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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Cyno
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Crash—
Lightning pushed open the door to the quarters.
Inside, a middle-aged man sat cross-legged.
It was Gojon Dokgo Goopae—the sect leader of the Hwasan Sect and one of the Twelve Venerables.
“It’s been a while since we’ve spoken like this.”
“……”
“Sit down first. You look terrible.”
“…Yes.”
Lightning sat cross-legged in front of Dokgo Goopae, mirroring his posture.
Dokgo Goopae’s face was expressionless, devoid of any emotion.
Drip—
Dokgo Goopae lifted the teapot and poured tea into a cup.
A steaming cup of warm tea was handed to Lightning.
“Drink first. You must have screamed yourself hoarse.”
“I’m fine.”
“A gentleman must maintain dignity in all circumstances. Isn’t that what you once told Bindo?”
“…Thank you.”
Lightning accepted the cup and took a sip. Dokgo Goopae did the same.
After swallowing a mouthful, Lightning set the cup down.
Dokgo Goopae, who had been watching closely, spoke.
“Bindo… I…”
The shift in how he referred to himself—Lightning immediately recognized it.
This was no longer a conversation between a Taoist and a disciple, but between a father-in-law and a son-in-law.
“I didn’t like you.”
“……”
“To be honest, I didn’t just dislike you—I hated you. That was the truth.”
“I see.”
“I couldn’t help but hate you. You were the one who took my only daughter from me.”
“I understand.”
“Of course you would. You’re a father with a daughter too.”
Dokgo Goopae dredged up old memories.
Many came to mind, but one stood out.
“It was when I heard you earned the title of ‘Sword Saint’ and joined the ranks of the Five Under Heaven. A nobody who couldn’t even enter the Nine Dragons suddenly bore the title ‘Divine Sword,’ and before I knew it, you had ascended beyond my reach. The chills I felt then still linger.”
“……”
“Honestly, from that point on, I started feeling proud. Even if you were my thorn-in-the-side son-in-law, I thought my daughter had chosen well. …I couldn’t keep her from men forever.”
“I didn’t know that.”
“Of course not. After you took my daughter away, the Hwasan and Namgung sects severed ties. Petty spite, really.”
“You refused to see her when she came to pay respects.”
“Back then, you weren’t the Sword Saint yet. Why would I meet the thief who stole my precious daughter? Though… even if you had been, I’d have avoided you. Except for official matters.”
“Why bring this up now?”
“Because I have something to ask you.”
Tap—
Dokgo Goopae set his cup down.
Simultaneously, the air in the room shifted.
“You met my daughter.”
“……”
“She’s suffering. Especially… because of you.”
“What do you want to know?”
“Everything.”
Dokgo Goopae’s voice growled with menace.
His face twisted like the stripes of a tiger.
“What happened while I was in seclusion after the war?”
“…So you were in seclusion. I didn’t know.”
“Why have you become the greatest villain of the age? Why has my daughter fallen so low? Tell me everything. I ask you as her father.”
“If… if that’s what you wish, I’ll tell you everything.”
For the first time that chaotic day, Lightning’s hazy eyes sharpened.
—
“……That’s how it happened.”
Lightning recounted everything—excluding his regression—about the past three years, the schemes of Namgung Bin, and the truth behind it all.
Regression was a matter of fate, but the rest? There was nothing to hide.
He had done nothing to be ashamed of.
“I thought you had failed as a husband to my daughter.”
Dokgo Goopae’s voice was heavy with lament.
“But it was my daughter who failed as a wife.”
His tone was steeped in deep melancholy.
“To have lived by your side yet not trusted you… How foolish… Did I raise her too naively…?”
Lightning smiled faintly.
It was bittersweet.
Strictly speaking, this man was no longer his father-in-law.
Suddenly, Jin Woo-yong—who always referred to him as “Father-in-law”—came to mind.
The contrast between the frivolous Jin and the solemn Dokgo Goopae was stark.
“Still, don’t dwell on it.”
“What do you mean?”
“Even if she failed in her duty to me, I will fulfill mine to her.”
“……”
For the first time in his life, Dokgo Goopae realized a voice could sound lonely.
“Don’t you resent her? A woman who couldn’t trust you?”
“She apologized. That’s the end of it.”
“The world isn’t so simple. You just returned from punishing those who wronged you, didn’t you? And my daughter still doesn’t fully trust you.”
