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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Simzy
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This time, it’s the story of the clown Pagliacci.
“This is also a story from the Western Regions, Celestial maiden. Do you happen to know anything about mental illness or depression?”
“It’s a disease suffered by those who are inherently flawed or weak.”
Is this the mindset of a pre-modern Murim person?
“That’s a common belief, but even someone with a strong mind can suffer a heart injury and develop such a mental illness if they fall into great despair.”
“Hmm, that’s true.”
“Yes. This is a story about such a man.”
The story begins like this.
“A grieving man consulted a physician. He said he couldn’t live because he was so sad due to his mental illness.”
“Can a physician treat mental illness?”
“I hear there are such physicians in the Western Regions.”
“I see. It makes sense that when someone falls into despair, they would want to talk to someone.”
The man implored the physician to cure his illness.
“The physician said, ‘You’re in luck! I hear the famous great clown, Pagliaccio, has arrived in this city! If you see his performance, you’ll surely be able to shake off your sadness!'”
“Certainly. A performance by a clown renowned as a great clown could lift one’s spirits.”
“Indeed.”
The Jade Flower Sword listened attentively to my story.
“But strangely, upon hearing the physician’s words, the man suddenly clutched his face, wailed in sorrow, and began sobbing like a madman.”
“Eh? Why?”
“Why do you think that was?”
“Wait, suddenly a riddle?”
“Try to guess.”
“…Hmm.”
She crossed her arms and began to ponder. But her chest was so large that the mere act of crossing her arms emphasized its formidable size.
Even concealed by her martial arts attire, it was that big.
Just how large was it really?
“Why did he cry… Ah, because he thought a mere performance couldn’t cure depression? That would be anticlimactic.”
“Incorrect.”
“Perhaps there was a reason he couldn’t see the performance. Like, maybe they were enemies.”
“That’s not it either.”
“Ugh. Just tell me. What’s the reason?”
“Well…”
I cleared my throat for a moment.
“The physician was startled when the man started sobbing. The physician asked why he was crying like that. The man then answered with difficulty…”
Clutching my face for more dramatic effect
“Oh, doctor…! I… I am Pagliaccio!”
“Gasp!”
Her eyes widened in surprise at my realistic and dramatic performance. Seeing that brought me a strange sense of joy.
Come to think of it, before I came to this world, I was an arts-inclined individual nurturing the dream of becoming an actor. I aimed to make a living by manipulating others’ emotions through acting. That ability of mine had just been proven. Look at the Jade Flower Sword’s reaction. She was completely awed by my storytelling.
“It can’t be! The man was the great clown himself!”
“Precisely. It’s the irony of a great clown, famous for making others happy, being unable to make himself happy. That’s the story.”
“Truly amazing! How can such a story…!”
The Jade Flower Sword, seemingly satisfied, even clapped, showering me with praise.
“Hehehe, I’m glad you enjoyed it.”
“Geun-hyeop, you know so many good stories. Indeed, I can’t believe you’re of commoner origin.”
“That’s just the kind of man I am.”
“Do you have any other stories?”
“Well, I’ll tell you a short one. But this isn’t really a story, it’s more of a riddle-like ghost story where you guess the answer.”
“Oh, a ghost story? I’m looking forward to it.”
I was sleeping on the second floor when I suddenly heard my mother’s voice. She said it was dangerous to be up there and to come down quickly. So I went downstairs, but then I suddenly heard my mother’s voice again, this time from her room on the second floor. I listened, and the voice said, ‘I just heard that voice too, so don’t go down under any circumstances.’ Which one is the real mother?
“…!”
The Jade Flower Sword, having heard the story, began to deduce. And so, I spent time with her, sharing various stories.
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We stopped by a village and had a thorough wash. It was a welcome break, as we were covered in blood and grime. But again, I didn’t have a change of clothes, so I had to be ripped off by the villagers and buy new ones, which was a truly regrettable expense. Damn these country bumpkins.
Anyway, since we were in the village, I was lying shirtless in the room, resting, when…
Knock, knock
I heard a knock.
“Yes?”
“Geun-hyeop, are you there?”
“Ah, wait! I’m shirtless right now!”
“Perfect.”
What’s perfect about it?!
Creak
The Jade Flower Sword opened the door and came in.
“Kyaaaaaak!”
“What a girly scream… Hurry and lie down. I’ll check your pulse.”
“Check my pulse? Oh.”
That’s right, we agreed to a quick pulse check before arriving at the family estate. Since I consumed the inner core, something’s bound to show up.
“I’ll lie down right away!”
“Please do.”
She closed the door and approached gracefully. But it felt strange. Being alone in this room with a beauty like the Jade Flower Sword. On top of that, I was shirtless.
“Now, slowly. Circulate your internal energy as if you’re performing meditative breathing.”
“Yes.”
Swipe
Her soft palm grazed my lower back.
“Heek.”
“Hmm?”
“Ah, no, it tickles…”
“Don’t make strange noises.”
“Just a moment. It really tickles, so please do it a little slower.”
“This tickles?”
Swipe
“Heeiiiit!”
Well, of course, it tickles when your bare skin is touched by fingers!
“Heeiiit? What a strange sound. And flopping around like a fish. Hmph, there’s a limit to overreacting.”
“Oh, it really tickles!”
“I told you to bear it.”
“Ugh!”
