Absolute Regression Chapter 433

433
The next morning, the carriage carrying the Geommu Theater group left the Ice Palace.

Ian, who had said that he would not return to the main school and would continue the mission he had left off, also decided to stay with them until they left the North Sea.

As the carriage exited the ice palace entrance, there was a person waiting.

She was Princess Hanseol.

“I came out to say goodbye.”

Geommu-geuk and Chwi-ma exchanged a quick glance in the carriage, and Ian got out as the representative. The two of them had something to talk about.

“I heard from my mother.”

Hanseol called her mother, not princess. It was not only because she had recently become close to Princess Bing, but also because the story they were talking about was about family.

Ian stared at Hanseol quietly. They were now cousins.

“Are you surprised? I was surprised when I heard it from the princess yesterday.”

“You are my older sister, so please speak comfortably.”

It was the first time in my life that I had ever said the word, “sister.” In the past, I wouldn’t have been able to say it as easily as I do now.

Recently, my relationship with my mother has changed, and I have felt a change in my heart for some reason. That must be why I feel so uncomfortable in this place.

“I thought you were my younger sibling.”

“… … .”

“I’m joking.”

“It’s still not funny.”

It was Hanseol who said Ian’s joke wasn’t funny last time. But today, Hanseol was smiling, contrary to her words.

“And this.”

Hanseol held out a small box.

“My mother told me to pass this on to you. She told me to open it later.”

The box was sealed tightly so that I couldn’t open it right away. I don’t know what’s inside, but I still have to say hello.

“Please tell my aunt I said thank you.”

Just as Hanseol first said the word “sister,” this was also the first time Ian said the word “aunt.” It was very awkward, but he was polite when he realized that he was her nephew, thinking of the Binggungju he liked.

“Then have a good trip.”

Ian, who was about to turn around, looked at Hanseol again and said.

“Seol-ah, take care.”

When Hanseol made a surprised expression, Ian quickly spoke.

“Is it still early?”

“No. You are my sister.”

Ian is the type of person who knows how to be bold in times like these.

“Next time you come to Jungwon, I’ll show you around.”

Hanseol nodded. It felt awkward and unfamiliar. But this feeling wasn’t so bad.

Ian climbed into the carriage again.

Geommugeuk stuck his face out the window and said goodbye to Hanseol.

“I’ll invite you once all the reviews are collected. Let’s meet then.”

Han Seol still didn’t know that this gathering was a special occasion where the status of Princess Ju of the North Sea Ice Palace would no longer be special at all.

So the carriage carrying Geommugeuk, Chwima, and Ian left that place.

Hanseol stood in place and watched the departing carriage. The three people really came like the wind and left like the wind.

The Ice Palace Princess approached her side. She had been watching from a distance before revealing herself.

“Have you ever been to Jungwon, Mother?”

The word “mother” startled Binggungju. When was the last time she called herself “mother?” Hanseol was still looking at the carriage disappearing into the distance, so he couldn’t tell if she meant it or said it unintentionally.

“There have been several times.”

“What kind of place is the Central Plains?”

Hanseol only knew about Jungwon through people’s stories and books. She wanted to hear her mother’s thoughts on Jungwon.

The carriage drove away, but it was the first time her mind became curious about the Central Plains.

The Ice Palace Master walked slowly and touched the snow-covered tree. The snow on the branches fell down fluttering.

“When I was young, this was the kind of place that Jungwon was to me. It was a place where I wanted to come back when I went there, and once I came back, I wanted to go there again.”

And as time passed, those feelings gradually faded, and now I no longer miss the Central Plains as much as I did when I was younger.

She loved the North Sea.

Neither the fluttering spring flowers, nor the hot summer heat, nor the beautifully embroidered autumn leaves could overcome the beauty of this snowy landscape.

But this is, after all, your own life.

The soft gaze of the Ice Palace Master, clearly different from before, was directed at his daughter.

“Your central region will be different.”

* * *

The carriage raced south quickly.

Since it was a carriage that had come with support from the Cheonmasingyo Bukhaejidan, the driver of the horse-riding stone was very nervous.

Who would have thought that he would be driving a carriage carrying a young sect leader and a horse? And he was even running without any escort.

So wouldn’t it be possible to avoid the attack? No one would believe that the cult leader was riding in this carriage.

In contrast to the anxiety of the driver, the inside of the carriage was peaceful.

Chwima, who had not yet fully recovered from his injuries, took up a seat and lay down. Of course, he did not forget to joke around.

