abcnovels
Chapter 49
Chapter 49
Chapter 49 – Blood and Tears (4)
Lim Ye-hwa rushed to the guest hall in surprise when she heard that Song Hwa-rin had come to visit.
Indeed, Song Hwa-rin was waiting there.
“Rin-ah! What brings you here?”
“Have you been well?”
“Oh my, what should I do? Our Dan isn’t home.”
“I came to see you today, Mother.”
“Me? Why me? Well, let’s sit down and talk.”
As the two sat facing each other at the table, a maid soon brought tea.
Lim Ye-hwa silently looked at Song Hwa-rin’s face. There was still some swelling left.
“I’m sorry.”
“No, I came to apologize to you instead.”
“You?”
“I know you parents are worried because of our problems. I’m truly sorry for causing you concern.”
Lim Ye-hwa thought it was a bit unexpected. Apart from her fondness for Song Hwa-rin and her desire to have her as a daughter-in-law, she had thought Song Hwa-rin had a somewhat aloof personality. She didn’t expect her to come like this and say such things. She had just thought, “Well, I hope the two of them live well together.”
So it was surprising that she came and said such things.
“What happened?”
Song Hwa-rin smiled slightly and said,
“Dan said he came to his senses after getting beaten up. I think I’ve grown up a bit too after getting hit.”
“Hahaha.”
Lim Ye-hwa laughed pleasantly. She could sense that Song Hwa-rin was going through a period of change.
In fact, Song Hwa-rin had hesitated several times before coming here today. She even came to the door and was about to turn back.
But she didn’t. Regardless of the marriage issue with Byeok Ri-dan, she felt she needed to tell Lim Ye-hwa that she was okay. Because she must be worried.
Perhaps she realized that her desire to change wasn’t just a desire, but that she was in the process of making it a reality.
“Rin-ah.”
“Yes.”
Lim Ye-hwa wanted to say this to Song Hwa-rin.
“It’s okay to go slowly. It’s okay to go slowly while seeing everything you want to see and doing everything you want to do. You might sometimes take the wrong path. But that’s okay too.”
Because that’s the right that only you young people can have.
Lim Ye-hwa recalled her youth after a long time. She missed that time that had passed as quickly as a flying dagger. Back then, even if someone advised her to go slowly like this, she only felt impatient.
Rather, she wanted to grow old quickly. Because she expected something great to be waiting beyond that age.
Seeing Lim Ye-hwa’s eyes turn slightly red, Song Hwa-rin calmly said,
“Would it be okay if I visit occasionally?”
Lim Ye-hwa came closer and whispered softly in her ear.
“You can come live in our house starting today if you’d like.”
Lim Ye-hwa laughed loudly as she saw Song Hwa-rin blushing and flustered.
Song Hwa-rin thought she had done well in coming today. Suddenly, Byeok Ri-dan’s face flashed in her mind, but she quickly shook him off.
“Shall we have another cup of tea?”
Song Hwa-rin answered with a bright smile that matched the pleasant question.
“Yes!”
***
The next dawn, Flower Fan Elder walked into the bamboo forest.
Although he walked leisurely as if enjoying a stroll, he arrived at the appointed place at exactly the same time as yesterday.
The subordinate he met daily was standing with his back turned, looking at the bamboo forest.
Flower Fan Elder walked towards him and asked,
“What are you looking at so intently?”
It was when he took a few more steps closer.
At that moment when Flower Fan Elder’s footsteps stopped abruptly due to an inexplicable sense of discomfort.
Shwaaaaak!
The man who had been showing his back turned around like lightning and threw a dagger.
Flower Fan Elder twisted his body sideways and avoided the attack.
But he wouldn’t have time to feel the joy of avoiding the surprise attack.
Because I was rushing in as fast as light.
Swish!
The Heavenly Creation Sword cut through the air, aiming for Flower Fan Elder’s heart.
Clang!
Flower Fan Elder swung his fan to deflect my sword. The power of the fan imbued with internal energy was tremendous. He must have blocked many attacks with this one move until now.
Most swords would have broken, stronger ones would have been lost grip of, and against truly strong opponents, the sword would have been deflected and gone far off course.
But my sword didn’t fall into any of those categories.
It changed direction slightly to the side but still pushed straight in.
Swish!
Flower Fan Elder’s shoulder split open and blood splattered.
Whoosh!
Without even having time to check his shoulder, Flower Fan Elder violently swung his fan and bounced back as if repelled.
If I had followed the momentum, I should have pursued, but I didn’t.
He seemed to be floundering, but there was discipline in his retreating footwork.
A trap!
