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Soon, someone emerged, cutting through the swirling ice at the entrance.

At that moment.

“You…?”

Ray’s eyes widened in surprise as she saw someone she hadn’t expected at all.

Ah!

With a small groan, her steps faltered.

Thud—

She soon collapsed sideways.

* * *

‘… She seems completely exhausted.’

Theo clicked his tongue lightly as he looked at Ray, who was nestled against his chest, breathing heavily.

He had quickly caught her as she was about to collapse.

Huff… Huff…!

At a glance, Ray’s condition didn’t seem good.

Her face was pale from all the blood she had lost, and her wounds had been frozen to stop the bleeding, but it risked leading to necrosis.

‘And on top of that, she’s been poisoned.’

Red spots were slowly appearing on her pale skin.

Symptoms of demonic poison—the very thing one must be most cautious of when dealing with monsters.

It seemed that one of the men Ray had been fighting had coated their blade with demonic poison in advance.

Something had felt off earlier.

No matter how many, almost ten of them had attacked her, there was no way Ray would have been beaten by mere apprentice knights.

‘Fortunately, the poison doesn’t seem too potent, but leaving her like this for too long would be dangerous. How can I detoxify her?’

Theo wanted to help Ray.

He didn’t know why she had fought against nearly ten opponents.

But there was one thing he was sure of.

Though Ray was difficult to read and lacked social skills, she was not a bad person.

Her injuries were undoubtedly the result of trying to fend off those who were targeting him.

In that case, Theo owed her a debt.

However, there was a problem—Theo remembered that the method to detoxify poison always required certain herbs.

But in the snow-covered winter mountains, finding those ingredients would be nearly impossible.

That meant he would need to find another way…

– Amon expands spiritual resonance to awaken the essence of things.

At that moment, Theo suddenly recalled something Lodbrok had mentioned offhandedly.

The magic book, Amon.

Could that possibly offer a solution?

Theo opened his inventory and retrieved the magic book.

Whirl—

The pages and cover flipped rapidly.

“Sound is invisible, yet it resonates across the world, centering around the speaker. It places the caster at the heart of the magical realm…”

Theo’s eyes moved swiftly as well.

By imbuing his sight with spiritual essence, he was able to read and comprehend the text quickly.

Magical books were often magical devices in themselves, a kind of active magical apparatus.

Naturally, he assumed Amon would be the same.

Whirr—

As the pages flipped, just as he expected, Amon gradually became engulfed in a soft glow.

The content of Amon could be summarized simply:

– A person’s soul carries a certain frequency.

– Amon refers to this frequency as the “voice” of the soul.

– This voice awakens the essence, or the Nyeom, that lies dormant within objects.

– Once awakened, the object becomes attuned to the soul, becoming an extension of the caster.

– This connection between soul and object is called Telekinesis.

Ding!

[You have partially understood the magical principles recorded in the Book of Magic – Amon, and a new skill has been created.]

[Due to insufficient Rank, the skill manifests at a lower grade.]

—

+ Hatchling Synchronization

· Grade: C
· Mastery: 1%
· Effect: Allows the user to manipulate objects freely with telekinetic force and read the lingering thoughts of objects.

—

‘Telekinesis…!’

Out of curiosity, Theo extended his hand towards Ray’s sword, which lay haphazardly on the ground.

Vwoom! Vwoooom!

The sword trembled slightly before gradually lifting into the air, floating smoothly.

In that instant, Theo felt a strange connection, as if his consciousness was now linked to Ray’s sword.

It was as if they were tied together by an invisible thread.

Through that thread, fragmented pieces of the sword’s lingering thoughts began to flow into him.

* * *

The Gathering of the Hidden Dragons, Mistress of Plum Blossom Palace… Why would the people of Plum Blossom Palace conspire with the Gathering of the Hidden Dragons to target Theo?

The lingering thoughts reflected the reason behind Ray’s injuries.

Dressed in black, five participants from the Gathering of the Hidden Dragons had been conversing with four others, clad in red.

A plum blossom insignia, signifying their allegiance to the Mistress of Plum Blossom Palace, was visible on their chests.

