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

I leaned back in my seat and took the water Hyuk Dojin handed me. My heart was still beating rapidly, not yet cooled down from the lingering excitement.

I didn’t hold back against Beon Yang, to the extent that I wondered if I had ever expressed my emotions so violently before. With each swing of my sword, it felt like every muscle in my body was tearing, but even that faded into euphoria.

The feeling of being able to do something intensely still made me excited. I stared blankly at the rippling water before slowly bringing it to my mouth.

What I thought was clearly water entered my mouth and then disappeared smoothly like a cold stone. It was that mineral water Hyuk Dojin used to give me occasionally before.

“This isn’t ordinary mineral water, is it?”

Hyuk Dojin smiled and shrugged his shoulders. As soon as it went down my throat, the burning thirst disappeared and I felt the energy in my meridians that had hit bottom gradually filling up again. It was a sensation I couldn’t feel before.

“It’s a diluted form of Sky Blue Stone Oil. It’s an elixir I happened to bring from a cave in the mountain Martial Uncle often visits… It’s not very useful to people of the Demon Cult, so it was just kept in storage.”

Sky Blue Stone Oil? Isn’t that the one where a single drop can revive a dying person and increase their internal energy by more than a decade?

I heard it’s extremely precious, so does that mean what I’ve been drinking all this time was that elixir?

Suddenly, I remembered that I felt somewhat better the day after drinking the water Hyuk Dojin gave me.

“Excessive absorption is worse than none, so I diluted only a tiny amount.”

He had always been kind and devoted to me from the beginning. I felt sorry for not knowing until now that he had been giving me such a precious thing from the start. Feeling the coolness lingering in my mouth, I nodded.

“Thank you.”

“It’s nothing.”

He brought a chair next to me and sat down, looking at the empty martial arts arena. I quietly rested my head on his shoulder.

As usual, Hyuk Dojin lowered his body slightly to make it more comfortable for me to lean on. The blowing wind was cool.

The scenery around flowed slowly, enough to make me forget that I had been drenched in sweat all over my body just moments ago. I quietly closed my tired eyes while scanning the busy people moving around.

* * *

After some time passed, the bustling martial arts arena was soon covered with red cloth.

The people who attended the Crimson Lotus Festival were scheduled to gather together after the matches ended, praising their efforts and personally pouring drinks for them.

After changing out of my ruined clothes and neatly arranging my hair, I stood in front of the martial arts arena.

Hyuk Dojin had already disappeared, leaving with a smile and saying ‘I’ll be waiting.’

One by one, people climbed onto the martial arts arena covered with red cloth.

The referee called out names and encouraged applause as each person came up. The people who had filled the seats for the finale of this long-awaited festival were still in their places.

“This is the person who won second place in this Crimson Lotus Festival. Although she was an unknown martial artist of the Demon Cult without any clan, she made it to the final match and took second place.”

The referee turned around and stretched out his hand widely.

“It’s Beon Yang!”

Thunderous cheers erupted for the second-place winner. But no one appeared to match those cheers and introduction. Beon Yang, who should have appeared, didn’t show herself, and instead someone else came up and quietly whispered something to the referee.

The referee listened to what he was saying with a troubled face and then hurriedly opened his mouth.

“Uh… So the second-place winner was badly injured in the last match and is currently receiving treatment. Therefore, please understand that she cannot be present here.”

The murmur among the people grew louder. She had clearly walked down perfectly fine, so why wasn’t she showing herself?

“Is she not coming up because she’s upset about losing?! How cowardly!”

“There’s a limit to disrespecting the Demon Cult! If you fought until the end, decorating that end is also the true path of demonic martial arts!”

“Revoke her second-place qualification!!”

The referee hurriedly opened his mouth amidst the pouring criticism.

“Now, now! Then, lastly! This is the person who indiscriminately attacked and defeated that second-place winner Beon Yang! She is the owner of the red throne that has been empty until now, and at the same time, as the Young Madam of the Demon Cult, she has fully demonstrated her skills!”

He stretched out his hand towards me.

“Please rise from your seat!”

With those words as the start, I slowly lifted my feet and stepped onto the stairs leading up to the martial arts arena. The sunlight shone from my feet to my head. When the figures of the people came fully into view, the referee’s mouth opened.

“Everyone, pay your respects to the winner and Young Madam!”

As soon as he finished speaking, he bent his knee in a disciplined manner and bowed his head. It wasn’t accompanied by shouts like before.

But the sight of people bending their knees in that silence was even more majestic and overwhelming.

The path of demonic martial arts.

I had never thought that standing at its pinnacle would be my future, yet it was only now that I truly felt that future had arrived before my eyes.

I looked around briefly and headed towards the center of the martial arts arena where I was expected. At the end, Hyuk Dojin was standing alone, smiling and facing me.

When I slowly walked and stood in front of him, people finally stood up and sat in their seats.

Hyuk Dojin was looking at me with meaningful eyes. Just as I thought I heard the referee’s voice, a voice transmission pierced into my mind.

