Surviving as a Rival in a Martial Arts Novel

Chapter 1 – Saving the Fragile Sister (01)

Pale white skin that could appear almost sickly, yet with crimson lips and long hair that fell down to her waist like black silk.

Just looking at her was enough to trigger a protective instinct, so delicate and frail she seemed. She was my sister, Ok Seol-hwa.

“Is she supposed to resemble the female protagonist? Except she seems a bit more well-behaved.”

Even though she wasn’t the main character, when I saw the novel cover featuring the protagonist’s appearance, I thought, “Ah, so that’s how it is…” But in reality, she was a stunning beauty.

I wondered if it was like what they say about celebrities, that they might not look great in photos but leave you speechless when you see them in person. Or maybe it was because I had become one of the characters in the novel, my vision clouded by the story.

“Cough, cough… Excuse me, did I startle you?”

She had come out into the courtyard despite her weak lungs, and when I saw the snow piled softly on top of her head, it seemed she had been practicing martial arts since dawn.

As far as I could remember,

“It’s cold today. How about taking a break, sister?”

“Cough… I can’t do that. The master never rests, whether it’s hot or cold. How can a girl like me take a break?”

Her dedication had accumulated and her health was deteriorating.

“In that case, maybe I should take a break too?”

“Huh? But you’ve never taken a break before, sister.”

“You… Were you that kind of character?”

In the protagonist’s eyes, she was a genius who didn’t need to train and would become stronger just by playing around. But behind the scenes, she was someone who worked hard and put in effort?

So if I work hard too, I’ll become as strong as the original character. But I don’t want that.

“Still, taking a day off should be fine.”

Whether she understood my intentions or not, Seol-hwa clenched her sword with a troubled expression.

“I don’t need you to worry about the girl…”

“No… I just don’t want to do it.”

*Cough, cough…*

Although there was some consideration, witnessing the twin’s coughing throat, icy-cold hands, and shivering body with chills, it felt like a disaster waiting to happen if they weren’t ushered into the room right now.

“In these times, there might not be any medicine for pneumonia.”

No, it won’t do. I’ll have to do something about it.

“When the master is absent, it’s the duty of the disciple to stand in the master’s place. You know that, right?”

“Yes, the duty. But…”

“So today, take a break. Remember, rest is also part of training.”

“Is that so? The girl hasn’t received much teaching from the master…”

“That’s why we’ll substitute indoor training for today.”

With these words, the protagonist grabbed the cold hand of the twin.

Observing the trembling hand, the sweat dripping and freezing, and the body shivering with chills, it seemed urgent to bring them to the room as soon as possible.

Even after entering the room, having trained since dawn, the room’s stove was out. Using a flint, the protagonist lit the fire and fanned the flame with a fan, gradually warming up the place.

“If only there was an ondol, we could warm our bodies thoroughly.”

But in this world, there was no ondol. Crossing eastward to Korea… or a country inheriting that concept might have it, but for now, it wasn’t possible to set up an ondol.

“But Master, can’t we do a bit more? I haven’t fulfilled today’s training quota yet…”

*Sigh… Why are you so diligent like a fool?*

Though a sigh escaped first, to save this twin, persuasion had to be done quietly.

“Tomorrow, do twice as much. I’ll help, so don’t worry.”

“Is it not harmful to the execution…”

‘If you die, that would be more of a nuisance.’

Certainly, unlike Yeoncheong, even if she were to die, I might feel regret and sadness, but I don’t think my body would become one unable to use the martial arts of the Four Arts. Still, seeing a frail girl dying in front of my eyes, it was impossible to be callous and indifferent.

“Samma is melting for a moment.”

“If my body melts, can I go back to the training ground again…?”

“Tsk!”

When I opened my eyes, she was quietly melting her hands in the furnace. Thanks to that, it seemed like some time had passed.

‘Just the furnace is not enough.’

First, I placed a kettle on the furnace and prepared warm tea while boiling water. Then, I went outside for a moment, picked up stones rolling on the mountain, and washed them clean.

“Ugh! Damn it! It’s freaking cold!”

Putting my hands into the icy water and washing the stones, my hands trembled, and it felt like my fingers were freezing, but what could I do? It’s not a world with a hot water boiler.

‘If you’re going to possess me, at least do it on a body like Hanseo Bulchim! It’s still too early for a body like this! In a world with a low level, enduring the cold, shivering while trying to keep one person alive!’

With the cleaned stones, I wiped them on my clothes and entered Samma’s room again.

‘Hmm…? Is she asleep?’

Samma was crouched next to the furnace, sleeping. Apparently, training since dawn had made her body cold, as she shivered even though the fire was blazing next to her.

First, I spread a thick blanket on the floor, lifted Samma onto it, and then placed the stones I had struggled to wash into the furnace to heat them. After they were heated, I rolled them up in a cloth and placed them on Samma’s hands, thighs, feet, chest, stomach, and head.

“Phew… It should be okay now.”

Until a while ago, her lips were turning blue, and her body kept trembling, but after I placed the heated stones, the chills stopped, and she seemed to be sleeping comfortably.

“Mmm…”

Despite getting burns while washing the stones in cold water and putting my hand in the furnace, it was a small price to pay.

In order to focus on my studies and prevent myself from going outside even if something happens, I wrote a warning on the charcoal-prepared deathbed, placing it at the head.

[Today, indoor training! Try stepping outside, and I’ll give you a real scolding!]

The original owner of this body, Yeoncheong, was a skilled calligrapher, but due to the nature of the content, it was an atrocious handwriting, though recognizable.

