The opponent I faced was a disciple of Blood Face Sword Demon, one of the Seven Demon Beauties of the Evil Sect.

As such, I heard they possessed quite exceptional skills. Yet I defeated this disciple of Blood Face Sword Demon with ease.

Despite this, Nam Gung Yu Cheong’s face was gloomy.

I knew the reason for Nam Gung Yu Cheong’s dark expression.

‘Elder brother Yu Cheong was eliminated in the quarterfinals.’

And it was by someone from the Evil Sect. I heard that person was also a disciple of the Seven Demon Beauties. In fact, among the remaining 4 people, I was the only one from the righteous faction.

“Lin, there’s no need to worry too much.”

Nam Gung Yu Cheong said, patting my shoulder.

“I don’t think you’ll lose, but you don’t need to feel burdened.”

As he said this, Nam Gung Yu Cheong’s fingers were trembling.

[It seems like he’s the one feeling the pressure, though?]

‘Indeed. He appears to be extremely nervous.’

Nam Gung Yu Cheong continued speaking.

“I should have won to lessen your burden….”

I shrugged my shoulders.

I knew what Nam Gung Yu Cheong was worried about.

Moreover, I heard that my next opponent was the second strongest from the Evil Sect after Ak Wi Cheon.

“To think you’d end up facing the disciple of Sura Gwang Jon….”

“Isn’t that better? At least it’s not Ak Wi Cheon.”

“That’s true, but… it’s tomorrow, and I can’t help but worry.”

I smiled nonchalantly. Seeing me like this, Nam Gung Yu Cheong fidgeted before bowing his head deeply.

He seemed deeply upset that he couldn’t be of help to me.

Well, it was understandable.

Sura Gwang Jon was considered one of the top among the Five Demon Lords, and being his disciple, they were bound to be strong.

And the next day.

Contrary to Nam Gung Yu Cheong’s worries, I easily defeated Sura Gwang Jon’s disciple.

Seeing me, Nam Gung Yu Cheong spoke with a determined face.

“Since it’s come to this, let’s go ahead and win the championship.”

[This is the timeline separator]

As I walked, I could hear people whispering.

“Is that Nam Gung Lin from the Nam Gung family?”

“How did she manage to win?”

“Her martial arts didn’t seem that extraordinary. She looked a bit talented, but is it possible to win so easily?”

“I heard she’s the daughter of Master Nam Gung Hyun. Perhaps she inherited his talent?”

It was close to the finals of the Heavenly Competition. I could feel people’s gazes on me as I walked.

[Dumpling, everyone’s watching you.]

‘Yes, that’s understandable. I defeated Sura Gwang Jon’s disciple yesterday. It’s a bit burdensome to receive more attention than expected, though…’

The match ended quite quickly. It was because I got too excited.

‘Sura Gwang Jon’s disciple was quite strong.’

Ji Cheon Wu and I had some similarities.

In Heaven Demon’s Disciple, Ji Cheon Wu enjoyed fighting strong opponents, and the same was true for me.

It’s enjoyable to spar with strong individuals.

For me too, the only worthy sparring partners were Nam Gung Yu Cheong and Ji Cheon Wu.

There were other children from branch families in the clan, but they were no match for me.

Facing a strong opponent after so long, I unknowingly went overboard.

‘Making it to the finals has raised people’s expectations even more.’

Even if I won the Heavenly Competition, it wouldn’t immediately make me the world’s strongest.

But things were different because my opponent was Ak Wi Cheon.

‘Even making it to the finals wasn’t a common occurrence.’

So I understood people’s enthusiastic reactions.

Those gazes mixed with excitement, expectation, and concern.

I quickly moved to avoid people’s stares.

The place I retreated to was the well behind the inn where I was staying.

I sat under the large tree there.

Then I looked up at the sky.

‘Tomorrow is the final.’

The final against Ak Wi Cheon was important.

I had a goal that required defeating Ak Wi Cheon.

I couldn’t allow the Martial Alliance and the Evil Sect to fail to join forces due to the Blood Sect’s machinations.

‘If the original story changes, I’m not sure how they’ll react.’

If I win, would the Blood Sect still disguise themselves as Martial Alliance members and attack Ak Wi Cheon as in the original story?

I couldn’t know that far.

At that moment.

[Speak of the devil.]

At Dagger Uncle’s words, I turned my head.

And I couldn’t help but be surprised at the person who appeared.

‘It’s Ak Wi Cheon?’

Why would Ak Wi Cheon appear at the inn where I was staying?

‘He’s not here to see me, right?’

There was no reason for Ak Wi Cheon to come looking for me… or so I thought.

As if mocking my thoughts, he approached me.

“Nam Gung Lin, was it?”

I could tell that Ak Wi Cheon had come here intentionally.

