Absolute Regression

Episode 42: I also ran into bad luck.

When I returned to my residence, someone I had never expected was waiting for me.

Ilhwa Geomjon was sitting in the spot where Hyeolcheon Doma was waiting.

Surprisingly, they even set up a table for drinks.

“Gong Lee, you worked hard today, so please go and have a drink.”

“Good, senior.”

I sat in front of Ilhwa Geomzon. I smiled comfortably, just like when I met Hyeolcheon Doma, but I was nervous on the inside.

“You said you don’t drink alcohol, right?”

“This drink is not for me, it’s for Lee Gongja.”

“thank you.”

She poured me a drink.

I drank without hesitation.

“If the drink was poisonous, why would you drink it without checking?”

“I didn’t check, but I prepared.”

“how?”

I spit out the blood poison from my mouth. Not only does it prevent poisonous smoke, but if you drink alcohol with it in your mouth like this, it also neutralizes the poison in your mouth.

“When did this happen?”

“I asked you a question while saying hello to you earlier.”

“Even though I asked about poisoned liquor, how come I didn’t get a ticket?”

“It’s a top-quality blood poison, so it’s very small, and I trained myself so that my pronunciation wouldn’t leak even when I put it in my mouth.”

Admiration flashed across Ilhwageomjon’s expression.

“It may be presumptuous to say this, but I know you don’t feel good about me. “You can’t drink alcohol in such a situation, right?”

She wasn’t angry because I honestly told her that I had poisoned blood in my mouth. Instead, I just confirmed this.

“Did you drink the alcohol that Thomas gave you with blood poison in your mouth?”

“That’s not it.”

For a moment, Ilhwageomjon’s expression hardened.

“Thomas believes and I do not?”

“A lot had happened with Mr. Thomas until we had our first drink.”

“We were there too, right?”

“No, there wasn’t.”

Ilhwa Geomzon protested in response to the firm answer.

“I was the one who repeatedly recommended Jangho.”

“He recommended Jangho, but it was not for my own sake, but to force me not to have a relationship with Elder Doma. Was that the choice for me?”

I didn’t just push Ilhwa Geomzon, whose answer was disappointing.

“I want to create a lot of things with my senior. So, I drink the alcohol that is given without the poisoned liquor.”

“Don’t say anything you don’t mean.”

“Why wouldn’t you like it?”

“There’s already a chopping board in that heart, right?”

“If you were me, senior, who would you want in your heart?”

I drank alcohol without blood, as if it were you. Ilhwageomjon’s expression softened at my action of trusting her.

She is someone who refuses to even be compared to Thomas. He was also a proud person who knew that if it were one of the two, he would naturally choose him. Of course, I’m not the type of person who likes things like poison.

“Gongja Lee.”

“yes.”

“Tell me what you want.”

“Please help me become your successor. Instead, please help without any conditions such as isolation from the elderly. “That’s all I want.”

“In this world of science and engineering, unconditional help is something you only expect from your parents.”

Ilhwa Geomzon, who expressed his refusal, stood up. She was just about to leave and asked as if she suddenly remembered something.

“Is it true that you gave Thomas a birthday present?”

“yes.”

Her eyes wavered. I asked as if it just occurred to me, but in reality, I probably wanted to check this for myself.

“May I ask what you gave me?”

I lifted the poisoned liquor that I had placed on the table.

“I gave you this.”

“You gave me something valuable.”

“Because I received something precious.”

Ilhwa Geomzon seemed to think for a moment about what to say, but ultimately said nothing.

“We’ll have a drink at Pungryu Bar later. “If you remember, please come.”

Ilhwageomjon left without answering.

* * *

When I returned to my living quarters to change, there was another guest.

To my surprise, my father was waiting in the yard of my residence. Following the two mazons, even my father. If I were to give a title to today, I would say it is meeting with big names.

“What are you doing in this squalid place?”

“I came to see how you live.”

It was the first time my father came to my residence. It was our first time hunting, our first time eating together, our first time visiting our home. There are many things that are new to me with my father.

“Would you like to go in?”

“What are you doing in a smelly room where a man lives alone?”

“Then I will at least bring you a chair.”

“done. “I’ve sat down enough today.”

“but. A long time ago, Dr. Ma said that. They say sitting for long periods of time is the worst thing for your health. It is as short-lived as the time you sit. “Don’t sit in the royal palace for too long.”

I went and stood next to my father.

“Do you want to live long?”

“sure. How many things have you not done yet? “I want to die after trying it all.”

Then I looked back at my father.

“What about your father? “Is there anything you want to try other than Cheonma?”

“does not exist.”

It was such a decisive answer that I actually heard it as ‘there are too many to answer.’

“Someday, I want to play in the midfield with my father.”

My father glanced at me.

“Well, I’m not saying let’s go fight the Murim Alliance.”

My father chuckled, probably because this joke was funny.

“Let’s just look around where people live. How is it? Would you like to see the world with me later? “I heard that the snowy mountain is so cool in the summer.”

My father didn’t answer anything.

We watched the sunset in the distance for a while.

“I met Ilhwa Geomzon on the way. “If you break off your relationship with Thomas, he will become your ally.”

I told my father like it was.

“Who do you want to hold hands with?”

