Absolute Regression Chapter 524

524
Hui, who was driving the carriage, looked up at the sky.

Dark clouds were gathering, threatening to pour down rain at any moment.

“I’ll stop by the village today.”

Instead of going in the direction he originally intended, Hwi changed course and headed toward a nearby village.

Geommugeuk said, leaning out of the window.

“I wish there was a beautiful young lady in this village who would please our Lord Hwangcheon.”

At those words, Seo Dae-ryong’s face on the horse’s back turned red. Of course, he did not give up.

“I will recite a poem to that woman!”

Just then, a clap of thunder was heard from afar.

Kwarrrrung!

Seo Dae-ryong flinched.

‘Why should it thunder!’

At that moment, while he was looking gloomy, the voice of Hyeolcheondoma was heard.

“A man is not just about his face. A man is about his heart!”

Seo Dae-ryong’s expression brightened at the words that gave strength to his disciple.

“Yes, Master! A man is the heart!”

Seriously, if I had been a little closer to Hwi, I would have asked. Which side are you on, Hwi Muin? Your heart? Right?

Feeling his excitement in the wind, Geommu-geuk, who was leaning out, laughed silently. Yes, if they knew about you, what woman wouldn’t like you?

As the carriage entered the market street, the road became wider.

While the fruit vendor was arguing with a customer over whether to give him one more apple, an old herbalist was pitching a tent in case it rained.

A street vendor selling dumplings motioned for Hwi and Seo Dae-ryong to come and try some, while a timber store clerk was collecting silk from the display outside.

Children ran around amidst the bustling noise and delicious smells.

Geum Woo-jin watched the scene unfolding outside the window without saying a word.

If the first purpose of this trip was to make memories with my father, the second was this very moment. I wanted my father to see every corner of Central Plains with his own eyes.

Father, if there is a war, we will only focus on how and where our school’s unmanned personnel are killed and how many are killed. But in the meantime, that merchant over there will die, and those children will die too. Those numbers will not be included in our statistics.

That’s why. Although the memories of plowing the field together are good, it’s also precious that my father leaves a voucher for the wedding of his grandchild.

So all these moments are moments of play, but at the same time, they are moments of confrontation with my father.

The place where the carriage stopped was the largest inn in the village.

After Hwi took all six rooms on the second floor, he instructed the owner not to allow any other guests or tenants to come up.

After deciding to unpack and get some rest before eating, we all went to our rooms.

Whenever he had time alone, Geommugeuk would enter the space of space-time transference and practice the time-space secret technique.

But today I lay down on the bed with my legs crossed.

Sometimes, when I’m absorbed in my training, I get the feeling that this is what it means to be consumed by martial arts. If I train on a day like today, I’ll have exactly the same thought. Let’s rest, let’s rest well today.

I lay in bed, staring blankly at the dark clouds outside the window, and then dozed off.

How long did you sleep like that?

Swaaaaaaaaaah.

I woke up to the sound of pouring rain. Waking up to the sound of rain felt surprisingly good.

Then I suddenly remembered that before I returned, I hated the rain. When I went out alone to get Dafa materials and it started to rain heavily, I felt even more lonely and depressed.

But the rain is nice now.

This leisure of rolling around in bed while listening to the sound of rain. I didn’t envy anyone in the world.

But that was only for a moment. Maybe it was because I lived a life of running and running all the time, but my body was so sore that I couldn’t lie down any longer.

I got out of bed and left the room.

I checked the inside of the room in front of the West Dragon Gate on the other side. I thought he might be sleeping, but he was awake.

“What are you doing? Can I come in?”

“Yes, please come in.”

When I opened the door and went in, Seo Dae-ryong was reading a book. It was the poetry collection that Hyeolcheon Doma had given me.

“Is it fun?”

“It’s not really fun… … but as I read, there are passages that make me lose myself in thought without me realizing it.”

Was it because he knew that he was a smart person who studied hard? The sight of Seo Dae-ryong reading a poetry collection was quite fitting.

“It’s raining. Should we have a drink?”

At the end of the sword dance, Seodaeryong closed the book as if he had been waiting for it.

“Okay.”

I came out of the room and passed by my father, Hyeolcheondoma, and Hwi’s room.

As Geommugeuk tried to stop his steps as a joke, Seodaeryong whispered from behind him as if he had expected this.

