—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: cyno
—————————————————————–
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Thud, thud—
Jin Ga-young walks past me and steps onto the stage.
After pushing herself so hard yesterday, her body must be aching terribly—yet her retreating figure is nothing short of admirable.
“Swordswomen Wolhwa and Seolhwa, face each other.”
“Wolhwa! I’m rooting for you!”
“Show us another fierce duel like yesterday’s!”
The second match of the Seven Flowers Battle.
The first day.
Today, Jin Ga-young will compete against Seolhwa and Baekhwa for the 5th, 6th, and 7th ranks.
Given how much energy she exhausted in her previous duel against Cheonhwa, I don’t have high expectations.
I just hope she returns safely, unharmed.
Though, being the ambitious person she is, she must be craving victory.
“Then, let the duel begin.”
“Wooooah—!”
The cheers from the audience were even louder than before. Their expectations for Jin Ga-young had grown that much.
“Jincheon, Wolhwa.”
“Ami, Seolhwa.”
But the cheers and shouts withered away as soon as the duel began.
Because Jin Ga-young was helplessly falling victim to Seolhwa’s techniques.
There was nothing she could do.
In terms of martial prowess alone, Jin Ga-young, Seolhwa, and Baekhwa were roughly equal.
But the aftermath of their previous duels made all the difference.
Seolhwa had lost to Okhwa by an overwhelming margin, leaving her with no time to even be wounded.
Baekhwa had suffered minor internal injuries from Namgung Su-a, but they were nothing compared to the countless wounds Jin Ga-young had sustained after fighting Cheonhwa with everything she had.
“Ugh…!”
No one dared to criticize her, as her fighting spirit was no different from yesterday’s.
It was just that everyone, including me, could only watch with pity in their eyes.
Her body simply couldn’t keep up with her spirit and determination.
Thud—!
Crash—!
In the end, Jin Ga-young lost miserably to Seolhwa.
I approached her as she sat in the Jincheon tent, catching her breath after descending from the stage.
“Don’t rush yourself.”
“Ugh… Ah, Ajusshi…?”
“Don’t speak. Right now, resting as much as possible is what’s most important.”
I had applied quite a bit of Golden Wound Ointment to her bandages yesterday, but the wounds must have reopened during the duel—the bandages peeking through her clothes were faintly stained red.
“You’ve worked hard.”
“Haa, haa…”
“The duel isn’t that important. Think long-term. I’m not telling you not to do your best. You’ve already given your all, so I’m just saying not to push yourself too hard.”
“Ajusshi.”
“I told you not to speak.”
As I wiped the sweat beading on Jin Ga-young’s forehead with a cloth, she struggled to open her mouth.
“I’m not obsessed with winning this duel.”
“That’s a relief, but…”
“I’m doing this because I want to grasp what you once called ‘my martial arts.’ I thought that if I just kept pushing forward, some kind of enlightenment might come to me.”
“It’s true that enlightenment often comes during duels. When you pour everything you have into your martial arts against an opponent, you sometimes realize something about yourself that you never knew before. But you mustn’t let your body break down. Remember, enlightenment means nothing if your body is ruined—it’s just a gilded husk.”
“I get it. I won’t overdo it. I don’t even have the desire to suffer that much.”
As she spoke, the duel between Baekhwa and Seolhwa ended with Seolhwa’s victory.
Had Baekhwa won, the rankings would have been clearly set as Baekhwa—Seolhwa—Jin Ga-young, ending today’s duels. But now, another duel was necessary between Jin Ga-young and Baekhwa to determine the 6th and 7th ranks.
“Ugh……”
I didn’t think Jin Ga-young could defeat Baekhwa.
Though Baekhwa had lost to Seolhwa, her physical condition wasn’t as bad as Jin Ga-young’s.
– Are you worried?
‘Yes.’
– What exactly are you worried about?
‘I’m uneasy.’
– Are you talking about intuition?
‘I’m someone who has shut out intuition.’
– Then it must be your instincts making you uneasy.
