I peeled up heavy eyelids and slowly opened my eyes.

A wooden ceiling came into view.

An unfamiliar ceiling.

That was the impression the moment I opened my eyes.

“...Mm.”

What is that? I hesitated a moment and pushed myself up—

CRRRK-!

“—!!”

The instant I rose, a tremendous sharp pain tore through my body.

It hurt so much I couldn’t even curse. For a moment, the pain was so bad I nearly blacked out.

Barely enduring it, I only raised my upper body.

Even that alone made my whole body ache and feel like it was being ripped apart.

Especially the right arm. I could hardly feel anything along the right arm.

Wondering why—

‘Huh.’

Bandages were wrapped around it. I ran my left hand over myself. Bandages were wrapped not only on my right arm but also on my head and torso.

I wondered why my body hurt so badly—so this was the reason?

Why was I like this?

I stopped that line of thought and widened my eyes.

‘Ah.’

Pal Duyeok.

And Heaven-Breaking Palace.

What had happened in the archive chamber came back. Recognizing that, I staggered and got fully to my feet.

‘How did it end?’

What had become of the situation. If I’d come to my senses here, did that mean things were resolved?

Turning over my last memories, I swallowed a groan.

‘I killed Pal Duyeok.’

Yoo Cheongil, using my body, used sword force and killed Pal Duyeok.

Right after that, the Poison King who’d been trapped seemed to have escaped?

‘And then.’

And what after that? I think I passed out from there.

‘What about Yoo Cheongil?’

Where had the old men gone. Back then, Poison Sovereign and Yoo Cheongil should have been there; I’d meant to ask, but neither was visible.

‘Where is this.’

At the very least, it didn’t seem to be the room I’d been in. I was glancing around, taking stock, when—

SLIDE-!

The door beside me opened and someone entered.

Our eyes met. Seeing I was up, the other party startled and flinched.

It was Tang Yeran.

“Y-Young Master Bang.”

“Ah, Miss Tan—”

“Are you all right...!?”

Before I could call to her, she rushed over and checked on me.

“Is your body all right...?”

“No. I don’t think it’s all right, but it’s bearable.”

Holding back my groans, I asked Tang Yeran,

“...What happened?”

At the question, Tang Yeran said,

“It has been more than three days since you lost consciousness.”

“...Three days?”

It had already been three days? I had to be quite surprised at that.

Hearing the time, I quickly asked something else. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

“What about Young Master Cheon and Senior Do Hyeong.”

What had happened to the two. When I asked that, Tang Yeran answered,

“Both of them are safe.”

“...That’s a relief.”

So there was no problem.

Do Hyeong, sure, I figured he’d be fine, but I’d been a bit worried about Cheon Eujin.

‘No—that goes for Do Hyeong too.’

I’d trusted the guardian spirit attached to that guy.

It hadn’t even worked properly.

‘The hell was that?’

Why had it stayed idle despite the attack?

I couldn’t make sense of it.

‘A normal guardian spirit would have gone wild.’

Do Hyeong’s guardian spirit had been unnaturally quiet.

Even right up until things blew up.

‘What is it supposed to be doing.’

Was there a guardian spirit like that. It seemed quite different from the guardian spirits I knew.

Anyway.

Tang Yeran, having brought up the two, straightened and said,

“For now... I’ll go call people.”

“Ah, yes.”

When Tang Yeran left like that and returned, she came back with several people.

****

“Young Master Bang...!”

Cheon Eujin came in and checked on me.

Looking at him, I smiled faintly.

“...Yes. Have you been well?”

“Are you all right...?”

“Ah, yes.”

“It’s a relief you’ve come to.”

Behind him, Do Hyeong followed in with his usual face.

Around him, the guardian spirit was drifting about like last time. Seeing that, I frowned.

There wasn’t much difference between when the raid happened and now.

Is that really a guardian spirit? Ignoring the way common sense was wobbling, I checked other things first.

With the two, Tang Yeran brought someone in. Judging by the clothes, a physician.