“No!”

Drinking with Father and Thomas? You can tell how much trouble he’s in.

When I came down to the first floor, there were about a dozen guests eating and drinking here and there.

Geommugeuk and Seodaeryong sat in a place with a good view of the outside and ordered drinks and snacks.

The rain was pouring down coolly.

The small bamboo trees planted next to the building in front of the guest house swayed in the rain, and the puddles of water were constantly rippling.

In front of them, pedestrians wearing straw hats and straw hats were running, and in the distance, there were people taking shelter from the rain under the eaves. It was a scene that made me feel at ease just by looking at it.

In the meantime, alcohol and food were served.

“Have a drink, Your Majesty.”

Seo Dae-ryong politely poured him a drink. Geommu-geuk, who received the drink, also poured Seo Dae-ryong’s glass.

“It’s been a while. Having a drink together like this.”

“This is the place I’ve been waiting for.”

No matter what anyone says, he wanted to see Geommu-geuk and be with Geommu-geuk.

The two people emptied their first glasses without a hitch.

Then, after filling my glass, I watched the rain falling silently. Listening to the sound of the rain, I didn’t need any side dishes.

“The rain smells good.”

At the end of the sword dance, Seodaeryong wrinkled his nose.

“Does rain have a smell?”

“Yes.”

“Now that I think about it, I don’t think I’ve ever consciously smelled rain.”

There are things you can never see if you don’t pay attention, and there are smells you can never smell if you aren’t conscious of them.

“Good, the smell of rain today.”

At the end of the sword dance, Seo Dae-ryong took a deep breath through his nose and sniffed around.

Have a drink while listening to the sound of rain, and have a drink while talking about old times.

We drank like that, giving and receiving.

“When did you learn to fish?”

He beat the leader three times, so this was definitely a skill. Young Leader, what can’t you do?

“You’re really good at fishing, aren’t you?”

“I am lucky.”

But as if he had been waiting for these words, Seo Dae-ryong’s eyes sparkled. He looked around and lowered his voice as he spoke.

“I can’t forget that taste.”

He clenched and unclenched his hands, pulled and pushed his arms, pretending to fish, unable to hide his excitement.

“Who would have thought that I could beat the cult leader and the master in fishing? This is something I only tell the younger cult leader. You must never tell anyone. Even if I meet again, I am confident that I can beat the cult leader and the master in fishing. The master said it was beginner’s luck, but who knows? Maybe I was born with the talent of a fisherman.”

Geommugeuk asked with a smile.

“How does that taste compare to when you first performed the Mysterious Heavenly Demonic Cultivation?”

Seo Dae-ryong thought about it for a moment.

“No matter what, it can’t compare to the Extermination of Heavenly Demons method.”

Just then, Seo Dae-ryong saw that Geommu-geuk’s gaze was directed behind him.

Seo Dae-ryong’s startled voice became as small as the sound of an ant crawling.

“No? Please say no.”

Then a cold voice was heard from behind.

“I heard you put a lot of thought into choosing the flavor?”

At the sound of Hyeolcheon Doma’s voice, Seo Daeryong suddenly got up from his seat.

“Oh no, Master.”

When I looked back, it wasn’t just Master. Geum Woo-jin was also standing next to Hyeolcheon Do-ma. Surely you hadn’t heard that it seemed like you could beat the cult leader by fishing?

“If you’re that good at fishing, you should put down your sword and pick up a fishing rod.”

“No, Master. You misunderstood.”

Geommugeuk stepped forward to help Seo Dae-ryong, who had become confused.

“I saw the two of you coming down, so I threw some bait and our Lord of the Yellow River caught you like this. Fishing for people is more fun than catching fish. Now, sit over here.”

Five people, including Hwi, who was behind them, sat down together. Geommugeuk took turns pouring drinks for them.

The charm that rain gives to people was the same for everyone, including the Heavenly Horse, the Little Religion Leader, the Ma-Jon, the Escort Leader, and the Hwangcheon-Gak-Ju, so everyone drank to get into the mood.

The swordsman who was drinking saw his father.

Could it be because of the rain? My father’s eyes, which looked unusually lonely today, were not looking at the rain in front of him. What was clearly in his eyes were fragments of memories.

‘Who are you thinking of?’

Despite becoming close to my father, I can feel in moments like these that I still don’t know him very well.