‘…….’
Truthfully, I had no reason to worry about Jin Ga-young.
She wasn’t so careless as to fail to manage her own body.
And no matter how intense the Seven Flowers Battle was, lethal techniques like Salcho were strictly forbidden.
Yet, for some reason, I couldn’t shake off this unease.
“Swordswoman Wolhwa, please come up. This is the last duel, so give it your all.”
A Taoist from the Wudang Sect called for Jin Ga-young from outside the tent.
“Ajusshi, I’ll be back.”
“Yes, I’ll be watching.”
“Ah, also, I…”
Jin Ga-young, who had been clutching her knees as she stood up, suddenly approached me again and whispered into my ear.
For some reason, her breath against my ear felt strangely warm.
“Once this duel is over… I have something to confess to you… You haven’t forgotten, right…?”
Her face flushed as she nervously twisted her fingers.
“Yes, I remember.”
“G-Good! Make sure you remember! Absolutely!”
With that, she hurriedly strode toward the stage.
This was her third time stepping onto the duel stage in the past two days.
Her figure, wrapped in bandages and limping as she ran up, looked pitiful.
Creak—
Jin Ga-young’s Wolgangbudo, strapped to her back, seemed heavier than usual today.
Perhaps because of that, the stage floor was marked with deep scratches from where the blade had dragged.
Tap—
Soon after, a girl in plum blossom-patterned robes stepped onto the opposite side of the stage.
The Flower of Mount Hua—Baekhwa.
“…….”
After facing Jin Ga-young, Baekhwa whispered something to her.
I considered using my internal energy to eavesdrop but quickly dismissed the thought—Baekhwa only said a few words before stepping back.
“Mount Hua, Baekhwa.”
“Jincheon, Wolhwa.”
Jin Ga-young gripped Wolgangbudo with both hands.
The tip of the blade trembled slightly.
Baekhwa, in contrast, drew a long, slender sword—a signature weapon of Mount Hua—and held it steady.
Unlike Jin Ga-young, her sword tip remained perfectly still.
“Damn it… Why am I dueling some nobody with no foundation…?”
Baekhwa’s irritated muttering wormed its way into Jin Ga-young’s ears.
Despite knowing her opponent was right in front of her, Baekhwa made no effort to lower her voice.
Jin Ga-young frowned and shook her head slightly, prompting Baekhwa to glare at her.
The attitude of this Seven Flowers Swordswoman—who wasn’t even from one of the Nine Great Sects or Five Great Families—looking down on her rubbed her the wrong way.
“What’re you looking at, huh? Did I say anything wrong? You are a nobody with no foundation, aren’t you? I heard you spread your legs for the elders of the Murim Alliance to get their support.”
Despite knowing the rumors were false—spread by her own uncle—Baekhwa openly displayed hostility.
Jin Ga-young sighed deeply before responding.
“I was fifteen when those rumors started. Do you really believe that nonsense, Swordswoman Baekhwa? Your brain must be weaker than soggy noodles.”
“……!”
Had she matured? Hearing such words didn’t anger her as much as it used to.
It was just slightly unpleasant.
“Y-You…! This brat dares to…! A lowly commoner like you…!”
“How am I nameless? My name is Jin. Ga. Young. It’s right there. Meanwhile, you’re always called by your sect name—do you even have a real name?”
“You’ve got a sharp mouth, huh? Is this how the Jin Family teaches manners? Did your parents raise you to talk back like this?”
“Watch your language. How can a Taoist’s words be cruder than a commoner’s like me?”
“Oh, right. You don’t have any, do you? My bad, I forgot.”
“…Let’s just duel. Draw your weapon.”
Internally impressed by Baekhwa’s ability to provoke anger, Jin Ga-young unsheathed Wolgangbudo.
It felt heavy.
She wanted nothing more than to split Baekhwa in half with it right now, but that seemed impossible.
Her muscles were too exhausted from yesterday—she couldn’t even muster strength in her arms.
