Chapter 504: Side Story 24 The Twins (2)

A marital spat, huh.

The immense fighting spirit radiating from her pricked my skin.

Even now, long after everything had ended, Yura’s competitive spirit toward me hadn’t faded in the slightest.

There was no longer any life-and-death duel where we fought to take each other’s lives, but she still wanted to surpass me as a martial artist.

‘I don’t really have any desire to live as a martial artist anymore, though.’

Now that even the last remaining concern, the Evil Spirit, had disappeared—

All motivation to train with the sword had vanished. I didn’t feel anything close to enthusiasm anymore.

But still.

What could I do? She wanted to spar, so I had to oblige.

I handed the children in my arms to the maids for a moment.

The kids seemed to have sharp eyes, so maybe watching our sparring now would help them gain something later—

“Waaaahhh!!”

“…Huh?!”

The moment they left my arms, Seonyu and Seonha simultaneously burst into wild, frantic crying.

“Ah, young masters! Please, calm down…!”

“W-What’s gotten into them all of a sudden?!”

The maids were flustered by the twins, who had suddenly begun flailing their limbs wildly.

Yura and I were just as taken aback.

They had been known for not crying since birth.

Even now, unless it was something truly upsetting, they hardly ever cried.

If they wanted something, they made it known clearly, which made it easier for the maids to care for them. Everyone liked that about them…

“W-What’s wrong?!”

Of course, Yura was startled too. She quickly withdrew her sword and rushed over.

As soon as she and I each held one of them in our arms, their cries died down as if it had all been a lie.

“W-What…”

The two of them began smiling bashfully like nothing had happened, leaving Yura and me speechless in our surprise.

Just to be sure, I tried handing Seonha back to the maid again.

“Waaaaaah!!”

“……”

“WaaaAAAHHH!!”

“……”

Each time they left our arms, the two immediately began bawling in perfect sync.

“…Don’t tell me they’re doing this on purpose?”

I looked to Yura as I asked, but she didn’t respond.

She probably didn’t know how to answer either.

“They just don’t want their parents to fight.”

“…Hm?”

The one who spoke those words was none other than Ma Chulsu.

For some reason, he had a smug look on his face as he said it.

“Normal babies wouldn’t understand, but prodigies born with sharp sensitivity to qi pick up on even the slightest shifts.”

“…Are you bragging right now?”

Now that I thought about it, that guy had a kid even before I did.

“My Jeongyeon was the same. She’d sense when I was training and always react right away.”

“Yep, definitely bragging.”

I glanced over at Ma Seonghwan.

And to my shock, the ever-so-strict and stern Ma Seonghwan suddenly cracked a Buddha-like smile, showing even his gums.

“……”

It wasn’t my imagination that Ma Chulsu was overlapping with him in that moment.

Though he wasn’t born with Heaven-Slaying Fate, his potential was so exceptional that Ma Seonghwan had personally performed the Bloodline Purification Ritual on him.

“Hm…”

Still, something about this felt different.

It wasn’t just reacting to external stimulation—this felt like a deliberate expression of will.

“At this rate, it looks like sparring is off the table,” Yura said with a slightly disappointed expression as she gently patted Seonyu’s back.

Seonyu must’ve liked it, because she giggled cheerfully and reached out toward Yura.

I watched the scene with a pleased smile.

“By the way…”

Ma Chulsu now looked between Seonyu and Seonha with an amused grin.

“Seeing how they’re already twisting their parents around their fingers… once they grow up a little more, they’ll be real terrors.”

“…Huh?”

“Hmm?”

At that moment, both Yura and I reacted.

To be precise, I shot a glance at Yura the moment I heard that, and she immediately dodged my gaze like lightning.

I looked down at Seonha in my arms with anxious eyes.

‘…No way.’

Don’t tell me the Moonlit Sword Flower will appear again in the next generation?

No, there’s no way.

There’s absolutely no way our sweet, lovely kids would grow up to be troublemakers.

Definitely not.

I won’t allow it.

Ten years later.

Cheon Seonha.

Age: Eleven.

Candidate for Young Cult Leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, and a once-in-a-lifetime prodigy who reached First-Class at just ten years old.

And… the worst troublemaker in the entire Cult, giving daily headaches to maids and Guardian Lions alike.

“Impressive.”

