Guardian spirit.

As far as I know, it’s just about the only kind of spirit that’s actually helpful.

Most ghosts linger in the world because they’re stuck on resentment or attachment and can’t cross over.

Among those, the ones called guardian spirits are usually people whose attachments or grudges are comparatively sound.

Someone who died at another’s hand and hardened into resentment.

Or someone with too many unfinished things left behind, so attachment held them.

Not that. In most cases they stay for one reason: a heart that wants to protect someone.

Because that intention is bright and clean, guardian spirits aren’t classified as “ghosts.”

Only a heart that truly, fiercely wants to protect can keep you from becoming a ghost and let you become a guardian spirit.

Besides, among people who carry guardian spirits, you won’t find the wicked.

The thing itself can’t be wicked, and it even stops the person who carries it from becoming wicked.

You could call it the exact opposite of a vengeful ghost.

So, if you press the logic, I think of them as beings with high spiritual power and presence—like a mountain spirit or a local earth spirit.

‘Well, would you look at that?’

I was looking at the presence behind Do Hyeong—

Something I took to be his guardian deity—and had to quietly break into a cold sweat.

To the eye it didn’t look human. Its form wasn’t intact; if anything, it drifted around Do Hyeong in a soft glow like will-o’-the-wisps.

‘Why is a guardian spirit ranked like that...?’

It was the same when I first noticed it, but every time I looked, it astonished me.

Normally, nine times out of ten a guardian spirit is immediate family.

An orphaned child whose parents died, or someone’s last remaining blood—those are the usual cases.

And in those cases, the spirit that attaches as a guardian isn’t all that extraordinary.

To become a guardian spirit, the will to protect has to outweigh the weight of the spirit’s own presence.

Which is to say—

‘The stronger the soul itself is, the harder it is to become a guardian spirit.’

So what on earth is that?

I held back a low groan as I [N O V E L I G H T] watched the light.

‘That’s a mountain spirit at the very least.’

Do Hyeong’s guardian isn’t just a guardian spirit.

I’ve never seen one that tremendous.

At minimum, a mountain spirit—or a general.

Whatever it is, it’s not the kind of existence that should be staying on as a mere guardian spirit.

And yet—

‘How is it possible?’

The thing behind Do Hyeong was managing it.

Guardian spirits aren’t common, but it’s not like I’ve never seen them, and I’ve seen more than a few.

In all that, a guardian spirit of that level? I’ve never seen or heard of such a specimen.

Which is why—

‘I have to take him with me somehow.’

From the moment I discovered Do Hyeong—no, precisely, from the moment I confirmed that old spirit—I set my mind.

I was taking that guy.

One way or another.

‘With a guardian spirit like that...’

You get wealth falling into your lap for standing still, and you live even if the sky collapses.

With a mountain-spirit-class guardian, that was possible.

‘So yes, that’s a miracle.’

Just traveling together with it would be an overwhelming help.

A supreme good-luck talisman.

There was no way I was letting go of Do Hyeong.

I slid my gaze off the guardian spirit and spoke to him.

“So, have you given it some thought?”

“...”

When I asked with a smile, he nodded with a blank face.

Right after I’d invited Cheon Eujin to join the Sichuan trip, I’d gone straight to find Do Hyeong.

Obviously to ask him to come to Sichuan with us.

He’d looked flustered then and asked me for a little time to think.

I took that as a yes.

At least it wasn’t a refusal.

“Bang Sungyeon.”

“Yes.”

I answered when he spoke. He addressed me without formality, but I didn’t read much into it.

I’m in the Small Moon Unit now.

Originally I was the Sword Saint’s disciple, so there could be allocation issues, but...

‘Didn’t they say the Small Moon Unit doesn’t care about that?’

The Small Moon Unit is different.

They said rank is set strictly by the order you enter, allocation be damned.

In other words, if you don’t like it, you should have joined earlier.

Honestly, I didn’t care either way.

“Please speak, senior.”

The times I’ve brought up allocation were to break a stuck situation, not because I intended to lean on it for real.

At that even response, the corners of Do Hyeong’s eyes moved a hair.

“I thought about it a day, but I still don’t understand.”

“What part?”

“Why me?”

There are plenty of seniors. Why ask the former youngest to go in the middle of all that?

It seemed he couldn’t make sense of it.

A fair question, truly.

“That—do you remember the first time we met, senior?”

I’d prepared this answer a while back.

“Do you remember it?”

“I do.”

“...”

“...”

After a few exchanges, I was sure.

‘This one’s not easy.’

He was like that when I first suggested going together, too. The man talks far less than I expected.

The fortunate thing is, it doesn’t feel like he’s refusing to speak because he dislikes me.

“...That time—hm, should I say your presence felt good, senior?”

“...?”

He tilted his head, not understanding.

My presence felt good? No chance—that kind of face.

‘Great.’

He’s painfully objective about himself.

People like that are even more annoying to deal with.

“...I don’t get it.”

“...Then maybe ‘comfortable’ is a little closer to right.”

“What was?”

“Young Master Cheon. And you, senior. You two were pretty much the only ones who didn’t discriminate against me.”

“...”

“Right?”

His eyes narrowed at my words.

It was true. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

In fact, only Cheon Eujin and Do Hyeong refrained from doing anything strange to me; only they treated me like a normal person...

Huh.

‘...Thinking of it that way kind of stings, doesn’t it?’

A sadness I couldn’t name rose up, and I pressed it down.

Cheon Eujin could be chalked up to having good feelings about me because of what happened in Anhui, and Do Hyeong—well, with a guardian spirit, he didn’t seem like the type to be rotten.

‘...And everyone else?’

At the passing thought, I almost dragged a hand up my face.

It cut deeper than I expected.

