Surviving as the Villainess’s Servant in a Martial Arts Novel – Chapter 77

Author: Cireng

Chapter 77

After deciding to become the leader of the Gwangjin Cult, we decided to leave soon afterward.

There was nothing more for me to do here anyway, and I needed to hurry back to the Gwangjin Cult’s headquarters, where the cult members were staying, so that I could undergo the enthronement ceremony.

Eom Papa had been busy ever since I woke up. Apparently, she had been in frequent contact with the people on the other side.

And in the meantime, I learned something that I hadn’t known…

“I’ve been unconscious for half a year?!”

It was the passage of time that I hadn’t been aware of. Until then, I hadn’t thought much of it. The last time I’d collapsed, I’d woken up after two weeks, so considering that this time had been more serious, I figured it might have taken about a month. But when I actually stepped outside the house, the change in seasons was unmistakable. Summer was gone, and autumn had already arrived.

‘That’s strange. When I arrived in Hefei, it was around spring, wasn’t it? And now it’s already autumn?’

It seemed so strange that I asked about it, only to hear…

“H-half a year? Not half a month, but half a year? I’ve been lying down for half a year?”

“Yes. We were surprised too. There weren’t many precedents, so we didn’t expect you to remain asleep for so long. At first, both Eom Papa and I were worried sick, thinking something had gone wrong…”

“Good heavens…”

“But your wounds were steadily healing and you were recovering, so we decided to wait and see. There was nothing else we could do but wait for you to open your eyes…”

Just like that, a whole half a year had passed.

Only then did I understand why Sahyeon had rushed at me in tears the moment he saw me.

Of course. If someone who had been lying around like a vegetable for half a year suddenly got up, I’d probably be crying tears and snot from happiness too.

And once I realized that, I felt a little embarrassed.

‘What kind of confidence did I have to hesitate over Eom Papa’s offer?’

It would’ve been a disaster if I’d refused the Gwangjin Cult’s help.

Half a year wasn’t an especially long time, but it wasn’t particularly short either. If we’d only been separated for a little while, perhaps it would’ve been different, but after this much time, there was no way I could find the young lady on my own.

For all I knew, I could have crossed paths with her during that time without even realizing it.

Maybe the young lady herself was panicking because she thought I’d suddenly disappeared. She might even be desperately searching for me just like I was searching for her…

‘…I hope so.’

I didn’t want the young lady to suffer, but it was a hundred, a thousand times better for her to be alive and searching for me than anything else. And there was something else that surprised me even more. In fact, this was probably the most shocking thing of all.

It was…

“T-this, this…!”

I’d become prettier!

“Who is this supposed to be?!”

I couldn’t describe how shocked I was when I first saw my face reflected in the water while washing it. I was so startled that I actually screamed. I didn’t even notice Sahyeon rushing over because he thought something had happened, as I frantically stared into the water and touched my face.

Later, I even asked Sahyeon to bring me a hand mirror and looked at myself again, but my face didn’t change. For a moment, I wanted to ask…

‘Who are you?’

The girl in the mirror was… quite pretty.

Honestly, she couldn’t compare to the young lady, who was an absolute beauty, or Sahyeon, but objectively speaking, she was still a pretty girl.

Where had my broad, flat face gone? In its place was a tiny face with flawless skin, large eyes, a well-defined nose, and full lips. All of my features were arranged in surprisingly harmonious proportions.

And what about that sharp jawline and long neck? There was such a lively sparkle throughout my face that, once I grew up, I looked like the kind of woman who could make quite a few men cry.

Me…? I could make men cry?

And not because I was so ugly that they cried, but because I was beautiful enough to make them cry?!

“Unnie? Unnie, are you all right? Were you really surprised?”

“Uh, uuuuh…”

“I understand. I was like that too. It wasn’t as sudden as it was for you, but watching you change little by little every day, I was secretly quite surprised…”

“Uhh…”

“I looked through the records, and apparently it’s normal. There are cases where a person’s appearance changes as their body is re-formed to suit the martial art they’re practicing. In the martial arts world, I suppose you’d call it bone-and-marrow transformation…”

‘This isn’t bone-and-marrow transformation. This is like being reborn on a cold operating table.’

“They say this happens fairly often when one reaches a certain level of martial arts mastery. Apparently, there was even an old master who returned to a youthful body after attaining a profound enlightenment.”

‘No way, even rejuvenation?’

Amazing, this martial arts world. You practice martial arts a little, and it gives you plastic surgery and rejuvenation?

