I Am Your Grandfather (2)

Only after a lengthy explanation was Yu Jinsan able to reveal his identity to his granddaughter.

“Really, Grandpa?”

“Yes, child. I’m sorry I surprised you.”

Yu Seol looked at him from various angles with curious eyes. Although he appeared to be a boy of her age, he clearly spoke like her grandpa.

The nature of the qi she sensed wasn’t that different either.

Furthermore, even their facial features resembled each other’s. There was no longer any doubt.

“Hehe.”

Yu Jinsan felt a sudden relief seeing her smile so brightly.

He had thought she might be too shocked and uncertain about his changed appearance, but instead, she seemed to like it.

“This child, your Grandpa has changed this much, and you’re laughing?”

Yu Seol hugged her grandfather’s neck tightly and laughed.

“Like, Grandpa!”

“Kuak! You’re suffocating me, let go.”

Since they now looked similar, they might also feel more familiar with each other.

The child was jumping for joy, as if she had found a new friend. After letting go of his neck, Yu Seol looked up at him and shouted.

“Grandpa, come play with me!”

“My knees are too stiff to run around now…”

Yu Jinsan stopped his habitual response midway. This was because he no longer had to worry about physical strength or joint issues.

Still, it felt a bit awkward to run around like an eight-year-old child.

‘What do I do?’

However, his worries were short-lived.

It was Yu Jinsan who had always regretted the moments when he couldn’t play with his children.

Now that things had turned out this way, wasn’t there something he could do? After all, this was the only remaining lineage in their family.

“…where does it hurt?”

“No, what do you want to play with Grandpa?”

Yu Seol, with her face beaming, clicked her tongue and said.

“Catch me!”

Playing tag. He felt a sense of defeat, but he couldn’t back out now.

“Let’s think positively. Shouldn’t I also check my physical condition?”

Yu Jinsan took a deep breath and started running behind his granddaughter.

Now that his legs were short, his body was less advantageous for light footwork than before.

But his speed actually increased. This might have been because, after achieving a complete Body Reformation, the bones of his entire body became optimized for martial arts.

Running and enjoying the cool breeze after being bedridden made him laugh.

“Hehehe!”

Yu Jinsan was once again surprised by his own laughter. An old man’s laughter in the voice of a child wasn’t easy to adapt to.

In the blink of an eye, Yu Seol had reached the outskirts of the manor and was jumping over the wall.

Yu Jinsan leaped after her.

Tat!

His shadow soared through the air like a hawk.

When he looked down from a height of five or more feet, he felt like his stomach had just gone empty.

“I will catch you right away, you brat!”

“Hehe. Catch me fast!”

Yu Jinsan landed on the ground and ran with all his might.

As he increased his speed, his granddaughter did the same.

Moving faster than an arrow, a gust of wind blew through the area where these two moved with the speed of lightning.

Before they knew it, they were leaving the village and entering the forest.

Tatatat!

A strange phenomenon occurred where the two ran.

Even though he ran and stepped on the blades of grass, not a single leaf broke. It was like Grass Skimming, a light footwork technique that was trained by Murim warriors.

“Stand there!”

The distance between them became very close.

It felt like extending his hand would catch her, but he couldn’t get any closer than that.

Yu Jinsan realized without much difficulty that the child was controlling the speed and making fun of him.

“Hehehehehe!”

No matter how fast he became, his granddaughter was already at the grandmaster stage. Suddenly, her movements became insanely fast, and she widened the distance between them.

Tat!

Yu Seol flew like a bird, stamping her feet in the air.

Yu Jinsan, watching from behind, opened his mouth wide in astonishment.

‘Treading in the Void?’

It was the technique of running while stepping in the air, and it was the best among the light footwork skills.

He had only seen it once or twice, and that too during the Sword Queen’s ceremony.

Unable to follow his granddaughter’s movements, he found himself gasping for breath.

“Let us stop now.”

As soon as he conceded defeat, the child came rushing back and asked,

“Did I win?”

“So, is it really that good to beat your grandpa?”

The smile never left the child’s face.

When was the last time they played together like this?

She seemed to have many things she wanted to do with her grandfather, who had now become more of a friend to her.

“Grandpa, shall we play another game now? I know it will be fun.”

Seeing the child’s smile made him feel a bit odd for some reason. He had no idea what kind of trouble he was in for by blindly accepting her challenges.

Besides, what was the need to hurry? Now, all that was left was time.

“Everything is fun when we play with Seol. But it would be good to take some rest now. And I need to meet Uncle Baek Gyu.”

“Hmm. Okay.”

Yu Jinsan, who normally strokes her head, now feels awkward doing so.

His eye level was the same as hers. And now, unlike before, he had to raise his hand high.

‘If I don’t eat well, I could end up in trouble now.’

He was concerned that his granddaughter would quickly outgrow him.

In the past, he had looked after them from above, but now he had to manage both himself and her at the same level.

Moreover, she could not be defeated by force. The difficulty level of parenting had increased from before.

He couldn’t predict the future, so he couldn’t let go of his worries.

As the day darkened, an owl hooted.

It was the time when activity in the manor dwindled, and silence pervaded.

