Mukeoja — Heh heh… You are at Hwagyeong, aren't you.
Sowoon opened his sense of qi to its fullest.
He steadied his breath to a thin thread and held his gaze still.
Yet from Mukeoja, he grasped nothing.
He was like wind.
There was form, yet nothing one could seize.
Like a thin scrap of paper that might drift away at a touch.
Like a being hollowed out, shell remaining, substance gone.
Mukeoja smiled faintly, almost slyly.
Even the smile seemed to seep rather than appear.
"Well? Can you see anything?"
Sowoon withdrew his gaze.
"No. I am not certain. The place is humble, but please, this way."
Mukeoja turned his head slowly.
"Yes, yes. Those children—are they the martial wanderers you train?"
His fingertip pointed toward the group practicing.
The gesture was light, as though nudging aside something trivial.
"They are. Word spread, and they gathered around me asking to be taught. It became unavoidable. I regarded it as my share to bear."
Mukeoja's eyes narrowed.
"Is it interesting?"
"Yes."
It was a short answer.
Mukeoja chuckled again.
"Heh heh, interesting. Indeed. Whatever one does must hold some interest."
From the opposite side, Jimin was raising her voice at someone.
Sowoon called her over.
She approached, her expression stiff.
Sowoon introduced her briefly.
Jimin offered a reluctant bow.
He asked her to bring tea.
Under the shade, a small tea set was placed.
A cup in the mountain quiet cooled the heat of summer.
The fatigue of climbing the path eased with it.
Mukeoja surveyed the surroundings broadly.
Tents.
Pillars.
Half-shaped timber.
Bare earth.
Then he observed those immersed in training, one by one.
His gaze moved slowly.
It was cold.
Like a coroner examining bodies, meticulous and detached.
It was a gaze upon people, yet without warmth.
Not even the faintest human softness could be felt.
Was it age?
Or a vision long dried of sentiment?
Sowoon watched that gaze quietly.
"It is hot."
Mukeoja murmured.
"This is the mountain's far slope. The wind is thin. We chose a place without people."
Sowoon answered calmly.
Mukeoja glanced at Jimin.
"Polite as well…"
"Thank you."
A brief silence followed.
Sowoon set down his cup and asked,
"I wished to ask why you compiled the Compendium."
"Why? Purpose? Intention?"
Mukeoja's eyes thinned further.
"You mean whether there was some improper design behind it… Very well, I will tell you."
He spoke slowly.
"Originally, it was meant for the Sword Pavilion you destroyed. They claimed to guard the Emperor. I gathered and organized what suited such a role. Yet when they received it, they did not welcome it."
"The lower swordsmen of the Pavilion studied it. But those above were displeased."
A faint smile lingered at his lips.
"Then General Jin requested it. Age had caught me, my strength had waned; I could not compose anew. So I gathered scattered fragments and bound them together."
"The White Dragon Unit made excellent use of it. They are formidable."
Sowoon's eyes flickered.
"You have seen them?"
"Yes. From afar."
Mukeoja's gaze drifted to some distant point.
"The rising military spirit was remarkable. The Compendium is not a book of techniques alone. Mind, will, conviction must stand with it for it to bear force."
He laughed softly.
"The Sword Pavilion lacked that."
Then he looked directly at Sowoon.
"And at its highest peak stands you—Yu Sowoon."
The corner of his mouth twisted.
"Heh heh… You are at Hwagyeong, aren't you."