“What a grand welcome.”
At the thorned words, Tang Geunmyeong bowed deeply at the waist.
“I apologize, Elder. This happened because we failed to realize you had arrived. Please forgive us.”
“Hmph.”
With a snort, Im Seol-yak slowly withdrew his whip.
Only then did the air pressing down on the space grow lighter. A few martial artists could be heard coughing as they exhaled rough breaths.
“I remember seeing you a few times... Were you the child who attended the Poison King?”
“Yes, Elder. The Poison King is currently away from the estate.”
“I did not come to see him, so it does not matter.”
“Pardon? Then whom...”
“Second Young Master Tang Un. Guide me to him.”
“Yes, Elder.”
Surprise crossed Tang Geunmyeong’s face, but only for an instant.
Quickly smoothing his expression, Tang Geunmyeong led Im Seol-yak into the inner estate before his mind could change.
It was the first time Im Seol-yak had set foot in the Tang Clan’s manor since leaving the Alliance.
Perhaps because it was once a place he had entered and exited as freely as his own home, shadows of the past clung everywhere.
Seol-yak. Look at this! Thousand-Thousand made me a sword tassel.
Tang Jung made that himself? He must have ordered a maid to do it. How would a young master of a great clan make something like that?
Hwayeon helped him, apparently. But the knot is clumsy only here, see? He must have tied this part himself. Isn’t it cute?
Okhwan. You are the only person alive who would call that poison-obsessed man cute.
But he really is cute.
Okhwan’s face, smiling bashfully, rose in his mind as vividly as if she were there. It felt as if the friend who had left long ago were whispering beside him.
Im Seol-yak pressed hard against his throbbing temple.
...Perhaps I should not have come.
He should never have set foot in the Tang Clan in the first place. What did the Poison King’s grandson have to do with him?
If not for the promise he had made to that bold child who found his secret cave because she wanted to save her brother, he would not even have stepped onto Sichuan soil.
Im Seol-yak groaned as he forcefully endured the impulse to turn back at once.
He was temperamental, yes, but he was not so faithless that he would discard a promise.
When Im Seol-yak’s steps slowed, Tang Geunmyeong also slowed to match him. After guiding him deep into the inner estate, Tang Geunmyeong spoke respectfully.
“This is the place, Elder.”
“You may withdraw.”
“Yes. I will wait nearby. Please call when your business is finished.”
With a slight nod, Im Seol-yak slowly opened the door to the residence.
It was a neat hall.
Conifers that did not lose their green even in the winter wind had been planted with care, and a zither rested atop a small pavilion.
The windows of the hall were half-open, and pale smoke leaked through the gaps as if several braziers had been lit inside.
“Are they trying to suffocate him?”
With a cold laugh, Im Seol-yak walked toward the presence he sensed.
Far ahead, he saw the back of a man with pale hair.
Wearing a thick cloak, the man stood before a beautifully curved potted pine. It seemed he had come out for fresh air.
Looking at shoulders so slender they seemed they might break if struck, Im Seol-yak spoke to him.
“Are you the Tang Clan’s Second Young Master?”
“Ah. Forgive me. I did not realize a guest had come.”
The man answered calmly and slowly turned around. His wheat-colored hair, faded white at the ends, glittered like snow melting in sunlight.
“...Ah.”
Facing the man, Im Seol-yak let out a sound without realizing it.
He was a man as beautiful as a snow blossom on a snowy field.
They said he was of the Tang Clan’s direct line, but not a single part of him resembled that man.
Im Seol-yak asked with eyes full of doubt.
“Are you truly of Tang Clan blood?”
“I am Tang Un of the Tang Clan. May I ask who sent you, my lord physician?”
“How did you know I was a physician?”
“I heard the sound of your tiger-rattle staff.”
“You have good ears.”
After answering, Im Seol-yak studied Tang Un.
The man wore a gentle smile and seemed to be looking directly at Im Seol-yak’s face, but his eyes were unfocused.
