The Heavenly Demon Wants a Quiet Life

Chapter 11: You’ve Gone Too Far

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Byeok Taesan and Yoo Seoyeon sat across from each other with a table in between them.

Yoo Seoyeon glanced at the servant who had brought simple refreshments and furrowed her brows slightly.

That servant appeared to be one of the figures at the center of the recent rumors spreading everywhere.

Even without any adornments, she was strikingly beautiful.

‘Still, she doesn’t compare to our Young Lady.’

With that thought in mind, Yoo Seoyeon fixed her gaze on Byeok Taesan.

“Did we ever have the kind of relationship where we exchanged words like this?”

Byeok Taesan genuinely asked out of curiosity, but to Yoo Seoyeon, it sounded like he was questioning whether she was even qualified to speak with him.

“Is it not allowed?”

Byeok Taesan shook his head.

“Not at all.”

That brief exchange was enough to clarify things.

Their relationship didn’t seem to hold much significance.

“So, why have you come to see me?”

At Byeok Taesan’s question, Yoo Seoyeon looked at him.

With her chin slightly raised, she seemed both arrogant and confident.

One thing was clear—this was not the old Byeok Taesan.

“You’ve gone too far.”

Byeok Taesan chuckled at Yoo Seoyeon’s abrupt remark.

“Lucky you.”

Yoo Seoyeon looked momentarily confused.

Lucky? What on earth was he talking about?

From Byeok Taesan’s perspective, it was simple.

In his days as the Heavenly Demon, anyone who dared to say such a thing would have had their head smashed in an instant.

In the Demonic Cult, the word of the Heavenly Demon was law. His actions were inherently just.

The phrase “you’ve gone too far” simply didn’t exist in the Demonic Cult.

“Well, I suppose some things must change. All right, tell me what’s so excessive. Think carefully before you speak.”

Byeok Taesan’s gaze sharpened as he said this.

Yoo Seoyeon’s heart shrank for a moment, and she felt flustered.

‘It’s almost… like facing our Clan Leader.’

Whenever she met the head of her clan, she always felt subdued. However, this sensation was slightly different.

Unconsciously, Yoo Seoyeon’s eyes moved to Cheon Kyungwan, who stood quietly behind Byeok Taesan.

She wondered if the pressure she felt was coming from him.

Cheon Kyungwan was staring at her with a calm gaze.

Yoo Seoyeon didn’t avert her eyes and met his gaze directly.

‘No, it’s not that.’

She could tell that Cheon Kyungwan’s presence was remarkable.

When she saw him earlier in the reception hall, she had already noticed that his skills had taken a step forward.

It had surprised her.

Honestly, she thought she would progress faster.

Nevertheless, Cheon Kyungwan wasn’t doing anything at the moment.

He was just standing there.

Yoo Seoyeon turned her gaze back to Byeok Taesan, looking at him with a renewed sense of awareness.

“Should I keep waiting?”

At Byeok Taesan’s question, Yoo Seoyeon shook her head, shaking off her thoughts.

“No. My apologies.”

Calming herself, Yoo Seoyeon slowly began to speak.

“Not long ago, a marriage proposal was brought to the Young Lady.”

“Well… it’s not surprising.”

Considering Yeon Harin’s beauty, there were likely countless suitors vying for her hand.

Even in the brief interaction he’d had with her, Byeok Taesan noted that her personality seemed decent.

No, it was rather admirable.

She had a certain boldness to her as well.

“The Young Lady… has asked us to trust her no matter what happens.”

“So, she’s finally planning to break off the engagement?”

Byeok Taesan spoke so nonchalantly that Yoo Seoyeon momentarily flared up.

“Not yet. The Young Lady is firmly opposed to it. But…”

Yoo Seoyeon sighed deeply before continuing.

“But the Clan Leader is likely to act on his own. He may disregard her opinion and formally notify the Golden Wall Merchants at any time.”

Byeok Taesan nodded indifferently.

“Probably. So, why am I the one who’s gone too far?”

Yoo Seoyeon hesitated before swallowing her words.

She was displeased with Byeok Taesan frequenting courtesan houses every night while Yeon Harin was trying so hard.

Yet, when the time came to say it aloud, the words wouldn’t come out.

Honestly, she couldn’t entirely dismiss Byeok Taesan’s feelings either.

