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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 41
Chapter Title: Chapter 41
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Chapter 41
It was quite the aura of a true Daoist.
However, to Seolhwa, who clearly remembered his appearance just moments ago, it was nothing more than a superficial pretense.
"What brings a Hwasan disciple to Hefei?"
"That's a secret."
Seolhwa's eyes grew serious at his smiling reply.
'Hwasan in Hefei, huh.'
There could only be one reason for Hwasan to visit Hefei at this time.
"But..."
The boy awkwardly scratched his head, a faint smile on his face.
"…?"
"Could you please put in a good word for me with my master? If I go back like this, I might really get beaten to death this time... Ugh!"
Seolhwa turned and walked away without listening further.
Yugang hastily followed her.
"Hey, hey! Don't be like that! I even covered you with my robes so your mouth wouldn't get twisted, so consider it saving your life, your savior's life...! Argh!"
Something flew at Yugang's face.
It was the martial robe he had draped over Seolhwa.
He pulled the robe from his face to see Seolhwa looking at him with an indifferent gaze.
"It's the same for both of us."
"What?"
"I mean, I'm not in a position to help anyone either."
Seolhwa pointed towards the city.
Namgung warriors, searching for her, were bustling through the city streets.
If she returned now, it would be just as troublesome for her as it was for Yugang.
"Ah..."
Yugang, belatedly understanding her words, stared blankly at the city, then looked at Seolhwa with a pitiful gaze.
Seolhwa let out a small chuckle at his transparent reaction, which was so easy to read.
"I won't forget your kindness. If you ever need help, come to the Namgung Sega anytime."
"If I go to Namgung, can I meet you?"
Seolhwa nodded.
Yugang, his face full of anticipation, shouted.
"Let's spar! Sword master against sword master. It's been my dream to fight against Changcheon's sword."
"No."
It was an immediate, sharp refusal, leaving no room to breathe.
Yugang's expression instantly fell.
"...Why..."
"If you want to cross swords with me."
Seolhwa's eyes softly curved into an arc.
For a moment, a breeze blew, gently rustling her loose hair.
"Come back stronger."
"...!"
Her disappearance from Yugang's sight was also instantaneous.
Like a breeze that had blown and then silently departed, she vanished without a trace, without a sound.
The dust stirred from where she had stood quietly settled.
Yugang simply stared blankly at the spot where she had been.
What was that?
"...Cool..."
A faint blush slowly spread across his cheeks.
* * *
"It's clear she approached with this intention from the beginning. Shouldn't we check now to see if any secret techniques are missing?"
"Didn't she trick even the Family Head and the Bipunggeomdae Commander and disappear? Tsk, tsk, no matter how young someone is, their mind can be dark..."
"Even if she's family, shouldn't she be caught and properly punished?"
The girl had disappeared.
Upon receiving the report of Seolhwa's disappearance, Namgung Mucheon immediately organized a search party and ordered them to find her.
At first, he thought it was an act by enemies targeting the child.
However, barely an hour later, another rumor began to spread within the family.
It was the rumor that 'the girl defeated the Bipunggeomdae Commander and the Medicine Hall Master and ran away.'
"..."
Namgung Mucheon looked down at the servants and warriors who were so readily spreading false rumors.
One hour. In just one hour, public opinion had completely shifted.
Could that truly be a coincidence?
'It seems someone is instigating this.'
Who could it be?
Though he didn't know yet, it was clear there was a rotten pond within his own family.
"Family Head, we should punish them."
"Enough. If we punish everyone for ignorance, who would be left alive in this world?"
More importantly, that rumor might not be entirely false.
Seolhwa's chambers, which Namgung Mucheon rushed to after receiving the report, were unexpectedly tidy. There were no signs of forced entry, suggesting no one had forcibly taken the child.
Above all, there was the condition of the fallen Bipunggeom master.
No matter how potent the medicine used, he was a master of the Jeoljeong realm.
He wasn't someone who would fall so easily.
If it were an unknown intruder's doing, his entire body should have been rigid with tension, but Seop Mugwang, as Namgung Mucheon observed, merely looked like he was sleeping.
As if he knew who had drugged him and had given up resistance.
'It's true she left on her own.'
Only that child could have rendered the Bipunggeom master so helpless.
