Volume 1, Chapter 10
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He was a beggar.
From the moment he became aware of his own existence, from the moment he could form memories, he was a beggar.
He didn't know who his parents were. He didn't know if they had abandoned him or if he had lost them. There was no one to tell him, and no one cared.
Besides, there were many beggars in the beggar's village, and most of their stories were the same.
So he thought it was only natural.
He only learned later that things like parents and guardians existed in the world.
He had even given himself the name Dan Goyul, piecing it together from words he'd overheard while begging. There was no one to give him a name.
Life was hard for a beggar with no parents or guardians.
To fill his stomach, he had to beg. And he had to protect what he begged for from the other beggars.
Otherwise, he would have to spend the night curled up like a shrimp, clutching his starving stomach.
But begging rarely yielded much, and protecting what he got was even harder.
The older boys, the other adults. The kingpin.
The beggar's village was full of beggars bigger and stronger than him.
Protecting his begging bowl from them was impossible. He was beaten every day. His things were taken, and he was punished.
To survive, he ran away from the beggar's village. He went into the back alleys.
He didn't want to starve to death. He didn't want to be beaten to death either.
So he joined an underworld gang. He became a pickpocket.
He watched the other pickpockets and learned the trade by looking over their shoulders.
But the gang of thugs was no different from the beggar's village.
To keep from starving, he had to succeed as a pickpocket. And he had to protect the purses he stole from the others.
Nothing had changed.
He was punished, beaten, and robbed. There were many nights he fell asleep clutching his empty stomach.
Then one day, he met his Master.
He was on his way back from a job.
The underworld gang had been annihilated.
And at the center of it all was his Master.
Standing in a gray mist, holding a blood-soaked sword, his Master's eyes were the color of ash. Their eyes met.
He felt it instinctively.
A chill at the back of his neck. The fine hairs on his skin standing on end.
Death.
A sensation completely different from the pain of hunger and beatings.
A fear of a different dimension washed over him.
But his Master did him no harm.
He simply asked his age, and his name.
And then he asked if he would come with him.
And so, he became a disciple and was led by his Master's hand to join the Sincerity Gate.
There, he met a person.
He was handsome. But he had a gentle face. He even looked a bit clueless. He didn't look very strong. He seemed like a pushover. And on top of that, he was absurdly kind.
Those were his first impressions of his Eldest Brother.
His Eldest Brother was just as he first appeared.
He prepared the meals, cleaned, did the laundry, and handled all the unpleasant chores.
And he never once complained.
As if it were the most natural thing in the world, even after Chaehwa joined and he had two junior martial siblings younger than him, all the troublesome and difficult tasks fell to Eldest Brother.
In the underworld gang, they called people like him a pushover.
Yes. A pushover.
Eldest Brother was nothing more than a pushover.
But he was wrong.
"Did you hit my junior brother?"
The man who looked like he'd never been angry in his life, who didn't seem strong at all, fought.
Even after being beaten to a bloody pulp by Gwak Sahu of the Chagon Gang, he charged back in.
"I was the one who hit him."
And still, he tried to take responsibility.
Even though it had all happened because of him.
"Say it to me."
He tried to face the Clan Lord of the Chagon Gang's fury all by himself.
He had a similar build, and he was the Eldest Brother Dan Goyul had thought was a pushover.
But as he stood blocking the Clan Lord of the Chagon Gang, Eldest Brother's back looked broad.
It was the first time.
The first time he'd seen Eldest Brother's back look so broad, the first time he'd seen him so angry, the first time he'd seen him fight so tenaciously while covered in blood.
And the first time an adult had ever been on his side.
*I want to be like that.*
And so, he came to want to be like his Eldest Brother.
* * *
Four days had passed.
The colorful bruises had faded. As long as he didn't move too much, the broken and fractured bones weren't too much of a burden.
It was likely thanks to the Myriad Seas Heart Art.
In any case, his body was not in good shape, so for the time being, he was in no condition to do any of the sect's work.
So, Ihoe's daily routine recently consisted of enjoying a life of leisure, either resting in his room all day or doing simple pastimes.
One of those pastimes was braiding Chaehwa's hair.
Chaehwa insisted that Ihoe, and only Ihoe, braid her hair.
When he had become able to move around a little, Chaehwa had quietly come to him and asked if he could braid her hair.
She said the second brother's hands were too rough, and their Master, Yu Hyeonjun, was just plain scary.
For Ihoe, braiding Chaehwa's hair was better than lying around all day, a good way to stave off boredom.
"You know, Eldest Brother?"
"Hm?"
And he could have conversations like this.
"We can't do without you, Eldest Brother. Our sect is a total mess without you."
"...Hm?"
And sometimes, he could hear unexpected things like this.
He wondered where this sudden praise was coming from.
"Our second Senior Brother went to cook again."
"...He did?"
"Yeah."
No sooner had Chaehwa finished her reply, nodding as she entrusted her hair to Ihoe, than a commotion erupted from the direction of the kitchen.
Crash! Clang!
He didn't know what was being broken, but the loud sound of something shattering or falling echoed through the air.
"Yesterday, he came back after getting hit by firewood."
"...Who did?"
"He said he swung the axe, but a piece of firewood flew up and hit him in the eye. Second Senior Brother."
"...Hah...!"
A sigh escaped Ihoe's lips at Chaehwa's story.
"Is he still at it?"
"He's very dedicated. Super dedicated!"
"...I see."
Ihoe pursed his lips.
He thought he could finally understand why Chaehwa had said the Sincerity Gate couldn't do without him.
His body was a wreck from trading blows with Gwak Cheol-u. He was bedridden. With bones broken and fractured all over, it was only natural. He needed to recuperate.
Therefore, he couldn't perform the various chores of the sect.
