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Rebirth (1)

On that day, which was both the last and the first, snow began to fall in the late afternoon.

Watching the snowflakes drift down like soft feathers, Baekpyo, who was with me, spoke in an excited voice.

“Leader! It’s the first snow.”

Baekpyo is one of the two people I trust most, serving as the chief bodyguard of the Leader’s Hall. Even in his forties, the word ‘pure’ suits him well.

“They say if you see the first snow, you’ll have good luck that year.”

He said it casually, but there was a deep-seated hope in his words—a wish to survive another year unscathed. Who would have thought that the greatest bodyguard of the Martial Alliance, who once thwarted the combined attack of the Seven Demons of the Black Heaven Palace, had such a sentimental side?

“Yes, the first snow.”

I feigned admiration as I looked out the window, but honestly, I felt indifferent.

The phrase ‘first snow’ no longer makes my heart race.

This year, I am seventy.

The thrill of firsts has long since fossilized, unable to stir my emotions.

When I see snow… all I can think of are those I killed on the snowy fields. Those who bled and died on the pure white snow.

The wind howled.

The snowflakes, once gentle, were now growing stronger.

The astronomer who confidently predicted clear weather today will likely avoid me for a few days. He said the first snow wouldn’t come until next month.

“By now, Myung must be jumping for joy.”

Myung is Baekpyo’s child.

“He’s three this year, right?”

Baekpyo looked slightly flustered.

“He’s six this year.”

I was genuinely surprised.

Not because I forgot the age of his late-born child, whom he had late in life.

But because I suddenly remembered having the exact same conversation just a few days ago.

I had asked if the child was three then, too.

I’m not some senile old man, so how could I make such a mistake?

“He’s grown so much already. My apologies.”

Instead of looking disappointed, Baekpyo’s face was filled with concern for me.

“It’s alright. They say you realize time has passed when you see other people’s children grow.”

Baekpyo had said something similar that day, too. Now I remember clearly.

‘Why am I like this lately?’

Recently, I’ve been forgetting things more often. Especially lately, the symptoms have worsened, and my energy isn’t what it used to be. I often feel like I’m floating, as if I have a severe cold.

I even considered the possibility of poisoning and examined my body thoroughly with my inner energy, but found nothing wrong.

I thought about consulting a divine doctor, but decided to wait and see.

If rumors spread that the leader of the Martial Alliance was unwell, it would cause a stir not just in the alliance, but throughout the martial world.

“I’ll take my leave now.”

“Go ahead.”

Regardless of my situation, I felt sorry for Baekpyo. He’s always there to protect me, yet I keep making these mistakes.

I should buy his child some clothes. But… was the child a girl or a boy?

Damn. I can’t remember.

Feeling frustrated, I turned my gaze back to the window. The world was being covered in white, just like my fading memories.

“Is it my time to die?”

Me, the greatest under heaven? The one who held the top position for over forty years?

In the afternoon, General Gal Saryang came to the Leader’s Hall for a report.

He reported on various matters within the alliance as usual, but none of it registered.

I listened absentmindedly, staring out the window.

Noticing my low spirits, Gal Saryang finished his report earlier than usual.

“…The rest is in the report.”

“Thank you.”

“Then I’ll take my leave.”

I called out to him as he turned to go.

“General Gal.”

“Yes, Leader?”

“What kind of person am I?”

“What do you mean?”

“Exactly what I said. How would you define me?”

I turned to look at Gal Saryang, curious about how he, who helped me achieve the great unification of the central plains, would evaluate me.

“What I say doesn’t matter.”

He glanced around and said,

“You are the greatest in this martial world.”

The walls of the Leader’s Hall were adorned with records of my past life.

The fifteen most important battles of my life. My footsteps now part of the martial world’s history.

At twenty-nine, I became the greatest under heaven.

That year, the Sword Emperor, Blade Emperor, and Fist King all knelt before me.

The Martial God, Cheon Haejin.

A name I earned at the end of my twenties.

Seven years later, at thirty-six, I became the leader of the Martial Alliance. I was the first to become the leader in my thirties since the alliance’s inception.

The pride of being the first. I lived as the leader of the Martial Alliance for thirty-four years, intoxicated by that pride.

My life was intense and splendid.

After becoming the leader, I spent many years on the battlefield, defeating the demonic sects.

I faced death numerous times in the process.

But in the end, I fulfilled the long-cherished wish of the Martial Alliance.

I shattered the Black Path Thirteen Alliances, a coalition of demonic sects, and destroyed the Blood Heaven Divine Sect, the successor of the Demonic Cult.

Even after securing peace in the martial world, my life remained busy.

