Chapter 247. Within Ten Paces, You’ll Find A Fragrant Flower (18)
Everything was unfamiliar to Cho-Ah.
A new place.
A new father, a new mother, a new... older brother.
New older sisters and many other people who greeted her warmly and treated her with the utmost care.
Everything was different from the world she had known, the world that had always been cold to her and tormented her in every way imaginable.
The only one who had ever treated her like this was Seob Un-Ha, and not a single other person.
That was why she felt even more resentful and wronged.
‘This is what ordinary people’s lives are like. Everyone else got to live happily like this, with the love of their parents and the consideration of those around them. So why, why did I...’
But she did her best to suppress those feelings. If she were to think of the past negatively like this, she was worried that her memories with Seob Un-Ha would also darken.
‘The Blood Cloud... Devil Emperor. My dear big brother killed so many people... no. I don’t want to believe it. No, I don’t care. I don’t. To me, he was the warmest, the kindest big brother.’
She repeated those resentful thoughts of the world hundreds of times a day before changing her mind over and over.
Knowing how she felt, the others respected her space as much as possible. Right now, she needed some space to think. Then, as one day passed, two days, a month... Cho-Ah would open her heart up, little by little.
It was inevitable.
People ultimately want a warm and bright place where they can rest comfortably. No one truly desires darkness; nobody truly wants to live a cold life. People who think so are not just deluding themselves, but abusing themselves.
Cho-Ah had never lived a normal life before, but there were still some things she could recognize.
The Song Family.
She could recognize that the Song Family was quite unique and interesting. Well, that was very mildly put. In fact, they were a motley crew of proper eccentrics.
First, their patriarch, the Palm Martial Emperor Baek Sang-Woon, who was now Cho-Ah’s grandfather.
Needless to say, his eccentricity had been famous throughout the murim for quite some time. His odd way of being, shit-eating grin, and reckless behavior made it hard for anyone to reconcile his image with that of an Absolute Master who was over a hundred years old.
Then, there was Song Dae-Woong.
He used to be the owner of some rural inn, but from what she’d heard, he was apparently the successor of a mysterious and powerful sect when he was younger. While he looked scary, blunt, and simple from the outside, that couldn’t be further from the truth. The closer they got, the more he talked and cried.
Above all, he was timid. Moreover, he was so prone to jealousy that he would easily get upset if Cho-Ah was taking care of Jin-Jin more or showed more signs of affection toward her than toward him.
On the surface Jin-Jin seemed the most normal, yet... even this normal person was a straightforward and brash brawler. Never mind scolding her children or husband; she would even tell her own father to kick dirt when she was angry! Cho-Ah felt that she had to tread lightly around her.
As for Song Woo-Moon... She still wasn’t sure. Every time, she saw a different side of him.
What was clear was that although he seemed quite strong on the outside, he was actually quite a delicate person. And after getting to know him some more, it was clear that he had a very... strong will.[1]
On top of it all, even though he was known as a hero in the murim and he did in fact care about justice and whatnot, he clearly cared far more about his family than about anything else.
‘He would probably slaughter the entire murim twice over if it meant that he could save his family. Well... Am I part of his family? For some reason, he looks very reliable....’
Even worse, Woo-Moon’s wives included the Heavenly Demon Yeon Si-Hyeon, the Death God Ma-Ra, and the Divine Maiden of the North Sea Yeo-Seol.
It was a truly complicated and interesting family.
‘Oh, that’s right. Since Ma-Ra and Yeo-Seol’s wedding is in five days, I can’t say they’re his wives yet.’
Cho-Ah trained martial arts with Yu Yu and Gyeong Mu-Gi in the mornings, following Woo-Moon’s recommendation. He thought it would be better for her to focus on a concrete goal and interact with people of a similar age than to just lie still in her room.
In the mornings, she trained in martial arts, and in the afternoons, she studied under Faceless One, the most learned person in the Heavenly Demon Cult.[2]
While Gyeong Mu-Gi and Yu Yu were also supposed to learn together with her, they often skipped out on their academic studies.
“So you’ve come, Miss. Then, let’s get started.”
“Yes.”
Cho-Ah was amazed.
