The shocked audience erupted into whispers. The Earth Demon - the organizer of this competition, and the patron of all the people here - was on stage.
“You did well. It was a great fight.”
The Earth Demon looked at Seol-Hwi, and smiled.
He knew that Seol-Hwi was skilled, but to be strong enough to take down one of the Seven Messengers? How can such dazzling growth be possible in the span of less than 3 years?
It was truly a pleasant surprise.
Seol-Hwi quickly knelt down on one knee, and bowed his head.
The fight was over. Now, no one could object.
Seol-Hwi, the captain of a command unit, had defeated a member of the Seven Messengers.
The Earth Demon’s calm expression changed slightly.
“That last martial arts… Where did you learn it from?”
The reason the Earth Demon was on stage was to ask him this. Seol-Hwi’s power over ice energy comes from him being the disciple of Cheon Miryo, but the fire energy was unexpected.
It wasn’t on the level of a beginner either, but an expert.
Following an ice attack, he even used fire and explosions. Wouldn’t anyone consider that strange?
“I didn’t get it from someone. Rather, that technique…”
Seol-Hwi took a short breath, and then examined the other person for his reaction.
“… Was from the library.”
He knew that such a day would come, although he didn’t think that it would be today.
“… From the library? Hmm…”
The Earth Demon thought for a moment, and then tilted his head.
“Yes, I was told that the library held books that had information about flame techniques. However, I saw what you did. And what you did was much more advanced than any book in the library.”
“The power of simple techniques can be increased depending on how they are used. Also, both ice energy and fire energy are actually rather similar when you wield them.”
“It’s about how energy works. Their nature is surely opposite to each other, but the way they are combined and used in martial arts is the same.”
Seol-Hwi chose his words carefully.
In his mind, he was going through the manuals of White Light Demonic Martial Arts, and Flame Aggregating Demonic Martial Arts.
He found similarities about their training methods, and so he said that they coincided.
But the Earth Demon didn’t seem like he would accept this so easily.
“From what I know though, the two attributes are bound to be in conflict with each other. When the energy of coexistence rises, fire energy moves and ice energy disappears. Because the method to cultivate them is so different, I am asking you how you managed to overcome that.”
A follow up question, which was now more specific.
Still, Seol-Hwi wasn’t too surprised.
Ever since he learned the Flame Aggregating Demonic Martial Arts, he knew that such questions would come to him.
While Seol-Hwi was taking his time, the simulation was already running.
[My Master, after ascending to the supreme state through ice energy, soon reached a higher limit. She said that the wall she came across was taller and stronger than any she had ever experienced, and she didn’t dare to think of crossing it. She continued by saying, ‘I have come too far to change, but Seol-Hwi, you have not hardened your foundation yet. Therefore, do not neglect your training, and do not concentrate on ice energy alone. Compare the two attributes of ice and fire, and find harmony within it. Then, you will see a wider world than I did.]
Seol-Hwi read the answer that the simulation provided.
The Earth Demon’s gaze, which was full of suspicion, turned into one of interest and surprise.
“It is surprising, very surprising. Indeed, it is a perspective only she could have. We cannot fathom the view a phoenix has from the ground…”
The Earth Demon mumbled, as if he had remembered something, and was lost in his thoughts.
In a way, his reaction was natural.
Even if Seol-Hwi’s words didn’t make sense to him, what could he do if Cheon Miryo said so?
The Earth Demon lowered his gaze, and his face returned to the same gentle and bright expression from before.
“Do you have any desire to enter the Seven Messengers?”
“The Seven Messengers, as one of my Core Warriors. I think you can do it.”
Having won the battle against Seo Mugwi, Seol-Hwi could increase his position in the Sect.
However, Seol-Hwi quietly refused.
“I apologize, but I don’t think I’m good enough yet.”
Although he did manage to win the fight this time, his actual skills weren’t good enough to join the Seven Messengers. Anything he had now was due to the system.
If he became a Core Warrior among the Seven Messengers of the Earth Demon, Seol-Hwi would only feel lacking.
He had many things to train in the future, and his current position of captain was a much better choice to have time for that.
“Time after time, you manage to surprise me. Even after being invited into the Seven Messengers, you refuse without a hint of hesitation. What is the reason?”
Seol-Hwi bowed his head without saying a word. No matter what was said, it would only hurt the Earth Demon, who had personally come here to recommend Seol-Hwi to the Seven Messengers.
So it was better to keep his head down quietly.
“Is it because of your subordinates?”
The Earth Demon suddenly asked him something strange.