[You look like you’re enjoying yourself.]

I flinched at Hyuk Dojin’s voice and narrowed my eyes. He chuckled and sent another voice transmission.

[You still don’t know how to use voice transmission…]

[I learned it from Eun Do.]

[…]

Hyuk Dojin’s eyes widened in surprise at my voice transmission, then he let out a small laugh. A thin smile hung on his lips.

[Did you think I wouldn’t know?]

[When taught one thing, you learn two or three. I understand now why everyone wants to teach you something.]

He shrugged his shoulders lightly, then glanced at the referee who kept talking, and said softly.

[At first you looked awkward being the center of attention, but now you look very comfortable. How does it feel? To directly face your position with your own eyes.]

I rolled my eyes to meet the people looking at me. They had expressions that seemed complex yet also joyful.

They were confused between dissatisfaction about whether it was okay for someone from the Righteous Sect to sit above their heads, and the martial prowess I had shown.

Probably, these people’s thoughts won’t easily disappear even as time passes.

The Heavenly Demon Divine Cult had endured for 600 years. Their roots couldn’t be overturned overnight.

However, the atmosphere of indiscriminately discriminating against me and rejecting me as a person from the Righteous Sect had disappeared.

[It’s fine.]

That alone was enough. I smiled and looked at Hyuk Dojin.

[Becoming the sky of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult too.]

Hyuk Dojin raised his hand and poured drinks into the cups placed in front of each person who participated in the Crimson Lotus Festival.

The number of people politely receiving the drink Hyuk Dojin poured increased, and soon Hyuk Dojin’s hand stopped in front of me. I stared at him intently, then I also raised my cup and quietly received his drink.

The clear drink that flowed in small trickles seemed to fall very slowly.

[There will be many more things ahead. You’ll always feel like preparation is lacking and time is overflowing yet insufficient. There will be times when the wall in front feels too high to overcome.]

He handed me the bottle. I lowered my cup and took the bottle he handed me, quietly pouring it into Hyuk Dojin’s cup.

[At those times, think of today. It’s no coincidence that Sowol, who was in pain and had difficulty even walking, has now defeated these formidable martial artists standing beside you and risen to this place.]

He raised his cup high. I and the women also raised our cups high. Hyuk Dojin looked around at them, then nodded and grinned.

[You can smile. Because Sowol has earned that right.]

I also smiled back at his smile and tilted my cup. A total of 8 cups were emptied. The not-so-strong drink flowed down my throat. I smiled at the pleasant coolness and lowered my cup. Empty cups settled on the table one by one.

Hyuk Dojin looked at my empty cup, then turned his head to the side and made a subtle expression.

I turned my head following his gaze. There stood Geumnak Ju, trembling without having emptied her cup.

Hyuk Dojin spoke softly towards her.

“If you’re not feeling well and can’t drink, put it down…”

“Keo, keoeoek!”

But his words didn’t continue to the end. Geumnak Ju dropped the cup she was holding.

Clang!

The broken cup spilled alcohol, soaking the cloth. Geumnak Ju clutched her neck and exhaled rough breaths.

“Keo, keoeoek! Ah… Aah…!!”

Realizing the situation was not normal, Hyuk Dojin immediately kicked away from the table and examined Geumnak Ju’s condition.

Her face and lips turning blue. Blood tears flowed from her eyes where capillaries had burst, and foam mixed with blood came out of her mouth.

Hyuk Dojin hurriedly took her pulse.

“Doctor!!”

At his action, I also called for the doctor watching the situation from below the martial arts arena. The doctor who had been standing stunned rushed over and took Geumnak Ju’s other hand to check her pulse, then pressed firmly on her stomach.

Then she started vomiting rough blood even more violently. Blood bursting from her mouth, eyes, and nose covered the red cloth.

As if it had originally been that color, there was no change even though the red cloth was stained with blood. Geumnak Ju writhed in agony, scratching at her neck.

In the midst of this, I noticed Hyuk Dojin’s pale face.

Why is Hyuk Dojin…?

“It seems to be poison.”

“…Vein-Bursting Powder.”

Hyuk Dojin muttered lowly, then immediately gritted his teeth and pressed several acupoints on Geumnak Ju’s body.

Geumnak Ju, who had been struggling in pain, quietly spewed only blood from her mouth as her meridians were blocked. Her eyes slowly rolled towards me. Her blood-stained eyes contained me.

“W…hy.”

She uttered the word shortly, then slowly raised her hand but soon dropped it, unable to sustain even that strength. Her body convulsed a few times and finally quietly breathed her last.

“…”

The surroundings instantly fell silent at that horrific sight.

Suddenly, I remembered that when receiving the cups, they had shifted one by one due to Beon Yang’s empty seat. And Geumnak Ju was next to me. The moment that thought occurred to me, a chill ran down my spine.

‘It wasn’t meant for Geumnak Ju…?’

Hyuk Dojin turned his head to look at me.

I bit my lip hard.

This was a plan to poison me.