Looking into those transparent eyes, as if they might draw him in, Im Seol-yak answered.
“Your sister sent me. Her name was... Ah, I did not ask her name. She was the Poison King’s disciple.”
At that, color returned to Tang Un’s pale face.
“If she is Grandfather’s disciple, then she is my youngest sister. Her name is Sohae.”
“So that is her name.”
“Was my sister doing well? Was she hurt anywhere?”
“Not at all. Seeing how bold she was, I think she will do well wherever she goes. Is she a sister you cherish?”
“She is a child I have looked after since she was young. I was deeply worried because I had no news of her, but since you have brought word of her well-being, I can be at ease. Thank you for your consideration.”
At the courteous greeting, Im Seol-yak felt a little awkward.
Tang Un seemed happier to hear that his youngest sister was well than to hear that a physician had come to examine his illness.
Kya-ha-ha! Brother! Faster!
...She treats her brother like a horse.
Ahaha, look at Thousand-Thousand. Seol-yak, isn’t it cute how hard he tries to play with his little sister when he has no talent for watching children at all?
Stop saying such disgusting things, Okhwan. I told you, you are the only one who finds that poison-obsessed man cute.
Along with it, the image of Tang Jung laughing while carrying young Hwayeon on his shoulders rose in his mind.
Im Seol-yak shook his head sharply, trying to forget that unlucky face.
The way he kept sinking into sentiment made him feel he should finish his business quickly and leave this unpleasant place.
Tang Un, misunderstanding Im Seol-yak’s behavior as a reaction to the cold, apologized gently.
“Forgive me. The day is cold, yet I have kept a guest standing too long. What do you say we go inside and speak there? Is white tea acceptable?”
“I refuse tea. I do not drink tea unless I brew it myself.”
Even at the cold response, Tang Un did not lose his smile.
“I see. Still, I would like you to warm yourself. Shall I prepare the tea implements for you?”
It was a mild response, unlike that of a young master from a great clan. Im Seol-yak’s expression turned strange.
He could smile kindly even after being told, I will not touch anything you give me. What an odd man.
After blinking, Im Seol-yak mumbled softly.
“...Do as you like.”
*****
The inside of the hall was warm with the heat of the braziers. Tang Un opened the window as if he found it stifling, then seemed worried his guest might be cold and brought over a thick blanket, draping it over Im Seol-yak.
A faint orchid fragrance lingered in the blanket.
Im Seol-yak stared blankly down at the blanket covering his knees, disbelief appearing on his face.
“What are you doing?”
“Ah, forgive me. Looking after my younger sisters has become a habit.”
At Tang Un’s apology, he was struck speechless. It had been well over a hundred years since he reached the realm where neither heat nor cold could touch him. Who did this boy think he was, treating him like some child still wet behind the ears?
Im Seol-yak snapped sharply,
“You and your sister are exactly the same. Fearless. To think you would touch my body so carelessly. What were you going to do if your neck snapped?”
“It would be the price of my discourtesy, so I would have to accept it. But your body is cold. It would be best for you to keep it over you, even for a short while.”
Once again, the answer was calm and quiet. Im Seol-yak frowned, but he did not remove the blanket.
“Sit here so I can take your pulse. You cannot even see, and it makes me nervous watching you walk around like that. You might break a bone.”
“Yes, my lord physician.”
Smiling at the slightly softened tone, Tang Un rolled up his sleeve and extended his arm.
His pulse, frozen cold, held not the slightest trace of yang energy.
His qi and blood were twisted throughout his entire body, and his heartbeat was so irregular it seemed it might stop at any moment.
Only the energy of spiritual medicine was barely sustaining him. His body itself was on the verge of collapse.
“The harmony of yin and yang is completely shattered. It must be terribly painful at this point, so how are you enduring it? It is astonishing that you can even walk.”
“I am used to it, so it is all right.”
At the placid response, Im Seol-yak narrowed his eyes.
In his life as a physician, he had met countless patients.
A person whose qi and blood were this badly twisted usually did not last three days.
