A late night where the moonlight shone faintly. Under a giant tree, Cheon Myeong and Yu Eunseong stood facing each other.
From a distance, they created the atmosphere of a handso man and a beautiful woman, so much so that it could be called a scene from a painting. However, up close, an unknowable awkwardness flowed between the two.
"..."
It was truly a pleasure to et Saseong again after such a long ti.
It could be said that when Cheon Myeong was Jangcheon, his only friend was Saseong.
However, seeing his old friend's changed appearance... no, because of the change in gender, Cheon Myeong didn't know what to say.
Glance-
Cheon Myeong carefully glanced at Yu Eunseong.
Among the won he had seen in his life, Yu Eunseong's beauty could be counted on one hand.
Perhaps that was why.
If she had been ugly in the first place, he felt he could have spoken more easily, but the sense of disparity was too great thinking that a middle-aged man was actually inside that pure and lovely beauty.
And to think that his only friend, Saseong, had beco such a beautiful woman.
If there was anyone in the sa situation as him, Cheon Myeong felt like he just wanted to ask that person what he should do now.
"...Saseong."
Since he couldn't stay like this forever, Cheon Myeong finally opened his mouth carefully.
"...Yes."
"How... did it happen?"
Various anings were contained within that question.
As if she had roughly understood Cheon Myeong's intention, Yu Eunseong opened her mouth after a brief silence.
"My last mory as Saseong is when our cult was attacked. I saw the Leader fighting soone and ran there to help."
"..."
"But suddenly, my vision turned completely white, and I lost consciousness."
Hearing her story, it seed Yu Eunseong's situation was similar to his own.
For him too, that light was his last mory as Jangcheon, and when he opened his eyes, hadn't he beco the body of Cheon Myeong?
Cheon Myeong, wondering if it was possible, asked Yu Eunseong.
"It was the sa for . Suddenly my vision was filled with light, and I lost consciousness."
"So the Leader was the sa as ."
"Then do you perhaps know what caused us to beco like this?"
"That... I don't know either."
So Yu Eunseong also didn't know the reason why they had co to the era of a hundred years ago.
Cheon Myeong felt a sense of disappointnt.
'The cause seems to be that light...'
Listening to Yu Eunseong's story, there was one thing they had in common.
It was that their vision was filled with light before they lost consciousness.
And Cheon Myeong knew how that light had co to be.
'At that ti, I clashed my energy with one of the guys who invaded our cult. The light arose from that clash.'
However, there were many questionable points to think of that as the direct cause of going to the past.
Even if it wasn't at that ti, wasn't it common in the martial world for energies to clash with each other?
Of course, the clash at that ti was so powerful that it was rarely seen in the martial world. But to think that they flew back a hundred years just because they clashed their energy...
"...!"
At that mont, sothing ca to Cheon Myeong's mind.
He and Yu Eunseong had lost consciousness in that light and had beco this state. But besides himself and Yu Eunseong, wasn't there one more person who had seen that light?
Even if only the people within a certain range of the collision point were sent to the past, that guy would surely have been included in it.
'The guy who clashed his energy with at the end... isn't that guy also in this era?'
And Cheon Myeong had already seen a suspicious person.
Cheong Myeon.
The opponent who was his equal in the Black Night Gang was using the sa martial art as the guy he had last fought in the past.
'Does that an the guy who fought in the Black Night Gang is the sa person as the guy who clashed his energy with at the end?'
Of course, he couldn't be certain yet.
This was just a guess, and the only clue was that they were using the sa martial art.
Couldn't it be that the direct cause of flying back a hundred years was not the light that occurred from the collision?
Still, since he thought the possibility was high, Cheon Myeong decided to put the hypothesis he had just established in a corner of his mory.
"Leader, have you figured sothing out?"
As Cheon Myeong kept his mouth shut with a aningful expression, Yu Eunseong asked.
Since it wasn't certain yet, Cheon Myeong was about to spare his words, but thinking it would be better to tell Yu Eunseong, he finally opened his mouth.
"There might be one more person who flew to the past besides us."
"What? Who is it?"
"The guy who was my equal in the Black Night Gang. You rember, right? The guy with the blue mask."
"Yes, I rember."
"The martial art that guy was using is the sa as the one used by the guy who invaded the main headquarters in the past."
"...!"
Hearing Cheon Myeong's words, Yu Eunseong looked quite surprised.
The story that there was another being in the sa situation as them would be surprising, but to think that it was the guy who had attacked our cult in the past.
If their positions were reversed, even if Cheon Myeong had heard this from Yu Eunseong, he would have been sufficiently surprised.
"It's just a guess. So just think of it as a possibility."
"...I understand."
Yu Eunseong nodded with a serious face.
As the flow of the conversation seed to have gone astray, Cheon Myeong asked what he had originally been curious about.
"By the way, how have you been all this ti?"
"Pardon?"
"You only talked about losing consciousness. I'm curious about how you lived after that."
"Ah... right. I haven't told you the story after that yet."
After taking a mont to catch her breath, Yu Eunseong continued.
"When I opened my eyes, I was in this body. At first, I couldn't believe the fact that I had beco the eldest daughter among the three sons and one daughter of the Seong-yu family, on top of having co to a hundred years ago..."
A subtle bitterness could be felt in Yu Eunseong's voice.
And for good reason, wouldn't it be extrely surprising to suddenly find yourself in a woman's body after losing consciousness and waking up?
'I wouldn't have been able to accept reality...'
As a fellow man, Cheon Myeong could fully empathize with that bitterness.
What would it feel like to have sothing and then lose it?
Just imagining it gave Cheon Myeong the chills.
"...You went through a hard ti."
Cheon Myeong said so and lightly patted Yu Eunseong's shoulder.
