Saved a Heroine From the Brink of Death

52. Kwon Seong-shin’s Song

#52. Kwon Seong-shin’s Song

“… I’m sorry, I don’t remember.”

“When you were caught in the gap in space, you received a big impact on your head… You might not remember it because of the impact…”

Shin Dong-baek looked at Cynthia with a hazy look in his eyes.

But no matter how hard Cynthia tried to recall, no memories from the past came to mind.

Shin Dong-baek’s face, which called herself her granddaughter, was filled with tears, but her heart was complicated and there was nothing sad or touching about it.

She was confused, not knowing how to react to Shin Dong-baek, who was happy to see her.

In the meantime, Shin Dong-baek opened his mouth.

“… I was so happy that I got ahead of myself.”

Shin Dong-baek continued speaking while wiping the tears from his eyes.

“Can I tell you a story from the past? It won’t be long.”

He thought that talking about his family might bring back memories of his granddaughter.

Even if it’s not, it’s good to know information about the family… and it’s even better if it comes to mind.

***

Hundreds of years have passed since the great cataclysm that saw the emergence of monsters and Awakened beings.

The Awakened fought against the monsters, risking their lives, and achieved victory.

Humanity is currently experiencing an unprecedented boom, and people are living safe lives under the protection of heroes.

Heroes are indispensable in modern society.

It wasn’t just the threat of monsters. The gate where monsters appeared. The magic stones and artifacts inside. The data and elixirs of another world. Because they were helpful to humanity.

People brought heroes into their forces to gain control of the gates that created countless values, and this became the beginning of a family.

Numerous families have risen and fallen throughout the history of the Korean Peninsula and disappeared into the back alleys of history.

However, the seven families still maintain their reputation to this day.

Seven great families.

The seven most famous heroic families in Korea.

The Seven Great Families were different in their power from other families, and the heroes of the direct lineage of the main family boasted strength that was on a different level from that of ordinary heroes.

It was because of the special nature of the family’s lineage and the passage of time.

Some of the Awakened’s abilities and talents are inherited through blood. The abilities and talents of the descendants of the Seven Great Families are particularly special and outstanding.

He also established a family and studied ways for many people to maximize their abilities and talents, passing them on to future generations, and even acquired the skills.

[ Ability ] [ Talent ] [ Skill ]

The three most important elements for a hero.

And the families that have it all are the Seven Great Families.

A red spirit called Jeokryeong.

Magic power that contains the energy of the vast sky.

These are the bloodline characteristics of the Joo family and the Kim family, each belonging to one of the Seven Great Families.

A trait that is expressed through blood.

But it’s not just traits that are expressed through blood.

Talent is also inherited through blood.

And, there are families that are born with innate physical talent.

… to train physical therapists who train their bodies to the limit.

This is Kwon Seong-shin’s family.

Although they are not born with powerful traits like Jeokryung and Changcheon, they have strong bodies.

And the one who reached the top is the head of the Shinga family, Kwon Seong.

A master of the fist who has the greatest physical talent of anyone, and who trains his body to the limit to have an indestructible body of diamond. The current head of the family and the 15th head of the family, Shin Dong-baek, inherited the position of head of the family and the title of Kwonseong at the age of just 30.

Under the rule of the young Shin Dong-baek, the Kwon Seong-shin family entered a new heyday.

Shin Dong-baek and his family’s warriors possessed invincible bodies and had no fear.

By conquering numerous gates, reinvesting the profits, and using them as nutrients, it grew again.

And then… decades later.

The family’s fortunes have been tilted like a dog, making hundreds of years of history pale in comparison.

It was because of the villains’ terror.

In a word, it was on the verge of ruin.

That was the current situation of Kwon Seong-shin’s family.

***

“… That doesn’t make sense?”

Shin Dong-baek gave a brief talk about the origins of Myeongga and the Kwon Seong-shin family.

But after hearing the story, Cynthia had one question.

‘… Even so, is it possible for the villains to bring down one of the Seven Great Families?’

What are the Seven Great Ancestral Rites?

It is the most influential family in Korea.

Influence meant power, and the power they had was so great that ordinary people could not even imagine.

Even if the opponent was a famous villain… no, even if it was a famous villain group, it was thought that it would be impossible to bring down the Kwon Sung Shin family.

“There was a reason for everything… Do you see why I ended up like this?”

Shin Dong-baek held out his arm.

His arms were withered and emaciated, belying his nickname, Kwonseong.

It didn’t look like the arm of a warrior who had mastered the art of conjuring.

“… was poisoned.”

“ah…….”

And only then did Cynthia realize why the Kwon Sung Shin family had fallen.