It was a technique to draw in the enemy in a moment of crisis. If I had thought it was an opportunity and followed, I would have been properly counterattacked.
Flower Fan Elder, who had stopped about ten steps away, quickly pressed his acupoint to stop the bleeding on his shoulder.
“Who are you?”
“We met yesterday, have you already forgotten? We’ve been meeting here every day.”
I was wearing the clothes of the man I killed yesterday.
I thought I would obviously be caught. I just hoped he would come close enough for a surprise attack to work. Fortunately, it succeeded, and I managed to cut his shoulder.
Of course, I was confident I could win even in a direct confrontation.
But there was no need to take unnecessary risks. He wasn’t worth that much. It would have been best if I had killed him with that one surprise attack just now.
“He must be dead then.”
“You’ll die too.”
It seemed like a situation where we would normally exchange more words. But I launched an attack, catching him off guard.
The most important thing in a fight between masters is to take the initiative. If you lose the initiative, you end up being led by your opponent and eventually meet your last move in a dead end.
I started to press him. Pressing doesn’t mean attacking as fast and as much as possible unconditionally. Taking the initiative means launching attacks that must be blocked one after another.
Sparks flew in the air from the clash of sword and fan.
If it had been an ordinary iron fan, it should have been cut by the Heavenly Creation Sword imbued with internal energy.
But the fan Flower Fan Elder was holding was no ordinary fan. It was the absolute weapon that made Flower Fan Elder who he is today, and moreover, Flower Fan Elder’s lifelong internal energy was not to be underestimated.
Flower Fan Elder’s martial arts can clearly be considered a notch below Si-gon’s.
But that’s in the case of a formal fight.
In sudden situations, Flower Fan Elder’s power to break through crises might be superior. I dislike old people, but I know well how terrifying they can be.
You have to fight thinking that if you give them an opening, you’ll die.
Why?
Because that’s the same as giving your opponent an opening.
Although he kept being pushed back, Flower Fan Elder was not easy to deal with.
Swoosh.
The fan opened and closed, showing and hiding the flower repeatedly.
Each time, dazzling techniques unfolded.
But as the techniques continued, his expression grew increasingly rigid.
He felt that he was being pushed back little by little.
Slash!
Flower Fan Elder’s arm was cut again. Blood splattered in all directions. It looked like a severe injury at first glance, but I could tell the wound was shallow.
However, that injury greatly shook Flower Fan Elder’s psyche. He had been pushed back and now he was injured again.
Swoosh!
Hidden weapons shot out from the fan.
It was Flower Fan Elder’s trump card that he had been saving.
The hidden weapons that flew from the fan barely grazed my face. The price for that miss was great.
Slash!
My sword cut his wrist.
“Urgh!”
The first scream that burst out. The wrist muscles were deeply cut, and he dropped the fan he was holding.
Slash!
My following sword cut his waist.
“Ugh!”
Flower Fan Elder staggered as precariously as his desperate scream and then fell on his backside. The match was decided.
“Wait! Please, wait!”
He clutched his wrist. Blood was trickling between his fingers, and the blood flowing from his side had soaked his pants thoroughly.
He should have waited for a better moment to use his hidden weapons. But in his urgency, he recklessly launched them.
There’s always an opening when a big attack fails. This was also why I had saved the three techniques of the Chuhon Sura Sword Technique in the midst of the chaotic battle.
“…Spare me. If you spare me, I’ll do anything. Who hired you? I’ll give you twice, no, five times more than that person. I’ll give you five times more, and if you kill the person who hired you, I’ll give you ten times more on top of that. I promise.”
Watching his desperate struggle to survive, I said languidly,
“You cling to life even in old age.”
“Say what you will. I don’t want to die.”
“You asked about my employer?”
“Who is it?”
“My employer is already dead. You killed him in Jinan.”
As Flower Fan Elder was making a puzzled expression, at that moment.
Stab!
My sword mercilessly pierced his chest.
“This is revenge for that child you killed.”
As I twisted the sword, Flower Fan Elder let out a pain-filled scream.
I quickly pulled out the sword and then stabbed the other side of his chest.
“This is revenge for the parents.”
I twisted the sword again. He screamed that he was dying.
Even at this moment, he couldn’t let go of his attachment to life.
“Please… spare me.”
“Is that old body of yours so precious? Did you want to live in luxury so badly that you even killed a child?”
“…I’ll live righteously from now on. So please.”
I pulled out the sword that was stuck in him.
Then I turned around and walked in the opposite direction.
After walking about ten steps, I turned to look at him.
Flower Fan Elder staggered to his feet. Thinking I had spared his life, he bowed his head to me.
