Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 613

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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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Chapter 613
Soon after, General Dokgo Seon arrived and handed Jin Cheon-hee the land deeds and the merchant guild’s promissory notes.
“You’re taking every last bit, aren’t you?”
“Haha, what are you talking about? I had no choice but to look after the Martial Arts Alliance’s affairs, so it was quite the ordeal.”
The way he laughed so shamelessly was enough to provoke anyone’s anger.
But General Dokgo merely sighed once.
“The Patriarch of Baekrin Uiseon certainly has many allies, but I imagine you have quite a few enemies as well.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
And so the Martial Arts Alliance’s General and Jin Cheon-hee sat down to drink tea together.
She spoke.
“It’s not like you’re taking my personal fortune anyway—the various sect leaders are pooling their resources to give it to you, so I don’t think much of it.”
“That’s a relief.”
“It seems you witnessed many things at the North Sea Ice Palace that we don’t know about.”
She was subtly probing whether there was something hidden in the announcement I’d just made.
Jin Cheon-hee smiled faintly at her fishing for information.
“I saw much. Learned much as well. By the way, traces of the Demonic Cult have been detected even in Sadoren—will you continue with the Righteous Confrontation regardless?”
I didn’t reveal who the spy was since there was no physical evidence.
But I made it clear enough that there was indeed a spy.
“Whether there’s a spy from the Demonic Cult or they’ve simply joined hands with them, the Righteous Confrontation will proceed.”
At General Dokgo Seon’s words, Jin Cheon-hee gave a small nod.
Dokgo Seon looked at Jin Cheon-hee with curiosity.
“You’re not troubled that you couldn’t stop it?”
“I suppose that’s the limit of what I can do.”
Creak—
Jin Cheon-hee tilted back in the chair and stretched his neck to gaze at the ceiling.
Though the ceiling blocked the view, I could feel how vast the sky beyond it truly was.
Whether there really were immortals or the Hyeolseon in that sky, I couldn’t say.
But now I understood that I hadn’t even reached the heels of the Hyeolseon Gyoju.
‘I must grow stronger. There’s no choice but to become stronger.’
Because I didn’t want to watch precious people die like that a second time.
The Doctor could surprisingly let things go easily.
‘They say you only understand some things when you’re dead. Now that I’ve truly died, I understand.’
Dokgo Seon stared intently at Jin Cheon-hee.
“Your expression is like that of an old monk in a temple.”
“Is that so?”
“Well… that’s just the kind of person you are, Patriarch. Ordinary people find you difficult to understand.”
“Haha, thank you.”
“It’s not a compliment.”
Dokgo Seon grumbled and then asked this:
“Since you’ve already let it go, what if Baekrin Uiseon were to help the Martial Arts Alliance?”
“Perhaps it would be better to take sides and quickly conclude the Jeongsa Daejeon, thereby reducing casualties.”
“Yes. That’s not an unreasonable suggestion, is it?”
At those words, I let out a small laugh.
‘It’s not unreasonable. But once I’m entangled in this, Baekrin Uiseon will have to step forward in the next Jeongsa Daejeon as well.’
Dokgo Seon isn’t the type to miss that.
It’s a shallow tactic, but it’s still a method that works quite well.
I answered him this way.
“That is a decision for my Master to make.”
Essentially a refusal.
Leaving Dokgo Seon to sigh behind me, I headed toward my quarters.
* * *
When I arrived at my lodgings, the sky was already painted crimson with the sunset.
‘I’ll rest for one night. I should depart early tomorrow.’
With that thought, I changed clothes and washed myself.
When I emerged, a maidservant was setting food on the table.
“Your evening meal, sir.”
“Thank you.”
It felt odd that she entered without permission, but seeing Hwang-gu’s tail wagging suggested there was no real problem.
So I decided not to make an issue of it.
Besides, the meal looked delicious.
‘Wow, that sea bream in sweet and sour sauce looks expensive.’
