I checked the letter and moved immediately. It felt like this had to be finished before night fell.

Honestly, I didn’t want to do this either.

If it were up to me, I would’ve ignored the whole thing.

“Tch.”

Something had snagged on me, so I didn’t have a choice.

Thinking about it, this too was probably exactly what Seongheon had intended.

“...There.”

Found her.

The place where she always trained.

Yuyeon was sitting there.

“Why are you sitting on the ground?”

“...”

At my words, Yuyeon turned her head.

She wore a blank expression.

That kind of face where you couldn’t tell what she was thinking.

“What are you doing?”

“...”

After hearing me, Yuyeon turned her head again.

She swept a glance over the place she’d been staring at, then blinked.

What was she thinking about?

Was she in shock because Seongheon had died?

If that was it, she looked strangely normal.

“...”

I looked at her for a moment, then let out a sigh.

“Are you okay?”

The question came out with the sigh.

There was still no response.

I remembered earlier that day.

The sight of Yuyeon, blank-faced while Seongheon’s funeral was being held, rose in my mind.

She had looked exactly like this back then too.

“...”

Something was clenched in her hand.

The Plum Blossom Governance Sword.

She was gripping that old, battered sword.

Was she really okay?

Looking at her, she seemed fine.

She probably wasn’t.

I quietly sat down beside her.

I didn’t particularly like sitting on bare dirt, but for now, I had to.

Then I lifted a hand and awkwardly patted her shoulder.

“...You’re not okay. Probably not.”

This was unbelievably awkward.

I had hardly ever comforted anyone in my entire life.

‘Why the hell would you make me do this.’

In the letter Seongheon had left behind, he had written that I should please comfort Yuyeon.

He knew perfectly well that she used to get angry if I came anywhere near her, and now he wanted comfort?

I’d never thought he’d ask me to do something like this.

On top of that, part of me was thinking, Why the hell are you asking me to do this?

But I still had to do it.

I wasn’t doing it for free, after all.

That was what I was thinking as I patted Yuyeon’s shoulder.

“...”

Yuyeon looked at me quietly.

Was she telling me to stop?

That seemed possible, so I paused for a moment.

Then Yuyeon looked at my hand.

She stared at it, so I patted her shoulder again.

She kept watching the hand that was patting her.

Was it working?

Was it actually comforting her?

I had no idea.

Just as I was thinking it would be nice if it did—

Tap.

Yuyeon moved closer and buried her face in my shoulder, almost like she was clinging to me.

“...Mm...”

This hadn’t been part of the plan.

What now?

I glanced at Seongheon out of the corner of my eye, almost searching for help.

He was glaring at me with a furrowed brow.

What the hell was I supposed to do about that?

[You’re the one who made him do it, so what’s with that face?]

[Emotions are called emotions because they rarely move in neat lines.]

[For fuck’s sake, listen to the crap you’re saying. You’re embarrassing. Cut it out.]

[Urgh...]

Thank God Yoo Cheongil threw in a comment.

If he hadn’t, I might’ve died from the unfairness of it.

Anyway—

“...Mm...” 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

I patted Yuyeon’s back where she had pressed herself against me.

I didn’t even have time to think that this was the only thing I knew how to do.

Pat.

Pat.

While I sat there with the most awkward hands in the world—

‘Hm?’

I felt something against my chest.

Something wet.

No way.

“Are you crying?”

“...”

Was Yuyeon crying?

This one?

Crying?

I stared at her in shock.

As if she didn’t want to show her face, Yuyeon tightened her grip and pressed herself in harder.

“...Ugh...”

I could hear something.

“Ugh... hhk...”

[.......]

Seongheon looked at it with sorrow in his eyes.

“Kgh... ugh...”

Yuyeon, who hadn’t even been making a sound, finally let out a sob.

“Ah...”

[I’m sorry.]

Seongheon murmured words she couldn’t hear.

[I wanted to leave you something better than this. But I couldn’t.]

“Ugh...”

[Still... I’m grateful that I can leave behind a spring for you.]

“Hhk...”

“...”

I had no idea what I was supposed to do.

So all I could do was keep patting her.

[I was happy. Ridiculously so, far more than I deserved.]

Seongheon kept speaking.

It didn’t seem to matter whether Yuyeon could hear him or not.

[I hope the life ahead of you will be the same.]

He smiled.

A bitter smile.

I looked at him.

FSSSSS—!

Was this really enough?

Seongheon’s body slowly began to glow.

‘...Light.’

The light of passing on.

Had his lingering attachment not been all that deep to begin with?

If something this small was enough for him to cast it off and leave, then it had to mean his lingering attachment hadn’t been that great.

[Child.]

Seongheon looked at me.

Of course, I couldn’t answer him.

[Thank you.]

“...”

I nodded.

Honestly, I hadn’t really done much.

I’d just come over and patted her. That was all.

[So you’re going.]

Yoo Cheongil asked Seongheon that.

[I should. There’s nothing good that would come of staying here.]

Seongheon answered with a smile.

[I trust you know that as well.]

[Hmph...]

[Cheongil.]

[What.]

[Lingering attachment may be called the most meaningless thing there is... but I don’t think that anymore.]

FSSSSST—!

Seongheon’s body began to scatter.

The sight of it looked just like flower petals blowing away.

[All humans carry lingering attachments. And because they do, they’re able to decide what road they wish to walk.]

[Ha.]

At those words, Yoo Cheongil let out a dry laugh.

[And here I thought you said it was all meaningless. Did dying change your mind?]

[It did. I suppose dying is exactly what changed it.]