Geommugeuk asked Hyeolcheondoma instead of his father.

“Do you have anyone in mind when it rains?”

Bloodthirsty Horse shook his head.

“No. What about you?”

“Me too. I hate it when it rains because it’s slippery when I do light exercises. I live this kind of dry life.”

“A young man talking about life!”

Even while scolding, Hyeolcheon Doma was smiling.

“But now it exists.”

“It’s happening now? What do you mean?”

“People here. Sitting here and watching the rain today, don’t you think of today when it rains?”

Hearing the words of Geommu-geuk, Hyeolcheon Doma thought of his master.

‘Master, you have never met a real hypocrite. That is why you called me a hypocrite.’

The reason I heard those words from my master in the first place might be because I was influenced by this real hypocrite.

‘Master, you should have tasted this hypocrisy long ago.’

Then, did Master’s life change? He said he would not think of Master anymore, but when it rained, he thought of Master like this.

Swaaaaaaah.

We all drank our drinks while watching the falling rain, each lost in their own thoughts.

At that time, new guests entered the guest house.

Those who entered were female knights carrying swords. As they sat down and took off their robes and hats, Seo Dae-ryong’s eyes widened.

I had been conscious of not seeing him since I came in, but among the three women, there was one that really caught my eye.

I was staring blankly for a moment when my eyes met with that woman’s.

At that moment, when I was inwardly embarrassed, the woman bowed her head slightly and greeted me. Seo Dae-ryong also returned the greeting by lightly shaking the coin.

It was just a common greeting among the people, but Seo Dae-ryong’s heart pounded like a hammer. It was an excitement he couldn’t handle alone.

– Did you see that just now? That woman greeted me. She even smiled.

Geommugeuk said to the excited Seodaeryong.

-He smiled at me.

-What are you talking about! It’s me, it’s definitely me.

Seo Dae-ryong drank alcohol to calm his excitement, but his heart beat even faster.

-Oh, but unfortunately, they seem to be political women?

-It’ll be lucky over there.

-Your Majesty!

-I’m just kidding, I’m sorry.

Geommugeuk smiled and poured me a glass of wine.

Seo Dae-ryong glanced at the women while drinking again.

-Oh, our eyes met again. That woman is also aware of this person.

-Who are you among the three women?

-Don’t look at me!

Seo Dae-ryong felt a pleasant excitement for the first time in a long time. This feeling of being alive, of being a man!

At that moment, a poem flowed out of Seo Dae-ryong’s mouth, filled with excitement.

Before the sword dance could stop, Seo Dae-ryong, whose face was flushed red from drunkenness, ended up setting out into the night, becoming a lonely swordsman on a rainy night.

“… … The lonely shadow hides in the wind, and the dream held in the river and lake is answered by the sound of rain.”

Until now, they had been communicating through sword dance and telepathy, so now Seo Dae-ryong suddenly started reciting poetry.

When the gazes of Geom Woo-jin, Hyeoncheon Do-ma, and Hwi were focused on him, Seo Dae-ryong exclaimed, “Oh no.”

At that moment, I couldn’t see the leader or the master. All I could think about was reciting a nice poem in front of the women.

Did reciting poetry have any effect?

The women were glancing over at each other and talking about something. It was clear that they were talking about the poems they had recited.

After a while, the owner brought a dish.

“The ladies over there sent me some food.”

Geommugeuk asked.

“Which of us did you send it to?”

Seo Dae-ryong naturally expected these words.

―They say the women listened to the poem well.

At that moment, the owner put down the food he had brought. Everyone looked at the person in question with a surprised expression. The person the owner had put down the food was none other than Geum Woo-jin.

Geum Woo-jin continued to look at the falling rain as if he didn’t care.

Flowing stillness.

Seo Dae-ryong sent the message in a sorrowful, yet still hopeful voice.

– I don’t think it was her who sent it.

The sword dance had no time to respond to that sound.

I looked back and forth between my father and the cooking with eyes filled with jealousy.

“I think I came to the wrong place.”

The swordsman pulled the food towards him.

“At first glance, I think the owner must have mistaken me because I look like my father. Is that right?”

Then, Geum Woo-jin, who had been looking outside without any reaction until now, turned his head. With a proud smile of a winner that could not be hidden, he brought the food back in front of him.

“It’s mine.”