Nangong Chaegong burst into laughter and, tilting his cup, said,

“It wasn’t a bad story… Even though she was adopted, Seung-ah is properly registered in the Nangong family records. Besides, not just because she’s my daughter, but her beauty is also exceptional.”

It might have been a burdensome topic. What if it turned into belittling one’s daughter in front of her father?

However, the smile lingering on Nangong Chaegong’s lips suggested that there was no need to feel burdened by such a conversation, a consideration from the head of the family.

Thus, Cheonghwi could converse freely without reservations.

“Firstly, a marriage must be agreeable to both sides to be harmonious and joyful. A marriage formed solely for gain, without affection, will only retain horror.”

Wasn’t that exactly his case?

Duke Redburn had children mechanically, without love, just to raise an assassin. And thus, Enver Redburn was born.

There was no familial love there.

“Secondly, while I do not have a beloved… there is a woman I hold dear in my heart. To promise marriage here without resolving these feelings would be a betrayal to both parties.”

How could he be proud if he thought of Luna while with Nangong Seung-ah, and thought of Nangong Seung-ah while with Luna?

Of course, there’s no way to know what Luna is thinking. Whether that promise was a joke, mixed with sincerity, romantic feelings, or just friendship, one cannot know until they clash.

Perhaps he’s just prematurely savoring victory.

Yet, honor must be upheld.

From noble mtl dot come

Nangong Chaegong tapped his knee, amused by Cheonghwi’s naive romanticism.

“Fair enough! Then I shall respect your wishes. Moreover… this occasion is to repay a great benefactor of the Nangong family. If you don’t want it, I’ll have to prepare something else.”

“……..”

“Seung-ah, if you glare like that, Master Cheonghwi might just die.”

“He’s shameless enough not to die from just that…!”

Nangong Seung-ah’s eyes blazed with intensity. Cheonghwi couldn’t dare meet her fiery gaze and deftly changed the subject. It was as if invisible rays were shooting out.

“Well then…”

Nangong Chaegong closed his eyes in contemplation, then made his choice.

“You gave up a precious elixir to save Myeongyi’s core. You stepped forward fearlessly, even in a situation that could have bred resentment.”

“It was what I desired.”

“Indeed. You’ve already been more devoted to my family than even our own kin. If we follow the principle of repaying the kindness we’ve received, then I too shall consider you family. Will you accept the Nangong name and become brothers with Myeongyi and Seung-ah?”

“……..”

Thump, it went.

Cheonghwi felt a sensation as if something had clicked into place. It was the feeling one gets when they discover something they didn’t even realize they wanted, all because of someone else.

Family.

When he uttered that word, it was bitter. The more he reflected on the past, the more the bitter essence seeped out.

Half-siblings fought, competed, and betrayed each other. Seen as a tool by their father, and although loved by their mother, their plight was pitiful.

“Cheonmin, when I thrust to the right, you’re supposed to cover the left, remember?”

“But brother, you move too fast, how can I keep up?”

“⋯⋯Anyway, it can’t be helped. I’ll slow down a beat, so follow properly!”

The true brother he thought he had found in a dark pit.

“⋯⋯Cheonmin, I’ve figured out how to use magic.”

Shattered into dozens of pieces on a moonlit night, muddied and mixed together.

So, he should have been sick of the word ‘family’ by now, but it seemed to still linger in a corner of his heart. He must have wanted to feel that warmth again.

If only he could obtain it──

Cheonghwi nodded. He wanted to receive it.

“⋯⋯Certainly, it’s a truly valuable reward. I will gladly accept it.”

“Then from this moment, you are Nangong Cheonghwi.”

“Nangong, Cheonghwi⋯⋯.”

“You seem quite pleased? There’s no rush to call me father. Seung-ah is still getting used to it too. So then⋯⋯ are you ready for the next reward?”

