The incident began like this.
“Miss Yeo Il-ye, why are you suddenly avoiding me?”
“…Not particularly.”
“But you are avoiding me, right now.”
“I’m not sure what you mean…”
“Was it also because of me that you broke the Array Formation and ran away?”
Miss Yeo Il-ye subtly avoided eye contact, and Hyeok Gi-rin crossed his arms in disbelief.
“I swear…”
Hyeok Gi-rin grabbed Miss Yeo Il-ye’s hand as he looked at her.
“Are we really going to fuss over something so trivial? Let’s start practicing right away.”
“Trivial? How could you say that?”
“Isn’t it true that we’ve seen everything there is to see between us? What’s the harm in revealing our true feelings now?”
“That’s not true.”
Miss Yeo Il-ye pushed Hyeok Gi-rin’s hand away, and he frowned at her stubborn response.
“It’s nothing serious, I tell you.”
“Not for me.”
The two began to raise their voices gradually.
“You’re being unreasonable again! It wasn’t serious every time, was it?”
“It was a big deal for me! It may not be a big deal to you, Big Brother Hwang So-wol!”
Their bickering intensified, and soon they even drew their swords.
Kuwuuung!!
After exchanging a strike, Miss Yeo Il-ye grimaced.
With Peak Stage and Hwa-gyeong clashing, it was only natural that Miss Yeo Il-ye would be at a disadvantage.
“Admit it now and focus on Array training!”
The two were already emotionally charged.
Hyeok Gi-rin spoke as if he thought she wouldn’t stand a chance.
“I’m curious how you plan to deal with this move of mine.”
Miss Yeo Il-ye drew two swords.
Tsu tsu tsu!!
Twin Swordplay.
The inefficiency of dual-wielding was well-known, even to those uninterested in martial arts, being the subject of many complaints.
It was wasteful of strength, made the motion of the techniques more straightforward, required additional training for the left hand, and if one wants to wield dual weapons, wouldn’t a shield be a better choice?
Just thinking about it brings a multitude of drawbacks to mind.
What is the fundamental reason for such complaints?
“Cha haaaaaap!!”
Because one person can unleash all their power and abilities with just a single weapon.
But could Miss Yeo Il-ye do the same?
With the vast internal energy impressive enough to astonish even elite fighters, could she truly unleash all her strength and skill with just one weapon?
Her internal energy was far too massive for that.
So, she uses two swords.
And the result was unfolding right before her eyes.
Strikes of power that seemed to rival even the most elite fighters assailed Hyeok Gi-rin from both sides.
“Ugh!!”
This time, Hyeok Gi-rin was the one at a loss.
It wasn’t easy to face the attacks of two Peak Stage fighters head-on.
As he pulled back to regain his energy, a smile crept onto Miss Yeo Il-ye’s face.
“While it is true my skill is lacking, did you really think you had the upper hand?”
“You still underestimate how far ahead I am!”
The clash between them escalated more fiercely than ever.
Despite the difference in their levels, an unexpectedly tight battle ensued.
While Miss Yeo Il-ye had grasped the intricacies of Hyeok Gi-rin’s Four-Finger Saber Technique, Hyeok Gi-rin had yet to fully understand the essence of her Twin Swordplay.
“If you think this is just a casual practice session, you’re mistaken!”
Her internal energy was without a doubt her greatest advantage. However, the goal of typical practice matches is to test one another’s techniques, so Miss Yeo Il-ye often imposed limits on her own competition.
Could it be that she had built up some dissatisfaction about not being able to unleash her full abilities during practice?
The exhilaration in Miss Yeo Il-ye’s expression was probably more than just a passing feeling.
Seeing that expression, anger mixed with surprise appeared on Hyeok Gi-rin’s face.
“If you really want to go all out, just do so during the Array training! What’s with that expression during a mere practice match?”
“You should focus on the match!”
“You’ve always been like this! You either kept your mouth shut or diverted the topic to buy time!”
“Don’t act like you know everything about me!”
“Was I wrong? You could at least tell me the truth instead of making excuses every time! Do you have any idea how much of a headache it’s caused me?”
“It’s true I got help from Big Brother, but most of it was unnecessary interference! I could have handled it on my own given a little time!”
The argument grew as heated as their swordplay.
Both had forgotten Hwang So-wol’s status in their anger, glaring at each other.
And there was Dokgo I-seol, eyes wide with shock.
…I guess I’ll have to explain things to Dokgo I-seol separately.
Even while pondering this, their squabble continued.
“You couldn’t even eat eggs for a week because you didn’t know how to get your food at Chae Seon-dang!”
