The main house of the Sungmuiga was utterly serene, unlike the other buildings within the estate.
As if time had stopped, the only sound that broke the silence was the chime of the wind bells hanging from the eaves.
A young man was walking down the corridor of the main house.
With neatly swept-back bangs and sharp, clear eyes, he had an impression of kindness.
His name was Lee Myeong-jeong.
He was the eldest son of Lee Tae-shin and the most prominent candidate to be the next head of the family.
'Father has summoned me.'
As he walked through the main house, Myeong-jeong brushed his hand over the hilt of the sword hanging at his waist.
'Is it about that matter?'
Recently, the government had requested Sungmuiga's cooperation in pioneering undeveloped territories and stabilizing dangerous zones—something that anyone in the know was already aware of.
Northern expeditions were a recurring event, conducted every time a new government took power. After all, few policies were as effective at boosting approval ratings and garnering votes as those concerning undeveloped territories.
But this time, something was different.
'When they first sent the request, I thought they were assembling another expeditionary force.'
Even if there was no actual expedition, at the very least, there should have been some promotional effort. However, rather than any show of action, there was nothing but silence.
'There must be something going on.'
Across the world, vast undeveloped regions still remained, and even in stabilized danger zones, sporadic monster attacks continued.
In particular, the Asian continent contained the world's largest undeveloped area, stretching from northeastern China and Mongolia to southeastern Russia.
Clink—
The distant chime of a wind bell brought Myeong-jeong back to reality, and he realized he had arrived at the lord's study.
'Right. Thinking about it alone won't get me anywhere. The answer will be in what Father has to say.'
Shaking off his uneasy thoughts, Myeong-jeong straightened his clothes and smoothed his hair.
"Father, it's Myeong-jeong."
"Come in."
"Yes."
As he stepped inside, Myeong-jeong flinched in surprise.
He had sensed nothing but his father's presence, yet another woman was there as well.
'How?'
Even now, standing face-to-face with her, he couldn't feel her presence at all.
It was as if he were confronting a ghost or a hologram.
The woman tilted her head slightly before flashing a playful smile.
Realizing his discourtesy, Myeong-jeong quickly lowered his head in a bow.
"Greetings. I am the eldest, Lee Myeong-jeong."
"Hello, little one! Don't you remember me? I saw you when you were this small."
The woman chuckled, waving her hands at her waist to indicate a child's height.
"…Excuse me?"
Myeong-jeong lifted his head, scrutinizing the woman.
Pale white skin, disheveled hair, and a perpetual smile.
His eyes widened.
"Could it be… Aunt Kyunghwa?"
"Correct! Hi there! You've grown up well. How wonderful, how wonderful."
Lee Kyunghwa went on tiptoe and ruffled his hair.
Myeong-jeong wasn't sure how to react, so he could only manage an awkward smile.
Though it had been so long that his memories were hazy, he vaguely recalled that she had been kind to him.
"Sit down."
At that moment, Lee Tae-shin spoke in a quiet voice.
Myeong-jeong gave a short nod and took a seat.
"Unusual phenomena have been observed in the north."
Tae-shin got straight to the point.
"They detected seismic and magical waves at the King's Nest."
At those words, Myeong-jeong felt his breath catch.
There was only one entity in the undeveloped lands worthy of being called a 'King.'
A monster so formidable that even humanity, at its peak strength, struggled to contend with it.
A catastrophic beast that had brought countless civilizations to ruin.
Hearing his father's words, many things that had seemed inexplicable now made perfect sense.
"Are you saying… it's awakening?"
"It may awaken, or it may not. That is what we are going to determine."
"This is all so sudden."
"There have been signs since nine years ago. As if it were reacting to something."
Tae-shin took a sip from the teacup in front of him, unfazed.
"This expedition will be different from the others. I will be away from the family for a long time."
Tae-shin had always been known to leave the estate from time to time.
Sometimes for months, sometimes only for weeks.
At that moment, another lingering question in Myeong-jeong's mind was answered.
