BFLT 7

Episode 7 – Younger Brother, Baek Hajun (2)

“We’re not even going to eat a midnight snack—why go back for that ladle?”

“If I leave it there, a servant might clean it up.”

“Then let them. If they do, just have the craftsmen of Hwayeongseo forge another one. I hear they can even make one out of cold iron.”

“I can’t use Hwayeongseo without the head’s permission. Besides… that ladle is something I’m attached to.”

Yi-gang walked beneath the sunset, deciding that if he had to go back anyway, he might as well treat it as an evening stroll.
With servants nearby, he focused his mind and spoke inwardly instead.

‘Tell me honestly… am I really getting stronger?’

“What’s that? Hah-hah.”

‘I’ve trained the Taeeumgyeong Sutra for a whole month, but… I don’t feel any different.’

Every day, Lee kang practiced the Taeeumgyeong at the Hongok training ground.
The form itself wasn’t particularly harsh or complicated—the real trial was mental.

The Immortal Sword’s version of the Sutra was not merely about tempering the body.
From the first to the ninth stance,  Lee kang was trained to infuse each motion with will and intent.

“Strike me.”

When the Immortal Sword said so, Yi-gang threw a sharp punch—the third stance of the Sutra.

Thud—
His fist struck the ghost’s palm squarely. Despite being a spirit, the Immortal Sword’s body felt solid.

“You’ve grown used to infusing your movements with intent, haven’t you?”

“…I suppose so. But that doesn’t mean I’ve gotten faster or stronger.”

His punches still lacked speed and power. He did feel lighter, perhaps, but that was all.

“If mastery came easily, no one would bleed or sweat for it. In time, you’ll experience your own transformation.”

Yi-gang nodded quietly.

“Now then… I’m curious about that younger brother of yours.”

“Hajun?”

“You two don’t seem close.”

“Right.”

Yi-gang answered bluntly.

“When he was little, I adored him. Played with him all the time. He used to toddle after me crying, ‘Hyung! Hyung!’.”

“Hah, you speak as though you were much older, though you’re only two years apart.”

A two-year gap wasn’t much, but to Yi-gang—who had lived a full adult life in his previous world—the boy really did seem like a child.

“I practically raised him on my back.”

“Ha-ha! Then why are you estranged now?”

“I cut him off.”

“Ah…”

In a noble martial family, brothers often drew swords for the right to succeed.
The Baek’s head was practically the ruler of the city of Se-an.

“When I collapsed from seizures at ten, the heir issue tore the family apart. I had no choice.”

Lee kang’s gaze darkened.

“I bullied him a lot. Flipped his birthday table. Pinched his cheeks till they bruised. Kicked him when he cried. Stole our father’s wine.”

“So you were a little bastard.”

“He started avoiding me soon after. Didn’t even come to see me off when I left the manor. Probably for the best.”

“In martial families, brothers are destined to point blades at one another. Don’t let it trouble you.”

“Weren’t you the one who said family should live in harmony?”

“Brothers are an exception.”

Yi-gang wondered for the first time if the Immortal Sword himself had ever had a brother.

Soon after, he reached the Hongok training ground—and froze.

Standing there were Baek Hajun and Neung Jipyeong.

“…Why are you here now?”

Three years had passed.
His brother, once a boy of twelve, had grown. Still youthful, but nearly as tall as Yi-gang himself.

“…”

Baek Hajun glared at him.
Yi-gang hadn’t expected a warm welcome, but the coldness still stung.

“Ho? That boy—look at those eyes, he’d kill his brother if he could. Did you perhaps leave out a story or two?”

“I may have… broken all his toys once. Right in front of him.”

“A villainous brat indeed.”

Yi-gang met Hajun’s gaze in silence.
The boy stared back—expressionless, unblinking.

What to say? ‘Long time no see’? Or something cutting, like before?

Instead, Yi-gang chose a third option.

“Ah, a guest was here.”

He simply picked up the ladle and turned to leave.

“A dull choice,” the Immortal Sword sighed.

The air between them felt painfully awkward.
Hajun still hadn’t moved. Just as Yi-gang exhaled in quiet relief—

Hajun suddenly appeared before the door, blocking his path.
Lee kang hadn’t sensed his movement at all.

“Lord Hajun!”

“Marvelous—Moon-Shadow Step!”

Both Neung Jipyeong and the Immortal Sword exclaimed.
Moon-Shadow Step, a light-foot technique taught only to Baek bloodlines and their sworn retainers.
Hajun had mastered it astonishingly well.

“Hah! That footwork—lighter than even my disciples’. Reminds me of my own youth.”

‘Hey, your descendant is standing right here…’

“How amusing! The air thickens.”

Hajun, despite such mastery, still said nothing—only glared.

“What is it?”

“…”

“If you’re going to block my path, at least say something. Or are you just going to stand there like a fool?”

“…”

“Forgot how to speak, did you?”

Once Yi-gang grew cold, barbs flowed easily.
Yet unlike before, Hajun didn’t tear up—his face remained stoic. Perhaps Yi-gang’s cruelty had forced him to mature too fast.

“Tch.”

Leekang clicked his tongue and moved to pass.
That’s when the boy finally spoke.

“Wait—Hyung-ah!”

Lee kang froze.

“…What?”

It was a word he hadn’t heard in years, and it didn’t fit this icy air at all.
A crack spread through Hajun’s frozen expression.