“Hrrrrmmm…”

After executing every move in the form, Cheon Seonha snorted like an old man as she sheathed her sword.

There had been no wasted motion in her form. A perfectly clean execution.

But despite wielding her sword so flawlessly, there was not even a hint of satisfaction on Seonha’s face.

“Boring.”

“Martial arts are not something you train for fun.”

“But Father said that fun is important in martial arts.”

“……”

Throwing the Heavenly Demon’s own words into the mix was dirty play, and the Guardian Lions had no comeback.

If He said it, then that was that.

At that moment, Baekryong (White Dragon), one of the Guardian Lions, spoke with a serious expression.

“As a martial artist continues their training, they’ll inevitably face walls again and again. There is no thrill more profound than the sense of accomplishment when you overcome one. Especially when you draw sword qi for the first time, the joy is indescrib—”

“Oh, that wall? I’ve already passed it. It was whatever.”

“……”

Baekryong went silent.

Seonha stuck out her lower lip and raised her sword.

A deep crimson sword qi surged to life above the blade.

“Everyone says it’s hard, hard, hard, but honestly? It wasn’t all that hard.”

The way she controlled her qi was as natural as breathing.

To cross the wall she had, most had to endure endless refinement, trial and error, and even world-shattering experiences.

But this eleven-year-old child had surpassed that wall as if it were nothing more than a small hill.

‘Incredible.’

Gulp.

Baekryong swallowed hard, staring at the pure sword qi rising from Seonha’s blade.

It wasn’t just that she had drawn sword qi.

Well, yes, that alone would’ve been astonishing.

But what truly shocked him was the refinement of her sword qi.

‘Her control is flawless. How in the world…?’

Most people, the first time they manifested sword qi, produced something crude and messy—like branches growing wildly due to lack of internal energy or experience.

But Cheon Seonha had casually achieved something that even seasoned First-Class experts needed years to attain.

“If only I could build up some combat experience, it might be more fun… but none of you ever fight me seriously, so it’s boring.”

“We are your shields, my lady—not blades meant to harm you.”

“Uncle Gu Chil is kinda fun… but he’s been hounded by all the aunties lately, so it’s hard to meet up….”

“Then perhaps Your Highness should seek guidance from His Grace the Grand Duke. Would he not be able to satisfy your thirst completely?”

At those words, Cheon Seonha stuck out her lower lip.

“Dad? No thanks.”

“…Pardon? May I ask why?”

Though quite some time had passed since Cheon Yura returned as Cult Leader, the undisputed strongest in the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult was still considered to be Jin Yeomyung.

There were easily over ten thousand demonic practitioners in the cult who would gladly risk their lives for even a single second of his instruction.

But Cheon Seonha clearly didn’t like the idea.

“It’s obvious.”

“…What is?”

“That he doesn’t want me learning martial arts.”

“……?”

The surrounding Guardian Lions all wore puzzled expressions.

How many times in their lives, having followed the laws of absolute strength, would they ever hear someone say they hated learning martial arts?

“There’s a vibe, you know? He says he supports me no matter what I do, but sometimes his real feelings slip out.”

“…….”

“…….”

The Guardian Lions had no idea how to respond, so they simply closed their mouths.

As a brief silence passed, Cheon Seonha let out a sigh.

“Mom’s too busy to bother with me. Luoyang’s too far to visit Sohyeon’s house. Everything’s just frustrating.”

Cheon Seonha crossed her arms and, after seriously deliberating for a moment, made her decision.

“I’ll just stick to what I always do—go find a Hidden Master.”

“…That again?”

The Guardian Lions grimaced.

This was the reason why Cheon Seonha had become known as the worst troublemaker in the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.

She had spent the past year poking around every corner of the cult searching for so-called ‘Hidden Masters’, causing a mountain of disturbances.

And the bigger problem was that this obsession with Hidden Masters had originated from none other than the current Cult Leader, Cheon Yura.

“Well, I did get something out of it last time. I found a master from the Hidden Shadow So Clan who served in three Great Wars!”

“That’s true, but…”

“Thanks to him, I even learned some great techniques!”

Not long ago—

Cheon Seonha had discovered a master over a hundred years old, one whose appearance had made people from the Hidden Shadow So Clan cry out, “Wait, that person’s still alive?!”

The issue was, that encounter had nearly ended in disaster for Cheon Seonha.

Had the old master not taken a liking to her potential, her life truly could’ve been at risk.