Nangong Chaegong rose from his seat and strode away. Nangong Cheonghwi, taken aback, followed the clan leader and asked awkwardly.

“The next reward⋯⋯ what is it? Or rather, what is it?”

“Take your time to adapt. It wouldn’t be right to treat me as a father when I haven’t acted the part. And to be called Nangong for such a small return… So, I’m adding a little extra.”

With a complex expression, whether it was regret or relief, he said,

“I’ll show you the secret chamber of the Nangong family, rumored to contain the last remaining sword mark of the ancestral secret technique, the Emperor Sword Form.”

—

They walked together down a hidden path, shrouded by a clever formation, surrounded by thick fog. Along the way, Nangong Chaegong spoke of the distant past.

The founder of the Nangong family ceaselessly sought to cut the heavens, it is said.

“People called him ‘Sword Mad’. He swung his sword at the sky all day long, and drawn by his figure, people gathered one by one until the Nangong family was formed.”

Beside the founder, who swung his sword in a nameless plain, there were those who followed his swordsmanship. Those who cooked meals. Those who fell in love and clung to each other. And so, people gathered and somehow became a family.

They decided to call the land to the south ‘Nangong’.

His descendants developed their unique martial arts based on the founder’s swordsmanship, and at some point, they stood tall in the martial world as a renowned sword family.

In pursuit of the great ancestor’s legacy, who was said to have cleaved the sky, aiming to reach such heights once more. A noble house rooted in the greatest swordsman under the heavens.

Yet, at its core, it was a collective of fools obsessed with the sword and those bewitched by them.

“So, the idea that the name Nangong must be the best… it’s not the original intent. A family’s name isn’t something to be revered, but a fence that protects each other.”

“…”

“Mingyi and Seunga seem to understand, but So has yet to break free. She’s blinded by the form of Nangong, losing sight of the essence.”

Nangong So had been fiercely jealous and competitive from a young age, unable to bear not being at the top, a trait born of arrogance. Her stubborn pride in the Nangong clan was just as strong.

“How dare you introduce foreign blood into the great Nangong clan,” she would argue vehemently against the adoption of Nangong Seunga, fearing the dilution of the great ancestor’s bloodline.

To the point of envying the talent of her much younger sibling, Nangong Mingyi.

“I am just like you.”

“I don’t quite understand. So, you and Nangong So…”

“When I was young, I couldn’t stand being looked down upon. That’s why I wouldn’t have sealed the clan off over personal matters.”

Affection and concern flickered in Nangong Chaegong’s eyes. As the saying goes, among ten fingers, there is always a sore one; to the clan leader, Nangong So seemed to be just that.

Being so much like himself, he hoped she wouldn’t repeat his mistakes.

Thud.

Nangong Chaegong’s steps halted. Before him was the entrance to a vast cave. Could this be the place marked by the sky-cleaving feat?

With a heart fluttering with excitement, Nangong Cheonghwi swallowed hard and cautiously entered.

What profound technique must the swordsman who could slice the sky have left behind? If it’s the root of the great Nangong clan, how deep and solid it must be. He couldn’t help but anticipate.

The inside of the cave was carved into a hemispherical shape, with a hole in the ceiling allowing sunlight to pour into the center. Flowers bloomed here and there, and a shallow stream crossed the path.

It was a beautiful place, as if nature had been carefully trimmed and decorated.

And upon witnessing the scenery of the cave, Nangong Cheonghwi’s eyes widened in astonishment.

“This is…”

“That’s why I didn’t show it to So.”

There were no sword marks.

No footprints, no traces, nothing at all. He wondered if he had missed something, or if the technique was so sublime that the marks were hidden. But no matter how hard he looked…

No matter how intently he searched every corner, the Nangong clan’s sacred place was utterly empty.

Even after digging up the roots of the plants in the flowerbed, hoping to find sword marks beneath, all that was left were signs of disturbance.

