Even My Life Is Yours Chapter 61

From the moment Hongyo stepped into the competition grounds, Gamyoung couldn’t relax his nerves for a second. He knew that Hongyo’s martial arts skills were outstanding, but watching her actually compete made it difficult to just sit still and watch. At least until the second round, although there were a few crises, he trusted that Hongyo would do well with what she had learned from him and Kyungrak at the dojo, and indeed she did well, but the finals were different.

When Kim Insik forfeited the final match and Jang Daeho stepped onto the grounds, the feeling that something was wrong proved to be correct as the match progressed. Even in the second round, every time Hongyo was cornered, Gamyoung had clenched the fists on his knees several times without realizing it, but at the end, when Hongyo found his opponent’s opening just as he had taught her and finally brought her sword to his throat, he had even felt proud.

However, the man in the competition grounds now was a man who had been called a prodigy in martial arts since he was a child. He was someone with such great skill that his name had been mentioned within the royal court several times even before he entered Hwayeonggyeong. But if it were just about his fame, there would have been no need to be this wary.

Gamyoung looked down at Jang Daeho in the competition grounds. Ever since he heard the story of the Gamhwi’s initiation ceremony from Jeonghwan, he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off, but the man he saw in person was even more formidable and threatening than the rumors suggested.

In the first round, he had slammed his opponent to the ground in less than five exchanges, and in the second round, he ended up breaking his opponent’s nose. It wasn’t entirely uncommon for injuries to occur during a competition, so it wasn’t a major issue, but the real problem was the way he did it.

Even if it was a competition, it wasn’t an actual battle, yet there was no mercy in his attitude as he unhesitatingly thrust his sword at his opponent, who was already covered in blood with a broken nose to the point where the match was meaningless. If the opponent hadn’t called for a forfeit, his attitude of seeing it to the very end was enough to make even the judges shake their heads, but his father, Lord Pangam, seemed completely unimpressed, as if such a thing was no big deal.

So, when Hongyo and Kim Insik met in the semifinals, Gamyoung secretly hoped that Hongyo would stop at this point. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Hongyo’s skills, but facing Jang Daeho was too much. Aside from their skills, the gap in their physical build was one thing, but with that cruel nature of his, it was clear that even if Hongyo forfeited the match, he would bite and tear at her until the very end. And besides, that gaze of his….

Gamyoung couldn’t hide his displeasure at all. If one could devour an opponent with their eyes, would it feel like that? Lifeless eyes were staring intently at Hongyo. It wasn’t so much a gaze as it was a scan. The persistent and obsessive stare, as if engraving her into his pupils, was chilling. But to describe it as merely chilling was an understatement; it was an extremely unnerving look. The sticky, somewhat cold gaze held no light, yet it strangely gleamed with a peculiar shine.

Gamyoung tried to find the emotion in that gaze, and when he looked back at Hongyo, he finally realized what it was. It was a resolute gaze that was anxious yet unyielding. And Jang Daeho, who met that gaze….

“The winner of the final match will be determined by the best of three rounds. The first event is swordsmanship, the second is spear arts, and the last will decide the winner with archery. If a winner is decided in two rounds, the third round will be omitted.”

…was enjoying it immensely. His eyes, gleaming with that peculiar shine as if he had gotten a new toy, were obsessively staring at Hongyo.

Catching a glimpse of that emotion, Gamyoung’s face hardened. Heat spread from deep within his heart, like a fire slowly kindling. The thought that he could not let anyone look at Hongyo with such eyes filled his mind. Then, he flinched, surprised at himself for having such a thought. A beloved person is a beloved person, but in that moment, his vow to manage his subordinates fairly as the Hwayeonggyeongjang was rendered meaningless.

And just then, his eyes met Hongyo’s. Worried that acting friendly in front of others might bring harm to Hongyo, he had deliberately avoided her gaze. But now, meeting Hongyo’s eyes properly for the first time since entering this place, Gamyoung couldn’t bear the warm tingling in his throat and the fluttering of his heart. However, this was not outside the imperial palace. It was not a place where they could joke around and laugh freely as friends.

Gamyoung composed his expression as much as possible and looked at Hongyo. Even from the quite high pavilion, Hongyo couldn’t hide her emotions, so much so that it was obvious what she was thinking in that small head of hers. The eyes that had been colored with delight upon finding him the day after the initiation ceremony now held an awkward and somewhat resigned look, as if seeing a stranger. Seeing that, Gamyoung felt a crack form in his decision to have Hongyo enter Hwayeonggyeong for the first time.

But the moment the match began, there was no room for even such thoughts. As soon as their wooden swords clashed, he could see Hongyo clenching her teeth, pushed back by sheer force. Hongyo, who blocked the blow with all her might, was busy fending off the fierce, relentless attacks as if the initial testing phase had never happened. No matter how skilled Hongyo was, there was a limit to the difference in strength coming from their physical builds.