“That should be enough.”

Relieved, I left Samae’s room and extended my fist while looking at the peacefully falling snow.

The fist naturally extended as if it wasn’t my own, the body swaying as if dancing with each swing of the hand.

Though the footsteps were those of an immature boy, effortlessly leaping 3m at a time, dancing over the accumulated snow in this unit.

Like the lyrics of a hook song heard in a dream, the martial arts sequence naturally came to mind. Following it, I breathed deeply and operated the accumulating warm inner energy in my lower abdomen.

Swish!

With each step, sweeping the snow like a giant fan, scattering it in all directions, dancing a whole routine. Finally, satisfied, I spread my hands and stopped.

“…Wow, am I a genius?”

Satisfied with myself, I smiled with contentment, receiving the pure snow that one couldn’t experience in the serious reality of air pollution.

“Achoo!”

And then, I caught a cold. Darn.

* * *

Ok Cheon-ung.

As the father of Ok Sul-hwa and the master of Yeoncheong-ha, he set out on a journey to find a remedy that could cure the illness of his daughter Seol-hwa and his weak disciple.

From Gamseok to Sacheon, beyond the place where he resided, he discovered a thousand-year-old ginseng, which appeared as a new item for sale. To purchase it, he kneeled before the powerful witch Dangbun-yeon of Sacheon-dangga, negotiating and obtaining it through concessions.

Born with a frail constitution, his daughter, who had a short lifespan, was the only remaining blood and everything for Cheon-ung.

Despite giving up all his wealth and living a struggling life to care for his daughter, the stroke he obtained unexpectedly had genius talent and profound skills. This stroke of luck also brought him a disciple.

My daughter, contrary to the belief that it’s challenging for her to surpass the age of eight, managed to maintain her lifeline, albeit with great difficulty, thanks to Cheon Woong’s relentless pursuit of Chugwang and Hyeol blood every time her strength weakened. Despite turning sixteen this year, she was barely holding on.

However, even with Cheon Woong’s efforts, I couldn’t shake off the anxiety as I watched my daughter gradually weaken. Sensing that my own lifeline was running out, I felt a sense of urgency. It was at this time that news of Seol Sam reached me. I bowed my head to my relatives, mobilized all my past connections, and begged like a dog to bring Seol Sam, who could restore my strength.

‘But why… why is it so unsettling?’

Perhaps Cheon Woong already knew.

That his daughter was already beyond saving.

The moment his lifeline ran out to the point where he couldn’t provide the pursuit of Chugwang and Hyeol blood, it meant the end of his daughter’s life, whom he had forcibly preserved. Even with Seol Sam, who could replenish his strength, he could only climb the mountain gasping for breath, as if he were running out of time.

Yet, what he couldn’t give up was being Cheon Woong’s father.

“Seol Hwa, please… just stay alive…!”

The mountain path, which was nothing when his inner energy was intact, was now so rugged and difficult. Cheon Woong, who had arrived at the foot of the mountain early in the morning, could only reach his dwelling late at night.

In the secluded and silent Simsan Yukgok, where even the sounds of mountain beasts were unheard, there was only one sound to be heard.

“Ugh… kuuh…”

The sobbing sound of a boy.

‘The sound comes from Seol Hwa’s dwelling… and this voice… Cheongha? Cheongha is sobbing like this…!’

Squeezing his aching legs and grasping the twisted lantern like a lightning bolt, Cheon Woong flew into Seol Hwa’s dwelling where the crying sound emanated.

Seeing the figure covered in a blanket from head to toe inside Seol Hwa’s dwelling, the strength in Cheon Woong’s legs gave way, and he collapsed, tears streaming down his face.

‘I’m too late! Forgive this useless father…’

“Seol Hwa! Seol Hwa! Your father has arrived!”

Inside Seol Hwa’s dwelling, the figure was completely covered by a blanket, and the moment Cheon Woong saw this scene, his legs lost strength, and he fell to the ground.

Degrurur…

It was when the precious medicinal herb, Seolsam, fell to the ground, wrapped in a silk cloth, rolling in his hands, and Cheonwoong was about to grab Seolhwa’s face and scream.

“Seolhwa!!”

“Father… No, Master…!”

“Yes, Seolhwa, your father has come… Hm?”

Cheonwoong’s head snapped back at the small voice coming from behind, not from the front.

There, Seolhwa, except for her slightly reddened cheeks from the cold outside, looked perfectly fine as she sat in her place and made a bewildered expression at her father. Cheonwoong looked at Seolhwa’s tear-streaked face and the bulging shape under the blanket.

He had tried to see if his daughter had become a soulless being and come to meet her father, but Seolhwa, right in front of his eyes with her senses intact, was alive, albeit a little weak.

“Uuuh…”

And the sound of a whimper that seemed like a sob was coming from Seolhwa’s place, inside the blanket.

Swoosh.

When he opened the blanket, he saw Cheongha’s face flushed and trembling.

“Why are you here?”

“Ueuuuaeuuuee…”

Cheonwoong sat on the ground, as if his strength had left him, as he watched Cheongha sobbing in a state of speechlessness.

“Haah…”

It wasn’t too late.

He had brought the medicine to save his daughter in time.

Originally, he was supposed to arrive too late and fail, handing over Seolsam to his disciple and using his last remaining energy to transfer Seolsam to Cheongha. After that, he was destined to die, unable to endure for long due to depleted inner energy.

But that fate had changed because of a single day of care.

‘Ugh… My head is killing me. Can someone please cover me with a blanket!!’

Instead, his disciple was suffering as if he were about to die.