Normally, his Master, Yu Hyeonjun, would have taken over.
But a problem had arisen.
"I will! Someday, I'll definitely become just like you, Senior Brother!"
The problem was the second brother, Dan Goyul, who had uttered those words on the first day Ihoe was confined to bed and then run off.
Dan Goyul hadn't been spouting nonsense.
The only problem was his direction.
He had apparently declared that he would take over all the chores Ihoe had been responsible for while he recuperated.
Their Master, Yu Hyeonjun, wasn't the type to forbid a disciple from doing something, as long as it wasn't wrong. So, naturally, he gave his permission, saying, "Go ahead."
After that, Dan Goyul began to take over Ihoe's duties.
Doing the laundry, cleaning, preparing firewood, cooking and preparing meals, and even looking after his junior brothers and sisters.
However, Dan Goyul was a boy who had never done such things before.
Because no one had ever made him.
I hadn't wanted to burden my junior brothers and sisters unnecessarily. That had put my mind at ease.
For that reason, Dan Goyul was now doing Ihoe's chores for the first time in his life.
A boy who didn't know where anything was in the cupboards, nor how to chop firewood.
So, there was no way he could do the work properly.
The day before yesterday, he had caused a disaster by putting a hole in a piece of clothing Chaehwa cherished while doing the laundry. Lately, the meals being served have been overly salty, and the rice has been burnt to a crisp.
On top of that, I hadn't known, but it seemed he'd bruised his eye the day before yesterday while clumsily chopping firewood.
No wonder I hadn't seen him since last evening.
"...He really doesn't have to go that far. Tsk!"
A bitter taste filled his mouth.
It was unsettling to see him struggling like that, and he was also worried about his Master and junior siblings, who were now unwillingly sharing the burden of Dan Goyul's overzealous actions.
And above all.
He couldn't for the life of him understand why Dan Goyul, who was destined to join the ranks of the hundred greatest masters under heaven even if left to his own devices, would insist on becoming like him.
Why would someone so capable want to be like me?
A creeping fear even began to wash over him that he might be ruining the path of someone destined for greatness.
It was then.
"She said it was the first time."
Chaehwa, who had been tending to his hair, spoke up abruptly.
The words came out of nowhere.
"Hmm?"
Chaehwa turned her head to look at Ihoe.
Her eyes were clear and gentle.
"Someone taking his side, I mean. Someone who fought for him, who tried to protect him. It was the first time, she said. For our second Senior Brother."
As Chaehwa spoke with those clear, gentle eyes, his chest tightened.
"...Ah!"
He didn't even know what to say.
He could only make a foolish sound.
"That's why he wants to be like you, Eldest Brother. He told me so after he put a hole in my clothes the day before yesterday."
At Ihoe's reaction, Chaehwa smiled, her eyes crinkling.
So that was it.
He hadn't known. Come to think of it, in his past life and even now, Dan Goyul had never spoken of his past.
That was why, while he knew the circumstances that had brought his other junior siblings to the Sincerity Gate, all he knew about Dan Goyul was that he was an orphan.
In truth, he supposed he had never tried to find out.
He had been indifferent.
Even though he had so resented his Master's indifference in his past life, he himself had been just as indifferent toward Dan Goyul.
He only realized it now.
Perhaps that was why Dan Goyul had been so obsessed with strength, why he had been able to become one of the hundred greatest masters under heaven.
Because no one would protect him.
So he must have thought he had to build his own strength and protect himself.
And perhaps that was why he had left the Sincerity Gate.
Because no one at the Sincerity Gate had protected Dan Goyul.
"I see."
He muttered under his breath.
*Like an idiot.*
He couldn't bring himself to say the rest.
He was the one who hadn't protected Dan Goyul.
Only now did he realize how foolish that choice had been.
"What a relief."
That's why it was a relief.
Because this time, he hadn't made such a foolish choice.
"Hmm? What's a relief?"
"Oh, it's nothing."
Chaehwa lifted her head at his muttered words.
Ihoe just smiled and shook his head at her question.
Then, as if nothing had happened, he continued braiding Chaehwa's long hair.
A warm energy flowed in. A cool, refreshing energy flowed in with it.
It flowed in as naturally as breathing, then flowed out.
It was the energy of Myriad Liberations.
He was certain now.
Emotions. Or his junior siblings and Master. Or perhaps the Sincerity Gate itself.
The catalyst that moved the energy of Myriad Liberations was one of them.
However, he didn't know which of the three it was exactly.
And he decided not to try to find out.
'In the end, all three are the same.'
His heart, the Sincerity Gate, his brothers, sister, and Master.
They could not be considered separately. That would be meaningless.
"..."
Ihoe savored the energy of Myriad Liberations.
His heart grew calm.
A peaceful day was passing by just like this.
"Eldest Brotheeer!"
At least, it was, until the fourth, Hohyeon, came running.
"In the kitchen, second Senior Brother went like this, and the fire went *whoosh*! and then *fwoooosh*! and then fire was *whoaaaa*! all over the place!"
Hohyeon, looking somewhat thrilled, was waving his arms wide as he tried to explain something.
His words were impossible to understand at first.
"He says the kitchen is on fire."
It was Chaehwa who interpreted for him.
"..."
Ihoe blinked.
Come to think of it, he didn't hear any clattering and banging. Instead, he thought he smelled something burning.
He turned his head.
The kitchen was in flames.
"...Hah!"
A sigh escaped him.
'I need to get better, and fast.'
The peaceful day was rapidly turning into a not-so-peaceful one.
"Chaehwa. Go tell our Master. Hohyeon. Shall we play a game of putting out the fire?"
Just as Chaehwa had said, it seemed this sect somehow fell into chaos without Ihoe.
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