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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: A Disciple Was Born That Didn't Exist Even in My Past Life
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Opening the door and stepping inside, I found Taeu there, wiping down her half-naked body.
"...Huh?"
But something was missing.
Something crucial was absent.
What was it?
No, why was it missing?
"Kyaaah!"
The one thing every man should have... wasn't there.
That's right.
Taeu was a woman.
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"Uh, what is it? Sorry about that."
I dragged out the awkward atmosphere and stepped outside with Taeu.
Taeu clamped her mouth shut, her face flushed as she stared at the ground.
"Your name, your clothes, your speech—everything made me think you were a guy, obviously."
I'd thought she was pretty for a man, a bit small in stature and build, but I never dreamed she was a woman.
Now that I knew, though, her delicate features stood out so clearly it made me question why I'd ever thought otherwise.
"N-no, it's fine. It's my fault for pretending to be a man..."
Pretending to be a man.
Come to think of it, from the moment we met, her speech and behavior had been completely masculine.
To survive among the slum boys, pretending to be one of them must have been the smart play.
"But my name really is Taeu. It's what my parents who abandoned me gave me. They probably thought I was a boy and named me that, then ditched me when they saw I was a girl."
Taeu's expression grew incredibly forlorn as she spoke of her parents.
"That's why I hated it... the fact that I was a girl."
"Whether you're a girl or a boy doesn't matter."
Her loneliness felt strangely familiar, and before I knew it, I raised my voice.
"You're strong. And knowing you're a woman won't change that for me."
In truth, the martial world was full of female masters.
It was a place where underestimating a woman could get your head lopped off in an instant.
Some even led major sects despite being women.
"You're kind."
Taeu smiled faintly and leaned her head on my shoulder.
"At first, I thought you were so strong and scary, but sometimes you feel like endlessly deep, gentle waters."
Kind, huh.
It had been ages since I'd heard that.
"How did you get so strong?"
"I've got more years under my belt than you."
"Pfft, I haven't said anything, but I'm past thirty this year. You're younger than your sturdy little brother here."
"That's surprising. I figured you were around Wolhyang's age."
'I haven't said anything either, but I've actually lived nearly a century.'
I wanted to say it, but settled for a smile instead.
"Tell me. How did you change so much in an instant?"
"What was the old me like in your memory?"
"Right. From afar, you always looked angry, hot-tempered, hating to lose... and incredibly lonely. Like you were pushing the whole world away by yourself. It felt strangely relatable."
Is that how it was?
Maybe in my past life, we could have been friends too.
"You were hard to approach, so I just watched from a distance. I was shocked when you came to me, Sowol. Not just stronger all of a sudden... Anyway, what happened?"
"I can't say right now. But I'll tell you someday, for sure."
I could tell her everything, but something told me it was better to stay ordinary friends like this.
"Then you have to tell me later, promise?"
She held out her pinky with a smile.
I wasn't one for promises, but that day, my finger hooked hers lightly all the same.
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"Sleep well?"
When I woke in the morning, Taeu was lying right beside me.
I jolted up in surprise, which must have woken Wolhyang too as she rubbed her eyes.
Right, with no bedrooms in this house, we'd all crashed in the living room together.
No feelings would stir for a girl Wolhyang's age, but sharing a room with a peer of the opposite sex was still a strain on this young body.
"Oppa, what's wrong?"
Wolhyang blinked sleepily at me and Taeu, then broke into a pleased grin.
"You bring a girl home, and you're already like that?"
Last night, she'd said she knew Taeu was a girl the moment they met.
When I asked why she hadn't told me sooner, she laughed loudly, saying she never imagined I wouldn't notice.
"Like that? Sowol and I aren't..."
Taeu blushed to her ears and looked away.
"A-alright, enough teasing. Let's eat first."
Leaving the awkward vibe behind, we tidied the room and prepared breakfast together.
"Feels like I gained a big sister."
Wolhyang, eating quietly, glanced at Taeu and spoke up.
"Yeah, like the family's grown."
"Family? Really...?"
Taeu smiled shyly.
Raised without one, she was clumsy at it, but deep down, she'd always craved family.
The emptiness of absence eats away at you, knowingly or not—just like it did me in my past life.
New family, new friends—the resonance of those words filled the room as we began a livelier day than before.
"Taeu, wanna step out for a bit?"
After eating, I called her outside.
"What's up?"
"Ever thought about learning martial arts?"
"Martial arts?"
Taeu had the talent.
Surviving the martial world as a woman wasn't easy, but given how entangled we were, she should have the strength to protect herself.
And someone to guard Wolhyang when I wasn't around.
