LIGHTNOVELSTORY Chapter 21 - Share the Good Things (2)
Chapter 21. Share the Good Things (2)
As soon as Ralph finished speaking, two people emerged from the forest.
Rustle-.
The first person to come through the bushes was Johan.
He looked just the same as he had six months ago.
But the person following Johan was different.
Once much shorter than his peers, he had shot up to 170 cm in just six months.
His once somewhat frail body was now noticeably muscular and sturdy.
Yuri’s face was still that of a youthful boy, but below the neck, he had become a completely different person.
Clang-.
A sword hung at his waist swayed as he walked out of the forest, and his light blue earrings sparkled in the sunlight.
Step- step-.
As Yuri and Johan walked calmly, Ralph frowned.
“You’re late.”
“Hmm, I was teaching this guy a surefire strategy to win the sparring match…”
At Johan’s words, Yuri snorted.
“Yeah, right. We were late because we were waiting for the old man to finish his business!”
“You brat!”
“What?!”
“…Do you have any idea about the suffering of someone with constipation?!”
“I don’t care about that.”
“Only those who understand this pain can cast a stone at me!”
“Old man, if you can’t even handle your business properly anymore, what are you good for?”
“What did you say, you little…?”
Seeing the two bickering noisily even though they were late, Ralph no longer had the energy to be angry.
After watching this every day for the past six months, he was tired of it.
He sighed and waved his hand dismissively.
“Enough, let’s just start. How long are we going to keep this up over some kids sparring?”
“You’re the one who suggested this bet, remember?”
“Well, I didn’t think it would take this long! I thought it’d be over in a few days at most!”
At Ralph’s outburst, Johan gave him a look as if to say, ‘So what?’
Ralph’s eyes, which had been flaring up, drooped weakly.
“…Fine, let’s really get started now.”
This time, Yuri stepped forward and joined the conversation.
“Let’s do this sparring with real swords.”
“Real swords?”
Ralph turned his head slightly with a worried look when Yuri nodded.
As expected, Mucci looked startled and blinked his eyes.
“Y-Yuri hyung?”
He was already not thrilled about the sparring, and now real swords?
Mucci was at a loss.
Just as Ralph was about to reject the real sword sparring with a sigh,
“Hey, coward.”
It was the nickname Yuri had used to call Mucci over the past six months.
Hearing it, Mucci stared at Yuri with wide eyes.
Facing Mucci’s bewildered gaze, Yuri grinned.
“You said you didn’t understand, right? Why do you work so hard to master techniques meant to hurt people?”
“Ah…”
Mucci recalled his past words and slightly parted his lips.
Meanwhile, Yuri reached for his sword hilt.
Swoosh-.
The silver blade slowly revealed itself.
If Yuri’s handling of the wooden sword had seemed awkward six months ago, now there was no trace of awkwardness.
Swoosh-.
Yuri fully drew his sword and pointed it at Mucci.
As Mucci’s startled face came into view at the tip of the sword, Yuri’s mind briefly flashed back to memories of the past.
* * *
Three months ago.
When the sun was setting in the west.
Uwaaaagh-.
From somewhere in the forest, someone’s retching echoed loudly.
Wretch- wretch-!
Grasping a tree and dry heaving, Yuri staggered forward.
After a short walk, he reached a nearby stream, rinsed his mouth, and leaned against a rock before sliding down to sit.
“Ugh…”
A groan escaped his lips.
To be precise, it was correct to say he didn’t have the strength to hold back the groan.
Indeed, his appearance was a mess.
His hair was disheveled, and dark circles were heavily settled under his eyes.
His clothes, smeared with sweat and dirt, made it impossible to guess their original color.
“Ugh-.”
Thump- thump-.
Yuri tapped his thighs.
His legs, like those of a newborn fawn, were trembling.
He had to loosen them a bit while resting.
But after tapping his legs a few times, his whole body started aching, so he gave up.
He lay completely limp and stared at the reddening sky.
The world spun around him.
“I’m dying…”
Even though he said that, Yuri knew the truth.
He was just exhausted, not dying.
If he were really about to die, he’d have already passed out before he could even complain.
That was a realization he had gained over the past three months by constantly brushing against death.
How long had he been looking up at the sky like that?
Huff- huff-.
Yuri’s breathing slowly became steady.
At that moment,
“Ah!”