So I forcibly endured the ticklish sensation and focused on circulating my inner energy. Let’s see. Slowly, like meditative breathing. Spread the internal energy through the meridians.
“…”
At first, it was hard to concentrate because of the tickling, but maybe because I was lying on a normal floor… as my strength started to ebb, I began to feel my inner energy.
“Hmm.”
The Jade Flower Sword used both hands to check my pulse, pressing on my back. But I could hear her breathing right above me, so… it was a little hard to endure.
“I don’t feel anything unusual. I thought I’d sense some impure or unusual energy since you consumed the demon core, but I don’t.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. It’s quite strange. Normally, one would collapse after eating a demon core.”
Listening to her, I thought it was indeed strange. Why am I fine? And my internal energy is clean too. It’s incomprehensible.
“I think I’ll need to show you to a physician to know for sure.”
“I agree. Get dressed now.”
“Yes.”
I quickly gathered my clothes and put them on. While dressing, I waited for her to leave, but for some reason, she remained still.
Feeling slightly awkward, I asked what I was curious about.
“By the way, Celestial maiden”
“You can call me by my name.”
“Ah, yes. Namgung Serin. It was my first time in a labyrinth, but is that what it’s usually like?”
“No. That was a truly unusual event.” Namgung Serin shook her head. “Originally, only slightly stronger demons appeared, but as you know, the Death Fairy’s sorcerer was there, and it summoned the Hayagriva. It’s unprecedented.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. It should have ended without any significant damage… Sigh. It turned out this way. I plan to report this to the family immediately. We also need to inform the Murim League of this incident so they can prepare.”
“The Murim League!”
This was the first time I’d heard of the Murim League since arriving here!
“If you inform the Murim League, will there be countermeasures?”
“Everyone will be cautious about the Death Fairy. They’ll likely investigate, since that witch could cause another bloodbath.”
It seemed the Death Fairy’s notoriety was truly immense.
I must never encounter such a witch. It would be instant death. A great Murim bloodshed? I’ll leave that to the Ten Great Warriors and the like. Someone like me should just hide.
“I hope things work out well. Phew. Just thinking about that Hayagriva makes my heart pound. Such a powerful demon…”
“It’s said that normally, a Jungwon Hyungsalsal, a peak martial artist, can handle it… but it was certainly strong. It seemed stronger because it was inside the labyrinth and had recently emerged from the Gwi Moon.”
She seemed quite dejected.
Namgung Serin is a peak martial artist. It was understandable that her pride would be hurt, having struggled against the Hayagriva and nearly lost.
“But you defeated it. That’s enough. That Hayagriva bastard must have felt immense pain, despair, and defeat until the very moment he died.”
“I suppose so.”
“More than that… your martial arts were incredible, Namgung Serin. Could that have been…?”
“Yes. It’s the Namgung Sega’s secret technique, the Changgong Muae Swordsmanship.”
“As I thought!”
I knew it was an incredible martial art!
“It was as if the sky had descended upon the earth…! So beautiful, yet so destructive! It truly befits the Namgung Sega!”
“Hmph, an accurate assessment. You certainly have a discerning eye.”
Praising her martial arts seemed to brighten Namgung Serin’s expression a bit. She must be feeling distraught, having lost her subordinate.
So, I comforted her with kind words, as if praising my aunt.
“Geun-hyeop, you seem to be very cultured.”
“I’m cultivating my knowledge along with my martial arts.”
“That’s helpful.”
Namgung Serin rose from her seat.
“Ah.”
Seeing her standing, I thought she was truly beautiful. A very elegant and upright impression. But her eyes were somewhat sharp… a stoic expression suited her well.
But why is there a hime cut in Murim? Honestly, the hime cut had bothered me since I first saw it.
“Rest. We’ll leave early in the morning.”
“Yes.”
“Ah, I’ll be looking forward to more stories tomorrow.”
“Am I some kind of story pouch?”
Namgung Serin left, and I was left alone in the room.
Finally, I can rest.
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In my dream, I was standing alone in a crimson space. Looking closely, I realized it was hell. A place where horrific flames blazed and sinners wailed. The hideous demon, the Hayagriva and others I’d seen before, were holding a feast there.
I was also attending the feast, but surprisingly, my seat was atop a large platter. That’s right. I was served as the main course for their feast.
“Kyaaaaaak!”
Damn it, this nightmare again!
“Huff, huff!”
Perhaps my mind was disturbed from seeing all sorts of horrors in the labyrinth. Had I, like Pagliaccio, developed a mental illness?
“Ugh.”
I drank water and came to my senses. Honestly, the sight of the Great Ghouls grabbing the swordsmen with both hands and tearing off their heads was… such a shock that it was hard to forget. I was horrified, like the tribesmen in the “What if you showed Attack on Titan to the tribesmen of the Amazon?!” video.
The Hayagriva cutting the Hacheondae warrior in two was the same.
Horrific memories were consuming my mind.
“Let’s do some meditative breathing.”
I immediately began meditating to drive away the disturbing thoughts. Song would surely calmly assess his mental state and thoroughly perform meditative breathing to treat his PTSD.
Whooooosh
I cleared my head of bad thoughts with light meditation and practiced circulating my inner energy. I felt my mind calming down a bit. But doing this kept bringing a certain thought to mind, poking at my brain.
The Hayagriva’s core.
I wanted to eat it.
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thanks simzy!