While Seol-Hwi was thinking about how to answer, the Earth Demon glanced at Seol-Hwi’s team, and nodded.
“It is a nice sight to see. After all, I did hear that you took good care of them, and taught them like they were your disciples. Are you worried about what will happen to them if you join the Seven Messengers?”
“Good. Then do not take my offer. Guard me with your men instead. I was thinking about increasing the number of people around me, so this works out well. If I tell you this, will you think about it?”
Seol-Hwi doubted his eyes when he saw this.
In the first place, the reason why he used fire and ice martial arts in the battle was for this.
Seol-Hwi thought that if he managed to outperform the Seven Messengers, another offer would be made to him.
And in this arena, there weren’t just the Seven Messengers, but also the Elders and Fourth Army Squad watching as well.
The Earth Demon is someone who is thirsty for talent. And if Seol-Hwi displayed such great skills here, of course he would covet them.
A bodyguard was the second path the Earth Demon suggested.
Seol-Hwi remembered the ‘three lives presented by the Earth Demon’.
If he took the second path, he would have ended up a bodyguard by the end of it. It was a mission to protect the Earth Demon, and it wasn’t known how many people there were, or what kind of missions were given other than being a simple bodyguard.
“Why are you not answering?”
Seol-Hwi was silent for some time, so the Earth Demon asked him again.
Since there was no choice in between accepting and rejecting, Seol-Hwi thought it would be possible to have a conversation.
“I… can I think about it a bit more?”
He couldn’t make a decision yet.
It wasn’t a bad thing to be with his subordinates, but it was also difficult to decide what he’ll do when he’s given that position.
More than anything, what will happen to the current story he’s in?
“I see. This proposal may have been shocking to you. I was too hasty. Right, take a few days. And decide after that what you will do.”
The Earth Demon turned around, and at the same time, Seol-Hwi’s surroundings became brighter.
When it got darker, and then his vision brightened again, Seol-Hwi found himself in a building.
It was much more luxurious and spacious than his usual residence, and there was a window in his room overlooking a garden outside.
His wounds caused by the fight with Seo Mugwi made him stay here. Seol-Hwi wasn’t sure if the wounds were actually that serious, or if they would be fatal if he had left them alone.
The flow of time accelerated in front of his eyes, and several notifications appeared one after the other.
[Jeok Song, Yorim, and Seo Ryeong] “We will devote ourselves to training.” [Imugi] “Master! If there are any martial arts that you want to pass on to me, you can do it at any time. I will wait. Oh, and I will put the pill to good use.”
Seol-Hwi’s eyes brightened at their honest reactions.
Evening arrived, and then later that night, an option came to change his location.
“I can change my task…”
Seol-Hwi didn’t sit down even after returning to his original room. He couldn’t think about anything besides the Earth Demon’s offer.
‘Become the Earth Demon’s Bodyguard’.
It was definitely something which could change his life. And it was clear that the Earth Demon trusted him a lot more now, and his treatment in the Sect would be much better.
However, the reason he didn’t change his positon…
That guy. You must have traveled this road before me.
It was because of the attitude that the AI had.
The AI definitely said that before the Main Story, Seol-Hwi should familiarize himself with Supreme Wind God, and Sura Exploding Flame Arts.
And since he mastered them, standing out to the Earth Demon was expected.
Perhaps the AI didn’t know that the Earth Demon invited Seol-Hwi to be his bodyguard.
Whichever path Seol-Hwi takes, it isn’t his title which mattered. In the past, the AI never criticized his decisions, until the mission at Mount Hua’s hideout.
Considering the nature of the AI, it was odd.
In his opinion, the AI knew a lot.
It spoke things which made no sense, and spoke like it knew the path taken at crossroads, and also the future Seol-Hwi didn’t choose.
Was it because the present situation was unexpected?
“No. With the confidence he had, it wouldn’t be unusual. I have to find the basis for that conviction.”
Seol-Hwi looked out the window.
A reason to go the same way, knowing that there is another way.
It was probably not because of the expected reason that the positions he was offered by the Earth Demon would be difficult. The latest_epɪ_sodes are on_the noveⅼfire.net
Rather, be it the Seven Messengers or a Bodyguard, what he lacked would have to be learnt again.
More fundamental than that, he needed a better reason now than before.
At that moment, a sudden thought crossed his mind. It was an idea, based on an unexpected assumption.
“If Ma Taryong becomes one of my subordinates, it’s possible!”
It had to be something like that. If there is such a thing for the ‘confidence’ the AI had.