Chapter 50: Close Than Ever (3) (1/2)

Chapter 50: Closer Than Ever (3)

Translator: hwarang

Editor: Klaurem

She woke up early next morning. It was questionable if she was ever truly slept since she went to bed so late and woke up so early. It might be that she was just practicing a basic circulation technique during the night to drive away her weariness.

Early in the morning she went up the mountain and came back down. It seemed as if she was training up in the mountain.

After asking various people through Jung Yeo, I found out that she never missed a day to go up the mountain.

Through this I discovered a very important truth. Which was, she was not here to protect Ma Jung Soo. If she was here for his protection, then she would be guarding him all the time.However, it seemed her mission was not to ‘guard’ but to ‘observe’. Just like how I was observing her.

This couldn’t have been better for me since I had decided to get rid of Ma Jung Soo.

I wanted to observe what sort of training she did up in the mountain, but I decided against it. Since I didn’t want her to discover my intent, it was better to keep myself under her radar.

However, I had a sense of what sort of martial arts she practiced. I could have confirmed my theory if I could search her with my ki but I needed to stay hidden. From the looks of it, since she didn’t have any weapon, she must use some sort of bare-handed martial art. By observing how she walked I could determine that she was an expert.

Most likely she must be on par with Si Gon or slightly below him. Considering her age, this was a great achievement.

Her skills as well as her atmosphere.

I do not know which secret organization raised her, but she impressed me as well as made me a bit nervous.

Anyways, I was going to use her to my advantage. Her role as an observer was a very important one since I was going to use her to send a message back to whoever she was sent by. I would show them that Ma Jung Soo was eliminated by the Black Merchants.

The next night I stood by the pond observing it. Beautiful lotus flowers were floating on top of the garden, flowing whichever direction the fall winds took them. There were a couple of koi inside the pond but since it was late, they were barely moving.

I was curious, why did she do this? Was it because she wanted to rescue the koi? Or was it because she wanted to kill them.

I then saw the beautiful moon reflecting on the surface of the pond.

I thought maybe it wasn’t the koi, but this reflection that she was watching.

After looking at the pond for a little while longer, I turned around and saw her looking this way.

Rather than heading towards her room, she slowly came this way and stood next to me.

Without saying a word and treating me as if I was non-existent, she looked down at the pond.

“Don’t you think it is weird?”

She gave me a small glance after hearing my words.

“I asked you, Isn’t it weird not treating a person like a person when they are standing next to you?”

She said while staring at the pond, “Never”

She said it in such a small voice that most others wouldn’t have been able to hear it. However, I heard it clearly. This was the first word she had said.

Then I replied, “Regardless.”

She turned her head towards me with a perplexed expression, as if questioning my last word.

“Regardless of how you live, you only live once. So, it might be better to live by yourself without intermingling with others.”

Then she turned her gaze back towards the pond.

“Are you not going to tell me your name?”

After looking at the lotus flower for a bit she replied, “Are names so important?”

She may have sounded like she was talking to herself but this was the first time she completed a sentence.

“What is more important than a person’s name? You need to be called something, right? You can’t just be called ‘hey you’.”

She didn’t say anything so I just pretended to give up and said, “Alright. Since you don’t care what your name is  I guess it’s fine whether I call you pond or Koi you will be you.”

She just kept looking at the pond expressionlessly.

Looking at her I felt reminiscent of myself. Since it made me realize how emotionlessly I lived my past life.

“I am sorry, I was just in the moment.”

She moved her lips a little in response to my apology. It seemed as if she wanted to say something.

Then someone was calling me from far away.

“Warrior Kal.”

Ma Jung Soo was waving his hand calling for me. Due to his calling the small expression on the woman’s face disappeared.

“Yes”

I replied loudly and went towards him.

Ma Jung Soo asked me with a darkened expression, “What did you ask of her?”

“Nothing much sir. I just asked for her name but she didn’t respond.”

“Didn’t I tell you before? Don’t worry about her.”

I could feel some frustration in his voice.

“I am sorry. We just saw each other by chance…”

“Come to my room later.”

“Yes sir”

Ma Jung Soo went into the building.

When I turned my head back to the pond she was gone.

When I entered Ma Jung Soo’s room he was drinking by himself.

“Come here and have a cup from me”

He seemed to be in a lighter mood than he was before.

So I received the cup that he offered.

“Now, drink it up.”

“Yes sir”

I didn’t hesitate and drunk it. As I was drinking it, I remembered another problem that I had to solve.

Which was poison.

In my previous life, I had reached the apex of poison immune physique. Thus, I could eat and drink without worry. Byuk Lee Dan’s body however was not like that.

To achieve the poison immune physique one must change one’s physique. After achieving the poison immune physique, rather than forcefully suppressing poison with ki. Those who had the poison immune physique could nullify the effect of most poisons.

Since I once had that physique I knew how difficult it was to achieve. First, you needed a very powerful poison. Not some artificial poison that could be found easily in the black market but a ridiculously powerful naturally occurring poison.

I will say this one more time, no matter how strong the poison may be, it was impossible to create a poison immune physique with an artificially created poison. Thus one must acquire the poison from a natural source.

That wasn’t the only thing that you needed. You also needed to have an antidote that you can take at the critical time. If you ate it prematurely the poison will have gone to waste and if you eat it too late you would die. So achieving the poison immune body is not an easy thing.

Another thing was even if you eat the antidote at the right time there was a possibility that you will not be able to achieve it. Consequently, only a handful of people had the poison immune physique.

One must be both brave and have the heaven’s blessing to able to reach it. Since I achieved it once I was prepared to do it again if I had the proper ingredients for it. Unfortunately collecting the proper ingredients was practically impossible.

“Jung Bangju said many compliments about you.”

“I am still lacking in many ways sir”

“Here, have another cup”

I drank another cup that he offered me.

Then he asked me about the woman.

“It seems that you are interested in that woman, but I advise you to find a better woman than her.”