Even the Sword God Needs Paternity Leave

Chapter 1: From Now On, I’m on Paternity Leave

- Say, ‘Daddy, have a safe trip.’

- Abuuu.

It was a coincidental babble, but it sounded quite like he was calling for his daddy.

My wife, who was trying to make our son, who hadn't even had his first birthday, say goodbye.

My son, who stared at me with bright eyes, not knowing what was going on.

Leaving the two of them behind, I had vowed to one day spend a lot of time with my family.

But for the next ten years, the same scene repeated itself.

- You have to say, ‘Daddy, have a safe trip.’

- Papa, hab a shafe twip.

My wife, still holding our child in her arms, and my son, saying goodbye while being held like that.

- Say goodbye to your father.

- Daddy, have a saafe trip.

Around this time, my son would cling to his mother’s leg and give a proper-looking goodbye.

My son, who had started talking, soon began to express his feelings with words.

- Your father is leaving on a mission for the Murim Alliance.

- Father, can’t you not go?

I couldn't not go.

My son was born with Severed Meridian.

Because the Murim Alliance had entrusted me with work in exchange for helping with his treatment.

I didn't know at first.

They said there was such a kind of Severed Meridian.

A Severed Meridian that remains dormant until its time comes, then suddenly reveals its effects.

In my son’s case, it was a Severed Meridian that would cause his life to suddenly end when he turned ten.

- You should say goodbye to your father, shouldn't you?

- Why is it always Father who goes on so many missions?

I couldn't tell him that he was the reason.

I was afraid he would blame himself.

My son's treatment was a difficult task.

It required precious elixirs and hidden martial arts manuals.

The Murim Alliance's help became more and more necessary.

Which meant I had to take on more and more missions.

It was fine.

For our son's sake, both my wife and I could endure it.

The Murim Alliance brought the elixirs needed for the treatment to me one by one.

Each time, I resolved that I could swing my sword more.

- Let's give your father a hug to cheer him up.

- No! I hate you, Father!

Even if my child hated me.

- ……Mother called your name at the end, Father.

Even after my wife, who had suffered alongside me, passed away.

I swung my sword.

I gathered elixirs and searched for secret manuals.

Finally, a few months ago.

In the process of ambushing the Demonic Cult leader, I unexpectedly learned the location of a secret manual.

One month ago.

- …….

My child, who had no energy and could only look at me without saying a word.

I was too late.

My son closed his eyes.

That moment, when I thought he had just closed them for a little while, was the last.

.

.

“I miss you.”

I murmured softly.

Today, a month after my son passed away.

On this late night, in front of the Murim Alliance's library, I was facing countless torches.

This was no ordinary library. It was the Bigo, the most heavily guarded among the many archives.

A stone building stood tall in the middle of an open lot with a clear view of the surroundings.

It was guarded by trustworthy masters, but.

“Ugh…….”

They had been subdued by me and were now barely regaining consciousness.

The infiltration was perfect.

If only I had found the document faster, I could have escaped quietly.

Now, the area around the library was filled with members of the Murim Alliance.

“Jin Yeomyeong, can’t you stop this?”

At the forefront of the Alliance members stood the Alliance Leader, Namgung Jeheon.

His gaze was fixed on the old, nameless Demonic Cult document in my hand.

A document that had been sealed and resealed, so much so that no one even knew of its existence. I tucked the document deep inside my robes.

And I answered him.

“I absolutely cannot stop.”

The Alliance Leader’s head drooped, then lifted again.

“Then I must stop you.”

In a one-on-one duel with the Alliance Leader, I would win.

But this was not such a fight.

Behind the Alliance Leader, I could see the elders and other masters. If I were to face them within the formation the Alliance members would cast, the chances of breaking through were extremely slim.

“Even so, I must break through. Just as I always have.”

As soon as my words fell, one of the elders stepped forward.

He was someone who had never been fond of me.

“Jin Yeomyeong, how disrespectful you are before the Alliance Leader. Furthermore, stealing a document of the Demonic Cult is a grave sin!”

Another elder also stepped forward.

“To lay your hands on a document of the Demonic Cult. What is your intention? Could it be…….”

The second elder cunningly trailed off, leaving his sentence unfinished. It was an ellipsis that invited many assumptions.

But the Alliance Leader's solemn voice cut through the ominous assumptions.

“That is enough. He is Jin Yeomyeong. The man who took the Demonic Cult leader's head with me.”

It was as the Alliance Leader said.

The ambush on the Demonic Cult leader that he and I carried out together.

In the midst of the chaos, it was I who delivered the final blow to the cult leader.

The two elders quickly exchanged glances, and soon the first elder bowed his head toward the Alliance Leader.

“Alliance Leader, how could I not know of Jin Yeomyeong. I, too, have gone into battle with him many times.”

