novelraw Chapter 230 : The Truth of Bukri Sehee (1)
Chapter 230 : The Truth of Bukri Sehee (1)
Chapter 230: The Truth of Bukri Sehee (1)
Bukri Sehee, whose body had been filled with spiritual medicine, encountered Yong Hwarin on her way back to the Bukri Clan.
Watching Yong Hwarin, who was willing to risk his life for his subordinates, shattered Bukri Sehee’s sense of values.
Among those she had been associated with, there had never been anyone like that.
All of them had only ever demanded sacrifices from her.
And yet, here was someone who would throw away his life for a subordinate, and the subordinate in turn was ready to give their life for their lord.
Watching Yong Hwarin devote himself to his friend, Bukri Sehee found herself drawn to him—someone who possessed what she lacked.
She kept hypnotizing herself, telling herself that he was someone she would never see again once she returned to her clan, trying to push away the image of Yong Hwarin that kept creeping into her heart—but it was only momentary.
Before she knew it, Bukri Sehee found herself falling for Yong Hwarin.
“Would it be better for me to remain as Bukri Sogun to you?”
Bukri Sehee boldly reached out and caressed Yong Hwarin’s face.
“But I want to be a woman to you. Even if it’s just for a moment.”
Suddenly, Bukri Sehee’s situation struck her with sorrow, and tears began to fall.
“I really hate the main family that’s supposed to be hostile to Young Master Yong-nim. And the father who’s trying to sell me off.”
Bukri Sehee buried her face in Yong Hwarin’s chest and sobbed.
Crying like that, she eventually drifted off into sleep.
Yong Hwarin woke up from the weight pressing down on his chest.
When he lifted his head, he saw Bukri Sogun sleeping with her head resting on his chest, drooling in her sleep.
Yong Hwarin was startled and was about to wake her, but seeing the clear signs of exhaustion on her face, he slowly lowered his hand and gently patted her head.
‘How did Sogun end up here…?’
As he thought for a moment, Yong Hwarin realized that his body, which had been battered from fighting the Blood Shadow Guards, had already entered a recovery phase, and his internal energy seemed to exceed the Three Gaps. He was surprised.
Then, seeing Bukri Sogun’s bound fingers, he understood the reason his internal energy had increased.
Yong Hwarin then pondered how Bukri Sogun had come to be here with him.
While lost in thought, Yong Hwarin finally realized that the one sleeping on his chest was none other than Bukri Sehee.
Swooooosh!
Then the sound of rain tapping on the leaves outside the cave came as a refreshing noise.
At that moment—
“The trail stopped because of the sudden rain!”
Someone shouted from outside the cave.
“The blood trail leads to this area! Search nearby!”
Yong Hwarin flinched and tried to rise but laid back down as Bukri Sogun was still sleeping soundly.
“Search every cave in this area!”
It was the voice of Lee Yung.
Yong Hwarin’s chest tightened with anxiety.
If it were discovered that he was here, he wouldn’t even get the chance to resist before being caught.
The cave was too narrow to allow for any movement.
“There’s nothing strange in that cave.”
“Keep looking! I said look! The Blood Shadow Guards were all killed, and the Master is furious! Catching that bastard is the only way to calm his anger! If you don’t find him, you’re all as good as dead!”
Lee Yung shouted furiously.
Then someone approached the direction of the cave where Yong Hwarin was hiding and said,
“There’s a gap in that rock wall.”
Judging from the footsteps gathering around the cave entrance, it seemed they were talking about the cave Yong Hwarin was in.
Yong Hwarin quickly covered Bukri Sogun’s mouth and shook her awake.
Bukri Sehee opened her eyes as someone shook her.
“Mm!”
Yong Hwarin, covering Bukri Sehee’s mouth, raised a finger to his lips.
The bustling footsteps outside the cave quickly brought her to full alertness.
“This cave is too small for a person to enter. Maybe a child could.”
“Check it anyway. He might’ve shoved the guy in there somehow!”
Lee Yung truly had an excessively meticulous nature. In this situation, most would pass by thinking no one could enter such a tight space, but Lee Yung insisted on confirming everything, no matter how small.
“Get on the ground and check inside!”
Yong Hwarin and Bukri Sehee exchanged helpless glances.
Then Bukri Sehee crawled toward the back of the cave and peeked through a small opening.
‘Ah, thank goodness. It’s at least three times bigger than this space.’
Bukri Sehee hastily sent a telepathic message.
–Stay lying down. I’ll pull you in through the inside.
The current space was so narrow that Yong Hwarin couldn’t even sit up.
After Bukri Sogun entered through the small gap, she began pulling Yong Hwarin’s legs.
Yong Hwarin slightly raised his body with both hands so as not to make a dragging sound.
Squish, squish!
Someone approached the cave entrance and bent down to peer inside.
At that moment, Bukri Sehee gave a strong tug and pulled Yong Hwarin in.
And the moment one of the warriors peeked into the cave, my body was sucked into the space behind.
The warrior, seemingly trying to confirm something for Lee Yung, shoved his sword inside the cave and stirred it around.
Ting! Tang!
Only when the sword struck the cave wall and let out a metallic clang did Lee Yung finally issue the order.
“He’s not here! Search elsewhere! Check the trees too! Search every place a person could possibly be hiding!”
Judging by how irritable his shouting was, I could tell that this man named Sam Taegong was absolutely furious over the deaths of all the Seven Blood Shadow Guards.
