5.

Heavenly Demon Seo Baek-hyang (formerly known as Baek Hyang) had an unspeakable secret.

That is, she had shown mercy.

To Namgung Un. To the Martial Alliance Leader. In the martial world, he was the unparalleled White Path, called a once-in-a-generation genius by the Namgung Family, and a man who raised his reputation from a young age with acts of chivalry and eccentric deeds.

“Is this the extent?”

The master had shown mercy.

“……! ……!”

Snow fell.

Namgung Un broke through the whirlwind of snowflakes. Even if a blizzard raged, near Namgung Un, it simply melted away. Fierce internal energy was burning in Namgung Un’s muscles.

“So this is it.”

Snow fell.

In the master’s drooping eyes, the sight of snow falling on the world, a flake of snow sticking to the forehead of the Martial Alliance Leader and then melting away, Chaang! Chaaang! The scene of thousands of righteous and demonic factions clashing with swords was fully reflected.

The Righteous-Demonic Great War.

Everyone sensed the destruction of the world and poured their last strength into this battlefield, but only one person.

The master alone.

I was the only one not out of breath.

“To think he tries so hard to defeat me.”

Kaang!

As I caught the axe thrown by Namgung Un, I felt pity.

“He’s sincerely earnest. Upright. Purely swinging his martial arts to defeat me. His axe carries heartfelt feelings towards me.”

I knew.

Had Heavenly Demon Seo Baek-hyang not been born, Namgung Un would have stood as the unparalleled under heaven. He might have been praised as the greatest of all times. The Martial Alliance Leader Namgung Un was indeed the greatest rival I could face.

To wish for more would be greed.

“Ah.”

I don’t want it to end.

“Why is it that one can’t naturally cut through the heavens with talent alone, yet by effort alone, one can possess a skill unmatched by anyone?”

I don’t want it to end.

“Is there no one else?”

The opponent for whom I can be greedy.

“Namgung Un. Bu Wol-sun. Can’t you be that person?”

If only you were a bit stronger.

I would have gladly given my life to you.

“I don’t have the courage to lie and feign a match.”

Snow fell.

“I don’t plan to lie to myself and satisfy my life.”

Tick.

“To whom can I belong, if I haven’t lied to anyone, not even once?”

It’s tedious.

“No.”

Is it?

“It’s lonely.”

Tick.

That day, Heavenly Demon Seo Baek-hyang did not cut down Martial Alliance Leader Namgung Un. She couldn’t. Master couldn’t bring herself to cut down the neck of the one who had come all that way for her, to respond to the Righteous-Demonic Great War. Indeed, to the one who hadn’t walked the path of self, Master couldn’t offer her own neck either.

A life with no way out.

Master, perhaps, sensed when the first day of the Righteous-Demonic Great War was merely postponed, that this winter might last forever.

[The skill cannot find the target’s alias.]

However.

[The skill cannot find the target’s true name.]

Tedious and boring as life may be.

[The skill cannot find the target’s appearance.]

Certainly.

Gong-ja.

You will come for me.

Master, master, saying.

[Reproduction failed.]

With a blossoming smile.

[Substituting data required for implementation.]

Tick.

6.

“Oh.”

I blinked my eyes.

“Did you come?”

Blinking, in front of me was Bae Hu-ryeong.

A slightly longer-haired and thinner Sword Emperor than I remembered was sitting cross-legged, resting his chin on his hands.

“…Sword Emperor~nim?”

I was slightly startled.

“Yes.”

“Ah. So, you appear in traumas too? I mean, you originally did, but ever since becoming B-grade, it’s been rare……. Huh? I, I have a body?”

I felt around my body.

It wasn’t Raviel’s body. It wasn’t Master’s body. Nor was it anyone else’s body, so I felt around this body, which should have been familiar to me, as if I was touching it for the first time in decades.

“Tsk, tsk.”

Bae Hu-ryeong watched me fumble around with an amused look.

“You’re making quite the fuss.”

“Ah, why? It really feels like I’ve lived for over 20 years. Just maintaining a sense of self is an incredible feat. Besides, where are we?”

“Who knows.”

Bae Hu-ryeong chuckled.

“Probably still in the middle of your skill activation. You must be continuously seeing traumas.”

“……? Then does this mean I’m in your trauma?”

“I didn’t foster something like trauma.”

I looked around.

Just as Bae Hu-ryeong said, there was nothing here.

Really, nothing at all.