"I'd love to if I could, but teaching your martial arts to someone isn't a light decision, right?"
"Strictly speaking, it's not what I use. A woman's body lacks the power for long weapons, so if you're choosing one, short sword techniques would suit you best."
I snapped a nearby twig in half and handed it to her.
"Seeing is worth a thousand words. Watch closely."
I took my stance first, and Taeu quickly followed, her eyes sharpening in an instant.
She was treating the twig like a real sword. Having been through real combat once, her mindset had already surpassed a beginner's.
There's a world of difference between someone who's cut a person and someone who's learned how.
With her talent, that one experience must have taught her even more.
Taeu focused on her twig, staring piercingly at my movements without a flicker.
When I subtly shifted my stance to show an opening, she thrust without hesitation, aiming for my throat.
I deflected the attack with minimal motion, then swept upward as if slashing her arm, stopping at her neck.
"How's that?"
Taeu gasped, eyes wide, breathing raggedly.
"Amazing... My attack got blocked in a flash, and it felt like a blade was coming at me."
"It's called the Shadow Severing Art. A technique assassins created to counter an enemy's attack and finish them once detected."
The Shadow Severing Art was one I'd learned in my past life as a wanted man, during my time as Black Moon Squad Leader in the Lower Five Gates.
Assassins usually focused on stealth steps and one-hit kills, not techniques for when spotted.
The rule was to die on the spot if your identity was revealed.
That's why the Shadow Severing Art was an advanced art, reserved for squad leaders and above.
Hardly anyone in the Lower Five Gates would recognize it—perfect for Taeu to learn.
"Shall we start real training now?"
"Yeah. I'll train hard."
Stimulated by that single strike, her eyes sparkled. That passion and focus were clear signs of her gift.
From that day, from dawn till dusk, Taeu trained with me daily.
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"The Shadow Severing Art is a slashing art, not thrusting. The motion starts like a thrust, but the key is drawing a line, not a point."
"Like this?"
"Too big. Forget swinging the sword. Thrust in your mind, but end the motion with a slash—that's true Shadow Severing."
A week had passed teaching Taeu. With her innate talent, she'd escaped third-rate level in just five days.
Now, with basics solid, she could beat any third-rate around here easily.
Time to form her dantian.
"Training ends here for today. Let's get some real combat experience."
"Real combat? How?"
"I've got something in mind. Follow me."
I covered our faces with cloth and headed down dark alleys. Felt like I'd become an assassin myself.
"Sowol, listen, no...?"
At the end stood two familiar thugs with red goblin tattoos. Fallen Ghosts Pavilion lowlifes—perfect practice dummies.
"You want me to fight Fallen Ghosts Pavilion...?"
"Two of them, perfect. I'll take the other. Sound good?"
"No way, impossible. I've only trained a week."
"That's why you're coming. To show those losers aren't scary anymore."
I strode toward them, pulling Taeu along.
"Who are you? Come closer and you're dead."
They scowled, gripping swords, mistaking us for assassins.
"Do all you retards talk the same? You got a trash-training academy or what?"
"This fucking punk."
Provoked just right, one Fallen Ghosts thug stepped forward, sword raised.
"Taeu."
I tapped her back lightly.
Taeu looked terrified, but seeing the incoming longsword, she drew her dagger and deflected the blade.
Her expression flipped in an instant. Eyes locked on the blade, forgetting to breathe, every nerve focused.
She kept calm distance, never losing sight of the tip, dodging with minimal moves. Her basics were solid.
"Filthy rat learned some weird trick."
The thug panted, raising his sword high to end it. His rhythm broke, impatience bleeding into the blade.
Taeu didn't miss the gap.
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡ Shadow Severing Art: Hidden Shadow Chain Slash
Seven red lines traced over the Fallen Ghosts thug's skin.
"Gahk."
Not lethal, but he'd be out for a while.
"This fuck..."
The other, distracted watching his buddy fall, missed my fist coming his way.
Thwack!
Thud.
With them down, only Taeu's ragged breaths echoed in the dark alley.
"I... I won?"
"Who taught you? Of course you did."
"Ha, haha."
Taeu laughed like a kid getting her first birthday gift. Her blood-smeared hands jumping didn't feel off—must be this martial world I knew.
The thrill of crushing foes you thought unbeatable. That overwhelming rush. Every martial artist gets hooked and dives into the jianghu.
For Taeu, this was that moment.
What impact it'd have on her life, who knows? Maybe she'd end up hating the martial world like me and regret stepping in.
I had no right to say, fondly watching her bright smile amid the blood.
I'd just guide her so she wouldn't stray down the wrong path like my past self.
Thus, in my second life, I'd gained a disciple who never existed in the first.