Chapter 4. The First Words I’ve Ever Said in My Life

The weight of reality was as heavy as Beomcheon’s body.

If it were his past self, would sealing a pressure point even be an issue?

With just a flick of his sleeve, he could have sent someone like Beomcheon flying over a hundred yards.

But not now.

With Beomcheon on his chest, pinning his arms down with his knees, he was out of breath and couldn’t push him off.

Beomcheon was like a mountain.

No, let’s be honest. This body was so frail that it couldn’t even handle an old man who hadn’t learned martial arts.

“Beomcheon, get off me right now… Agagak…”

Before he could vent all his anger, his mouth was forced open.

Beomcheon pried his mouth open with both hands and shoved his hand inside.

“Eat it and die. I will follow you soon, so your journey to the afterlife won’t be lonely!”

“Agagak… Stop it right… Gurgle…”

Even when he tried to close his mouth, Beomcheon’s hands were like steel clamps.

Moreover, just from using a little strength, his head was already dizzy and he had no energy.

In the meantime, Beomcheon shoved the poison pill into his mouth.

“Ugh-eup!”

Beomcheon, who had been tearing his mouth open just a moment ago, now clamped his palm over his mouth to prevent him from opening it. His palm also covered his nose, and Hugong now had to struggle just to breathe.

Meanwhile, the poison pill on his tongue began to dissolve.

‘Am I going to die like this?’

To suddenly enter another body and then suddenly die.

Hugong couldn’t hide his bewilderment.

‘By a poison that’s nothing more than a snack? Me?’

Even if he had to die from eating something, it couldn’t be poison. No, even if he were to concede a hundred times and die, it wasn’t right to go without knowing the reason.

Meanwhile, Beomcheon was using all his strength, as he was prepared for a joint suicide. With his eyes turning bloodshot from the bursting veins, he was desperately clamping his mouth shut to prevent him from spitting out the poison.

“Die, just die—, you baaastard!”

While struggling, Hugong managed to free one arm.

Thwack!

He struck Beomcheon’s Adam’s apple with the side of his hand.

“Keuk! Heok, heok…”

Beomcheon clutched his throat and fell to the side.

In that time, Hugong hastily spat out the poison pill.

He had to spit out even the bit that had dissolved on his tongue, so he coughed and gagged, trying to get it all out with his saliva.

“Keeeek! Keck-keck! Huh?”

At that moment, Hugong felt a wave of dizziness.

His head spun.

His mind went blank, and the floor started to move.

Is my body spinning, or is the floor spinning?

Then the floor got closer to his eyes.

Thud!

Hugong fell, his face hitting the floor.

The poison was so potent that even the tiny amount that had dissolved while in his mouth was enough for its effects to take hold.

‘No way. Am I really going to… here…’

His chest felt like it was on fire, and half of his body was becoming paralyzed.

His throat stiffened, and his mouth fell open on its own.

He couldn’t breathe properly.

Even as he writhed and clawed at his throat, his airway wouldn’t open.

“Gurgle… I, I am… I am…”

Not your grandson. I am the Martial Alliance Leader!

The words wouldn’t come out, no matter how he tried.

Hugong, clutching his throat, looked up at Beomcheon, drenched in bewilderment. Beomcheon’s shadowed face grew even colder.

“Yes, now die. Isn’t this the death you so desperately wanted? Weren’t you the one who thought nothing of pain as long as you could die!”

‘What kind of situation is this.’

Even if one undergoes soul transmigration, aren’t there many ordinary people? Why did my body have to be swapped with a guy obsessed with suicidal impulses?

To die like this was more than just unfair.

But at this rate, his death was a foregone conclusion.

In that case, he had no choice but to pull out his last resort.

In an instant, Hugong gathered all the information. At the same time, he mustered the last bit of strength he could. He really didn’t want to go this far, but Hugong had no choice.

The problem was whether it would work, but no, he had to make it work.

Trembling, Hugong reached out his hand.

“Sa…”

“What is it!”

“Sa, save…”

“…?”

“Save… me. Grand… father…. Gurgle, gurgle…”

“…?? “

His vision blurred, and his consciousness faded.

At the edge of his consciousness, Hugong could see Beomcheon’s eyes waver.

***

The bedchamber of the Cheonhwa Library’s Eldest Young Master.

The family head, Beomcheon, and a physician stood by the bed, looking down at the sleeping young man.

“What is Beomhang’s condition?”

The family head asked.

The physician’s voice came immediately.

“Do not worry. The toxins of the Blood Rain Poison remain, but it is not life-threatening. At the earliest, a month, at the latest, a month and a half, and all the toxins can be removed. The pain will gradually subside, and the partially paralyzed body will return to its original state.”

“You’ve worked hard.”

“Not at all.”

‘Damn it, it was Blood Rain Poison?’

The young man, no, Hugong, was awake but pretending to be asleep, listening to their conversation.

He had barely saved his life through his last resort in a moment of crisis, but Hugong felt it was too unfair to call it fortunate. He had never thought he would have to pathetically say, “Save me.”

This was the first time in his life, from birth until now, that he had ever asked to be saved.

Until now, he had only ever heard such words.

All he had to do was decide whether to forgive or to kill.

On top of that, hearing that the poison was Blood Rain Poison left him speechless.

He knew Blood Rain Poison all too well.

Blood Rain was another name for a poisonous mushroom called Blood Mushroom.

When grilled over a fire, the mushroom’s toxicity intensified, but its savory flavor also deepened, so he often enjoyed it as a snack in the mountains and fields when he roamed the martial world.

