“Y-yes… of course. I didn’t hear anything. That just now was only a joke. I’ll never tell anyone……”
“……”
The Illusory Illusion Witch forced an awkward smile, her lips trembling. Even now, she mimed sealing her mouth shut. It was pitiful beyond words.
And this was a martial artist at the Flowering Stage?
“Haah.”
“Hic…”
All I had done was sigh, yet she even hiccupped as she nervously gauged my reaction. For a moment, my head began to ache.
Perhaps the earlier words had bothered her. As if sensing the conversation was important, Tang Sowol—who had stepped slightly back—suddenly sprang to her feet and stood in front of me.
“Do you realize what you just said in front of his fiancée?!”
“Pardon? But wouldn’t the decision lie with the White Moon Sword Lord?”
“It lies with me.”
“…Why??”
“???”
At the Illusory Illusion Witch’s genuinely puzzled reaction, it was Tang Sowol’s turn to be flustered.
She blinked, slowly glancing between me and the Illusory Illusion Witch before speaking in a less confident voice.
“That’s because I’ll be the principal wife, of course.”
“Um… I don’t think your position is that firmly established compared to the others…”
“What do you mean by that?!”
“W-well, think about it. The White-Haired Rakshasa—ah, right, I was told not to call her that anymore. Anyway, the head of the Seo Mun Clan may have lost her family, but she’s still the descendant of a prestigious house, and she herself is a Flowering Stage martial artist. And her family martial art is swordsmanship, not poison or hidden weapons.”
“Ugh!”
“And the other one was called the Demonic Sound Ice Witch, I believe?”
“It’s Pure Sound-Frostflower. She only got that strange addition to her title after causing a little trouble in the Black Lotus Sect.”
“Ah, yes.”
When I cut in briefly, she immediately nodded and corrected herself.
“I heard that Pure Sound-Frostflower is young and already at the Sub-Perfection stage. And that she uses a rare yin-aligned martial art.”
“That’s true about Hyangi.”
“Which means she’s younger than Young Lady Sky-Winged Poison Phoenix and at a similar realm.”
Tang Sowol’s eyes wavered.
“If natural energy is gradually diminishing over time, then martial arts that draw upon specific types of energy will decline even faster. If things go well, she might even secure a position in the North Sea Ice Palace.”
“H-how do you even know that?”
“It’s simple deduction.”
Still lying flat on the ground, she somehow managed to look smug. That, in its own way, was a skill.
“To summarize, Young Lady Poison Phoenix has outstanding looks, realm, and background—but all of those can be replaced. In some cases, they might even hold her back.”
“Hold me back?! What do you mean by that!”
“Well… someone of the White Moon Sword Lord’s stature might find the Tang Clan background more of a hindrance, don’t you think? Wouldn’t it be more convenient to have someone like the Seo Mun Clan head, who has only her bloodline left, or Pure Sound-Frostflower, who has no background—or at least one so distant in the martial world beyond the borders that it holds little influence?”
“C-convenient……”
“In that sense, I’m very confident I can be a convenient woman.”
“Ugh!”
Trembling, Tang Sowol spun around and clung to my sleeve.
“Brother Cheon! I’m not a hindrance, am I? I’m not, right?”
“What is this…”
A chuckle escaped me.
After glimpsing my memories through Yoryeong, I knew Tang Sowol felt insecure about such things—but I hadn’t expected her to unravel over a few words.
Should I praise the Illusory Illusion Witch’s eloquence, or say Tang Sowol lost half her reason whenever it concerned me?
Shaking my head, I gently pried Tang Sowol off my sleeve.
Her dark green eyes trembled. Looking at them made me want to tease her a little more… but that felt like it would truly cause trouble, so I restrained myself.
Instead, I pulled her lightly toward me, sat her close at my side, and wrapped an arm around her waist so she couldn’t move.
“The premise is wrong.”
“The premise…??”
“My goal is not to defeat the Heavenly Demon.”
“What???”
“It’s to live well and happily with you.”
“Ah…”
“Unifying the martial world? Becoming the greatest under heaven? I won’t say I have no interest, but those cannot be my primary goal. At most, they’re steps I might pass through if necessary.”
Tang Sowol finally seemed to calm down. Instead, embarrassment crept up, and she buried her face in my shoulder.
She twitched intermittently, as if she’d kick away a blanket if given one.
Deciding that was enough, I turned to the Illusory Illusion Witch, who was once again quietly pressing her head to the floor as if she had never been smug in the first place.
Sensing my gaze, she trembled so violently it was closer to vibrating.
“Haah… I assume you now understand my true purpose.”
“Yes, yes! I won’t bother you for the same reason again!”
“Good. Let’s do well.”
When I first came to meet her, I had imagined struggling through formations and cutting down all sorts of bizarre techniques.
Yet here I was, giving her pointed looks and calming Tang Sowol.
How had it come to this?
Staring blankly at her back for a moment, I opened my mouth again.
“First, stand up.”
“Yes.”
She obeyed immediately, lifting her upper body. Her already disheveled hair was further scattered from the full prostration, making her look even more sinister.
Judging by appearances was mere prejudice—I knew that well, as someone often misunderstood myself…
But in her case, perhaps the prejudice was justified.