When she was young, she had heard that the Heavenly Demon Cult was scarier than the Blood Cult and that all cultists of the Heavenly Demon Cult were like evil demons. As it turned out, in reality, it couldn’t be further from the truth.
Although they were indeed brutal warriors and some of their basic principles made them quite different from ordinary people, in other ways, they were rather pure.
“To love learning is akin to knowledge; to study diligently is akin to benevolence; to know shame is akin to courage.”[3]
Cho-Ah carefully moved her brush while listening to Faceless One’s explanation.
She was having fun. It was fun to train in martial arts and move her body, but it was even more fun to learn and discover things she didn’t know before.
A few hours later, Faceless One smiled and said her farewells.
“As expected, you are quite the perspicacious young lady. Thank you for kindly listening to my teachings, Miss. Have a good day.”
Cho-Ah still wasn’t used to the polite mannerisms of the Heavenly Demon Cult members. She had been a slave all her life, so it wasn’t easy for her to adapt to people treating her like... well... a person.
“Y-yes.”
But Cho-Ah liked this life. How could she not?
The days were peaceful, warm, and filled with a love that she had never felt before.
And as she wrapped up her papers and emerged from the study room, she noticed that the Heavenly Demon Cult was beginning to grow busy.
Of course, that was because Woo-Moon, Ma-Ra, and Yeo-Seol were getting married in five days.
The Heavenly Demon Cult itself had nothing to do with the wedding, but because of their relationship with Woo-Moon’s first wife, they stepped forward and helped as if one of their own was getting married. Of course, part of it also stemmed from a desire to strengthen their bond with Woo-Moon as much as possible.
“Nuna!”
Cho-Ah had lived through incredibly hard times since childhood, yet although she had lived twenty years before she was frozen in ice for another forty, she still only looked as if she was sixteen.
That was why it felt a little strange when Gyeong Mu-Gi suddenly appeared from behind her and surprised her by calling her “Nuna.”
“Kyaaa!”
When someone suddenly appeared behind her and grabbed her tightly by the shoulder, she was instantly brought back to the past, and trauma hit like a brick. The person who had tormented her the most, the leader of the Blood Cult, came to mind.
As she dropped to the ground, shivering, Gyeong Mu-Gi panicked.
“Huh? N-nuna, I’m sorry...”
At that moment, a beautiful woman wearing a flower gown appeared behind Gyeong Mu-Gi.
Bam!
Ma-Ra first smacked Gyeong Mu-Gi, then proceeded to scold him.
“You reckless idiot, I can tell you’re Woo-Moon’s pupil! Like master, like student. Be careful!”
“Oww.... Sorry, I’m sorry!” Gyeong Mu-Gi answered with a tearful face. He really did seem to be very sorry as he kept glancing at Cho-Ah.
“I-it’s okay. I’m okay. It was my fault.”
Ma-Ra frowned slightly. Cho-Ah was still in the habit of saying everything was her fault. Ma-Ra felt pity as she saw her like that.
‘She should be scolding Mu-Gi at a time like this...’
Such is the slave mentality. When you’re used to being treated as the lowest scum all your life, it’s hard to change within the short span of a month.
But as long as everyone continued to love her, things would definitely change in the future.
Cho-Ah wiped her tears, “Hey, your wedding is in five days. You must have a lot to prepare. Is it really okay for you to stay here and concern yourself with this?”
Ma-Ra’s cheeks puffed out. It seemed like there were many things she wasn’t fond of.
“It’s annoying. They keep bothering me. That’s why I ran away.”
Cho-Ah smiled bashfully at Ma-Ra, thinking she was adorable.
Ma-Ra proceeded to grab her by the arm and drag her over to the market, where they spent hours eating sweets and buying accessories. Of course, Ma-Ra wasn’t that fond of that kind of thing, but she did her best to enjoy it for Cho-Ah’s sake.
Seeing these two young women smile and laugh together, the men in the market were so happy that they even shed tears, saying that they must have accumulated good karma in their past three lifetimes if they could see such beauties even once.
***
All this time, there was someone who was hovering around Cho-Ah, peeking at her.
It was none other than Ah Sam, the leader of the Song Family guards.
After arduous training, Ah Sam was reaching the pinnacle of the Peak stage, but he had absolutely no thoughts of slacking off and enjoying the fruits of his cultivation. On the contrary, the higher he got, the more diligently he worked.
