Absolute Regression

Chapter 396: I’m telling you, it’s a trip!

The moment I heard the words Northern Sea Ice Palace, this thought popped into my head.

‘Lee Ahn, maybe fate wants me to go see you.’

It was a place I hadn’t even thought of, but I heard about it twice in one day. And it wasn’t even something I just overheard. Both Lee Ahn and the Drunken Demon were people deeply connected to me, weren’t they?

“Why are you so surprised?”

“I was just thinking... you must be someone who gets liquor gifts from the Ice Palace every year.”

“You’re the only one who looks down on me. Once I step outside, even I’m someone who gets recognized.”

How could I not know? More than anyone, I know just how terrifying the Drunken Demon can be when he goes on a rampage after getting drunk. Only the Blood Heaven Blade Demon could casually call him a drunkard.

“But is the Ice Palace not sending liquor really something worth discussing with the Sword Supreme?”

A flicker of unease briefly passed through the Drunken Demon’s eyes.

“You just don’t know how good their Ice Liquor is.”

“Then since we’ve brought it up, how about we visit the Northern Sea Ice Palace together?”

“Just the two of us?”

“If they don’t send it, we’ll just go drink it ourselves. They wouldn’t refuse us a glass of Ice Liquor if we showed up in person, would they? Let’s have a drink of Ice Liquor together on the snowy peak.”

If I said I wasn’t bothered by how the Drunken Demon always acted like he was second to everything, that’d be a lie. I wanted to use this opportunity to spend some time with him.

Drinking Ice Liquor with the Drunken Demon as the snowflakes scattered around the mountain peak?

Ah, just the thought of it was thrilling. It would truly be an unforgettable moment.

Besides, didn’t I enjoy a hot spring on the snowy plains just yesterday? Yes, this is destiny telling me to go to the Northern Sea.

“Let’s go together.”

I thought he’d naturally say yes, but unexpectedly, the Drunken Demon declined.

“I’m good.”

“What? You’re always saying you want to hang out with me. Were you just saying that? Didn’t you say you wanted to go on a trip?”

“I have things to do.”

Judging by the look on his face, it was clear there was something going on.

Could there be something about the Ice Palace he couldn’t talk about? I was curious, but I didn’t press him.

Among the Demon Supremes, the Drunken Demon was the one I treated most comfortably. Because of that, I could have grilled him about it, or teased him, asking if it was because he didn’t want to be apart from Lyu Bin. 𝐑ΑɴÔβĘꞨ

But I didn’t do any of that.

When someone sends the signal that this is as far as they’ll go, you have to step back. We always make mistakes with the people we’re comfortable with, and it’s those people we end up being rude to.

The more comfortable the person, the more we should care and be considerate. Especially when we think about the effort they put in behind that comfort.

So, I was the first to change the subject.

“What did you think of yesterday’s summit?”  

“Do you know why I especially liked this summit?”

“What?”

“Because it was held at a tavern. I liked it even more because your demonic path is in a bar.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at the Drunken Demon’s words. It was the moment the Flowing Wind Tavern gained one more layer of meaning. The place where my demonic path and the Drunken Demon’s way of liquor met.

After chatting about this and that with him, we parted ways. Neither of us brought up the matter of going to the Northern Sea again.

*         *         *

After parting ways with the Drunken Demon, Geom Mugeuk returned to the residence of the Blood Heaven Blade Demon.

The reason he came to see the Blade Demon today was to express his gratitude for helping conclude the summit well. But now, the purpose of his visit had shifted to saying farewell before heading to the Northern Sea.

The Blade Demon and the One-Slash Sword Supreme were standing in the yard, talking as they admired the flowers they had planted.

Geom Mugeuk quietly stepped beside them and spoke.

“The flowers are really beautiful.”

Just looking at them lifted my mood.

The One-Slash Sword Supreme glanced at Geom Mugeuk as he gazed at the flowers. She could sense that it wasn’t an act to please them — he genuinely liked the flowers.

“Shall I plant some flowers for you in your yard too, Young Cult Leader?”

“No, I wander around too much. They’d die in no time. I have to head out again this time, too.”

“To where?”

“Something’s come up. I need to go to the Northern Sea.”

At the word Northern Sea, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon looked surprised and asked,

“Why there?”

“According to my right hand, my heart is frozen over there.”

The Blade Demon didn’t quite get Geom Mugeuk’s joke.

“What kind of trouble are you planning this time?”

“What could be more surprising than the three-way summit?”

“You, of all people.”

The Blade Demon let out a sigh and shook his head.

“Just when I thought spring had come, now a snowstorm starts to blow again!”

The One-Slash Sword Supreme followed up on that.

“Blood will be spilled on the snow-white field.”