“I think Geomzone will be easier to handle. “There’s a cute cutting board.”

“If you let your guard down like that, you’ll die.”

“The old man certainly has a knack for catching people off guard.”

Your father probably knows more about Thomas.

“Why did you give Thomas an extravagant altar?”

“I once entrusted you with one task.”

My father didn’t tell me what was going on. It was clear that something had happened to both my father and Thomas when they were young.

“What do you plan to do?”

“I want both of them. “Left sword, left sword, left sword, sword sword.”

My father turned his head and looked at me.

“It’s not a needless greed. My instincts say: I think the results would be much better if we brought those two enemies together. It may be difficult at first, but it will be easier later. “I keep whispering like this.”

“Where does your confidence come from?”

“Isn’t it the confidence that your father passed down in your blood?”

Now the sunset has reached its peak, making my father and I blush.

My father blurted out.

“Geomjon is a person with many wounds.”

I looked at my father, but he said nothing else. Are you saying to take advantage of that or to just look at it?

“When I first met Hyeolcheondoma, he said that. He said he has lived with bad luck all his life, so it is better not to see him often. But these days, I see him as often as I see my father.”

I once again expressed my intention to take the two people with me.

“I’ve faced misfortune well, so I’ll try to deal with hurt as well.”

* * *

That evening, I drank alcohol at a pub.

I told Hyeolcheon Doma to come and I also told Ilhwa Geomjon to come. I didn’t know who would come or neither of them would come.

“Try some of this.”

The owner, Jo Chun-bae, brought a dish and presented it to me. It looks like it was made especially for me to eat.

“Thank you. Please sit down and have a drink together.”

“Oh, where would I dare sit?”

“I guess you don’t want to drink with me.”

“That can’t be right.”

Jo Chun-bae sat down.

I poured him a drink. Jo Chun-bae took my drink while saying “Oh my” over and over again.

“There is no need to be so polite.”

“no. You have to have it. “Thanks to you, how much more comfortable we have become.”

“Are you feeling more comfortable?”

“No problem. After the Hwangcheongak branch was established in this alley, the number of warriors drinking and behaving has decreased significantly. Is that all there is to it? There has been a lot less leaving behind debts that will never be repaid.”

“Thank goodness.”

“This is all thanks to Gongja Lee.”

“Please continue to look closely and let me know if you need to let me know about this.”

“All right.”

Jo Chun-bae took a refreshing drink of the drink I gave him and then stood up.

At that time, another person came and bowed and left.

“Thank you, Gongja Lee.”

I didn’t say what I was thankful for. He probably also received help from Hwangcheongak.

When he said hello and hurried back to his place, someone walked towards me and said.

“You’re popular.”

The person who walked with a large sword strapped to his back was none other than Hyeolcheon Doma. My stomach froze at his appearance. Last time I had a drink with Doma, it was early so there were no customers, but today there were a lot of customers.

How comfortable would it be for them to drink alcohol at a place like Mazon?

I got up and told everyone.

“Mazon is a person of extremely high character. So don’t worry and drink. “You just have to come here and not get drunk.”

The tension eased when he added a joke.

When I sat down, Hyeolcheondoma said with a rough face.

“Why do you lie?”

“It’s a nice lie. “I came here to pay and drink, but I can’t drink while watching others, right?”

“If you don’t want to see that, just go.”

“If you’re going to say that, please give money to those people first. Take this money and go eat somewhere else. “I give the owner as much money as I lost.”

“Not pretending to be nice again.”

“I’m not pretending to be nice, this is the basics.”

“Is this Mine?”

“Isn’t Mine a person?”

“Look here, Mr. Lee. “At times like this, I get confused as to whether you are from our school or from the Murim League.”

I also don’t believe that the basis of my identity is demonic religion. It’s something that can’t be helped. In my past life, I left our school when I was young and wandered around Jungwon for the rest of my life.

I met many people at that time. Not only during my days as a ronin, but also in the process of obtaining Dafa materials, I encountered all kinds of human encounters. I felt hurt, I felt anger, and I also learned what true humanity feels like.

My life values were all created at that time, so in a sense, I can be said to be a person who is not an apostle to the degree of magic.

The effort to eliminate absolute evil and establish a new way of magic was also created against such an empirical background.

I raised my glass with excitement.

“Well, happy birthday. “It’s not past midnight yet, so the congratulations are valid.”

“Please lower your voice.”

He didn’t think anything was a big deal, but the birthday party seemed like a burden. Really, this was the first time I had seen him this shy since we met.

Well, who would have congratulated me like this? Of course, I’ve received formal congratulatory gifts countless times, but the meaning would have been different from today’s event.

“Don’t do anything useless from now on. “Is getting older such a good thing that we even celebrate it?”

“We use this as an excuse to drink and have fun.”

“Even Lee Gongja likes drinking more than he looks.”

“you’re right. I also have a few caterpillars growing inside me. There are people who raise their heads when it rains, and there are also people who raise their heads when they are depressed or distressed. “Do you like alcohol?”

“I liked it before… “I’ve cut back a lot these days.”

It was right then.

Someone’s loud voice was heard from behind.

“But you didn’t hang up.”

When I turned my head, I saw Ilhwa Geomzon standing a little away.