on!” would I have hopped straight up?

Moyong Rin made her greeting to Moyong Jin-seong next.

“I’ve returned, Father. Not too late, I hope?”
“Ah— y-yes. Are you all right? Not hurt anywhere?”

I watched the fond exchange between father and daughter for a moment, then remembered our lot who had gone back ahead of us and looked around behind me. The Moyong Family boys and girls were staring at the Twin-Sword Wolf with the souls gone clean out of them.

I waved. Nothing. I gave up and turned to Moyong Jin-seong.

“How did the exchange match turn out?”
“Ah, the result, is it. We were just about to announce it….”

Right then Moyong Jin-seong’s eyes flashed and went to the Twin-Sword Wolf. The wolf, uncomfortable under so many eyes perhaps, let out a low growl. The low rumble of infrasound cut the talk short, and people fell back a step or two.

I gave its foreleg a light smack.

“Now, now. Will you behave? You’re frightening everybody.”

— Grrung…

The wolf was put out about it, but it did as it was told without a murmur. It backed off a step or two, then lay meekly down and buried its head in its forepaws.

The people watching couldn’t hide their astonishment.

“Ho…! What is it I have just seen?”
“A monster obeying a human? Am I dreaming?”
“This makes no sense. It’s impossible.”

Moyong Jin-seong seized both my shoulders in his hands.

“Gwang-seon. Did you tame that monster?”
“The process was a bit less than smooth. But in the end, yes.”
“Ha, haha! You tamed that fearsome monster?”

Moyong Jin-seong made me confirm it over and over, and then his eyes flashed.

“Well now, that changes things!”
“…Family head?”
“Harder than hunting a beast is taking it alive. And harder than that is taming it so that it comes on its own feet — is it not so? No, no. What hunter has ever dared tame the beast he set out to hunt and ride it home? This is a feat beyond all comparison!”
“Family head. Please calm down.”
“Look where you will, in any age or any land, and you will find nothing like it, before or since. From this day the history of the gangho is written anew!”

He worked himself up and shook me by the shoulders.

This is bad. This man has gone completely off his head.

“This changes things. Come now! What are you all standing about for? Our Gwang-seon has brought in additional quarry. We shall have to discuss it again!”
“B-but the time limit….”
“What are you talking about? The sun has not even gone down.”

The three heads went back into conference. Moyong Jin-seong beamed the whole way through, delighted about something, while the other two looked nowhere near so bright. The Mount Hua sect leader’s face in particular had gone chalk white.

“Come now, how in the world did he bring that monstrosity here?”
“My point exactly. Riding about on a monster? Is such a thing even possible?”
“Taming an ordinary wild beast and riding it about is the stuff of legend as it is. And a monster? Nobody will believe it.”
“A monster that meekly offers up its back? I have never heard of such a thing. How does one tame a monster at all?”
“And not just any monster — that monstrosity, of all things! Look at the savage thing sitting there as meek as a well-trained dog! I cannot believe it even as I watch it!”

A fierce debate went back and forth.

What are they on about.

I was watching with my arms folded when Yeon Seo-ha sidled over.

“Moyong Gwang-seon.”
“Big Sis Yeon.”
“That promise. See that you keep it.”

I had wondered what she was going to say, and it turned out to be the promise from before. In exchange for keeping my secret, I would arrange her a meeting with Moyong Bi.

“Of course. Ah, while we’re on the subject, shall we do it now? Teacher Yong-bi— mmph, mmph.”
“N-not now!”

Yeon Seo-ha’s face flushed scarlet all at once, and she clamped a hand over my mouth.

“…I haven’t been able to wash, I’m all grubby.”
“When, then?”
“Next time. I’ll ask you next time.”
“All right, all right, just let go of me.”

While that was going on, the heads’ conference seemed to have reached a conclusion, and before long the result was announced.

“Attention, all! I shall announce the result of this exchange meet.”

I couldn’t say for certain, but my arrival seemed to have changed the outcome, judging by how sour the other two looked. And of the two, the Mount Hua sect leader’s face was the crowning glory. He squeezed his eyes shut and called out the winner as though spitting the words out.

“The winner of this exchange meet is… the Moyong Family!”

— Uwaaaaaah!!!

A thunderous cheer burst out. The result had been overturned in an instant and everyone went wild for it. And at the center of it all was me, with countless eyes turned wholly my way.

“Make the Moyong Family Great Again!”

I threw a hand up over my head and said my piece, and the cheering swelled louder still. I caught sight of the Twin-Sword Wolf clapping both forepaws over its own ears, finding it too loud. It had been murderous enough to stop your breath when it was swinging swords at us, and yet, seen like this, the thing had a cute side to it.

“Rin! Gwang-seon! Come here!”
“You lunatic!”
“Wh-whoa. What’s this about?”