I could kind of understand why martial artists risked their lives to cultivate martial arts. If I could become young and firm again by practicing martial arts, I’d probably lose my mind over it too… No, this wasn’t the time to be thinking about that.

‘This is bad. This really is bad.’

If I changed this much, she wouldn’t recognize me!

Even before, there had been one thing I was strangely confident about: the fact that I was unusually ugly.

My features were strangely harmonious yet twisted, so the young lady could recognize me wherever I was. I thought that even after we were separated and some time had passed, she’d recognize me immediately.

But… what if I showed up with this face?

If I said I was Seo Dan, would the young lady believe me?

‘Of course she wouldn’t.’

I’d be lucky if she didn’t slap me for trying to pull some trick on her!

As I trembled, Sahyeon looked at me curiously.

“Unnie, what’s wrong? Why are you making such a face…?”

“This… Is there any way to reverse this? Some miraculous technique that can restore my face… No, there probably isn’t. How could I possibly turn my face back after it’s already changed?”

“Unnie, Unnie?”

“W-what am I going to do? What if she doesn’t recognize me? What if she doesn’t recognize me? No, she definitely won’t. With this face, we could be standing right in front of each other and still not recognize one another. Even the token was destroyed, so what am I supposed to use as proof…?”

“No!”

Sahyeon suddenly shouted.

“She’ll definitely recognize you, Unnie. I’m sure of it!”

“…Do I still look ugly?”

“That’s not what I meant! Of course, I also found you unfamiliar at first. You changed so much that I was surprised, but… I’ve gotten used to it now.”

“Gotten used to it?”

“Yes. No matter what you look like on the outside, you’re still you in the end, Unnie. Your kind side hasn’t changed at all…”

After saying that, Sahyeon trailed off, apparently embarrassed, before belatedly continuing.

“S-so please don’t worry too much. She’ll recognize you soon too. Even if she doesn’t recognize you immediately, she’ll figure it out after seeing you a few times. I guarantee it!”

“Sahyeon…”

Sahyeon smiled as if telling me to trust him. It was a remarkably confident smile.

I stared deeply at Sahyeon and thought…

‘What’s the point of you guaranteeing it?’

What are you going to do if the young lady doesn’t recognize me? Huh? Are you going to take responsibility? Are you?!

But of course, he was saying it without even considering something like that. This was why pretty kids were like this. Maybe because they’d been pretty since birth, they knew nothing about how the world worked.

Still, the fact that he was thinking of me wasn’t unpleasant, so I smiled at Sahyeon and said,

“Thank you.”

Sahyeon smiled brightly at my words.

Yes. If you’re happy, that’s enough.

And so, after the two commotions had passed,

“It is time to depart.”

The day of our departure finally arrived.

Surprisingly, I didn’t have much luggage. This place was a hideout, and Eom Papa had brought whatever we needed as necessary.

I had wondered whether it was really okay to make someone old enough to be my grandmother run around like this for me, but surprisingly, Eom Papa was quite firm about it.

When I repeatedly told her to speak casually because it was uncomfortable, she replied,

“From now on, the Cult Leader is the supreme being of our sect. The rules of the cult are strict, so if this subordinate treats the Cult Leader casually, how will the Cult Leader’s dignity be maintained? Even if it is uncomfortable, it cannot be helped!”

‘…Sahyeon calls me Unnie casually, though.’

I was secretly a little disappointed, but I soon understood and let it go. In fact, Sahyeon had already been scolded for calling me far too casually.

I picked up my bundle and stepped outside.

The chilly wind carried the distinct scent of autumn. Around this time last year, I had been at the Xiao Family Estate. Young Master Wang had come looking for me; I’d met Namgung Jeong, and after going through various things… I’d heard that I was going to the Namgung Family.

At the time, I thought that a few months later I’d be living at the Namgung Family. I wasn’t sure whether I’d be living comfortably there, but I at least expected to be working as a servant like before.

But now, everything had completely changed.

The Xiao Family Estate had been destroyed, and all the precious people in my life had left my side.

I was alone again.

But at the same time, new connections had come into my life.

“Unnie!”

I turned my head.

In the distance, I could see Eom Papa and Sahyeon waiting for me.

The people I’d newly met… the people of the Gwangjin Cult.

If I followed them now, I would truly become the leader of the Gwangjin Cult.

I was still hesitant.

If you asked me whether I regretted my choice, I couldn’t say for certain.

But there was one thing I was certain of. Even if I could return to the past, I would make the exact same choice.