Like a waiting room one stays in before entering a stage, a space that seemed endlessly spread out like a white canvas. There, in a place that couldn’t even be considered the center, Bae Hu-ryeong sat quietly holding just a single sword.

“…….”

“Why? What are you looking at?”

“No…. It’s just. Your, legs.”

I pointed at Bae Hu-ryeong’s legs.

The legs that were usually a bit blurry were now distinctly visible.

“Not just the legs, but your whole body is… vivid. Your voice too.”

“Hmm.”

“What could it be?”

“It’s simple.”

Bae Hu-ryeong twirled the hilt of his sword.

“Probably, in your trauma, a living image of me is being reproduced. However, as I said, [since I don’t have any trauma], I wonder if it’s weirdly reproduced like this.”

“Huh.”

“Specifically, I remember being brainwashed by some perverted constellation, chasing after him shouting, ‘Gong-ja! Gong-ja!’ But my memory of about a day’s worth is vague. How about you? Do you remember [Craziness is abundant, so this year will also be a hit]?”

“……Yes, there was such a time.”

Finally, a sense of reality returned.

Right.

Starting with the trauma, I went through half of Raviel’s life and the master’s half-life once each. As if I had dreamt for a very long time.

“I thought I was seeing your trauma this time…”

“Oh. Were you expecting it? Sorry, sorry. I’ve been enjoying life, you see. There was a time when I was four years old, I stole dumplings and got caught by a shopkeeper, beaten to a pulp, but even then, I chewed on dumplings while getting hit. Getting hit wouldn’t turn the dumplings in my stomach back into merchandise, right? So, you could say it was a victory for me. I’ve known nothing but victory since I was four.”

“You… never mind. Let’s not talk.”

“So? I remember whispering [Terror be gone, death stay far away], but what happened? Dude, talk to me. That’s how I can give you advice or not.”

I told him about everything I had experienced.

“Hmm.”

Bae Hu-ryeong listened to my story with a smile in his eyes.

Still leaning his elbows on his knees, tilting his chin in a cocky pose.

“Zombie.”

As soon as the story ended, Bae Hu-ryeong casually said.

“How do you use Infernal Heavens Demonic Art?”

“Excuse me?”

“Infernal Heavens Demonic Art. The demonic arts of your cult. How do you use it?”

Cult, indeed.

“How do I use it? I just use it.”

“Really? Interesting. Hunger varies from person to person. Take, for example, the Sword of Starvation. Some starve because they can’t eat millet rice. Others starve because they can’t eat hamburgers. Are the two the same? The farmer’s hunger? The hunger of an adult and a child? How do you, just lump all hunger together and use the Sword of Starvation?”

“They’re the same.”

I immediately answered.

That would have been a question for when I was just about to awaken to the Infernal Heavens Demonic Art.

I was no longer naive enough to be played by such questions.

“Being the same doesn’t mean being identical from start to finish. It’s enough if the context is the same. [It hurts because something couldn’t be eaten.] Here, [something] could be millet rice or arugula pizza; it doesn’t matter. So……”

“Right.”

Bae Hu-ryeong’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“That’s how one person can understand another, right?”

“Yes.”

“The trauma you’re experiencing now is the same.”

“…….”

Tick.

I blinked.

“What?”

“The understanding between people. Having gone through the same thing. It doesn’t mean being the same person, in the same situation, at the same time, and in the same place experiencing the same event. Different people. Different situations. Different times and different places, but still, when it’s the same event. That is understanding.”

Bae Hu-ryeong hummed.

“You can’t see ■■■■ ■■ ■■■’s past. Why? Because there’s no name. No coordinates. Even the appearance is lost. How can you peek into the life of someone who can’t be called by anyone, can’t be seen by anyone?”

“…….”

“But we know that he failed. His life must have been riddled with failure. You can tell by looking at the [Universal Sovereign] skill. Once. Twice. He used [Universal Sovereign] on someone other than you, but now there’s no one by his side.”

Bae Hu-ryeong whispered.

“He was betrayed.”

Even though the Sword Emperor’s mouth was quite far away, it felt as though he whispered right into my ear.

“Gong-ja. Do you really need to know who ■■■■ ■■ ■■■ was betrayed by, under what circumstances, when, and where to finally say you understand his trauma?”

“Betrayal is betrayal. Disappointment is disappointment. Thus, your betrayal can be my betrayal, and even though you are you and I am me, we can still call it understanding.”

Correct.

Originally, that was the teaching of Infernal Heavens.

“Your master said the same, didn’t she?”