Yet in the midst of his harsh training, Woo-Moon returned with a girl named Cho-Ah.
Since the moment he first saw her, Ah Sam hadn’t been able to sleep properly, even once. She came to mind when he trained, and she came to mind when he didn’t. He dreamed of her when he slept... and even when he was awake.
The sight of her looking around in fear, her pretty eyes filled with sadness and anxiety, stimulated Ah Sam’s protective instincts and set the heart of the honest young man, which had never fixated on a woman before, on fire.
However, Ah Sam couldn’t approach her.
She had been adopted by Dae-Woong and Jin-Jin and was now his master’s younger sister. Therefore, she was someone he could never approach.
And thus began his life of worry.
***
When evening came, the Song Family and the Heavenly Demon Cult’s congratulatory delegation headed for the Baek Family’s estate.
Although Woo-Moon had promised to live in the Heavenly Demon Cult for some time, he wanted to hold this wedding at his family residence, at the Iron Sword Baek Family estate. Thus, the Heavenly Demon Cult was considerate and stepped aside.
In a way, this was a family trip that had been coming for a long time.
They forgot about the confrontation with Martial Heaven and the Martial Heaven God, their terrifying opponents, and enjoyed the happy trip.
When they arrived at the Baek Family Estate after three days, everyone in the Baek Family came out to welcome the Song Family and the Heavenly Demon Cult. Clearly, the relationship between the Heavenly Demon Cult and the Righteous Faction and other martial sects had improved tremendously.
And thus, the joyous day finally arrived.
***
“Agk, how infuriating! It’s all so infuriating!”
Jeong Gyeong was throwing a fit over nothing again. This had been going on from the moment they had left the North Sea Ice Palace and all the way to where they were now.
In the meantime, Yu Cho, who had grown a beard and looked rather manly and dignified, tried to comfort his wife.
“We’ll be there soon, so let’s calm down a little, dear.”
“Calm down? How can I calm down?!”
Jeong Gyeong, whose anger and annoyance grew worse the closer she got to the Baek Family estate, finally spoke her true thoughts.
“That damned bitch Ha Yeo-Seol had the luck of meeting one good man and she’s now even stronger than me. And she’s going to be the next Palace Master! How the hell am I supposed to calm down?! Just who would have thought that damned attendant would become the great Zenith Realm Undefeatable Sword Immortal?!”
Crack!
Yu Cho ground his teeth.
While he obviously didn’t feel good about being chosen to be a member of the North Sea Ice Palace’s congratulatory delegation to congratulate the Song Family’s new marriage, hearing such words from his wife made him incredibly furious.
When he subconsciously raised his fist without even realizing it, a cold voice drifted over, causing them to freeze.
“Stop showing such ugly sides of yourselves.”
Yu Cho and Jeong Gyeong came to their senses at the sound of the Otherworldly Ice Fairy Ah Hee’s voice, and immediately felt massive embarrassment. Considering how loud their fight was, they knew that everyone else must have heard.
‘Yeah, it’s all because of that bitch Ha Yeo-Seol. If it weren’t for her, I might have gotten along with Song Woo-Moon back then. Then I could’ve been the wife of the Undefeatable Sword Immortal! So why?! Why?! Why have things turned out this way?!’
Yu Cho was gnashing his teeth, just like his wife.
‘It’s all because of that bastard Song Woo-Moon. That bastard stole Ha Yeo-Seol from me and ruined my life. To think on top of that, that bastard... that bastard even has good parents and even went so far as to luck his way into becoming a Zenith. Just why does heaven help a bastard like that? Why am I abandoned like this?!’
1. Nice-people-speak in Korean for being incredibly stubborn. ☜
2. A reference to the Chang Hen Ge, a famed Tang Dynasty poem by the Poet Bai Juyi. Basically, the word now means "one who cannot hold their face up due to shame" and is a common title to the holder of records of an organization in a pseudo-shamanic sense. It only refers to women and has a hint of mysticism to it. ☜
3. A famous quote of Confucius. It is one of the prime tenets of Confucianism and one of the main hanmun (classical Chinese used in Korea) phrases that are taught early in Korean education. Much of the East’s collectivist mindset is attributed to this and a few other Confucian ideals. ☜