Around the Time I First Reached 3-Star Magic Arts
The reason I couldn't use Aura Skills back then was that my magic circuit control was lacking in altering the form and properties of Aura.
With just the magic control of exorcism techniques, I couldn't fully grasp the operational methods of ancient magic arts.
However, after obtaining Manbyun from Mujin, that problem was resolved.
Manbyun was the epitome of movements utilizing Mujin.
I was able to extract the key principles of magic arts that changed with each movement, and eventually, I succeeded in putting together the missing puzzle pieces.
From then on, I developed Aura Skills together with my aunt.
The first Aura Skill was Lightning Strike.
A wide-area impact-type Aura Skill that maximized destructive power.
Even I was surprised at its sheer might when I unleashed it.
I developed a few more Aura Skills afterward, but not too many.
Aura Skills were the essence of magic arts—some even referred to them as ultimate techniques.
If such techniques could be easily created overnight, martial arts manuals would have been completely useless.
Amidst this, I discovered a clue about Aura Skills by chance.
"Aunt, promise me one thing."
"What promise? It's cold, so hurry up and say it."
"First, don't get too excited after seeing this. Second, listen to me until the end. And… please don't kick the training ground floor if you don't like it. The maintenance guy just told us to stop breaking the stone slabs, remember?"
"Fine!"
"I'm serious. If you break it, we have to pay for it now."
"The problem is that the training ground floor is too weak! Stop nagging and just show me already!"
At my words, my aunt furrowed her delicate brows.
The stone slabs in this training ground were so sturdy that even warriors imbued with magic couldn't break them easily.
I still couldn't understand how she shattered them with just a simple kick, without even using magic.
"Alright, I'll show you now. You have to keep your promise."
I took my stance, sword pointed forward.
"Huh? You're going to use Mujin? That's unexpected."
"I have to use Mujin to unleash the technique."
Seeing the pitch-black blade in my hand, my aunt's eyes sparkled.
Since she was already familiar with Mujin, she wasn't particularly surprised.
Wooong—
Mujin transformed into a longsword, different from the curved blades common in the East.
Its form was identical to Effenberg, the masterpiece sword my seventh brother had given me not long ago.
"I'm starting now."
Whoosh—
The moment I activated my magic, the air around me began to gather.
Lee Kyunghwa immediately noticed the unnatural flow of wind in the training ground—it was infused with Aura.
"Sakpung!?"
Strong Energy Art—Sakpung (Severing Wind).
It was an Aura Skill that had emerged while I was developing Lightning Strike.
If Lightning Strike was a technique focused on raw destructive power, Sakpung was designed for one-on-one combat.
A technique that pushed Aura's cutting power to the extreme by altering its properties.
However, it lacked stability and couldn't be extended over long distances. Still, in close quarters, its power was immense.
"That's just Sakpung. What's so different about—ugh! Why is it suddenly so cold?!"
Lee Kyunghwa shivered for a moment.
Crack—
She gasped as she saw ice shards forming beneath her feet.
Those ice shards had appeared the instant my Aura touched the ground.
"Elemental Affinity…? Did that kid just imbue elemental power into his Aura? And it's cold—one of the hardest elements to control?"
How?
That was impossible.
It was common knowledge that elemental affinity required mastering magic arts aligned with that element.
"Hup!"
Ignoring my aunt's shocked expression, I took a short breath and swung my sword downward.
Kwooooom!
The moment Mujin was unleashed, a razor-sharp Aura infused with frost violently swept three meters ahead.
"W-what the—?!"
Lee Kyunghwa shot up in shock.
"Wait, wait, what did you just do?! Sakpung isn't supposed to create frost!"
She lunged at me and grabbed me by the collar.
"Tell me! How did you do that?! What did you figure out?!"
"Ugh! H-Hey, you said you wouldn't get excited! I get it, so just let go for a second…."
The violent shaking as my collar was grabbed made my head throb.
My aunt's eyes gleamed fiercely.
"Spit it out! What was that? You used attribute power, didn't you?!"
As if she had encountered her mortal enemy, she couldn't contain her excitement.
"Aunt! Please calm down for a moment. Don't you remember the promise?"
"I'm frustrated, that's why! Just tell me alreadyyyy!"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
"The floor! Aunt, the floor!"
Craaaack—.
In the end, a chilling sound echoed through the ground.
Only then did my aunt flinch in surprise and regain her senses.
"O-Oh, s-sorry. Hehe. We really need to get better flooring. What kind of cheap stuff is this…?"
She awkwardly laughed as she tapped at the cracked floor with her foot.
Creak—
But even with that light kick, another deep crack spread across the floor.
"...."
"...."
My aunt clasped her hands behind her back sheepishly.
"Hehe."
And then, she gave a very awkward smile.
***
The two weapons I received from my seventh brother.
The masterpiece-grade sword, Effenberg.
The masterpiece-grade saber, Judo.
The first time I used dark energy, it was with Effenberg.
