Absolute Regression Chapter 435

435
I have known for a long time that my father dreamed of unifying the martial arts world.

The question was when would my father draw his sword? It was a question of timing.

If Hyeolcheon Doma’s guess is true, it will be sooner than I thought.

“Haven’t we yet to completely root out the behind-the-scenes forces that have been active in each faction recently?”

Are you thinking about war in this situation?

I know my father is not the type of person to handle such a big matter emotionally. He is not the type of person to create another enemy after having already created one.

How can you not know that when you are a bloodthirsty monk?

Although they are distant now, Hyeoncheon Do-ma was the closest person to his father when he was young. That is why he knows his father better than anyone else. Nevertheless, the reason he made this guess was precisely because of this.

“As you know, the world of martial arts has been peaceful for a very long time. There have been no real fights. But this time, while dealing with those behind the scenes, the demon lords have awakened.”

That was right. All the Mazons took turns participating in the fight. They had a real experience of fighting against a powerful enemy. It was a chance that Mazon-level masters would only have a few times in their lives to face an enemy of similar skill.

“While dealing with them, we naturally began to prepare for war in earnest.”

The surprising words of Hyeolcheon Doma started from now on.

“And above all, a more powerful force than anything else has emerged in our school.”

“What are you talking about?”

Bloodthirsty Horse looked at me without saying a word.

“Are you talking about me?”

Bloodthirsty Horse nodded.

That was right. My martial arts skills grew the most while dealing with the mastermind.

“Because of you, the possibility of our school achieving unification of the martial arts world has greatly increased.”

It was true. If I become the great master of the Nine-Hwa Demonic Arts and join forces with my father, I might be able to unify the martial arts world more easily than if my father did it alone.

Finally, the surprising words of Hyeolcheon Doma were added.

“Maybe you were the one who woke up the leader’s dream.”

“!”

I couldn’t refute that statement. Whether it was true or not, Hyeolcheondoma’s words were persuasive.

Because I’ve been the biggest influence on my father lately.

“Of course, my guess could be wrong.”

My father has changed a lot lately. He may have been influenced by the way I treated the demons, and he may simply want to be close to the demons. That would be really great.

If not, it could simply be to appease the demons in order to root out the power behind the scenes. How great would that be?

Truly, there is nothing more difficult than reading a father’s mind.

The last reason why Hyeolcheondoma guesses this happened a long time ago in the past.

“The leader dreamed of unifying the martial arts world since he was young.”

“Have you ever talked about it?”

The eyes of Hyeolcheondoma, recalling the past, deepened.

“It was before the leader of the cult ascended the Heavenly Horse. At that time, the leader and Kwonma went around fighting all over the Central Plains. Just like you do now, the two of them traveled without any escort. Then one day, the leader of the cult returned to the cult and spoke to me with a face like that.”

What did Father say to Hyeoncheon Doma back in the days when everyone was young?

Hyeolcheon Doma relayed exactly what his father had said.

“I must have this martial arts world.”

The moment I heard those words, I was reminded of my father when he was young.

The moment when he first dreamed of unifying the martial arts world. What was the trigger that made my father dream of unifying the martial arts world? Was what he saw at that time a good aspect of the martial arts world? Or was it an ugly aspect?

“Since then, the cult leader has never mentioned him once.”

“It was probably the first and last time. My father was not the type of person to go around revealing his dreams to everyone.”

When I wanted to tell someone about the passion boiling in my heart, the only person I could think of was Hyeolcheon Doma.

Because there was such a past between the two, Hyeoncheon Doma was able to be confident that although he could give up on his two children, he would not give up on himself.

My heart felt heavy. Could I give up the dream I had of my father since then?

“What about you, sir?”

“what?”

“What will you do if your father gives the order to attack the Murim Alliance?”

Hyeolcheondoma lowered his gaze to the book. His expression was clearly troubled.

“Please speak comfortably. I am ready to feel disappointed!”

Although he said it as a joke, the Bloodthirsty Demon did not take it as a joke.

“I’m not ready to upset you or your father yet.”