The doctrine of shadows.

“……Right.”

I finally nodded.

Why I couldn’t peek into ■■■■ ■■ ■■■’s past, why I had to watch half of Raviel’s and the master’s life, I understood.

“The trauma experienced by that constellation and [the most similar cases] were reproduced.”

Undoubtedly.

“■■■■ ■■ ■■■ must have trusted someone at the beginning. It wasn’t satisfactory, but still, he must have expected that with this person, [Universal Sovereign] could be used to create plenty of fun quests and happy stories, or at least. At the very least, imagine a fresh world for him.”

But he was betrayed.

Just as Raviel was betrayed by the Prince ramen-noodle.

『It’s tedious.』

■■■■ ■■ ■■■ and Raviel were different people, in different situations, at different times, and in different places, but the depth and angle of the wound from the first betrayal were the same.

Therefore.

『It’s tedious.』

■■■■ ■■ ■■■’s past was replaced with Raviel’s past.

“And after that, the constellation trusted someone again.”

The second contractor.

“After the first betrayal, the constellation grew a bit. This time, he didn’t choose a contractor just because [this person seems fresh]. He chose someone who was clearly the best of the era. Clearly the most talented of this age… with outstanding imagination. With this person, perhaps a series of truly enjoyable quests could continue.”

But it wasn’t enough.

Just as Martial Alliance Leader Namgung Un was, by a hair’s breadth, insufficient for the master.

『It’s lonely.』

The second contractor must have been outstanding. Under the effect of [Universal Sovereign], the contractor would have expanded the wings of imagination. Just as I had imagined, if you imagine a village there, a village appears, if enemies are needed, enemies appear.

Yet.

『It’s lonely.』

■■■■ ■■ ■■■ couldn’t be completely satisfied with the imagination unfolded by him.

“……Nobody. No. Most have never experienced death.”

Somehow, I felt like I knew why the constellation hadn’t been satisfied.

“One can imagine the sea, whether it’s in detail or blurry. But can you imagine yourself, just before drowning in the sea, floundering… gasping for air, with seawater forcing its way down your throat? That sensation. That pain?”

The answer is simple.

If you haven’t experienced it, you don’t know.

“Perhaps the other contractors… couldn’t properly imagine their own crisis. Their own deaths, the truly life-or-death moments, they couldn’t [properly] imagine them.”

Because.

『My goodness. How can you…』

『How can you imagine pain so well?』

Since ■■■■ ■■ ■■■ said so.

『How… how can you imagine it so vividly, to this extent?』

『Have you ever felt your bones melt? Have your veins ever burnt up?』

『How do you know such pain, to reproduce it under my power?』

He had said.

“…….”

Bae Hu-ryeong nodded.

“Yes. Your thoughts are probably right.

The betrayal by the first contractor.

The disappointment of the second contractor.

Thus, ■■■■ ■■ ■■■ finally chose me as the third contractor, the last caster of [Universal Sovereign], the last follower he wanted to accompany him to his disappearance.

“Then there’s only one mystery left.”

“What’s that?”

“You.”

I turned my gaze.

“Sword Emperor.”

“…….”

My eyes directly met Bae Hu-ryeong’s.

Looking at the Sword Emperor, manifested in living form.

“[Universal Sovereign] was used only twice, excluding me. Those were replaced by the traumas of two people. But why are you here? Why are you, as the [third] replacement for the trauma, here in this place where there’s nothing?”

“Who are you?”

The corners of the Sword Emperor’s mouth lifted.

“There’s nothing here? I see quite a lot.”

In the Sword Emperor’s eyes, a young man with black hair was reflected.

“You’re here, Kim Gong-ja.”

“…….”

“You must have become the third trauma.”

Tick.

“I’m like a ghost that’s hitched a ride on you, so I was implemented as a bonus. No. Since we plotted together against ■■■■ ■■ ■■■, maybe that’s why I was implemented along. Anyway, you’re here.”

Tick.

“Just as your love waited for you, and your master waited for you, Kim Gong-ja. The wound that this constellation draws thirdly might be the wait for you. Perhaps that’s the only wound. The rest is secondary.”

Tick.

“Now, as the day turns, a wound that neither I nor the constellation knows, only you will remain.”

“Go.”

[Trauma manifestation complete.]

“This is the best I can do for you, partner.”

[The sense of self of the target has been maintained.]

“Think more about how you’ll live.”

[Ending the penalty.]

And then.

The world surrounding me shattered into pieces.

****