“The person in charge of the meal was a villain. He had been in the family for 10 years. He fed the family members a new poison extracted from the gate. At the time, the poison was undetectable, so we had no choice but to take it. He planned to kill the family members by feeding them poison and setting them on fire.”

Undetectable toxicity.

Even people from the Seven Great Families would be susceptible to such poison.

Even if it were a power, I wouldn’t have the ability to handle it.

Cynthia was furious at the villains’ heinous acts. But then Shin Dong-baek opened his mouth.

“… I should have trained my body too. I didn’t know that I would regret training only my outside so much.”

“So… are you saying that if there had been a physical training process during the course of the art of divination, then you wouldn’t have been poisoned?”

“Isn’t that obvious! If I had just trained, there’s no way that a simple poison could harm the body of a Shinga. The fact that I was so strong that I had no opponents with just the art of relieving the body was actually poisonous. Even without training, most poisons wouldn’t have worked on me, so I didn’t pay attention… It’s not just me, but the previous heads of the clan as well…”

“… … .”

In short, he was hit hard because he let his guard down.

“So? What happened to your family?”

“… Ahem. It’s a highly toxic poison, but it can be cured. However, it’s a vicious poison that takes away most of your magical power and a significant amount of your physical abilities the moment it’s cured.”

“That kind of poison….”

“But there is nothing more precious than human life. Naturally, all those who were poisoned were cured. And from that point on, the family fortunes declined…”

Cynthia nodded in agreement. The poison had been applied, and the power of the key figures in the family had fallen sharply as they were cured. That was why the family fortune had declined.

“… But there’s one thing I’m curious about.”

“What is it?”

“Didn’t the other noble families suffer from the villain’s terror?”

“Oh, is that what you mean?”

Shin Dong-baek said without hesitation.

“I got it.”

“Yes? But were you okay?”

“That’s right. Only our family’s fortunes have declined. We were the most successful at the time… How did it end up like this?”

“Is that so?”

It was a grandson who did not understand.

***

I was quietly sitting in a corner, listening to Shin Dong-baek and Cynthia’s conversation.

It’s not a very touching reunion, but it’s hard to beat the excitement of meeting again after a dozen years.

While I was quietly listening to the conversation, Shin Dong-baek took out an object.

“This is the armor of our Shin family. It was made so that only a direct descendant of the Shin family can wear it… Would you like to try wearing it?”

“…yes.”

Cynthia hesitated, then took the gauntlet and put her hand in.

The glove slid smoothly into her hand.

“… … is it done?”

She asked with an expression of incredulity.

“Can you give me back my gloves for a moment?”

“Oh, yes.”

After receiving the sword from Cynthia, Shin Dong-baek threw it at Cheonmu-bong.

“Brother Cheon. Take it.”

“… That’s right.”

Cheonmu Bong reached out his hand towards Kwon Gap while frowning.

Okay then.

Crackle! Red lightning flashed and the gauntlet bounced off Cheonmu Bong. He frowned and shook his hand. It seemed like his hand was numb from the tingling lightning.

Afterwards, he used his magic to control the thrown gauntlet and placed it back on Cynthia’s hand.

“Have you seen it? This armor is said to be worn only by direct blood relatives of the Shin family.”

“…okay.”

The two continued their conversation after that.

I also heard talk about genetic testing and such.

Anyway, that aside….

‘Is the Kwon Seong-shin family on the verge of ruin? Can a family that is on the verge of ruin be included in the Seven Great Families? Hmm… .’

I didn’t know much about the new song.

Except that it was Cynthia’s home and that it was destroyed later.

I was just thinking that after some time had passed and we had become close, I would connect you with my family. But I had already met your grandfather before that.

From noble mtl dot com

When their conversation was over, I asked Shin Dong-baek a question.

“Can I ask you one thing for a moment?”

“Ahem. What is it?”

“Shinga… is still doing well, isn’t it? It’s still one of the Seven Great Aristocrats. It doesn’t seem to be in decline… Is there another reason?”

As far as I know, the fall of Kwon Sung-shin’s family will occur in 10 years.

It’s true that we’re on the path to decline, but I think things are still going well at this point.

I know that you restored your family and regained your power. Otherwise, you would have been expelled from the Seven Great Clans long ago.

Of course, it is true that the level has declined compared to the past. However, it would be an exaggeration to call it a downfall.

At that moment, an answer that surpassed my imagination came out of Shin Dong-baek’s mouth.

“… … Our Kwon Seong Shin family is going bankrupt due to massive debt. In order to restore the original strength of hundreds of people, we bought elixirs as we could, and before we knew it, we had piled up debts that we could not repay. If things continue this way, our family will fall within a few years.”

“ah…….”

There’s nothing you can do about money.

I figured out why I was going downhill all at once.