"Huff, huff, huff... Instructor, I'm perfectly fine..."
Gongsun Shu, who was swinging a wooden sword alone, turned to me, drenched in sweat.
His face was as pale as someone about to cross the River of Three Crossings, and Heukyeong watched him anxiously from the side.
"Are you really okay?"
"Huff, huff... Yes. I'm really fine. Please train me without any discrimination from the other trainees!"
The old man had good intentions, but his legs were trembling as if they would collapse at any moment, and he was using the wooden sword as a cane.
His words lacked any persuasiveness.
I glanced at Heukyeong beside me, and she shook her head.
[He's already at his limit.]
Even without Heukyeong's telepathic message, it was clear at a glance what state Gongsun Shu was in.
I sighed softly and spoke.
"Trainee Gongsun Shu, take a break from training for a while."
"What? I can still do more. I'm perfectly fine right now..."
"Go look in the mirror. Your complexion doesn't look fine at all."
Despite my instructions, Gongsun Shu couldn't easily put down the sword.
He looked at me with a frustrated expression.
"I'm really fine. I can overcome this with willpower..."
It seems that kind words won't work here either.
I sighed softly and approached him, bringing my face close to his.
Then, I growled, exuding a threatening aura.
"Trainee Gongsun Shu, do my words not sound like words to you?"
Gongsun Shu flinched at my aura, and Heukyeong widened her eyes in surprise.
Hyeonwon Kang and Weiji Cheon, who were focused on their training, glanced over to see what was happening.
Gongsun Shu spoke with a flustered expression.
"That's not it..."
"Beyond this point, it's not training but self-abuse. To my eyes, it looks like you just want to die quickly."
His wrinkled cheeks trembled with humiliation.
Thick beads of sweat rolled down his face.
His bloodshot eyes were wide open.
His untrained old body had long since reached its limit.
It must be very frustrating for him.
I had noticed earlier that Gongsun Shu's envious gaze was directed at Hyeonwon Kang and Weiji Cheon.
"Trainee Gongsun Shu."
"... Yes."
I placed a hand on his shoulder and spoke in a much softer voice.
"It must be frustrating that your body doesn't follow your will. But this is your reality. At your age, having only done basic exercises, you can't suddenly handle the same training as the other trainees."
"... I know."
Gongsun Shu is different from Hyeonwon Kang and Weiji Cheon, who have the resilience of teenagers. 'Besides, those two are geniuses.' The two boys knew how to push their bodies to the brink and instinctively knew when to stop.
On the other hand, Gongsun Shu, no matter how generously viewed, was ordinary.
Even if he were of a similar age, it would be impossible to keep up, and at sixty-five, trying to follow their training was absurd.
A small bird trying to follow a stork would only tear its legs apart.
"Don't be impatient and trust me. I'll make sure you get into the Azure Dragon Academy with a tailored education that suits you."
To put that Namgung Su in his place, if nothing else.
"... Yes. I think I was being too greedy."
Fortunately, Gongsun Shu wasn't someone who couldn't be reasoned with.
He slowly put down the wooden sword.
I took Gongsun Shu to a pavilion in one corner of the garden.
"Report your current physical condition honestly, without holding back."
"My back, shoulders, knees, wrists, and ankles hurt."
"..."
This is a bit too honest.
"My fingers hurt from holding the sword for too long, my neck is stiff... my eyes seem a bit blurry too... hahaha..."
"..."
Seeing my stiffening expression, Gongsun Shu hurriedly began to make excuses.
"But it's bearable. A little ointment and acupuncture should fix it quickly. I happen to have some good medicine..."
"Trainee Gongsun Shu, lie down on the ground."
"What?"
Gongsun Shu's face turned pale, thinking he was about to be punished.
Heukyeong was also about to speak in surprise.
"I mean lie down so I can relieve your tense muscles."
"... Hahaha."
Gongsun Shu sighed in relief and lay down.
I started pressing down on various parts of his body with my hands.
Unlike what I did for Hyeonwon Kang, I massaged him with my hands, and a thin moan began to escape from Gongsun Shu's lips.
"Oh, oh... ohhh..."
At first, he was tense, but soon he closed his eyes and began to enjoy the massage.
"Oh, that's good. Yes, there, a little lower... hehehe. This is paradise."
It felt so good that tears welled up in his eyes. '...
I don't know if I'm an instructor or a masseur.' Pushing aside the deep sense of futility, I finished massaging his back and tapped Gongsun Shu's back.
"Turn over."
"Haha..."
Gongsun Shu turned over, looking at me with admiration and a much more refreshed expression.
"Instructor, I've received many massages even in the imperial palace, but I've never met anyone as good as you."
That sincere expression...
It seemed like a genuine compliment, making me feel very complicated.
"If you ever consider a different career, should I introduce you as a masseur in the imperial palace?"
"... No need."
I was known as the demon instructor in the Blood Cult, but even then, I had never taught a trainee who was sixty-five. 'And what? The imperial palace? I knew he wasn't an ordinary old man, but...' His presence was overwhelming, even without martial arts.
