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#605
Taejonbirok Volume 25, Episode 5
Chapter 133: The Lazy Man, Solved (5)
“Did you lose?”
“Contact… well.”
The old man's gaze, fixed on the garden, began to slowly shift. His gaze, moving very slowly, finally landed on the prone figure.
Startled.
Perhaps sensing the gaze, the person lying face down twitched slightly.
“Did I hear that wrong?”
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
“Wasn’t it just yesterday that we received a report that the Jeongmu Alliance’s forces had been defeated and that they were being pursued?”
“Yes.”
“But are you saying that in one day, the situation changed and you were defeated and running away?”
“……I’m sorry, but.”
The old man's head slowly turned upward.
The old man, looking up at the incredibly clear sky, quietly opened his mouth.
“Who are you?”
“…….”
"While Hwe-myeong still has his shortcomings, he's not a child to be easily defeated. If he were, I wouldn't have entrusted him with such a heavy responsibility."
The old man's voice was unwavering.
But that sounds scarier.
"For such a child to be defeated and retreat means someone beyond his power has appeared. In the Central Plains, where energy is waning, such a person could not possibly exist. Even if he were Kwon Geuk or a divine investigator, he wouldn't have been able to handle Hwe-Myeong. Who was he? Who faced him?"
The dry saliva just rolls down my face.
The old man was a man who never got angry. Despite having served him for decades, the man had never once seen him angry.
But now, there was definitely a hint of anger in the old man's voice.
The man was worried.
Should I bring up this name now?
The thought was brief. No matter what happened, I couldn't lie to him.
“This is Wi Yeon-ho.”
The old man's lips were slightly pursed.
Those pursed lips seem to tell how much the old man's heart is agitated right now.
A quiet silence descends.
The sound of insects rustling, birds chirping somewhere, and even the sound of water flowing in a small ditch in the distance… … .
Countless sounds that would normally be unheard of began to flow between them.
How much time has passed?
This heavy silence was robbing the man of even his sense of time. A moment felt like an eternity.
“It’s Wei Yan Ho…….”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Yes, it’s Wei Yan Ho…….”
There was a bitterness in the old man's words.
Wei Yanhu, Wei Yanhu.
How many times has it been since I've heard that name?
“Even the first one was taken advantage of by that guy?”
With the Cheonryu Sword broken, it might be impossible for Baek Hoe-myeong to face Wei Yan-ho.
But Cheonryu Sword was alone, and Baekgeomseong was leading the clan's warriors. So you're saying he was still defeated?
'Is this guy really a sent from heaven to stop us?'
The old man ended up laughing.
sky?
There's no way that could happen. If there were a heaven, it wouldn't have just stood by and watched things unfold this way.
Everything was already broken three hundred years ago. If heaven exists and looks down on the world, why didn't it move then?
Is the blood they shed not worth protecting?
If that's the case, then heaven doesn't deserve to be called heaven. How can a place that doesn't help the wronged be called heaven?
Even if there is heaven, it is too late now.
“There’s no turning back now.”
“No, it’s not too late.”
The old man quietly turned his head.
A person was walking slowly from one side of the garden.
Cheonryu Sword.
The old man's younger brother and elder of the Baekgeomseong clan approached him with a stern expression. The moment the Cheonryu Sword revealed itself, the atmosphere in the garden changed.
The once warm garden feels like it's cooling down. The trees, too, seem to sense the chill, shedding their leaves.
The old man looked at Cheonryu quietly.
Cheonryu Geom approached and gestured to the man.
“Step aside. I have something important to discuss with my master.”
“…….”
The man glanced at Gaju, saw her nod, and cautiously left. Then, Cheonryu Sword took the man's place.
The head of the household, who was looking at the Cheonryu Sword, opened his mouth.
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“Isn’t it too late?”
“Yes, it’s not too late.”
The old man's gaze sank a little more.
"Withdraw your troops now, Lord. It's not too late."
The old man gazed at the Cheonryu Sword for a moment, then reached out and grabbed the teapot. He then placed a cup in front of the Cheonryu Sword and slowly poured tea.
The cold tea boiled over in an instant, creating a long stream that was sucked into the cup.
The rich scent of tea mixes with the scent of grass.
“Was the defeat that shocking?”
"……house owner."
“You are scared now.”
"house owner!"
“Have some tea.”
“Now I am!”
“I told you to drink tea.”
“…….”
The gaze of the head of the household is directed down at the Cheonryu Sword.
"It's not that I won't listen to you. It's not that I'm ignoring you. But shouldn't you show me that you're not agitated right now?"
Cheonryu Geom, who had been quietly watching Gaju, reaches out and grabs the glass.
The tea, which had been emanating a wisp of hot steam, cooled in an instant. As if his heart hadn't been stirred at all. As if it were as cold as this tea.
Cheonryu Geom downed the tea in his cup in one gulp and put the cup down with a thud.
The head of the household let out a low sigh, as if he did not like the sight.
“You have changed.”
“Everyone changes.”
"Even so, I knew you wouldn't change. I knew you wouldn't change, even if I did."
“If the Lord has something to hide from me, how can I not change?”
The head of the household narrowed his eyes.
But he didn't discuss the pros and cons of the Cheonryu Sword's words. Perhaps that alone was enough to give him the answer.
