Chronicles of the Lazy Sovereign Novel - Chapter 457

**Chapter 457: The Lazy One Investigates (2)**

“Didn’t I tell you before? My martial arts are different from any other style in this world. Sure, I also started in the Great Family of the Infinity Sword; nobody can create a new style from scratch. But I abandoned and rebuilt my martial arts again and again. That’s how the Radiant Sword Style was born.”

“And you still have more to brag about after all that?”

“Of course! It’s the achievement of a lifetime of training. No matter how much I praise it, it will never be enough!”

“…Yes.”

Wei Yanho shook his head, clearly exasperated.

If his master had even a little bit of humility, he would have been someone to truly respect. But his personality ruined any admiration.

*’If even I get irritated like this…’*

He couldn’t imagine what the people of that era must have suffered.

He now understood why, despite having given birth to the “best in history,” the Great Family of the Infinity Sword kept Baek Muhan at a distance.

“Master, it’s chaos outside.”

“When has the martial world been at peace?”

“It’s not that. It’s a disaster like never before.”

“Oh, really?”

Baek Muhan seemed to reflect for a moment before nodding.

“Better for you. Take advantage and gain some reputation. A man needs fame.”

“No! The martial world is on the verge of collapse!”

“The martial world exists where there are people. As long as there are people, it won’t disappear.”

“Yeah, yeah. Pretty words without substance.”

“Boy!”

When Baek Muhan raised his hand, Wei Yanho instinctively shrunk his neck like a turtle.

“Talk, don’t hit! It’s not the time for this! If we don’t find those responsible for those manuals, the martial world could fall.”

“What nonsense.”

“Huh?”

Baek Muhan clicked his tongue.

“What would you gain by capturing the culprits?”

“Well, find a cure.”

“When you stab someone, do you think about how to cure them first?”

“…No.”

Baek Muhan looked at him with disdain.

“Hurting someone is easy, but curing them is a hundred times harder. Unless they have taken the martial world hostage for some plan, if they were only looking to cause chaos, they wouldn’t have to create a cure.”

“So there’s no cure?”

“It’s most likely. You said it was based on the Blood Explosive Dans, right?”

“How do you know?”

“Because I know everything you know.”

“Ugh…”

Wei Yanho scratched his head in frustration.

He knew that this wasn’t his real master, but still… it was terrifying that this illusion knew his every thought.

“You can be heard thinking too much.”

“If I don’t think, I die, master.”

*Paf!*

The strong blow to the head made Wei Yanho roll on the ground, holding back tears. The pain never diminished.

“If there’s no way to counteract those Blood Explosive Dans, even if you find the culprit, there will be no solution.”

“You’re right.”

“But it’s impressive. Embedding that kind of understanding in a secret manual… I never would have imagined it.”

“Could you do it?”

“Who do you think I am?”

“…”

“I’m just too lazy. If I set my mind to it, there would be nothing I couldn’t do.”

“Sure.”

Wei Yanho replied, but shrunk his neck, preparing for another blow. However, this time Baek Muhan didn’t hit him.

“Aren’t you going to hit me?”

“I thought about it, but I don’t think it’s necessary. There will already be someone else who does it.”

“Who?”

“The owner of that secret manual.”

Wei Yanho let out a mocking laugh.

“Come on, you don’t even know when it was created!”

“How naive. It’s obvious that it’s recent.”

“…Huh?”

“The Blood Explosive Dans are a new invention.”

“How do you know?”

“If something like that had existed before, the Demon Cult wouldn’t have failed so miserably.”

“Hmm…”

He was right.

“So, whoever created the Blood Explosive Dans and whoever devised a method to achieve the same effect without them… is probably the same person. If that manual is the proof…”

Baek Muhan looked at Wei Yanho with pity.

“You’re going to get hit a lot. A whole lot.”

“If they only hit me, I’d be lucky. They’ll kill me.”

“It’s very likely.”

“And that’s all you say to your disciple before dying?”

“Life and death are the same. And I’m already dead, what pity can I have for you? I’m the one who is to be pitied.”

“Better shut up.”

Baek Muhan watched him silently before speaking.

“I know you were never interested in reaching high levels in martial arts. But from what I see, the situation won’t let you escape.”

“…”

Wei Yanho moved his lips.

After a long silence, he looked up at Baek Muhan, who waited patiently.

“The truth is… it’s difficult, master.”

“Difficult?”

“Yes.”

Finally, Wei Yanho let out his hidden thoughts.

“I’m lazy. If I hadn’t met you, I would have been a useless person without purpose.”