He casually mentioned offering a fortune of ten thousand nyang and had a master like Heukyeong as a personal guard. 'I don't know why he wants to learn martial arts with such wealth and power, but... well, there's no need to know.' I was momentarily curious, but I didn't feel the need to pry.
The important thing is to ensure Gongsun Shu can enter the Azure Dragon Academy within the set period.
I pressed down on Gongsun Shu's tense thighs and asked.
"Is the training very hard?"
"It's hard. But it's quite enjoyable."
Gongsun Shu answered with a bright smile.
Although his body was old, his eyes shone brightly like a child's.
"Instructor, you see, when I was young, I was smaller and weaker than others. I caught colds every few days."
Indeed, Gongsun Shu was born with a weak constitution.
The fact that he accumulated more impurities in his body than others was for that reason.
"Fortunately, I was quite bright, so I did well in my studies. My widowed mother sent me to the academy despite our poor circumstances. I studied hard, often getting nosebleeds... and eventually, I achieved success and enjoyed wealth and power. My mother had already passed away by then... haha. If only she had lived a few more years."
The old man's lonely eyes traced back to the past.
"But during my childhood, you see, I was always envious."
"... Envious?"
"The children I saw on the way to the academy with my heavy book bag. The boys my age who wore swords at their waists, dressed in white martial arts uniforms, and entered the martial arts academy."
The boy, smaller and weaker than his peers, always admired the tall and healthy martial arts boys.
"... When I glanced at them enviously and made eye contact, I would unconsciously shrink my shoulders. Haha. Once, I was unlucky and got beaten up badly for looking at them unpleasantly."
Heukyeong bit her lip tightly.
Gongsun Shu laughed heartily, saying it was all old memories.
"My large book bag always had a martial arts novel in it. I read whenever I had time. Stories of swordsmen wandering the world with a single sword. Cutting down countless demonic figures of the evil sect, charging into the Blood Cult alone, and finally stabbing the heart of the Blood Demon... but dying alone, unrecognized, standing in solitude. Stories of unknown heroes like that."
"That's a complete third-rate novel."
Unintentionally, a blunt remark slipped out, and Gongsun Shu laughed awkwardly.
"Haha. Everyone likes such stories in their childhood. There were many novels imagining the reason for the sudden weakening of the Blood Cult. It was during my childhood, so there were many novels imagining the reason."
"... That's the first I've heard of it."
"Haha. It's an old story."
An old story...
If he knew he was learning martial arts from the instructor who trained the Blood Cult's demonic figures, what expression would Gongsun Shu make? And if he learned the real reason for the Blood Cult's downfall...
I briefly entertained such thoughts and then shook my head.
It's a meaningless assumption.
"When I returned to my hometown in my old age, I often thought of those times. Haha. It's foolish, isn't it? Wanting to attend a martial arts academy at over sixty... Everyone would say I've gone senile."
"..."
I listened to Gongsun Shu without saying anything.
He sat up and looked at me with a bright smile.
"But what can I do? It's so enjoyable to learn martial arts like this."
"..."
"Even though my body is sixty-five, it feels like I've returned to being fifteen."
Gongsun Shu looked at me with clear eyes.
A slightly mischievous yet innocent smile spread across his lips.
"Thank you."
"Hmm?"
His speech, which had always been respectful, suddenly changed.
"Thank you for letting me feel this way. Thank you for giving meaning to the life of an old man who was just waiting to die."
"What..."
"I promise in advance. Even if I fail the entrance exam, I won't resent you. I'll pay all the money. I've already received a great favor from you."
"..."
Caught off guard by Gongsun Shu's goodwill, I was momentarily speechless.
But soon, I forced a frown and spoke.
"... I told you to speak respectfully to this instructor."
"Haha. I understand. I'll be careful from now on, Instructor!"
The sly old man...
I felt embarrassed, as if my flustered inner thoughts had been exposed.
But...
"And what about you two?"
I looked at Hyeonwon Kang and Weiji Cheon, who had gathered around us.
Having heard Gongsun Shu's story, both of their expressions were a sight to behold.
Weiji Cheon, with a tearful expression, tightly held Gongsun Shu's hand.
"Grandfather... I'll help you so you can definitely pass!"
"Haha. Thank you. Let's make sure we pass together."
Beside him, Hyeonwon Kang patted his chest and spoke.
"Old man, if you have any questions, ask me. As a senior at Azure Dragon Academy, I can give you some advice."
"Haha. Thank you, senior."
I let out a deep sigh and knocked on the heads of the two boys.
"Go train, you rascals. You can't even take care of yourselves."
"That's too much..."
"How can you stay still after hearing such a story, you cold-hearted person!"
"Haha. Don't scold the kids too much."
"I told you to speak respectfully to this instructor!"
"Hahahaha!"
After a while of bickering with the trainees, I found myself chuckling and awkwardly touched my lips.
But I didn't dislike that awkwardness. 'The demon instructor of the Blood Cult, huh...' It seemed that returning completely to those days was now impossible.