Chapter 433: Calling It a Heart, Treating It Like One
The next morning at dawn, the carriage carrying Geom Mugeuk and his group departed from the Northern Sea Ice Palace.
Lee Ahn, who had said she wouldn’t return to the main cult but would resume the mission she had paused, decided to stay with them at least until they left the Northern Sea.
As the carriage exited the palace gates, one person was waiting.
It was the Young Palace Master, Han Seol.
“I came out because I wanted to say goodbye.”
Geom Mugeuk and the Drunken Demon exchanged a light nod from inside the carriage, and Lee Ahn stepped down as the representative. The two of them had things they needed to talk about.
“I heard from my mother.”
Han Seol didn’t refer to her as the Palace Master, but as her mother. Part of it was because their relationship had grown closer recently, but also because what she was saying now was a family matter.
Lee Ahn silently looked at Han Seol. They were now cousins.
“You were surprised, weren’t you? I was surprised too when the Palace Master told me yesterday.”
“You’re my older sister, so please speak comfortably.”
The word “older sister”—it was the first time Han Seol had ever said it in her life. If it had been the past, she wouldn’t have said it so easily.
Her recent shift in relationship with her mother had brought about a subtle emotional change. That was probably why this moment didn’t feel so uncomfortable.
“I thought I was the younger one.”
“…….”
“I’m joking.”
“You’re still not funny.”
Han Seol had said before that Lee Ahn’s jokes weren’t funny. But today, contrary to her words, there was a smile on Han Seol’s lips.
“And this.”
Han Seol held out a small box.
“Mother told me to give this to you. She said to open it later.”
The box was tightly sealed, not to be opened immediately. Lee Ahn didn’t know what was inside, but still, it was proper to give thanks.
“Please tell Aunt thank you.”
Just as Han Seol had said “older sister” for the first time, it was also the first time Lee Ahn used the word “Aunt.” It felt quite awkward, but remembering how she had liked the Ice Palace Master when she learned she was her niece, she decided to show respect.
“Then take care.”
As she turned away, Lee Ahn looked back at Han Seol and said,
“Seol, take care.”
When Han Seol made a surprised expression, Lee Ahn quickly followed up.
“Too soon?”
“No. You are my sister.”
Lee Ahn was someone who knew how to be bold at times like this.
“When you come to the Central Plains next time, I’ll show you around.”
Han Seol nodded. It felt awkward and unfamiliar. But the feeling itself wasn’t so bad.
Lee Ahn climbed back onto the carriage.
Geom Mugeuk stuck his head out the window and said goodbye to Han Seol.
“When the next Gathering of Successors is scheduled, I’ll invite you. Let’s meet then.”
Han Seol didn’t yet realize that this gathering was a special event where her status as the Young Palace Master of the Northern Sea Ice Palace would mean absolutely nothing.
And so, the carriage carrying Geom Mugeuk, the Drunken Demon, and Lee Ahn departed from that place.
Han Seol stood still, watching the departing carriage. The three of them had truly come like the wind and left like the wind.
The Ice Palace Master approached her from the side. She had been observing from a distance and now revealed herself.
“Have you ever been to the Central Plains, Mother?”
The word Mother made the Ice Palace Master flinch. When had she last been called that? Since Han Seol was still gazing at the carriage disappearing into the distance, it was impossible to tell whether she had said it intentionally or without thinking.
“A few times.”
“What kind of place is the Central Plains?”
Han Seol had only heard stories and read books about the Central Plains. She wanted to hear what her mother thought of it.
Though the carriage had grown distant, this was the first time curiosity about the Central Plains began to stir in her heart.
The Ice Palace Master walked slowly and gently brushed the snow-covered tree. The snow on the branches fell fluttering like scattered petals.
“To me in my youth, the Central Plains was a place like this. A place you want to return from once you go, and once you return, a place you want to visit again.”
As time passed, however, those emotions gradually faded, and her longing for the Central Plains was no longer as strong as in her younger days.
She liked the Northern Sea.
Not the fluttering spring blossoms, nor the scorching heat of summer days, nor the gorgeously embroidered autumn leaves could surpass the beauty of this snowy landscape.
But that was only her life.
With a gaze clearly gentler than before, the Ice Palace Master looked toward her daughter.
“Your Central Plains will be something else entirely.”
* * *
The carriage sped southward.
Since it was a carriage sent by the Northern Sea Branch of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, the martial artist in the coachman’s seat was extremely tense.
To think he’d end up driving a carriage carrying the Young Cult Leader and the Drunken Demon. And they were even traveling without an escort.
Maybe that’s how they’d avoid being ambushed. No one would believe that the Young Cult Leader was in this carriage anyway.
In contrast to the coachman’s anxiety, the inside of the carriage was peaceful.
Still not fully recovered from his injuries, the Drunken Demon had taken up one side of the carriage to lie down. Of course, he didn’t forget to exaggerate.
“What’s so urgent that you’re dragging your dying brother like this?”