“I’ve come to examine you. Pardon me a moment.”

The physician approached and carefully checked my body. I let him, saying nothing. I’d felt it before too—every physician I’d seen had been rude without exception.

‘...People really do act different when they have a seat.’

With a little “seat” of status of my own, I could feel the change in attitude.

After a short examination, the physician spoke to Do Hyeong.

“The external wounds are deep, but fortunately there’s no major issue with the internal injuries. Since Young Master Bang is a martial artist, natural regeneration will be quick. It likely won’t take long to make a full recovery.”

The results weren’t bad.

The external wounds were clearly bad at a glance, but the internal injuries were fine.

That was enough.

For a martial artist, internal injuries were more frightening than external ones.

“Thank you.”

When Do Hyeong thanked the physician, the physician returned the courtesy and went outside.

Only then did Do Hyeong speak to me.

“How’s your body.”

“Yes. How are you and Young Master Cheon?”

“...I’m fine. However—my senior...”

Cheon Eujin sent his gaze to Do Hyeong’s chest.

Looking closely, I could see bandages peeking through the martial robes.

“Were you hurt?”

“Scratched.”

“Senior. You don’t usually wrap bandages that thick for a scratch.”

Scratch, my ass—looked exactly like a sword wound.

Apparently he’d been hurt during the fight.

‘Even so.’

Arms and legs, eyes and nose and mouth—all intact, so that wasn’t bad.

Nothing had been smashed to pieces anywhere.

Ah, of course—

‘My right arm seems a bit wrecked.’

But since the physician said a full recovery was possible, that was fine.

Cheon Eujin and Do Hyeong were alive, and there seemed to be no immediate problem. Judging that, I asked Tang Yeran,

“How did the situation turn out?”

What had happened after I went down. When I asked that, Tang Yeran said,

“...Thanks to your [N O V E L I G H T] efforts, sirs, the raid was suppressed.”

So the raid had been stopped without issue.

‘Well.’

Pal Duyeok died, and I saw the Poison King appear at the end. I had thought there would be no problem.

“Then—how is the Clan Head?”

“The Clan Head... is now dealing with what has happened and the moles within the clan.”

Hearing that, I nodded.

‘Moles, huh.’

Thinking about what happened in the archive chamber, sifting those out took priority.

The problem—

‘Is that possible.’

I didn’t know if that was something simple.

‘If even those who came in through the archive route were moles—’

They were elites the Poison King trusted, presumably; if even such people were moles, then—

‘Can they be sifted out for sure?’

That was the question, but—

‘Well, that’s for the Poison King to handle.’

I didn’t need to concern myself that far.

That wasn’t what mattered.

“Then... seeing the Clan Head right now will be difficult.”

“I imagine... it’ll be hard today.”

“Understood.”

There were things I needed to discuss with the Tang Clan Head as soon as I got up.

The archive too, and there were matters of recompense—

‘Can’t be helped.’

If I couldn’t see him right now, I had to accept it.

There was ample reason.

“Ng...”

Confirming that, I pushed myself fully to my feet. Seeing that, Tang Yeran hurried to support me.

“Sir...!”

“Ah, I’m fine...”

I declined, saying I could stand on my own.

It was the upper body that was the problem; the lower body was fine.

Or not. Seeing the trembling, maybe not that either.

Anyway.

I could walk, so I carefully headed outward.

Cheon Eujin and Do Hyeong looked at me with worried eyes, too, but—

“I’m fine, so don’t look at me like that.”

I waved a hand roughly.

Honestly, I was light-headed and a bit dizzy, but I just went out.

“L-let me come with you. They said it’s dangerous to move carelessly.”

Tang Yeran hurried after me and tried to support me.

I’d meant to refuse, but at her face practically begging for permission, I held back in the end.

Tang Yeran drew close. Then a floral scent reached me.

‘What.’

Had she always smelled like this? I think I’d sensed a faint sweat-scent before.

The floral scent was one I was feeling for the first time.

I felt puzzled, but didn’t bother to ask.

