Myst, Might, Mayhem

Chapter 370 – Sword, and Sword (1)

“It’s because human flesh and blood, and their grudges, are imbued in these demonic swords.”

“Is that so?”

‘!?’

At Master Ou Cheonmu’s words, Mok Gyeong-un looked at the magic sword Evil Commandment Sword with an interested gaze.

He had thought there must be some story behind it because he felt a strong demonic nature from the sword, but to think it contained human flesh and blood.

Does that mean a life was sacrificed to make the sword?

‘…Is this all?’

Master Ou Cheonmu frowned.

He had expected him to be greatly surprised or disgusted when told what went into the demonic swords, but instead he showed interest, which inwardly made him click his tongue.

He had thought he was different from ordinary people, but this went beyond just being bold.

Or was his way of thinking entirely different?

Then Mok Gyeong-un asked while looking at the sword,

“To do this for not just one, but five swords, was there some special reason?”

‘……’

Different.

Indeed, very different.

Inwardly clicking his tongue, Ou Cheonmu soon answered.

“This lowly one doesn’t know the exact reason either. Only a record remains in our family that five demonic swords were born at someone’s request.”

“You’re saying five swords were made simultaneously at someone’s request?”

“That’s correct.”

“Hmm. What an unusual person. To ask for the creation of not just ordinary swords, but five such unique demonic swords.”

“…That’s why our ancestor considered making these demonic swords shameful.”

“Because they were made with someone’s life?”

“Exactly as you say.”

“Then couldn’t he have refused?”

“If he had refused, our family line would have been cut off.”

“Ah, I see.”

Mok Gyeong-un nodded.

So it seems they were born not from a request, but under threat.

Master Ou Cheonmu sighed and said,

“It’s truly ironic beyond words. Although I couldn’t completely subdue the sword’s spirit, I never imagined this sword would come to me on the day I completed it.”

“What do you mean?”

“Because today, I fulfilled our family’s long-cherished wish.”

“Your family’s wish?”

“Yes, I created a sword made of Gwanya black iron with my own hands.”

Hearing the subtle excitement in his trembling voice, Mok Gyeong-un wondered and asked, pointing with his chin at the magic sword Evil Commandment Sword,

“Come to think of it, didn’t you say Evil Commandment Sword was also made with Gwanya black iron?”

“That’s correct.”

“Then why do you say it’s ironic? Is there a reason you’re talking as if it’s something special?”

To this question, Master Ou Cheonmu answered while looking at the blade of the magic sword Evil Commandment Sword.

“Gwanya black iron is not a metal that can be handled by simple methods.”

“Can’t be handled by simple methods… Don’t tell me?”

[It’s because human flesh and blood, and their grudges, are imbued in these demonic swords.]

Suddenly, Mok Gyeong-un recalled what Master Ou Cheonmu had said earlier.

He nodded as if agreeing and said,

“That’s right. It’s not to make them into demonic swords, but strangely, this special metal called Gwanya black iron cannot be melted and shaped without human flesh and blood.”

“Truly a strange metal.”

“Beyond strange, this metal is truly monstrous.”

The fact that a life must be sacrificed to melt it and create a shape was beyond strange, truly bizarre.

That’s why among blacksmiths who had carried on their trade for a long time, no one who knew even a little about this Gwanya black iron thought of handling it.

For them, this metal was cursed before it was the best metal.

‘Ah, so that’s what it was.’

Mok Gyeong-un now understood why he couldn’t hide his excitement when he said he had made a sword with Gwanya black iron.

So he asked,

“I see. When you said it was your family’s wish, do you mean you succeeded in making the sword without using human flesh and blood?”

To this question, Master Ou Cheonmu smiled and nodded.

Ou Yezi, called the greatest craftsman, felt guilt and regret while making these demonic swords with someone’s life.

However, what distressed him even more was his shame as a craftsman.

Ou Yezi was tormented until the moment of his death because of this Gwanya black iron that couldn’t be handled without sacrificing someone’s life.

Because the craftsman couldn’t handle the metal and succumbed to it.

Thus, this became a generational task and wish for the Ou clan.

“As the noble sir said, our Ou clan has put in effort for generations to wash away the shame of our ancestor Ou Yezi, and today we have finally completed it.”

