Chapter 5.6: Past Relationships [Part 2]

[Flashback]

'Cold...'

As raindrops began to fall onto his face, Dan Woo-hyo slowly opened his eyes. He had long since reached a state of transcendence where he forgot both cold and heat, yet his body trembled with chills. Was this the chill of the land of the dead?

But the sensation of the raindrops was too vivid. Perhaps this was a fleeting burst of clarity before death. He had once stood at the peak of the White Path, but now, this was how he would die.

Though he still drew faint, fragile breaths, his mind drifted as if it had already stepped into the afterlife. What pulled him back to reality was the heat against his body.

It was a warmth like fire—completely different from his own body, which was growing colder by the moment. Forcing his eyes open, Woo-hyo saw, through his hazy, blood-tinged vision, a boy panting heavily.

"He's alive! He's still alive!"

But there was no time to feel relieved. Some time must have passed since their fall—cold sweat drenched the boy's forehead, and his flushed face made it clear that he was burning with fever.

Woo-hyo glanced around, but there was no chance of finding help at the bottom of a sheer cliff. To make matters worse, the rain was coming down harder, and his limbs refused to move.

Woo-hyo calmly checked his condition. The internal energy that once let him shatter boulders with just a sliver of qi was now completely scattered. He had pushed himself too hard, and his dantian had shattered.

He tried to stay composed, but inside, he was devastated.

Most of the true internal energy he possessed had been given to him by his father before he left.

One of the few things he had ever received from Dan Baek-hoon was now gone.

'It's fine. At least I saved a life.'

Woo-hyo forced himself to let go of his regrets.

The rain was getting heavier. The boy in his arms was breathing more and more roughly, and Woo-hyo clenched his teeth. He couldn't just leave him out here. His own end felt so close, yet he wanted to save this boy first.

A large leaf, heavy with pooled rainwater, tilted and spilled its contents. Turning his head at the sound of raindrops pattering down, Woo-hyo spotted a corner of the cliff that had been hidden by the foliage. trees. It was recessed just enough to look like an entrance to something. It didn't seem too deep, though, since he could see the wall even from here.

At the very least, it could provide some shelter from the rain.

There was no way he could stand up with his broken leg. Therefore, there was only one way for Woo-hyo to move.

Woo-hyo stretched his hand toward the rain-soaked, softened ground. Bracing against it, he pushed forward, dragging his body ahead.

His entire body screamed in pain right after the fall. His crushed, numb legs suddenly came back to life, throbbing with agony. He was forcing himself to move, but supporting the child with one arm while pushing himself off the ground with the other was no easy task.

Even so, Woo crawled across the ground like a snake. His fingernails tore off, leaving trails of blood, but he didn't care. His bloodshot eyes remained fixed on the cave ahead.

He had no idea how much time had passed. Eventually, he managed to lean against a wall, still holding the boy in his arms. Panting heavily, he tried to set the child down somewhere the rain wouldn't reach, but then he froze.

It had been cleverly disguised as part of the cliffside, but there were clear signs that human hands had touched it.

'A mechanism…?'

A name came to mind—Jangbo-do.

To the world, it was known as a martial arts manual, but in reality, it was a document that pointed to a specific location.

The one who discovered it was Peng, the leader of the Flight Winged Group.

She had told him that she found it while sorting through her father's belongings and had shown it to Woo-hyo. Tracking Dan Baek-hoon's movements had led him to the boy, and that clue had eventually brought him to Gansu.

Peng knew him too well. She had set this trap, knowing that using his father as bait would lure Dan Woo-hyo out of White Virtue Clan's protection—alone.

Because it was his father's handwriting, Woo-hyo followed it without suspicion. Moreover, the one who brought it and reported it was Peng. It was a well-known fact throughout the Central Plains that the leader of the Flight Winged Group deeply revered Dan Baek-hoon.

After falling into the trap, he had thought that the map written in Dan Baek-hoon's hand was a deception, but could it actually be genuine?

Peng must have scouted the area beforehand while preparing the trap. However, she hadn't discovered the hidden mechanism beneath the cliff. In the end, her deception had led Woo right to it.

Woo-hyo's fingers slid over the mechanism. Recalling the details written on Dan Baek-hoon's map, he manipulated the device. With a rumbling sound, the wall shifted aside.