The enemies weren’t only external. Once the external threats were gone, internal enemies emerged.

Those who coveted absolute power poisoned my food and sent assassins at night.

But I survived and cut down all who dreamed of rebellion.

I wanted to remain a graceful and dignified absolute ruler, but reality didn’t go as I wished. If I didn’t kill, I would be killed.

The martial world called me the Iron-Blooded Leader, and because I mercilessly cut down traitors, they also called me the Punishing Leader.

No one dared to breathe loudly in my presence.

“You are the absolute ruler of this martial world, the symbol of chivalry and martial prowess. You are the martial world itself.”

Yes, that’s who I am. So why do I feel so down today?

Gal Saryang added, a bit worried.

“Are you feeling unwell?”

He had watched over me for a long time and noticed I was different from usual.

“I’m fine.”

“Then please rest.”

Gal Saryang withdrew from the hall.

Left alone, I sank deep into the grand chair.

The martial world itself. Yes, as someone born into the martial world, hearing such words should leave me wanting nothing more…

“Ugh!”

As I sat in the chair, I suddenly found it hard to breathe. A sense of helplessness, as if I couldn’t control my own body, and a lethargy that felt like all my strength was evaporating, enveloped me.

‘I’ll think about it after a nap…’

I never knew.

That this was the last moment of my life.

I never imagined the end of the greatest under heaven would come so suddenly, so emptily. I thought my end would come surrounded by traitors, fighting madly, dying gloriously.

But as if to say my life was over, the world turned pitch black.

* * *

When I opened my eyes, I saw an unfamiliar ceiling.

‘Where am I?’

A strong medicinal scent hit my nose.

‘A medical room?’

Did I collapse? It seems so.

I’ll probably get an earful from General Gal for not taking care of myself.

As I tried to sit up, I felt a strange unfamiliarity.

‘What is this?’

Instinctively, I tried to activate my unique martial art, the Heavenly Martial Heart Technique.

The inner energy that should have filled my core and spread to protect my body… was unresponsive.

The core, which should have been brimming with decades of inner energy, was empty. No, there was some energy, but it was so weak it could hardly be called inner energy.

What on earth is going on?

It’s possible to collapse from illness. But not feeling my inner energy is impossible.

A dispersing poison? No way.

Especially since the Heavenly Martial Heart Technique I mastered was the greatest martial art, protecting my body in any situation. A dispersing poison wouldn’t work.

The emptiness of my inner energy and the unresponsive martial art felt worse than having my flesh and bones cut by metal.

I slowly sat up. Even the movement of my body felt unfamiliar.

Where am I?

This wasn’t the medical room of the Martial Alliance. It was a small room, not even a tenth the size of the leader’s private medical room.

Then, a low voice came from beside me.

“You’re awake.”

I turned my head toward the voice and saw a middle-aged man and woman standing side by side.

The woman approached and took my hand.

“Are you alright?”

Of course, I wasn’t. I had no idea what was happening.

“Who are you?”

Even my voice was one I had never heard before.

The woman smiled and said,

“Did you just ask who I am?”

“Yes.”

“Yes?”

The corners of the woman’s mouth curled up. The middle-aged man standing behind her quickly spoke.

“Calm down, dear.”

But before he could finish, the woman smacked the back of my head mercilessly.

Smack!

“You’re asking who I am when you should be apologizing profusely? Let me tell you. The poor woman who stayed up all night worrying about you is… your mother! You ungrateful child! Is that how you speak to your mother?”

Whoosh.

The woman’s fist swung past my eyes again.

If the middle-aged man hadn’t rushed over to pull her back, I would have taken that punch squarely in the face.

“Calm down! He must be disoriented after fainting and waking up!”

“Why don’t you just drop dead, you idiot, you fool, you complete moron!”

Normally, in a situation like this, I would have retorted with something like, “How dare you speak to me that way?” But I was still in a daze.

Had I ever been hit on the back of the head by someone before?

No, forget that—what on earth was happening here? It was such an absurd situation that I didn’t even have the luxury to consider the rudeness of it all.

Was this a dream?

But it felt too vivid to be a dream. The throbbing pain in my head from the recent blow was all too real.

I turned my head to the side without thinking. The moment I caught sight of the small mirror on the wall, I nearly stopped breathing.

In the reflection was a young man I had never seen before, staring back with a bewildered expression.

Was that supposed to be me?

Ah, so it is a dream after all!

A wave of relief washed over me, quickly followed by confusion.

What kind of bizarre dream is this, and why does it feel so real?

The next moment, dizziness overtook me, and I collapsed again. The woman’s scolding voice gradually faded from my ears.