Effenberg was a sword that emitted yin energy on its own.
As soon as I received Effenberg, I used dark energy to read the weapon's memory.
And the moment I did, I felt emptiness.
'…That's it?'
The only memories I could extract from Effenberg were the sight of a blacksmith hammering the sword and my seventh brother accepting it.
I asked my seventh brother about it.
"It's amazing that you knew. Yes, you're right. Effenberg was forged less than a month ago. Aside from me swinging it a few times for testing, no one has ever wielded it before."
That was the answer I got.
Effenberg was an extremely rare case among masterpiece-grade weapons—it was newly forged.
I was a little disappointed that I couldn't read any special memories, but it wasn't a bad thing.
I absorbed Effenberg right away.
Since there weren't any lingering memories within it, the amount of mana I absorbed wasn't significant.
But still, it was far greater than what I had gained from standard or common-grade weapons.
'I thought that would be the end of it.'
But then, something happened during training.
I was shifting Mujin's form back and forth to practice transformation techniques when, unconsciously, I shaped it into Effenberg and channeled my mana.
At that moment, the aura extending from Mujin carried a freezing chill.
It perfectly replicated Effenberg's ability.
"No way… That happened because of Mujin?"
"Yes, exactly."
"W-Wait a second. What even is Mujin? It's supposedly a celestial-grade weapon, but it never had the ability to change an aura's property, right?"
"That's what I thought too."
But that was a misunderstanding.
I recalled the moment I completed my demon-slaying technique and unlocked new memories of Mujin.
A man was training, shifting Mujin's aura properties constantly.
Maybe Mujin's power wasn't just about changing form.
Perhaps, unlocking the abilities of absorbed weapons was another hidden ability I had yet to discover.
'I tried copying the forms of other famous weapons later, but I wasn't able to replicate their abilities.'
I fiddled with the hilt of Mujin, now shaped like Effenberg.
'This has to be the influence of dark energy.'
There were still many unknowns about this new power of Mujin.
But one thing was certain: Mujin had gained a new ability, and dark energy had something to do with it.
"Haaah…"
My aunt let out a genuine sigh of confusion. Then, with a serious expression, she asked,
"So, what does this mean? You can use the abilities of any weapon you shape Mujin into?"
"Not exactly. There are some conditions."
"Then, do you have to shape it into Effenberg specifically?"
"I'm not sure yet… But once I get used to it, I think I'll be able to use the ability without changing its shape."
For now, I had to form it into Effenberg.
But in the memories I saw, that man didn't need to go through such a process.
Someday, I would be able to do the same.
"…Regardless, that's impressive. Ice energy, huh? Its power seems slightly weaker than pure mana techniques, though."
My aunt smirked meaningfully.
"This gives me an interesting idea. Let's go to the lab immediately."
"Sounds good. That's exactly why I showed you."
I smirked as I returned Mujin to its ring form and slipped it onto my finger.
***
The matriarch of the Sungmu family, Baek Hwayeon, summoned the direct descendants to her chambers.
Excluding those who were away on family business, four people gathered in her room.
The fourth, sixth, seventh, and eighth siblings.
Naturally, the illegitimate ninth son, Lee Cheol, was excluded.
Sixth sister, Lee Seol-ah, had been waiting for a long time in the courtyard of the main residence when she spotted Lee Jae-hak.
She immediately ran up to him.
"Hey, what do we do?"
Lee Jae-hak frowned deeply.
"Tsk, 'we'? This is on you. You failed, ran off under the excuse of a mission, and now you're trying to drag me into it? You didn't see this coming?"
"You—You already met with her?"
"Yeah. I got a light scolding, and that was it. You, on the other hand… probably not so lucky."
As soon as she heard that their mission in the Sacred Martial Academy had failed, Lee Seol-ah had panicked.
She had immediately taken an emergency mission to leave the household.
But the moment she returned, Baek Hwayeon had summoned her children.
"H-Hey, back me up. You were involved too…."
"...Take care of it yourself. You're the one who caused this, so I don't see why I should take responsibility."
Trembling in fear, Lee Seol-ah and the cold-faced Lee Jae-hak eventually stepped into the main building together.
As soon as they entered the inner quarters, they were struck by a chill reminiscent of the dead of winter.
Even though they had stepped into a properly heated room, an icy coldness, like a winter wind, filled the air.
"You're here."
Baek Hwa-yeon, who stood in front of the fourth and eighth siblings, strode toward Lee Seol-ah.
And then—
Slap.
Lee Seol-ah's head snapped to the side.
A red handprint bloomed on her cheek, and she widened her eyes in shock, unable to process what had just happened.
"M-Mother."
"Don't call me that. I never raised a failure like you."
Baek Hwa-yeon looked down at her daughter with icy disdain and scoffed.
"M-Mother! I admit this was my mistake. But I didn't run away, I was only—"
"Silence."
Thud.
