Surviving as the Villainess’s Servant in a Martial Arts Novel - Chapter 80

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 80

Interlude – Lee Yeon

Deep within Nanbu Mountain in Huizhou, Guangdong Province.

Lee Yeon lay collapsed at the bottom of a mountain slope.

‘Dan-a…’

After parting with Seo Dan.

Lee Yeon remained in that spot for a while before slowly beginning to move.

In the opposite direction from where Seo Dan had run off. While carefully proceeding and watching her surroundings, Lee Yeon kept looking back.

“She must miss you terribly.”

‘I feel the same way. I’ll really miss you. Even now, still…’

But there was no one left to convey those words to.

Lee Yeon gazed back several times with eyes full of lingering attachment, then shook her head. There wasn’t much time to delay like this.

I need to hurry. Lee Yeon quickly picked up her pace.

Each step felt heavy. Her body, which had been moving non-stop from late night until now, had already reached its limit. Her thighs trembled and her breath came in gasps.

But she couldn’t stop here. Lee Yeon bit her lip and thought.

‘First… first let’s go to Gangseoseong. Once I reach the Gangseo Branch, I’ll be able to gather people. I’ll also ask for help from nearby masters. If I lead those people back to that place…’

Will I be able to save you?

Hoping desperately that she could, Lee Yeon hastened her steps. At some point, she forgot about being tired and ran frantically forward.

Branches scratched her face, and her hands got wounded from pushing through thickets, but she felt no pain. Just as she leaped over a ditch with the single-minded determination to escape the mountain.

“…!”

Suddenly Lee Yeon clutched her chest.

Her heart pounded as a cold sensation spread throughout her body. Lee Yeon knew this symptom well.

This symptom that had tormented her all her life was…

‘An attack…!’

Why was an attack about to happen?

Master Yeong-ro had clearly said her condition had improved greatly. He had assured her that such attacks would be rare if she managed it well, so why…

But there was no time to think further. The pain in her heart was gradually intensifying.

Soon the pain would dominate her entire body. Agony like having every muscle and vein slashed with a sword would surge over her, gradually draining her strength and clouding her mind.

If that happened, she wouldn’t be able to move. If she couldn’t move, then Seo Dan would…

‘No.’

Lee Yeon gritted her teeth and kicked at the ground. She struggled desperately to go even one step further, but her steps only grew slower.

Finally her body hunched over and she began walking as if crawling. Lee Yeon panted and repeated to herself.

‘No, no, please.’

Please, move.

When Lee Yeon took another step forward.

Thud.

“Ah.”

She misstep.

Lee Yeon quickly reached out trying to grab something. But there was nothing for her hands to grasp.

Her body tilted sharply to the side.

Lee Yeon looked to the side. Pitch-black darkness was opening its maw to swallow her whole.

Only then did Lee Yeon realize.

It’s a cliff.

‘No…’

Crash, thud, whoosh-.

When she regained consciousness, she had already tumbled down the mountain slope.

Lee Yeon writhed her body.

Surprisingly, there was no pain. No, it would be more accurate to say the agony inside her body was so severe that she had no capacity to feel external pain.

However, her body seemed to have exhausted all its strength and couldn’t move at all. She didn’t even have the strength to cry out in pain.

She could only writhe like a useless worm. Somehow feeling like she might cry, Lee Yeon bit her lip tightly.

‘Why?’

Why had things turned out this way?

It should have been a simple matter of just escaping, so why couldn’t she even do that?

Why is my body always like this?

Being born with such a damn weak body. Why, even at the final moment, does it have to be like this…

‘Dan-a.’

I’m sorry.

Finally, a single tear rolled down from the corner of her eye.

The time that Seo Dan had struggled to create had become useless. She had ruined the opportunity that he had created through belief and sacrifice.

She had asked him to trust her.

That no matter what happened, she wouldn’t leave him. That she would keep her promise, so please wait.

She had said that.

But now I won’t even be able to keep the promise to wait.

‘No…’

Please, not like this…

Lee Yeon reached out her hand with difficulty.

But her body, already drained of strength, couldn’t move at all and only her fingertips twitched a few times.

Her vision gradually darkened.

Lee Yeon looked ahead desperately.

Suddenly, when she thought she saw a pale figure nearby.

‘Who…’

Finally Lee Yeon lost consciousness.

