“...What the hell are you two ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) doing?”

At my words, the people outside the door flinched.

They both looked similar, but if I had to split hairs, one looked icy and the other looked cold.

Yeah.

They’re just similar. I just swapped the word.

‘...That’s not the point.’

What matters is—

“This is my room.”

The problem was that they were fighting on the floor of my room.

“...It’s early as hell. What are you doing in here?”

I rubbed my sleepy eyes as I spoke, and the first one to sit up was Cheon Hyein. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

“It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

“...Yes. It’s been a while.”

Cheon Hyein looked the same as ever. Pretty, sure, but more than that—still proud, still lofty, and still wearing that arrogant poise like it was made for her.

Moon Dancer. A top-ranked warrior among the Seven Prodigies, and it had been months since I’d last seen her.

“Hm.”

Cheon Hyein greeted me, then gave me a once-over. Those deep blue eyes checked me from head to toe, and then—

“You’ve changed.”

She reached a conclusion instantly and said it out loud.

Hearing that, I had to crease my brow.

‘Sharp bitch.’

Did she notice my realm changed?

Moon-Thread Sword was one of the absolute masters, so sure, she could do that.

‘...But Cheon Hyein, too?’

Cheon Hyein noticing it as well meant she was seriously sharp.

I don’t care if you’re one of the Seven Prodigies—this is a bit much, isn’t it?

‘...I’ll admit she looks strong.’

Now that I’d reached pinnacle, the gap was obvious when I looked at Cheon Hyein.

‘She’s insane.’

My eyes narrowed.

I already knew she was an outstanding martial artist, but—

‘Why does she have no openings?’

Even standing still, she showed nothing.

Her breathing. The tiny movements of her fingertips.

Even the way she looked at me.

‘Jesus...’

Her eyes are on me, but she isn’t only looking at me.

Cheon Hyein’s eyes are tracking every single movement I make.

I could tell that instinctively.

Then—

[CHUCKLE, CHUCKLE, CHUCKLE.]

At some point Yoo Cheongil had appeared, laughing low.

[Well? Don’t you see it? Countless things inside that thin body.]

“......”

I had to admit it.

‘This won’t be easy.’

The sheer potential Cheon Hyein carried was more than enough for Yoo Cheongil to call her a once-in-an-era talent.

No—honestly, it felt wrong to describe her as only that.

So—

‘Is it only natural she noticed my change?’

If she had that much inside her, then maybe she could do that, too.

That thought flickered through me for an instant, and—

“Definitely...”

Cheon Hyein moved toward me. Then—

“More than before, you’re...”

She reached a hand toward my hair.

“You got handsom—”

SNATCH—!

Murong Yeongsun, who had been in front of her, seized her wrist with a murderous glare.

“...Oh?”

At that, Cheon Hyein narrowed her eyes slightly and looked at Murong Yeongsun.

“What do you think you’re doing, Miss Murong?”

“Who knows?”

Murong Yeongsun smiled at Cheon Hyein’s question.

“I think Miss Cheon would know better than me.”

GRIIIIIP.

“...Mm...”

Cheon Hyein’s hand trembled in Murong Yeongsun’s grasp.

Which meant Murong Yeongsun was squeezing like hell.

“A grown woman shouldn’t touch a man without permission. It’s crude.”

Murong Yeongsun’s words made Cheon Hyein’s eyebrows twitch.

“That’s fair. I’m sorry, Unit Member Bang.”

“...No...”

“Apology accepted, so why don’t you leave? It’s ruder for an uninvited guest to stay too long.”

Murong Yeongsun cut in before I could say anything.

Cheon Hyein heard that and let out a short laugh.

“Is that something you’re saying to yourself too, Miss Murong? It doesn’t look like your position is any different. And if we’re going to be precise—”

Cheon Hyein spoke as she pointed at her clothes, where the emblem that proved she belonged to the Small Moon Unit was stitched.

“I’m clearly part of the same group. And Miss Murong, from what I’ve heard, you’re a ‘guest’ visiting the Blue Moon Sect on business. If we’re talking about rudeness... I wonder who the real uninvited guest is.”

“......”

KGGGK—!!

‘Damn... She bit down hard.’

A rough sound slipped out of Murong Yeongsun.

“Maybe you don’t know this, but Young Master Bang and I aren’t exactly ordinary.”

“Oh. Is that so? Ah—right. You’re the ones who broke the engagement. That does make it special.”

“...Ha...”

Murong Yeongsun let out a quiet laugh.

Uh. This is bad.

‘She’s... actually pissed.’

Sure enough, the corner of Murong Yeongsun’s eye shook.