Anyway.

“Since we have a mission now... if possible, I wanted to go with people like that. Is that asking too much?”

“...”

“N-no. If it would burden you or you don’t want to, senior... I-I’ll look for someone else.”

I looked at him with a fairly sorrowful face.

“Even if... another senior comes... of course they’ll hate me... so it’ll be a miserable mission, but I’ll be fine...”

“...”

“I’ll spend the whole mission walking on eggshells, barely able to eat, can’t even take a dump or sleep properly, but really, I’ll be—”

“...Enough...”

He raised a hand and cut me off. Then—

“...I’ll go.”

“Thank you, senior.”

I grinned the instant he answered.

As expected.

‘People with guardian spirits are all kind.’

Put another way, they’re pushovers.

Every person I’ve met with a guardian spirit has been like that.

And of course, so was Do Hyeong.

“I’ll file the report at once that you’re joining the mission, senior.”

“...Are you sure this is fine? It’s a long-range mission; I can’t imagine they’d allow it without seniors along...”

“It’s fine. As I said before, I already have permission.”

It’s what the Moonlit Sword sanctioned. When I said so, his mouth pressed shut.

When the highest authority has granted it, what can you do?

‘Though, as he said, it’s a little worrying...’

We’ll be fine without seniors. That’s exactly why I want Do Hyeong along.

A mountain-spirit-class guardian? With that alone, there’s no danger. I was certain.

If he wants something, he’ll get it even if the sky splits in two.

Even if he’s tied to a cliff and thrown off, a miracle will happen.

That guardian spirit is that kind of existence.

‘...I have to stick to him.’

Not just stick to him—if I tie him close and keep him by my side, it’s the best.

“In any case... since you’ve agreed, senior, I’ll see you when the schedule lines up.”

“...”

He nodded again with that same odd expression.

****

On my way after finishing the talk with Do Hyeong, Yoo Cheongil asked me a question.

[Is it that good for you? Going with that fellow, Do Hyeong?]

He sounded like he didn’t get it. I smiled and answered.

“Yes. It’s good.”

How could it not be?

[Hmm.]

“Strictly speaking, it’s not Do Hyeong—it’s the thing attached behind him that makes it good.”

[That fellow you called a guardian spirit?]

“Yes.”

[Is that so great?]

“Of course.”

Great and then some.

‘I’ve gotten my hands on a good-luck talisman that beggars belief.’

Of the recent gains—the Blue Moon Pill, the black iron sword, and so on—this might be the biggest haul of all.

“It settles the unease by a fair bit.”

[...Heh-heh.]

“I suffered enough heartburn thanks to a certain vengeful ghost... I feel a bit better now.”

[That wouldn’t be me, would it?]

“Who else? I was sick to death of it... whew...”

I steadied my breath like I’d barely lived through it.

[Hah, look at this brat.]

He let out a dry laugh at the sight.

At the same time, he said to me,

[So—this is fine?]

“What is?”

[You told me to be careful so you don’t get tangled with other ghosts, but you seem to be walking fine right in front of that one.]

“Ah. That.”

So that’s what he meant? I picked my ear with my pinky and answered.

“That one’s fine.”

[Why?]

“Because a guardian spirit can’t interfere with anything else.”

[Mm? What do you mean by that?]

“Exactly what it sounds like.”

Literally.

A guardian spirit can’t intervene in anything except for the one it protects.

It can’t speak to other beings.

It can spend power to protect its charge, but it can’t step forward on its own to do something else.

That’s why I called it a good-luck talisman.

‘A guardian spirit can’t do anything to me just because it recognizes me.’

As long as I don’t display malice toward Do Hyeong, the guardian spirit will let most things pass.

Moreover—

‘The moment I so much as help Do Hyeong, it’ll see me in a favorable light.’

Maybe not look kindly on me for massive help, but at least it won’t see me badly.

[...Heh-heh.]

Hearing that, Yoo Cheongil sounded faintly bemused.

[Boy, your belief is oddly unshakable.]

His voice carried clear puzzlement.

Understandable. Even I think it’s odd.

But—

‘That’s what guardian spirits are.’

As he said, I was certain.

The guardian spirits who exist as spirits to protect someone.

And the ones who receive that protection.

Both of them—

‘People so straight they’re almost stupid.’

People who had thrown down their lives for someone else.

At least—

‘Every one I’ve seen was like that.’

Without a single exception.

Truly...

Not a single exception.

“...”

I frowned. Something I didn’t want to think about surfaced.

“Tsk...”

I clicked my tongue and started walking again.

What mattered, anyway, was that I’d gotten a good-luck talisman.

I was turning my thoughts toward that when—

“Oh, right. Old man.”

[Mm?]

Something struck me, so I spoke to Yoo Cheongil.

“This time, I narrowed down a few suspects.”

[Mm? Narrowed down what?]

“The people I think may be connected to your death.”

[Ah...]

At my words, he looked blank.

[Right. There was that, too.]

“...?”

[Kekek. I forgot for a moment.]

‘Wow...’

Is he actually crazy?

Forgetting about his own death, of all things? Dumbfounding.

[I’ve been a bit busy lately, that’s all.]

He tried to explain, sounding sheepish, but there’s no way that covers it.

[Quit glaring and just say it. Who are they?]

He was obviously changing the subject, but I was too lazy to dig.

“...It’s conjecture, but I’ve whittled it down to roughly four.”

[Oh.]

Seeing his attitude, I didn’t particularly want to tell him...

But I had to say it anyway.

“Two among the Elders. One from the internal staff. And lastly—”

I said it with a flat face.

“The Moonlit Sword, the Sect Master.”

Those were the suspects, as I see it, for the ones who killed the Sword Saint.