“What about you, Big Brother? Didn’t you go out for nightly strolls thinking you’d improved, only to be caught acting like a cat?”
Now they started bringing up their embarrassing pasts just to annoy each other.
“Hmph! Do you think I’ve forgotten who let the meals at Chae Seon-dang slide over to the badger?”
“When we got caught eating in the Tang Clan at night and you had your snacks banned for a month, I knew it was you, Big Brother!”
The series of embarrassing revelations continued.
Honestly, calling it a revelation battle felt too adorable.
Imagining Hyeok Gi-rin awkwardly meowing his way back after a nighttime stroll, or picturing a young Miss Yeo Il-ye feeding a badger with her squinty eyes was enough to make anyone chuckle.
While their usual good-natured relationship turning into this explosive spat left their friends wide-eyed, they found themselves watching the amusing scene unfold with puzzled expressions.
Even though their friends were initially shocked and tense, the silly bickering made them feel more relaxed.
It must have been important for the two of them, after all.
Brothers at heart, Hyeok Gi-rin and Miss Yeo Il-ye.
Hyeok Gi-rin had sacrificed himself for the Imperial Family to join the Jeomchang Faction, while Miss Yeo Il-ye was rescued from the ashes of a burnt-down lodge.
When did their bond turn into this fun yet serious friendship?
So many unspoken things must have built up between them over time.
“If you confessed, you could’ve at least dropped a hint! Do you know how shocked I was that day?”
“It’s you who should be upset! Finding out that Big Brother had a crush through Black Cat Miss was just ridiculous!”
…When the topic began to veer into an uncomfortable direction, the duo had already engrossed themselves more in their argument than in the match.
That’s how long their practice had gone on.
With Yeo Il-ye’s immense internal energy running low, and Hyeok Gi-rin also pushing himself to the limit, both were heaving as they caught their breaths.
Hyeok Gi-rin squeezed every last bit of energy he had, pushing away Miss Yeo Il-ye’s blade.
“I never want to see a master like you again!”
“I feel the same way!”
Puffing, they glared at each other and turned away.
Hyeok Gi-rin headed inside while Miss Yeo Il-ye went back outside.
Watching them, I couldn’t help but smile as I turned to Seo Mun-yeon.
It seemed best for Hyeok Gi-rin and Miss Yeo Il-ye to be apart for now.
“Excuse me, but could you please open the Array? I need to get some supplies from the cart for camping.”
“…Sure.”
“Ah, perhaps it would be better to pull in the Bicheongmacha instead.”
I stepped out of the Array with Seo Mun-yeon and Tang Do-yeon.
Squeak!
Seo Gong, resting in the Bicheongmacha, came out to greet me, sniffing curiously at Seo Mun-yeon.
“Oh.”
Noticing that Seo Mun-yeon seemed uncomfortable, I scooped up Seo Gong.
“Is this rat an entity too?”
“Yes, this is Seo Gong.”
“…I see.”
There was a minor commotion as Tang Do-yeon encouraged Seo Mun-yeon to ride in the Bicheongmacha, but thankfully Seo Mun-yeon firmly refused, saying it wasn’t necessary for the short journey.
Perhaps sensing the ominousness befitting someone accomplished with the Array.
Seo Mun-yeon, glancing at Seo Gong wrapped around my arm, spoke.
“Do you think you can achieve the Array?”
What does she mean by that?
As I looked at Seo Mun-yeon, perplexed, she continued.
“Didn’t you witness what happened today? Even if you persuade those two to join the Array, this is just the beginning. There will be constant problems, and each time, fatigue will build up. Understanding each other is in that context.”
“That could be true.”
I agreed with Seo Mun-yeon. Indeed, various conflicts would continue. There was Hyeok Gi-rin’s unrequited feelings, Dokgo I-seol’s obsession and ambition… and me too, for that matter.
Honestly, I had just thought about how cute they were in their childhood, and now they might get angry thinking I’d made fun of that situation.
“Well, if they’re angry, I guess we should soothe them to resolve things.”
“…Do you think this situation can be resolved with just that?”
I couldn’t answer Seo Mun-yeon’s question, only managing a wry smile.
Ultimately, it would depend on Hyeok Gi-rin and Miss Yeo Il-ye’s willingness to reconcile.
I was simply doing what I could to help them reconcile, without any guarantees on the outcome.
All I could do was hope that Miss Yeo Il-ye would cool her head at the camp site and that Hyeok Gi-rin, cradling Seo Gong, would feel better.
“I’m just doing what I can.”
Whether my words were adequate for Seo Mun-yeon, who thought it unlikely that Hyeok Gi-rin and Miss Yeo Il-ye would reconcile, she stopped questioning me further.
