ALL NOVEL – Cheon Mu-myeong
I occasionally come down from the mountain where I stay with my Master and head to the nearby village.
When I say nearby, the distance between the mountain where my Master resides and the village is about five days’ journey if I run non-stop.
Even though I’ve been training hard under my Master’s teachings, it still takes a considerable amount of time, so unless I want to make the trip, I have to pick the right timing.
Today seems to be one of those rare occasions when it’s a good time to visit the village.
My Master begins her daily routine with mana breathing.
In front of her, it’s more accurately called “unqi josik,” but if I mistakenly call it mana breathing, she immediately gets angry and says, “No! It’s ‘unqi josik’!”
But what can I say? Even though I’ve learned from her for a long time, I’m still used to saying mana breathing.
My Master is just peculiar; what’s this “unqi josik”?
I haven’t lived a long life, but it’s the first time I’ve ever heard such a term.
Anyway, as a disciple who has received teachings from my Master, I usually start my day with mana breathing, however, there are times when my Master goes into a trance, forgetting to sleep, and practices mana breathing for several days.
Back when I didn’t know any better, I once thought my Master had abandoned me when she didn’t return to the hut till nightfall, and I ended up balling my eyes out for days.
Two weeks later, she returned to the hut as if nothing had happened and asked me, “Why were you crying?”
After seeing my Master for the first time in days, I couldn’t even cry anymore, just snot and drool everywhere as I told her I thought I was abandoned.
Only then did my Master realize she had been gone for a long time and told me to come to the mountain’s peak if she didn’t return for a while.
After that incident, as the seasons changed and the cold weather melted away, flowers started to bloom, and my Master again didn’t come back until late at night.
So, I found myself carrying food for her and heading towards the peak, where she told me to look for her.
What I saw that day is still etched in my memory, tickling my heart.
It was truly a beautiful sight.
My Master was sitting cross-legged on top of a high rock, backlit by the moonlight, and her figure looked like something straight out of a fairy tale my mother used to read to me, leaving me entranced.
My Master’s butt wasn’t even touching the rock as she floated in the air, her body usually wrapped in a dark red aura during mana breathing now radiated a prismatic halo above her head.
Her eyes were gone, staring blankly into the void, while her mouth moved faster than I could comprehend, producing a melody more beautiful than any song, rather than hurtful noise.
I wonder how long I just stood there, watching. I instinctively felt I shouldn’t disturb my Master as I packed my things and headed back to the hut.
That day, what I etched in my heart wasn’t the profound awe I felt the first time I saw my Master.
Rather than a rigid and sharp emotion, it was a softer, rounder feeling.
I opened my eyes and remembered that beautiful moment with joy, but that didn’t help me advance towards my goal.
I could recall the idea of my goal, but since I never forgot it even for a moment, it’s time to work for my Master now.
The reason I head to the village is simple.
First, to make my Master’s life a little more comfortable, and second, to gather information by listening to stories from the bustling village.
About five months ago when I last visited the village, I heard stories about a prophecy that predicted a saint would be found, but I didn’t tell my Master.
There’s a reason for that.
One saint and one hero exist in a single generation; this means there has never been a generation without a saint or hero.
Thus, finding a saint isn’t something I consider big enough to share directly with my Master.
Wrapping mana around my body, I hurried on my way to the village.
“I hope I find something useful this time.”
I really wish I could bring something back that would help my Master.
Upon arriving at the village, the first place I stopped by was the Adventurer’s Guild.
I didn’t need to take on any requests; it was simply the only place where I could easily exchange money.
“Eavesdropping on some conversations would be nice too.”
With my ear to the ground, I made my way to the trading post where monsters were exchanged for coin.
My Master and I live in one of the Seven Great Demon Realms.
Logically, it wouldn’t make sense if my Master lived somewhere that wasn’t a Demon Realm and had never encountered another person after all those years, right?
“Though it seems my Master doesn’t realize that.”
Because we live in a Demon Realm, a variety of monsters inhabit the area, and although most stay away from the hut because of my Master’s presence, sometimes the less-intelligent monsters come wandering down to the hut.