“At least you recognize it.”

Wei Yanho frowned.

*’Does he really have to interrupt like that?’*

“But lately… people expect too much from me. They say that only I can do certain things. But the truth is that I don’t know how to do anything. I’m only good at fighting thanks to you.”

“Mmm…”

“And still, I’m uncomfortable fighting. But now they want more from me. Some even tell me that I must save the martial world…”

Wei Yanho let out a deep sigh.

“People want a hero to solve this crisis. But no matter how much I think about it, I’m not that kind of person. Maybe my older brother, but not me.”

Baek Muhan nodded.

“The word ‘hero’ has never suited you. Even if you are my disciple.”

“Exactly.”

“But what does it matter? A hero doesn’t need to be a role model. It’s enough to do something big.”

“I don’t have confidence for that.”

“What a boy…”

Baek Muhan looked at him with exasperation, but his eyes shone with warmth.

“You can’t be a hero. You don’t have the heart to sacrifice yourself for an ideal. Someone like that could never be one.”

“You’re right.”

They might sound like harsh words, but Wei Yanho accepted them. Because they were true.

“But in the end, you won’t have a choice.”

“Why?”

“Because you have people you want to protect.”

Wei Yanho couldn’t answer.

*’It’s a little uncomfortable.’*

Facing his own feelings head-on was unpleasant. After all, Baek Muhan was only vocalizing what he already knew.

“So, why do you hesitate?”

“But I’m just lazy.”

Baek Muhan stared at him before speaking.

“If you can’t stop it, it won’t be your fault.”

“…”

“If you can’t, no one can. No one will reproach you for anything. If you give your best effort and fail, there will be nothing to do.”

Baek Muhan smiled.

“But the enemy is incredibly strong, master. And I’m just lazy.”

“You’re my disciple.”

“But…”

“Do you trust me?”

Wei Yanho looked at him for a moment before nodding strongly. Although his master had always tormented him, he trusted him more than anyone in the world.

“Didn’t I tell you? I planted a seed in you. If you set your mind to it, that seed can grow more than anything else in this world.”

“And you still made me learn the “Mongryeon Gong (Art of Training While Sleeping)” and you don’t trust me.”

“It’s a security measure.”

Baek Muhan put a hand on his head.

“Maybe it’s too early for you to handle it. But sooner or later you’ll have to face it. Think that the moment simply came earlier.”

“I…”

“Yanho.”

Baek Muhan spoke with absolute seriousness.

“Trust me. You can do it.”

“Master…”

“And if you fail, you can blame me. So don’t pressure yourself.”

“…”

“What’s coming will be even more difficult. There will be days when you want to cry, days when you can’t go on. In those moments, remember: even what seems to have no end, will end someday. But that end is only seen by those who don’t stop. Don’t stop taking a step forward, even if it seems useless.”

“Yes.”

“Boy.”

Baek Muhan smiled softly. Then he took a step back.

Seeing how his master’s expression became more serious, Wei Yanho straightened up.

It was a teaching.

“I’ll ask you a question.”

“Yes.”

“What is a sword?”

“That is…”

Wei Yanho couldn’t answer.

Sword.

What was a sword?

Despite having wielded one for years, he had no answer.

“I spent a lot of time trying to understand what a sword is. I reflected, meditated, and wielded it. And only at the end of my life did I understand it.”

Wei Yanho swallowed saliva.

But the answer was disappointingly simple.

“A sword is just a sword.”

“…Huh?”

“A piece of metal. Elongated and sharp. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“…Master.”

*’Seriously?’*

After so much drama…

“I was wrong from the beginning. I shouldn’t have asked myself what a sword was. I should have asked myself what a human is.”

“Human.”

Simple words, but not so simple.

“A sword, a saber… whoever uses them is a human. If a sword is in the hands of a person, how can you understand it without understanding the human?”

A white and radiant sword appeared in Baek Muhan’s hand.

“In the end, a fast sword is just a human moving the sword with speed. A powerful sword is a human hitting hard. So, what is an Infinity Sword?”

His master’s sword rose slowly.

Wei Yanho’s eyes trembled.

Everything was there.

Within that sword was everything.

The sword, the human, the world… everything. As if it contained the entire universe.

“An Infinity Sword is, in the end, a human.”

*Buzz.*

His master’s sword moved slowly.

As if it could destroy everything, but also embrace it.

“Cry, laugh. Everything in you will become a sword.”

With that movement, the cave collapsed. And Wei Yanho’s world too.

There it was: the sword of a human that contained the whole world.