Urban Vagabond: Reload

A chance to meet the Strongest in Korea.

Kim Muhyuk nodded without thinking it over for long.

“Good. I’ll go.”

When the answer he had been hoping for came out, Song Junho’s face lit up.

“I knew you would! You’re curious about what kind of person the Strongest in Korea is too, right?”

That was of course the biggest reason, but Kim Muhyuk had another reason he wanted to meet the Transcendent Extremity Gate sect leader in person.

‘She’s probably the person in Korea who knows the most about Richard Han.’

Sunwoo Jeha, sect leader of the Transcendent Extremity Gate.

She was famous as the unofficial Strongest in Korea, but there was one other thing she was widely known for.

Namely, that she had been Richard Han’s close friend since childhood, and at one time had even been called his rival.

Because of that, when the Heavenly Demon Cult started carrying out terror attacks against the entire world, many people expected the Transcendent Extremity Gate and the Heavenly Demon Cult to form an alliance.

But Sunwoo Jeha’s choice was something no one had anticipated.

‘She went straight to Richard Han as if she’d been waiting for it, and picked a fight.’

—If any are dissatisfied with my rule, come find me here. Anyone with the qualifications, I will grant them a spar.

When Richard Han made that declaration to the world, the very first person to fly to America had been the Transcendent Extremity Gate sect leader.

The result had been Richard Han’s overwhelming victory.

The Heavenly Demon Cult broadcast their fight live, and it was one of the most brutal fights to the death Kim Muhyuk remembered.

“...Yeah. I really want to meet her. There’s something I want to ask.”

The Transcendent Extremity Gate sect leader had been one of the very few martial artists Kim Muhyuk had respected in his previous life, alongside the Sword Demon Choi Geon.

It wasn’t just because her martial arts had been so exalted.

What remained burned into his mind was the sight of her challenging the Strongest in the World without hesitation, even though she had known better than anyone that she was going to die.

Now that he thought about it again, he couldn’t tell whether that had been to stop a friend who had gone down the wrong path, or simply the fighting spirit of a martial artist.

“Me too! From what I heard from the senior disciples, she’s such an eccentric that she’ll just casually toss out insights about martial arts. Of course, when it comes to swordsmanship, our Supreme Pole Sword Gate is still the best, but...”

Just like Song Junho, who was chattering away with an excited face, many young rising stars were probably looking forward to meeting the Strongest in Korea.

Of course, if he got the chance, Kim Muhyuk also wanted to talk with her about martial arts.

But if he could ask only one question...

There was something else he truly wanted to ask.

‘Compared to you or Richard Han at twenty, where do I stand?’

It might sound like a childish question, but for Kim Muhyuk, who had set his sights on becoming the Strongest in the World, it was the thing he was most curious about.

How would he look to her, someone who had walked the path of a martial artist before him?

At that moment, an alarm went off on Song Junho’s phone.

After checking the time, Song Junho shot to his feet with a startled look on his face.

“Ah! It’s already nine? This is bad. I’ve gotta go!”

“Do you have something urgent?”

“I have to leave now if I want to wash up and be in bed before ten!”

“...?”

Apparently, it was because you secreted growth hormone better if you went to sleep early. He clearly had no intention of giving up hope that he could still grow taller.

“Then I’ll see you next time. Oh, and don’t bring Shin Kangheon to the party.”

Song Junho’s face turned sour. Muttering that that bastard would obviously make fun of his height again, he grumbled under his breath. Kim Muhyuk almost reached out to pat Song Junho on the head without realizing it, but barely stopped himself in time.

After Song Junho left, Kim Muhyuk checked the date of the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering written on the invitation once more.

“I probably won’t be able to fully heal my internal injuries by then, but...”

The internal injuries he had suffered in the fight against Ju Cheolgwan were deeper than he had expected.

If he pushed himself, it wasn’t as though he would be unable to use internal energy at all, but there probably wouldn’t be any reason to use internal energy at a social party.

‘...Right?’

Kim Muhyuk recalled the information he knew about Sunwoo Jeha.

First of all, the unofficial Strongest in Korea.

The reason the title “unofficial” was attached in front of it was because she had not entered any public sparring tournaments in the last several years.