However, he couldn't believe she had tried to run away.
'I can handle it myself.'
The look in the child's eyes when she said that was still vivid in his memory.
If it was that child, she would have tried to solve her problems with her own strength rather than running away.
If that was the case, Namgung Mucheon didn't ask for much.
'Where are you, Seolhwa?'
Please be safe and unharmed.
* * *
A clamor of voices surrounded her.
She had climbed over the wall to leave, but she returned through the main gate.
There was no need to deliberately reveal that she knew all of the Namgung Sega's internal mechanisms.
The fastest way to announce her return was also by entering through the main gate.
"It's the Young Miss! The Young Miss has returned!"
At the gatekeeper's shout, signal fireworks were launched, announcing her return.
The gazes of the warriors and servants gathered near the main gate all turned to Seolhwa.
Shock spread across their faces.
"Wh-what is that...?"
"Blood...?"
Amidst their murmuring, Seolhwa walked calmly forward.
When she had crossed the threshold and walked halfway across the inner courtyard, a large figure blocked her path.
Seolhwa raised her gaze.
Namgung Mucheon, flanked by the Chief Steward and the Hall Masters, stood there with startled expressions.
Seolhwa offered them a Pokwon.
"The scent of blood is strong."
Namgung Mucheon's voice held a chilling anger.
Seolhwa bowed her head instead of replying.
She had nothing to say, having tricked them all and secretly left.
"I apologize."
"It's enough that you've returned. Did you finish your business well?"
"...Yes."
"Let's go to your quarters."
Namgung Mucheon spoke to those beside him.
"Everyone, return to your duties."
The Hall Masters looked like they had much to say, but no one questioned him.
They, along with the warriors and servants who had been observing the situation, followed Namgung Mucheon's words and returned to their respective quarters and tasks.
Namgung Mucheon walked ahead, heading towards Seolhwa's quarters.
Seolhwa silently followed behind him.
"Are you hurt anywhere?"
From behind him, a warm voice spoke, devoid of the anger from moments before.
Seolhwa quietly nodded.
"No."
"First, wash up and change your clothes."
"Yes."
Upon returning to her quarters, bathwater and new clothes were already prepared.
As if someone had foreseen Seolhwa's return.
Seolhwa dismissed the servant who offered to help her bathe and entered the bathroom alone. She couldn't expose the wounds that still seeped with blood qi.
Only after circulating her internal energy to expel the blood qi did she immerse herself in the warm water.
Splash—
In the warm bath, Seolhwa hugged her knees.
She saw the injuries she had sustained fighting Pawol.
The fine, clotted cuts reminded her of last night's events.
'Pawol.'
She had cut off the arm of someone she had considered a comrade for eight years. She felt no guilt or pity.
Most of Hyeolma's teachings were useless, devoid of humanity, but she agreed with a few.
'If you don't kill, you will be killed.'
If she hadn't cut off Pawol's arm, countless people would have died by his hand, and some of them would have been from the Namgung Sega.
Therefore, this was a righteous act.
After changing her clothes, she returned to her room.
Namgung Mucheon sat upright in a chair at the table, arms crossed, eyes closed.
"Grandfather."
Namgung Mucheon slowly opened his eyes and looked at Seolhwa.
His brows furrowed faintly.
"You're hurt."
His gaze was fixed on Seolhwa's forehead.
It was a shallow wound she had sustained when she plunged into Pawol's sword.
"This much is fine. The servant said she'd bring wound medicine."
"...Sit."
Namgung Mucheon sighed, pointing to the opposite seat. He rubbed his forehead, looking tired.
A heavy silence lingered for a long time.
It was Seolhwa who broke the stillness.
"I'm sorry. For deceiving everyone. I didn't want anyone else to get hurt because of me."
"...If someone could get hurt, it means you could also get hurt. Conversely, if it was something you could handle, it could have been resolved without anyone getting hurt."
There were many masters in the family more skilled than Seolhwa.
If they had stepped forward, Seolhwa wouldn't have been injured.
That was precisely what angered Namgung Mucheon.
Now that she had returned to the family, she should have stepped back from danger and accepted the family's protection. Why did she have to go out and get hurt?
"Does this old man, does the Namgung Sega, seem so untrustworthy to you?"