He had gone into battle, alright.

I swung my sword while he was the one watching from the back.

“However, even after the cult leader's death, the remnants' momentum is unusually menacing. A Demonic Cult document at a time like this! No matter how great his contributions in the fight against the Demonic Cult, I fear the Alliance's discipline will falter if we do not investigate this strictly. Alliance Leader, do not be swayed by your friendship and see public and private matters clearly.”

The second elder added his words.

“Everyone knows how many orthodox sect members were bewitched by the Demonic Cult's wicked arts. Of course, it would be a different story for the usual Jin Yeomyeong, but as he has just gone through a great ordeal, perhaps…….”

Was he implying that a Heart Demon had possessed me?

Pfft, a laugh escaped me.

The elders continued to raise their voices, pressuring the Alliance Leader.

“…….”

That's enough. There was no need to put my friend, the Alliance Leader, in any more trouble.

Shing, I drew my sword, Mukheun.

At the sound that no martial artist could fail to recognize, everyone looked at me.

“Alliance members. I will now break through. Everyone, get out of the way.”

It was time for the sword to speak.

The elders retreated and shouted.

“Set up the formation!”

It was a triumphant voice, but.

“…….”

The Alliance members were holding their positions.

“What is this?”

“Why aren't you moving!”

While the elders were at a loss due to the Alliance members' silence.

Through that silence, the Alliance Leader’s sigh flowed.

Slowly, as if it wished to linger forever if possible.

Of course, it was a futile dream.

“Set up the formation.”

“As you command!”

The Alliance members began to step into their footwork.

I could see how much support my friend, the Alliance Leader, had among the regular Alliance members.

Even in this situation, the distorted faces of the elders were a sight to behold.

Shing, the Alliance Leader’s sword also revealed its form.

It was the moment to clash.

However.

“Wait! I said wait!”

A flippant voice came from somewhere.

“Three!”

The voice began to count down.

“Two! One!”

And a massive explosion occurred.

The stone library shattered into pieces with a deafening roar.

“Ugh, my ears!”

“G-get back!”

Stone fragments and sparks flew in all directions like hidden weapons.

“Where is Jin Yeomyeong? I can’t see a thing!”

Whatever was in it, an immense amount of smoke followed.

The smoke didn't just rise upwards, but spread to cover the entire open lot.

“Kilkilkilkil, Jin Yeomyeong! This way!”

The voice from before called to me from behind.

“Thunderbolt Demon?”

I threw myself in the direction he called from. It was filled with flames, but that was no problem for me.

The elders' shouts could be heard from within the smoke.

“The Alliance's documents! They're all burning! Put out the fire!”

“Jin Yeomyeong! Catch that bastard!”

Thunderbolt Demon whispered.

“Kilkil, those idiots. Are they telling them to put out the fire or to catch you? How are those guys so incompetent?”

Thunderbolt Demon guided me as we dashed through the smoke.

Shwiik, shwik.

The hidden weapons that flew at us lodged into the wrong places.

“Thunderbolt Demon, blowing up the Murim Alliance right after escaping the Thunder Prison.

The pardon you just received will surely be revoked.”

If that happened, Thunderbolt Demon's name would be back on the Alliance's kill list.

Even so, Thunderbolt Demon didn’t stop laughing.

“Kilkilkilkil! You took the cult leader's head for us, so how could I not do this much! Just run!”

We ran quickly and entered a deserted warehouse district.

I couldn't let my guard down. The shouts of the Alliance members still sounded close.

“Three! Two! One!”

As Thunderbolt Demon’s shout ended, the buildings exploded. The bursting flames and smoke spread in all directions.

“…….”

“Kilkil, how can we escape if we don't at least do this much? Let's go!”

Being put on the kill list was certain now.

“……Let's.”

We dashed through the smoke again.

“Great Warrior Jin?”

Even so, it was difficult to avoid all the Alliance members.

I ended up facing the leader of the Alliance's Third Sword Unit and a few of his members.

“…….”

The unit leader cast his gaze in the direction we were headed.

“Are you heading north?”

“If you don't stop me.”

He gave a wide grin.

“Jin Yeomyeong went east! To the east!”

The unit leader's party shouted as they ran toward the east.

“Kilkil, they're on your side too.”

The path afterward was the same.

The Alliance members either pretended not to see me or headed in the wrong direction. Thanks to them, I was able to reach the northern edge of the Alliance grounds.

There, Thunderbolt Demon met my eyes and laughed.

“Run. Make sure you succeed.”

.

.

I arrived at the promised location.

A low hill not far from the Alliance.

A huge tent stood brazenly in a place with no forest to provide cover.

“You’re here?”

Zhuge Sheng was waiting for me in front of the tent.