“For the time being, I will stay by the Young Master’s side.”

Byeok Taesan frowned.

“That’s an odd way to explain why I’ve gone too far.”

Yoo Seoyeon pretended not to hear him and continued.

“The Young Lady has asked me to protect you.”

Byeok Taesan chuckled.

“You’re going to protect me?”

Lately, it seemed like everyone was eager to offer their protection.

Undeterred by his reaction, Yoo Seoyeon pressed on.

“I’m aware of Sir Cheon’s exceptional skills. However, the current opponent is beyond difficult.”

Byeok Taesan looked at her as if to say, “What are you talking about?”

“The Clan that proposed marriage to the Young Lady is the Zhongli Clan.”

“The Zhongli Clan?”

Byeok Taesan tilted his head, searching his memory until the name came to him.

“Ah, that Zhongli Clan.”

A faint smile played at Byeok Taesan’s lips.

Back in the days when he had swept through the Murim Alliance, they had been among the groups he encountered.

One time, the main forces of the Five Great Clan, along with the leading warriors from ten other clans, had attacked him.

It had been a trap set by those groups, and the Heavenly Demon, along with his elite Heavenly Guard, had faced them alone.

They were relentless, sacrificing themselves without hesitation.

Half of the Heavenly Guard had been lost in the battle.

But the one standing there had been the Heavenly Demon.

No matter how many of them there were, they could not kill him.

Most of those who attacked had died, but some had survived.

They were the ones who had retreated early when defeat became inevitable.

Those were the Zhongli Clan.

“So, you’re worried they might do something to me?”

“Yes. The Zhongli Clan is…”

Byeok Taesan finished her sentence.

“Cowards.”

Yoo Seoyeon’s head shot up in shock.

She glanced nervously at Cheon Kyungwan before looking back at Byeok Taesan.

Such words should never be spoken recklessly.

If there was one thing the Zhongli Clan hated hearing, it was that.

“So, do you have the strength to stop them if they make a move?”

Yoo Seoyeon lowered her head slightly.

“I’ll do my best.”

“Fine. Do as you wish.”

With his permission granted, Yoo Seoyeon rose from her seat.

“I’ll ask Soso for help with lodging arrangements.”

“Do that.”

As Yoo Seoyeon bowed and left, Byeok Taesan turned to Cheon Kyungwan.

“Don’t waste time while you’re working. If you want to do something, follow her and do it now.”

Cheon Kyungwan was startled.

“I won’t do anything! Besides… we’re not even like that yet.”

Byeok Taesan smirked.

“Coward.”

Cheon Kyungwan’s face turned beet red, and he lowered his head in embarrassment.

In front of Yoo Seoyeon, he truly was a coward.

* * *

“You’ll train here,” said Cheon Kyungwan.

Yoo Seoyeon looked around.

“It’s a nice place.”

“Well, it is the Golden Wall Merchants.”

This was the training hall attached to the pavilion Byeok Taesan used.

The training hall, which had been unused since Byeok Taesan had no reason to utilize it, had become Cheon Kyungwan’s personal space after he relocated there.

Until now, only Cheon Kyungwan had been using it, but in truth, the training hall was far too spacious for just one person.

While they would step aside when practicing advanced martial arts, basic training could easily be done together.

In fact, the hall was large enough to accommodate even ten people at once.

Yoo Seoyeon observed Cheon Kyungwan quietly.

Cheon Kyungwan felt her gaze and deliberately looked away.

“Congratulations.”

“Excuse me?”

Cheon Kyungwan turned to her, startled by the unexpected remark.

“I’ve fallen a step behind you. But don’t get complacent. I’ll catch up soon enough.”

The two were at a similar level of martial prowess.

That is, until Cheon Kyungwan had met Byeok Taesan.

For someone like Yoo Seoyeon, who had also reached Cheon Kyungwan’s level, this was no small feat.

“You must have worked very hard,” Yoo Seoyeon remarked.

Cheon Kyungwan gave a bitter smile.

“If hard work alone were enough, the world would be overflowing with martial masters.”

Yoo Seoyeon’s gaze sharpened as she regarded him.

That statement implied his growth wasn’t solely the result of effort.

‘What could it be? Did the Golden Wall Merchants provide him with some rare elixir?’