“I have never once sought personal gain.”
"I know, Gaju. If you're hiding something from me, it's probably because it's to my advantage not to know."
“Are you still criticizing me even though you know?”
“Give me one.”
Cheonryu Sword looked at Gaju with stern eyes.
“Just as you have said, I have never lived for my own gain.”
“…….”
"Your hiding the truth from me is actually an insult to me. How can you ignore that?"
"I am……."
The head of the household kept his mouth shut.
Even the eyes of Cheonryu Sword, who was looking at such a family head, were filled with regret.
'Everything is subject to change,' they say.
There was a time when they dedicated everything to the resurrection of Mangeom. They understood each other, and they mourned each other's sacrifices.
How did they end up in this situation?
'Something useless.'
Cheonryu Sword shook his head.
No matter what he said, it wouldn't have resonated with the family head. If the family head had been swayed by his words, he wouldn't have been able to lead the Mangeom Baekga up to this point.
Yes, that's the kind of person he is.
so…….
"house owner."
Cheonryu Sword's voice became firm.
“If you want to achieve your goal, take action yourself.”
The head of the household shook his eyes slightly.
“If things continue like this, the Hundred Schools will collapse.”
"her……."
A dejected sound came out of Gaju's mouth.
“You have changed so much.”
“It’s not that I’ve changed. It’s that you’re falling behind.”
“I fell behind? Me?”
"yes."
The hand of the Cheonryu Sword pointed to the garden.
“Do you see the world from here?”
“…….”
"Do you intend to see the world from here? Do you intend to sit here and discuss it? Do you intend to stay here and control the world with a single finger?"
The headmaster's face became even more hardened.
"The head of a hundred families isn't here to brag. It's a place to prove yourself and step forward."
“That’s an exaggeration.”
“No, it’s not excessive at all.”
Cheonryu Sword spoke firmly.
“If you continue to play the role of a god like this, the Hundred Houses will fall apart.”
“Who dares to overthrow the Hundred Schools?”
“Of course it would be Wi Yeon-ho.”
"this guy!"
There is anger in the voice of the head of the household.
"You came back defeated by a young greenhorn, and now you're a coward. How can a hundred families fall because of one guy? A hundred families that have existed for centuries!"
"Yes! It's been going on for hundreds of years! Thousands of years! Not tens of thousands of years, but hundreds of years! Were the Hundred Schools always Hundred Schools? No school was prestigious from the beginning. No school was a major sect from the beginning! Shaolin began with Dharma alone, and shamanism was established by Jang Sam-bong alone!"
“…….”
"Just one person! It's just one person who shapes the flow of the world. Don't you see? The flow is already in that child's hands. If we fail to stop that flow, the outcome is obvious."
The voice of the Cheonryu Sword sounded like it was spitting blood.
“Why don’t you step forward yourself and ask Hoe-myeong to lead the family?”
“Because it is right.”
"How can that be right? If that's the case, then step down from your position and retreat to the back room!"
“Hey you!”
Finally, the old man jumped up from his seat.
“Look, there’s nothing I can’t do. Do you think I can’t hold you accountable just because I’m your younger brother?”
“Please cut it.”
“What?”
"If you want to hold me accountable, then cut off my head. That would be better than watching the head of the household with his ears plugged."
"this……."
The head of the household gritted his teeth.
Even though he displayed a clear anger, the Cheonryu Sword didn't back down an inch. Those who have laid everything aside have nothing to fear.
“I don’t know what the Lord is thinking.”
“…….”
"All I know is that if you guard this place, you'll eventually face Wei Yanho, who walks in here. What difference would it make if you beheaded him then? There'd be nothing left."
“That kind of thing doesn’t happen.”
“Just yesterday, you probably couldn’t have predicted that Hweimyung would be defeated by Wi Yeonho and retreat.”
“…….”
The head of the household closed his mouth.
“He’s not a predictable kid.”
Cheonryu Sword looked at Gaju quietly and said.
“You know, right?”
Gaju did not answer.
And with that alone, the Cheonryu Sword heard the answer.
"house owner."
“…….”
Cheonryu Sword slowly rose from his seat.
"I will go to help Hwe-myeong. If the head of the household won't step forward, I will. But don't think of this as being for the head of the household. I am simply doing it for the Baek family."
"I am……."
“Nothing…….”
The Thousand-Ryu Sword cuts off Gaju's words.
“Nothing surpasses the sword and the family. Even if it is the head of the family!”
Low static.
A low silence as their eyes meet each other.
A voice breaks the silence.
“It’s the same.”
That was the end of it.
Cheonryu Geom turned around and left the garden without saying goodbye.
A groan-like voice escaped from the mouth of the head of the household who had been quietly watching the scene.
“There is nothing more important than family…….”
A hollow laugh escapes.
“……You don’t know anything.”
I don't know anything.
Who can understand his heart? Who can understand his situation?
“Nothing is more important than family. Yes, that’s right.”
It's the same even if it's the head of the household.
As the sun rose in the middle of the sky and slowly set, the owner remained motionless in his spot until darkness fell.
And by the time the darkness deepened and the new sun rose, even his figure had disappeared.
Only the garden, utterly destroyed, remained in his wake.