Appearance of the Heavenly Demon - Chapter 31

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 31
Whoooosh—
Gu Young stared into the forest where Un Hyeon had vanished, exhaling short, measured breaths.
“If you’re willing, stay close to the child. There’s no need to stand guard from the shadows, is there?”
It was a request Un Hyeon had left before departing.
The Shadow Demon General had stepped away, and if Gu Young disappeared too, the child would grow lonely, he’d said.
Gu Young had not answered.
Yet Un Hyeon had left anyway, muttering a casual “Much obliged.”
Gu Young turned back toward the house where Yeon-u lay sleeping.
A small thatched house, remote and isolated—barely suited for a child to live in alone.
Gu Young reflected.
Too much attention was converging on this tiny dwelling.
What could be so special about that child?
The Emperor’s Sword—called the strongest in the Central Martial Arts.
The Shadow Demon General, one of the Twelve Demon Generals who upheld the Heavenly Demon Cult, now said to enjoy the Cult Leader’s particular favor.
And the Cult Leader himself—his master, master of the Heavenly Demon Cult—was taking such extraordinary care of this child.
Excessive, truly.
‘Guard duty,’ he thought.
He harbored no intention of defying the Cult Leader’s command.
He was merely a shadow who would serve with dog-like loyalty should it serve the Heavenly Demon’s will.
Gu Young turned and walked away.
The night deepened, forlorn and solitary, in the wake of someone’s absence.
* * *
Chirp, chirp—
Yeon-u woke and stepped outside, gazing blankly down at a table set on the veranda.
A morning meal left by the servants since early dawn.
Once formal training with Un Hyeon had begun in earnest, such meals had ceased to appear.
Before leaving, Un Hyeon had stopped by the servants’ quarters to ensure Yeon-u would be fed.
That was why a meal had been prepared after so long, though Yeon-u, unaware of the reason, stood bewildered.
Blinking sleep-heavy eyes, the child stared at the table for a moment.
Thud—Bang—Thud—Bang!
Yeon-u dashed across the veranda and threw open the door to Un Hyeon’s room with a crash.
The room was empty.
In truth, Un Hyeon had brought almost nothing—only his great sword—and that sword was gone.
And in one corner of the room, bedding lay folded neatly.
Staring into the vacant space, Yeon-u shut the door roughly and returned to sit before the meal.
The child scooped a large spoonful of rice into his mouth and grabbed all the side dishes at once, chewing loudly.
While Yeon-u was busily stuffing his cheeks this way—
“….”
Yeon-u lifted his gaze and looked out into the yard.
A child of shadow stood in one corner of the yard.
It was Gu Young, who had been watching from that spot since the moment Yeon-u woke, though the child only now noticed him.
“….”
Yeon-u stared at him for a moment.
Then the child glanced down at the meal before him and picked up a round rice ball, extending it toward Gu Young.
Gu Young gazed at the round rice ball resting in the child’s palm for a moment, then slowly shut his eyes and shook his head.
Yeon-u did not press the offer, instead popping the rice ball into his own mouth.
Watching the child’s cheeks as he continued eating, Gu Young thought to himself:
‘Won’t they burst at this rate?’
* * *
After finishing the meal, Yeon-u climbed the mountain as usual.
Taking a seat upon the rock where Un Hyeon trained with him, the child began to meditate.
“Inhale—!”
Drawing in breath, accepting Qi.
“Exhale….”
Releasing breath, settling the Qi.
Circulating the Qi received in the body through the channels within.
Reciting the mantra Un Hyeon had taught him, repeating it until understanding dawned.
Shhhhhhh—
Gu Young observed the child with an expression of subtle interest.
The child showed decent progress for how little he’d been taught, and his instincts were remarkably sharp.
How much time had passed like that?
From somewhere, a bell rang out—ding, ding—in the distance.
‘A bell?’
In the same moment Gu Young turned toward the sound, Yeon-u sprang to his feet.
Without hesitation, he bounded off the rock and took off running—pitter-patter-patter—down the mountainside.
‘—!’
Gu Young followed at his heels.
The mountain was steep and treacherous, yet the child descended without stopping for breath.
He looked like he was expecting something.
When they reached the house.
As expected, there was no one inside.
Only a table sat on the veranda—left behind by someone.
“….”
Yeon-u stared at the empty house for a long while.
Gu Young watched the child.
‘Surely not.’
Had Un Hyeon left without saying anything to the boy?
Not even a word about leaving, returning soon, take care of yourself, or see you later. Nothing like that.
Not a single word.
Gu Young felt a faint irritation rise in his chest.
He was the child’s guard, and he was even lending his sincere efforts to remain at the boy’s side.
He was already fulfilling his role sufficiently.
Yet he couldn’t understand why he felt annoyed.
After gazing at the empty house for some time, Yeon-u finally sat before the table and began eating.