They were talking with serious expressions, and anyone could tell they were scheming something.

That’s when Ray had appeared.

She had sensed something was off.

* * *

– Damn it, why is the Snow White Sword suddenly here?

– I told you to be careful with your words…

– We’ve no choice. We have to strike now. The lady must not hear of this.

– Perfect. We can get rid of the Snow White Sword along with Flash Tiger, and our side will dominate the trials.

The candidates of the Gathering of the Hidden Dragons and the Plum Blossom Palace exchanged wary glances before suddenly rushing toward Ray.

Thanks to Ray’s exceptional skill, she was able to severely injure more than half of the nine attackers.

However, the problem arose when one of the Gathering of the Hidden Dragons members poisoned her with the demon poison that had been smeared on a blade, immediately turning the tide of the battle.

It was a mistake born not of lack of skill, but of inexperience in real combat.

In the end, Ray acknowledged her mistake and attempted to flee.

“Chase her! Catch her!”

Though they pursued closely, they weren’t skilled enough to capture Ray.

Ray fled to a cave—a place she had accidentally discovered during the start of the Blossoming Ceremony.

It was well hidden from outside eyes, and she had marked it as a good place to rest.

“So, this is what happened.”

After reading all of Ray’s thoughts, Theo furrowed his brow.

It seemed that a large-scale conspiracy was being orchestrated in this second round of the Blossoming Ceremony to capture him.

‘There’s no way the Mistress of Plum Blossom Palace would have ordered her candidates to harm me… It must be that they’re acting against orders, trying to take me down.’

After all, from their perspective, the Mistress of Plum Blossom Palace showing such affection toward Theo, when she had never taken in a disciple before, must have been unbearable.

It must have seemed like an outsider rolling in and displacing those who were already established.

But even so, to think they’d conspire with the enemy and act behind her back…

Were they confident they could handle the aftermath when they were found out?

‘The Mistress of Plum Blossom Palace is known to deeply care for her people, but I doubt she’s someone indecisive.’

Perhaps they believed they could silence him completely, like Haid and his group once did.

At any rate.

Soon enough, they would follow Ray’s trail to the vicinity of this cave.

What should be done about them?

As Theo pondered for a moment—

Hwaaa—

‘What is this?’

At that moment, the thoughts in Ray’s mind continued to flow rapidly, like a series of photographs in motion.

More precisely, the scene rewound to an earlier time.

Inside the cave.

With the entrance completely blocked off, young Ray was training, illuminated only by the faint glow of luminous stones.

She swung her sword again and again.

Until blisters formed on her hands and her feet bled.

The training seemed never-ending.

The varied sword forms Ray practiced caught Theo’s eye.

It was the Ice-White Sword technique.

The swordsmanship taught to her by her master, known for her association with the Ice Dragon.

It was a remarkable secret art, one that allowed young Ray to overcome her cursed constitution, the Nine-Syllable Pulse.

Young Ray didn’t just practice the Ice-White Sword once.

Twice, three times, four times… Hundreds of times, over a hundred days, two hundred days… One year, two years…

Throughout her secluded training, she continuously swung her sword.

And the sword was always by her side, no matter what.

Whether it snowed or rained.

Even when she was exhausted and wanted to give up, when she felt lonely, or when she was in pain from the torment of the Nine-Syllable Pulse. Always.

Ray wasn’t only training in the Ice-White Sword.

She diligently practiced other martial arts that utilized cold energy as well—Ice-White Palm, Ice-White Steps, Ice-White Fist, Ice-White Spear, and more. She even meticulously trained in the breathing techniques, which formed the foundation of all these arts.

Thanks to this, Theo unexpectedly found himself witnessing all of Ray’s techniques, collectively known as the Ice-White Martial Arts.

Watching someone else’s training was a grave sin, severe enough that a swordfight could erupt at any moment.

But Theo was so captivated by the beauty of the Ice-White Martial Arts that he couldn’t gather his thoughts.

It felt as though fireworks were exploding in his mind.

‘This feels completely different from the Full Blooming Plum Blossom of the Mistress of Plum Blossom Palace.’