As the gaping darkness of a cave revealed itself, Woo felt a moment of stunned disbelief.

The map drawn by Dan Baek-hoon, the mechanism that existed beneath the sheer cliff, and the hidden lair that could only be opened by correctly operating it.

His mind was in turmoil. But there was no time to keep questioning things—his life was slipping away.

'No… it can't…'

Holding the boy as tightly as he could, Woo prayed that the warmth of the child's feverish body would cool even slightly against his own cold skin.

Then, his consciousness faded.

It was the beginning of a long, dark dream.

"Are you awake?"

A cold voice struck his ears.

Still hazy, Woo slowly blinked. A strange scent filled the air. As he focused on it, his senses gradually returned.

The first thing that came into view was a stone ceiling. Once, stalactites must have hung from it, but now all that remained were jagged, cleanly severed edges—

As if someone had sliced them off in a single stroke.

He had been certain he wouldn't wake up again this time… yet here he was.

"…Grandmaster of Black Sky Clan… why are you…?"

Woo's lips moved sluggishly.

Even on the brink of death, there was no mistaking that strikingly beautiful face—his mortal adversary, Ye Jin-rang, the Grandmaster of Black Sky Clan.

Though he thought it was unbelievable, it felt too vivid to be a mere illusion.

"A trespasser entered my domain, so I came to deal with them. And yet… it turns out to be the battered Grandmaster of White Virtue Clan and a boy who has yet to learn martial arts..."

How could Ye-jin-rang appear at this moment? It was clearly the work of fate. Woo-hyo felt a weak smile creeping onto his lips.

Ye-jin-rang looked at him as if he were a madman, but he did not stop smiling.

For the first time since falling off that cliff, he felt a strange sense of relief.

"Your nephew... he is your nephew. Ye... Jin-seo's son."

Woo-hyo realized that he had awakened because of Ye-jin-rang's intervention.

If a dying Grandmaster of Black Sky Clan had suddenly appeared in a hidden refuge, his enemies would have kept him alive to extract information. Likewise, Woo figured that he had also been spared for the same reason. After all, Ye Jin-rang was known to have mastered all kinds of sorcery. Woo's body was so weak that he couldn't even move, and for a moment, he wondered—was he truly still alive? Or had he been brought back to this world through some kind of spirit-summoning technique?

"What did you say? How do you know that name?!"

"The name is... Kang-oh..."

Ye-jin-rang grabbed him by the collar, but Woo was desperate to pass on every last piece of information before his time ran out.

He had just realized it.

"Kang" as in strength, "Oh" as in enlightenment..

It was the name he had wanted to give the boy who had grown tall enough to reach his chest. The child who clung to his waist, saying he wanted to become stronger—he had wanted to tell him that the strength he sought was already within him.

But now, it seemed he would never have that opportunity.

As he gazed at Woo's deathly pale face, Ye Jin-rang's expression flickered with something unrecognizable.

Woo-hyo closed his eyes again. His body no longer had the strength to move.

Days passed in an endless blur, and Woo-hyo could not gauge how much time had actually gone by. He had been both asleep and awake, his frail body still clinging to life, but his mind floated halfway between this world and the next.

"Kang-oh!"

"No! Please! Please... open your eyes! Please! Grandmaster...!"

In the midst of a dreamless slumber, he heard the boy's desperate cries.

He wanted to tell him that everything would be alright, but did he even have the right to say that?

"If you abandon me too, I... I...! You promised!"

'I didn't abandon you.'

No matter how desperately he tried to shout, his lips would not move. Woo-hyo felt a wave of despair wash over him.

"No!"

At that moment, Ye-jin-rang's scream pierced through the air, followed by an ominous sound—something shattering.

Suddenly, a nightmare engulfed Woo-hyo, pulling him deeper into its dark embrace.

He saw Dan Baek-hoon, who had always been strict with him. As a master, he was perfect, but as a father, he was a cold man. only ever taught his only son about duty, and the image that lingered most in Woo's memory was his father's back. Others called him proud and dignified, but to Woo's young eyes, those shoulders looked burdened with a heavy weight. He had once thought that if he could grow up quickly, he could help ease his father's troubles.

The scene shifted. Dan Baek-hoon was patiently correcting the sword movements of his newly accepted disciple, Namgung Ji-yak, guiding her with care. Woo had watched from behind the corner of a building, curled up, wondering if his father would look his way if he became stronger.

