Chapter 68 – K – Military Look (2)

The tree was huge and straight and ancient. Amongst its thick leaves, someone stood on a branch. Even with the fresh wind blowing across him, he didn’t lose focus. His eyes remained closed in meditation. He had an angular face and a muscular physique: it was Jeok Seong, the second member of the command unit.

When the wind settled, he opened his eyes. His snake-like, disproportionately small eyes held a trace of sadness. He lightly stepped from branch to branch until he was on the ground.

“When did you arrive?”

“Well, just now.” Seol-Hwi kept his answer brief because he didn’t know what to say. He may have built up Jeok Seong’s favorability, but this was the first time they’d been alone.

“Amazing. I didn’t even feel your steps.”

Seol-Hwi had thought that Jeok Seong would be the hardest to get close to, given that he was the oldest member, but his kind face and friendly speech showed Seol-Hwi that he had nothing to worry about.

“If it isn’t too rude, I want to ask you something,” Jeok Seong requested.

Seol-Hwi smiled and nodded. “What is it?”

“I heard that you weren’t this strong in the past… How did you get so strong?”

“Well…” Seol-Hwi thought about it. He died, and then some letters appeared in front of his eyes, and when he followed the words, he got stronger—How was he supposed to explain that? “I just… lived my life and things happened.”

Jeok Seong took Seol-Hwi’s vague answer more seriously than he expected.

“I understand; it isn’t something you can speak casually about. I overstepped.”

“…Um?”

“Well then, please take a look around. Excuse me.” Jeok Seong awkwardly turned around.

Seol-Hwi belatedly realized his mistake and called out to him.

▶ It was desperation.

▷ It was hard work and guts.

▷ Optimism?

▷ I was just lucky.

For the first time ever, Seol-Hwi felt comfortable about the options. All the choices before were a matter of life and death. These ones, however, were in a low-pressure situation, and the choices weren’t too odd—there wasn’t even a timer.

So Seol-Hwi took a more methodical approach. This choice would help strengthen his favorability with Jeok Seong.

Well, for now, Seol-Hwi’s thoughtful gaze landed on the first option. This…?

Jeok Seong turned around.

“Desperate?”

Seol-Hwi hesitated on what to say next.

“Well, for time.” His mind raced, trying to predict Jeok Seong’s next question. “I’ve been thinking about it since the moment I joined the sect. I looked around and wondered if there was anything that could make me stronger. That kind of desperation.

“We spend our lives dancing on the palms of our superiors. Not just our life, either—colleagues, work—the orders I’m given could lead to the loss of many lives.”

Seol-Hwi watched Jeok Seong’s eyes, hoping that this was the answer he wanted. Jeok Seong nodded his head, but then tilted it curiously at the end.

“Isn’t that what everyone in our sect thinks?” He sounded unoptimistic.

▶ It was desperation.

▷ It was hard work and guts.

▷ Optimism?

▷ I was just lucky.

Seol-Hwi chose the second option this time. He was confident it would work.

“Hard work and… guts?”

“It’s like saying the man waits for heaven.” Meaning, after the person has done what they were supposed to do, they await heaven to take them. It sounded like a pleasant platitude, but it was more pragmatic than it seemed.

“If we only look for the final result, all we see is the distance it takes to get there. So I concentrate on the process, one step at a time. I learn even the smallest steps—eventually, they pile up into a mountain.

This time, Jeok Seong agreed wholeheartedly.

“So that’s what you mean by hard work. What about ‘guts’?”

“Well, guts to not die. That’s what I thought.”

“…Huh?” Jeok Seong was puzzled.

“It might sound responsible,” Seol-Hwi awkwardly admitted, “but you never know how it ends, right? Just because we always work hard doesn’t mean we’ll get good results. So I just do what I can do.”

“Hah…” Jeok Seong grinned. “I used to think the same, too. ‘If you die, you die.’ It doesn’t help anyone, though.”

Another pessimistic answer from Jeok Seong.

▶ It was desperation.

▷ It was hard work and guts.

▷ Optimism?

▷ I was just lucky.

The third choice, then.

“You have selected “Optimism?”>

Jeok Seong frowned slightly. Seol-Hwi nodded sagely.

“Actually, the essence of what I’m trying to say is: no matter how well prepared you are, what’s the point if you don’t have the attitude to seize the chances when they come?”

“Chances…”

“Right. Chances. When there are chances, there’s time. Most chances are the ones we only realize after they’re gone. Now, or in the future. Despite knowing we’re in a crisis, we fail to see the chance—so we need to change our outlook.”

“You’re saying a crisis can be a chance?”