As the sounds of people moving away from the cave faded, Bukri Sehee slowly unclenched her tightly gripped hands.
Moments later, I looked at her and asked,
“What should I call you? Should I call you Sogun? Or Lady Bukri ?”
“You figured it out?”
I let out a slight laugh.
“How could I not? Bukri Sehee was with me earlier, and now the one by my side is Bukri Sogun. If I didn’t realize they were the same person, I’d be a fool. But I honestly never even considered the possibility, so it’s still hard to believe. Don’t tell me… your current form is a body crafted using Bone-Chasing Technique?”
Bukri Sehee nodded with a somber expression.
“Why would someone who doesn’t even know martial arts learn Bone-Chasing Technique? That technique is excruciating. Is this somehow related to the spiritual medicine?”
I asked while feeling the energy of the spiritual medicine flowing through my body.
Bukri Sehee nodded.
I took some preserved rations from my waist and handed her a portion.
“I’m starving. Let’s eat this first. We can talk afterward.”
It was my way of showing consideration for her.
Outside the cave, the sky had darkened and the rain continued to fall.
As the damp air seeped into the cave, a chill swept through.
When Bukri Sehee’s small body began trembling from the cold, I pulled her into my embrace.
She instinctively tried to pull away.
But I held her tightly again.
“What’s wrong? We used to sleep like this before. Why didn’t I realize it then? Now that I think about it, there were so many odd things. How you never wanted to bathe with me, how you never changed clothes in front of me—everything was suspicious, but I never caught on. I really am a fool.”
Bukri Sehee couldn’t say a word.
Being in my warm embrace, she felt just like a baby bird nestled against its mother.
“I know you gave us spiritual medicine before leaving the medical ward. And you gave me the same spiritual medicine just now. You can’t possibly carry that medicine around with you all the time, so how are you able to hand it out exactly when it’s needed? Where is your spiritual medicine?”
When I asked, Bukri Sehee raised her head from my chest and replied,
“My blood is the spiritual medicine. Ever since I was young, I’ve been taking various spiritual medicines, accumulating their energy within my body.”
My eyes widened at the unexpected answer. But worried that my shock might sadden her, I quickly composed myself and kept a calm tone.
“That’s incredible. I didn’t know that was even possible. Why did it happen?”
Bukri Sehee lowered her head again.
“If it’s about your clan, you don’t have to tell me.”
“No, I’ve always wanted to tell someone.”
Bukri Sehee closed her eyes.
“My father believed the Bukri Clan’s martial arts lacked power compared to other clans. So he researched ways to amplify internal power to boost the effectiveness. Our clan had a method passed down for that. It involved feeding spiritual medicine from a young age so the condensed energy could be absorbed.”
Hearing that, I let out a soft gasp.
“Ah! Then the reason you trained in Bone-Chasing Technique was to concentrate that energy? Since an adult’s body absorbs the spiritual energy, you tried to shrink your body to prevent the energy from dispersing?”
I could feel Bukri Sehee nodding in my arms.
“But hadn’t you returned to Bukri Sehee’s body just recently?”
She made a sorrowful face.
“Once the spiritual energy reaches a certain threshold, it no longer gets absorbed even in an adult’s body. The energy inside me had reached its saturation point, so I was able to return to my original form.”
I let out a deep sigh.
“That’s so cruel. How could a father subject his daughter to such torment?”
Bukri Sehee replied in a desolate tone.
“You may not know this, but I’m a concubine’s daughter.”
“Even so, that doesn’t justify it. I guess that’s why you looked more at ease when you were in a child’s body.”
“Yes. I’ve only lived as Bukri Sehee for a short time. Most of my life, I lived as Bukri Sogun.”
“Then why are you in Bukri Sehee’s body now? And why are you here, at the Sky Ocean Merchant Union?”
Her eyes began to well with tears.
“It’s a long story. But to keep it short, a man named Sam Taegong once visited our main house a long time ago. He brought martial arts with him.”
Bukri Sehee then explained how the Heavenly Demon Sect lured her father with one of the Iron Blood Beehive’s seven secret techniques, the Changhwang Fist.
“Back then, I had just returned to my Bukri Sehee form after a long time as Bukri Sogun. When he saw me, he said he wanted me as a token of alliance between the two factions.”
“And?”
I found myself absorbed in her tragic tale without realizing it.
“My father calculated that within one year, all the spiritual energy in my body would be completely absorbed, and he agreed. If they didn’t hand over Changhwang Fist, everything he hoped for would collapse.”
I nodded silently.
Now I understood how Bukri Chang rose to become the Alliance Leader of the Namung Alliance in my past life.
He once demonstrated such overwhelming martial prowess that the martial world was thrown into an uproar.
Even though he was assassinated just three years later, I now knew where that martial power had come from.
‘And he was probably assassinated by someone from the Heavenly Demon Sect. For some reason or another.’
I spoke softly.
“To think he planned to offer you as a sacrifice to that old man… I’m sorry, but your father doesn’t seem to see you as his daughter.”
At those words, Bukri Sehee shed tears.
When I felt her chest become damp, I gently patted her head.
“Sorry for touching on such a painful subject. So, did you come to the Sky Ocean Merchant Union in Bukri Sehee’s body to go to that old man, Sam Taegong?”
“No. I still had a year left. I was just sent here as a courtesy visit.”
“As a courtesy visit? In a mountain like this? Do you even realize what that means? Why you were sent? Your father sent you to that old man Sam Taegong to be his plaything, you fool. And you still came?”