Most suffered such extreme agony that they clung to him and begged to be saved, then fainted and never woke again.
Even martial artists who prided themselves as masters were not much different. There were cases where they took their own lives because they could not endure the pain.
But the man before him was different.
Even under pain that would have stripped a person of human dignity, he had not crumbled. He was preserving his everyday life.
After staring at Tang Un, Im Seol-yak murmured lowly,
“I will take back my question about whether you are truly of Tang Clan blood. Seeing your venom, you are certainly a Tang.”
“I will take that as praise.”
“It is praise. I thought you were a fragile orchid, but I like you now that I see you are a tenacious weed.”
After answering, he reached toward Tang Un’s face. Lifting his long lashes and examining his transparent eyes, Im Seol-yak asked again,
“How long have your eyes been like this?”
“About a year.”
“This was not damaged by your terminal meridian disorder. Poison is blocking the Jingming and Cuanzhu points.”
“Ah... So it was Small Mother after all.”
“It seems you have a guess. Why did you leave it alone?”
“What does it matter if I can see or not? There is no need for someone who will soon leave to create strife.”
At the words that seemed to have set everything down, Im Seol-yak snorted.
“Nonsense. You want to live, do you not?”
“...”
“Who are you trying to fool? If you had resigned yourself and accepted death, there is no way you would have survived until now. Ordinary people cannot endure pain like yours, with bone and flesh twisting inside them. Your will to live is strong. That is why you have held on to that thin thread until now.”
At the ruthless observation, Tang Un smiled bitterly.
“You are right, my lord physician. I... suppose I still want to live.”
The man who admitted it so readily had a body as frail as a dandelion seed that might fly away in the smallest breeze. Yet his voice alone carried the strength of solid stone.
The dissonance stirred Im Seol-yak’s interest.
“You are strong.”
“I have a body that could not even learn proper martial arts.”
“Martial ability is only secondary. What matters is will. However sharp a sword may be, it is useless if the wielder collapses. You have not broken.”
One might have expected him to grow arrogant and cruel out of bitterness over his situation, yet instead, he had wrapped himself in manners as solid as armor.
He was coolheaded enough to observe his surroundings and show consideration for others, and even under pain like living flesh being torn apart, he strove to stand upright without wavering.
Im Seol-yak could clearly see the effort he made to keep illness from breaking him, to die not as a beast but as a human being.
The vessel itself was different from those petty men. He was too fine a man to let go like this.
For whatever caprice moved him, Im Seol-yak suddenly wanted to see life return to those transparent eyes.
“I will cure your eyes.”
“Pardon?”
“I cannot guarantee your life, but I will attempt treatment. If not me, then no one in the Central Plains will be able to touch this.”
At the voice full of confidence to the point of arrogance, Tang Un nodded without realizing it.
“I will have guest quarters prepared for you.”
“No. It would be better to give me the room beside yours. I must continue observing you.”
“Yes, my lord physician. But... if it would not be discourteous, may I ask your name?”
“Im Seol-yak.”
In that instant, bewilderment appeared on Tang Un’s previously calm face. Hastily rising, he respectfully cupped his fist.
“...I never imagined the Divine Therapist himself had come. I apologize for my discourtesy.”
“No. Call me Seol-yak.”
“Pardon?”
“Seol-yak.”
After hesitating, Tang Un soon smiled and answered.
“Yes, Seol-yak.”
Only then did Im Seol-yak look satisfied. Lifting the corner of his mouth, he scooped Tang Un into his arms.
“Se-Seol-yak? Please wait a moment...!”
“You walk too slowly. It is irritating. Let us go to your bedroom first.”
“This is... that is... Yes, Seol-yak.”
Tang Un, stiff with tension, awkwardly placed a hand on Im Seol-yak’s shoulder.
Now this is finally a human reaction.
Hearing the patient’s heart pounding wildly, Im Seol-yak smiled languidly.
In a life that had been nothing but dull and tedious, someone who stirred him had appeared.
He could not let this chance slip away.