Yuri quickly shook his head and sat up straight.
His face had turned pale as if he had had a nightmare.
‘I almost didn’t finish today’s quota.’
If he had fallen asleep like that, he would have surely woken up tomorrow.
And then he wouldn’t have completed today’s training, which the old man would undoubtedly notice.
‘That would be hell.’
He used to curse the wagon-pulling disguised as physical training.
In earnest training, Johan had turned into a demon, driving him hard.
He even missed the days when he pulled the wagon.
Still, Yuri didn’t complain.
He silently followed Johan’s training schedule.
“Ugh.”
He furrowed his brow as he tried to stand up, then suddenly turned his head.
“What are you doing over there?”
Yuri’s sharp gaze landed on the spot.
There, some hair peeked out from between the bushes.
Yuri clicked his tongue in exasperation.
“Tsk. Hey, don’t you think I can see you just because you’re hiding?”
At his chiding, the bushes rustled, and a giant figure appeared.
“Hehe.”
Watching Mucci scratch the back of his head awkwardly, Yuri let out a deep sigh.
‘Ha… I lost to that guy?’
Every time he saw Mucci, a sense of shame washed over him.
What’s the point of being huge?
What’s the point of being a first-class talent?
He acted like a clueless thirteen-year-old kid.
“Ah!”
Thud-.
“….”
Seeing Mucci trip over a vine and fall as he walked out of the bushes, Yuri corrected his thoughts.
‘…That guy must have lied about his age. Otherwise, he couldn’t be this clueless!’
Thirteen years old, my foot.
He had the build of an adult but the behavior of a ten-year-old.
“Ah…”
“Hey, if you fell, get up quickly, what are you doing?”
“Okay.”
“Brush the dirt off your body!”
“Okay.”
“Ugh, you frustrating brat!”
Even though he grumbled, Yuri couldn’t push the approaching guy away.
Despite his appearance, he was a gentle soul.
Moreover, having taken care of him a few times, Mucci now followed him around, calling him “hyung.”
It was kind of cute…
Yuri shivered and shook off the thought.
‘Have I gone crazy from getting beaten by the old man…? Thinking that big guy is cute?!’
There was nothing cute about his looks.
He had the perfect face for a bandit.
As Yuri quickly shook his head, Mucci, who was sitting next to him, asked,
“Hyung, are you sick?”
“Hey, don’t call me hyung anymore.”
“Then what?”
“Call me hyungnim.”
“Why?”
“Just do it without asking why!”
“Okay. Hyungnim.”
“Good, that suits you.”
Mucci looked at Yuri oddly as he sighed in relief.
Then he hesitantly asked,
“Yuri hyu… hyungnim!”
“What?”
“What are you thinking when you train?”
That was what Mucci had been curious about while watching Yuri.
For the past three months, Yuri had been pushing his body to an extreme degree.
To Mucci, it seemed less like training and more like self-torture or self-harm.
But Yuri, who was going through such intense training, appeared unfazed.
Mucci couldn’t understand it at all.
Conversely, Yuri looked equally puzzled by Mucci’s question.
“What do you mean? What do I think when I train? I just do it.”
“Isn’t it hard?”
“No, it’s not hard.”
“R-Really?”
“No, it’s not hard, it feels like I’m dying.”
“Then why do you do it?”
“Why? Because I just do.”
“……?”
Yuri answered as he watched Mucci tilt his head in confusion.
In a very calm voice, as if it was the most obvious thing.
“Because I have a goal.”
“A goal?”
“Yeah, I want to become strong. Stronger than anyone else, so I don’t want to lose. That’s why I do it.”
“…….”
“Training to become stronger doesn’t need any special thought. You just do it every day.”
“Isn’t it boring? Aren’t you tired?”
“It is boring. But…”
Yuri’s eyes shone with determination for a moment.
“I’m not tired.”
That was what Yuri kept telling himself.
Back when he had just started his training.
Gritting his teeth through the terrible muscle pain that gripped his entire body, he had made a vow.
‘The one who doesn’t get tired of repetition will be the winner.’
He would endure the repetition and surely become the winner.
Having renewed his resolve, Yuri now asked a question himself.
“Why did you learn Magic Body Technique?”
“Because my grandfather made me…”
“You didn’t want to?”
“At first, I didn’t want to. Grandfather made me lift heavy things and climb cliffs.”
