"Cheon Hwi. Are you awake?"
"…"
I hadn't expected Seol Ri-hyang to come find me.
Her voice was subtle—partly tense, partly expectant.
The moment I heard it, a light cold sweat began to form.
Seol Ri-hyang had suddenly come in the middle of the night. Her tone suggested she couldn't bring herself to say it directly, but hoped I would do something about it.
I knew all too well what these signs portended.
Before the regression, the code between Seol Ri-hyang and me was a single pear, but how could that alone replace all communication?
There were certainly seasons when pears were hard to come by, or times when I couldn't hold out until the next day to get one.
Whenever that happened, she would always slip in like this and ask if I was sleeping.
Of course, the Seol Ri-hyang of now and the Seol Ri-hyang before the regression are different.
Her personality, her martial art, and the relationship between us had changed in many ways.
She probably didn't come for the reason I was thinking. …Right?
Anyway, I shouldn't react strangely for no reason. I just needed to say confidently that I wasn't sleeping and ask what was going on.
The moment I steadied my mind and opened my eyes.
"Ah."
"Eep."
Seol Ri-hyang, who had been staring at me from close enough to kiss, met my eyes.
Her eyes were clearly black, yet they sparkled even in the darkness. The surprise and faint tenderness within them made my body stiffen.
Seol Ri-hyang, apparently in the same situation as me, froze with her eyes wide open.
A suffocating silence followed, so intense I forgot to breathe for a moment. In that moment, as if time itself had stopped, I instinctively sensed it.
…This is dangerous.
I had never once thought my will was weak, but there was always an exception to every rule.
Tang So-wol was one thing, but if Seol Ri-hyang truly set her mind to it, I might be able to refuse her once or twice—but refusing her to the very end might be impossible.
No, even so, I had to get through today somehow. Tang So-wol said that even if she conceded on everything else, the order had to be respected, so shouldn't I also uphold that one thing?
Just as I was keeping my mind sharp, circulating my internal energy to my head to make sure I didn't use my Immunity to All Poisons in the worst possible way—
Seol Ri-hyang shot up from her seat with a voice half-turned upside down and an awkward tone.
"Ah, so you weren't asleep?!"
"I just woke up."
In truth, I had been awake from the start, but I couldn't very well say that.
How could I admit that I had been on edge, afraid she might pounce on me? …Though, looking at it now, she didn't seem to have had any such intention in the first place.
An unexpected turn of events. And the vivid sense of déjà vu—it was only because I kept thinking of the Seol Ri-hyang from before my regression that it felt off. The Seol Ri-hyang of now was exactly like this. Exactly, and yet…
I let out the faint disappointment that crept up with a short sigh.
"Hoo. So? Slipping into a strange man's room in the dead of night without so much as a trace of presence. What's this about?"
"…Hey. Cheon Hwi, why are you leaning back like that."
"A natural precaution against intruders."
"And covering yourself with the blanket?"
"Didn't I just say—a natural precaution against shameless intruders."
"Why does 'shameless' even come into this?!"
Seol Ri-hyang let out a shriek and climbed onto the bed, snatching the blanket away.
The usual scripted squabble. It was her unspoken way of agreeing to pretend the strange tension from moments ago had never happened.
And so they tussled, pulling the blanket this way and that, in a mock struggle that wasn't quite a real one.
Thud.
"Ah."
Seol Ri-hyang's foot slipped, and with a short sigh she toppled forward.
In truth, a Peak Realm martial artist wouldn't easily lose their footing. After all, they possessed a honed sense of balance and the reflexes of a master.
But lately, Seol Ri-hyang had been training with an intensity that was almost exhausting to watch, as if determined to wring every last bit of benefit from her stay at the North Sea Ice Palace.
It was probably because accumulated fatigue had momentarily broken her concentration.
I reflexively reached out and caught Seol Ri-hyang as she stumbled.
Thump.
She naturally fell into my arms. The blanket that had been half-tossed aside draped over her shoulders a beat too late.
Only after confirming she was safe did I let out a deep sigh and pat her back lightly, as if scolding her.
"Did you push yourself again today? Don't think that just because it's internal energy training, it won't strain your body."
"…"
"Whether fatigue builds up in your muscles or in your head, the result is the same—your concentration drops and your movements slow."
"…"
"Why aren't you saying anything? Say something, anything."
I shrugged my shoulders and looked down at Seol Ri-hyang. And I immediately understood why she wasn't saying a word.
Her face was flushed red all the way to the tips of her ears. With her eyes wide open as if concentrating on something, Seol Ri-hyang let out slightly ragged breaths—whether from surprise or for some other reason.
Lately, Seol Ri-hyang had been training like mad in an environment filled with cold energy, unlike the Central Plains, while consuming Spiritual Medicine steeped in that same cold energy.
In other words, her body was overflowing with cold energy. And cold energy was a type of Yin Energy.
It wasn't as severe as the Nine Yin Severed Meridians, but it was a considerable side effect that also existed in the Pure Yin Constitution. A woman with strong Yin Energy would… instinctively crave Yang Energy.
"Step back for now."
…No.
At the word "step back," Seol Ri-hyang shook her head, then reached out and wrapped her arms around my waist as she was.
I felt her cheek rub against my chest. Because she had drawn slightly closer, her pressed body pushed against my lower abdomen. It was probably because she had only raised her upper body to sit up.
Softness transmitted through every point of contact. And a slightly cool body temperature.