If just holding Wolgangbudo was this difficult, what could she even do?
‘It’s fine. I don’t have to win. Don’t let emotions consume me.’
Though Jin Ga-young had always taken the offensive in her previous duels, this time she remained still, adopting a defensive stance.
Baekhwa, brimming with confidence, charged at her like a predator spotting helpless prey.
She had no intention of going easy on a junior—from the very start, she unleashed the Twenty-Four Plum Blossom Sword Technique, attacking fiercely.
Clang! Clash—!
The swordsmanship of Mount Hua emphasized speed and illusion.
Because of this, Jin Ga-young could only desperately use Wolgangbudo’s massive blade as a shield.
Under normal circumstances, she would have shattered Baekhwa’s attacks with overwhelming force and brutal weight—but in her current state, Baekhwa was the worst possible opponent.
Swoosh—! Slash—!
“Ugh!”
Every time Baekhwa’s sharp thrusts slipped through the gaps in Wolgangbudo, Jin Ga-young’s body twisted in pain.
The more this happened, the more aggressively Baekhwa pressed her attack, and soon Jin Ga-young was forced into a defensive position.
“What’s wrong? Why’d you stop talking? Aren’t you embarrassed, running your mouth when you’re this weak?”
Seeing Jin Ga-young cornered, using Wolgangbudo as her only defense, Baekhwa began taunting her like a specter.
With low self-esteem but a high inferiority complex, Baekhwa harbored a deep sense of superiority over those she perceived as weaker.
Even when she had the chance to finish the duel, she wasted time running her mouth—another manifestation of that mindset.
Moreover, after losing every duel since yesterday and being scolded by her master, Dokgo Gupae, she was even more prone to it.
For her, this was a form of venting.
“Well, if your martial arts are lacking, at least you should know how to talk. What good are you otherwise?”
Cheonjon, hearing Baekhwa’s jeering, furrowed his brow and massaged his temples—but he had no right to intervene.
There was no rule against talking during a duel.
“By the way, I heard your Wolbeop was taught by that guy always hanging around you—Baekgak, or whatever?”
Completely unchecked, Baekhwa continued mocking Jin Ga-young—until the infamous epithet slipped from her lips.
“……What?”
At the sudden mention of that name, Jin Ga-young’s eyes darkened.
Unaware, Baekhwa kept talking.
“Honestly, if you’re going to use a blade, you should’ve stuck with it. What’s the point of you and that guy pretending to be axe-wielders? Neither of you even knows how to swing it properly.”
“…….”
“Shut up.”
“Ooh, look at that face. What, are you going to kill me now? Too bad—today’s loser isn’t me, it’s you.”
“Fine. Insult me all you want.”
“What the hell are you talking about? Oh, you want me to insult you instead? Because you don’t like hearing that Baekgak guy get insulted? Then you should’ve insulted him yourself.”
“Hey, you—!”
“No wonder you’re a fraud—learning martial arts from a fraud. Anyone can see through that without even trying. What did he want in return for teaching you? Money? Or were you really the Taiyuan Jin Family’s shadow power, like the rumors say? Or maybe… did he ask for your body?”
“Shut your damn mouth…!”
“Oh, so you did spread your legs? Disgusting. What kind of pervert demands an underage girl’s body? Is he the Sword Saint or something? Keuk.”
Crack—
Jin Ga-young’s grip tightened unconsciously.
An uncontrollable fury surged from the depths of her heart.
It was strange—just moments ago, she had been too exhausted to even move a finger, but now power flooded her entire body, her head burning.
As if the explosive rage and killing intent she felt had transformed into internal energy.
“…What? Did I touch a nerve or something?”
Noticing the subtle shift in Jin Ga-young’s expression, Baekhwa smirked, her laughter fading.
“…….”
In response, Jin Ga-young—
Whoooosh—!!
Answered with a massive shockwave, unlike anything she had shown before.
“……!”
Baekhwa, who had let her guard down, instinctively bent backward in shock—
Kwaaaang—!
