“Whoa!!”
…I jolted upright.
The familiar courtyard came into view.
As I blankly looked around, it suddenly hit me, and I wiped my forehead.
“Was it all a dream…?”
Looking back now, it was one of those absurd dreams you have. What was with the top beauty in the province that wouldn’t even appear in a cheap dating sim, with the blindfolded Miss Yeo Il-ye, the rider Tang Do-yeon, and the school bully Tang So-yeol all making a total mess?
What kind of extracurricular activities are allowed in a school like in South Korea where students are suffocated with college entrance exams, even having to study during physical education class?
No matter how you look at it, this just felt too unrealistic.
“Ugh.”
I grumbled and let out a sigh.
Even though it was a dream, I couldn’t just brush aside the last moments.
The situation in the gymnasium from my dream reasonably reflected the embarrassment I felt yesterday.
Through I-seol’s perception, I had learned about Hyeok Gi-rin’s feelings.
And the fact that I had read Hyeok Gi-rin’s feelings would definitely be exposed during today’s Array Formation practice.
Just as I could read Hyeok Gi-rin’s feelings, the worries that filled my head would also be instantly communicated to others the moment Oh Seong-jin expands his brainwaves.
So, I had to make a conclusion of some sort before the practice started today.
It was clear who I needed to find.
The person who created this Array Formation and fully understood its principles.
Seo Mun-yeon.
“Come in.”
Even though it was early dawn, Seo Mun-yeon was awake. No, she appeared to be writing something on paper with a brush, without even glancing my way, as if she hadn’t slept at all.
“I came here to ask you a few things.”
“Speak.”
“I felt like I could read others’ hearts while expanding Oh Seong-jin. Will the same situation occur when I expand it in the future?”
“If it’s severe, it will be; it won’t lessen.”
I frowned at Seo Mun-yeon’s words.
“That’s… problematic, isn’t it?”
“If learning everyone’s true feelings, without any pretense, is a problem, then perhaps it is. Quite the unexpected statement. Have you not already understood that it’s due to the connection of hearts that Oh Seong-jin can be established?”
That was indeed the truth.
Oh Seong-jin was an Array Formation premised on the connection of hearts, allowing for the manipulation of others’ Qi.
Even though I was fully aware of that fact, I was still saying something ridiculous.
“Are you afraid? Afraid of having your innermost thoughts revealed and what might happen because of that? If so, give up right now.”
Seo Mun-yeon perfectly tapped into my innermost thoughts.
Am I afraid?
Perhaps.
Honestly speaking, Hyeok Gi-rin’s affection was incredibly bewildering. If we were to start Array Formation practice like this, the feelings I would convey to others would simply be awkwardness.
What would Hyeok Gi-rin think upon receiving such feelings from me?
I couldn’t shake off those thoughts.
“In the end, Oh Seong-jin is an Array Formation where hearts connect with each other. If you cannot bear the clash of minds colliding, you cannot maintain it.”
…Clash.
“If you think you can’t handle it, you can give up at any time.”
Give up.
I shook my head.
“That’s not an option.”
It wasn’t simply that I didn’t want to give up my means to contend with the Entity of the Blood Sect.
Because our hearts connected, I received this embarrassing feeling and fell into a dilemma. But… the feelings I received were not solely that.
I recalled the emotions I received from my party members.
The strong will to achieve Oh Seong-jin.
My companions were challenging Oh Seong-jin with a resolve as strong as mine, or perhaps even greater.
Knowing such will so evidently, could I truly abandon this because I didn’t want to convey awkward feelings to Hyeok Gi-rin?
“…Yeah, I guess that’s right.”
Upon my answer, Seo Mun-yeon muttered something.
It seemed she had already anticipated that I would come to this conclusion.
“The Array Formation practice begins in the afternoon, so prepare your heart.”
Seo Mun-yeon said, looking at me intently.
“Good luck.”
* *
Seo Mun-yeon reminisced about her first encounter with Jegal Seong-chan.
Their meeting took place in a certain emerging Sect.
For the efficacy of Array Formation, Seo Mun-yeon was willing to adopt any means necessary.