Seol Bu-yong had been kinder than his father, but she was rarely around. Woo never doubted his mother's love, but he had always been lonely.

As the lonely days crawled by, he remembered the last time he had seen his father. Dan Baek-hoon had told him to take care of White Virtue Clan. his father had instead subdued his meridians and infused him with his inner energy. By the time he had absorbed all that energy, Dan Baek-hoon was already gone.

Not long after, news of his father's death arrived. Woo was thrust into the position of White Virtue Clan's Grandmaster. He threw himself into his duties with relentless determination, making a name for himself that shook the entire White Path. Yet, he could not stop chasing after the shadow of Dan Baek-hoon. He relentlessly tracked the places his father had gone before his death, the people he had met, and the traces he had left behind in White Virtue Clan.

And in doing so, he met young Kang-oh.

When he opened his eyes again, he saw Ye-jin-rang's haggard face. The man pulled Kang-oh closer and placed his hand over Woo's. Through his hazy vision, shifting like a veil fluttering in the wind, he could make out Kang-oh, his head wrapped in bandages..

The boy, once so full of expressions, was now blank-faced.

"He's alive. He's still alive."

As Ye Jin-rang checked the pulse again and again, repeating the words, silent tears streamed down Kang-oh's face. Woo tried desperately to move his fingers, but even that small effort drained the last of his strength. He slipped back into unconsciousness.

Each time he awoke, he saw Ye Jin-rang. Sometimes, he poured medicine into Woo's mouth; other times, he pressed his acupoints, infusing him with energy. Occasionally, he brought Kang-oh. The boy would take Woo's hand in his own.

And in that small touch, Woo could feel just how much Kang-oh was trembling. As if even confirming Woo was still alive was something he could barely endure...

***

Ye Jin-rang was desperately trying to keep Dan Woo-hyo alive, but his body continued to weaken. The fierce struggle that had made him crawl across the floor until his nails had fallen off had been to save the boy, yet now that Kang-oh had met his uncle, the boy, yet now that Kang-oh had met his uncle, Woo-hyo's will to live was slowly fading.

Living only brought pain.

Peng's words, the truth she had uttered, held Woo-hyo captive. In his half-conscious state, whenever he saw the back of Dan Baek-hoon and tried to run towards him, his existence in this world was slowly being chipped away.

"I have waited a long time for this day."

The betrayal of someone he had trusted.

"A cuckoo lays its eggs in another bird's nest, letting that bird raise them as its own."

What did that have to do with this situation? Woo-hyo could not comprehend it. He did not even want to know. He covered his ears and shook his head, but the voice of the leader of the Flight Winged Group seeped into his heart like poison.

"You are what was left behind between Seol Bu-yong and her dead lover. Pretending to be the lord's son, stealing everything that was his—your very existence is loathsome...!"

Woo-hyo shook his head. Peng's face revealed that she was speaking the truth. Yet, he did not want to believe it.

He wasn't Dan Baek-hoon's son? His mother had a lover who had died?

Woo-hyo forgot how to speak. He could no longer see Peng's face—only that voice, thick with madness, echoing in his mind.

"Let me share an interesting fact with you. The previous Grandmaster died because of you."

Because of me? How could that be?

"You are merely a pawn put forth by Seol Bu-yong to swallow up the White Virtue Clan."

A puppet...

He wanted to deny it, but Woo-hyo's voice got caught in his throat and never made it out. Did his mother truly cherish him as her son? Or did she only value him as a tool? Woo-hyo didn't know. Seol Bu-yong was a cold woman—perhaps even more so than Dan Baek-hoon.

"Dan Woo-hyo, you were born of sin! How brazenly you ascend to the position of Grand master of White Virtue Clan and indulge in wealth and glory!"

The truth, spat out by the leader of the Flight Winged Group, a woman who was a loyal subject in public yet like an aunt to him in private, crushed Woo-hyo. Even though this was not reality but merely a nightmare imitating the past, his limbs felt limp, and he lost the will to resist.

"Die! Son of Seol bu-yong!"

Peng swung her sword toward Woo-hyo, or rather, toward the son of Seol bu-yong.