To bring such a large, plump fish fresh and fry it requires no small amount of money and effort.
And the aroma wafting from it was so enticing that my mouth watered involuntarily.
As I finished preparing and took my seat, she suddenly approached.
In that moment, she reached out and seized my fingerless hand.
“It’s true. They really are gone.”
I tried to pull my hand away, but the maidservant’s grip was so strong it didn’t budge at all.
Suddenly, I saw tears streaming down the maidservant’s face.
‘What… what?’
The tears continued to fall, wetting the floor.
“Ah… Gaga. How could your fingers be…”
“Wait… Hyeon…?”
There’s only one person who would call me ‘Gaga’.
Only then did I realize, and the maidservant removed the thin cloth from around her neck.
Beneath it was Sama Hyeon’s face.
She was smiling brightly as if she hadn’t cried at all.
‘Wow… that smile is even more frightening.’
Which was her real expression?
“It’s good that you’re safe, but not all your limbs are intact, are they~? Who bit these off?”
Why was that?
The question was asked gently, yet it felt as though a blade’s edge was being pressed against my throat.
I delivered the answer I had prepared.
“I lost it because of Hyeolseonggyo.”
“Ah, so those bastards took it. I figured as much.”
I felt a strange killing intent radiating outward from Sama Hyeon.
Or perhaps it was madness.
I spoke quickly.
“As long as I live by the sword, it was bound to happen eventually. Rather, I should be grateful that I returned with my body intact.”
Click—crack—
Sama Hyeon was flexing each joint of his fingers one by one, as if inspecting them.
He looked ready to charge out at any moment and flay the skin from someone’s face.
I knew he was angry, but right now, no one could capture the Hyeolseon Gyoju.
Not Yeo Ha-ryun, not me, not even the five Elders of the North Sea Ice Palace we had seen back then—it was impossible for all of us.
‘I don’t want to witness anyone else dying.’
Rolling across the floor, my eyes met Yeo Ha-ryun’s severed neck.
It could have been Sama Hyeon’s neck instead.
“Hyeon-a.”
“Yes, Gaga?”
“Listen to me.”
“Your command, Gaga. This one will slaughter them all.”
“That’s physically impossible.”
I told her about what had happened with Yeo Ha-ryun.
How Cho Cheon-gun didn’t die completely even after being killed, and how Geumgwang Seongmo escaped through some incomprehensible method.
And this information I had obtained by chance—the Hyeolseon Gyoju was estimated to be a formidable opponent at least at the Hyeongyeong level or above.
“So Gaga is worried that this one will get so angry and mess with Hyeolseonggyo and end up dead, right~?”
“No… it’s not that.”
“This one isn’t quite that brainless.”
Tap, crack, click.
She continued inspecting each of her remaining fingers one by one.
Given Sama Hyeon’s martial arts characteristics, inspecting her hands was no different from inspecting weapons.
“Fighting isn’t decided solely by the difference in power, you know. It’s not as though combat must be conducted like a formal duel between martial artists.”
Click, tap, crack.
Her voice was gentle, but her eyes still weren’t smiling.
‘Could she be having nightmares about the Oh Dok-mun incident?’
Back then, I had lost consciousness and collapsed for an entire season’s change.
And Sama Hyeon had to keep waiting for me.
Waiting, and waiting.
I reached out and grasped Sama Hyeon’s shoulder.
“Hyeon-a.”
“Yes?”
“Just promise me one thing.”
“What do you mean, brother?”
“We can’t face Hyeolseonggyo right now. Not until you’ve grown stronger. And if you do seek revenge, do it only when you’re safe.”
“….”
“I don’t want to lose you.”
“….”
Sama Hyeon lifted his golden eyes and gazed long into his brother’s blue ones.
His brother’s eyes were strangely drenched in fear.
What could this man possibly be afraid of?