Even though she had more than enough qualifications, she had not participated in the World’s Strongest Sparring Tournament, and had practically shut herself away inside her sect.

Because of that, no one knew her exact level now, but she was such a monster that the martial arts she had displayed before that alone were enough to earn her the title of the Strongest in Korea.

“But more important than that is...”

The fact that, at the present point in time, she was the only owner of a Black Restraint Band in Korea.

A high-risk martial artist whose alarm would go off if she drew up more than a certain amount of qi.

‘In other words, she’s a martial arts maniac the whole world keeps under watch because nobody knows where she might go.’

Sunwoo Jeha was the only one in Korea, but if you went overseas, you could occasionally see martial artists wearing Black Restraint Bands.

Richard Han wore one too, and half of the peerless masters of the orthodox faction who were famous worldwide wore Black Restraint Bands as well. And most of them were treated as lunatics.

‘A lot of them even smashed their Black Restraint Bands and defected to the unorthodox faction.’

People had argued for decades, right up to the present, about making martial artists wear Black Restraint Bands, but Kim Muhyuk didn’t care about that in the slightest.

What mattered was that every single owner of one was a terrifyingly powerful expert.

And that obtaining one was one of his goals too.

After cleaning up the café and stepping outside, Kim Muhyuk looked up at the night sky.

It was hard to see stars in Seoul’s cloudy night sky, but even then, a few were still twinkling overhead.

Kim Muhyuk reached a hand toward the sky.

“...It feels like I could reach them.”

He clenched his fist as though to seize a star, but only the empty night air slipped futilely through his fingers.

As he headed home, Kim Muhyuk replayed the fight with the Black Heaven Society’s society leader, a battle he had already reviewed hundreds of times over.

The Black Heaven Society’s society leader had been strong enough to make his skin crawl. Out of all the enemies he had fought across both his previous life and his current one, he had been the most overwhelming opponent.

But he had borrowed the power of Demonic Void Art and a spell formation. What had been threatening was the endless internal energy he spewed out and a body close to undying. As a martial artist, his level had been beneath both the Martial Alliance Leader and the Azure Sky Sword Elder.

‘That’s why my sword could somehow keep up with him.’

A realm beyond pinnacle experts, a realm that could be called that of a supreme master.

The fight against the Black Heaven Society’s society leader had taken place in the domain of martial artists who had reached that realm.

By borrowing the power of Phantom Dream and the Namcheon Sword, Kim Muhyuk had stepped into that same domain for a brief moment.

“It feels like I might be able to reach it...”

Kim Muhyuk clenched his empty hand in the air again and again.

Something that felt as though he could grasp it, yet could not.

Because he had experienced it once, the thirst was even stronger.

Most martial artists devote their entire lives to crossing that wall and still fail. Even those called geniuses end in frustration, and only a tiny few leap past it.

‘Where exactly have I reached now?’

As soon as that thought reached him, Kim Muhyuk felt his heart pounding like mad.

Just thinking about crashing into his limits made him feel like he was going crazy with excitement.

And if one day he shattered that wall and stepped into the same realm as them—

“Then...”

At that point, he would be able to say with certainty that he had surpassed the level he had reached in his previous life.

The fact that a smile rose to his lips at the very thought proved that he was, in the end, an incurable martial artist.

*****

A few days later, on the day of the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering Dinner Party.

“Hooooo......”

Kim Muhyuk slowly opened his eyes after finishing his meditation training.

There was a satisfied smile on his lips.

He had just confirmed that the energies of the Five Elements Divine Art were flowing smoothly through his body.

‘My recovery’s faster than I expected. I should be able to draw out about half my internal energy without putting too much strain on my body.’

On top of that, thanks to the insight he had gained in the battle against the Black Heaven Society’s society leader, his fire energy had become just as active as his metal energy and water energy.

Once his body fully recovered, it seemed likely he would be able to handle all three energies equally.

“Did your meditation go well?”

At the familiar voice, Kim Muhyuk opened his eyes and turned to the side.

CLANG! CLANG! CLAAANG—!

There, Choi Geon was expressionlessly bringing the flat of Phantom Dream down against an anvil.