—only for Wolgangbudo’s hilt to slam into her.
Though it wasn’t the blade, the sheer weight of Mokcheol—the “Ink Iron”—delivered a crushing impact, as if she had been struck by Shaolin’s Hundred-Step Divine Fist.
“Guh…!”
Thud—! Roll, roll—!
Unable to withstand the force, Baekhwa instinctively used Naryeotagon—the “Falling Lotus Escape”—to tumble away.
“H-Huh…?”
After rolling ungracefully across the ground, she scrambled to her feet and frantically looked around.
Not at Jin Ga-young—but at Dokgo Gupae and the audience.
Then, slowly reaching her ears—
“Naryeotagon? Huh, does Mount Hua teach Naryeotagon these days?”
“How pathetic—Baekhwa rolling in the dirt. Look at the stains on her robes.”
“Black Flower would suit her better. Has Mount Hua run out of talent?”
—were the same taunts and scorn she had been dishing out earlier.
“…You little bug…!”
And finally, the disdainful muttering of her master, Dokgo Gupae.
‘No…!’
Baekhwa stared at Jin Ga-young in panic.
Just moments ago, she had been toying with Wolhwa Jin Ga-young—
‘W-What’s this? Why is her energy… so overwhelming…?’
—but now, it was as if she had become a completely different person.
And Baekhwa wasn’t the only one confused.
‘I’m overflowing with power. Why?’
Even Jin Ga-young herself was shocked by the vast amount of internal energy surging through her.
‘I don’t know. And I don’t care. Right now, I just…’
But more than confusion, what burned stronger was the desire to kill Baekhwa in front of her.
‘How dare she call Ajusshi a fraud? A eunuch? Even compare him to the Sword Saint?’
Creak—
As Wolgangbudo was pulled back, Jin Ga-young’s muscles tensed powerfully—
Like a bowstring about to snap forward.
The axe’s tip no longer trembled.
Not because the axe itself wasn’t shaking—
But because the direction the axe was facing—her target—had become clear.
Her martial path had crystallized.
Kwaaaa—!
With a violent sound that seemed to tear through the air, Wolgangbudo shot forward.
Baekhwa, horrified by its overwhelming force, rolled away again.
Kwa-kwa-kwa-KWANG—!!!
A deafening explosion erupted. Baekhwa stared in terror at the massive crater left where she had stood just moments ago.
Srrrk— Creak—
Jin Ga-young pulled Wolgangbudo back. The deeply embedded blade slid out effortlessly, as if it were an extension of her body.
‘My heart is itching.’
Despite landing such a clean strike, Jin Ga-young felt uneasy.
‘Why?’
Deep down, she knew exactly why.
‘Ajusshi was insulted.’
The fact that Byeokrak had been humiliated was unbearable.
‘That damn maggot-trash dared to call him a fraud? A eunuch? Even compare him to the Sword Saint?’
Suddenly, Jin Ga-young remembered why she had started learning martial arts in the first place.
It was so long ago that she couldn’t recall the exact reason at first, but after a moment, it came back to her.
The reason she had decided to learn martial arts was—
‘I wanted to be like Ajusshi.’
That was it.
‘I learned martial arts for Ajusshi—for the Sword Saint.’
Once one memory surfaced, others followed like threads unraveling.
‘That’s my martial arts.’
And at the end of it all was the enlightenment every martial artist sought—
‘Ajusshi once called it… the “Guardian King’s Sword Form.”’
—the realization of her martial path.
‘I am…’
A power unlike anything she had ever felt before surged through her. She felt capable of anything, but she didn’t want to do just anything.
‘The Jincheon Byeongyeom Wol—for Ajusshi.’
Right now, all she wanted was to teach the shameless Taoist in front of her a lesson for insulting Byeokrak.
‘For Ajusshi, by Ajusshi.’
Well, tearing her apart was more accurate.
‘Ajusshi’s… me. And my martial arts.’
Her chaotic mind settled. What she needed to do became clear.
