NOVEL NEXT Chapter 16: Southern County
It took him less time than before to easily replenish his Qi. He stopped cultivating, and though it was still dark outside, he felt less and less fatigue after each subsequent cultivation session.
"Now I don't need to sleep," he realized. "Just cultivating and replenishing Qi feels refreshing." Looking out the window, he got out of bed to enjoy the silence of the night.
staring up at the starry sky, he decided to go up to the roof and enjoy the sunrise, which was only a few hours away. Leaping from the window, he used Phantom Steps, and like a blurred image, he vanished and reappeared on the inn's roof.
"Who's there?" a woman's voice came from behind him. Noir sensed something approaching and instinctively dodged, narrowly avoiding a sword tip aimed his way.
He flipped himself a couple of times before landing on the edge of the roof, creating distance between himself and the woman who had attacked him.
"You are..." the woman said, looking at Noir. Noir also looked at her. Even though she wasn't wearing the veil, he recognized the eyes of the woman he had seen the previous night.
Her face was otherworldly, her eyes were red, and her hair were smooth and black. Under the half-moon's light, her beauty was even more striking than the night before.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, her eyes fixed on Noir. He noted that they looked different from when he had seen her behind the veil.
"I'm asking you something," she repeated. Even as she questioned Noir, her voice remained calm and soothing.
Noir, standing on the edge of the roof, looked down briefly before stepping forward. "That's what I should be asking," he countered. "What are you doing up here on the roof of the inn all alone?" He asked, his eyes fixed on hers.
He felt a strange familiarity with them, as if he had seen them somewhere before. Deep down, he sensed that those eyes were something he had known long ago, but when he tried to recall the memory, he only felt a sharp, aching pain in his mind.
"Leave it," he said, quickly dismissing the thought. The woman responded, "Why can't I be here?" instead of answering his question, she countered with her own.
"I didn't say you can't be here," he clarified, "but the way you attacked me without even looking to see who you were attacking...anyone who was attacked by the woman wielding a sword on the roof at night would ask the same question."
The woman, caught off guard by Noir's response, could only nod. "It wasn't intentional," she said, loosening her grip on the sword and stepping back from the spot.
"Huh," Noir chuckled. "Why did you back off with your sword? What if I had wrong intentions toward you?" he asked, a hint of amusement in his eyes.
The woman simply answered as she sheathed her sword, "I can sense when someone is genuine and when they harbour ill intentions."
Then, in a flash, she unsheathed her sword again, pointing it at Noir. "I only need a second to unsheathe my sword and kill anyone who thinks they're brave enough to embrace death."
Noir felt a little strange as she unsheathed her sword. Unlike before, he could sense an aura, similar to Qi, emanating from the blade. Yet, he could also sense that the woman in front of him wasn't a cultivator.
He gave her a silly smile. "Well then, you don't have to use that sword, as I have no intention of dying young." Sitting on the edge of the roof, he lay back and looked at the stars. "I'm just here to enjoy the night sky."
The woman also sat down on the other side of the roof. "I haven't seen you here before," she said. "Did you come from the Southern County?" she asked, settling into a lotus position.
This was the first time he had heard the term "Southern County." He sensed it would be beneficial to engage her in conversation; perhaps he could learn more about the Five Kingdoms and the lands beyond.
"No, this is the first time I've heard of them," he replied, his gaze still fixed on the starry sky. "Can you tell me what the Southern County is?"
The woman was surprised to learn that Noir didn't even know what the Southern County was. "The Southern County is the borderland of the Chu Kingdom in the south," she explained, "which separates the capital from the wastelands."
"So, this place is indeed the wastelands," Noir murmured softly.
The woman heard him and questioned, "Perhaps you didn't know these lands are considered wastelands?"
Noir shook his head. "No, I knew," he said, feigning ignorance of the real reason. "But I just don't see the valid reason to call this place the wastelands."
"You'll know when you're able to walk on the mainland," she replied, "especially beyond the mainland, where people can fly with the help of swords, and some don't even need swords at all. Dangerous spirit beasts serve as mounts, and great sects have hundreds of thousands of disciples. Compared to this place, that place is akin to the Heavens."
She explained, then asked another question. "If you're not from the southern county, then where are you from?"
Noir didn't answer and simply pointed in the opposite direction. Seeing this, she asked, "You're from the deepest part of the wastelands?"
"Yes," he replied. Then, it was his turn to ask, "Where are you from? I heard they say you're from the capital?"
She answered honestly, just as Noir had answered her questions. "Yes, I'm from the capital." Then Noir asked another question, tilting his head towards her. "Then what are you doing here in these wastelands?"
She answered, but there was a hint of disappointment in her tone. "I just realized that the people close to me weren't being honest and just wanted to use me as a pawn in their political games. So, I ran away from home."
"It must hurt when the people closest to you betray your expectations," he said simply while She responded with a soft "Hmm."