Chapter 7: Companionship ― Don’t Call Me “Kid” (2)
The three of them continued on their way.
Over the past three days, Cheon-yo had used Lightstep at times, but there were periods when they traveled on foot. For the young Baek Sang-ah, keeping up with Cheon-yo’s speed was difficult.
Even being carried wasn’t enough to endure such incredible velocity without strain.
Cheon-yo kept erasing their trail as he moved toward an unknown destination.
Today, as he carried Baek Sang-ah while using Lightstep, the child suddenly pounded on him urgently.
“Sir! Sir!”
At her desperate shout, Cheon-yo stopped, and Baek Sang-ah ran to the side and began to gag.
“Ugh…ugh.”
She gagged repeatedly before collapsing onto the ground. Standing beside her, Cheon-yo spoke.
“Getting used to it yet?”
“You’re too… too fast.”
“You can’t keep gagging forever.”
“But it’s better than the first time. Back then, I couldn’t even handle half of this.”
“Want me to give you a compliment?”
“You should worry instead,” she muttered with a displeased expression.
Cheon-yo had only known this girl for three days. They hadn’t spoken much during that time.
Yet, he had learned a little about Baek Sang-ah.
At just twelve years old, she was mature for her age. Even when it was difficult, she didn’t complain much, and she wasn’t flustered by the sudden circumstances. Rather, she accepted and adapted to reality calmly.
Cheon-yo glanced behind him.
There she was—the assassin woman.
Even after three days, she still followed them, keeping a consistent distance.
She hadn’t spoken or taken any action, merely trailing silently.
Because of this, Cheon-yo and Baek Sang-ah treated her as if she didn’t exist.
Cheon-yo looked up at the sky.
The sky was pitch black; night had deepened.
“Let’s rest here tonight. We’ll eat too.”
Saying this, Cheon-yo took some dumplings from his bag—dumplings he had bought from a village earlier.
“Eat,” he said, offering them to her.
Baek Sang-ah silently accepted the fist-sized dumplings and started nibbling.
Meanwhile, Cheon-yo swung his hand toward a small tree nearby.
Shash!
His hand cut the tree precisely into pieces, which fell to the ground. He gathered the wood in one spot and moved his hand again.
Fwoosh!
Flames erupted from his hand. When he directed the fire at the chopped wood, it ignited immediately.
Watching him feed the fire while eating her dumplings, Baek Sang-ah was amazed. Even though she had seen this before, it never ceased to fascinate her.
“Sir.”
“Yes?”
“How strong are you?”
“You curious?” Cheon-yo asked, poking the fire with a branch. Baek Sang-ah nodded.
“Grandfather said you were sent. So you must be really strong.”
“That’s right. Strong. And more than that… I protect people really well.”
“Stronger than my grandfather?”
Baek Sang-ah’s grandfather, Baek Bul-in, leader of the Martial Alliance, was one of the great pillars of the orthodox faction. His martial skill was overwhelmingly impressive.
Still, Cheon-yo’s answer was confident, without hesitation.
“Yes, stronger.”
“What about the Three Wudang Heroes?”
“Even if the three of them attacked together, I’d win.”
“Then…”
“Since you’re curious, I’ll explain simply. Of all living people in the world, there’s only one who could beat me. And…”
Cheon-yo looked at the fire, then slowly at Baek Sang-ah, raising his finger. His index finger pointed directly at her.
“Counting the one inside your body, that makes two.”
Hearing this, Baek Sang-ah’s eyes widened.
“Wow, your confidence is incredible.”
“It’s not confidence. It’s the truth.”
Baek Sang-ah hurriedly responded.
“There are so many strong people in the world… even in the Martial Alliance…”
“Finished your dumplings?”
“Yes.”
“Then get some sleep. We’ll need to move early.”
“All right.”
Without another word, Baek Sang-ah lay down near the fire, resting her back against the warmth. After a short while, Cheon-yo, who hadn’t slept and kept poking the fire, spoke.
“Hey.”
There was no answer. Cheon-yo turned toward the woman behind them.
“Hey.”
Understanding that he was calling her, the woman sitting against a tree responded coldly.
“Why?”