Currently, the position of the Murim Alliance's Grand Strategist was vacant.

Zhuge Sheng was scheduled to become the Grand Strategist next month.

If it weren't for today's incident, that is.

Handing him the Demonic Cult document, I asked him.

“Zhuge Sheng, did you bring Thunderbolt Demon into this?”

“Of course. Who else would it be if not me.”

Zhuge Sheng said as he entered the tent.

“When I told Thunderbolt Demon the plan, he was ecstatic.”

“I bet he was. He got a chance to blow up the Alliance.”

“No, it was because of you.”

“Me?”

Inside the tent, a spell formation was prepared.

All sorts of characters were densely written from the ceiling to the floor. I could make out the oracle bone script and Sanskrit, but the rest were impossible to even guess.

Zhuge Sheng, having looked at the Demonic Cult document, picked up a brush and began to add more characters.

“The Murim Alliance bastards are idiots, but the biggest idiot of them all is that Jin Yeomyeong guy. For someone so strong, he's so rigid in his ways. Even when he was an enemy, he was frustrating to watch.”

“What?”

“Those are Thunderbolt Demon's words. He said you should live a little more explosively. I wholeheartedly agree.”

Just then, I felt a presence in the distance. It was undoubtedly the Alliance's pursuit team.

Zhuge Sheng’s brush moved faster and faster.

Yet his mouth remained unrestrained.

“Haven't I always said it? You need to let go a little.”

Gold, red, and crimson characters multiplied chaotically. It was to the point where I wondered if he was even doing it correctly.

“Oh, there’s also a message from that friend of ours, Namgung Jeheon.”

“Mm.”

“He said you should become a little freer.”

I had my suspicions.

No matter how many explosions Thunderbolt Demon set off, under Namgung Jeheon's command, I should have been surrounded by now.

But there were almost no organized movements from the Alliance members.

He had let me go.

“So that's what it was.”

“That’s what it was.”

From Namgung Jeheon, Zhuge Sheng, and Thunderbolt Demon, to the many Alliance members.

For me.

“Alright, it’s done.”

He looked around the inside of the tent with satisfaction.

With the addition of the final character, the spell formation was complete.

“This is truly an unbelievable grand spell. To think a spell that intervenes with time to this extent exists.”

The pursuit team was just around the corner.

The shouts to capture Jin Yeomyeong began to be heard clearly.

“In this day and age, there's probably no one else but me who can reproduce this spell. You don't have to worry about any interference with the spell.”

That was probably true.

He was a man who taught humility to the geniuses of the world.

Namgung Jeheon, Zhuge Sheng, and I had achieved distinguished merits in the seven-year war against the Demonic Cult.

Thanks to that, Namgung Jeheon succeeded the Alliance Leader, and Zhuge Sheng, the Grand Strategist.

Great Warrior Namgung Jeheon led the people, the genius Zhuge Sheng devised the strategies, and.

- Catch Jin Yeomyeong!

- Stop shouting and go in!

- Where is the Alliance Leader?

- Argh, I said go in!

- I refuse! It's Jin Yeomyeong! He's…, he's…, the Sword God!

I, Sword God Jin Yeomyeong, had stood at the vanguard.

“Now, it’s time to go. Say hello to the past me for me.”

* * *

I opened my eyes.

I was sitting in a chair.

An old, black-lacquered chair.

Before me, I could see the window of this small room.

The setting sun shining through was just as I remembered.

I had thought, will time just flow on until nightfall like this?

I had been frozen in that chair, worrying about my wife who was in labor.

It would have been better if I had at least spoken to her from outside the door.

I had regretted it only later.

- Screech.

I stood up, pushing the chair back.

Now I could.

There was no need to just look back.

“Wife! Hold on! I’m here!”

“Aaargh! Honey!”

She, still healthy, was there.

She was screaming from the pain of childbirth, yet still calling for me. I was so glad I had spoken to her.

Judging by the sunset, it would probably be soon…….

“It’s out!”

The midwife’s voice was heard.

“Waaaaaah!”

A vigorous cry burst out.

Jin Pyeong-an, childhood name Tae-bok.

It was the moment my son first came into the world.

“I’m back.”

The spell was real.

“I’ve come back.”

To ten years ago, when my wife and child were.

- Inhale.

I took a deep, deeper breath.

My wife, who had laid on the sickbed with a pale face.

Tae-bok, who had been drained of energy and breathed slowly.

- Exhale.

The days filled with regret were sent away with my exhaled breath.

Instead, I remembered what I had regained.

And also about the things I planned to do from now on.

I will handle Tae-bok’s treatment myself.

I will spend time with my family.

I will tell the Murim Alliance that I'm done with missions and that I will be taking a break.

In other words, to summarize.

“From now on, I’m on paternity leave.”