It was just a pity that he couldn’t eat it often because it was hard to find; the Blood Rain mushroom had nothing to do with life or death. But to think he had to be bedridden for a month because of a Blood Rain Poison pill made from its extract.

It was just a snack!

The two continued their conversation.

“Family Head, but there is something I am curious about…”

The physician trailed off.

This was after he had lamented and blamed the family head for a long time for attempting a joint suicide with his grandson at dawn, and then tearfully told him never to do it again.

“Speak.”

“It is a stroke of luck from heaven, but… what does it mean that the Eldest Young Master said ‘save me’?”

The physician’s voice was cautious, yet tinged with curiosity.

“It is as it sounds. I did not mishear it…”

“Is that so? But.”

“I wouldn’t have believed it myself if I hadn’t heard it directly.”

An abnormal conversation continued as if it were nothing.

It was natural for a dying person to ask to be saved, but the two reacted as if it were the strangest thing in the world.

“It is joyous news, but how could it happen without any prior signs…”

“Hmm, he did feel different from usual. His tone of speech, too.”

“Could it be that you saw a passion for life?”

“That wasn’t it. If it were that kind of thing, I would have noticed right away. It was…”

The family head Beom’s brow furrowed as if recalling that moment.

“It was just watching. Contemplation.”

“Pardon?”

“It seemed different from the indifference that comes from despair. It was an indifference of the true center. The strange thing is, he didn’t recognize me. He called me by my name without any honorifics.”

“He didn’t recognize you? Then we must assume that the effects of the Blood Rain Poison have reached his brain.”

“The effects of the poison?”

“Yes, the Blood Rain Poison is extremely potent, and if even a small amount penetrates the brain, various variables can occur, such as becoming violent or, conversely, becoming as gentle as a lamb. It can even cause memory loss, so a rougher tone of speech is a common occurrence.”

“Perhaps. But…”

“Is there something that bothers you?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

The family head, Beomcheon, was sparing with his words.

His grandson’s attitude being unfamiliar and his tone of speech becoming rough had happened before he put the Blood Rain Poison in his mouth.

From Beomcheon’s reserved demeanor, Hugong understood his intentions.

‘He’s thinking it’s better to leave things as they are.’

He must be afraid of losing hope, even if it was just a slight possibility. Since his grandson, who had wished for death by slitting his throat and wrists, had asked to be saved, a glimmer of hope must have blossomed in his heart.

“I hope this incident becomes a blessing in disguise.”

“I would have no other wish.”

“To be honest, I am more worried about you, Family Head.”

“Haha, me? You don’t need to worry about me at all.”

“I don’t ask for much from you, Family Head. Just live for another thirty years.”

“Just… I didn’t see you that way.”

The two left the room, laughing.

In the afternoon, other people came to visit.

They were two young men.

As one young man, drunk, entered the room and swayed as if he would fall, the young man next to him quickly reached out to support him. But he brushed off the hand, saying he was fine, and then fell backward with a thud.

“Brother, are you alright?”

The younger brother looked at him with concern.

He had a handsome and gentle impression.

“Of course I’m fine. Hey, Bumong! Don’t get the wrong idea. I didn’t fall. This brother of yours intended to sit on the floor from the beginning.”

The drunken young man, having fallen, sat on the floor nonchalantly.

“Yes, I thought so.”

“By the way, is that beast-like bastard still alive?”

“He seems to be asleep.”

“Sleeping? Haha, that crazy bastard, he can sleep? Little brother, at this rate, that guy will live longer than us. He’s going to live a long life. He only talks about dying, but at this rate, isn’t he going to live until he’s shitting on the walls?”

“He said he asked grandfather to save him, so maybe eldest brother’s mind has changed.”

The younger brother’s gentle tone provoked anger.

The drunken young man’s neck veins bulged.

“Eldest brother? Shut that mouth of yours. Before I kill you first!”

“I’m sorry.”

“You only have one brother. That thing is a beast, not a human bastard! Got it?”

“…”

“I said, do you get it!”

“Yes.”

“Damn it, I feel like crap. I shouldn’t have come to see that crazy face. I was crazy. Let’s go.”

“…”

“I said, let’s go!”

“Yes.”

The two young men left, and the room became quiet again.

‘It seems this body has younger brothers.’

While listening to the conversation, Hugong felt an urge to see the drunken bastard’s face, but he judged that it was not yet time, as he still lacked information.

In the evening, the family head, Beomcheon, came again for a short while, sat in silence, and then left. The physician also came to check his pulse, and there were no other visitors.

Hugong pretended to be asleep the whole time, just observing the situation.

With a frail body and no knowledge, engaging in conversation would only add to his fatigue. The priority was to stay still and secure at least a minimum amount of information.

Though small, there were some gains.

This body’s name was Beomhang.

A guy who had longed for death.

And, the Eldest Young Master of the Cheonhwa Library.

Two younger brothers.

Furthermore, it seemed the Cheonhwa Library was on the verge of ruin.

The atmosphere was somehow desolate, and there were too few visitors.

The eldest young master of a family had come back from the dead, yet only three family members had come to visit.

Considering that one of the two younger brothers, whether they were cousins or real brothers, had come even while drunk, it was safe to say that, regardless of his manners, everyone who could come had come.

When there is a sick person in the family, the atmosphere is bound to become gloomy.

Moreover, since Beomhang’s wish was to die by slitting his throat and wrists, the minds of his relatives must have been exhausted as well.