Dan Woo-hyo closed his eyes. The image of Dan Baek-hoon's back, never once turning no matter how much he reached for him, flashed through his mind.

Was I never your son?

Is that why you were so heartless?

Was I nothing but a shackle to you?

"No!"

Dan Woo-hyo's heart stopped for a moment. The boy who had thrown himself off the cliff for him screamed, but Woo-hyo, severed from the world, never heard it. He had no time to determine whether this was reality or just an extension of a dream.

And so, Dan Woo-hyo experienced death once.

When he awoke again, he was no longer lying in the cave.

"I've kept you alive, now get lost."

Ye Jin-rang, the Grandmaster of Black Sky Clan, was by his side. The incense burning in the room's censer gave off a strange scent—one Woo-hyo had never smelled before in his life.

Jin-rang, whom he barely managed to glance at, wore a look of utter disgust— as if even sharing the same sky with him was unbearable.

It was strange. Pen had tried to kill him, yet the Grandmaster of Black Sky Clan had saved his life. Why?

"I... cannot go back."

The words that spilled from Woo-hyo's lips were dry and brittle, like those of a dying old man. But there was no time to be shocked by his own voice—his mind was in utter turmoil.

According to Peng, Dan Baek-hoon was not his biological father. His mother had a lover who died before she married his father, and if the words of the Flight Winged Group's leader were true, then he was that man's blood.

The affection he had longed for from his father was something he would never be able to attain.

The curse of Peng regarding his mother, who had withdrawn from the internal affairs of the White Virtue Clan's internal affairs due to her unique status, could not be overlooked.

Why would she use her son—the child of her late lover—as a mere puppet to seize control of the strongest group in the White Path?

His mother, not a martial artist, would never have desired the position of White Virtue Clan's Grandmaster. Seol Bu-yong had once stood at a height where she could have anything in the world. No matter how prestigious White Virtue Clan was within the Righteous Path, it could never have held much significance for her.

Before she was the wife of White Virtue Clan's Grandmaster, Seol Buyong had been the Imperial Princess Yeongrin. She had once competed for the throne against her half-brother, the current emperor, Seol Seop-un.

However, after Seol Seop-un ascended as emperor and Seol Bu-yong withdrew, no one believed she still harbored any ambition for the throne. She had secluded herself within White Virtue Clan, cutting herself off from the outside world.

'No… that's just what I thought.'

Woo-hyo suddenly stopped. Even as her son, he knew nothing about Seol Bu-yong's true desires.

Woo-hyo, who had been raised by a nanny since childhood, met his mother only once a month. Rather than affectionate hugs or words of love, their meetings were more like briefings on his academic achievements and martial arts progress. Seol Bu-yong was a strict mother. When he was young, he even found her frightening. The nanny would soothe him, saying that Seol Bu-yong loved him deeply and was simply providing him with the best education in the way of the royal family.

Woo-hyo's heart leaned toward Dan Baek-hoon. He sought from his father what he could not receive from his mother. At the very least, his father never turned him away when he visited. Though Dan Baek-hoon was blunt, he still acknowledged him.

For a child, choosing between a wall that gave no response and a person who at least offered an echo was only natural. Though Seol Bu-yong had taught him not to form attachments to others, she never stopped him from clinging to his father.

And so, Woo-hyo carefully traced back what he knew about his mother. His parents' history stretched back thirty years, to the time of the Blood Cult Rebellion.

During the struggle for the throne, the Blood Cult Rebellion broke out. It was well known that Princess Yeongrin—Seol Bu-yong—who led the military and supported the martial sects to protect the common people, had formed a connection with the current White Virtue Clan's Grandmaster.

During desperate times, they fought their own battles with their backs against each other, and no one doubted the bond that must have formed between them. When Seol Seop-un became emperor and his sister, Seol Bu-yong, despite being the princess, married a mere commoner rather than a noble, people had much to say. Some said that though she was his half-sister, she had deep affection for the then-prince Seol Seop-un and left for the martial world to avoid becoming a burden to him. To ordinary people in the Central Plains, the world of martial artists was as distant as that of the immortals.

Even so, everyone believed that Seol Bu-yong and Dan Baek-hoon must have been in love—just as the Imperial Princess had declared she no longer desired the throne.

People simply blessed their union, saying that a kind and pure-hearted lady was the perfect match for a gentleman.