Nangong Cheonghwi looked up at Nangong Chaegong’s expression. A deep regret was etched upon his face. The sacred place he had desperately sought, even sealing the clan’s doors, had nothing.

“I didn’t want you to be as deeply disappointed as I was.”

“…”

“The tale that the Nangong family’s ancestor cleaved the sky was a falsehood. The Nangong clan’s secret technique, the Imperial Sword Form, is a myth. Otherwise, how could there be not a single mark left by the sword?”

Nangong Myeong and Nangong Seung-ah were not shown the secret chamber for the same reason. They would be deeply disappointed to learn that the roots of their clan were but an illusion, so it was thought best to wait until their hearts had matured enough.

“You… have such clear convictions that you would forsake the elixir of life, and as an outsider, your disappointment won’t be as great. That’s why I showed it to you. Even now… it pains my heart.”

Nangong Chae-gong smacked his lips and turned his back first, leaving the secret chamber.

Nangong Cheong-hwi felt an odd sensation and couldn’t easily step away. There was certainly no trace left in the secret chamber. Yet, that fact seemed… to hold a different meaning.

“Emperor Sword Form…”

It echoed continuously in a corner of his mind.

—

The man in blue martial attire, called ‘Little Brother So’ by Nangong Myeong.

Now that he had acquired the Nangong surname, he might become a brother to him. Nangong So, the Mindless Radiant Sword, was waiting for Cheong-hwi.

His face still bore a smile, but the pronounced veins betrayed an undeniable rage. He was in a terribly irritable state.

Yet, Nangong Cheong-hwi paid it no mind.

“So you’ve become Nangong Cheong-hwi. Congratulations, Taoist.”

“It happened somehow. Now, we are one family.”

“……”

Nangong Cheong-hwi did not stop at Nangong So’s call, and Nangong So had to follow him. Thus, the two walked side by side down the corridor.

Creak. Creak.

Now, no sound came from Cheong-hwi’s steps, while the noisy sounds echoed from the disheveled Nangong So’s feet.

Feeling an intense humiliation, Nangong So’s hand stealthily gripped the handle of his sword. His veins bulged on the back of his hand as he clenched it tightly.

It seemed he wanted to draw his sword and kill Nangong Cheong-hwi right then and there.

“But, if a commoner claims the Nangong name and wanders about. I worry it might lead to unnecessary misunderstandings. Surely, no one will believe it.”

“The views of outsiders don’t concern me. What matters is that I now have two brothers who are kind-hearted and exceptionally talented.”

“……The elders of the clan will surely oppose this. Perhaps they will even plead with the clan leader to expel the Taoist.”

“Even if that were to happen, I have already become brothers in my heart, so it doesn’t matter.”

Silence.

A silence that was neither too long nor too short.

Breaking the silence, Nangong Cheong-hwi warned.

“Don’t do it.”

“……What sudden riddle is this, Taoist?”

“Whatever you’re plotting, don’t do it. I won’t press you about what has happened so far. But make no mistake. I’m not saying this because I fear you or I’m worried about repercussions, but for Myeong’s sake.”

Cheong-hwi flung a letter he had retrieved from the body of the Arrowhead Chief at Nangong So.

“The handwriting matches,” he said.

“Such low-quality slander…”

“Again, I will not press you. Let go of your regrets, abandon your sinister thoughts, be grateful for your family, and live in harmony.”

“…”

Nangong So’s footsteps halted.

As Nangong Cheonghwi walked about ten paces ahead, a sheathing sound of a sword being drawn was heard from behind. Yet, Cheonghwi neither turned around nor showed any sign of panic.

Nangong So growled with a voice full of murderous intent.

“What if I refuse? What if I… must fulfill my unrequited love? What then?”

“Then a low-born commoner with an uneducated temper would die.”

“…”

As Nangong Cheonghwi turned the corner, Nangong So’s angry roar could be heard from afar, along with the sounds of the marbled floor and walls breaking.

Trouble was not far off.