Like this morning, he crammed rice into his mouth and was up again moments later.
Then he stood at the door and wound a black cloth tightly around his eyes.
“—!”
So it was coming.
Gu Young’s unease became reality.
With his eyes bound, Yeon-u began climbing back up the mountain.
The real problem came next.
Thump! Smack-! Crash! Thud-!
Gu Young’s mouth fell slightly open as he watched the child.
Binding his eyes was probably meant to be training—developing his other senses to distinguish objects through means beyond sight.
But the child was carelessly hurling himself into everything around him, making a mockery of the word “training.”
He showed no attempt to dodge, no thought of judging distances.
One tree—thump. Another tree—thump.
Tripping over stones and scraping against thornbushes, drawing blood.
With only his eyes covered, he was essentially stumbling about blindly.
The sight was so absurd that Gu Young had been standing there dumbfounded—until he belatedly remembered that he was the child’s guard.
Just then, Yeon-u was charging straight toward a massive tree.
Gu Young stepped ahead and thrust out his hand, blocking the child’s forehead just before impact.
For a moment, the child felt the soft sensation against his brow and came to a halt.
But soon enough, he pivoted sharply and charged off in another direction.
“….”
Gu Young continued to trail after him.
Trudge-trudge-trudge—thud—whoosh-
Trudge-trudge—thud—crash-
Before the child could trip over a branch, Gu Young lifted him bodily; before he could collide with anything, Gu Young shielded him or grabbed his shoulder to change direction.
At this point, it was unclear whether it was the child or himself who was undergoing training, yet Gu Young continued to shield the boy.
How long they went like that.
Yeon-u stopped before a cave.
There was a mysterious box at the cave’s entrance, and the child opened it and drew out a handful of something.
Dried fruit and jerky—snacks.
‘Why would snacks be…’
Here.
But there was no time to puzzle over it.
The child ate the snacks noisily and once more descended the mountain.
At least he had the sense not to bind his eyes on the way down.
They arrived at a sunny stretch of grass beside a stream.
Resting there was a wooden axe, sized for a child to handle.
The child crammed the last of the snacks into his mouth, picked up the wooden axe, and planted himself in the middle of the grass.
Then….
‘…Sword Dance…?’
He danced.
Eyes half-closed, swinging the axe this way and that, his legs tracing patterns through the air.
He danced.
‘What….’
Soon the child drew another axe from his waistband.
Still small, but a real one this time.
Holding an axe in each hand, the child continued dancing.
Bathed in warm sunlight, he wandered across the green grass in all directions.
‘Perhaps this is better after all.’
This approach had its own problems, certainly, but at least there was less danger of injury than from smashing things into walls.
So the child danced for a long while.
How much more time had passed?
Splash—splash—splash!
When he finished dancing, the child set down the wooden axe and waded boldly into the water, still gripping the real one.
A wooden log lay fixed to the streambed with rope and stones.
The child stood before the log, gripped the axe with both hands, and raised it high.
Crash!
He began striking downward at the water.
Or rather, at the wooden log beneath.
‘….’
To Gu Young’s eye, it was meaningless work—pointless drudgery.
Crash! Crash! Crash!
The axe only churned the water, its blade losing force before it could even touch the wood.
Crash! Crash! Crash! Crash!
And yet Yeon-u did not stop.
He showed no sign of wanting to.
With each repetition of the fruitless motion, the child’s arms grew faster, the power behind each strike increasing.
Crash! Crash-crash! Crash!
Half a Double Hour passed like this.
Crash! Crash! Crash-crash!
One Double Hour.
Two Double Hours.
The sun had already set, and the child’s lips had turned blue from the cold, yet….
Crash!
The child did not stop.
He continued bringing the axe down.
Then, at some point….
Thud.
A long black spear shaft intercepted Yeon-u’s axe.
“Huff—huff—”
Ragged breathing tore from Yeon-u’s mouth.
His chest felt ready to burst, his arms so numb they had lost all sensation, and yet….
“Hngh!”
Yeon-u poured strength into the hand still gripping the axe.
But the blade caught on the shaft didn’t so much as twitch.
“That’s enough. Come out of the water now.”
“No!”
“Any longer would be reckless. Your entire body is trembling—can’t you see that?”
Gu Young was right.
Yeon-u, who had been swinging the axe in the cold water for more than two Double Hours, was shaking—not just his lips, but his arms and legs, his hands and feet, his whole body.
“When the Sword Emperor returns, you can train properly. At this rate, you’ll accomplish noth—”
“He won’t come back.”
The words were barely a whisper.
Gu Young’s voice died in his throat at the small, almost inaudible sound.
Tap. Trickle….
Something fell onto the water below her bowed head.
“Yeon-u understands.”
They were fat teardrops from a child’s eyes.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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