“This—”

Just as she was about to burst and let the anger spill—

“...Young Master. I thought you coughed—”

Someone stepped into my room behind them and spoke.

It was Poison Dragon Tang Cheonil.

He appeared with a tired look, saw the scene, and froze.

“...What...?”

What is this situation?

Tang Cheonil rolled his eyes, trying to understand.

Watching him, I sighed.

‘You sure showed up fast.’

I’d told him to wake me in the morning, so it looked like he came to do just that.

But what’s the point if he wakes up after me?

‘Tch.’

Normally I would’ve given him an earful, but—

“Good timing.”

“Yes...?”

Right now, he was a lifesaver.

“As you can see, I understand you both came because you have business with me... but unfortunately, I already have a prior engagement.”

I said it while pointing at Tang Cheonil, and both women’s eyes shifted to him.

“No, I—”

Tang Cheonil started to speak like he couldn’t believe that, so I shot him a look like I was going to kill him.

“......”

Tang Cheonil clamped his mouth shut.

At least he learned fast.

“So. Come back later.”

I pointed at Cheon Hyein.

“Later?”

Cheon Hyein narrowed her eyes.

“Yes. Later.”

“What about Miss Murong?”

“That one... I have something to ask.”

“...!”

Leave Murong Yeongsun, send you away.

Cheon Hyein’s brow twisted at last.

“Hah... It’s been a while, and you’re being cold.”

“We’re not exactly the kind of relationship where we look out for each other.”

Cold, my ass.

“You said you have business with me, so let’s meet separately later. Right now I just woke up, so my head’s not all here.”

“......”

I said get out in a roundabout way, and Cheon Hyein stared at me like she wanted to drill a hole through my skull.

‘Whoa.’

Her eyes were sharp. She usually smiled and played nice, so it wasn’t always like that.

‘She really is Moon-Thread Sword’s daughter.’

When she properly glared, the look was vicious.

Even if it was only for a moment.

“That’s too bad.”

As she spoke, Cheon Hyein snapped back to her usual expression like that glare had been an illusion.

“It was something pretty important, too... but it can’t be helped.”

Cheon Hyein turned away, like she had no regrets.

The moment she disappeared from my room, I could finally let out the breath I’d been holding.

“Whew...”

What the hell did she come for?

‘Months later and she’s still uncomfortable as hell.’

I saw her before we went to Sichuan too, but even then, she was hard to deal with.

Time didn’t change a thing.

Still, thank God I managed to send her away.

So.

“What did you come for?”

I asked Murong Yeongsun, who’d stayed behind.

But Murong Yeongsun looked at me with an expression I didn’t expect.

“...What’s with that look?”

“...Why did you tell me to stay?”

“Huh?”

“You sent that— no, Miss Cheon away, so why the hell did you tell me to stay?”

“Why would I? I told you. I had something to ask.”

“......”

Murong Yeongsun frowned.

“That was real?”

“Why would it be fake?”

I wanted to throw both of them out, but the reason I left Murong Yeongsun was exactly what I said.

“I have something I need to ask you.”

There was something I needed from her.

No—more precisely—

“It doesn’t matter which one of you I ask, but if I had to pick, you’re the better option.”

Cheon Hyein or Murong Yeongsun.

Either one would do, but if I could choose, Murong Yeongsun was better than Cheon Hyein, that terrifying woman.

“That means...”

Murong Yeongsun said as she looked at me.

“I’m way better than Miss Cheon.”

“...That’s not what I—”

“Fine. I’ll let it slide. So what are you going to ask?”

“What do you mean you’ll let it slide...?”

Who the hell is she to “let it slide”?

And what exactly is she “letting slide”?

It was ridiculous, but I decided to ignore it for now.

“Before I ask, I asked you first. I said why did you come.”

“I forgot.”

“What?”

“I said I forgot.”

“What are you talking about? You came to ask me something and you forgot?”

“People forget. Do you think everyone in the world is like you?”

“No...”

Even if everyone wasn’t like me, Murong Yeongsun wasn’t the type to forget.

She was smart. Cunning. There’s no way she forgot.

I wanted to press her, but my mood wasn’t exactly great, so it felt annoying to pick a fight over it.

‘Maybe it’s that dream. I feel unsettled.’

I don’t even know what I dreamed.

I can’t remember, but like always, when it’s like this, it was definitely a nightmare.

So I gave up on arguing and just asked what I needed.

“...Miss Murong.”

“Yeah, ask me any—”

“Do you know anything about the Mount Hua Sect?”

“......”

“...Miss Murong?”