The Moyong Family lot came charging over in a mob, thoroughly worked up, grabbed hold of us and flung us up into the sky.

“Uwaaagh!”
“Ahahaha!”

Mixed in with their roar, my scream and Moyong Rin’s clear laughter rang out.

“A fine thing to see.”

Moyong Jin-seong watched with a contented smile as the children embroidered Gwang-seon and Rin across the sky.

To him the losers spoke, their voices sunk right down.

“…The Purple Empyrean Pill we promised will be sent along by messenger shortly.”
“The Paeng Family likewise will send the Body-Guarding Vajra Pill within a few days.”

Moyong Jin-seong caught the shoulders of the two as they said their piece and made to turn away.

“A moment.”
“…?”
“Where are you off to in such a hurry?”

He was beaming from ear to ear, and a sense of foreboding came over the two heads.

“Three silver taels. Hand them over.”
“…”

Once the victory celebration had run its course, the Twin-Sword Wolf came over to me, finally back on the ground, nudged my shoulder with its snout and grumbled.

It meant that it would like to go home now. For a creature like it, I’d say it had put up with a lot.

I coaxed the great overgrown wolf.

“Look here, you. I keep telling you, going back there does you no good now. Those ruins were built for me and nobody else. You guarded them well all this time, so your duty is finished, I’m telling you. You’ve played out your part.”

However much I said, the thing half listened and half didn’t.

How was this fellow’s algorithm even written?

Then again. It had taken guarding that place as its mission for a whole lifetime, so being told it was over in a single moment would hardly be believable. This fellow was going to need some time to accept it.

— Whiiine…

“All right, all right. Fine, off you go.”

At that the Twin-Sword Wolf gave me a bump with its nose,

“Ow— why, you—?”

and with one bound it was gone from sight in an instant.

…Looks like it’ll need some time to warm to me, too.

Once I had sent the Twin-Sword Wolf on its way, everyone and his neighbor came over and let fly a barrage of questions.

“Gwang-seon. How on earth did you do it?”
“I looked it in the eye and we had an honest talk.”
“…That’s all?”
“Yep.”

I was fobbing them off with nonsense when a booming voice rang out.

“It would be a shame to part like this!”

The voice belonged to the Paeng family head.

“This is not a gathering easily got together, so while we are all here, what do you say to a simple sparring bout or two?”

He was proposing a sparring match. Each team would put up a representative, name the team it wanted to face, and spar exactly once, no more than that.

So he wants a champions’ match.

“Doing it for nothing is dull, so the loser hands the winner three silver taels. How’s that? And it is absolutely not because I begrudge the three silver taels that were squeezed out of me just now!”
“Very well!”

The Mount Hua Sect accepted with pleasure, and since the mood made it impossible for us alone to refuse, the Moyong Family ended up agreeing too.

“Then we shall name our opponent first.”

The Mount Hua Sect took the first move. At a glance from the sect leader a young Daoist rose from his seat. My griddle-cake friend, Ju Jeo-ha. The last time I saw him he had done nothing but yawn his head off through half-closed eyes, but for some reason he was bright as a button now.

“I would like to face the Moyong Family.”

Moyong Jin-seong looked around at us.

“Is there anyone who wishes to step forward?”
“…”

Nobody raised a hand.

I’d heard earlier that the fellow had hunted down a monster all on his own. No wonder Yeon Seo-ha had been so certain of a Mount Hua victory. According to Moyong Bi he was already past the level of the rising generation, a heaven-sent genius of the kind you only ever hear about. And honestly, who wants to volunteer for a fight they’re plainly going to lose?

“Is there no one?”

Just then a hand went up beside me. Moyong Rin’s.

Moyong Jin-seong asked, startled.

“Truly? You, Rin — you would step forward?”
“Yes, Father. I should like to test my strength.”

Moyong Jin-seong’s gaze deepened as he looked at her.

“…It seems this hunt brought you no small gain. Very well. Show us all you have.”
“Thank you.”

With everyone seated in a ring to form a makeshift arena, Ju Jeo-ha and Moyong Rin stood facing each other. Ju Jeo-ha made no secret at all of his disappointment.

“I wanted to go up against my friend Gwang-seon, not you.”
“If you want him, you’ll have to put me down first.”

As the two of them slowly settled into the opening stance, I heard Moyong Jin-seong and Sect Leader Seomun trading words behind me.

“Three silver taels. Best have them ready in advance.”
“Say that when it’s over.”

They didn’t covet three silver taels and they didn’t begrudge them either. Pride, more likely. The Paeng family head springing a champions’ match on everyone came out of the same place. Going home having done nothing but lose stings a man’s pride.

Everyone predicted a win for Ju Jeo-ha. The fight slipped clean past those expectations. It was supposed to be settled inside ten moves, and it had passed twenty before anyone noticed. The longer it ran, the quieter the Mount Hua lot grew, the same ones who had been loudly saying she wouldn’t last ten moves.