“Once it’s over, we need to go. I want to see Father, and the Demon Supremes too. I want to see my brother, and Daeryong, and Lord Jang as well.”
“I guess I’m just……”
He trailed off before saying treated like leftovers. It wasn’t easy to make that kind of joke with Lee Ahn sitting there.
Though, it probably would’ve been fine. Lee Ahn had been staring blankly out the window for a while now.
The Drunken Demon gestured with his eyes for Geom Mugeuk to check on her, then closed his eyes and tried to sleep.
Geom Mugeuk looked out the same window Lee Ahn was staring through.
Sensing that Geom Mugeuk was concerned about her, Lee Ahn finally spoke the words she had been holding back.
"To be honest, I didn’t get a wink of sleep last night."
Geom Mugeuk figured as much.
"The Ice Palace Master probably didn’t either."
At that, Lee Ahn turned to him with a worried look.
"Should I have gone to see her at dawn and said goodbye in person?"
She had agonized over it several times but, in the end, hadn’t done it.
"The Ice Palace Master was watching us from a distance earlier."
"Really?"
Geom Mugeuk nodded.
He understood all too well what it meant to watch from afar because you didn’t want to be a burden.
Hearing that the Ice Palace Master had been watching her made Lee Ahn feel even more apologetic.
Her eyes moved to the box the Ice Palace Master had given her.
"Open it."
At Geom Mugeuk’s words, Lee Ahn carefully broke the seal and opened the box.
Inside was another small box. There was also a booklet beneath it, but she opened the smaller box first.
As she lifted the lid, a unique scent filled the inside of the carriage.
It was strong enough to snap the Drunken Demon’s eyes open as he’d been trying to sleep.
Inside the box was a snow-white fruit. Just by looking at it, the spiritual energy it emitted made it clear this was no ordinary item.
"What is this?"
Geom Mugeuk recognized it immediately.
"It’s a Ice Snow Grass fruit."
He had once teased Seo Daeryong that if they went to the Northern Sea, Snow Men would be cultivating Ice Snow Grass. And now, here it was.
"Is it valuable?"
Earlier, when the Ice Palace Master had asked whether she really wanted to choose a mere wine cup over a medicinal elixir better than even Millennium Snow Ginseng, this was the elixir she had meant.
Geom Mugeuk promptly called to the coachman.
"Stop the carriage for a moment."
The carriage came to a halt.
Geom Mugeuk picked up the box with the Ice Snow Grass fruit and had Lee Ahn step down as well.
After seating her beside the carriage, he held out the fruit to her.
"You want me to take this here?"
Geom Mugeuk nodded.
"Being given a medicine like this while I’m by your side—that’s your good fortune."
When taking an elixir, someone trustworthy should always be nearby. Even aside from the risk of outside attacks, the effects might overwhelm the body, leading to serious internal injuries or even deviation of the mind.
Considering that danger, where could she find someone more reassuring than Geom Mugeuk?
"Is it really okay for me to have something so precious? You should take it instead, Young Master."
"Are you trying to start a war between the main cult and the Ice Palace?"
At his joke, Lee Ahn gave a faint smile.
Her life had changed once, and now everything was changing all over again. It felt like she was being swept away by a torrent of fate, regardless of her own will. And yet, the reason she could still be brave and steady was probably because, whenever she turned her head, someone was always there watching over her.
"Then I will gratefully take it."
Lee Ahn carefully took the Ice Snow Grass fruit.
The fruit melted in her mouth in an instant and spread through her body.
At that moment, a shiver ran through her. The energy that spread into every corner of her blood vessels was cold. So cold, in fact, she wondered if it was supposed to be this cold.
But the coldness lasted only a moment. Like someone running a fever after catching a chill, her body began to burn like fire.
Oscillating between cold and heat, the energy of the Ice Snow Grass fruit churned wildly within her body.
Lee Ahn was startled by the intensity of the energy. She had braced herself mentally, but she hadn’t expected it to be this overwhelming.
‘Can I even dissolve this?’
Circulating her inner energy through her meridians, she tried her best to make the energy her own.
Thanks to her efforts, the rampaging energy settled somewhat, but then began to scatter and leak out.
‘No!’
But with her current internal energy and martial skill, it was impossible to absorb all the medicinal effects.
That was when it happened.
From behind her, Geom Mugeuk’s hand touched her back. Through his palm, a stream of inner energy flowed into her body. That stream helped her recapture the scattering energy and guide it back into her meridians. It was just one thread of energy, but it provided support more powerful than ten thousand threads.
Even when offering help, Geom Mugeuk had not intervened from the start.
He had allowed her to experience the full difficulty of dissolving the elixir on her own, and only stepped in at the final moment. That was the fortune Geom Mugeuk had mentioned earlier.
Lee Ahn also kept trying until the end. Repeatedly circulating her inner energy, she gradually absorbed the energy of the elixir.
In the end, the energy from the Ice Snow Grass fruit gathered as immense internal strength in her lower abdomen. The feeling of her Devil’s Core becoming full to the brim was an unforgettable pleasure. Especially since the elixir matched her constitution perfectly, the internal energy settled smoothly and purely.
