Chapter 14

Chapter 14:

“Wei Yan-ho.”

Baek Mu-han called out to Wei Yan-ho softly.

“Ah, just let me sleep a little longer.”

Wei Yan-ho’s liver was practically hanging outside his body.

Recently, Wei Yan-ho had become strong enough to surpass Baek Mu-han’s violence.

Baek Mu-han had weakened, and Wei Yan-ho had grown stronger.

Finally, as Wei Yan-ho escaped from Baek Mu-han’s torment, his lost laziness slowly returned.

“Wei Yan-ho.”

“Geez, I said just a little longer. Don’t you trust me?”

By now, a rock would come flying. Having been tormented by Baek Mu-han countless times, Wei Yan-ho could easily predict this.

Wei Yan-ho prepared to dodge the incoming stone.

“Come here.”

But Baek Mu-han gently coaxed Wei Yan-ho.

“Huh?”

Wei Yan-ho got up from his spot without question. He had a strange premonition. Baek Mu-han was somehow different from usual.

As he raised his body, Baek Mu-han sat in meditation posture before him.

“What’s wrong?”

Baek Mu-han smiled and pointed to the space in front of him.

“Sit down.”

At those words, Wei Yan-ho knelt and sat before Baek Mu-han. Today, Baek Mu-han’s words carried an energy that was hard to resist.

“Listen carefully to what I say.”

“Yes.”

“I have spent my entire life learning martial arts.”

“…”

“My only wish was to see the end of martial arts. So I didn’t care about anything else besides martial arts. In my pursuit of martial arts, I became an eccentric old man, and even my family came to regard me with suspicion.”

“That sounds about right.”

“Want to get hit?”

“No.”

The kindness that had momentarily bloomed on Baek Mu-han’s face disappeared, and his usual demonic expression appeared.

‘There it is.’

Where would this person go?

This was the man who had tormented Wei Yan-ho to death for the past five years.

“Come to think of it, it was natural that my family didn’t come looking for me. Considering what I had done. I ignored my children before martial arts and abandoned my family. I thought that if I could see the end of martial arts, everything would be achieved. But that wasn’t the case. Martial arts is also something humans do, so what use is seeing the end of the sword without walking the human path?”

“…”

Baek Mu-han looked at Wei Yan-ho and smiled.

Wei Yan-ho had made him realize this.

For the first time, he had tried teaching someone. He got angry and irritated.

But watching Wei Yan-ho gradually improve, he felt joy and learned happiness. And he came to understand what affection truly was.

“I was foolish. That’s why I didn’t teach you the Light Sword Style.”

“Then what have I been learning all this time?”

“I created a framework for you.”

“Framework?”

“I gave you the framework I used to create the Twelve Paths of Light Sword. Martial arts is also something humans display. If that person isn’t contained within it, it’s just an empty shell. I gave you the framework. So you must put yourself into that framework.”

“I don’t really understand what you mean.”

To the confused Wei Yan-ho, Baek Mu-han simply sent a smile.

That kind smile, like one looking at a grandson, somehow made Wei Yan-ho’s heart uneasy.

“You don’t need to understand yet.”

“Then I haven’t really gotten that strong?”

“That’s not it!”

“…”

“A disciple of Mad Sword being weak! What nonsense! Do you think I’d stand for such a thing?”

“But you said you regret your eccentric personality?”

“Be quiet!”

Wei Yan-ho flinched and closed his mouth.

A person’s nature doesn’t change.

Words are one thing, but to change that personality, it would be faster to be reborn.

“Anyway, I created a framework for you. It’s now your job to put your life into it and create martial arts.”

“You’re talking like you’re about to stop seeing me now.”

Baek Mu-han smiled.

Wei Yan-ho felt strange seeing that smile. He and Baek Mu-han had been together for five years already. He had seen countless expressions during that time, but this was the first time he saw Baek Mu-han smile like that.

Kind yet melancholy. And while it seemed to put one’s heart at ease, it somehow made him anxious—that kind of smile.

That’s exactly what Baek Mu-han’s smile was like now.

“Yes, now it’s time.”

Wei Yan-ho’s face hardened like stone.

“What do you mean by that?”

Wei Yan-ho shook his head and chuckled. His movement somehow looked desperate.

“Master, you really joke too much. Do you think I’d fall for that?”

Baek Mu-han just smiled broadly without saying anything.

“Really?”

“That’s right.”

“You said thirty years! You said at first that I’d need to learn for thirty years! There are still twenty-five years left! You should live for twenty-five more years!”

“Yes, that could have been the case.”

“Then that’s fine. No, maybe it’s better this way. If I spent twenty-five more years with Master, I might die of exhaustion.”

Wei Yan-ho shook his head, but undisguised anxiety appeared on his face.

Baek Mu-han wasn’t someone who would make up stories for jokes.

“Wei Yan-ho.”

“There’s still time left! You said you’d keep any word that came out of your mouth no matter what! Then there are still twenty-five years left!”

“That’s right.”

“So!”

“Controlling your Internal Energy within your body wasn’t as easy as I thought.”

“…”

“Now my strength is exhausted. Now it’s time for us to part.”

“Is it because of me?”

Wei Yan-ho’s voice trembled.

