The Terminally-Ill Side-Character Inside of a Martial Arts Novel

The carriage that departed from Liaoning moved leisurely at a speed less than half the average.

Although we set off in spring, when I opened my eyes again, the scenery had changed, and the thickness of the clothes I was wearing had also changed.

Passing through the mountains where the scent of spring flowers drifted and the late spring rain fell, we could reach Henan.

But the road to Guangxi was still halfway there, and during that journey, people had changed shifts.

The coachmen, maids, and the guards escorting me had all changed, but I still sat in the carriage.

Like luggage waiting for its owner, I sat alone in the carriage, endlessly waiting for my destination.

Eventually, spring passed, and when the summer atmosphere began stinging my nose, we reached Honam, and when the heavy summer rain began to drizzle, we finally arrived in Guangxi

It had been about six months. It was a slow and tedious journey.

After waiting twice as long as that journey, I finally reached the place where I would be buried.

“Please wait. The Elder Protector said he would come out in person.”

After a simple-dressed servant delivered the message, he disappeared.

A little while later, an old man with a thin beard came in and sat casually, then spoke.

“I’m the Protector, my name is Do Hyul.”

“I’m Moyong Sowol.”

The old man who called himself Do Hyul stroked his beard, then tilted his head after gazing at me intently.

“Are you a colorless person?”

Do Hyul asked the question I expected.

I shook my head slightly.

“My hair turned white due to illness when I was young.”

“Huh, the disease of white hair… You look exactly like an old man.”

To be precise, my hair was even whiter than old men’s. If there were no life left in it, it would be believable even if it grew from a corpse.

Do Hyul wriggled his lips, nodded his head, then glanced behind me.

“From now on, everything related to young lady Sowol will be handled by the main hall, so you all may leave.”

When I looked back, the guards and servants nodded discreetly before dismissing themselves.

The man who was in charge stepped forward and bowed his head respectfully.

“Elder Moyong Danli instructed me to obtain documentation confirming young lady Sowol’s completed escort. However…”

“I will handle giving those instructions myself.”

“Understood.”

As Do Hyul spoke again, the captain dismissed all the guards and servants, bid me farewell, and turned to leave.

Now alone in the room with Do Hyul, I turned back to him as he took a deep breath and rose calmly from his seat.

“First, I’ll guide you to your residence.”

I followed quietly behind him.

I could feel people’s sidelong glances at me along the way.

Even here, I seemed to be just a rare animal, nothing more or less.

I walked with my head down, not knowing what treatment awaited me here or what future.

But it was an expiring fate with only six months left anyway. I had nothing to fear.

“We’re here.”

He opened the door, and I followed him into the room. But suddenly stiffening as if surprised, he quickly bent down on one knee and bowed his head.

Surprised by this, I turned to look, and heard a voice from the front.

“You’re late, Do Hyul.”

Lifting my head at that piercing voice, I saw a neatly dressed man resembling a scholar enter my view.

Even at a glance, he was quite handsome. Rather than being overdressed, his simple grooming gave off a gentle feeling.

“I didn’t know you were here. I apologize, Young Cult Leader!”

Young Cult Leader?

My mind flashed back to the beginning of the novel where Hyuk Dojin met Moyong Sowol.

The neatly dressed man rose slowly from where he was leaning. His white skin peeked through his slightly open clothes, but he seemed unconcerned as he walked over.

Looking at me, he smiled slightly, his teeth as white as his appearance.

Passing by Do Hyul, he approached me. Suddenly remembering the first words the Young Cult Leader spoke when meeting Moyong Sowol in the novel, I spoke first as his mouth opened slowly.

[Like a snow lady.]

“Like a snow lady…”

His mouth stopped mid-opening, and he stared at me, his gaze hardening. I smiled calmly back at him.

“…That’s what you were going to say, right?”

It was indeed the first thing he said upon meeting her in the novel.

He stood still like a rooted tree, looking at me, then gently lifted the corners of his mouth.

He was a very calm and quiet man, hardly looking like the ruthless leader of the infamous Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.

“I am Young Cult Leader Hyuk Dojin.”

I responded calmly to his introduction.

“I am Moyong Sowol.”

His name was already familiar to me, both from hearing it before and encountering it in the novel.

After Moyong Sowol’s death, Moyong Do who had left the clan targeted the Demon Cult first in his wrath.

However, the newly growing Moyong Do couldn’t surpass the Cult’s high walls. When the ailing Cult Leader Hyuk Muhyul stepped down due to a long-term illness, Hyuk Dojin took over.