It was his brother who had won against Hyeolseonggyo in this battle.
And his brother had charged forward like a madman, laughing even as his own life hung in the balance.
For such a man to feel fear—it was unthinkable.
“Ah, being the younger brother of a righteous man really is a losing proposition.”
“You’ll promise, won’t you?”
As he spoke, he reached out his pinky finger, then suddenly realized it was gone and extended his right pinky instead.
“…Ah. I almost felt my heart shatter just now, brother.”
“It’s habit—I still haven’t adjusted. Anyway, you’ll promise, won’t you?”
It seemed that no matter what Sama Hyeon said, his brother was determined to extract a promise.
“Fine, I promise….”
“Swear it on Hye-a.”
“…You’re truly cruel, brother.”
Sama Hyeon stared intently at Jin Cheon-hee’s pinky finger for a long time.
Jin Cheon-hee spoke.
“But when the moment for revenge comes, I’ll let you have it. I promise.”
“Then I’ll take that bastard’s fingers for myself. Gaga~”
“Yes. I’ll help however I can with that much.”
Jin Cheon-hee managed to extract the promise from Sama Hyeon. It was fortunate.
‘Right now, we’re not even worth one of the Hyeolseon Gyoju’s arms.’
It was a bitter truth, but truth nonetheless.
Even having grown this strong, the opponent was something akin to a natural disaster.
Still.
‘Looking at it positively, at least we know now.’
So we must accumulate power by any means necessary.
That was the answer.
Sama Hyeon spoke.
“I will torment them with money, brother~ that’s not using force, after all.”
“True. I have no idea how you’d torment Hyeolseonggyo with money, but try if you can. And first and foremost, your safety matters most. Don’t forget that either.”
“Understood, brother. Gaga~”
A poor heretical sect—it was beyond imagination.
After making this promise, Sama Hyeon grasped Jin Cheon-hee’s left hand and gazed at its cross-section for a long time.
“Are you going to make a prosthetic arm?”
“Yeah. I’ve already prepared the materials.”
Eungryong’s scales.
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call them fragments bestowed directly by the heavens.
I obtained them by offering merely a Cheonil Chwi and some side dishes.
There’s no business deal more profitable than this.
I’m not sure what abilities these scales possess, but seeing how Bo-ok wields impossible powers, these Eungryong scales are certainly no ordinary item.
“Should I make it for you? I can find the greatest craftsman in the empire—one the imperial palace doesn’t even have access to.”
“No, no. I’ve already decided.”
At those words, Sama Hyeon immediately grasped his brother’s intention.
“Chief Manager Yoo?”
“How did you know?”
“Because when it comes to matters like that, he’s the one you trust most. Of course, he’s reluctantly going along with it.”
“Right. He’s a difficult one—money doesn’t work on him. I’ll just have to cling to him like a leech again somehow.”
Sama Hyeon stared intently at Jin Cheon-hee.
“What?”
“Hmm. Nothing.”
It’s strange indeed. His brother is a madman who clings to Yoo Ho like a bloodsucking leech.
What exactly is his brother afraid of regarding the Hyeolseon Gyoju?
‘It’s certainly not his life, honor, or wealth.’
Is he afraid of the people around him getting hurt?
Sama Hyeon’s thoughts reached that point.
“What was Second Brother even doing there? He couldn’t even protect one of your fingers. I really should expel him from our sworn brotherhood….”
Jin Cheon-hee quickly soothed Sama Hyeon.
“Ha-ryun couldn’t help it. It was curse-related. Without him, I would’ve already died there.”
Defending his second brother so fiercely, the youngest Sama Hyeon looked at Jin Cheon-hee with a sullen expression.
Noticing this, Jin Cheon-hee asked.
“Are you actually jealous of that too?”
“Wow. What. Are. You. Do. Ing. Look at you defending Second Brother like that.”
And so Jin Cheon-hee soothed Sama Hyeon until dawn.

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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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