It was time to punish Baekhwa not as “Wolhwa of the Seven Flowers Battle”—
But as “Ajusshi’s girl.”
“Haaah—!”
With a fierce shout, she swung Wolgangbudo.
She hadn’t had the habit of shouting before, but it had developed during her training with Wolbeop—where explosive power was necessary in short bursts.
Byeokrak had once said it sounded like a beast’s roar, intimidating its prey, so she had no plans to stop.
“S-Stay back! Don’t come closer!”
Baekhwa frantically adjusted her grip on her sword, but Jin Ga-young was certain—
The strike she was about to deliver was impossible to block unscathed.
“Georyeong Bugyeok—!”
“P-Plum Blossom Scattering—!”
Kwa-kwa-kwa-KWANG—!!
Clang—! Shatter—!
Wolgangbudo and Baekhwa’s Maehwa Sword collided—
And after a brief metallic screech, the Maehwa Sword shattered into pieces.
The blade itself was intact, but the edge had been completely destroyed.
“……! W-What…! Why did it break…! This isn’t some cheap sword!”
Of course, it wasn’t a cheap sword. It was a prized blade, one that even a Plum Blossom Swordmaster of Mount Hua would be honored to wield.
The fact that it had broken without leaving even a scratch meant the force behind Jin Ga-young’s strike was that overwhelming.
“D-Damn it! What the hell am I supposed to do with this piece of junk!”
As a swordswoman, she knew this better than anyone—which was why she screamed in panic while backing away, her face pale.
Even her usual awareness of others’ gazes was forgotten.
“Why are you running? The duel isn’t over yet.”
Jin Ga-young rested Wolgangbudo on her shoulder and slowly advanced.
Her gaze was cold, ruthless, and chilling.
Baekhwa’s pride was deeply wounded by the way she was being looked at—like an insect—
“N-No…! If I lose… I can’t…!”
“What do you mean ‘can’t’? Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose.”
“N-Not yet…! I haven’t lost yet…! I haven’t lost…!”
—but more than her pride, her heart was breaking.
The disdainful stares from the audience.
The thought of her master, Dokgo Gupae, who had even threatened to strip her of her title if she lost again.
“I-I can’t…! You have your family, but I… I have no backing…!”
“I’m tired of this. Let’s end it.”
Jin Ga-young raised Wolgangbudo, preparing for the final strike.
Baekhwa desperately groped the ground for her sword—but all she found was the useless, broken blade.
“No…! It’s not over…!”
“At least you gained some enlightenment at the end. Not a bad haul.”
With that, Jin Ga-young swung Wolgangbudo, ready to conclude the long-fought Seven Flowers Battle.
But in that moment—
Ssssk—
Something unexpected happened.
A violet sword aura erupted from Baekhwa’s broken blade—
Whoosh—!
—and split into nine separate streaks.
Kwaaa—!
The sword, now divided into Nine Blades, engulfed Jin Ga-young before she could even react.
Baekhwa herself hadn’t expected this.
“……!”
Thud—
Jin Ga-young’s vision spun.
At the same time, her lower abdomen grew warm.
Her knees buckled helplessly.
“Huh…?”
A sword so famous that no martial artist in the world wouldn’t recognize it—
But one that should never have appeared in the Seven Flowers Battle.
And a technique that should never be used in any duel—
A killing strike Salcho.
“W-What have I… done…?”
Baekhwa trembled like a leaf, taking a step back.
“W-Why are you lying there…? Y-You won… I lost….”
Drip, drip—
“J-Joking, right? S-Stop messing around… Why are you the one collapsing…? I’m the one who lost….”
Her shaking pupils finally registered what was in her hands—
A palm drenched in crimson blood.
“Ugh… W-Why is there a hole in my stomach…? Cough.”
Shiver—
And as the sword aura that had impaled Jin Ga-young vanished, the broken blade clattered uselessly to the ground.
Her vision blurred—but not enough to miss the horror of what she had done.
“M-Miss—!!!”
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
[Your Text Here]