Since Tang So-wol had given her permission, Seol Ri-hyang had been actively pushing forward, but she had never gone this far.
While I was flustered, not knowing what to do, Seol Ri-hyang's low voice reached me.
"Don't worry. I have no intention of breaking my promise with Sister Dang. I just want to talk like this."
"…Like this, you mean."
"Yeah. Sometimes Sister Tang hangs on your back, Cheon Hwi, and holds you for a long while before leaving, right? I finally understand why she does that."
"I still don't get it."
"Should I say it puts my heart at ease, or that the day's fatigue melts away… Yeah. It gives me a sense of relief. It reminds me of what I'm working so hard for."
"That's a kind thing to say, but working for yourself rather than for others lasts longer."
"And you, Cheon Hwi—are you living for yourself?"
"…"
That was a hit.
To be honest, I'm no different. If I'd only wanted to eat well and live well on my own, I'd be enjoying myself to the fullest over in the Unorthodox Sects.
So when the Demonic Cult began to rise, I could just take what I needed and leave the Central Plains behind.
But I didn't. Because I couldn't.
Seol Ri-hyang, still fully leaning her weight against me in my arms, continued speaking.
"Watching Bing Yerin and the others from the North Sea Ice Palace, I've been thinking about all sorts of things these past few days."
"What kind of thoughts?"
"That everyone is truly devoted to protecting the place they belong."
That was true. In fact, every problem the North Sea Ice Palace had could be solved simply by abandoning the North Sea and giving up the Yin-Cold Energy Cultivation.
It might be difficult at first, but the depth of martial arts they had built up over the years was by no means shallow, so in the end, they would surely rise to prominence once more.
Even so, they did not abandon it. Even while sacrificing members of their own prestigious clan, even while knowing that past grudges were coiled like a serpent, watching for any chance to strike at their throats, even while enduring the humiliation of placing an outsider's bloodline on the Palace Lord's seat.
Even while contemplating betraying everything they held dear.
The people of the North Sea Ice Palace were giving their all to protect their homeland and their martial art.
"I can understand Bing Yerin's situation, but accepting her like that, and that reckless plan of hers… I just can't wrap my head around it. Perhaps it's because, unlike the others, I have no roots."
"Roots."
"Yes. Roots."
Neither I nor Seol Ri-hyang can deny that we have lived rootless lives.
We have no parents to revere, no homeland to grow attached to, no one who shares the kinship of the same martial art, no master to guide us, and no junior to lift up.
Nothing. It is no different from being left utterly alone in this vast world.
That is precisely why, in the days before my regression, when I was called the Blood Wolf, I drifted here and there like duckweed despite possessing considerable skill.
Not knowing where to put down roots, I did not know where to stop my steps.
It was in the Black Alliance, which I happened upon by chance, that I met Seol Ri-hyang and Seomun Hwa-rin.
As I was briefly lost in reminiscence, Seol Ri-hyang drew herself in slightly and spoke.
"My mother passed away when I was too young to remember her. My father was mad with gambling and sold me off."
"I know."
"You said before that you helped me because Cheon Hwi's father had done you a favor."
"That's right."
"…That. It was a lie, wasn't it?"
"…"
In truth, Seol Ri-hyang had never fully believed my story from the start. She had simply let it go because my desire to help her seemed genuine.
A brief silence. Seol Ri-hyang forced a light tone and continued.
"It's fine. I'd already given up on the hope that my father was actually a good person who just happened to be blinded by gambling. So there's no need for you to worry about it now."
"I'm grateful you see it that way. And I'm sorry for deceiving you."
At my apology, Seol Ri-hyang slowly lifted her head. With her chin pressed against my chest, she looked up at me with a hint of languor in her expression. And a certain longing.
"Honestly, it doesn't matter to me that my father was trash. I already knew roughly what he was like. But I'm a little curious about something."
"About what?"
"They say ordinary parents cherish their children, and ordinary children cherish their parents. You and the Eon clan head are a perfect example of that."
"Those two certainly feel like a model of a harmonious family."
"Yeah. I imagine the North Sea Ice Palace people's attachment to their roots must feel something like that. I wouldn't really know."
Seol Ri-hyang spoke as if it were nothing. But precisely because of that, her sense of lack was all the more palpable. I knew, because I had been the same at her age.
As I gently stroked her back, she leaned into my touch with satisfaction.
After a long while, Seol Ri-hyang slowly opened her mouth.
"You know, Cheon Hwi. Maybe it's because my father is the way he is, but I've always thought to myself—I must never become someone like that. If I ever marry and have children, I have to treat them well, no matter what."
"That's only natural. I understand."
"Really?"
"…My parents passed away early, but they were good people, so I understand about half of it."
"Yeah. I like that you're honest."
Seol Ri-hyang giggled and slowly sat up. Still pressed against me, she moved almost as if she were climbing over me.
Her hands wandered up my upper body, settling with her fingers laced behind my neck, our chests touching.
Rising from a little below to meet my eye level, Seol Ri-hyang whispered from a distance close enough for each of us to see ourselves reflected in the other's eyes.
"Anyway, that's the point. I want to be a truly good parent and a good wife."
"I understand, but why all of a sudden…"
"Cheon Hwi."
Seol Ri-hyang cut me off mid-sentence, her breath tickling the tip of my nose.
"How far did you go with Sister Dang?"
"What?"
"If it's up to that point… you have my permission. Okay."
As she said that, I saw an image of her from before the regression overlapping with the present.
It was mostly the sight of her in bed.