If Seol bu-yong still desired the imperial seat, then there could be no more perfect disguise. Had someone who was once closer to the throne than anyone else truly given up the chance to become the emperor of the Central Plains for love?

Woo thought of Peng. The leader of the Flight Winged Group had pointed a sword at his heart, but a part of him wondered if the person she truly wanted to strike was Seol Bu-yong.

The ground he had always thought would be stable began to crumble beneath him.

He wanted to rush back and ask his mother. But at the same time, he didn't want to ask anything at all. Because if he did, wouldn't that mean even he was questioning whether he was really Dan Baek-hoon's son?

"There is no place for you in the Black Sky Clan. At least not as Dan Baek-hoon's son."

Ye Jin-rang pulled Woo-hyo from his thoughts.

"Ah…"

How ironic that those words were the ones that reached his ears at this moment.

"If I am not Dan Baek-hoon's son, then... what does it matter?"

Each word was a struggle to get out, but the self-mockery in that voice was unmistakable to Jin-rang.

Yet, the Grandmaster of Black Sky Clan did not respond immediately. The unexpected silence made Woo lift his head, only to see Jin-rang looking at him as if he were pathetic.

"Hah, so it's come to this after all…"

A rough hand grabbed Woo's chin, turning his face from side to side.

"…Pathetic."

It seemed as if he was trying to confirm something. A trace of anger flickered across Jin-rang's face as he closely examined Woo's features.

The man who had been rubbing his face as if to calm himself suddenly shot to his feet and stormed outside. His rough, hurried steps made it clear—if he didn't leave now, he wouldn't be able to contain the fury boiling inside him.

When the Grandmaster of Black Sky Clan returned, he was holding a medicine bowl. He forced Woo's mouth open and poured the liquid in. Woo choked, spilling half of it, but Jin-rang remained expressionless, completely unbothered.

"You won't be able to stand on your own just yet, so I'll send word to White Virtue Clan. I'll give you paper—write a letter yourself. If you understand the favor of being dragged back from death's doorstep, be careful with your words to avoid any misunderstandings."

"...Haven't you heard that I'm not Dan Baek-hoon's son?"

Woo swallowed whatever it was—medicine or poison—without resistance and weakly asked.

"What? Just because there's no blood relation, you think you're not his son?"

"...!"

He didn't even have the presence of mind to ask how the man knew. He could only stare up at him in shock.

All Jin-rang had done was grab Woo's chin and examine his face. Since Woo took after his mother, there were no traces of Dan Baek-hoon in his features.

But the Grandmaster of Black Sky Clan wasn't someone who would dismiss him as unrelated just because of that.

More than that—

"Don't tell me that woman never told you who your real father is, even at this age…"

"..."

Woo's eyes widened at Jin-rang's murmur.

Did the Grandmaster of Black Sky Clan… know his birth father?

"Seo-mun Se-ho. You've heard that name before, haven't you?"

Woo-hyo's face turned pale.

There was no way he hadn't heard of him.

Seomun Se-ho, the Supreme Sword Master. The sworn brother of Dan Baek-hoon, whom he had believed to be his father, and a hero of the Righteous (white) Path who played a major role in quelling the Blood Cult's rebellion.

He had helped lay the foundations of the White Virtue Clan, and if he hadn't died young, he would have become its Grandmaster instead of Dan Baek-hoon. Because of that, Seomun Se-ho's ancestral tablet was enshrined in the clan's memorial hall, and it was tradition to visit and offer incense every year.

The one time Dan Baek-hoon, a man who always seemed unshakable, would be consumed by an inky darkness of grief was on the anniversary of Seomun Se-ho's death.

And now he was being told that man was his real father?

"Why? Why are you only certain now that I'm Seomun Se-ho's son?"

Woo-hyo asked desperately, his voice trembling.

"Your bone structure is the same as your father's. I saw you when you were young, but you hadn't fully developed then, so I didn't notice… But now… It's strange that I didn't recognize it before. You look so much like him."

Jin-rang's voice trailed off, turning into a murmur.

"No… Maybe I just didn't want to recognize it."

When the words came from Peng's mouth, Woo wanted to deny them. But as they took shape on the Grandmaster of Black Sky Clan's tongue, they became undeniable. If that was true, then the Flight Winged Group leader's claim—that Seol Bu-yong was Dan Baek-hoon's murderer—now carried an entirely different weight.