In the meantime, Moyong Do settled his dispute with the clan but pressured the Cult again, leading to the confrontation between Moyong Do and Hyuk Dojin.

In other words, my death as Moyong Sowol was the trigger for the two men pointing swords at each other.

“Is there something on my face?”

The smiling man’s pupils seemed soaked with emotion.

As I shook my head lightly, Hyuk Dojin withdrew his gaze from staring at me and turned it to Do Hyul.

“Get up, Do Hyul. How long were you planning to stay bowed?”

At his words, Do Hyul rose and stepped aside. 

As he moved away, Hyuk Dojin stepped back, hands clasped behind his back, and sat slanted at the table.

Do Hyul approached him a step, then spoke.

“But Young Cult Leader, wasn’t there an important matter in the outer palace today?”

“There was. But I canceled it.”

As Hyuk Dojin spoke, his eyes flickered between me and Do Hyul before refocusing on Do Hyul again.

“There is someone who invested half a year’s journey from Liaoning to meet me, so shouldn’t I show respect as well?”

“But…”

“Anyway, Do Hyul.”

Hyuk Dojin interrupted Do Hyul, who made a perplexed expression.

He fixed his eyes on Do Hyul, whose shoulders stiffened like a mouse in front of an eagle.

“I distinctly told you. She is to be my bride, so guide her to the inner palace, not the outer palace.”

Do Hyul flinched at his words.

“Are you ignoring what I said?”

“That’s not possible, I would not dare…”

“Then is Do Hyul getting senile, forgetting my instructions?”

“That’s…”

“Regardless, forgetting my entrustment is unforgivable.”

Hyuk Dojin snapped his fingers.

As he sat with his arms crossed, he tapped his forearm rhythmically. His brows rose slightly.

For no reason, I was stuck between the two, unable to intervene from my unstable position, so I could only watch quietly.

That’s why, when I was watching the situation and quietly keeping my mouth shut, Hyuk Dojin spoke softly.

“We’ll discuss this later. For now, guide young lady Sowol to her room, and we’ll address it afterward.”

“…Understood.”

Do Hyul looked at him gloomily.

Hyuk Dojin rose and approached me, clicking his tongue as he glanced around the room.

“While not too bad, it’s a bit small and shabby for the young lady. I’ll guide you to the inner palace.”

To me, it didn’t seem shabby at all – it was even bigger and more luxurious than my clan’s rooms.

But my thoughts didn’t matter here.

I was a hostage brought under the pretext of a strategic marriage, with Hyuk Dojin holding that authority.

As I watched him, Hyuk Dojin raised his head and nodded lightly. 

“Let’s go. I’ll guide you.”

He would guide me personally? I was surprised at his words.

Hyuk Dojin opened the closed door and turned his gaze towards me.

Hyuk Dojin opened the door and turned his gaze to urge me out quickly, gently guiding past the scrutinizing Do Hyul under his arm.

Stepping outside, Hyuk Dojin quietly took the lead.

Watching his back as he led the way, I tilted my head.

Hyuk Dojin and Moyong Sowol.

The relationship between the two was not deeply explored in the original work.

Their interactions were brief and sporadic throughout the novel, so there was very little content related to Hyuk Dojin and Moyong Sowol.

In the novel, Hyuk Dojin was cold and showed little interest in Moyong Sowol. It was not a marriage he desired, and a woman with white hair could not be interesting to him.

And Moyong Sowol was not a woman begging someone to recognize her, love her.

So the relationship between the two was inferior to others.

But the Hyuk Dojin I met in person was more considerate and courteous than I thought.

He was a tidy man who couldn’t be called the ruthless leader of the heretical sect.

“There isn’t much luggage, I heard.”

I opened my mouth as the voice approached from the front.

“It’s just clothes to change into.”

“Is there nothing else you brought separately? Things that were carefully kept or necessities?”

“There’s nothing.”

I shook my head firmly.

As I responded, Hyuk Dojin turned his head slantedly, staring at me. He raised his gaze towards me.

“You said there is nothing?”

“Yes. There is nothing.”

Precious items or necessities. Such things were the rights of those who had the most important things in life.

I couldn’t have the most important thing, so I couldn’t attach meaning to anything else.

“Jewelry, accessories, or gifts from your parents for marriage…”

“I don’t have any of those.”

I replied calmly, smiling dryly.

“I only brought myself.”

“…”

“Are you disappointed?”