Given what I’ve shown so far, I can’t blame them for misunderstanding.

“No, don’t get the wrong idea! I’m just going to meet someone! I’m going to see Lee Ahn. We’re going to laugh, chat, and sightsee. In the Northern Sea, we’ll go hunting for restaurants with great cooking!”

The two of them sighed while avoiding my gaze, pretending not to hear.

“Wonder how many will die this time.”

I’m telling you! This is a trip to the Northern Sea!

*         *         *

Before leaving for the Northern Sea, I made sure to say goodbye to everyone. Last time, when I rushed off to save Jo Chunbae’s family, I basically ran away like I was escaping. But this time, I greeted everyone properly. I planned to return after traveling across the Central Plains with Lee Ahn.

Father only said one thing.

“Don’t cause any trouble!”

My master, the Fist Demon King, added one more thing to that warning.

“The Ice Palace Master is a cold person.”

I know. I know better than anyone how cold that person is. That’s why she’s so perfectly suited to the name Ice Palace Master — her nature fits it to a tee.

I didn’t get the chance to meet the Poison King or Demonic Buddha. The two of them had gone deep into the Heavenly Poison Forest again to collect poison herbs.

“You’re so mean! Are you really going to keep hanging out without me every time?”

Those words, left with Sangseon to pass on, merely echoed through the Heavenly Poison Forest.

Of course, I said it that way, but in truth, I could feel how being together had a positive influence on both of them.

The Soul Reaper Demon Supreme unexpectedly revealed her inner thoughts with calm sincerity.

“I hope there will be a day when I can go out with you both next time.”

It seemed she envied the way I got along with the other Demon Supremes.

So I told her what I thought would encourage her most.

“You are the first Demon Supreme of the next generation. When the time comes, there will be plenty of chances for that.”

Soul Reaper Demon Supreme, don’t forget that now is the time to bury your life in hard work. Only by going through this phase can you become the kind of Demon Supreme you now admire. Do you think the Fist Demon King’s massive fists or the Evil Smiling Demon’s shining mask came out of nowhere?

I just hope she grows into a magnificent Demon Supreme.

And the person who moved me more than anyone else was the Evil Smiling Demon.

When I entered his dwelling, I was taken aback.

The room had changed. On the wall opposite the bedding I had placed for him, there was now a new bedding laid out. And astonishingly, the Evil Smiling Demon was sitting on it. The one who had always stood alone in the center of an empty room was now sitting on a bed.

“Sir Soma!”

“You’re here?”

“You finally have your own bed.”

“I picked one up during this chance.”

I was truly overjoyed. It meant he understood my intentions when I brought him that bedding — that I wanted him to rest comfortably on it.

“Sleeping on a bed is surprisingly comfortable and nice.”

I sat on my bedding and looked at the Evil Smiling Demon sitting on his, directly across from me.

Now that the position had changed, the view he would see had changed too. This change would also change him. Just like it had with me, Soma was also growing stronger bit by bit.

“I plan to visit the Northern Sea.”

“What brings you there?”

“I’m going to see a beautiful heart.”

When I first used the phrase beautiful heart, the Evil Smiling Demon had been there. So he would know exactly who I meant.

“I used to think — don’t look after them, let them grow strong on their own, just leave them be — but I guess I’ve reached my limit. I need to go see for myself.”

From within the white mask, his eyes smiled with charming amusement. Recalling the old joke he used to tease Lee Ahn, he said,

“If the heart you speak of is that ugly heart I know, I’m sure it’s beating just fine even in the cold.”  

*         *         *

That night, the Drunken Demon came to see me.

“Want a drink?”

“Sure.”

We always used to drink together at the Tower of Drunken Dreams, but tonight, we sat across from each other in the yard outside my quarters.

“I’m thinking of going to the Northern Sea on my own. You remember Lee Ahn, who used to be my bodyguard, right? She’s there now. But when you brought up the Ice Palace, it made me want to go check things out.”

“The reason I said I wasn’t going with you...”

It must’ve been weighing on his mind. He’d been grumbling that I never hung out with him, but when I finally said let’s go, he backed out — and now he was feeling guilty about it.

“There’s a place inside the Ice Palace where they brew liquor. It’s called Hundred Liquors Snow Courtyard. The master there and I know each other.”

I asked him on a hunch.

“Is the master a woman?”

The Drunken Demon flinched and nodded. Brother, don’t be so startled already — I can pretty much guess how the situation is.

“She likes you, doesn’t she?”

The Drunken Demon didn’t answer. He just drank in silence. A wordless confirmation.

An affection between the Drunken Demon and a liquor-brewing artisan in the Northern Sea Ice Palace... He must have rejected her feelings for a long time. But coincidentally, now that he’d opened his heart to Lyu Bin, and the liquor hadn’t arrived, he was probably thinking she’d been heartbroken.