The words Seol Bu-yong had used—calling him a mere puppet—kept echoing in Peng's mind. Even if he returned to White Virtue Clan, what could a warrior who had lost the ability to use martial arts possibly do as its grandmaster? Having already lost his father, Woo lacked the courage to lose his mother as well. He had neither the will to question Seol Bu-yong nor the power to protect White Virtue Clan from her. Just as Peng had said, he would become nothing more than a puppet.

If so… then perhaps it was better never to return at all. If his junior female disciple, Namgoong Ji-yak, could become the next grandmaster in his place, then—

"So this is how it was."

Before he could even sink into his thoughts, Ye-jin-rang muttered darkly. His hand wrapped around Dan Woo-hyo's neck.

"After making such a promise, he chose his sworn brother instead. He should have just admitted he gave in to power. A traitor… That's all he'll be—just another disgrace, forgotten like the rest."

The whispering murmur flowed from Ye-jin-rang's lips. Woo-hyo blinked in confusion. He felt no strength in the hand gripping his neck.

For someone hailed as the greatest of the demonic (dark) path, his grasp was weaker than silk spun from clouds.

But the killing intent—was real.

"Speak. Dan Baek-hoon's son."

Peng called Woo the son of Seol Bu-yong, but the Jin-rang standing before him referred to him as Dan Baek-hoon's son.

"Was it Dan Baek-hoon who found Kang-oh, my nephew?"

Woo slowly nodded. At that, Jin-rang lowered his head.

The person who had been choking him, still straddling his body, slowly trembled. It wasn't the sound of sobbing, yet the pauses between breaths were too long for it to be simple breathing.

An absolute being, capable of taking a life with just a single finger, was being crushed by something indescribable. An emotion that couldn't be touched or seen was consuming him from within.

Though Woo had no way of knowing what kind of torrent had swallowed the Grandmaster of Black Sky Clan whole, he couldn't help but feel a tinge of pity.

How much time had passed? Only after a long while did Jin-rang finally lift his head and speak.

"I'll count the debt of sparing your life as repaid since you brought my nephew back. Now, get lost."

Ye-jin-rang's hand fell away from Woo-hyo's neck. Yet, Woo-hyo felt as if the imprint of the Black Heavenly Lord's palm remained on his throat like a brand.

"…What was your relationship with the previous White Virtue Clan's Grandmaster?"

"My relationship with your father?"

Even as Woo avoided the topic, Jin-rang stubbornly continued to call Dan Baek-hoon his father.

"...Nothing at all."

Jin-rang's lips trembled, but his voice remained as straight and unwavering as bamboo.

"We had no connection whatsoever."

Lies.

Woo thought so but kept his mouth shut. Jin-rang probably knew his own answer was lacking.

A man who had never hidden himself his entire life, who had always lived as he pleased—his lies were painfully clumsy.

And yet, of all people, his secret had to be Dan Baek-hoon.

"I'm not going back to the White Virtue Clan."

"...I don't care. Get lost from Black Sky Clan's territory."

Ye Jin-rang replied without any hint of surprise on his face. He had poured no small amount of effort into this young Grandmaster of White Virtue Clan, yet he spoke as if he wouldn't mind if Woo dropped dead right then and there.

In truth, he would have preferred Woo-hyo to be dead rather than alive. Ignoring the tangled fate between them, Jin-rang would always choose to walk his own path.

"If it weren't for Kang Oh, I wouldn't have spared you a glance."

If not for Kang Oh, if that child hadn't fainted from Dan Woo-hyo's seizure, he would have passed by Dan Baek-hoon's son without a second glance, whether the boy was kicked aside or not.

Jin-rang wasn't a physician, let alone a miracle doctor, yet he managed to save Woo-hyo thanks to sheer luck and determination. The instinctive realization that if Woo-hyo were to die, he would also face consequences, drove Ye Jin-rang to pour all his days and nights into treating the patient.

"The Grandmaster of Black Sky Clan will look after him well... I believe that."

"Three times."

"…What?"

"That child has tried to die here three times."

"Why…?"

A look of horror spread across Woo-hyo's face.