I could tell what Bloodthirsty Demon was thinking from those words. No matter how close I was to him, no matter how distant I was from my father, it was never easy to disobey his orders. After all, it was a relationship between the leader and the devil, leaving aside all personal matters.

Just by worrying like this, I could tell how much he cared for me.

“I won’t let the elderly have a moment to choose.”

Not only the Blood Heavenly Demon, but also the other Demon Lords were the same. I will not let you fall into the trouble of having to disobey your father’s orders for me. This issue is strictly between my father and me.

“What are you going to do?”

“Don’t you know what kind of magic I dream of? I have to convince my father somehow.”

Bloodthirsty Demon’s gaze turned back to the book. He stared blankly down at the book for a moment before speaking softly.

“Not everyone can live the way they want.”

I couldn’t tell if he was talking to me, to my father, or to himself.

* * *

I said I would bring my pajamas and sleep after going to bed and left Hyeolcheondoma’s residence because I thought he might want to be alone.

I decided to look at this issue positively.

This is the moment when not only my relationship with my father but also my relationship with the Amazons will take the next step. It is easy to become close. The problem always starts after that.

Now we are facing a new test in our relationship.

When I returned to my residence, I saw a person practicing martial arts in the yard.

He was the person in charge of the escort, Jeokyeon. News of my return must have already reached him, so he must have been waiting at his residence until I arrived.

I watched him practice without interrupting him. He had improved noticeably since the last time I saw him. It meant that he had been practicing hard while he was in the North Sea.

When the martial arts training was over, I revealed myself.

“Your skills have improved a lot, haven’t they?”

When I appeared, Jeokyeon greeted me politely.

“Your Majesty! I have been waiting for your safe return.”

A welcoming look spread across his face.

“I’ve been waiting since I heard that you’ve returned. I sent you back to train so that you can be with the other guards.”

Just hearing those words, I could guess how diligently they were practicing. They were trying to make sure that even a single day of scheduled practice was not interrupted.

“Take off the blindfold first.”

“it’s okay.”

“I always say I’m not okay.”

When I look into his eyes, I am reminded of Ian’s full-body petrification. I can feel the heart of the guards who are enduring so much pain to protect someone, and I want to put them out of their misery as soon as possible.

The moment I took off the blindfold, I was shocked.

His eyes had returned to normal.

“You have achieved great success!”

Only then did Jeokyeon smile, as if he had intended to surprise her.

“It’s all thanks to the Little Leader. Because the Little Leader would touch my eyes from time to time, I was able to quickly achieve success in practicing the Eye-Opening Technique.”

I know that’s not the case. He must have endured great pain and gone through arduous training.

“But why are you wearing a blindfold?”

“It’s awkward because it suddenly came loose.”

“Take it off, if you take off the blindfold, the female warriors will follow you around.”

“Then I should wear the blindfold even more. I will be following the cult leader around.”

Was it because the pain in his eyes had disappeared? He seemed much brighter than before. Still, he hurriedly said goodbye, perhaps because he felt awkward telling jokes he never used to.

“Then take a rest.”

“Red smoke.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

I couldn’t send him away like this after he waited so late into the night to see me.

“I have to give a congratulatory gift before I go.”

I had a drink with Jeokyeon and chatted about various things.

Just as I reported to my father what had happened, Jeokyeon also reported everything that had happened at school. It was information that he had collected in detail in case it could be of help to me.

He also said that the escorts’ skills have improved a lot. He talked about how hard they are working.

“Perhaps it is because they have a strong desire to follow the Little Leader and practice together that they are all practicing with all their might.”

I always told them that if they want to go with me, they have to be stronger.

Bloodthirsty Demon’s words were correct. Our school’s power was growing stronger everywhere.

In particular, everyone related to me is getting stronger. Even Ilhwageomjon, who didn’t fight behind the scenes, has become stronger through his fight with me.

Maybe that’s actually true.

I wonder if it was really me who woke up from my father’s dream.

* * *

The next day, I went to Akingok to meet the evil Soma.

In the abode of the evil soma, both my bed and his bed were still fine.