While Full Blooming Plum Blossom boasted beautiful, elegant curves, the Ice-White Martial Arts radiated a cold and deadly aura of deep sorrow.

They were polar opposites.

It was filled with the will of those who had survived harsh environments.

Thanks to this, Theo found himself stepping into a new realm of swordsmanship once again.

He felt an overwhelming urge to rush outside and swing his sword.

Then, as the thoughts fast-forwarded again, a much younger Ray appeared.

The young Ray, frustrated by her home, had tried to run away.

But she soon regretted it.

The snowstorm was so fierce that she lost her way.

‘Why does this seem so familiar?’

Theo unconsciously furrowed his brow.

He felt like he had seen something similar to this scene before.

At that moment, a boy appeared.

Bundled up in a thick scarf, mittens, a beanie, and a coat, the boy looked like a snowman.

Yet, his face, visible above the scarf, was as pretty as a girl’s.

‘Ah.’

Theo recognized the face.

– Aren’t you cold? Want to wear this?

The boy loosened his scarf and offered it to the shivering girl.

– If you dress this lightly, you’ll catch a cold. It’ll be really bad. So, let’s go back home, okay?

The girl’s gaze lingered on the boy for a long time.

And with that, all of the thoughts stopped replaying.

“……”

It felt as if he had just glimpsed an entire life in that moment.

‘So Ray was that child back then.’

It was a memory Theo had long forgotten.

What had been a simple act of kindness to him seemed to have meant much more to Ray.

Thanks to this, Theo now understood why Ray had stayed close to him for so long.

She had been trying to repay the favor from back then.

Even the recent fight with the Gathering of the Hidden Dragons and the Plum Blossom Palace candidates was for that very reason.

“In that case, it’s like I’m the one who’s received help,” Theo muttered softly as he looked down at his palm.

Was there a way he could use what he had just learned to help Ray?

As Theo saw it, this skill was unquestionably powerful.

He hadn’t known that reading thoughts meant he could also read the memories imprinted in objects.

If this ability continued to work, couldn’t he activate it on weapons of master swordsmen and learn their techniques?

If so, he could master countless secret sword arts.

But if you looked at it another way, it also meant that he could quickly identify their weaknesses.

Hwaaak!

Theo focused his spiritual essence into his Aura hall, sharpening his thoughts rapidly.

He spent a long time contemplating.

Trying to uncover the flaw in the Ice-White Martial Arts.

Whish, whish, whish…!

His brain grew so hot, he wondered if it might burn up at this rate.

Then, something flashed through his mind, quick as lightning.

It was a revelation.

Without hesitation, Theo placed his hand on Ray’s shoulder, pouring magic power into her.

He had to act fast before this revelation slipped away.

Truth and falsehood.

The flaws and strengths of the Ice-White Martial Arts alternated before him.

The flaws swelled like a snowball, while the strengths disassembled and piled neatly in one corner of his mind.

Theo’s eyes flashed with a sharp glint as he looked at Ray.

* * *

“Where… am I?”

Ray opened her eyes, startled by the lightness of her body.

She clearly remembered that her body had been unbearably heavy before she passed out.

Puzzled, she examined the wound on her side.

‘The wound… it’s gone.’

The injury had been neatly healed.

The other wounds, too.

They had all closed up as if several months had passed since she’d received them.

What on earth had happened?

Just as Ray wondered this and lifted her head—

Whish, whish-

The sound of a sword cutting through the air came from outside the cave.

Who could have arrived here?

With tension building, Ray grabbed her sword from the ground and slowly walked toward the sound.

There, she saw him.

Theo, drenched in sweat, training in swordsmanship.

‘What I saw before passing out—it wasn’t a dream.’

But the sword path he traced felt strangely familiar.

It was the Ice-White Sword.

However, Theo’s movements were different, though they resembled the Ice-White Sword.

His sword was faster, more dazzling, sharper.

It looked as if a dragon was coiling in a grand display.

But to Ray’s eyes—

It was like the pretty boy who once looked like a snowman had grown tall and strong, shedding all the prejudices and misunderstandings surrounding him.

He looked so magnificent that—

Ray could do nothing but stand there in a daze, watching Theo for a long while.