“She didn’t act out of malice. She did her best in her position. She still is.”
“…True. She has been doing her best.”
Both men recalled Yu So-eun’s recent actions—
Traveling between sects, delivering tribute, shielding Namgung Sua from snowballs hurled by onlookers.
And the memory of her kneeling before him, pleading, surfaced in Lightning’s mind.
“I chose well for a son-in-law. Though you’re not that anymore.”
“……”
“Very well. You may go.”
Lightning rose.
There was no reason to linger—they had nothing left to discuss.
As he stood, Dokgo Goopae spoke again, halting him.
“About Wolhwa… Let me apologize on behalf of my foolish disciple.”
Lightning froze.
“Though he’s been expelled, he was once my student. Bindo isn’t blameless either.”
Dokgo Goopae shifted his self-reference again—no longer speaking as a father-in-law, but as the Hwasan Sect’s leader.
“That’s not something you should say to me.”
“Oh?”
“When our sect leader awakens, apologize to him formally. I have no right to forgive or condemn.”
“I see. You draw a clear line between personal and official matters.”
Lightning fell silent, then added:
“But let me offer one piece of advice.”
“Go on. I’m curious. Will it be another lesson on a gentleman’s conduct?”
“First, may I ask how Hwasan trains new disciples?”
“We teach basic martial arts first. Like the Samjae Sword Method. We train them harshly to separate the stubborn from the weak. Why?”
“I don’t mean to disparage Hwasan’s ways… but where I was raised, in Namgung, new disciples are first made to study the classics. The Four Books and Five Classics. Even if they don’t understand, they must read.”
“……”
“Before learning martial arts, they cultivate their character. Not all grasp it, but at the very least, Namgung’s disciples study righteousness, benevolence, and propriety before swordsmanship.”
Dokgo Goopae couldn’t refute it. He simply smiled wryly.
He could have listed a hundred counterarguments, but Lightning’s words resonated strangely.
“If you must raise disciples, raise them as people. Not… beasts.”
Lightning gestured vaguely toward the door.
Dokgo Goopae laughed bitterly.
“Hah.”
“I’ll take my leave now.”
Lightning straightened fully and stood.
As he did, Dokgo Goopae offered parting words:
“Don’t worry about the ones you killed.”
“……”
“As sect leader, I’ll clean it up.”
“Thank you.”
With that, Lightning bowed respectfully and left Hwasan’s quarters.
While he returned to the Taiyuan Jin family’s residence—where Jin Ga-young would soon encounter an unimaginable blood scent—
Dokgo Goopae watched his retreating figure with hollow eyes and muttered to the air:
“The Heaven-Sundering Sword King…”
The image of Lightning—polite, dignified—
“For that rogue to have raised someone like this…”
Clashed with the memory of his father, Namgung Cheon.
“Like father, like son, I suppose.”
Then, recalling Lightning’s words, he tilted his head in confusion.
“But… Namgung makes recruits read the classics? Half of them can’t even read! They don’t teach letters, so what’s the point?”
Meanwhile, Lightning trudged toward the Taiyuan Jin family’s quarters—
– Son-in-law! You alright?!
—while scowling at Jin Woo-yong’s noisy chatter.
‘Had enough rest? Could’ve slept a bit longer…’
– This brat never shuts up. And why do you look like that? Got into a fight?
Jin pointed at Lightning’s bloodstained clothes.
Lightning smirked slightly.
‘Just did what I should’ve done long ago.’
Jin understood the meaning behind those words.
‘And… I untangled some tightly knotted bonds.’
– You seem pleased.
‘No point lying when you’re in my mind.’
– Ridiculous brat. You’ve worked hard. Rest now.
—
“Ugh…”
Slowly, I opened my eyes to bright light.
A soft sensation pressed against my back and palms.
The feel of smooth fabric and quilt… A bed?
…Wait, a bed?
I always sleep on the floor with just a blanket—
Whoosh—!
“Cheolbin? You awake?”
I jerked upright, taking in my surroundings.
The first thing I saw was Okhwa, her white hair tied back, revealing her slender neck.
“O-Okhwa? Why are you here…?”
“Rest more. You were in bad shape.”
“No… Why are you—”
“Ah, need to wash up? Here, I prepared water.”
“Huh…?”
What… is going on?
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