Even the dumbest monsters from the Demon Realm, my Master doesn’t know, but I’ve been collecting the corpses of the monsters and selling them whenever I visit the village, which gives my Master quite a bit of money.
After arriving at the trading post deep inside the Adventurer’s Guild, a burly man greeted me.
“You’re here?”
The man grimaced as he looked at the corpses of the monsters slung over my shoulder.
“Tsk, more of the monsters from the Demon Realm, huh? You really are quite the collector.”
“Just trade them for some money.”
As I handed over the monster corpses to the man, he inspected them and appeared put off.
“Good grief, how do you clean them up so thoroughly…”
He paused after examining one and then tossed a bag of coins at me.
“Do I even need to check anything else?”
When I shot him a suspicious glance, he waved his hand and opened his mouth.
“Of course, it’ll be top-quality stuff. You don’t want to stick around here much longer, do you? Just take your money and scram.”
“…Thanks.”
“Yeah, yeah, quit with the thanks; just go already.”
Stuffing the coin bag into a corner of my clothing, I headed out.
When my Master goes into a trance for mana breathing, she usually spends about two weeks in that state.
Since there’s a decent distance between the village and the mountain, to reach the hut before she wakes up, I must stay overnight here and leave early in the morning.
Because of that, I usually couldn’t buy what my Master often sang about wanting, but today seems different.
If everything goes smoothly, I could probably buy the strawberries my Master loves.
Imagining my Master munching on strawberries and grinning foolishly, my lips involuntarily curled up.
What a delightful start!
After buying strawberries, I only had enough left for a cheap inn and bar, leaving that massive pouch stuffed full of strawberries.
“That should be enough.”
I placed my bag of strawberries safely in the inn and headed toward the bar.
The sun was beginning to set.
As usual, the bar was buzzing with energy, full of adventurers who had completed their quests.
Conversations between people showed no signs of slowing down, and no one tried to lower their voices.
The sound of glasses clinking and boisterous laughter from men filled the air.
It might seem odd being alone in such an atmosphere, but they didn’t address me.
If I sat quietly, sipping my drink, they’d likely think I was someone who had gone through a rough quest, meaning no one would want to bother me.
I focused on their conversations as I listened in.
“Thank the heavens we returned safe today!”
“Hey! One more beer over here!”
“Haha! So, what happened?!”
I ignored the meaningless chatter.
What I needed was information that could assist my Master, not their struggles and lives.
As I drank more and tuned in, a female adventurer’s voice caught my attention.
“Hey, Lucy, did you hear? There’s a Hero who was chosen by the Sacred Sword!”
Hero?
“A hero has appeared?”
That sounds like a conversation worth eavesdropping on.
“Yeah, he was quite handsome… but what about the Hero?”
The female adventurer slammed her hand on the table and spoke up.
“He seems a bit mentally unstable!”
“What? Why’s that?”
The response didn’t come from the first talking female adventurer but from a balding adventurer on the opposite side.
“Oh! This Hero, unusually, hadn’t entered an academy before heading straight out on a quest!”
“What? Isn’t that pretty ballsy for a newbie Hero?”
Sure enough, most heroes haven’t fought before being chosen by the Sacred Sword.
The bald adventurer shook his head and slammed his drink down.
“No, they say this Hero is the best in history; they say as soon as he grabbed the sword, he unleashed a sword flash!”
“Are you kidding? That’s a ridiculous talent… but how is that weird or something?”
The bald adventurer made a gesture of covering only one side of his mouth while shouting inappropriately loud.
“They said he couldn’t help but break into tears upon meeting the Saint! Apparently, even our Saint was left at a loss!”
“What? Were they acquainted?”
“No! The Hero and Saint met for the first time on that day!”
The female adventurer who spoke first added.
“But get this; when he was chosen by the Sacred Sword and grabbed it, he grimaced and started to vomit, screaming obscenities?!”
“Wait, I’m hearing this for the first time; what kind of nonsense is that?”
“What did he say again? Something like… that bastard is going to…? I don’t remember!”
A Hero with extraordinary talent but apparently mentally unstable…
Seems like I might have found some information I could share with my Master.
Plus, the fact that both a Hero and a Saint exist in the same generation leaves me with a rather ominous feeling.