“…Thank you. I will… never forget this kindness.”
But my response was something he couldn’t have imagined.
“Didn’t I tell you? That if you live like that, your end won’t be good. I warned you to live quietly, didn’t I?”
He looked confused. Was it because he was facing his final moments? Or was it because those words were etched in his heart?
He remembered when and from whom he had heard those words. He recalled that it was what the Martial Righteous Alliance Leader had said to him long ago when he was refused entry into the Council of Elders.
“Those are words Cheon Hajin said to me. How do you know them?”
At that moment when his eyes widened, my sword cut through the air.
Swish!
Boom!
The Three Techniques Infinite Sword was unleashed, and the space where Flower Fan Elder was standing exploded.
Flower Fan Elder’s body shattered into pieces and scattered.
Thud, thud, thud.
Unrecognizable pieces of flesh rained down along with dirt.
The space itself had been completely obliterated.
Clang.
A small piece of metal, also unrecognizable in form, fell at my feet. It was Flower Fan Elder’s fan. It too had disappeared from this world along with its owner.
“Go to hell.”
After leaving that cold remark, I turned and left. The sky was occasionally visible through the dense bamboo.
Somewhere out there, a child must be sleeping in their grandmother’s arms.
Child, I hope your next life is a long and happy one.
***
“Flower Fan Elder, who went out yesterday, still hasn’t returned.”
Ma Jeongsu was startled by Si-gon’s unexpected report. This had never happened before. If nothing else, he knew well that Flower Fan Elder was a very punctual person.
“Have you looked everywhere?”
“We’re currently searching with our subordinates, but… he’s nowhere to be seen.”
“He must have suddenly had some business to attend to.”
Then suddenly, Ma Jeongsu flinched.
“No way?”
As if they had already had the same thought, Si-gon’s expression had turned serious.
Ma Jeongsu sprang up from his seat.
“Let’s go to his room.”
The two entered Flower Fan Elder’s room.
They checked the wardrobe and drawers. But Flower Fan Elder’s belongings were gone.
Jeong Yeo had cleared them away on Byeok Ri-dan’s orders.
“He has left!”
After a moment of blank expression, Ma Jeongsu shouted angrily.
“Damn it! Are you saying this old man was the one who cracked the safe?”
“It seems so.”
Si-gon didn’t mention other possibilities. He had been quite upset with Flower Fan Elder earlier. With such clear evidence, he had no intention of taking his side. Rather, he started looking for evidence to prove that he was the culprit.
On the other hand, Ma Jeongsu was half in doubt. No matter what, it didn’t seem likely that someone like Flower Fan Elder would risk his life for just a few ten thousand taels.
At that moment, Si-gon shouted,
“Look at this!”
A table on one side had been moved, and something had fallen underneath it.
“What’s this?”
“It’s a jewel decoration that was attached to the Heavenly Creation Sword. It seems to have fallen off when he bumped into the table while leaving in a hurry.”
It was exactly what Byeok Ri-dan had set aside after modifying the sword at the ironworks.
Jeong Yeo had secretly placed it here while clearing out the belongings.
Rather than other direct evidence, such traces that could only be found upon careful examination would more surely frame him.
If they didn’t discover it, Jeong Yeo could bring it later. The maid could say she found it in Flower Fan Elder’s room while cleaning.
Ma Jeongsu still couldn’t make a judgment. Was it clear evidence that Flower Fan Elder was the culprit, or was it meant to frame him?
“For now, find this old man first! Quickly!”
“Yes!”
“And don’t breathe a word of this to anyone.”
“Understood.”
Si-gon hurriedly left the room. Since he was known to be very tight-lipped, there was no need to worry about that.
What if Flower Fan Elder had betrayed them? If his father found out about this, the problem would become serious.
Rather than being attacked by an outsider, he would become a fool who was backstabbed by his own people. Regardless of who did it, this incident needs to be resolved quietly.
Ma Jeongsu casually turned his head towards the window and was startled.
“Oh my!”
The mysterious woman was standing outside the window, looking in. It was especially surprising because it was right after he had told Si-gon to keep this secret.
‘You scared me, you bitch.’
Those words rose to his throat, but he barely held them back. After all, she was a woman his father had sent.
She turned around like a ghost without saying a word and walked away.
Ma Jeongsu shouted irritably towards the window.
“It’s still uncertain! Don’t you dare open your mouth carelessly!”
Whether she heard or not, she just disappeared.
Bang!
Ma Jeongsu slammed the window frame.
“Damn it! Cursed!”
Things kept getting more complicated.