FSSSS—

The drifting petals brushed past Yuyeon like that.

“...”

Yuyeon, who had been crying, suddenly lifted her head from my chest.

She couldn’t see anything, but her gaze moved as though she were chasing something.

[If you intend to remain, that is your choice, so I won’t say anything about it.]

The petal drifted down and came to rest on the crown of Yuyeon’s head, swaying lightly.

Like a hand stroking her hair.

[But I hope you choose what you yourself believe is right. I was unable to do that.]

[.......]

Yuyeon looked into empty air.

At the exact place where Seongheon was.

‘...She shouldn’t be able to see him.’

How was Yuyeon looking right at the place where Seongheon was standing when she couldn’t see ghosts?

Was it just coincidence?

Just as the question surfaced—

[It is spring.]

Seongheon smiled as he looked at Yuyeon.

[My spring.]

[My spring indeed.]

And then all of him turned into petals and scattered away.

‘Spring?’

Why the hell was he suddenly talking about spring in this season?

I didn’t understand it.

And then—

FSSSSSS—!!

The petals surrounding Yuyeon suddenly flew toward me.

‘Hm?’

Why were they suddenly coming at me?

Before I could even be startled, the petals burrowed into my body.

...Burrowed in?

Wait.

SWIIISH—!!

“Ugh!?”

The petals seeped into my entire body like mist.

It didn’t feel like energy.

It wasn’t anything like that.

[I have nothing else to give you but this.]

Seongheon’s voice brushed past my ear.

[Please... use it well.]

“What...”

The petals were completely absorbed.

Judging from what Seongheon had said, it seemed intentional, but I had no idea what he had left behind.

I just sat there with a blank look on my face.

Then—

“...”

Yuyeon reacted.

The moment I saw her face, I burst out laughing without meaning to.

“Ha. Look at your eyes. They’re swollen as hell.”

“......”

Her eyes looked several times puffier than usual.

And while I was looking at them, unable to hold ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) back my laughter—

She shot to her feet.

Then she ran off somewhere.

“Huh? Hey!”

Where the hell was she going all of a sudden?

I couldn’t even stop her.

She was too fast.

“...What the hell was that?”

And she took the sword with her too.

Ha.

I scratched my cheek.

“...She’ll handle it herself, I guess?”

If she’d gone, there was no need to chase after her.

Thinking that, I nodded.

[.......]

At that moment, Yoo Cheongil was staring after Yuyeon as she ran off.

“We should go too.”

I’d done everything I’d been asked to do.

I moved to leave.

But Yoo Cheongil didn’t follow.

“Old man?”

[...Choose what you believe is right?]

Yoo Cheongil suddenly muttered to himself, then let out a faint laugh.

[Not one of us managed that. Crafty bastard, right to the very end.]

“What did you say?”

[Nothing.]

After saying that, Yoo Cheongil looked up into empty space.

[...Damn bastard.]

Who was he talking to?

I didn’t bother asking.

I already knew the answer.

*****

About a day later,

just one day after Seongheon’s funeral had been completed, trouble broke out in Mount Hua Sect.

“...The Plum Blossom Commander is dead?”

The news was that the Plum Blossom Commander had died in the underground prison.

The moment I heard it, I hurried straight to the prison.

It was true.

The Plum Blossom Commander’s breath had already stopped.

But—

“Suicide?”

“Yes... that’s right.”

“...The Plum Blossom Commander killed himself?”

I had to frown at that.

‘Suicide?’

He had taken his own life?

After hearing that, I examined the Plum Blossom Commander.

They said there were no signs that he’d resisted.

There was no trace of anyone having broken in, and no other strange signs either.

The more they investigated, the more everything pointed toward suicide.

But—

‘...Could it really be suicide?’

It felt wrong.

He hadn’t bitten through his tongue.

There were no bruises either.

Judging by the blood gathered at his wrist, it seemed he had killed himself with that.

‘There are bite marks.’

That meant he’d bitten through his own wrist and died.

‘Ha.’

Was that even possible?

No matter how insane the man was, could someone really die like that?

Had Seongheon’s death been that much of a shock?

No.

I was deeply skeptical about the Plum Blossom Commander’s death.

“So you’ve concluded that it was suicide.”

“...Yes.”

At Yeo Hyeok’s reply, I nodded and looked over the wall.

WHIRRRR

Energy was moving.

When I saw it, I narrowed my eyes.

Found it.

‘Spirit traces...’

Just as I thought.

Traces were scattered all over the place.

There weren’t really any marks on the Plum Blossom Commander’s body.

But that wasn’t the kind of trace I was looking at.

What I was seeing was on the ground.

‘...Tracks.’

I could see footprints.

Soul-marks that no one else would be able to see.

And that meant only one thing.

‘Murder.’

The Plum Blossom Commander had not taken his own life.

Someone had come here, killed him, and left.

Which meant—

‘...A master who can come and go while evading Mount Hua Sect’s guards.’

Strange Demon?

He seemed capable of it.

‘The problem is how it was made to look like suicide.’

That arrangement around the scene was the issue.

Right as that question surfaced—

[That bastard.]

Yoo Cheongil spoke with a hard expression.

‘That bastard?’

Who?

Yoo Cheongil was looking at the Plum Blossom Commander like he’d noticed something.

[There aren’t many people in the Central Plains capable of this kind of thing. But among them, only one can do it this naturally.]

Only one.

[The Dark Sovereign.]

“......!”

[No matter how I look at it, this seems to be his work.]

The moment the name left Yoo Cheongil’s mouth, my eyes widened.