Even so, there were limits to what elixirs could achieve, especially those obtainable with money.

Most martial clans and sects guarded their secret elixirs with all their strengthm

Thus, any elixirs the Golden Wall Merchants could acquire would likely be of mediocre quality.

Cheon Kyungwan hesitated briefly, then fixed Yoo Seoyeon with a resolute gaze.

“Do you believe in the existence of true geniuses?”

“Of course. Every martial Clan has at least one or two prodigies, don’t they?”

She herself had grown up being called a genius, and she assumed Cheon Kyungwan had as well.

But Cheon Kyungwan shook his head.

“Not those ordinary prodigies. I’m talking about true geniuses—those who can shatter an impenetrable wall you’ve been stuck behind for years with just a single word.”

Yoo Seoyeon couldn’t reply immediately.

It was hard to believe, but from the way he spoke, it seemed like he had encountered such a person.

Or perhaps he had mistaken someone for such a genius.

“It’s a hard claim to believe. Breaking through a wall with just a word…”

Yoo Seoyeon smiled faintly as she looked at him.

“If someone like that exists, I’d love to hear a word or two myself.”

Cheon Kyungwan found himself staring blankly at her smile, as if spellbound, before quickly snapping back to his senses.

Yoo Seoyeon was watching him with an enigmatic expression.

Cheon Kyungwan debated whether to tell her to stay on Byeok Taesan’s good side, but ultimately swallowed his words.

“There’s not much time left, so I’ll start my training,” he said instead.

Yoo Seoyeon nodded.

“I’ll train as well. Do you mind if we train together?”

“Of course not.”

“But… when you said there wasn’t much time, does that mean you’re going to a courtesan house again today?”

Cheon Kyungwan reverted to his usual stoic expression and replied, “That seems likely.”

Ignoring Yoo Seoyeon’s dissatisfied look, he turned away.

After putting some distance between them, he drew his sword.

Though Yoo Seoyeon was watching, it didn’t matter. His plan was to pour every ounce of his energy and strength into extreme training.

Even though he was supposed to guard Byeok Taesan later, it didn’t matter. He planned to collapse long before then.

After expending everything, he would likely fall into a deep sleep and wake up at sunset.

* * *

Byeok Taesan glanced back and forth between Cheon Kyungwan and Yoo Seoyeon.

“Are you both coming with me?”

Cheon Kyungwan cast an awkward glance at Yoo Seoyeon.

“There’s no need for Miss Yoo to come…”

“You’re leaving the house, and I should stay here? It doesn’t seem like I need to protect Young Master Byeok while he’s inside, so would you have me idle around?”

Her logic was sound.

And Byeok Taesan didn’t particularly care whether he was accompanied by men or women.

“Fine. Suit yourself.”

With that, Byeok Taesan strode off.

Cheon Kyungwan and Yoo Seoyeon followed closely behind.

After walking in silence for a while, Yoo Seoyeon leaned toward Cheon Kyungwan and asked quietly, “Are you all right?”

“Of course.”

Concern flickered in Yoo Seoyeon’s eyes.

Anyone who had witnessed Cheon Kyungwan’s earlier training would have reacted similarly.

His training was grueling.

It was hard to imagine that his body could be fine after pushing himself that hard, even if he had managed to sleep for two hours afterward.

“Are you really all right?”

“Yes.”

It had been over fifteen days since he started training this way.

And the results had been significant.

While it seemed as though he was simply exhausting himself, that wasn’t the case.

Cheon Kyungwan’s gaze shifted to Byeok Taesan, who walked ahead.

On the first day of this intense training, Byeok Taesan had given him a few additional pieces of advice.

And those words were the real key.

They had included a method to recover from exhaustion, a secret he had never encountered before.

Thanks to that, Cheon Kyungwan was able to train to his limits every single day.

Now, after fifteen days, he had shattered the figurative wall Byeok Taesan had described and ascended to a new level.

“It’s hard to believe. Sir Cheon, aren’t you the real genius here?”

“Not at all.”

“No, from what I see…”

Yoo Seoyeon couldn’t finish her sentence.

Byeok Taesan had suddenly come to a halt.

Slowly, he turned to face the two, his gaze sweeping over them.

That alone was enough to create a palpable pressure.

Both immediately fell silent and followed him quietly.