“Most of them slip by when we’re in the middle of a crisis. That’s what I’m aiming for. So don’t lose heart; when in a crisis, move forward. That’s a chance to really grow. Keep that in mind and accept the situation.” Seol-Hwi was convinced that this was right, like the way people would leave their weaknesses exposed after using a big technique. Even if that wasn’t it, Seol-Hwi just had a feeling this was it.

“I understand, but… wouldn’t it be a bit much to get stronger just from that? Also, isn’t there a time when we might not even realize we’re in a crisis?”

“True, but…” Seol-Hwi scratched his head.

▶ It was desperation.

▷ It was hard work and guts.

▷ Optimism?

▷ I was just lucky.

Not the fourth one. It was the only one left, but Seol-Hwi had a feeling that “luck” wasn’t going to cut it. It would sound insincere and was too similar to what he’d said at the beginning.

Is there no right answer then?

He stared at the question for a while. None of the choices had been meaningless so far, and this conversation would obviously influence his favorability, so he couldn’t take it lightly.

So what’s the answer? The last three choices had yielded pessimistic responses. It made Seol-Hwi worried.

Maybe it’s because my follow-up answers were good. Jeok Seong was responsive to them, at least. Then it must be the three which failed…

Seol-Hwi looked at his choices again. All of them were correct, but one of them was more correct than the others. There had to be a clue somewhere.

▶ It was desperation.

▷ It was hard work and guts.

▷ Optimism?

Which of these three would convince Jeok Seong? The choice itself wasn’t important; the words he would say afterward were.

“You were desperate?” Jeok Seong turned around again.

Seol-Hwi sighed and looked at him, pausing to gather his thoughts for a moment.

“Now that we’re talking… Where are you from?”

“My hometown… I don’t really remember.” Jeok Seong looked puzzled, but Seol-Hwi kept pushing.

“Honestly, I can’t remember either. It’s been too long, and it isn’t a past I want to remember, either. But the memories of that time are still in my mind—no, I vividly remember the screaming and blood of animals.”

Jeok Seong gave him a puzzled but curious look.

“If you slaughter a cow or pig, you hear it scream. Each animal sounds different, but you can still feel their emotions. No matter how much I heard it, strangely, I never got used to it.”

Seol-Hwi called on his own story to convince Jeok Seong. His motivation for becoming strong was born from the desires of his childhood.

“Besides, looking at the gore was even more difficult. Butchers always had that smell on him. The smell of blood was one thing, but worse—”

“The smell of feces.”

Seol-Hwi was shocked.

“You, too…?”

“Right. I was the same.”

They looked at each other, and something in Jeok Seong’s eyes changed. It seemed like he was looking for something—or maybe he felt Seol-Hwi’s pain. The pungent smell of blood stinging your nose, the rotten smell of flesh and dung. It could be either.

“When I was young, I used to be very hungry… Did you know that sometimes meat would be stored in the back of the shop?”

“In the winter, yeah.”

“It was good back then. The frozen meat didn’t cut easily, so I hacked at it with an ax…”

“Right, and then the pieces would fly off, and you’d eat the melted meat. Hahaha.”

“I remember, yeah. Still, people would say that butchers are amazing. Everyone had to work, but butchers would never starver. Heh.” Jeok Seong smiled and Seol-Hwi smiled along. Even if they were warriors, bound to kill and die, childhood memories were always good, no matter how many people walked this wretched path.

“I was desperate. I still feel that.” Seol-Hwi silently relived his past. The nostalgia—the terrible memories, too. He didn’t want to bring up all the incidents he’d been through.

After a moment, Jeok Seong spoke up. “But you were under the Supreme Pavilion Lord, weren’t you? Why didn’t you learn their martial arts? I heard rumors that you wandered around, unaffiliated, for some time…”

“I failed the test to be recognized as a warrior.”

“…Huh?!” Jeok Seong doubted his ears. How could someone this strong be rejected? How did he get this strong, then? No, how did he go from loser to Hidden Truth?

“Shocking, right? Most of the warriors who aren’t bound to the sect live like wanderers. I had to take the risk. I used to search the Supreme Pavilion Lord’s office.”

“His office?” That was a death wish—no, it would be worse than death. Jeok Seong couldn’t even imagine searching his superior’s office. That was the kind of place the sect is; unlike the rest of the world, might made right. That was an absolute rule.

“We all die eventually, don’t we? Fortunately, I found his weakness and then met the Earth Demon.”

“…Amazing.” Jeok Seong was blown away to discover the risks Seol-Hwi had taken to come this far. It really was an act of desperation.

“In the end, your desperation was basically madness.”

“Well, hahaha.”

Both men grinned. Seol-Hwi really had done something crazy, and it had gotten him this far.

<Vice-Captain’s Favorability>

2nd Member, Jeok Seong: 100100(↑20) (Trusting)