“Come have a dumpling or two. It’s tiring to keep following us like that.”
“Food? It’s trivial.”
“You don’t know—if you don’t eat, you’ll die.”
“Am I a kid? Don’t you know that?”
“If you knew, you’d come eat. You’ve been fasting three days.”
For three days, the woman had followed Cheon-yo and Baek Sang-ah, eating only a little water to wet her lips.
“I don’t need your concern.”
“It’s not concern. I just don’t want you to die in front of the kid. If you die, it’ll be troublesome. Either die where I can’t see, or… just don’t.”
At Cheon-yo’s words, the woman rose and approached him.
“I can’t die to do you a favor.”
Cheon-yo handed her a dumpling.
“Sit. Eat.”
She sat near the fire, warming her face in the glow, and ate without a word. Cheon-yo watched her silently.
“That kid really seems to dislike you,” he remarked.
“…Because I killed her mother.”
“Was there a reason?”
“Who in the world has no reason? Everything is an excuse.”
She seemed uninterested in defending herself. Her inner thoughts were unclear, but…
Cheon-yo calmly asked,
“How long are you planning to follow us? You giving up?”
Even treated as nonexistent, she continued to follow. Naturally, it drew his attention.
“I can’t. I want to protect that child.”
“Is the Martial Alliance leader’s request that important to you?”
“Not entirely. I couldn’t protect Sang-ah’s mother, so… I just want to protect this child.”
Her resolve was strong. But Cheon-yo couldn’t simply step back either. He had promised the Martial Alliance leader to protect Baek Sang-ah. It was the only way to repay his debt.
“I can’t step back.”
“We’re in the same situation,” she replied. She stood, glancing briefly at Baek Sang-ah resting near the fire.
Cheon-yo spoke as he followed her gaze.
“You know, sometimes it’s harder to handle a child’s heart than an adult’s. They’re pure, so the wounds cut deeper.”
“…I don’t care. Even if I’m never forgiven, I just want to protect that child.”
Cheon-yo asked, watching her reveal her truth.
“And you?”
“…?”
“You. Do you have someone you can never forgive?”
She looked up at the sky, paused, then answered.
“Yes.”
“What happened? You wouldn’t have just let it go, knowing your personality.”
“Some are dead or I killed them. The rest… will either die soon or I will kill them.”
Watching her speak of killing so calmly, Cheon-yo realized something.
“We haven’t even introduced ourselves. If we’re traveling together for a while, we should at least know each other’s names. I’m Cheon-yo. You?”
“Cheon-yo? Never heard that name… is it an alias?”
“No, it’s my real name.”
She couldn’t comprehend it. A martial artist of her caliber should have been well-known in the world. Talent like that naturally draws attention.
She didn’t press further, and instead introduced herself.
“Jeok-ha.”
“Jeok-ha? Fits someone in red clothing.”
“Red actually means blood. I chose it myself. It means someone who lives beneath the blood.”
She introduced herself grimly, but Cheon-yo realized her life hadn’t been easy. Growing up as an assassin, her path was never smooth.
Cheon-yo lay down and said,
“Names exchanged. Rest now. We move early tomorrow. Follow or don’t, it’s up to you.”
Jeok-ha leaned against a distant tree and closed her eyes.
After nearly two and a half hours of sleep, Cheon-yo set out again with Baek Sang-ah.
Naturally, Jeok-ha followed behind.
Glancing back, Baek Sang-ah spoke,
“Jeok-ha unnie doesn’t seem like she’ll give up.”
Cheon-yo muttered, looking at the sky,
“Didn’t you say you didn’t know her name?”
“Well… that’s…” Baek Sang-ah stammered, flustered.
“Of course, she wasn’t sleeping,” Cheon-yo remarked. He had already anticipated that Baek Sang-ah had been eavesdropping while pretending to sleep.
“I… couldn’t sleep. So I heard.”
“Don’t think too hard for your age. It won’t be cute.”
Cheon-yo strode ahead.
“Stop calling me ‘kid’! My name is Baek Sang-ah! Baek Sang-ah!”
Hearing her shout, Cheon-yo just shrugged his shoulders lightly and continued forward.