“I heard you defeated Sura Gwang Jon’s disciple.”

I nodded.

“There’s something I’m curious about, so I came.”

“W-What are you curious about?”

“Do you find joy in mastering the sword?”

I furrowed my brow as I looked at him.

“Why are you asking that?”

“I saw you facing Sura Gwang Jon’s disciple. You are strong.”

“…”

“Among the righteous martial artists in this Heavenly Competition, you’re the strongest. So I wanted to ask.”

I felt Ak Wi Cheon’s question was out of the blue. But regardless, I decided to answer sincerely.

“Isn’t that obvious?”

I enjoyed mastering the sword.

After awakening in Nam Gung Lin’s body, I went through a period of wandering for a while. It was because I couldn’t learn swordsmanship even though I wanted to.

For me, mastering the sword had always been a dream.

That’s why I found joy in holding a sword.

Hearing my words, Ak Wi Cheon stared at my face for a long time.

He tilted his head and spoke.

“I see.”

That was the end of it.

Ak Wi Cheon turned and walked away.

‘No way…’

Looking at Ak Wi Cheon, I recalled one fact.

‘In Heaven Demon’s Disciple, Ak Wi Cheon becomes obsessed with Ji Cheon Wu. Because Ji Cheon Wu was the first person to fight him on equal terms.’

I felt a chill run down my spine. Ak Wi Cheon had never had a worthy opponent until now.

It was because Ak Wi Cheon was that strong. But with Ji Cheon Wu’s appearance, he becomes an excellent rival for Ak Wi Cheon.

‘Ak Wi Cheon dislikes Ji Cheon Wu for threatening his position, but at the same time gains motivation to become stronger.’

The same was true for Ji Cheon Wu.

In the original Heaven Demon’s Disciple, it was often described how bored Ak Wi Cheon felt with his life.

‘A man created to reach the position of the strongest.’

That was Ak Wi Cheon.

I tried to recall the original story. When Ak Wi Cheon started to take notice of Ji Cheon Wu.

Ji Cheon Wu, after becoming Heaven Demon’s disciple, starts to grow stronger rapidly.

And a year later, he faces Ak Wi Cheon in a duel again.

At that time, he shows growth to the point of threatening Ak Wi Cheon.

Ak Wi Cheon meets his first peer-level opponent then.

‘It’s the event where Ak Wi Cheon first encounters someone of his age at a similar level.’

In Heaven Demon’s Disciple, Ak Wi Cheon, while disliking Ji Cheon Wu for this reason, also regarded him as special for being his first rival. I realized one serious fact.

‘Don’t tell me, is the object of that obsession changing this time?’

My face turned pale.

Winning the duel wasn’t the problem. Even if I just showed skills close to his level, I could end up facing the same obsession Ak Wi Cheon showed towards Ji Cheon Wu in Heaven Demon’s Disciple.

‘I feel dizzy just thinking about meeting Dang Hwa Ryeong.’

Now even Ak Wi Cheon could become like Dang Hwa Ryeong.

[This is the timeline separator]

The day of the Heavenly Competition finals dawned.

An incomparably larger crowd had gathered than before.

Ak Wi Cheon looked at them with an expressionless face while honing his sword.

After dueling with Ji Cheon Wu, Ak Wi Cheon had many questions.

‘What is enjoyment?’

He gripped his sword.

Holding the sword in his hand, he had never once felt joy.

His visit to Nam Gung Lin was impulsive.

It was because he saw Nam Gung Lin’s face while dueling Sura Gwang Jon’s disciple.

At that moment, Nam Gung Lin was shining.

The smile on her lips reminded him of Ji Cheon Wu during their duel.

He felt he might vaguely understand what Heaven Demon had tried to tell him.

Ak Wi Cheon’s gaze turned towards Nam Gung Lin.

He looked at Nam Gung Lin and made a fist salute. Nam Gung Lin did the same.

The spectators watching the arena began to speak one by one.

“Although this young lady Nam Gung Lin is stronger than expected, how could she possibly defeat Ak Wi Cheon?”

“I can’t imagine Ak Wi Cheon losing to anyone.”

“Do you know how long it’s been since the righteous faction won the Heavenly Competition? At best, she’ll just put up a bit of a fight.”

No one had expectations for Nam Gung Lin. If she hadn’t shown outstanding performance in the preliminaries and main tournament, even these comments wouldn’t have been made.

The same was true for Ak Wi Cheon.

Ak Wi Cheon had never been defeated. He had never even met an equal opponent.

Ak Wi Cheon recalled something Heaven Demon had said in passing once.

He remembered the faint smile on Heaven Demon’s lips.

When he heard those words, Ak Wi Cheon thought.

Then he would never feel joy.