It was part of the training where he deliberately created noise to interfere with Kim Muhyuk’s concentration while he meditated. Phantom Dream was serving in place of a hammer.

Aaaaagh! Evil old man! Stop! Stop already!

The spirit of Phantom Dream was twisting its body and screaming.

Kim Muhyuk, who had had no idea that the sound was Phantom Dream being struck rather than a hammer, looked at his master with an impressed expression.

“No wonder it was so much louder than usual....”

“Kehehe. I was taking the chance to beat some of that wicked energy out of it too. If you want to stop it from ever thinking about devouring its owner, you need to break it in properly from the start.”

I never did that! I don’t just eat whatever now! You evil old man—!

When the Sword Demon narrowed his eyes and looked at it, Phantom Dream’s spirit belatedly went stiff and clapped both hands over its mouth.

“What was that little brat just babbling about? What did it say to me?”

Unlike his disciple, Choi Geon could not see the spirit of a sacred weapon that clearly.

Knowing that, Kim Muhyuk decided to cut Phantom Dream a break.

“It says it’s sorry. It’s reflecting deeply on what it did, and begging that it’ll listen well to its owner from now on.”

“...Hmm. Is that so? Then I’ll leave it at this for today.”

When Choi Geon stopped hammering, Phantom Dream’s spirit looked at Kim Muhyuk with tears brimming in its eyes.

Thank you so much, Master...!

Shhk.

After sheathing Phantom Dream, Choi Geon handed it over to his disciple. Then he slyly winked one eye and sent a voice transmission.

[Since I’ve given it a thorough education, coax it along gently and make it into your true sword.]

[You really didn’t have to go this far....]

[Don’t be ridiculous. You have to train it properly from the beginning if you want it to become a beloved sword.]

After pouring himself some barley tea from the kettle he had boiled ahead of time, Choi Geon asked aloud,

“Tonight is when you’re attending the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering, yes?”

“Yes. It’s being held at the Transcendent Extremity Gate, and I’m meeting up with Shin Kangheon so we can head over together.”

“The Transcendent Extremity Gate, hmm.... So you’ll be meeting Sunwoo Jeha.”

“Do you know her well?”

Choi Geon slowly stroked his short chin beard, as though recalling something from long ago.

“The last time I met that one was more than twenty years ago. She wasn’t the Transcendent Extremity Gate sect leader back then either. She was about your age.”

He had heard that it had not even been ten years since Sunwoo Jeha became the sect leader of the Transcendent Extremity Gate. Becoming the sect leader of one of the Eight Great Sects while still in her thirties had apparently been something with almost no precedent.

A Transcendent Extremity Gate sect leader around his own age.

Kim Muhyuk found himself curious what kind of martial artist she had been back then.

At his disciple’s question, Choi Geon gave him a mischievous smile.

“Find out for yourself. Wouldn’t it be boring if I told you everything with my own mouth? Ah, but out of concern, I’ll tell you one thing.”

Wearing a meaningful expression, Choi Geon continued,

“If something catches her attention, she won’t even pretend to listen no matter what anyone around her says. I don’t know if she’s still like that now, but....”

If it had been the sort of personality that changed easily, she would never have reached that level in the first place.

After muttering to himself, Choi Geon warned him to keep it in mind.

“In any case, she’s not someone with a sound mind, so if you don’t want to get tired out, you’d better be careful.”

At Choi Geon’s warning, vigilance surfaced on Kim Muhyuk’s face.

“If Master is saying that much, then...”

Choi Geon was the master he respected most in the world, but Kim Muhyuk was genuinely shocked that words like that had come out of his mouth at all.

Because the least sound-minded orthodox martial artist Kim Muhyuk knew was none other than Choi Geon himself.

Kim Muhyuk straightened his posture and answered with shining eyes.

“I’ll be especially careful.”

“Hm? There’s something impudent about that look in your eyes.... But it must be a misunderstanding, right?”

“Of course it’s a misunderstanding.”

At that moment, master and disciple had the exact same thought in their hearts.

‘Still, I’m a far more sensible orthodox martial artist than Master.’

‘Even so, I’ve obviously got a much sounder way of thinking than this brat.’

It was a master and disciple who each believed they were more normal than the other.