“No. Don’t think that way. It’s fate. Actually, even talking with you like this goes against the natural order. I’ll have to pay the price for that.”

“Don’t talk about natural order or anything like that. If that’s the natural order, it’s fine to break it as much as you want.”

“I see.”

“I’ll go outside. I’ll go out and eat a lot and inject Internal Energy into you.”

“Just the words are enough.”

“I can do it! Don’t you think I can?”

Baek Mu-han smiled broadly.

“You know it’s impossible… don’t you?”

“…”

“Now it’s done.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

Moisture seeped into Wei Yan-ho’s voice.

“If you had told me, I would have gone out and eaten well and trained long ago! I couldn’t escape anyway!”

Baek Mu-han shook his head.

“It’s fine.”

“What’s fine!”

Mad Sword smiled broadly watching the furious Wei Yan-ho.

“I enjoyed the time I spent with you.”

“…”

“So I thought it wouldn’t be bad to disappear like this. If I had done that, I could have bought a little more time, but it wouldn’t have been this enjoyable.”

“That’s strange talk.”

“Yes, it’s strange. I also wanted to watch you journey through the world a little longer. But this is fine too.”

“What’s fine?”

“Because I can already see it.”

“…”

“I can already clearly see you roaming freely through the world.”

“No. Without Master, I’ll just lock myself in my room and not come out.”

“So what?”

Baek Mu-han’s smile deepened.

“That’s still fine. No matter where you are or what you do, the fact that you’re the proud disciple of this Mad Sword Baek Mu-han won’t change.”

“…Master.”

“Wei Yan-ho.”

“Yes.”

“Look at the world. Contain the world within yourself. Then everything else will naturally follow.”

“Yes.”

“And look at people before the world. I looked too high and failed to see what was at my feet. Don’t make the same mistake I did.”

“I understand.”

Baek Mu-han looked at Wei Yan-ho with warm eyes.

“Don’t forget.”

“…”

“I live within you. Even if I can never see you again, even if no one in the world knows of my existence… I am contained in every gesture you make, every sword technique you perform. So even when we part, we’re not really parting. Wei Yan-ho, look at people and roam the world to complete yourself. You don’t need to be outstanding. You don’t need to be great. Just…”

Baek Mu-han’s smile was infinitely gentle.

“Be happy.”

“Master…”

Baek Mu-han’s form began to fade.

“No! This isn’t right! This isn’t right! You can’t leave already!”

Baek Mu-han didn’t answer.

He just quietly closed his eyes with a gentle smile on his lips.

“No! I said no! You can’t do this already! I still have so much to learn! No, I don’t need to learn! I’m saying you don’t need to teach me anymore! So! So just a little more! Even one more day!”

Eventually, Baek Mu-han’s form completely disappeared.

Wei Yan-ho reached out unconsciously to grasp the empty air where Baek Mu-han had been, knowing it couldn’t be caught.

“Just a little more…”

The cold cave air enveloped Wei Yan-ho’s body.

Wei Yan-ho stood there silently for a long time, staring at the empty air and his own hand that had caught nothing.

The mouth of Wei Yan-ho, who had been frozen like a statue, slowly opened.

“It would have been nice if you’d told me a little earlier.”

If it hadn’t been today, if you had told me even yesterday, I could have prepared my heart.

“Tormenting me to the very end… That’s why people called you eccentric.”

Wei Yan-ho looked at the cave wall.

The traces of sword strikes Wei Yan-ho had made while training.

The traces Baek Mu-han had made while demonstrating.

And the places where stones were embedded, created from beating Wei Yan-ho.

Wei Yan-ho slowly approached the wall and stroked the deeply carved spots.

“What am I supposed to do if this is all you left behind?”

Wei Yan-ho sighed.

He really was someone who, even searching with washed eyes, had no consideration. Actually, speaking truthfully, how much torment had he endured during this time? He should feel refreshed instead.

“What am I supposed to do…”

But strangely, his eyes kept reddening.

“Master…”

Tears finally flowed from Wei Yan-ho’s eyes.

Once the tears started, they didn’t stop easily and flowed and flowed again. As if to wash away all the time they had spent together.

Wei Yan-ho stayed in the cave for three more days like that.

Even knowing he had to leave now, his steps wouldn’t come easily. He felt that if he left this place, even the fact that Baek Mu-han had been here would disappear from his heart, so he couldn’t easily take a step.

But he couldn’t stay forever. Wei Yan-ho finally stood up.

Now it was time to leave this place.

Wei Yan-ho shouldered the bundle he had originally brought and turned his head.

“I’m going.”

But there was no answer.

“I’m going to go and rest comfortably from now on.”

Wei Yan-ho’s monologue continued.

“So don’t nag me for not getting up. Don’t scold me for sleeping too much, and don’t curse me for being lazy. This is all because Master used too much strength carelessly and disappeared.”

For a moment, he felt like Baek Mu-han was smiling broadly.

“I’m not coming back.”

Of course, no answer came.

“I’m serious.”

Then, like a phantom, Baek Mu-han’s voice was heard.

— So what? Aren’t we together?

I know.

This isn’t Baek Mu-han’s voice.

It was Baek Mu-han’s answer that Wei Yan-ho had created.

Wei Yan-ho smiled.

“Well, that’s true.”