Watching Hongyo struggling just to block, let alone attack, Gamyoung clenched his fists again. Indeed, as befitting someone called a child prodigy, Jang Daeho’s swordsmanship was flawless, eliciting admiration just by watching. Not only were his movements nimble, belying his large frame, but his offensive style of switching between standard and unorthodox forms to seek and exploit his opponent’s openings was also formidable.

It wasn’t just mindless attacking; his ability to wield the sword as if it were one with his body, freely moving to find openings, was not something that could be achieved with just a few years of training. Not only the Gamhwi in the audience but also the people sitting around him in the pavilion easily predicted the outcome of the match.

“My, my, they call this the finals, but it seems anyone becomes a falling leaf, cut down in a single stroke before Lord Pangam’s son.”

At the words of the man sitting to the Pangam’s left, the people in the pavilion nodded, praising the Pangam and Jang Daeho. However, the Pangam himself simply watched the competition grounds without any response to any of the comments.

Gamyoung also focused on the match in silence. His mouth went dry watching Hongyo narrowly dodge the attacks time and again. The playful-looking assault finally stopped when Hongyo’s one knee touched the ground.

“It’s a long way from over.”

Jang Daeho, who was looking down at Hongyo with the tip of his sword on the ground, was overflowing with confidence. His attitude, as if bestowing mercy, was, however, clearly provoking her opponent. Hongyo, looking up at the overbearing gaze that seemed to say, “This isn’t the end of it,” only showed her back, making it hard to read her thoughts.

But one thing was certain: Hongyo would never give up easily. She wasn’t one to ever avoid a confrontation. And as expected, Hongyo stood up from his spot and swiftly swung her sword. But a rash attack that has lost its composure only shows an opening to the opponent. As a series of ineffective attacks continued, Hongyo eventually showed a large opening, and Jang Daeho struck her waist with the hilt of his sword. Had it been the blade, even of a wooden sword, the match would have been decided right there, but he seemed to have no intention of ending this match easily.

That made Gamyoung even more anxious. He was worried sick that if this continued, Hongyo, like the one whose nose was broken in the second match, would end up with a broken bone somewhere, but there was no way to stop this competition other than for a winner to be decided or for one to forfeit. And Hongyo would never be the one to forfeit.

Gamyoung tried his best to maintain his composure and watched Hongyo. If he couldn’t end this match, all he could do was trust Hongyo. Hongyo might not start things, but she never gave up easily on what she faced. It was the same with fights; hadn’t she somehow managed to beat down the guys who surrounded and picked a fight with her at the dojo, even when her swordsmanship was still lacking? She was the kid who fearlessly jumped in to protect him even in front of a tiger.

Therefore, Hongyo would surely find a way. Believing so, Gamyoung watched Hongyo. But just as it was becoming difficult to endure any longer after a few more meaningless attacks were exchanged, Hongyo, while barely dodging a frontal thrust, finally dropped her wooden sword. Simultaneously, gasps mixed with regret flowed from the audience and the pavilion. Dropping one’s weapon, which was like a lifeline in the competition grounds, meant the end.

But Gamyoung alone did not miss Hongyo’s subtle movement. Hongyo, who had lowered her posture as much as possible to dodge the attack, suddenly wrapped both her arms around Jang Daeho’s outstretched attacking arm and twisted it outwards. Because of that, Jang Daeho, whose posture was also lowered, lost his offensive stance and faltered, but he quickly came to his senses and swung his other fist, and Hongyo, as if expecting it, released his arm and stepped back.

Jang Daeho, having escaped before his arm was completely twisted, caught his breath and looked at Hongyo. As an attack finally landed for the first time in a match that had been overwhelmingly in Jang Daeho’s favor, tension appeared even on the faces of those who had been indifferent until now.

In the competition grounds, where only the sound of their two heavy breaths remained, everyone was holding their breath and focusing. Watching Hongyo lower her posture significantly, Gamyoung realized. It seemed Hongyo had figured out Jang Daeho’s weakness with that last attack. At best, it would only create an opening, but it was impossible to know what result that opening would bring.

Jang Daeho, who had shown a flustered expression for the first time during the match, soon smiled slyly. Then he swung his sword with immeasurable speed. Dodging the blade that drew an arc, grazing right in front of her face, Hongyo put a hand on the ground and rolled to the side. At the same time, Hongyo grabbed the fallen sword and aimed for Jang Daeho’s knee. But as the blow was blocked right in front of him, Hongyo, without a moment’s hesitation, found an opening and quickly stood up. The strike aimed at the side was filled with power.

At the sight of Hongyo, who had somehow seized the offensive, everyone there was unable to make a sound. And when Hongyo, who had exploited the opening created by that blow, finally slammed her fist into Jang Daeho’s chin, the sound of people gasping erupted from here and there. Not only had she landed a punch on Jang Daeho, whom no one thought she could beat, but she made them think that she might actually win.

Now in complete control, Hongyo quickly delivered a final blow. But before Hongyo could be flustered by the wooden sword being caught right in front of him, a fist flew from the other side. And when the fist stopped right in front of Hongyo’s face, Gamyoung felt his heart freeze solid.