"Once, right after waking up, he harmed himself, saying he would follow you because he thought you were dead. The second time, even after I had covered his memories with magic, he reacted to a few words and recalled everything on his own, slamming his head against the wall until I wasn't looking. The last time... no matter how much I used magic to seal his memories, he managed to break free and cried out for you. That's why I brought your half-dead self to a place where you could be saved."

"…Kang-oh, that child…"

Jin-rang's tone was calm, but his hand was clenched tightly.

"Day or night, awake or asleep, he never left your side. I thought it might be better if he at least saw you wake up, but then you had a seizure."

Woo-hyo suddenly recalled the scream from his nightmare.

'No!'

So that wasn't just an echo of the moment on the cliff repeating in his head—it was a real scream from Kang-oh, here in reality?

"When I saved you and checked on the child, Kang-oh was broken."

"H-how... how could that…"

Woo-hyo's voice slowly crumbled.

"He had no will to endure. He kept losing you, over and over, until he couldn't bear to go on. So I had no choice but to seal all of the child's memories. Everything had to start from the beginning. Life, learning... even relationships."

As Jin-rang murmured, Woo-hyo buried his face in his hands. Kang-oh had been nothing more than a pitiful soul caught up in his fate. But why was the heavens so merciless to that child?

With his life in ruins, the only thing keeping him going was that one person. Woo-hyo forced himself upright on the bed.

His arms felt weak, and his body trembled, but like crawling on the rain-soaked ground, Woo-hyo gritted his teeth and endured.

"Pl-please…let me watch over him. From the side. In Black Sky Clan."

"Are you out of your mind? How could the White Virtue Clan's Grandmaster possibly stay in the Black Sky Clan?"

Ye Jin-rang snapped back as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"Would it be fine as long as I'm no longer the White Virtue Clan's Grandmaster?"

But Woo-hyo pressed desperately. Jin-rang scoffed in disbelief.

"Do you think that position can just be discarded because you want to? Didn't Dan Baek-hoon teach you about responsibility?"

"I have to leave... Only then can I truly take responsibility."

"And even if that's the case, how do you plan to hide when your face is recognizable no matter where you go, even on the other side of the Central Plains?"

Jin-rang clicked his tongue. Normally, someone who had barely survived death would look like a wreck, but though Dan Woo-hyo was gaunt, an eerie air still clung to his features.

It was a chilling kind of allure. In Jin-rang's entire life, the only ones he'd ever seen with such beauty were himself in the mirror and Seol Bu-yong.

Without hesitation, Woo-hyo leaned toward the brazier beside the bed and pressed his face against it.

It was fortunate that this place was dark enough to require a brazier rather than just a lantern. Since Dan Baek-hoon, the White Virtue Clan's Grandmaster and a leading figure of the Righteous Path, couldn't be treated just anywhere, Jin-rang must have laid him down in a place like this. But because of that, his face could have easily ended up in the brazier's flames.

Jin-rang pulled Woo out of the fire with his bare hands. But his face, once as refined as polished jade, was now so disfigured it was unrecognizable.

The person he had struggled to keep alive was now severely burned, so Jin-rang hurriedly applied medicine to the injuries.

"If it's not enough, I'll make a fresh wound with my blade. I don't mind cutting off an ear as long as I can still hear."

Woo lowered his head again, his face calm as if he felt no pain.

"Please, allow me… to watch over Kang Oh. I won't ask for anything else… Please."

"You…! Why… why would you…?!"

Ye-jin-rang gritted his teeth as he applied the ointment. People always said they were alike, but this was one thing he wished they didn't share.

He couldn't help but think of the person who had left him behind to raise Dan Woo-hyo.

For Dan Baek-hoon, righteousness and honor came first.

Jin-rang came second.

And so, he had been abandoned.

Yet even now, he still couldn't bring himself to let go…

A fire ignited within Ye-jin-rang. Dan Baek-hoon's blood didn't run through his veins, not a single drop, yet he despised and loathed Dan Woo-hyo for resembling that man he could never let go of.

He wanted to break him. He wanted to see him abandon his composure, to make him give up on everything, to see him cling to his feet, begging to be let go, to be sent back.

Even as Jin-rang's face twisted endlessly like a wrathful demon, Dan Woo-hyo bowed politely.

"Please... take good care of Kang-oh."

The hatred for Dan Baek-hoon, which had pooled inside Jin-rang for so long without ever being released, rippled once more.