The Crazy Heavenly Demon seemed to have fallen in love with his first train experience. In the morning, Lee Sungmin said he would go to the central square and Crazy Heavenly Demon said he would go back to ride the train. Rubia decided not to accompany Lee Sungmin for today.
“Have a good time.”
Rubia, who was giggling, said that teasingly. She didn’t wait for Lee Sungmin’s reply, and scurried out of the inn along with the Crazy Heavenly Demon.
[Were you shaking just now?]
Rubia wasn’t the only one to tease him. The Crazy Heavenly Demon didn’t know what was going on, but Rubia and Heoju remembered when Lee Sungmin met Wijihoyeon in the dungeon. Lee Sungmin ignored Heoju’s teasing. But, it was true that he was shaking.
He felt at ease when he fell asleep last night, but as the time started winding down closer and closer to when he was supposed to meet Wijihoyeon, his heart started pounding and wasn’t paying attention to his body.
[You look like you are experiencing your first love!]
“It’s not like that.”
With Heoju’s words, Lee Sungmin expressed his displeasement and kicked the horse to start moving. But, the old yokai didn’t stop laughing.
[That girl was the object of your admiration. That’s the way it has always been. The relationship between men and women easily changes with time. Isn’t that the case with you?]
“No.”
[Then what is it? Is it really just admiration? Your heart is beating like crazy. Is that because of your longing?]
“Shut up.”
[That’s a cute reaction. It’s refreshing.]
Eventually, Lee Sungmin, who could not stand it, went to the stable without hesitation. He was going to throw the armor where Heoju was residing in, on a pile of horse feces and Heoju exclaimed in astonishment.
[Sorry, sorry! I was wrong. I won’t do it anymore I promise!]
“Anymore bullshit out of you, and I’ll leave you in a pile of horse shit for three days.” (E/N: feisty boi)
[You crazy bastard, what did I do to receive such treatment? This armor is for you anyway!]
“I’d rather smell horse shit than to hear you bark.”
[Yes, I got it. I’ll shut up, so don’t!]
Only after hearing Heoju beg for help did Lee Sungmin put the armor back on.
Heoju seemed to hate being stuck in a pile of horse feces from when he said he reigned as a nightmare in the South.
Lee Sungmin checked the time. The time they agreed on ten years ago was noon at the fountain. The time had not even reached ten o’clock in the morning, and no matter how fast he walked from the inn, it would take an hour to reach the fountain. And so, he left.
He walked rather leisurely. Lee Sungmin slowly began to walk towards the square. It was springtime in Rubes. The wind wasn’t too cold, and the warm sunshine peeked through the blossoms of the trees. It was a beautiful day for a walk.
Lee Sungmin noticed some street-side merchants happening to sell bouquets of flowers along the street.
‘Should I buy some flowers?’
At the thought, Lee Sungmin chuckled.
But, even as he shook his head due to his crazy idea, Lee Sungmin’s eyes were still locked in trance at the bouquets on display. He decided to avert his gaze from the bouquets and dismissed the idea.
The feelings he had for Wijihoyeon were nothing more than wanting to meet a friend that he hadn’t seen in 10 years. He didn’t expect anything more than that. He thought that he didn’t have a chance in the first place. The last conversation they had felt as if they were joking before leaving. When they met a year ago, the words they shared played around in his head, but it was just a conversation between friends. Nothing more, nothing less.
‘Did you think of it the same way?’
A sneaking question was lurking in the back of his mind. Lee Sungmin laughed and pressed his hands lightly on his temples. It felt like a fool’s errand thinking of it that way. The dream of his meeting with Wijihoyeon. But, it wasn’t a dream just to meet.
‘Ahhhh.’
Lee Sungmin slapped his cheeks. Come to think of it, he hugged a lot of women in his previous life. They weren’t just light hugs, they were tight ones. There were plenty of prostitutes who were after the small fortune of low-ranked mercenaries. Compared to his previous life, Lee Sungmin today was incomparable.
He was living a healthy life. He didn’t drink too much, didn’t have any meaningless skinship with women. He didn’t have any particular desire to do so. If he wanted to find a woman, he figured he could if he wanted it.