And, in case of emergencies, Jegal Seong-chan adhered to stable principles.
The moment they faced each other, they began to argue.
However, while working together, they couldn’t help but acknowledge each other’s skills, resulting in genuine curiosity about each other’s methods.
As they took closer and closer steps, they eventually became lovers.
They married with everyone’s blessings, and Seo Mun-yeon became Seong-chan’s wife, living in the House of Jegal.
If only everything had flowed smoothly, and they could have lived happily for a hundred years, but where does life unfold that easily?
The conflicts between the Array Masters of the House of Jegal and Seo Mun-yeon, who chose the Left Path, were unavoidable.
As a passionate young couple of Array Masters, Seo Mun-yeon and Jegal Seong-chan sought to resolve those conflicts through accomplishments.
Since the Array Masters of the House of Jegal were unable to overlook Seo Mun-yeon’s Left Path, they created a dreadful conflict.
That way, the two united and continued to research tirelessly.
The more they worked, the more they desperately realized one fact.
Two people, who could be described as opposites. Drawn to each other by their different polarities, they had become lovers, yet still, they did not fully understand each other.
They realized that it would require a long time for Jegal Seong-chan to fully understand Seo Mun-yeon’s Left Path, and for Seo Mun-yeon to fully grasp Jegal Seong-chan’s Right Path.
Therefore, Seo Mun-yeon created a certain technique.
通心術 (Tongsin Sut).
A technique that connects their hearts.
Both knew well that a technique to connect their hearts came close to a taboo. Yet, they believed they could master Tongsin Sut.
Though they did not fully understand each other’s Array Formations.
They assumed that they understood each other’s hearts deeply enough.
Jegal Seong-chan, proficient in the Right Path’s Array Formation. And Seo Mun-yeon, who mastered the Left Path’s Array Formation.
They saw the opportunity to create a flawless Array Formation that combined the principles of the Left and Right Paths.
Filled with hope that they could leave a huge mark on history as both a couple and Array Masters, they performed the technique.
‘And then… it ended up like this.’
Seo Mun-yeon and Jegal Seong-chan parted ways.
What remained was an irreparable wound… and only Jegal Seong-chan’s Array knowledge lingered in her mind.
With a still aching heart, Seo Mun-yeon gazed at Ho Cheon-an and his party, who were raising the Qi of Oh Seong-jin.
‘Could they truly overcome it?’
Seo Mun-yeon smiled bitterly.
Rather than recklessly challenging the Entity of the Blood Sect, wouldn’t it be better if the group fell apart? What right did she have to hold such expectations after passing on the Array Formation?
“I’ll begin.”
With that thought, Seo Mun-yeon steadied her heart and swung the Eon-Un Sword. The Qi unleashed from the Eon-Un Sword disrupted the Array Formation, toppling the balance of five Qi and guiding it towards the Brainstorm.
Brainstorm.
The moment it unfolded, Hyeok Gi-rin’s expression shifted.
‘Caught.’
Hyeok Gi-rin’s heart felt achy. The feelings of affection that Hyeok Gi-rin harbored were transmitted to Ho Cheon-an, who was receiving a burden of confusion and embarrassment.
Hyeok Gi-rin took in the numerous emotions conveyed from Ho Cheon-an one by one.
The yearning for Hyeok Gi-rin to find true happiness while juggling two identities filled with conflict.
The surprise when she appeared with the Jeokgwi Daebyeol.
The impulse to ruffle her hair during special training for gambling.
And even the gratitude for diligently participating in the Array Formation practice despite her complicated personal history.
Amid the undeniable emotions pouring in, Hyeok Gi-rin felt sorrow.
The myriad feelings received from Ho Cheon-an.
Most of them were positive, but nowhere in that mix was there ‘affection.’
“Array.”
The flow of the Array changed. Hyeok Gi-rin sensed the previously tense Qi within the Array settling down as she calmed her heart.
The distinct absence of romantic feelings directed at Hyeok Gi-rin in Ho Cheon-an’s heart.
Confirming that absence hurt Hyeok Gi-rin.
