The Terminally-Ill Side-Character Inside of a Martial Arts Novel

The moment I felt her rushing in, I narrowed my brows as I retreated backwards to avoid Geum Soso, who had already reached within attack range.

As I had felt before, Geum Soso was extremely fast and strong. Even though my body condition wasn’t perfect, it was clearly a realm incomparable to before, yet it was burdensome to respond to Geum Soso’s movements.

Geum Soso chased after me as I retreated and swung her sword. After deflecting the sword coming up diagonally from below, I fixed my legs to the ground and swung sword energy.

The sword energy imbued with heavy force hit Geum Soso’s sword and scattered into fragments.

Geum Soso rushed in again and struck down strongly with her sword, with a face showing no interest in the sword energy obscuring her vision.

My brows narrowed at that sight. Why is she using the sword like a saber?

There was a difference between swords specialized for thrusting and sabers specialized for cutting. The weight, position and length of the blade, etc., swords and sabers were clearly distinguished. But Geum Soso was trying to cut my body with a sword as if it were a saber.

Because of that, the radius to avoid was wide and the stamina consumed when avoiding was extreme. Thinking there was no answer if I just kept avoiding like this, I lifted my body timed with Geum Soso’s swing and went over behind her. I imbued true qi into my sword and immediately stabbed towards her exposed back.

I thought my attack would work since it was her defenseless back, but my sword couldn’t pierce through her back.

Geum Soso turned her sword behind her and blocked my sword blade with the flat of her blade. She utilized the sword face like a shield.

“A familiar fighting style.”

“Ugh…”

I retreated while hearing Geum Soso’s quietly flowing voice. I distanced myself and circulated my scattered inner power again to calm it. I looked at Geum Soso while catching my breath.

She turned her body to face me. Geum Soso tilted her sword diagonally and opened her mouth.

“Did you learn from Dojin?”

“…”

“When he was young, I saw him often use that form of martial arts as a way to overcome his lack of physical strength and muscle power. I see you’re using the martial arts he learned back then.”

I looked at Geum Soso, who was speaking calmly, then slightly rolled my eyes to look at Hyuk Dojin.

Geum Soso also rolled her eyes to look at Hyuk Dojin in the direction my gaze moved, then spoke quietly.

“He’s badly injured. It looks quite dangerous.”

“You don’t need to care about that.”

“Why wouldn’t I care? No matter how much time has passed, the fact that I’m the Young Cult Leader’s mother is unchanging.”

“That would be true. If you were really Geum Soso, Dojin’s real birth mother.”

“Do you mean I’m not his birth mother?”

I slightly frowned at her words. It wasn’t worth answering. Geum Soso opened her eyes wide as if truly surprised at my words.

But even that felt like acting to me. When she first appeared, she skillfully touched the deepest part of Hyuk Dojin’s heart and broke his will to fight. She was someone more skilled in psychological warfare than anyone.

So there was no need to particularly react to Geum Soso’s appearance.

When I kept silent with my mouth tightly closed, Geum Soso returned to a calm face.

“I don’t understand. To say ‘if you were really’ when I’m alive right here…”

Geum Soso trailed off in a quiet voice and slightly crumpled her face.

“It’s quite unpleasant.”

“I’m equally unpleasant. I can tolerate everything else, but I abhor you people using Dojin’s most sensitive part in such a dirty way. So whether you’re unpleasant or not doesn’t matter to me at all.”

Geum Soso stared intently at me. A brief lull continued. During that time, I examined Cheol Mugi leisurely observing this scene and Geum Hyul treating his internal injuries beside him.

The situation was not good. He said he wouldn’t step forward, but he didn’t say he had no other schemes. If Cheol Mugi stepped forward, there was no one to face him.

“As expected…”

I turned my gaze at Geum Soso’s voice and looked at her. Geum Soso continued in a quiet voice.

“I should have killed you back then. I showed mercy because you were the Young Cult Leader’s wife, but it seems that was unnecessary meddling.”

She lowered her sword and caught her breath.

“This time, I’ll kill you for certain.”

Geum Soso rushed in again. Timed with her attack, I also drew up true qi and clashed swords with her.

But unlike before when I thought I could handle her reasonably well, Geum Soso’s attack was heavy.

Her sword carried heavy inner power enough to make my arms feel numb. While I was surprised by that weight, Geum Soso’s attacks continued.

I gritted my teeth and withstood Geum Soso’s attacks, but as time passed, my body’s balance collapsed.

In the end, unable to withstand the weight of Geum Soso’s sword, I was flung backwards and collapsed on the ground, when Geum Soso flew in.

Feeling the danger that my body would be cut in half if I stayed still, I immediately raised my body and tried to retreat backwards, when I felt a wind blowing.

The wind that blew from behind passed me and blocked in front of me, deflecting Geum Soso’s sword.