Of course, this couldn't be a complete comfort, but Cheon Myeong wanted to comfort her at least in this way.
"It's alright... I was flustered at first, but after living in this body for over twenty years, I got used to it to so extent..."
"Twenty years... wait, twenty years?"
"What's wrong?"
"You just said you've lived in that body for twenty years. What on earth does that an?"
As Cheon Myeong asked in that way, Yu Eunseong's face, in turn, beca filled with puzzlent.
"What do you an... it's just as I said."
"Don't tell ..."
Cheon Myeong muttered to himself as if he had realized sothing.
As Yu Eunseong was looking at him with a puzzled expression, Cheon Myeong suddenly asked.
"When you first regained consciousness. How old were you?"
"I don't know exactly... but I was probably around five years old."
"..."
"Leader? What's wrong?"
Yu Eunseong couldn't understand why Cheon Myeong was speechless like a person who had lost his mind.
That was only natural.
Yu Eunseong had not yet heard how old Cheon Myeong was when he had first opened his eyes.
'Five years old... I first opened my eyes only about two years ago.'
But Yu Eunseong opened her eyes when she was five?
Although he didn't know Yu Eunseong's current age exactly, from what he had heard earlier, it seed she had already been living in that body for at least twenty years.
In contrast, the point in ti he had flown to the past was two years ago.
If there had been a difference of a year or two, he would have just let it go, but the difference in the point in ti when he and Yu Eunseong had first flown to the past was too great to just ignore.
"...I first woke up in this body about two years ago."
Cheon Myeong said in a low voice.
When Yu Eunseong first heard that, she tilted her head, but she soon realized what was strange and showed the sa reaction as Cheon Myeong.
"Then... weren't you, Leader, also living in that body for twenty years, just like ?"
"...No. When I woke up in this body, this body had already lost all its internal energy due to Qi Deviation and had been kicked out of the main headquarters."
"..."
Hearing Cheon Myeong's words, Yu Eunseong couldn't say anything for a while. And as if she had finally co to her senses, she asked Cheon Myeong.
"Why was there such a ti difference between and you, Leader?"
"..."
"The point in ti we lost consciousness seems to be the sa, but why is the point in ti we woke up so different..."
"I don't know that either."
He still didn't know the exact cause of flying to the past.
So Cheon Myeong also couldn't understand why the difference between him and Yu Eunseong had occurred.
"Still... one thing is certain."
At that mont, the atmosphere felt from Cheon Myeong's voice changed.
"Now, we can save our cult."
"..."
"It ans we don't have to just watch the scene of it collapsing without being able to use any power, like back then."
As Cheon Myeong said that, a corner of Yu Eunseong's heart began to tremble.
In fact, Yu Eunseong had the sa thought as Cheon Myeong.
After realizing that she had flown to the past, she had thought of stopping the Demonic Cult from heading towards the path of decline.
So she had beco a candidate for the Young Leader and had tried to play that role herself, but now that she knew that Cheon Myeong existed in this era, she no longer needed to do so.
At that mont, Yu Eunseong knelt on one knee towards Cheon Myeong.
And she bowed her head politely and said to Cheon Myeong.
"From now on, I will serve you by your side, Leader, with all my life."
"..."
"If it's you, Leader, you will be able to sufficiently prevent our cult from facing such a future."
"Of course."
Even if it's not possible, he will make it so.
The confidence felt from Cheon Myeong's voice ca from that resolve.
"Saseong, I think it's a real relief that you are with now."
"..."
"I am now trying to place trustworthy people by my side to change the future of our cult. Among them, you are the most trustworthy person."
"..."
"Will you be with in this life too?"
"...Of course."
Yu Eunseong said so and raised her head to look at Cheon Myeong.
"My life exists for you, Leader, both then and now."
Yu Eunseong, who was saying that with a smile.
A smile also appeared on the lips of Cheon Myeong, who was looking at her.
"Thank you."
As Cheon Myeong expressed his gratitude, Yu Eunseong stood up from her spot.
"By the way, how should I treat you from now on, Leader?"
"Just act as you usually do. I am no longer Jangcheon. So from this mont on, don't call Leader anymore."
"...I understand."
Although the only leader in her heart was the person in front of her, since she was not unable to understand the situation, Yu Eunseong had no choice but to answer so.
"Uh... by the way."
At that mont, Cheon Myeong opened his mouth as if he were in a difficult situation.
"When I treat you in the future... how should I do it?"
"Pardon?"
"I an... should I treat you as a woman... or as a man..."
"..."
"How should I do it?"
To other people, Yu Eunseong was, of course, a woman.
However, Cheon Myeong knew not only Yu Eunseong's external appearance but also her internal side.
So whenever he treated Yu Eunseong in the future, it seed that there would be considerable confusion in this part, so he was trying to make it clear in this place now.
"It doesn't matter."
At that mont, Yu Eunseong said to Cheon Myeong.
"I am just your loyal subordinate, Young Master."
"..."
"That is the sa then and now. So you can treat as you are comfortable, Young Master."
Yes, why had he forgotten that fact?
No matter how much her appearance had changed, the fact that Yu Eunseong was Saseong did not change.
'I was a fool.'
As he realized that fact, a laugh ca out of Cheon Myeong's mouth.
And he hugged Yu Eunseong tightly as before and said.
"Y-Young Master?"
"You are my one and only friend before you are my subordinate."
"..."
"It's good to et you again like this."
As Cheon Myeong said that, Yu Eunseong's face, which had been filled with a surprised look, soon spread into a smile.
"I am also very... glad to see you."
Yu Eunseong, who was muttering, embracing Cheon Myeong's body.
For this mont, she decided to just be happy about the fact that she had t her friend again.
(End of Chapter)
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