What is an appropriate way to describe the atmosphere when individuals with similar temperament issues gather and drink plum extract?
The atmosphere gets taken over by strong awkwardness and loneliness, and, in the end, we all donât have much in common other than fighting and martial arts.
But I am in a different mood.
Because every time I look at them, I think of these peopleâs previous lives.
Pervert Demon was a member of the Demonic Sect as one of their top warriors.
Sword Demon is likely experiencing a feeling of unease, as if he is carefully balancing along the boundary that separates his humanity and his demonic nature, both in the past and present.
Yukhap, previously known as Ghost Demon, was a man hated by any.
Of course, me too.
In my previous life, I was a Crazy Demon hated by these three. Of course, the fact that the orthodox, unorthodox, and the Demonic Sect all hated me made my situation a little different.
Anyway, it is almost a miracle that these people gathered and now are in one place. Because we were all on the infamous side of KanghoâŠ
We can go to an ordinary inn and have fun. I have yet to see any members of the Murim Alliance act uneasy in our presence.
And, of course, I try to make it happen.
I suggest drinking to Sword Demon who never seems to suggest drinking himself.
âSenior, it has been a while, so let us drink. Stop with the plum extract. Drinking that will make me angry now.â
Sword Demon replies in a calm tone,
âThere is no alcohol here. No alcohol means no snacks too.â
I nod my head.
âDo not take things so seriously. This is a problem that can easily be solved by simply buying alcohol and snacks.â
I take out my entire pouch from the back and throw it. Pervert Demon grabs the heavy pouch with a puzzled expression. I speak first before heâs able to get a word in.
âMy youngest, hurry up and bring me drinks. Bring a lot of snacks too. Your master will let you buy whatever snacks you like. Donât worry, I am fine with anything, Yukhap is a country boy too, so he will take whatever you give.â
Even though I didnât say much, I received stinging glares from all three. The three look like theyâre about to attack me at the same time so I clear my throat.
Pervert Demon asks while frowning,
âWhy am I the youngest?â
Pervert Demon looks at Yukhap with an angry expression, but Yukhap was quite mature compared to his age in the first place. Pervert Demon glares at me again.
âYou buy it. Why do I have to run errands?â
I take my eyes off the idiot and turn to Sword Demon. And Sword Demon turns to Pervert Demon and says in a calm voice,
âDisciple.â
âYes, master.â
Sword Demon speaks calmly in a light-hearted tone.
âBuy it.â
Pervert Demon replies with a defeated expression.
â⊠I will be back.â
The guy walks with his head bowed and then turns to ask Sword Demon.
âMaster, do you have any snacks you want to eat?â
Sword Demon replies in a blunt tone,
âBuy anything.â
âYes.â
After Pervert Demon disappears, Sword Demon speaks.
âMaster Yukhap.â
âYes.â
âRecently, I have been training with a wooden sword. Will you fight me with a wooden sword?â
Yukhap is puzzled.
âIt isnât that difficult. What does it mean for you to be training with a Wooden Sword?
Sword Demon nods.
â⊠it is simple. There are things which I lacked, so I grabbed the wooden sword with the mindset of starting over.â
âSuch an odd method. Letâs do it.â
Sword Demon tells me,
âSect Leader, lend your sword.â
I handed over the sword Elder Heo gave me to Yukhap. If you leave the sword in place, it remains a wooden sword; but if you draw it out, it becomes a real one.
I say to the two holding the wooden swords,
âSenior, shouldnât your disciple have a chance to watch?â
âThat is something for Master Yukhap to decide. However, there is no reason for him to observe when he is one who doesnât understand the sword. Master Yukhap, can the Sect Leader observe?â
Yukhap nods.
âIt doesnât matter.â
I follow the two and stand in front of the door.
A situation where Yukhap and Sword Demon were facing each other in an open space.
Interestingly enough, Iâm not so curious about who will win, but more curious about how they will fight. This is the first time Iâm watching a fight with the curiosity of the method rather than the outcome.
Master Yukhap takes the sword in front of Sword Demon who doesnât care about manners, so he lightly nods.
Just as I started to wonder how he would fight, Sword Demonâs demeanor changes.
As he takes his stance with his wooden sword, Sword Demonâs entire body gets covered in air resembling a whirlwind.
âWhat?â
The eyes of Mr. Yukhap, who is holding the wooden sword with a normal lower right form, begins to widen.
Sword Demon asks,
âAre you ready?â
âI am.â
As soon as those words come out of Yukhapâs mouth, comes this pop sound as their swords clash. Since Sword Demon moves fast, I was only able to catch his movements from the corner of the eye.
Yukhap takes a step back while cutting the Sword Demonâs sword. If one is a swordsman who is not used to defending themself like a wall, they will be defeated without being able to endure even a single attack from Sword Demon.
The one-sided offense of Sword Demon. This time, I admired it.
âWow, he is scolding Yukhap.â
Somehow, it seems like Sword Demon caught onto Yukhapâs pattern of attacks and so he attacks when a gap opens up within his movements.
The reason this is impressive is because Sword Demon realized that Yukhap was on the defensive and pressed him on purpose so that he would remain on the defense. This was so that he wouldnât have a single chance to counter and fight back.
When I think about it, it isnât so strange.
This is because Yukhap couldnât win against Pervert Demon, and Sword Demon is the master of such a man. A situation where there is a difference in skill. Sword Demon seems to have far more experience in real combat and overall, his presence when wielding the sword is quite horrifying.
Master Yukhap is sticking to his defensive tactic as usual, but he is being overwhelmed by the pressure of Sword Demon constantly pushing.
Because of this, Yukhap isnât getting any chances to react.