Yet, there was an untimely commotion in the Clan Leader’s office.

“What are you? How did you get in here?”

The guards waved their hands, their expressions puzzled. It was almost absurd to see a child before them, hands behind his back and a solemn look on his face.

“Don’t misunderstand; just call the Clan Leader for a moment, and I will explain everything.”

“Is this an informal way of speaking without being rude?”

He couldn’t possibly convince everyone he met by explaining himself to each one.

Yu Jinsan spoke as seriously as possible, but how much dignity could be found in a child’s voice?

As expected, what he received in return was a slap from the guard. But Yu Jinsan, watching the approaching palm, looked calm.

He wasn’t concerned with the guard’s attack; now, the strike seemed even slower, indicating his senses had become further enhanced.

As he slightly twisted his upper body to the right, only a cold breeze brushed past him.

Paaang!

“Ugh?”

While the guard stood confused, Yu Jinsan quickly grasped two of his fingers as they flew by.

“I cannot believe how rude you are to adults. It seems I need to teach you some manners.”

Kwak!

As he gently applied pressure to his fingers, the guard cried out reflexively.

“Kuaaak!! Who are you, you brat?!”

The guard was utterly flustered to be overpowered by a child.

How was this even possible? Even when he tried to summon all his internal qi, it was to no avail.

“This guy?”

“L-let’s focus on the matter at hand.”

Perhaps it was his ingrained nature, but Yu Jinsan realized he had been harsh and slowly released the man’s wrist.

“I didn’t intend this. I, too, am having a hard time adjusting to this.”

The expression on the warrior’s face as he kneaded his fingers was full of resentment.

A child acting like an old man appeared and lectured him. It seemed like he couldn’t possibly understand the current situation.

“What are you?”

Yu Jinsan paused before answering. Perhaps because of the commotion, the person they were about to meet in the hall was there.

The long facial scar and the massive muscles. And even the one nerve popping out. Baek Gyu looked like a monster as he rose.

“Little brother Baek Gyu, it is me.”

“…?”

“I finally succeeded. Do you recognize me?”

Baek Gyu stared wide-eyed at Yu Jinsan.

He was mesmerized and unable to move as well. Was it because he felt the calm flow of qi around Yu Jinsan?

Yu Jinsan was half worried and half anxious.

After a while.

Suddenly, Baek Gyu held his stomach and burst into laughter.

“Puahahaha! You really are Hyung, then? How did you end up as this cute little boy? HAHAHA!”

“I am not in the mood to laugh. My granddaughter and I are both at the same eye level now.”

Baek Gyu pulled back the hand he was about to pat Yu Jinsan with. He wiped away tears of laughter and swung open the door to his place.

“Haha. Head in now. Let’s go in and talk more about the details.”

“Right.”

Yu Jinsan followed Baek Gyu inside, hands clasped behind his back.

“I’ll bring us some tea, so please sit down.”

Yu Jinsan sat on a chair, his feet not touching the ground.

The sight was so cute that Baek Gyu’s forehead bulged as if he would die from holding back his laughter.

“Haha. You’re a little younger, what of it? But your life expectancy surely has increased, so that’s better.”

“What meaning does life have in a world where one never knows when we might die? It’s just that the road ahead is difficult.”

“Hmm. People your age are growing up quickly now, so don’t worry too much about how you look. After just a little while, you will start to grow taller.”

Wasn’t time something that moved as quickly as falling leaves? Time would solve his immediate problems. First of all, he decided to think positively, like Baek Gyu.

Yu Jinsan met him for the first time in a long time and even exchanged greetings.

Scattered letters and a map of Shaanxi were laid out with markings around. It was a sight he had never seen before.

“Something happened in Kangho.”

Baek Gyu brought out the teapot and filled the cup.

“You are a quick-witted man. The war against the Justice Faction has just begun.”

It wasn’t shocking because the Justice Faction and the Evil Faction had been at war from time to time. It was just that the scale had changed each time.

At that time, Yu Jinsan, who had been quietly enjoying the tea, frowned.

“Ugh. What is this?”

He had always enjoyed drinking any type of tea, but now he couldn’t do it.

“Isn’t that the Ho County tea that you always liked, Hyung? Well, it does taste a bit bitter, so I guess the palate of a child wouldn’t like it.”

Yu Jinsan sighed and put down the cup without another thought.

“Well, it is insane that a war broke out now. What is the situation now?”

“What do you not know? In a fight against the Justice Faction, we never had the upper hand. These places where all the red flags on the map are, that’s where we got defeated.”

It included not just large sects but also several famous Evil Faction clans. It seemed like he had planned it out.

In that case, Ho County wouldn’t be much safer.

“Things don’t look good.”

“Well, that’s true, but it isn’t over yet, as the Alliance Leader is preparing for a counterattack. But I have some information to share with you.”

“Information?”

“You were in bed for a while, so I put it off. But there is no need to do that now.”

There was just one piece of information he had previously asked Baek Gyu.

Yu Jinsan noticed something.

“…No!”

At that moment, Baek Gyu’s finger pointed to one of the red flags.

“Right. The guys you spoke about who appeared during the battle at your home. The ones who had these dragon tattoos on their necks.”