Receiving Tang Yeran’s support, I came out of the building.

“Where are you going...?”

“...I’m going to take a short walk. Maybe because I’ve been lying too long, my head’s a bit dizzy.”

“Ahh. A walk?”

Her voice changed, somehow a touch brighter.

‘...Mm.’

Seeing this, the uneasy feeling I’d had before continued.

This girl, surely—

‘Does she really like me?’

It seemed the feeling leaned that way.

So I considered asking outright like last time—

‘...No.’

I held it in. If she said yes here, that would be a hassle in its own way.

Thinking that, I walked the Tang Clan streets.

“...Look over there.”

“What? Look where—ah.”

I could feel some looks landing on us around us.

Not strange. Ever since coming to the Tang Clan, there had been many eyes on me.

Being from the Small Moon Unit and all, and maybe because they’d heard I was the Sword Saint’s successor, there had been many looks.

But—

‘This time it’s different?’

I felt something different from the beginning.

Not only the Tang Clan’s martial artists; even those who weren’t martial artists—most of them looked at me as I passed.

Those gazes had moved beyond the simple curiosity I’d first felt.

‘Surprise? Wonder?’

Something a bit beyond curiosity.

Why were they looking at me like that?

As I was raising the question, Tang Yeran quietly said to me,

“...It’s probably because word spread that you beat the Demonic Leather Spear.”

As if she’d realized what I was thinking, she offered an answer.

“Ah...”

So that was it. Because they knew I’d killed Pal Duyeok?

If so, that made sense.

‘Someone must have talked.’

There couldn’t have been more than a handful who’d seen what happened in the archive chamber.

It seemed that had spread over a few days.

Hence the reactions.

“...They say you used sword force.”

“If he used sword force—that means he’s already reached the absolute peak?”

“Not even past his early twenties and already absolute-tier? That’s something even the Seven Stars couldn’t...”

They even seemed to know I’d used sword force against Pal Duyeok.

Thanks to that, I looked like an absolute-tier martial artist.

‘It’s understandable to mistake it.’

Why is common sense “common sense”? Because it’s the default.

Not only did I beat Pal Duyeok, a martial artist who used hardened qi—

Since I used hardened qi, of course I was being treated as an absolute-tier martial artist.

I deliberately ignored the voices that drifted over and kept walking.

But wherever I went, there were people.

And they all showed me similar reactions.

How far had the rumor spread?

Seeing it, it seemed my story had spread through the entire Tang Clan.

‘Not good.’

If it went like this, it could spread beyond the Tang Clan to other regions.

No—rather than could, it certainly would.

‘Tch.’

I clicked my tongue. I didn’t welcome that this situation had come about, but... the problem was something else.

‘Found you.’

I spotted something and stopped walking.

Then I said to Tang Yeran,

“I have something to see ahead, I’ll go alone and come back.”

“Eh?”

“I just want to look at the flowers over there by myself.”

“...Huh?”

At the sudden, out-of-nowhere statement about looking at flowers, Tang Yeran made a puzzled face.

I removed her arm and walked forward.

My body was still stiff, but I walked anyway.

I approached the flowers set in the brush like that—

[Pop.]

Suddenly, a vicious face popped out of the brush.

[Guess who’s a flower?]

“...”

[No reaction at all. What a boring punk.]

Staring blankly at him, Yoo Cheongil clicked his tongue short.

Normally, I’d have at least cursed.

Right now I couldn’t.

Looking at him, I spoke at once.

“What is your objective?”

[Hm?]

At my words, Yoo Cheongil reacted.

[What—]

“I know why you did things this way.”

Lowering my head slightly, I met Yoo Cheongil’s eyes.

Meeting those blue eyes, I said,

“Just as you intended, I’ve gained renown.”

[...]

At the mention of renown, Yoo Cheongil erased the smile from his face too.

Watching that expression, I spoke.

And the look on my face as I spoke was probably—

“What. Exactly. Is your objective.”

Cold enough to bite.