Lee Sungmin walked slowly and the square was getting closer. There were many people walking around the square. There were a lot of street vendors, young children and couples. There were also many elderly who sought the sunshine at leisure. They came out to enjoy the leisurely daily life, and yet, none of them was dressed in any kind of uniform or armor. Only Lee Sungmin was wearing an armor. (E/N facepalms* )
‘I should have worn better clothes.’
No, clothes didn’t matter. He giggled to himself. He was smiling even though he wasn’t aware of it. His steps were light, or so he thought.
He was actually very nervous. Maybe Wijihoyeon is already here. Lee Sungmin’s pace started to speed up a little.
‘What will we talk about when we meet? Let’s say hello first. Then I’ll ask how she’s been doing. It’s been too long. Last year when we met… It was too short.’
“Aim for me.”
That’s what Wijihoyeon said. When he initially heard that remark, Lee Sungmin spat out his reply like venom.
“I’ll be strong enough to pierce your heart when I see you in 10 years.”
Wijihoyeon bursts into laughter and said that friends shouldn’t do that.
Yeah. We are just friends. For 10 years, Lee Sungmin chased after Wijihoyeon’s back.
The existence of Wijihoyeon was too far and too big, and even though he had been running nonstop for 10 years, he was still not confident. But, even that would be okay. The farther away Wijihoyeon was, the farther he could run to get closer.
He couldn’t check it properly a year ago, but he would be able to check it today. Where he was in comparison to her. Did they become equal? He didn’t want it. It was greed.
‘I wonder if I’ve made a fool of myself.’
But, he wanted to be recognized. He wanted to hear her compliments, wanted to hear her encouragements. Wijihoyeon always used to be honest.
“You’re not talented, you’re stupid.”
He was hurt by such words, but he wanted even more so to be recognized.
Was that it?
A transparent stream of water gushed from the fountain. The high stream of water made a faint rainbow. He didn’t know if it was magic or the refraction of the light, but the streams of water were all different colors. It was beautiful. At the center of the fountain, many people were resting.
What time was it? Lee Sung-min turned his head to find the clock. There is a clock on the high post. It’s eleven o’clock now. Only eleven o’clock. There’s still an hour left. Lee Sungmin decided to sit on a bench close to the fountain.
He closed his eyes, embracing the faint ripples of his heart. One hour. There was no way that Wijihoyeon would break her promise. Even when they met a year ago, they promised that it would be today. She would come. There was no doubt about it.
The volume of the conversation around kept changing from high to low. The water in the fountain continues to flow. Whenever it would gush upwards and spray a bit of misty water, Lee Sungmin turned his head to check the time. By twelve o’clock, Lee Sungsmin stood up from the bench. Then he circled the fountain because he thought Wijihoyeon might be somewhere else as the square was such a large area.
But, she isn’t there. She might be a little late. Even if it was only Lee Sungmin right now, he arrived yesterday. Lee Sungmin paced around the fountain nonstop and glanced at his watch.
It was one o’clock, two o’clock.
“…Did you mistake the date?” asked a passerby.
“What’s the date today?”
“It’s March 14.”
He wasn’t mistaken. Was their meeting going to be delayed…? He felt if he kept waiting, she would definitely come. Nevertheless, an unknown anxiety lingered in his mind. Lee Sungmin hesitated and eventually called Neville.
Neville appeared quietly. Lee Sungmin asked hurriedly,
“I’d like to know where Wijihoyeon is.”
“Wait one moment.”
Neville turned his head and disappeared. Lee Sungmin nervously waited for Neville to come back. Less than 10 minutes later, Neville’s voice rang in his head.
[The Minor Heavenly Demon, Wijihoyeon is in Rubes.]
“…Wijihoyeon is in Rubes? Where the hell is she?”
[She’s… She’s in the middle of conflict with Ironclad at the south gate.]
“What?!”
Upon hearing that, Lee Sungmin jumped up from his seat. Ironclad Yoo Ho-jeong. This was the character he had met at the inn while he was practicing just last night. Why was he running into Wijihoyeon?
[Something’s wrong with her. She should be able to deal with Ironclad easily if it were Minor Heavenly Demon’s martial arts. But, the Ironclad is pushing the Minor Heavenly Demon.]