“Climb cliffs?”
“Yeah, at first, I fell a lot while climbing.”
“Did you hit your head when you fell? Was there nothing below?”
Yuri’s eyes sparkled as if he had uncovered Mucci’s secret.
‘So that’s it! This guy was a genius when he was young but hurt his head falling off a cliff! That’s the only explanation for why he’s so clueless now!’
Yuri was convinced.
“Well… there was a rock about the size of a fist below.”
“The size of your fist?”
“Yeah.”
“So, it was as big as my head. Did you hit your head on it?”
“Yeah.”
“Knew it!”
“And it broke.”
“Your head?”
“No, the rock…”
“…….”
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“I’m just… amazed at how tough your head must be.”
Like a stone-headed idiot.
If a rock broke when his head hit it, how tough was his head?
Yuri looked at him in disbelief.
Ignoring Yuri’s gaze, Mucci continued talking cheerfully.
“Anyway, I hated it at first, but now it’s fun! Moving my body, lifting heavy things!”
“Then what’s the problem? If you’re having fun learning Magic Body Technique, isn’t that all that matters?”
“But… I don’t like it.”
“Huh?”
“I like learning Magic Body Technique, but I don’t like using it to hurt others…”
“…….”
“Hyungnim, I just don’t understand. Why work so hard to master a technique just to hurt people…?”
“Hmm… Hey!”
“Yeah?”
“Why do you dislike hurting others?”
“Well… I feel sorry.”
“What if someone attacks you first? Would you still feel sorry for hurting them?”
“Hmm…”
Mucci thought for a moment and then replied.
“I just won’t get hurt?”
“What?”
“I’m tough, so I don’t get hurt easily. Even if I do, I heal quickly. But… if I hit someone lightly, they get really hurt.”
Yuri’s expression hardened at that answer.
At the same time, Johan’s words flashed through his mind.
[Do you know why I made you fight Mucci even though you hadn’t learned anything?]
Losing to Mucci had been Yuri’s first defeat.
Even though he hadn’t used his Avatar, the shock of the defeat was hard to shake off.
At that moment, Yuri had engraved a fact he knew in his bones.
He wasn’t an ‘invincible’ being.
Without his Avatar, he was just an ordinary orphan kid.
Recalling that fact made the sense of defeat even more intense.
As if he knew that, Johan had sneered.
[Someone who’s never lost doesn’t understand how filthy defeat feels! People say you learn a lot from defeat? Bullshit. The only thing you learn from defeat is misery!]
Those with strong self-belief feel even more miserable when they lose.
Johan had felt that way himself.
Yuri, who had lost to Mucci, would feel the same.
[Only those who feel the misery of defeat become desperate and grow by feeding on the desire never to lose again.]
Given Yuri’s natural talent, even a little training would make him exponentially stronger.
That’s why Johan wanted Yuri to experience defeat before reaching a level where he couldn’t lose, no matter what.
To feel the misery of defeat.
Better to suffer now than to deal with the scars of defeat ten years later, which would heal much slower.
Johan’s intention had been perfectly conveyed to Yuri, and Yuri had awakened completely through that defeat.
So now, Yuri could feel something in his conversation with Mucci that he hadn’t before.
‘This guy may be a bit clueless, but he’s definitely kind-hearted. That’s for sure.’
But the fact that Mucci could feel sorry for hitting an opponent, could consider not hurting them!
‘…It’s because Mucci is strong.’
It was the ease of the strong, the mindset of someone who didn’t know defeat.
An ideal one could have only because they had never tasted loss.
‘Is that so?’
Yuri’s lips curled into a slight smile.
He had awakened through the defeat he suffered that day.
Despite having felt the greatest misery of his life.
‘And you don’t know about this good thing?’
Mucci still didn’t know the misery of defeat.
‘That won’t do! Thanks to you, I’ve awakened!’
Now it was Yuri’s turn to help Mucci awaken.
‘That’s only fair, right?’
He was truly curious.
Could Mucci still feel sorry for his opponent and consider them even when he was about to lose?
Could he still be considerate?
Would he?
Yuri’s smile deepened as he looked at Mucci.
* * *
The smile Yuri had three months ago continued to the present.
He flicked the tip of his sword and spoke.
“The thing you didn’t understand… I’ll show you today. Why I learned Magic Body Technique, why I swing my sword like my life depends on it!”