"So that's why the government has been silent about the expedition."
"Yes. They made a secret request. This time, the mission is to explore the King's Nest."
"What did they offer in return?"
"A twenty-percent stake in a Netanium mine."
Netanium was a rare earth mineral formed from the fossilized remains of ancient monsters mixed with fossil fuels like coal.
It was an invaluable resource with boundless applications, making it one of the most expensive minerals in existence.
A twenty-percent stake was almost unfathomable in value.
If they were offering such a price, it meant the risk involved was equally great.
"You should at least take the Spirit Sword Corps with you."
"I will bring a few hidden retainers. Do not worry."
Lee Myeong-jeong kept his mouth tightly shut.
Even forming a massive expeditionary force wouldn't be enough for an uncharted territory—let alone a place where the king might have awakened—yet how many people in the world could speak of it as if it were nothing?
"I will guard the family without fail while Father is away."
"Alright, I trust you. Any requests from the government should be directed to the Elder Council Head, and internal matters can be handled by the General Overseer. And Kyunghwa."
"Hm? What?"
"Would you not come with me as well?"
Lee Kyunghwa widened her eyes and blinked.
"I believe you will be needed. In this era, no one knows as much as you do about lost ancient techniques. If we go there, you may even find what you seek."
Only then did Lee Myeong-jeong understand why Kyunghwa had been called here.
She had been regarded as somewhat mentally unstable, and the only thing that had ever captured her interest was history so ancient that no records remained—or the martial arts of antiquity.
But without her romanticized view of the past, such techniques were nothing more than outdated relics.
Modern techniques had been refined and developed over countless generations, making them superior to those of the past.
'And yet, Father says he needs her…'
On one hand, it made him wonder if Kyunghwa's knowledge held unexpected value.
On the other, it made him question just how dire the situation was if even her seemingly trivial expertise had to be relied upon.
"I will give you time to prepare. Before that, clear your schedule—I have a few things to ask you."
"Hmm."
Kyunghwa hesitated for a moment before cautiously speaking.
"Do I really have to go?"
Lee Taeshin asked curiously.
"Do you not enjoy ancient ruins? You will find many undiscovered traces there."
"Mm, hmm. But I still don't want to go. Brother, I'm not going."
"Do you have a reason?"
"I found something interesting. A cute little one."
Kyunghwa giggled, her smile playful, like a child eager to play with a new toy.
"I even gave him a gift… but I can't remember his name. Yeol? Yeoli! Brother, your son!"
"I have no son named Yeol."
Lee Myeong-jeong, deep in thought, suddenly widened his eyes and spoke.
"Could it be… you mean our youngest, Yeong?"
"Yeong? Ah! Yes! I think that was his name. He's tiny, really cute, but his eyes are a little scary. Like Taehong, he came from outside!"
"What about him?"
"He's amazing. Different."
Lee Taeshin gazed at Kyunghwa silently.
"Did you see something?"
"Hmm, I'm not sure. That's why I want to stay with him. It'll be more fun."
After a brief silence, Taeshin nodded as if he understood.
"Very well. Do as you wish."
He readily respected Kyunghwa's decision.
Meanwhile, Myeong-jeong fell into deep thought.
'Yeong hasn't even had his naming ceremony yet.'
It might sound like an excuse, but Myeong-jeong had never had the time to visit his youngest sibling.
He was training in both of the two major powers, each difficult to master on its own, and he was constantly swamped with requests.
In his memory, his youngest sibling remained the small child he had last seen at the iron fan ceremony long ago.
"Aunt, will you be staying at the family estate for a while?"
"Yes, I plan to."
"Then I'll prepare a quiet residence for you. Also… do you wish to meet the youngest now?"
Kyunghwa nodded as if it were obvious.
"Then shall we go together?"
"Sure!"
Kyunghwa beamed brightly.
***
Immediately after meeting with my small aunt, Kyunghwa, I returned to my room.
"Young master? What about your training?"
"I just came back for a moment. Nanny, can I be alone for a bit?"
