Yoo Baekjun let out a sigh of relief.
'So I made it back to the clan safely, at least.'
It seemed the man at the guard post had done as asked and called for Choi Seungmin.
That small-framed boy from earlier.
'Yoo Baekjun's attendant.'
A character who appears on Yoo Baekjun's route, a loyal servant who had served him since childhood.
He had worked in the clan for a long time, but unfortunately, he had absolutely no talent for swordsmanship.
So he was stuck being a lifelong attendant.
'Still, his loyalty runs deep.'
When he was younger, Yoo Baekjun had once helped cure his family's illness, and he had considered him a lifelong benefactor ever since.
There was no chance he would ever betray him.
'That's more than enough.'
Yoo Baekjun rose to his feet.
He looked around the room. It was on a whole different level from the one-room studio he had used in reality.
The furniture, the interior—everything was luxurious.
And among it all, there was a mirror.
"Hm."
Yoo Baekjun stood in front of the mirror. What he saw reflected was his own body—familiar, yet strangely unfamiliar.
"Damn, I'm good-looking."
Yoo Baekjun gave a bitter smile. The man staring back from the mirror was so handsome it made you want to let out a whistle.
Hair down to his waist, a face that looked like it had been carved from marble. And a body so thin it seemed almost sickly.
"Why are you so skinny?"
What you'd call a 'twig' build.
In reality, he'd been slightly overweight, so seeing such a slender frame felt oddly refreshing.
'Even back then, the female fans would always praise how good-looking he was. As expected.'
He looked so sickly, and yet he was still handsome. If he put on some weight and built some muscle, he'd become a peerless beauty, without question.
"..."
Yoo Baekjun stared blankly into the mirror.
For a long while, without saying a word.
Grit.
Then he clenched his fist.
'That bastard, he shoved me into this world.'
The Supreme Lord flashed through his mind again.
If it weren't for that guy, he wouldn't have fallen into this world, wouldn't have become Yoo Baekjun.
"He probably pushed me in here expecting me to die…"
Unfortunately for him, he was a long-time veteran of Heroes' Road.
He had memorized all the events and their triggers, hidden items, and character settings.
He was also the only player in the world who had cleared the notoriously difficult Yoo Baekjun route.
'I'll use all of that to survive.'
He would use every bit of knowledge he had, and somehow gain power. He would reach the ending of this game.
"Definitely."
That was the vow Yoo Baekjun made.
First, he decided to use the knowledge in his head to assess the current situation.
You needed to understand the situation before you could make a proper plan.
'This is the Sword Saint Clan's house.'
Just as he had hoped, he had returned to the clan.
The problem was, this place was a battleground of power struggles, and not particularly safer than the snowy plains.
'In any prosperous clan, the children will inevitably fight for control of it.'
The Sword Saint Clan had been a prestigious family line since the Joseon Dynasty, consistently training students.
Those who trained and entered society became excellent Hunters or rose to high positions.
That power, in turn, became the strength of the Sword Saint Clan.
'Naturally, the heirs—meaning the siblings—are now fighting a succession war over that power.'
The eldest son Yoo Taerang, eldest daughter Yoo Jungyeon, third son Yoo Kangho, fourth daughter Yoo Min, and himself.
The youngest, Yoo Baekjun.
There were originally three more siblings, but they were already dead—killed by none other than Yoo Taerang.
'Strictly speaking, it's not really a power struggle anymore—it's practically over.'
Yoo Kangho had joined under Yoo Taerang, Yoo Jeongyeon had half-given up on the successor position.
Yoo Min was never interested in the first place. In reality, Yoo Taerang was already confirmed as the successor, and most likely, he would become the clan head.
Yoo Baekjun glanced at the clock.
"It's 2035 now? Nothing's changed. Then in about two years, Yoo Taerang becomes the clan head."
That was the year when each game route began. And if it was January 15th, it had been about a week since Yoo Baekjun's route started.