Familiar darkness swallowed her whole.

* * *

She had a strange dream.

In the dream, she had her eyes closed.

No, she wasn’t sure if her eyes were closed or if she simply couldn’t see.

All she knew was that this darkness was quite familiar to her.

At that moment.

A strange sound reached her ears.

It sounded like someone gasping as if their breath had stopped, or like an injured beast growling.

Eventually Lee Yeon realized.

This is the sound of crying.

Someone was crying while holding back their breath.

‘…?’

When she realized this, Lee Yeon felt a strange emotion. Her chest tightened and she too began to feel sorrowful.

Don’t cry.

When Lee Yeon unconsciously reached out her hand.

“…!”

Everything around her disappeared.

It was the end of the dream.

* * *

Lee Yeon opened her eyes.

What she saw was an unfamiliar ceiling.

Lee Yeon blinked blankly. It was strange. She had definitely collapsed in the mountains, yet what she saw was a ceiling.

Somehow, it was as if she was lying in a room…

‘A room?’

When she bolted upright.

“Ugh…”

Lee Yeon had no choice but to curl up her body again. It was because pain suddenly struck her.

Only then did Lee Yeon examine her own body.

The seizure had already subsided long ago. Instead, bandages were wrapped around various parts of her body, apparently from wounds sustained while rolling down the mountain slope.

Then, the person who treated these wounds was…

“Are you awake?”

At the same time, the door opened and someone entered.

Lee Yeon raised her head and opened her eyes wide.

Her first impression was ‘white’.

Literally, the woman before her eyes was entirely white. The woman maintained white attire from head to toe, with no colored parts except for her jet-black hair and pupils.

Moreover, while the woman’s appearance was young and beautiful, strangely she didn’t look young. Rather, she even exuded an atmosphere of experience.

When Lee Yeon unconsciously examined the woman.

“How is your body?”

“Pardon?”

Ignoring the flustered Lee Yeon, the woman approached and sat in the chair beside the bed.

“There are no broken bones or serious injuries, so I treated you lightly. However, you suffered bruises and will have difficulty moving for a while.”

“…”

“Is there something you want to ask?”

Only then did Lee Yeon open her mouth.

“Are you the one who saved me?”

While saying that, Lee Yeon was certain. That person was right.

She suddenly recalled a memory.

Right before losing consciousness, she had definitely seen it. A white figure nearby. At the time, she thought she was seeing an illusion, but it wasn’t an illusion.

It was exactly that person. As Lee Yeon guessed, the woman calmly nodded.

“Yes.”

Lee Yeon immediately bowed her head respectfully.

“Benefactor saved my life. I truly thank you. How can I repay this kindness…”

“Enough.”

The woman answered curtly.

“I just happened to discover someone collapsed while passing by. That you survived was due to your good fortune.”

“Still, without benefactor, I wouldn’t have been able to preserve my life. May I ask for benefactor’s honorable name? Someday, I will definitely repay this kindness.”

“…”

“…Benefactor?”

The woman finally said a word.

“Okseol Sannin.”

“…”

“Call me that.”

Lee Yeon secretly thought.

‘Does she not want to reveal her name?’

She had heard that among reclusive masters, there were occasionally such people. But since she had never heard such an alias before, Lee Yeon nodded with curiosity.

“Yes, Okseol Sannin.”

After that, Lee Yeon asked Okseol Sannin various other questions.

What she learned was several things.

First, this place was an inn in Gwiseon County.

Gwiseon County was a village southeast of Boluo County, and the distance wasn’t very far. She had worried about ending up in too remote a place, but that didn’t seem to be the case.

However, there was no time to feel relieved.

“…Three whole days have passed?”

It meant three whole days had passed since Lee Yeon collapsed.

Lee Yeon was greatly shocked.

Since she wasn’t ordinarily sick, she had prepared for being unable to open her eyes for a day or two, but she never expected three whole days to have passed.

And three days… was time beyond measure for what might have happened to Seo Dan.

Did she escape safely? Is she hiding somewhere safe? Or if not that…

‘No.’

She couldn’t make hasty judgments until seeing for herself.

Lee Yeon tried to comfort herself and raised her head again. Then she asked one last question.

“I’m sorry, but may I ask one more thing? By any chance… were there those who pursued me?”

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