She told me to ask anything, then suddenly went rigid like a stone.

And that wasn’t all.

“...Why are you—”

SNAP—!

“Ghk!”

A scream came from the side, so I turned, and Tang Cheonil was curled up clutching his pinky toe.

“Guuuh... Ngh...”

“What’s wrong with him now?”

What kind of stunt is this?

I stared at him, baffled, and—

[He got startled by what you said and smashed his foot into the corner.]

Yoo Cheongil explained.

‘Startled by what I said?’

What did I say that would startle him?

It’s not like I said anything surprising.

Even thinking back, it wasn’t.

Then—

“...The Mount Hua Sect?”

Murong Yeongsun finally spoke, looking thoroughly uncomfortable.

“...Why?”

“It’s not important. There’s just something I want to check, so I was wondering if you knew anything.”

“......”

“Why?”

Was it that? Asking about the Mount Hua Sect?

Murong Yeongsun’s reaction was weird, and Tang Cheonil looked like a complete mess.

“Hey. Hold still!”

He kept twitching beside me, so I snapped at him, and only then did Tang Cheonil barely stop moving.

What the hell is wrong with this bastard?

Tch. I clicked my tongue and looked back at Murong Yeongsun.

“Monsters.”

Murong Yeongsun said to me.

“Huh?”

Monsters?

What is she talking about?

“...The Mount Hua Sect.”

Her voice—

“...It’s a den of monsters.”

For some reason, it was obvious she was trying to swallow fear.

*****

CHIRP!

CHIRP-CHIRP!

Sunlight slipped through the cracks of the window, and the birdsong mixed into the quiet made the whole place feel even more peaceful.

WHIRRRR—!

CLACK!

As if to heighten that calm even more, a waterwheel outside spun without rest.

In a scene that felt soothing just to look at—

On a quilt spread inside a well-kept residence,

An old man opened the eyes he’d been holding shut.

“...Hmmm...”

The old man, his face wrinkled all over, opened his eyes and sat up.

Somehow, his expression carried a hint of longing.

“Chuckle, chuckle, chuckle...”

With an aged laugh, the old man spoke.

“It’s been a long time since I dreamed that damned dream...”

Whose dream was it?

As he recalled it, the old man let out a low laugh.

“Chuckle... Did that dead bastard drop by for a moment? With his personality, he wouldn’t have.”

The old man’s eyes held certainty.

“What a nasty bastard. If he was going to die like that, he should’ve paid what he owed before he went.”

As he kept speaking, the old man suddenly covered his mouth with his hand.

COUGH—!

COUGH—!

He hacked out a rough cough.

When the old man finally looked at the hand he’d covered his mouth with, his wrinkled palm was smeared with blood.

Seeing that, the old man glanced to the side and said,

“It’s fine. You don’t have to move.”

The old man said it, and—

At those words, unbelievably, the figure beside him stopped moving.

“Don’t tell the elders. It’s obvious they’ll raise hell again.”

“......”

The figure didn’t answer.

Even so, the old man didn’t seem to care.

Instead of speaking, the figure handed the old man the letter he’d been holding.

The old man took it, and as he looked it over, a smile tugged at the corner of his eyes.

“I see. I figured it was about time. Chuckle, chuckle, chuckle...”

A pale blue seal had been stamped on the letter.

A seal that proved it was from the Martial Alliance.

“...The Dragon-Phoenix Gathering. Do you want to go out?”

At the old man’s question, the person in front of him shook his head.

“You don’t want to go? Why? Last time you went out, didn’t you come back after having fun?”

“......”

“If you’re worried about this old man, don’t be. Isn’t it sadder that way?”

“......”

“Don’t worry. Go. Especially...”

Rustle. The old man folded the letter he’d been holding and handed it back to the figure.

Just as the figure reached to take it—

“This Dragon-Phoenix Gathering... that child might appear.”

“......”

That child.

At the word, the figure’s fingertips went rigid.

Watching him, the old man added,

“Divine Spear. If it’s that man, he definitely made a move. He looks stiff and straight-laced, but he’s sly when it comes to things like this.”

“......”

“So you’ll be able to see it, for sure. Didn’t you say you were curious too?”

The figure’s gaze left the letter and turned to the old man’s face.

“Little Sword Saint.”

“......”

“That child they say is that Yoo bastard’s successor. Aren’t you curious?”

“......”

“If you’re curious, go and see. And also.”

The old man grinned.

Then—

“Go and make it undeniable. That you are Mount Hua’s future, and the strongest under heaven of the next generation.”

At that smile—

The monster of Mount Hua’s eyes flashed.