With that thought, I spoke.
“You likely understand by now, but I’ll say it once more. In preparation for a decisive battle against the Demonic Cult, the Murim Alliance and the Black Lotus Sect will cooperate. You will join as well.”
“Of course. Naturally. However, I have one request.”
“Hm? What is it?”
“I am not strengthening the Black Lotus Sect—I am attaching myself to you, White Moon Sword Lord. Please make that clear. Tell the Black Lotus Sect Lord.”
“…This again.”
One-Saber Asura had made a similar request, so it wasn’t surprising.
But there was one thing I didn’t understand.
“You didn’t even fight me and lose. This isn’t a public place, and no one witnessed what happened today.”
“That’s because… the Black Lotus Sect Lord’s ambition is too great. If I add my strength half-heartedly, I’ll inevitably be dragged into increasingly dangerous matters!”
“Well, I can’t deny that.”
I shrugged.
“And yet I intend to step into even more dangerous matters.”
“That’s because they’re necessary. You don’t covet unnecessary things.”
Having said that, she looked directly into my eyes.
“If everything you’ve said is true, then Zhongyuan will soon fall into great chaos. No matter how I hide, avoiding it will be difficult.”
“You understand well. In the end, we have no choice but to fight.”
Before my regression, many had fled and hidden from the Heavenly Demon.
But none of them met a good end. The best off were those who left for the martial world beyond the borders…
Yet from what she had said, after destroying Zhongyuan, he would have slaughtered even there. It was only a matter of time.
“If danger cannot be avoided, then I’d rather face it in the safest place.”
“And that safest place is me?”
“You seem very different from the rumors. At the very least, you’re not some bloodless monster, nor someone mad with ambition.”
“I do get misunderstood often.”
“That’s because you only choose actions that invite misunderstand—ah, never mind.”
Muttering something unconsciously, she hurriedly smacked her own mouth.
“A-anyway, if I can become your person, White Moon Sword Lord, I believe that would be the safest path.”
“I see.”
Honestly, if she worked for me rather than the Black Lotus Sect, it would be a considerable advantage.
Among everyone I had met so far, none possessed knowledge of techniques and strange arts to her extent.
The Murim Alliance’s strategist, the head of the Zhongnan Sect, the current and former abbots of Shaolin.
All were remarkable figures, knowledgeable even about forgotten secrets.
Yet in a brief conversation with her, I had gained more information than in the past several years.
If I had her research regression, it would undoubtedly be helpful.
If regression repeated infinitely regardless of my will—and even the Heavenly Demon could not break this cycle—
Then I too would not escape successive regressions. Should I not seek my own solution?
Well. It wasn’t as though the Heavenly Demon had never cooperated with her across countless regressions.
But unless he shared that information, I had no choice but to act on my own.
I had no intention yet of severing regression like he might have… but I could not simply sit idle.
Even aside from regression, she was valuable.
One of the few capable of countering the Demonic Cult’s and the Potala Palace’s techniques.
“Very well. From now on, you will work for me, not the Black Lotus Sect. I’ll speak to the Sect Lord.”
“Thank you.”
“However, before that, there are things I need to confirm.”
“W-what? Ah… well… I’ve never been married before, but—”
“That’s not what I mean.”
I sighed deeply.
“I need to know what you can do, and how much you can do. From our conversation, I understand your knowledge runs deep. But the Flowering Stage isn’t for show. More importantly—”
I raised my index finger and traced a line along one corner of the hut.
Through the Heavenly Eye, I had seen the incomplete flow of energy—like something hastily erased midway through drawing.
At this, her eyes gleamed.
“As expected… you can see it?”
“Yes. Later, if you know anything about these eyes, explain that as well.”
“I understand. You want me to prove my ability first. Then please excuse me for a moment.”
The moment she rose timidly from her seat—
Darkness swallowed the surroundings. Everything except me vanished.
No. More precisely, even my sense of self blurred. Only the willpower I had cultivated as a Flowering Stage martial artist remained.
It felt as though I had been cast into a void in an instant.
There had been no warning. Not even my sensitive perception had detected any incongruity.
It was so natural that it felt as though I had always been here.
But—
“You’re certainly impressive with techniques.”
The Heavenly Eye saw it all. The flow of energy wrapping around the hut, linking at her gesture, twisting my perception.
Even the moment she struck downward toward my crown while my awareness was disrupted.
Even if I hadn’t seen it, it wouldn’t have mattered.
The instant she lashed out, my body moved in response to the faint killing intent that arose instinctively.
And as I moved, I knew.
This could be cut.
“Though your martial arts are lacking.”
There was no need to draw my sword. As I formed a sword gesture with my fingers, a translucent blade naturally rose above them.
I swung.
KWAANG!
“Kyaaaak!”
Something shattered, and her scream rang out.
When I opened my eyes, I was no longer in the void but back in the hut.
The hut—now utterly wrecked except for the area where my companions and I sat.
Having smashed through a wall and rebounded, she lay sprawled in an unsightly pose, head buried in the ground and hips raised in the air.
A small sniffle came from her.
“Ugh… I only did it because you told me to……”
And a sigh of relief.
“Thank goodness I didn’t actually resist……”
For a moment—
Just a little—
I felt somewhat sorry.