This was why he had been secluding himself and focusing on his work for a while.

He had refused to craft swords for many people because he was close to resolving this task.

The only regret was,

‘If only I had half a quarter-hour more, no, just a quarter-hour…’

Not only could he have fulfilled the wish, but he could have created his greatest masterpiece.

But unfortunately, it wasn’t realized.

If only that swordsman and Mok Gyeong-un, who became the noble sir, hadn’t appeared, the result might have been different, but there was no use lamenting what had already happened.

In the end, it wasn’t fated to be a masterpiece.

‘I don’t know if such a sense will come again, but there’s still enough time left.’

He had achieved his family’s wish in his generation, now he just needed to create the masterpiece of his lifetime.

Then he would have no regrets in life.

But then he saw Mok Gyeong-un staring at something.

“Noble sir?”

“I’ve been wanting to ask for a while, is that completed sword over there?”

Mok Gyeong-un pointed with his thumb.

Master Ou Cheonmu couldn’t hide his surprise.

This was because there really was a sword where Mok Gyeong-un had pointed.

‘…How did he know?’

This sword hadn’t properly established its sword spirit.

This was because his mind had been distracted at the moment he needed to concentrate, causing the sword spirit to become twisted.

Therefore, the sword’s aura wasn’t well manifested.

Moreover, the workshop was overflowing with such incomplete swords, so it was nearly impossible to find it by the sword’s aura alone.

-Roar!

However, unlike him, something else was visible in Mok Gyeong-un’s eyes.

He could see the natural energy of the surroundings gradually gathering towards somewhere hidden.

“May I take a look?”

“That sword… No, it’s fine.”

A craftsman doesn’t show an improperly completed sword to others and destroys it.

That was the stubbornness and pride of a craftsman.

But it was the noble sir’s order, so it was difficult to refuse, and it seemed a waste to just destroy a sword that could have become a masterpiece after only he had seen it.

“Please, take a look.”

Mok Gyeong-un had reached an even higher realm of swordsmanship than himself.

There was no harm in hearing his expert opinion.

As Mok Gyeong-un moved his steps to where the final work was done in the workshop, a dark-colored sword came into his view.

It didn’t even have a scabbard because the work of establishing the sword spirit was being done.

But then,

‘!?’

Mok Gyeong-un’s eyes trembled as he looked at it.

Ou Cheonmu, who was behind, couldn’t see this, so he spoke with half expectation and half concern.

“The blade is particularly dark because it’s mixed with ten thousand year cold iron. Although it’s regrettable that the sword spirit is twisted, just this alone could be called close to the greatest masterpiece. I wonder if the noble sir finds any lack…”

Ou Cheonmu stopped mid-sentence and moved to the side.

He had sensed something strange.

‘What?’

Ou Cheonmu couldn’t hide his puzzlement.

This was because Mok Gyeong-un was staring at the sword with blank eyes, as if in a state of selflessness, as if he had fallen into a mental state.

‘Why?’

He knew the sword was close to perfect enough to be called a masterpiece.

But could one fall into a mental state just by looking at the sword’s form?

Could he have seen something that he himself couldn’t see?

***

In the mental image.

The surroundings are quite different from the place he knew.

Even the color of the sky is different, and in this strange place where the world seems about to collapse, he was wielding something.

It was none other than a sword with a brilliant ink color.

That sword looked very similar to the one Master Ou Cheonmu had made.

The only difference was,

-Roar!

The sword felt as if it had its own will, and it was incomparably fierce and vicious.

And strangely, this ferocity was familiar.

This was the roaring demonic nature itself.

In the mental image, he wasn’t moving of his own will, and his sword movements were rough and clumsy.

However, the sword was handling all of him and drawing out his utmost potential.

After wielding the sword for a while like that, he finally stopped, and then as he released the force he was applying to the sword,

-Slash slash slash slash slash!

The ink-colored sword suddenly split apart and decomposed, changing into the form of a ring.

***

‘Ah……’

Mok Gyeong-un, coming out of the mental image, looked at the sword without a scabbard.

He didn’t know when he had fallen into it, but this sword was clearly very similar to what he had seen in his mental image.

So Mok Gyeong-un asked Master Ou Cheonmu beside him,

“This sword… Did you really conceive and make it yourself?”

‘!?’

