Chapter 228 : Chapter 228
Chapter 228 - The Youngest Son of the Haewon Sword Family (1)
The prestigious Haewon Sword Family.
Compared to the heads of other sword families, my father, the Family Head, was still quite young, and one could say it was still too early for him to prepare for his successor.
Naturally, the matter of succession to the position of Family Head had not yet risen to the surface, and even among the three of us brothers, we tended to avoid mentioning anything related to it.
Even so, public opinion seemed to regard the eldest son, Seo Ji-hoon, as the strongest candidate, but in truth, that was not certain.
Leaving me aside, the strength of the second son, Seo Ji-won, did not seem significantly inferior in my eyes either.
My father’s policy toward the three of us brothers was a kind of free-range autonomy.
If there was something we wanted, he never spared his support, and unless we went too far, he did not particularly reprimand or question us about it.
This was a rather different atmosphere from that of other prestigious sword families.
I once wondered whether, if the day came when I established a family of my own and became the head of a household, I would resemble my father as he was now.
In truth, when I was first reincarnated in Seo Ji-han’s body, I naturally thought I would become the Family Head of the Haewon Sword Family.
Although I had been born with a frail body, I had the insights of my previous life, and overcoming a handicap of that degree was only a matter of time.
But now that time had passed, my position and circumstances had changed greatly.
‘Do I really need to……?’
I wondered whether there was any need for me to cling to the position of Family Head.
During my days as Johan Raven, I had stood in the position of a sovereign, so I thought it would be natural for that status to continue into my second life as well. But when I considered it carefully, there was no particular reason it had to be that way.
Earth was a world unsuitable for satisfying a desire for conquest through war.
They said that such an era had long since disappeared from Earth.
And above all, it was because of the final journey that lay before me.
The Demon Realm, and the Dragon’s Nest.
I thought that my desire for improvement and my urge for conquest could be sufficiently satisfied through those two.
Having surpassed the realm of my previous life and glimpsed the ultimate end of swordsmanship, if I accomplished even those two things, it seemed meaningless to assign myself any further tasks.
Of course, the problem was that I could not guarantee I would return alive from those final tasks.
In any case, once I set aside my thoughts about the position of Family Head, one uncomfortable problem arose.
The path to learning the latter half of the Haewon Sword Style, of which I had only learned the first half, had been blocked.
This was because of the tradition that only the Family Head of the Haewon Sword Family could learn that swordsmanship, and I planned to have a conversation with my father about this issue.
My friend! But must you truly learn that Haewon Sword Style? Do you not already have many other sword styles?
Of course, the Holy Sword was right.
If one judged by the strength of swordsmanship alone, the sword style from my previous life was superior to the Haewon Sword Style.
But since I had been reincarnated in the body of Seo Ji-han, a direct descendant of the Haewon Sword Family, completing this family’s swordsmanship felt like a kind of destiny and long-cherished wish.
My friend! Such a lie will not work on me! Is your obsession with the Haewon Sword Style not because of the curiosity that has continued from your previous life? You were always like this. If there was a sword style you liked, you would learn it no matter what!
“I would like you to know that it is a little different this time.”
Of course, I did not say that everything the Holy Sword had said was wrong.
***
“……So, Ji-han, you are saying that you will soon depart on a dangerous journey?”
“That is correct, Father.”
The Dragon’s Nest was the true final destination of my second life.
Naturally, my mindset could not help being different from before.
“To tell the truth, I cannot even guarantee that I will be able to return.”
As his son, I had to be honest with him about this part.
Naturally, my father’s expression rapidly darkened.
“Why must you go to such a place?”
“Because I have to go.”
“That is why I want to know the reason.”
It was rare for my father to show himself like this.
It meant that he, too, sensed the gravity of the matter.
However.
“I cannot tell you.”
I felt sorry, but there was nothing I could do.
“I do not know the reason, but it seems it is difficult for you to say.”
With that, my father firmly closed his lips.
He had always been someone who understood me, and this time as well, he nodded as though he had no choice.
“I am sorry, Father.”
“Very well. I will not ask. You have always had your reasons.”
“Thank you.”
“And this time as well, I will trust that you will succeed splendidly, as you always have.”
Then my father tightly held both of my hands.
This much warmth was something I had never felt even from my father in my previous life.
Although I had been born in a body that had fought illness, the fact that I had been reborn into this family was my greatest fortune.
“……Father.”
“However, there is a condition to my permission.”
“I will follow anything you ask.”
“You must keep it a secret from your mother.”
My father gave a slight smile, and I nodded with a heavy heart.
“When do you intend to leave?”
“Now that I have your permission, Father, it will be soon.”
I did not want to delay unnecessarily.
If I did not act once my resolve had been made, I felt I would want to postpone it even more.
“I see.”
Seeing my father like this made my heart feel even weaker.
It was an emotion that I could not have imagined in my previous life.
It seemed that my body was not the only thing that had changed.