As a result, Lee Ahn’s eyes became even clearer and more intense.
"The energy I feel from my core is completely different now. Is this the kind of incredible world you’ve been living in, Young Cult Leader?"
At that, the Drunken Demon poked his head out the carriage window and said,
"Do you think the Young Cult Leader’s world is limited to just that much?"
"Right? If I’m a puddle, you must be the ocean, Young Master."
To her remark—implying the vast difference in their martial strength—Geom Mugeuk waved his hand dismissively.
"It’s not that big of a gap."
For a moment, it seemed he was being humble.
"Unless it’s more like a brook and the ocean?"
The two of them looked at each other and laughed.
Lee Ahn bowed her head respectfully.
"Thank you for making me a brook."
"Save that thanks for when you meet the Palace Master."
Though he said that, Lee Ahn knew.
She knew just how much Geom Mugeuk’s help had meant in dissolving the Ice Snow Grass fruit. Without him, she would have lost at least a third of its energy.
The two of them climbed back into the carriage.
When they took out the small box that had held the Ice Snow Grass fruit, beneath it lay a letter and a martial arts manual.
Frozen Spirit Divine Art.
It wasn’t the Ice Palace Master’s exclusive technique, but it was a family-passed martial art of the Ice Palace, and among ice-type arts, it was one of the best. In comparison, it was similar to the relationship between Geom Mugeuk’s Soaring Sword Art and the Nine Calamities Demon Art.
"The manual is a copy, so she said to memorize it and then burn it."
The letter contained no other message. Probably because the Ice Palace Master feared Lee Ahn would feel burdened, she had deliberately left it blank.
"Is it really okay for me to receive all this? Just because I’m family?"
Geom Mugeuk responded without hesitation.
"Just looking at this gift shows how much the Palace Master has missed your mother. Accepting it with joy is something I think would honor them both."
Lee Ahn didn’t say anything more and immediately began memorizing the manual.
Watching her, the Drunken Demon sent a sound transmission to Geom Mugeuk.
―Calling someone your heart and treating them like your heart… really turns them into your heart.
That was the Drunken Demon’s impression as he looked at Geom Mugeuk and Lee Ahn.
―If you can feel that, then maybe it’s time to take care of your own heart too, Brother.
He was referring, of course, to Lyu Bin, who liked the Drunken Demon. But the Drunken Demon deflected with something else.
―Once we’re back, I’m checking on the liquor essence. Let’s see if it’s spoiled anywhere again!
Geom Mugeuk smiled and called out loudly to the coachman.
"Let’s head out again!"
Of course, no matter how strong a heart becomes, for now, it was still like a baby’s heart left too close to the water’s edge.
When they reached the point past the Northern Sea where they would part ways with Lee Ahn, Geom Mugeuk said to the Drunken Demon,
"Keep going straight from here. I’ll walk Lee Ahn a little further."
Lee Ahn insisted it wasn’t necessary, but Geom Mugeuk had the carriage go on ahead.
"Get on my back."
"Why?"
"Just do it."
Without explaining, Geom Mugeuk lifted Lee Ahn onto his back.
And then he began to run. The Star Light Step really did slice through the air as swiftly as light.
Despite moving at such speed, it was surprisingly comfortable to be carried on his back. Geom Mugeuk’s true skill and mastery lay not in his speed, but in the comfort he provided while moving that fast.
‘But… where is he going?’
The entire time she was on his back, Lee Ahn was puzzled.
After nearly two full hours of running without rest, Geom Mugeuk finally came to a stop.
"Where are we?"
"I don’t know either."
Lee Ahn gave him a look that said, Is this some kind of joke?, but Geom Mugeuk had truly just followed his instincts and ran. And the reason for it was something Lee Ahn never expected.
"I thought there might be someone watching us."
Lee Ahn asked in surprise,
"Was someone watching us?"
Geom Mugeuk shook his head. He hadn’t sensed anyone watching, but on the off chance that a master of stealth was observing them, that person might have targeted Lee Ahn and followed her trail.
But after running for two hours using the Star Light Step, no one, not even the most skilled pursuer, could track her whereabouts.
"Aren’t you being a bit too cautious?"
"I’m just preparing for the one in ten thousand chance. When something irreversible happens, saying I let my guard down just once won’t mean anything."
Lee Ahn was always moved and grateful to Geom Mugeuk—but never as much as she was in that moment. Hiding her overwhelming emotion, she asked in a teasing tone,
"You worry about me this much—how did you even let me go before?"
But that was then, and this was now. Back then, the circumstances were different. Now, it was after the death of the Blood King.
"If something goes wrong even after doing all this, then there’s nothing more I can do."
It was clear what he meant—he wouldn’t regret anything after doing his utmost.
Lee Ahn etched Geom Mugeuk’s teaching into her heart. In the life ahead of her, she would live that way too.
"This narrow little stream will return as a mighty river."