“I mean… Hyung-nim. No, Hyung…”

He fumbled over his own tongue, flustered.
For a moment, Yi-gang glimpsed the little boy he used to carry on his back.

He could have scolded him—“Still can’t tell heaven from earth?”—but instead…

“Ha.”

He just laughed.

“…How anticlimactic,” the Immortal Sword muttered, disappointed.

“Brothers should never be harmonious.”

‘Is that really necessary?’

“Yes. When brothers share power, families split. It’s inevitable.”

‘You might be right.’

“I had a brother too. Sent an assassin after me, he did. I returned the assassin’s head and woke him by bashing it against his skull.”

‘…’

“Didn’t kill him. Just crippled his core and severed his meridians—so he could live happily ever after.”

Yi-gang ignored the gruesome tale and turned to Hajun.

“You’re too old to be calling me ‘Hyung-ah.’”

“Then… Hyung-nim.”

“That sounds strange too. Just ‘Hyung’ will do.”

At twelve, calling one’s brother “Hyung-ah” wasn’t shameful—but Hajun blushed deeply, mortified by his slip.
Yi-gang had expected only resentment, yet things weren’t so simple.

“So, why’d you stop me?”

“Uh… well…”

He had no idea what to say. Flustered, he stumbled over his words.

“I just thought—since it’s been a while—maybe we could train together, or…”

As he spoke, his voice steadied.

“Like before, maybe a sparring match? Or a race, Hyung-ah—no, Hyung!”

Half-boy, half-man, Hajun’s eyes gleamed with excitement.
Yi-gang, however, looked utterly dumbfounded.

“You’re mocking me.”

“Huh?”

“You’re asking to duel a man who can’t even use internal energy?”

Only then did Hajun realize his mistake.

“So, you want revenge.”

“No! That’s not—!”

His face went pale.
He only wanted to talk, but instead he’d stepped on an old wound.

Yi-gang wasn’t hurt, though.

“He’s easier to tease than he looks.”

‘He’s just a kid.’

Still, a duel was out of the question.
He couldn’t bear the thought of losing to his little brother.

“I wasn’t talking about using internal energy! I—uh—today’s training isn’t sword or martial forms, it’s light-footwork practice! Right, Master Neung Jipyeong?”

Neung Jipyeong jumped and nodded quickly.

“A contest without internal energy, then.”
Yi-gang hesitated but didn’t dismiss it outright.

“You’ve learned a bit of martial arts and now you mock me. Enough.”

“It’s goblin-tag!”

“…What?”

“The game Father taught us! Remember? We used to play it together—it’s a light-footwork drill!”

Yi-gang froze.
Goblin-tag—a childhood game. Blindfolded, one chased the others by sound, using small bags of red beans as clues.

Why was that suddenly a training method?

“Ho! So that exercise I devised is still being passed down. Indeed, it’s excellent.”

‘That game was your invention?’

“It was.”

Yi-gang had never heard that before. But thinking on it, the game did hone one’s footwork.

“So, you’re asking me to play?”

“It’s not play—it’s training! If you try it—”

“It’s not for you to decide. You should’ve asked Master Neung Jipyeong first. Tsk.”

“Ah…”

Yi-gang turned to Neung Jipyeong, expecting the sensible instructor to intervene.
But instead—

“Hmm. If Young Master Yi-gang joins, it would benefit Young Master Hajun as well.”

Neung Jipyeong smiled and nodded.

“Master Neung Jipyeong agreed!”

“What…?”

That wasn’t the reaction he expected.
Was the man hoping Hajun would humiliate him?

‘Feels like he’s betting on me getting beaten up.’

“Ha-ha! Then why not accept? I’ll show you how to move lightly.”

‘What?’

“You asked earlier if my training was helping. Well, now’s your chance to find out.”

‘Still…’

“It’s perfect. No internal energy, just movement. Even with crippled meridians, you won’t be too disadvantaged.”

Yi-gang hesitated. Both Hajun and Neung Jipyeong were looking at him expectantly.
Perhaps… there was no reason to refuse.

“Choose. If you win, I’ll tell you a secret that may extend your life.”

‘You’re telling me that now?’

“Choose.”

Yi-gang exhaled and nodded.

“Fine.”

Hajun’s face lit up instantly.

“The blindfold?”

“Here, Young Master.”
Neung Jipyeong handed over a folded headcloth. Yi-gang gripped it tightly.

“A fine choice.”

‘No turning back now, huh.’

“Then why are you smiling?”

Yi-gang touched his lips—sure enough, they’d curved upward.

“Let’s begin,” Neung Jipyeong said excitedly, preparing the bean bags and rules for Goblin-Tag.

Yi-gang considered. Could he win if Hajun refrained from using internal energy?

Probably not.

“Hajun’s a genius. Even the Elders acknowledged him—said he might one day reach the pinnacle of the world.”

“Then it’s likely true.”

The Immortal Sword seemed to sense it too.

“But tell me, who do you think taught you?”

Yi-gang blinked.

“I am Baek Seong-cheon—the one who slew the cult’s master and stood alone as the Greatest Under Heaven.”

‘…’

“If that boy appears once in a hundred years, then you—my chosen heir—are the one and only in all eternity.”

Yi-gang tied the blindfold tight over his eyes.

“Go, and show that child the difference between heaven and earth.”

Yi-gang smirked.

“In my old world, there was a saying.”

‘No younger brother ever surpasses his elder