Geum Soso seemed surprised by the person who suddenly appeared and withdrew her sword, staggering unsteadily. I turned my gaze from looking at Geum Soso to look up. There stood the Vice Cult Leader, Man Do.

“…Vice Cult Leader?”

“…”

He didn’t say anything. He just kept silent while biting his lip. His face was pale and his lips were trembling slightly. Unlike his firm shoulders, his face was shaken.

Geum Soso, who had barely regained her balance, composed herself and looked at Man Do, then smiled slightly.

“It’s been a long time, Uncle.”

“How on earth…”

Man Do muttered blankly and shook his head. He muttered ‘It can’t be’ a few times as if it was hard to believe, then narrowed his brows.

“Evil techniques…”

“Do you think it’s evil techniques? Uncle, do you also think I’m not your niece?”

“…!”

Man Do opened his eyes wide. Niece. That word struck Man Do’s heart. As Man Do’s mouth opened, Geum Soso continued leisurely.

“In the year I turned five, you became my guardian, Uncle. For me who was sick and dying day by day, you personally brought and brewed spirit medicine from Sichuan with your busy body to save me. That’s not all. When I was pregnant with Dojin with my sick body, you always held my hand beside me, and in the year Dojin was born, you were the one who showed tears before me.”

Man Do’s hands trembled. Geum Soso’s flowing words were piercing Man Do’s heart.

“Always kind and gentle Uncle. You were no different from a parent to me. Does even such an Uncle think I’m not his niece when looking at me?”

“This… can’t be… this is…”

Man Do shook his head. He threw bewildered glances here and there with a face of disbelief, then stopped abruptly. And his gaze rose. Man Do lowered the hand that had been pressing his forehead and spoke quietly.

“So… Soso.”

“Yes, Uncle. Your niece is here.”

“Soso…”

Man Do moved slowly. He walked forward in a defenseless state. Slowly, very slowly, he moved one step at a time towards Geum Soso.

Geum Soso smiled and spread her arms. Man Do’s footsteps quickened as he approached her as if to embrace her.

Eventually, the moment Man Do approached Geum Soso and was about to tightly embrace her, I moved quickly and grabbed the back of his neck. His body lost balance and staggered towards me.

At that moment, a sharp sword slashed horizontally over Man Do’s tilted body.

“Come to your senses, Vice Cult Leader!”

I deflected the incoming sword again while pulling the Vice Cult Leader back. Man Do was frozen with a blank face, not understanding what situation he had just been in. Looking at his face, I shouted with difficulty.

“Wake up! That person is not Geum Soso, not your niece! Geum Soso died! 10 years ago!”

My voice echoed in the air. Man Do looked at me with unfocused eyes, then slowly regained his vision at the words I threw. His blurred pupils became clear again. Man Do’s mouth opened slowly.

“10 years ago…”

“You mustn’t be confused. Even if she has memories with the Vice Cult Leader and looks exactly the same, that person is not Geum Soso. She’s not the niece you loved so much!”

“…”

Man Do’s mouth closed slowly. Meanwhile, I glared at Geum Soso who was attacking and pushed Man Do back, then leaped forward to clash swords.

But due to my poor condition, I had to retreat after exchanging moves less than ten times.

“Vice Cult Leader!”

Man Do raised his head. Geum Soso’s sword was stabbing down towards him. I had to block it, but it was impossible in my current state.

Man Do’s eyes turned towards Geum Soso. His mouth opened slowly. It seemed Geum Soso’s sword was stabbing down over his frozen head, but fortunately, Man Do reacted by a hair’s breadth and was able to step back.

Geum Soso clicked her tongue as if regretful.

“Uncle. Why do you keep avoiding my sword? Have you forgotten that you said you wanted to spar with me when I became healthy?”

“…”

“Now that I’ve become healthy and can cross swords with you, Uncle, it’s meaningless if you keep avoiding. So…”

“My heart aches and my chest collapses…”

Man Do’s voice settled over her voice. Man Do continued speaking quietly while looking at Geum Soso.

“I once fell into grief over the sorrow of not being able to protect you whom I truly cherished and loved. I missed you and apologized every day. But I had to live too, so I buried you in my heart and tried not to open it again. Yet, you who appeared again are not the appearance of the child I loved, whom I buried in my heart.”

“Uncle. It’s Geum Soso. I am your niece.”

“Yes, that’s right. You must be Geum Soso. How could you not be Geum Soso when you remember memories and conversations that only we two know. But… but Soso.”

He bit his teeth with a heavy face and raised his sword.

“This is not right.”

“…”

“It wasn’t that I wanted to see you so much as to go against fate and abandon heaven’s will. I, who loved you and buried you in my heart that day, tried to protect the child behind me who resembles you. However, if you try to cut down that child…”

Thick tears flowed from Man Do’s eyes. For the first time, the surroundings held their breath at the sight of Man Do showing his emotions as they were.

Man Do didn’t wipe away the flowing tears. He just let them flow.

“I will cut you down myself.”