After a while, Sword Demonâs sword pierces the shoulder of Yukhap, and he slams Yukhap down and sends his back flying.
Yukhap grabs his shoulder and looks at Sword Demon who was standing still.
ââŠ.â
A long sigh escapes from Yukhapâs mouth and he speaks like he is possessed.
âI have learned a lot.â
Sword Demon nods and answers in a light tone.
âLetâs head in.â
Sword Demon goes in first, and I pick up the wooden sword and check on Yukhapâs condition.
âYukgap, are you alright? You seem to be surprised.â
The Ghost Demon from the previous life, who is a little dazed, says to me with an expression that he has come to his senses.
âAh, now I think I know what it is. I didnât recognize them right away near the guest house because weâre in an orthodox place.â
Yukhap holds the wooden sword and looks at it with a questioning expression.
âJust why is the Sword of the Demonic Sect here?â
I receive the wooden sword and say,
âThen why are you here?â
âWhat is it?â
âDo not simply question those that would require long answers. And itâs not a question I can answer.â
When I enter and look at the table, Sword Demon is wiping his wooden sword with a cloth.
I look at him.
When Sword Demon lost to Im So-baek, he was calm, and even now after defeating Yukhap there was no difference in his demeanor.
He kept a casual expression.
Yukhap and I sat back where we were sitting while drinking the plum extract and looked at Sword Demon who was polishing his sword. He then says,
âIt is a little difficult because I couldnât break the wooden sword, just like the time with Leader Im.â
I understood right away.
âAh, right.â
It was a wooden sword given as a gift by Elder Heo, so it means he was being considerate to not break it and that is why the fight took him longer.
Sword Demon is normally silent, so I ask Yukhap.
âYukgap, how was it?â
Yukhap, who manages to organize his thoughts, speaks in a calm tone.
âWell, it feels like I have dealt with a swordsman who knows how to counter my defensive tactic. It was something I stuck to without much thought, but now I think I should reassess my approach. How was it for Sect Leader who is watching?â
I agree with his words.
âI am of the same thought. It seems like the key point of this experience was understanding how to cope against senior here rather than learning about sword technique or internal energy. How was it for you, senior?
Sword Demon answers,
âYukgap.â
âLook here. It is Yukhap.â
âMaster Yukhap and Sect Leader are right. There are often warriors who can defend themselves well.â
Sword Demon looks at Yukhap and speaks,
âI attacked with psychological warfare by using my internal qi to wrap my body with a wind current. As soon as you saw this and couldnât understand what I was doing, you mentally prepared yourself to step down. After that, you stuck to defense. You werenât able to outmaneuver me.â
That was the end of his explanation.
A short evaluation which might feel sparse at first but if one pondered the thought, there was no need to get into a deeper explanation. The reason for defeat is simple. You donât have to over complicate things.
Sword Demon was stronger in many ways, so Yukhap lost.
Without emotion, he says,
âIt is a common thing, but I learned my lesson.â
Sword Demon nods.
âI am impressed. You, too, will become stronger with more agility, strength, and experience.â
This time Sword Demon looks at me.
âWhat do you think of the variety of swordsmen around who fight with one sword, Sect Leader?â
It is an odd question, so I burst into laughter.
âSo⊠I think swordsmen should be very interested in other things other than just swords.â
Sword Demon smiles lightly and says,
âRight, I am telling myself the same.â
I donât deny it.
âRight.â
Only then did the Sword Demon put down the wooden sword he had been wiping with a cloth.
âI will have to check if it is right.â
The figure of Sword Demon, who put the sword down for a moment, looks as if a heavy burden had been lifted off his shoulders.
Only then did Pervert Demon kick the door and walk in with both hands full of alcohol and snacks.
âI am here.â
The three of us look at him with sad faces but donât get up to help him. Pervert Demon puts the drinks down and the snacks onto the table.
âSect Leader, you have a lot of money? I bought a lot of expensive alcohol and side dishes, just like you said.â
âYou did good. It is money stolen from bandits and the unorthodox sect, so feel free to eat it.â
A table for drinking was set up on a flat table. After roughly putting down the alcohol and snacks, the maid there goes inside to get bowls and chopsticks.
As Pervert Demon continued to sigh, Sword Demon spat out words.
âShut up.â
Read this novel and other amazing translated novels from the original source at the "pawread dot com"
âYes, master.â
Only then did the bastard not let out a sigh. Watching this quietly, Mr. Yukhap finally uses a title to address Sword Demon. He asks,
âSenior Sword Demon, how did you take the second son of the orthodox family as a disciple?â
Sword Demon answers,
âI am saying it. You tend to ask questions that are hard to answer in a short time frame. Sect Leader would normally nudge the surface but he never pries.â
I, along with Sword Demon, naturally look at Yukhap.
âYukhap.â
ââŠ.â
Sword Demon asks us,
âI am curious too. How did you come to this place with the Low-Down Sect Leader when you didnât learn the sword technique of an unorthodox sect?â
It was only then that Yukhap spoke like he realized what kind of questions couldnât be answered that easily.
âRight.â
Should I say there is a lot to tell? Each of them had essential things to know about one another.
And fortunatelyâŠ..
There is alcohol in front of us.
If I drink, I talk more than usual and then we come to know about the stories of everyone around the table.
That is why I drink.
One can get close to another by listening to the stories of other people. It is the place where Ghost Demon, Sword Demon, Pervert Demon are gathered.
I believed that drinking parties of awkward people isnât meaningless. Sword Demonâs way of thinking is too heavy, whereas Pervert Demon is a light drinker. Ghost Demon is a bit dumb but also quick witted.
All four of us need to get some drinks in to dull our alert senses. It is because if I always live the way I live, I will lose my mind.