"Huh? Ah, yes. That's fine. I was just about to go prepare lunch anyway."
After sending the nanny out of the room, I sat down at my desk.
Since I had never returned midway through training—if anything, I always trained longer—my nanny left with a puzzled expression.
I hadn't intended to stop my training halfway either, but I had no choice.
Because the contents of the notebook my aunt had tossed at me as a 'gift' were anything but ordinary.
'The handwriting is terrible, making it hard to decipher… but this is magic arts, isn't it?'
The notes weren't meant for anyone else to read, so they were unorganized, filled with old Chinese characters and unidentifiable symbols.
The painstakingly deciphered contents all revolved around magic arts.
'And it's not just magic arts. There are martial arts techniques written here too.'
The level was quite advanced, making it difficult to understand.
It made me wonder if what I'd heard about Lee Kyunghwa was different from the truth.
'This… these are ancient magic techniques based on magic circuits, aren't they?'
I pulled out an old dictionary from my bookshelf and continued reading the notebook.
In the past, before the concept of a "magic core" for storing mana existed, people relied solely on the magic circuits spread throughout their bodies.
In modern times, after numerous attempts to store mana in places like the lower abdomen, brain, and other areas, it was concluded that storing it in the heart was the most stable and effective method.
—But I wonder, how did humanity survive before magic arts even developed?
It was a note left in the notebook by Lee Kyunghwa.
This was one of the greatest unsolved questions among modern historians.
How did ancient humans survive when they had no awakenings, no special abilities, and only a rudimentary understanding of mana?
From the medieval era onward, many records remained, but there were very few surviving records from earlier times.
Some relics and artifacts contained historical evidence, but much of it was shrouded in mystery.
'…What is this? Amplification techniques? Conversion techniques?'
As I continued reading the notebook, my eyes lit up.
It contained records of the techniques used by ancient people to manipulate mana.
—Just because magic arts weren't advanced back then, does that mean we should dismiss their techniques as outdated? Perhaps they were simply lost to time.
If anything, they must have fought monsters even more fiercely than we do in the modern era, when society is relatively stable.
The techniques of amplification and conversion—these concepts don't even exist in modern times.
Aren't we underestimating the magic circuits, treating them as nothing more than pathways for mana to flow through?
'This is difficult.'
Even in modern times, where magic cores are used to control mana, no one took magic circuits lightly.
Just because a reservoir provides water doesn't mean the waterways aren't important.
'Even so… does my aunt think the way we use magic circuits today is crude compared to the past?'
At the bottom of the note, a single line was written.
—Perhaps the people of that era were actually better at manipulating mana itself than we are today.
What a waste. If only more records from that time existed, I might be able to recreate them with the knowledge I have.
Suddenly, a figure from my memory surfaced.
'Mujin's magic arts!'
I immediately focused on my magic circuits.
Mana flowed outward from my magic core, spreading throughout my body.
I didn't allow the mana to return to the core. Instead, I continued operating it solely through the magic circuits.
This was exactly as described in the notebook.
Then, Mujin's memories—ones I had previously failed to understand—came into play.
I finally grasped the mana manipulation of the man from Mujin's memories.
'This… works!'
A missing piece of the puzzle had fallen into place.
Before I knew it, I was holding a sword in my hand.
Slowly, I took a step forward and swung my blade.
At that moment—
"Child!"
The door suddenly burst open, and my aunt appeared right in the path of my sword.
'No!'
But the sword had already been swung.
Since this was my first time using this magic technique, I couldn't stop it.
Clang!
Something had intervened between my sword and my aunt.
What stopped my sword was a human hand.
Despite the clash between flesh and steel, the sound was like metal shattering.
"Well now, what an enthusiastic welcome for a brother visiting for the first time."
A young man smiled as he spoke to me.
The moment I saw him, my eyes widened in shock.
"Brother?"
The person who had blocked my sword was one of the few benefactors who had helped me, the one who had taken me out of the family—
My eldest brother, Lee Myung-jung.