Except for training, Seoryang had been holed up in his quarters, reviewing documents. It took him three days to memorize everything.
"Young Master, would you like to eat?"
"Sure."
A moment later, Aenghwa laid out the evening meal. Seoryang, who had been mechanically eating while keeping his eyes fixed on the documents, suddenly glanced at the dishes.
"There are a lot of light dishes now."
"Yes, the ingredients are mostly those with mild flavors."
Seoryang smiled.
"You remember even the small details."
"Huh?"
"Never mind. Let's eat."
"Ah... yes."
Aenghwa still seemed awkward about sharing a meal, hesitating as she sat down.
"Ang!"
"..."
"Ang!"
"..."
After several calls with no response from Seoryang, the little fox sat on the floor, panting. It seemed quite angry, sniffing and waving its front paws.
Aenghwa, who had been subtly observing, picked up a few pieces of boiled meat and crouched down.
"Little fox, little fox. Would you like this?"
The little fox glanced at Aenghwa and made a snorting sound. Aenghwa's face fell.
After checking the documents several times, Seoryang picked up his chopsticks again.
'Done. I've memorized it all.'
As he evaporated the turbid energy gathered in his dantian, his mind cleared. Although he hadn't suddenly become a genius, his judgment and memory had greatly improved.
Even with such a brain, it took him three days to memorize the vast amount of documents. It was astonishing.
'Hmm?'
After a few bites, he turned his head to the side.
The little fox, puffing with anger, and a girl with a trembling hand offering meat.
"What are you two doing?"
"Ah, Young Master."
Seoryang lifted the little fox with one hand. The fox didn't resist and obediently followed.
"Aren't you hungry? Eat this."
He offered a piece of undercooked boiled meat, and the little fox instinctively bit into it.
"Yelp!"
The little fox glanced up at Seoryang.
Seoryang chuckled.
The little fox looked at him with resentful eyes but didn't stop eating. Judging by the way it eagerly chewed, it must have been very hungry.
After the meal, Seoryang stroked the fox's nose. The fox, now drowsy from fullness, sprawled out and made a contented sound.
"By the way, we can't keep calling it 'this thing' or 'that thing.' We should give it a name."
Seoryang asked Aenghwa.
"What should we name it?"
"Huh?!"
"...Why are you so surprised?"
"Can I... really give my opinion...?"
"Why not?"
Flustered, Aenghwa stammered.
"Well, it's so cute... I mean, cute..."
"Never mind. I'll name it."
Aenghwa bowed her head deeply.
Seoryang touched the little fox's ears. Playing with its large ears, almost as big as its face, made him feel strangely drowsy.
"How about Geuihoho (Giant-Eared Fox)?"
Snort!
The little fox snorted. It was hard to tell if it was timely or expressing dislike.
"Don't like it? Then Daemeeho (Big-Tailed Fox)? Its tail is big."
Aenghwa looked as if her world had collapsed.
But since it was the Young Master, she couldn't say anything.
Seoryang scratched his head awkwardly.
"A bit off? Then... hmm..."
Suddenly, he looked at the little fox's eyes and nose.
It was incredibly cute, but it looked quite standard. Except for its overly large ears and tail.
"Since it's a golden fox, let's just call it Geumho (Golden Fox)."
Aenghwa was on the verge of fainting.
Why put 'fox' in the name of a fox? Isn't that too obvious?!
A golden fox named Geumho? Aenghwa felt a chill run down her spine at the Young Master's naming sense.
But what was more surprising was the little fox's reaction.
"Ang!"
It roared loudly, then jumped up and rubbed itself against Seoryang's hand. Anyone could see it was a gesture of joy.
Aenghwa's pupils dilated like rotten fish eyes.
Could it really understand? It couldn't possibly be happy, right?
Seoryang smiled warmly.
"You like it that much, Inseok?"
"Ang!"
Aenghwa collapsed on the spot.
Seoryang placed Geumho on his shoulder and walked to the window. The scenery outside was still like a painting.
Swish, swish.
The wind blew, scattering fallen leaves.
A serious expression crossed Seoryang's relaxed face.
'Even if only half of what's written in the documents is true, it's fascinating.'
There was no need to worry about the organization's structure. He just needed to memorize which organization was doing what.
But the interpersonal relationships were a different story.
'I thought they were under Jia's command, but they're actually following Wu's orders. I thought they were friends with Bing, but behind the scenes, they're sharpening their knives with Yi... How complicated.'
It was probably similar in any organization. But the Heavenly Demon Cult was so vast that it was hard to memorize and understand.
'I have to dive into this tangled web.'
To sail the vast ocean without a boat, one must enter the net.
He had agonized over this absurd reality several times, but there was no other solution. If he tore the net, he'd be beaten to death by the fisherman, so he had to play along until they let him go.
Seoryang took a deep breath.
'In the end, what I want is just one thing. I just have to dive in for that one result. Don't overthink it.'
Whoosh.
A translucent demonic energy rose on his hand gripping the windowsill. He was finally entering the real game, and even he felt tense.
Swoosh.
The little fox, Geumho, who had slid down his arm to the windowsill, looked up at Seoryang.
Tsutsutsu.
In the clear eyes of the beast, a faint multicolored light flickered.