There were even desks and chairs there that weren’t there before.

The evil Soma was looking at something on the desk.

“Have a nice trip.”

The two eyes behind the mask of the evil soma looking at me smiled brightly.

“Are you here?”

The evil Soma greeted me with his unchanging appearance.

“There’s a desk.”

Of course, it was a desk and chair painted pure white.

“It’s convenient because it’s there.”

Then he showed me what he had been looking at. It was a ledger with numbers written on it.

“I’m studying something new these days.”

Looking at that, I remembered the time when I followed him to the Central Plains. At that time, Cheongmyeon had told me the contents of the ledger through a telegram, but now I was looking at it directly. Perhaps he had learned how to read the ledger in the meantime.

I thought it was a good phenomenon. When the masters of the Amazon level rise to the next level, they sometimes get inspiration from places they never thought of. That’s why it’s scary. The bloody demon who reads books, the evil soma who reads ledgers.

It was a change after I brought the bed. I could feel what was in the mind of the evil soma who put the desk.

He is responding to my heart, which is sleeping comfortably while lying down, with a bigger change. He says that I have changed like this thanks to you.

“How was the North Sea?”

“It’s a wonderful and beautiful place. Have you been there many times?”

I thought he must have gone there often since he was an extremely evil soma who liked the color white.

“I only went once. I hate the cold.”

I laughed out loud for an unexpected reason.

This time, the evil Soma asked.

“Then, you must have been to the Bukhae Ice Palace too.”

“Was I just going there? I actually spent some time there.”

“It’s a place known to not accept outsiders. As expected, you are the leader of the small sect.”

I sat on the edge of my bed and told him in detail what had happened in the North Sea, especially about the Blood King and his men.

Although it was sometimes annoying to have to repeat myself, I didn’t mind because I believed that a small piece of information could be valuable information that could save my life later.

So, after telling you about the North Sea, I brought up the most important matter of my visit today.

“I heard you met your father a while ago.”

“Yes, I did.”

“I wonder what you talked about with your father that day.”

A look of doubt flashed through the eyes of the evil soma in his eye socket. He was asking about the conversation between Cheonma and Majon. No matter how close they were, it was not something he could ask about so easily.

“I know this is a rude question.”

“Of course there is a reason.”

I didn’t hide anything from him about this.

“I thought it was because my father started to move towards unifying the martial arts world.”

The eyes of the evil Soma shone brightly at the words, “the unification of the martial arts world.”

“I had that thought yesterday when I saw you and Master Chuma working together. I wonder if my father is really going to draw his sword.”

Only then did the evil Soma look with understanding as to why I had asked that question.

“When we met, he never talked about anything related to the Murim Il Tong. It was just about school work and everyday conversation. He mostly talked about the head monk.”

“My story?”

“Yes, I ask that you take good care of the young sect leader in the future.”

My father meets the evil Soma and asks for my favor?

That could be the case, since my relationship with my father has improved these days.

The feeling of unease still did not go away.

“Are you worried?”

“Honestly, I’m worried. I’m even rude enough to come see you like this.”

What do the Amazons think, apart from their relationship with me?

As I regressed, they changed a lot from before. Their relationship with me also changed.

But has the perspective or even the heart towards the world of martial arts changed? For example, if we ask this question?

Does the evil Soma like the peaceful world of martial arts? Or does he want to run to the battlefield and unleash his magic?

Can we be sure that he likes peace? Is the evil Soma before our eyes that kind of person?

Then the evil Soma spoke. It was as if he had read my mind.

“I can tolerate it.”

I could tell what kind of mind he was talking about. This was the evil Soma’s intention toward me.

“I don’t want to make Soma live a life where he has to endure it.”

His eyes in their sockets ask, is there a way?

“We have to find it now. Instead of saying that we will endure it, Father and the Amazons will say something else.”

I still don’t know what word should go in the place of the word “endure.”

“Your Majesty.”

“Yes, Soma-sama.”

The evil Soma spoke softly with clear and deep eyes.

“No matter what orders are given, I will follow the Young Master. The Young Master’s magic is my magic.”