At Baek Hwa-yeon's single word, an oppressive weight descended upon the room.
Unable to withstand it, Lee Seol-ah fell to her knees.
"Do not test my patience. What you did was run away. Something utterly unacceptable as a bloodline of the Soongmu family, and even more so as my child."
Lee Seol-ah, who had been staring blankly at the floor, quickly lifted her head in desperation.
"But…!"
"Are you trying to make excuses?"
Under her mother's cold gaze, Lee Seol-ah held her breath.
Then, she slowly bowed her head again, staring at the floor.
At first, she felt wronged.
Then, that sense of injustice twisted into burning resentment.
'It's all because of that bastard…!'
Lee Seol-ah looked up at Baek Hwa-yeon with defiant eyes.
"...I can still take responsibility! That illegitimate brat—if I crush him now, everything will be fine!"
Baek Hwa-yeon sneered.
"You truly understand nothing. If it were that simple, I wouldn't be reprimanding you so harshly."
"…What?"
Confusion filled Lee Seol-ah's eyes.
"It's the head's command. That bastard is to leave for Cheonwisan for a year."
"C-Cheonwisan…?"
The ancestral mountain of the family. A place where warriors prove their worth before setting out on their path.
But the youngest was still just a cadet—how could he possibly be sent there?
"If you had stayed and redeemed yourself, things might have been different. But you lost that chance, too. In a single act, you shamed all of our direct lineage. It wasn't enough that you lost to a bastard—you ran away on top of it."
Baek Hwa-yeon looked down at the kneeling Lee Seol-ah as if she were pathetic before turning to the rest of her children.
"Stay sharp."
With each word Baek Hwa-yeon uttered, the already cold atmosphere sank even further.
"If I ever see such disgrace again… it won't end with something as laughable as a mere slap."
With that, she turned and left the room.
"Hngh… Kgh…"
Shaking uncontrollably from rage, Lee Seol-ah clenched her teeth to hold back her trembling.
Lee Jae-hak looked between the departing Baek Hwa-yeon and the quivering Lee Seol-ah.
'Mother is truly merciless.'
This incident had undoubtedly cemented Lee Seol-ah's hatred toward the youngest.
Before all their siblings—before even the eighth, much younger than herself—she had been slapped and forced to kneel.
For someone as proud as her, she would become obsessed with reclaiming her honor.
Baek Hwa-yeon had deliberately dredged up the ugliest emotions festering inside her.
'But still…'
Lee Jae-hak weighed Lee Seol-ah against Lee Cheol.
Which one held more value?
Where should he invest his efforts?
So far, Lee Seol-ah had shown more potential and had more to offer.
But strangely enough, he kept gravitating toward the youngest.
Regardless of the age gap or difference in skill, he couldn't shake the feeling that his cunning half-brother wouldn't lose to this foolish woman.
'This will be interesting.'
Lee Jae-hak smiled subtly.
He was looking forward to Lee Cheol's return in a year.
***
The day of departure for Cheonwisan was just two days away.
Normally, there would be no rush, but I had something to do, so I decided to leave a day early.
As my nanny packed my belongings, she couldn't stop talking, flustered by my choices.
"A book of medicinal herbs, an iron cauldron… even pharmaceutical tools? Why in the world are you bringing all these things?"
I had packed my items into a separate box.
For a simple training trip, the box was filled with all sorts of miscellaneous things.
"I'll need them. I'll explain later."
I had asked my nanny to gather a few specific items for me.
'Cheonwisan is a sacred mountain. A convergence of ley lines stretching from the continent, the southernmost reaches, and even Japan. Not just magic herbs, but divine medicines could grow there.'
On the Red Azure Island, I could only make crude, half-baked medicine using poorly fired clay equipment.
But this time, it would be different.
I had prepared refined tools—smoke extractors, decoction pots, pharmaceutical equipment, and precision instruments.
"I think that's everything. Make sure the package is sent to Cheonwisan on time so that I'll receive it when I arrive."
"Yes, young master. But why are you suddenly visiting the family's ancestral mountain?"
Soongmusan—the Soongmu family's ancestral mountain.
A small peak located near the dangerous northern region.
It was the resting place of the ancestors who had dedicated themselves to the family, as well as the graves of past family heads.
The reason I was leaving a day early was to visit that place.
"This is my first journey away from home. I thought it would be proper to pay my respects to the family's spirits before setting off."
I smiled lightly and walked toward the weapon display in my room.
I opened the case, which I hadn't touched in a long time, and pulled out a sword.
Black Night.
A weathered old blade, its flat surface made of an unidentifiable material.
"You haven't taken that out in ages—what changed?"
"I just thought I'd take it with me when I visit the ancestors' graves."
That wasn't the real reason.
This visit to Soongmusan and Cheonwisan—
Both were preparations for this sword.
"Well then, I'll be off. Nanny."
"Yes, young master. Training is important, but please take care of yourself!"
Leaving her farewell behind, I stepped outside.
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