In Ho Cheon-an’s heart, there was no affection for Hyeok Gi-rin.
However, the feelings sent from Ho Cheon-an held a firm resolve.
Unsure how to respond to the feelings received from Hyeok Gi-rin.
But a determination that she would never take those feelings lightly or turn away from them.
‘Then I shall wait.’
Hyeok Gi-rin answered that way.
“Shattering Star.”
Once again, the Array changed.
Hyeok Gi-rin anxiously glanced at the Black Cat, Ho Cheon-an’s lover. What feelings would such a Black Cat harbor about the emotions exchanged between Ho Cheon-an and Hyeok Gi-rin?
Even though they agreed to cooperate, would she get upset about the emotions exchanged between them?
Lost in those thoughts, Hyeok Gi-rin couldn’t help but burst into laughter at the flood of emotions from the Black Cat.
“Pfft.”
The unfiltered anger of the Black Cat, who was highly irate about Ho Cheon-an’s obliviousness, was transmitted without a hitch.
After that came a stream of complex feelings.
Worrying about Hyeok Gi-rin. And, simultaneous jealousy stirred alongside worries about the future.
An indescribable blend of positive and negative emotions.
Hyeok Gi-rin accepted the Black Cat’s intertwined feelings just as they were.
“Black Star.”
Hyeok Gi-rin managed a wry smile at the immersive feelings of Dokgo I-seol.
Dokgo I-seol wasn’t even trying to hide her feelings, so her intense emotions pierced straight into Hyeok Gi-rin’s heart.
The obsession with Ho Cheon-an.
The yearning to seize Ho Cheon-an’s heart, enduring even the pain of changing herself, was an untouched flame in Dokgo I-seol’s feelings.
Burning with the desire to possess Ho Cheon-an by any means necessary.
However, beneath that, the vulnerability of not wanting to see Ho Cheon-an sad and not wanting to be thrown away was clearly revealed.
It was complicated enough that it was hard to simply dislike them.
“Grand Star.”
In the final fluctuation of the Array, Hyeok Gi-rin gasped.
The love that overlapped with her mentor, Miss Yeo Il-ye.
The Black Cat. Tang Do-yeon. Tang So-yeol. Dokgo I-seol. Knowing she couldn’t say that any one bond was deep would be unfair, but nothing compared to the connection with Yeo Il-ye.
Having studied together from the Jeomchang and sometimes opposing each other, they had come this far.
Two disciples harboring feelings for the same person.
In that circumstance, Hyeok Gi-rin felt a mix of comfort, embarrassment, and guilt.
Thus, Hyeok Gi-rin was eager to uncover what feelings Yeo Il-ye harbored deep within.
‘What does my mentor truly feel…?’
As Hyeok Gi-rin pondered while feeling the changing Qi of the Array, suddenly, the flow ceased.
The previously smoothly communicating Qi abruptly cut off, and in an instant, the energy of the Array scattered in all directions.
As the Qi, which had climaxed, dispersed, the internal momentum wrapped around all the party members.
Their clothing and hair fluttered in the gusts of energy, and everyone turned their gaze to one person.
Miss Yeo Il-ye.
Miss Yeo Il-ye had stopped the flow of Qi, ceasing the Array.
“Ah…”
Upon receiving the eyes of her party, Miss Yeo Il-ye retreated, her pale face reflecting her confusion. They could sense her feelings even without being connected to her heart.
Miss Yeo Il-ye had unwittingly disrupted the flow of the Array.
…And the reason became immediately apparent.
Because she didn’t want her innermost thoughts to be uncovered.
“I… I…”
With a look of bewilderment, Miss Yeo Il-ye gazed at her party.
When her eyes met Hyeok Gi-rin’s, her shoulders trembled.
“I-I’m sorry..”
What could she be sorry for? Perhaps even Miss Yeo Il-ye didn’t understand the exact meaning of her apology as she fled.
The party members gazed in shock and confusion at the direction in which Miss Yeo Il-ye had vanished.
Seo Mun-yeon watched the bewildered party members turn away, then turned to think.
As always.
Problems often arise from the most unexpected places.