“You think she didn’t send the liquor because she heard you and Lyu Bin got together?”

But this time, he shook his head firmly.

“No. If she’d sent it out of personal feelings, I wouldn’t have accepted it.”

I could hear sincerity in the Drunken Demon’s voice.

“The liquor she sent was truly outstanding. We interacted strictly as brewer and drinker.”

A master brewer and the greatest drinker.

That’s the kind of relationship the two of them had.

“Then why didn’t you want to go?”

At that, the Drunken Demon said something unexpected.

“The Liquor Essence spoiled again.”

There was a time when we’d cleaned out spoiled Liquor Essence together. It had never happened before he became a Demon Supreme, which made him feel uneasy back then.

And now, the Liquor Essence had spoiled once more.

“So I’ve been re-brewing it and monitoring it. That’s why I said I wouldn’t go — I didn’t want to leave it unattended. I almost told you earlier, but I didn’t want to make you worry.”

I could tell. Even after returning, many things had changed — but the fate of Hwa Moogi still hadn’t been overturned.

“Was it exactly the same as before?”

“What do you mean?”

“Did it stink just as bad as last time?”

Thankfully, the Drunken Demon shook his head.

“It wasn’t as spoiled as before. Back then, it was unbearable, remember?”

What meaning could there be in such a difference? But if I had ever placed meaning on it before, then I could place meaning on this difference too. I chose to believe the situation had improved.

This time, the brew would surely spoil less. That summit must have shifted our fates just a little again.

“Don’t worry too much, Brother. If it spoils, just brew again. And if it spoils again, then brew it again.”

Brew it, and brew it again. That was exactly the attitude I took when dealing with Hwa Moogi and facing evil. Don’t place too much meaning on it.

Hwa Moogi, I won’t let you become my everything. You’re the one who should be flustered, desperate for me. Why doesn’t it work? Why can’t you shake me? Worry about it, let it eat at you.

Because maybe the greatest revenge isn’t killing him — it’s living well and being happy.

’Hwa Moogi? Who was that again?’

*         *         *

The next morning, just as I was about to leave the main sect, the Drunken Demon showed up.

“Let’s go together.”

He was already fully packed and ready for the trip.

Even his outfit was different from usual. It was the same one he’d worn on the day of the summit, but the artwork on it had changed.

Back then, the drunken god was laughing in drunken stupor, but today, the drunken god was floating a boat alone on a moonlit lake, drinking by himself. It looked like a scene out of a painted poem.

“That outfit’s amazing. If you’ve got a spare, give me one too.”

“I’ll give you one when we get back.”

I didn’t ask why he changed his mind and decided to come. Some things don’t need to be asked to be understood.

“Let’s use light footwork all the way to the Northern Sea. I’ll match your speed.”

At that, the Drunken Demon gave me a baffled look.

“You’ll match my speed?”

“Of course. The faster one should always match the slower one.”

“You’ve never really run with me, have you?”

“You’re the one to talk.”

“Want to make a bet?”

A light footwork bet with me? That’s like asking my father who can mock better — basically asking for trouble.

“We’re the kind of people who drink and get into fights. What if something happens while we’re drunk? We’ll need to run. We’re experts at making a run for it.”

The Drunken Demon was full of confidence.

“If I lose, I’ll give you this.”

He pulled a small flask from his robes.

“This is Fire Dragon Liquor.”

Fire Dragon Liquor was one of the finest liquors among medicinal brews. It was truly a rare and precious drink.

“You’re really going to give me something that valuable?”

“My internal energy and that liquor don’t match. I’ve just been holding onto it.”

“You’re doing this because you think I’ll feel burdened if you just give it to me as a gift, right?”

“Just don’t trip and cry, alright?”  

The Drunken Demon had truly wagered something big. Putting Fire Dragon Liquor on the line meant there was something he wanted from me, too.

“If you win, is there something you want?”

The condition the Drunken Demon laid out was something I hadn’t expected.

“If I win, just grant me one request.”

“What is it?”

“I’ll tell you if I win.”

“Oh no. I’m not even going to hear that request?”

After deciding on a destination, we started running.

The Drunken Demon was definitely fast. Probably the fastest among the Demon Supremes when it came to light footwork. With speed like that, it was clear he hadn’t put the Fire Dragon Liquor up just to give it to me — he’d intended to win this bet.

But unfortunately for him, he still wasn’t as fast as Starlight Step, which I had mastered to perfection.

Still, Brother, I’m not heartless — I’ll listen to your request while we share that Fire Dragon Liquor.

Fast, then even faster — we sprinted northward at lightning speed.