“What’s so urgent that you’re dragging your dying brother like this?”

“I should go when I’m done with work. I want to see my father, and the demons. I want to see my brother, and I want to see Daeryong and Jang Gun-jun.”

“I also… … .”

I was about to say, “I guess I’ll be treated like cold rice,” but I stopped myself. Since Ian was riding with me, it wasn’t easy to make that kind of joke.

Of course, it would have been okay to do so. Ian had been staring blankly out the window since earlier.

After Chwima motioned for Ian to take care of something, he closed his eyes and tried to sleep.

The sword dance team looked out the window that Ian was looking at.

When Ian felt that Geommugeuk was paying attention to him, he brought up what he had been wanting to say for a while.

“Actually, I couldn’t sleep at all last night.”

The sword dance made me think that’s what she would have done.

“The princess would have been like that too.”

Then Ian turned towards the sword dance and asked with a worried expression.

“Should I have come to see you at dawn and greeted you separately?”

I thought about it many times, whether I should do it or not, but in the end I couldn’t do it.

“The princess was watching us from afar earlier.”

“Really?”

The sword dance nodded.

Geommugeuk knows very well what it feels like to watch from afar because you don’t want to be a burden.

Ian felt even more sorry when he heard that the Ice Palace Lord was watching him.

Her gaze turned to the box that Binggungju had given her.

“Open it.”

At the end of the sword dance, Ian carefully broke the seal and opened the box.

There was another small box inside. There was a booklet underneath, but I opened the box first.

As I opened the box, a unique scent spread throughout the carriage.

The scent was so strong that it made the sleeping horse open its eyes wide.

What was in the box was a pure white fruit. The fruit seemed to exude a spiritual energy, and it was obvious that it was not ordinary.

“What is this?”

The sword dance drama recognized it immediately.

“It’s the fruit of the iceberg plant.”

When Geommugeuk was teasing Seodaeryong, he joked that if you go to the North Sea, the Seol-in will grow ice plants. I see that here.

“Is it precious?”

Earlier, when I asked if Binggungju would really choose a wine glass when there is a better elixir than Mannyeonseolsam, I was referring to Bingseolcho.

The swordsman spoke straight to the groom.

“Please stop the carriage for a moment.”

The carriage stopped.

Geommugeuk brought a box containing the Bingseolcho berries and had Ian come down.

After Geommu-geuk had her sit next to the carriage, he handed her some Bingseolcho fruit.

“You want me to take it here?”

The sword dance nodded.

“It would be a blessing for you to receive the elixir while I am with you.”

When taking elixir, you should have someone you can trust by your side. Not only will you not be able to deal with external attacks, but you may also suffer serious internal injuries or fall into a state of possession if you are unable to overcome the elixir’s effects.

When you think of such dangers, where can you find someone as solid as Geommugeuk?

“Can I eat something so precious? You should eat it instead, Young Master.”

“Are you trying to start a war between the main church and the Ice Palace?”

Ian smiled faintly at the joke of the sword dance.

Once her life changed, it changed without her noticing. She felt like she was being swept away by the strong waves of fate regardless of her will. Even so, the reason she could be brave and strong was probably because there was always someone watching her when she turned her head.

“Then I will take it with gratitude.”

Ian took the iceberg fruit carefully.

The fruit melted in my mouth and spread throughout my body.

At that moment, a shiver ran through Ian’s body. The energy spreading through his blood vessels was cold. It was so cold that he wondered if it was okay to be this cold.

But the coldness was short-lived, as if she had caught a cold and developed a fever, her body became hot as fire.

The energy of the ice-blossom fruit swirled around her body, alternating between cold and hot.

Ian was taken aback by this strong energy. He had been prepared for it, but he had not expected it to be this strong.

‘Can I melt this?’

I tried to somehow make the energy my own by going around and around in the energy.

Her efforts had somewhat curbed the wild horse spirit, but it was beginning to dissipate.

‘no!’

However, Ian’s current internal energy and skills were not enough to absorb all of the effects.

It was just then.

The hand of the swordsmanship reached behind her back. A single ray of energy entered her body through the palm. The swordsmanship began to help her draw the scattered energy back into her blood vessels. It was only a single ray of energy, but it was a greater help than a thousand troops.

Even though Geommu-geuk offered help, it didn’t help from the beginning.

After giving her enough experience in dissolving the elixir, he helped her at the last moment. This was the blessing that Geommu-geuk had been talking about earlier.