“Would you have a drink with me after so long?”
“Yes, Father.”
And so began a drinking session between father and son.
My father emptied his cups far faster than usual.
“Ji-han, I remember the day you first went to the Abyss.”
That day, I had gone to confirm the story that the Spring of Elixir was near the entrance of the Abyss. I cut down a single Goblin and immediately lost consciousness.
And when I regained consciousness and awoke, I remembered the sight of my father and mother looking at me with worried eyes.
“I think it was around then. That you, Ji-han, changed as if you had become a different person.”
“Did I?”
“It was a time when I worried a great deal about you. Looking back, it was all needless concern.”
With that, my father emptied another cup with a pleased expression.
“The fact that I was able to escape my long battle with illness. I believe it was all thanks to that.”
It was not because of my own greatness or ability.
In front of my father, my heart became endlessly humble.
“That is not true. Whenever I looked at you, I was always filled with guilt. As your father, there was nothing I could do for you.”
“…….”
“This time, too, as I send you off, there is nothing I can do for you. I can only worry, just as I did back then, and hope once again that my worries prove needless.”
I could only listen silently to my father’s words.
“Before you leave, is there anything you wish to ask of me? If it is something I can do, I want to do anything for you.”
Just as I was wondering how I should bring it up, my father raised the subject first.
Even for me, it was not an easy thing to say, but in the end, I decided to try.
“I want to learn the latter half of the Haewon Sword Style.”
My father could not have expected that this would be my request either.
Naturally, he could not help being flustered.
“The latter half of the Haewon Sword Style……”
“If I had to make a request, this was the only thing that came to mind.”
“You must know well, Ji-han, what the latter half of the Haewon Sword Style signifies.”
“Of course.”
“Then should I interpret that to mean that, after successfully completing your journey through the Abyss, you intend to formally challenge for the succession as Family Head?”
“No.”
“……Then?”
“As I said, I cannot guarantee that I will be able to return. However, I simply wish to conclude the final journey of the Abyss that lies before me with the Haewon Sword Style.”
I made it clear that this had absolutely nothing to do with the succession issue.
At that, my father sank into thought with a heavy expression.
“You wish to end your final journey with the Haewon Sword Style……”
“That is correct.”
“In this situation, would it not be better for you to declare instead that you will become the Family Head in the future? That way, as I look upon my son who is going to a place where life and death cannot be guaranteed, my heart might weaken.”
“Even if I return, I do not think I will become the Family Head of the Haewon Sword Family in the future.”
At my words, my father looked at me as if he could not understand.
“Ji-han, I know well your genius and the dazzling achievements you have made so far. And at some point, I began to think this as well. That the realm you had reached was now beyond even my ability to sense.”
“……You knew.”
“It seems you regarded this father of yours as someone that dull.”
“I am sorry, Father.”
“You have nothing to be sorry for. I simply do not know the reason. Your two older brothers would not want to acknowledge it, but if you set your mind to it, would you not be the most likely successor to become the next Family Head, Ji-han? And yet, you say that you do not think you will become the Family Head yourself.”
“Because I am no longer interested.”
“Ha ha.”
“However, I do have a yearning for the Haewon Sword Style. Since I have already learned the techniques of its first half, it is an emotion I cannot help naturally feeling. That is why I made this request of you, Father.”
My father was someone who valued principles.
No matter how much I was standing at the crossroads of life and death, there was a high chance that principle would not be broken.
If that was the case, then it could not be helped.
The Haewon Sword Style was simply not tied to me by fate.
“What an exquisitely difficult situation this is. After all, I clearly declared that I would do everything I could for you.”
At the same time, he emptied his cup.
A brief silence flowed between us.
“I will accept your request, Ji-han.”
For a moment, I could not help doubting my own ears.
Even in the present situation and atmosphere, I had thought it would be a difficult decision to reach.
“……Father.”
“Is this not a situation in which I cannot refuse?”
Suddenly, I wondered whether that might be an excuse.
My father, who had always felt guilty when looking at me.
It felt as though he did not want to refuse my request.
“However, this too comes with a condition.”
“Please tell me.”
“There is a place I wish to visit with only you. Will you grant my request?”
“What kind of place is it?”
My father’s answer was entirely unexpected.
“Let us make a light trip to the Abyss.”
“To the Abyss with you, Father?”
“There is no need to think of it as difficult. I intend to find a suitable place. After all, you have never cleared the Abyss together with this father of yours, have you?”
I had heard the story before.
My two older brothers, Seo Ji-hoon and Seo Ji-won, had each gone to the Abyss with him once.
I had heard that Seo Ji-hoon first learned the techniques of the first half of the Haewon Sword Style while clearing the Abyss with my father, and that Seo Ji-won had received the family’s treasured sword from Father at that time.
“Thanks to you, Ji-han, I feel as if I have returned to active duty after so long. I will have to maintain my sword again first.”
At those words from my father, I could only feel my heart grow moved.