“It’s far too dangerous, my lady.”

“As we’ve said many times, those kinds of people no longer cling to their lives. They devote everything to the perfection of their martial path.”

They were seekers who transcended worldly notions of profit and loss, pursuing only the heights of martial enlightenment.

Neither the power of the Cheon Clan nor the prestige of being the Heavenly Demon’s bloodline held any sway over them.

No—more importantly—

Her father, the strongest Hidden Master in history, was right in front of her, so why on earth was she even looking for another one?!

Sure, that other guy was over a hundred, but he was at best in the Extreme Demon Realm.

There were two people around her who had surpassed the Transcendent Demon Realm and achieved the pinnacle known as the Greatest of All Time. So why?!

“That’s why it’s great.”

“…Pardon?”

“Their techniques have this… aged flavor? That unique taste!”

“…….”

“……?”

The Guardian Lions tilted their heads, failing to grasp her meaning.

Only a few among them, those who had transcended even the Peak Master Level, understood Cheon Seonha’s words and silently nodded in agreement, eyes deep in thought.

Then—

She pulled something from her robes.

“Look, check this out.”

“Wha—?! When did you even…?!”

The moment they realized what it was, the Guardian Lions recoiled in horror.

It was none other than the White Sky Mask (Baekcheonmyeon)—not the Black Sky Mask (Heukcheonmyeon)!

Cheon Seonha covered half her face with the mask and let out a gloomy chuckle.

“How nostalgic… This thick, cool sensation…!”

“My lady! Please, don’t!”

“It’s time to become Moonlight Little Lady again!”

Cheon Seonha, the Moonlight Little Lady (월광소희 月光小姬)!

The name and alias bestowed upon her by none other than Cheon Yura when she wore that mask.

“If she escapes from Ten Thousand Great Mountains again this time, His Grace the Grand Duke will actually lose his mind!”

“Please, spare us, my lady!”

“Ugh! Let go of me!”

The Guardian Lions clung to Cheon Seonha’s sleeves, ready to weep their souls out.

Well, they looked like they were desperate, but in truth, they were only tugging ever so slightly with their thumbs and index fingers.

Still, there was a reason they were panicking so much.

Whenever Cheon Seonha donned that mask, it almost always meant she was about to leave the Ten Thousand Great Mountains!

“I’m not going far! Just want to check out the northern plains! Dad said he always wanted to go there, remember?!”

“That place is at least hundreds of li from here! If that’s not far, what is?!”

“Eek! Shut up!”

Despite the Guardian Lions’ desperate pleas, Cheon Seonha leapt into the air.

Hovering midair, she shouted toward the distance.

“Seonyu!”

A reply came immediately.

“Yeah.”

“Come with me!”

“Got it.”

Before anyone noticed, Cheon Seonyu, now wearing the Black Sky Mask, appeared at her side.

“What?! When did the young master…?!”

“His stealth has improved again!”

“Y-Young Master! You’re the next Young Cult Leader!”

“No! If he escapes too, we’re dead meat when we report to the Great Guardian!”

“Stop them! Stop them!!”

“Deploy the Tangma Defensive Containment Formation (탕마항호진)!!”

The Tangma Defensive Containment Formation—crafted specifically to restrain the successors.

Just hearing the name made it sound like a Buddhist formation, but in truth, it was a Qi Curtain Formation (氣幕陣) developed by all the Guardian Lions of the Lesser Demon Hall, desperate to control these two little disasters without laying a hand on them.

“Hmph! That thing doesn’t work on us anymore!”

Cheon Seonha and Cheon Seonyu casually cloaked themselves in the Heavenly Demon Body Protection Technique (천마호신공).

Originally, the Heavenly Demonic Divine Art (천마신공) didn’t have a function to protect the eight meridian channels, but Jin Yeomyung had adapted it specifically to create this technique for the safety of his children.

It was originally just a study to strengthen organs and meridians, but combined with their special Divine Demonic Vessel (신마지체) constitution, it became something else entirely.

Ssshh—!

The two passed right through the Qi Curtain Formation as if it wasn’t even there!

“W-What?!”

“How is this even possible?!”

Just a little while ago, they definitely couldn’t have pulled this off!

While the Guardian Lions stood dumbfounded in shock—

Cheon Seonha charged north and shouted boldly:

“Let’s go!”

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