Ian also tried hard until the end. He repeatedly controlled his energy and melted the elixir’s energy.

In the end, the energy of the ice-blossom fruit gathered into Ian’s danjeon as a great amount of internal energy. The feeling of her danjeon being filled to the brim was truly an unforgettable pleasure. In particular, because it was a medicinal elixir that suited her constitution, her internal energy was even more pure.

As a result, Ian’s eyes became clearer and more intense.

“The energy I feel from my danjeon is completely different. Has the little cult leader ever lived in such a wonderful world?”

Then, Chwima stuck his head out the carriage window and said.

“Is it really true that your sect’s world is only that small?”

“Right? If I were a puddle, you would be the ocean, right?”

Geommugeuk waved his hand at her words that the difference in internal energy would not be that great.

“It’s not that much of a difference.”

I was wondering how you could be so humble.

“What if it’s a stream or the sea?”

The two people looked at each other and laughed.

Ian bowed his head politely.

“Thank you for making me a stream.”

“I’ll say hello to the princess later when I see her.”

He said that, but Ian knew how much Geommu-geuk had helped him melt the iceberg. If it weren’t for him, he would have lost a third of his energy.

The two men climbed back into the carriage.

When I took out the small box that contained the ice-blossom fruit from inside the box, I found a letter and a secret book underneath it.

Ice Bound Divine Art.

Although it was not the Princess’s Dokmun martial art, it was a martial art that was considered one of the best among the Ice Palace Master’s Ice Arts. To use a metaphor, it was similar to the relationship between the Bicheon Sword Technique and the Nine Flower Demon Art of Geommu Geuk.

“He told me to memorize the emergency copy and burn it.”

There was no other story written in the letter. They didn’t write anything at all for fear that Ian would feel burdened.

“Can I accept all of this? Just because we’re blood relatives?”

The sword dance gave a cheerful answer.

“You can tell just by looking at this gift. It shows how much the princess has missed your mother. I think it is in your best interest to gladly accept it.”

Ian started reciting the secret recipe without saying another word.

Chwima, who was watching the scene, sent a message to Geommugeuk.

―When you call someone your heart and treat them like your heart, they really become your heart.

This was the impression of Chuma after seeing the sword dance and Ian.

-If you feel that way, then it’s time to take care of your heart too.

This was said about Yeo-bin who likes drinking, but the woman was talking nonsense.

– When I get back, I’ll have to check with the state government. Let’s see if there’s anything rotten!

The swordsman smiled and spoke loudly to the groom.

“Let’s go again!”

* * *

Of course, no matter how strong the heart has become, it is still a baby heart left on the market.

When they reached the point where they had to leave the North Sea and part ways with Ian, Geommu-geuk said to Chwi-ma.

“Let’s keep going like this. I’ll just see Ian off for a bit.”

Ian said it wasn’t necessary, but the swordsman sent the carriage first.

“Get up.”

“why?”

“hurry.”

Without explaining anything, Geommu-geuk carried Ian on his back.

And then he started running. The speedboat that reached the twelve stars really cut through the air as fast as light.

It’s comfortable to be carried even though you’re running this fast. The real skill and realm of the sword dance lies not in speed, but in comfort.

‘But where are you going?’

Ian was puzzled the whole time he was being carried.

Only after running for almost an hour without stopping did the sword dance finally stop.

“Where is this place?”

“I don’t know either.”

Ian made a face as if he was wondering what kind of joke this was, but the sword dance really ran wherever his feet took him. And the reason was something Ian had never expected.

“Just in case there’s someone watching us.”

Ian asked in surprise.

“Was there anyone watching?”

The swordsman shook his head. He felt that there were no watchers around, but there was a chance that the master of stealth was watching. That was why he could have been chasing Ian.

But if he comes running at a brisk pace like this, no watcher will be able to track Ian’s movements.

“Aren’t you being too cautious?”

“I just prepared for the one-in-a-million-case scenario. When it comes to something irreversible, there’s no excuse for letting your guard down just once.”

Ian is always impressed and grateful to the sword dance, but not like now. She asked playfully, trying hard to hide her excitement.

“You’re so worried about me, how did you send me away before?”

Because things are different now. It was right after I killed the Blood King.

“If a problem arises despite all my efforts, there’s nothing I can do about it.”

I could tell that after doing my best, I had no regrets about the results.

Ian took the teachings of the Sword Dance to heart. She would live like this from now on.

“This narrow stream will return as a river.”