Whoosh.
The wind blowing through the window grew stronger.
Flap.
Seoryang's clothes fluttered, and Geumho's fur waved beautifully.
Gradually, but surely, Seoryang's demonic energy deepened. At the same time, Geumho's gaze also deepened.
Thud, thud, thud.
"Huh?"
Aenghwa, who had collapsed, looked up at the table.
The table was vibrating faintly. The plates on it trembled slightly, making a strange sound.
'What's this?'
Could it be an earthquake?
At that moment, the demonic energy around Seoryang's body disappeared. As the energy vanished, the trembling table stopped, and the wind calmed.
Seoryang stroked Geumho's head.
"Well, what can I do? I've thought enough. It's time to move, right?"
"Ang!"
Geumho quickly climbed onto his shoulder.
Having sorted out his thoughts in an instant, Seoryang strapped the sword at his side and left the room.
"Let's see, preparing everything will take some time... Aenghwa, I might not be back tonight, so eat dinner without me."
"Ah! Understood."
"And..."
Seoryang glanced at Aenghwa.
Aenghwa stood respectfully. She had been steadily cultivating her internal energy but hadn't properly learned martial arts.
"Never mind, we'll talk about this later."
"Yes."
"I'm off. Don't skip meals."
"Take care, Young Master!"
Ma Dongpil was naturally simple and diligent.
He wasn't the type to laze around in bed all day on vacation, nor was he the type to go food hunting or bother his colleagues out of boredom.
But he also didn't ignore his vacation and dive back into work. Unless someone needed help, he didn't want to interfere and reduce work efficiency.
In the end, he chose martial arts.
Swish!
His longsword cut through the air with powerful force.
Even after half a day of swinging his sword, the sword's edge hadn't dulled. In fact, it was emitting even more refined and intense sword energy.
'Good.'
He had trained for half a day without sparing his internal energy. Even a peak expert should have been exhausted.
But he was still full of energy. The stamina honed in the ancient bamboo forest seemed endless, and his internal energy replenished much faster than before.
Most importantly, the quality of his demonic energy had improved. Even with a small amount, the sword's edge and destructive power were more than twice as strong as before.
'Now I understand.'
How could those at the peak of martial arts fight tirelessly? It was because the quality of their internal energy and the finesse of their control were different. Their way of handling energy was unique.
'But that's not all.'
As he swung his sword vigorously, Ma Dongpil thought of one person.
The person who had given him the biggest surprise since joining the cult.
'Young Master's martial arts were different.'
It wasn't about the type or level. What he found different was Seoryang's perspective on martial arts.
'He seemed to have a lot of experience. But he was also unconventional.'
Experience usually leads to a loss of creativity. One becomes so skilled that there's no need to be unconventional.
But Seoryang wasn't like that. He seemed to have as much experience as an old master, yet he sometimes displayed such unconventional martial principles that it was astonishing.
'Perhaps that's the decisive reason why the Young Master became strong so quickly.'
His thinking was flexible and not bound by conventions. Naturally, the number of possible combinations of martial principles increased, and as he became accustomed to it, his thoughts deepened, and his judgment and reflexes improved.
'If only I could be like that...'
Whoosh!
As he swung his sword carefully, a round hole appeared in a distant rock.
Ma Dongpil's eyes sparkled.
'It's deeper!'
At that moment, applause came from afar.
"Amazing!"
Startled, Ma Dongpil turned his head.
When had he arrived? Squad Leader Giyang stood there with a surprised expression.
"Impressive sword energy. I knew you had grown stronger, but not to this extent."
"Ah, Squad Leader."
Ma Dongpil quickly sheathed his sword.
Giyang, who had been admiring the rock, coughed.
"Sorry. I was so absorbed in watching you swing your sword that I made a mistake."
"No, I was about to finish anyway."
"Haha."
Giyang walked over to the rock and clicked his tongue.
"The One-Point Red of the Demon-Protecting Sword. To pierce a rock three feet deep from this distance. Even if it's not perfect, many martial artists never reach this level in their lifetime."
"..."
"To be honest, I'm not sure if I could make such a deep mark from this distance."
"I'm ashamed."
Giyang nodded.
"It seems you've grown a lot while guarding the Third Young Master."
"He has given me great enlightenment despite my shortcomings."
Giyang suddenly remembered something.
"By the way, I had something to tell you, but I forgot while watching you train."
"Yes?"
"The Third Young Master visited the Enforcement Hall."
Ma Dongpil's eyes widened.
"Why would the Young Master...?"
"He asked me to pass on a message. I hope it's not too late."
"A message?"
"Yes, he said... remember when we first encountered the Green Bamboo?"
Ma Dongpil tilted his head.
Of course, he remembered. But was that all?
"And he said he's going to the Mad Demon Squad's dinner today."
"...!"
"He said you can come if you're interested, but I have no idea what he means..."
"Sorry, Squad Leader!"
Ma Dongpil cut off Giyang and quickly moved.
Without even washing up, he left the Enforcement Hall, his face urgent.
'Young Master!'
Surely not? You're not planning to cause trouble like last time, are you?
In a corner of his mind, Seoryang's mouth slowly moved.
Why not?
Whoosh!
Ma Dongpil's running turned into a swift movement technique.