Ridiculous. Lee Sungmin knew that Yoo Ho-jeong was a famous martial artist, but that doesn’t mean he would be a match for Wijihoyeon. Why was Wijihoyeon having a hard time with Yoo Ho-jeong? No, this was not the time to think about it. Without looking back, Lee Sungmin sprinted out to the south gate.
“No running on the street!”, shouted the guards patrolling the streets.
But, he didn’t listen to them. It was a long way from the central square to the south gate, and there were many buildings and people, which prevented him from running freely. As he continued his sprint without stopping, the guards blew their whistle.
[Go by rail.]
Heoju, who was silent at Lee Sungmin’s threat, opened his mouth.
It would be faster to run than to take the train, but if he ran on the railroad, he would be able to get to the south gate faster.
Heoju’s advice was helpful. Lee Sungmin ran to the nearest train station and hopped over the fence onto the railway. The stopped train honked its horn loudly, but Lee Sungmin ignored it. He heard a distant whistle, a warning from the guards. Lee Sungmin ignored that, too. Even at this point, he was troubled. There was no reason why he would be frustrated by Yoo Ho-jeong unless there was a problem with Wijihoyeon.
So he had to go. Lee Sungmin raised his inner energy and sprinted with a burst of wind. The sound of horns and whistles slowly faded away. Lee Sungmin turned south, running frantically over the railway.
It didn’t take that for Lee Sungmin to arrive at the south gate station. He did not spare his internal energy, and it was possible by running along the railway. Lee Sungmin jumped the fence again breathing unevenly.
There was a gate in the rear where a large crowd was gathered. Lee Sungmin ran there with a burning ferocity in his eyes.
“You’re not as strong as the rumors!”
Yoo Ho-jeong burst out laughing and shouted. As symbolized by his martial nickname ‘Ironclad’, his whole body is wrapped in heavy, thick, iron armor and a helmet. The weapon of Yoo Ho-jeong was a large lance, shining with a dark tint.
In front of Yoo Ho-jeong, Wijihoyeon stood with a pale face. She was balancing herself on her knee with one hand because she couldn’t stand properly. Her legs were shaking and she was about to collapse. A stream of black blood flowed from her mouth. The curse inflicted by Qian Zun was visibly harming Wijihoyeon’s body.
She was applying pressure to her stomach to keep it from spreading. Every time she raised her upper torso, her blood pressure twisted and her collected inner energy scattered. Under the circumstances, it was impossible to overwhelm Yoo Ho-jeong no matter how much Wijihoyeon tried in her current state.
“…I don’t know why you’re attacking me. I don’t have any crimes.”
“If the tiger is wounded, we should hunt.”, Yoo Ho-jeong replied.
Yoo Ho-jeong knew that Wijihoyeon was in a weakened state. That’s why he picked a fight. Although Wijihoyeon didn’t have any history in this city, her name as the Minor Heavenly Demon was very well known throughout the Murim Alliance.
You should kill her when you can. Although he was not allowed to do so, Yoo Ho-jeong had already sent a telegram to the Murim Alliance. The meeting between Wijihoyeon and Yoo Ho-jeong was a complete coincidence in the first place. He came to the south gate to return to Crohn, but he met Wijihoyeon.
“You are of the unorthodox faction.”
Wijihoyeon smiled palely.
At the words, Yoo Ho-jeong’s eyes glistened underneath the armor.
“Don’t let fools speak justice.”
“Do I look like a fool to you?”
Yoo Ho-jeong raised his feet and hit the ground. Kuu-ung! A loud echo shook the ground, and Wijihoyeon collapsed, unable to hold out. She glared at Yoo Ho-jeong, breathing heavily.
“I know my actions are unjustifiable. I know it is, but… If it’s Wijihoyeon’s life as the Minor Heavenly, then it’s worth being narrow-minded and cowardly.”
“…what time is it now?”, Wijihoyeon suddenly asked.
Yoo Ho-jeong narrowed his eyes wide at the sudden question. He strode along to Wi Jihoyeon.
“It’s already past noon, right?”
“What stupid thing to say… It’s already long past noon.”
“Really?”
Wi Jihoyeon laughed as she wiped the blood flowing through her lips.
“I broke my promise.”
Yoo Ho-jeong couldn’t understand her words at all.