— Keeen—

The star shape formed on my retina turned like a cartwheel. The Mirror Wheel Eye had activated.

The longer it runs, the better.

I did not take my eyes off Ju Jeo-ha’s Plum Blossom Sword for a single instant. I took every last bit of it into my eyes, the way you lick a bowl clean.

Everyone shut their mouths. In the strange silence only the clanging of blades rang out.

Dead even. Neither of them could bring it to a decision.

In the end it took Moyong Jin-seong and Sect Leader Seomun stepping in before the two of them broke apart.

“Enough.”
“We’ll leave it there.”

Ju Jeo-ha said, catching his breath:

“You. What’s your name?”
“Moyong Rin.”
“I’ll remember it, Moyong Rin.”
“If you like.”

Moyong Rin’s chilly manner did nothing to dent him; Ju Jeo-ha broke into a broad grin. Hard to believe he was the same person as the boy who had looked bored with the whole world before.

Moyong Jin-seong, admiration on his face, commended Moyong Rin.

“Splendid. A result worth taking note of.”
“…You praise me too highly.”

Moyong Rin answered with a crisp fist-and-palm salute, as befits a warrior of an orthodox house, then strode over and plumped down beside me. Astonished eyes followed her, but she didn’t seem to mind at all.

I tilted my head to get a look at her face. The corners of her mouth were twitching, ever so slightly.

“What are you looking at?”
“Nothing.”

The Paeng Family’s turn came next. Paeng Dol-hwi got up from his seat and named the Moyong Family as well.

“I would like to spar with the Moyong Family!”

Moyong Rin murmured under her breath.

“Looks like our turn isn’t going to come round at all.”

This time hands went up all over the place. As if refusing to be outdone by their little sister, the big brothers and sisters, Moyong Pae-cheon among them, had theirs up in a flash as well.

But Moyong Jin-seong called none of them up. He named me instead.

“Gwang-seon.”
“Yes, family head.”
“Did you gain something as well?”
“I did.”
“Show us.”

Nothing for it. I got up and walked out to the front.

Paeng Dol-hwi grinned.

“Lucky me. You’re the one I wanted.”

I said nothing and smiled back at him.

How far does the me of right now get?

Everyone called me a genius, but set beside Moyong Rin, or Moyong Danho, or the big brothers and sisters, I was still a long way short. And no wonder: it hadn’t even been a year since I was initiated into martial arts. No, a year, my foot. It’s a bare few months. I couldn’t reach the real ones, who had started as small children and polished their martial arts for a dozen years and more. That is how heavy the weight of years and effort is.

For now, at least.

How much have I grown?

I was purely curious.

— Shhing.

I drew the Pork-Slicing Demon-Cleaving Saber slowly and set myself into the opening stance. We looked at each other along the line of our blade tips, and then, as if by agreement, sprang at each other at the same instant.

A contest of pure martial arts, and a contest between two warriors.

— Cla-clang! Clang!

A clearing in the blue bamboo forest.

In a small arena made of people, two boys were crossing swords.

Here and there an oooh— of admiration went up.

“That boy. He’s rather better than I expected.”
“Indeed. To hold out that well against Paeng Dol-hwi.”
“I thought I heard he was only lately initiated into martial arts. Not bad at all.”

The children of the other sects were frank in their admiration. The Moyong Family’s children were not saying a word. No, they could not.

“…This makes no sense.”

Because they knew just how little sense it made.

“Holy shit.”

Moyong Bi’s expression went stiff and hard.

In a bare seven days and nights, how has he got that strong?

The very footwork he stepped with was different. The Divine Cascade Step and the Butterfly Step were blended together with exquisite skill, as though tracing the Supreme Ultimate. Two lightness arts standing at opposite poles, at that!

If the boy had simply come out of this business somewhat stronger, that would have been a thing to applaud. Children grow on a diet of experience. The nearer to death the experience, the better. But this was on the level of a different person altogether.

What frightened him more was that the boy was growing even at this very moment. The one who had been giving ground to Paeng Dol-hwi bit by bit was now steadily taking the upper hand. A boy a bare couple of months into martial arts, against one who had trained for a dozen years and more!

He was nibbling away at his opponent’s prowess and growing fat on it. If Ju Jeo-ha was a genius, then that boy was a monster that devoured even geniuses.

The pace is far too fast.

Splendid martial talent alone did not account for it.

It’s more as though he were taking back power he had lost….

— Clang!

Watching Moyong Gwang-seon finally send Paeng Dol-hwi’s saber flying, Moyong Bi felt an unfamiliar emotion. He ran a hand absently over his forearm. It had come up in gooseflesh.

He looked at Moyong Gwang-seon, who was grinning.

There was a star lodged in the boy’s eyes.

A rising morning star was moving to swallow the whole universe.