'Father retires in about two years, and Yoo Taerang takes over.'
Yoo Moohakk, the Sword Saint Clan's head, would retire and disappear within two years.
The one to succeed him as clan head would be the eldest son, Yoo Taerang.
No need to hide it—he was the one who had ordered Shin Woohyun to kill Yoo Baekjun.
"Our beloved big brother, indeed."
And if Yoo Baekjun managed to survive until Yoo Taerang became clan head? He would be assassinated soon after.
Disguised as an accident.
—I will leave no room for future conflict. The succession dispute ends here.
So he would say.
Well, honestly, there was a higher chance Yoo Baekjun would be killed before Yoo Taerang even became the clan head.
Throughout the route, Yoo Taerang constantly tried to assassinate Yoo Baekjun and the other siblings.
'Because of his paranoid nature, he hates leaving any potential threats behind.'
He wanted to eliminate any chance that the other siblings might form a faction and threaten his power.
He was pursuing absolute power.
'Anyway, to summarize.'
The main villain of Yoo Baekjun's route is Yoo Taerang. If he didn't take him down within two years, he'd end up dead at that bastard's hands.
A two-year time limit. After that, there was no hope. He wouldn't be able to fight Yoo Taerang once he inherited the clan's full authority.
"Take down Yoo Taerang and seize the clan within two years. That's the immediate goal, huh?"
Yoo Baekjun let out a chuckle.
It was a ridiculously hard task. Yoo Taerang had already devoured half the clan—now he was supposed to take it all back and become the clan head?
'Yoo Taerang returns in two months.'
So where was Yoo Taerang now? He had been sent by their father to deal with a gate that had appeared on Mount Seorak. It would take him two months. He absolutely had to build up strength before then.
'Fortunately, this is the Sword Saint Clan.'
A clan where strength ruled.
'In other words, if you build enough strength, you can earn recognition in this clan.'
That was why he'd risked his life to visit the Tomb of the Martial God. The Heavenly Martial Physique, and the Book of the Martial God. With just those two, Yoo Baekjun could gain the power necessary to seize control of the clan.
And thankfully,
"There are a lot of good teachers here."
Heroes' Road was full of events. Events that triggered once specific conditions were met, and he knew all those conditions.
And the event he could trigger right now—
'Old Man Joo Joongwon.'
Yoo Baekjun recalled Joo Joongwon from earlier.
The first teacher he should rope in, the old man was the Sword Saint Clan's brilliant physician.
He had joined the clan during the previous clan head's era and had served ever since.
He had great skill, and thanks to a unique healing ability, his medicinal treatments were exceptional.
'And he's a good person, too.'
He had no interest in the clan's power struggles, only caring about herbs and medicine.
That made him someone who could be a great help.
"I need to become Joo Joongwon's disciple and learn herbal remedy skills. Once I do…"
He needed to take Snow Ginseng.
If he made a pill to suppress the side effects and took it, he could digest the Snow Ginseng.
That would grant him immense magical power.
'Let's build up strength first.'
Yoo Baekjun's first step after returning to the clan was to create an elixir to enhance himself.
***
"Hm, hm, yes. Drink it all down. It should help with the headache too, once you've had it."
Just as he'd said, Joo Joongwon had brought the medicine. Yoo Baekjun sipped it while watching Joo Joongwon closely, as if analyzing him.
'The original event: Finding a Disciple.'
Even at his age, Joo Joongwon had no disciple. He could've taken one if he wanted, but there was only one reason he hadn't.
—This is knowledge I've cultivated all my life. I want to pass it on only to members of the clan.
He only wanted to teach his skills to blood members of the clan. A form of loyalty.
The problem was, none of the clan members were even slightly interested in learning.
'Medicine? Why learn that when you can just buy it?'
Why suffer through the grind of training the skill when money could solve the problem?
That's what the clan members, and all the potential successors, believed. And so Joo Joongwon had no one to pass his teachings on to.