At this question, Master Ou Cheonmu’s expression instantly hardened.

Frowning as if his words were blocked for a moment, Master Ou Cheonmu spoke in an incomprehensible tone.

“…May I ask why the noble sir is asking that?”

“Because I’ve seen the sword before.”

“You mean you’ve seen this sword, no, a sword in this form before?”

“Yes.”

At these words, even more doubt clouded Ou Cheonmu’s eyes.

Puzzled by his reaction, Mok Gyeong-un asked,

“If not, it’s fine. It’s just that the final completed form of this sword I saw doesn’t seem to end with this.”

“Ah……”

As soon as Mok Gyeong-un’s words fell, a sigh flowed from Master Ou Cheonmu’s mouth.

He wondered why he was reacting like that, but soon Ou Cheonmu approached the ink-colored sword, grasped the handle without a scabbard, and lifted it.

“There are no absolutes in this world, it seems.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m truly ashamed.”

“……”

“I thought no one would know this because several generations have passed, and I wanted to realize this perfect form with my own hands, but I never imagined the noble sir would know about it.”

“So there was an original sword?”

“That’s correct.”

-Tap!

With his answer, Master Ou Cheonmu put the sword down again and went somewhere.

He took out an old, worn book from a bookshelf in one corner of the workshop.

Having brought the book, the Master flipped through it and then opened a certain part to show Mok Gyeong-un.

‘!?’

A strange light flickered in Mok Gyeong-un’s eyes as he saw this.

This was because the book had detailed records of the sword’s form, and even described that it could be decomposed to form a ring shape.

“What… is this?”

“It’s a record left by this lowly one’s great-grandfather.”

“A record left by your great-grandfather? Then did your great-grandfather make this sword?”

At that question, Master Ou Cheonmu hesitated for a moment and then shook his head.

“No. At this point, how could I not tell the truth to the noble sir? This is what my great-grandfather recorded after seeing it a hundred years ago.”

A hundred years ago?

It was older than he thought.

Mok Gyeong-un couldn’t hide his puzzlement.

What was that mental image just now?

Usually, when he saw a mental image, it could be said that he was reading residual thoughts left in traces of enlightenment or remnants.

But strangely, upon seeing a newly born sword, he saw a scene that was familiar yet unfamiliar.

Does that mean he saw a scene from a hundred years ago?

Something felt odd.

Then Master Ou Cheonmu continued speaking,

“My great-grandfather came to see this sword through a horrific tragedy.”

“A tragedy?”

“Yes. As you know, our Ou clan rarely leaves this Sword Valley as we craft swords without rest for even a day, but my great-grandfather agreed to personally deliver a completed sword to fulfill the request of a brilliant female swordsman with whom he had a usual acquaintance.”

“To personally deliver it, they must have been quite close.”

“Looking at the records my great-grandfather left, it seems he built a friendship out of admiration for the female swordsman’s delicate yet excellent sword skills.”

“Oh, is that so?”

“Yes, he praised her sword as being like viewing an elegant moon.”

“…An elegant moon, you say?”

Mok Gyeong-un’s eyes narrowed.

The idea of a sword technique reminiscent of the moon suddenly struck him.

Among the sword techniques he knew, only two evoked the moon.

They were the Moonless Void Sword and Cheong-ryeong’s Moon Sword Technique.

Then he walked to one side of the workshop and took out one of the wooden boxes piled on top of a shelf.

It too was covered in dust, having been neglected for a long time.

-Tap tap!

Master Ou Cheonmu, dusting it off with his hand, came carrying the long wooden box and said,

“What’s that?”

“A sword that has lost its owner.”

-Click!

As Ou Cheonmu opened the wooden box, along with the scent of aged wood that hadn’t been opened for a long time, a sword appeared.

It was a sword with a blade so white it was pure white.

A small exclamation flowed from Mok Gyeong-un’s mouth at the sight of its radiance that hadn’t been lost even after a hundred years.

“Ah……”

Then Cheong-ryeong’s trembling voice was heard in his ear.

-Mortal……

-What’s wrong? Ah… Come to think of it, if it was a hundred years ago, that would be when Cheong-ryeong was alive and active, right?

To that question, an completely unexpected answer came from Cheong-ryeong’s mouth.

-This is… my sword.

‘!?’