'If I show some knowledge about medicine in front of Joo Joongwon, the "Find a Disciple" event will trigger.'
He would summon Yoo Baekjun to his lab, observe him for a while, then put him through a few tests before deciding to take him as a disciple.
First, he had to show some knowledge.
"How's my condition?"
"Well, there are quite a few wounds, but they were treated well, so they shouldn't scar much. Was that Seungmin's doing?"
"No, I treated them myself."
At that, Joo Joongwon's eyes widened slightly.
"You did it yourself? I saw that you used a combination of herbs on the wounds."
"I've always been interested in medicine, so I picked up a bit. Fortunately, there were a lot of herbs nearby."
"Oho, now that's a surprise."
A faint smile touched his lips. He didn't seem to be taking it too seriously yet—perhaps thinking Yoo Baekjun had just gotten lucky.
"Most of the clan only care about swords and consider this sort of thing a petty skill. I didn't think you'd know anything about it…"
"A petty skill? I'm always amazed by Physician Joo Joongwon's skill."
"Haha, you're quite something, you know."
"….."
Yoo Baekjun kept talking, practically singing Joo Joongwon's praises. The old man had served the clan for a long time and was well respected for his skill.
"That medicine I just drank—was it made from Peace Herb and Dreamflower, by any chance?"
"What!"
Joo Joongwon's eyes flew open. Shocked and stunned.
"You figured that out just by taste?"
Of course he did. He'd played this route so many times, it was second nature.
Yoo Baekjun smiled without letting it show.
"Haha, not just the taste—the scent was familiar too. Then I thought about the effects of the medicine."
"What do you mean?"
"Peace Herb calms the mind, and Dreamflower helps with sleep. And from the taste… I think there's one more ingredient."
Yoo Baekjun feigned deep thought. He already knew the answer, but it was all about the performance.
"Ah! Scream Herb. That's a poisonous herb, isn't it?"
"Y-yes. And the reason I used it…"
"Despite being poisonous, when it's burned to release the toxins, it can actually become a powerful revitalizer."
"H-hmm."
Joo Joongwon's voice trembled. To recognize the ingredients from just the taste and smell, and to know their effects so precisely—that was shocking.
"W-where did you learn all this?"
"I've studied from books and, occasionally, tested things by tasting them myself. Eventually, I just ended up memorizing it all."
Yoo Baekjun smiled gently. At the sight, Joo Joongwon let out a deep hum.
'The young master's talent isn't in martial arts—it's in the art of saving lives!'
How regretful.
If only he hadn't been born into the Sword Saint Clan…
"Did Seungmin tell you how you ended up like this?"
"I was told I went for a walk alone and got attacked by a monster."
Yoo Baekjun nodded.
As expected, word hadn't spread through the clan that Shin Woohyun had taken him. That had always been the case in every playthrough—no reason it would change now.
"After going through all that, I came to truly appreciate the value of medicine. It was incredibly helpful in a crisis."
"I see…"
"Yes, I just regret not having learned it properly. I need to train more."
Joo Joongwon looked at Yoo Baekjun quietly.
Observing him. Yoo Baekjun had shown genuine interest in medicine—unlike the other successors. So next, most likely…
"Would you like to learn from me?"
"You mean from Physician Joo Joongwon?"
Yoo Baekjun widened his eyes.
"But aren't you very busy? You're always making medicine, so…"
"Haha, I'm not that busy. There's plenty of time between batches. If you want, I can teach you during those times."
"Really?"
Yoo Baekjun's face lit up, and Joo Joongwon nodded in satisfaction at the sight.
"Of course, I can't teach you everything from the start. I'll have to see how much you already know first."
"In that case…"
Yoo Baekjun bowed deeply.
"I humbly ask for your guidance."
"Hmm."
As he bowed, Yoo Baekjun grinned.
'The condition's been met.'
Now all that remained was to pass the tests Joo Joongwon would give and win him over.
And for him, who already knew exactly what those tests were—it was going to be way too easy.