The Flower Among the Flames

Chapter 13

Seulgi stared at the statue of his supposed ancestor, his head tilted to the side in thought. This was what he looked like then? Though the statue's entirety was worn from age and weather, its features were still clear to discern. The man was obviously older– perhaps in his later years of fifties or so. His stony eyes were narrowed with bushy eyebrows furrowed, his nose was on the longer side with a slightly broader bottom, his mouth was curled into a slight frown, and his beard...What was it with old people and beards? Seulgi shook his head quietly, praying that he would not fall into such a path.

Seulgi did see some resemblance of the man with his grandfather. Cheol-won's face was rigid and angular like him. He even saw the defining characteristic of the Kim family– damn messy hair. He laughed a little. Maybe he got it from Cheol-won, but Seulgi's hair was always a disheveled mess unless he washed it. The statue had the same combination of wavy and spiky hair as he did- so much so that Seulgi began to think it was a bit disturbing.

The glaive was no doubt Yù Fēng. The resemblance was uncanny; so much so that even if the statue wasn't Cheol-won, it would be a great coincidence. The sculpture caught the essence of the weapon to the minutest of details. The engravings on the pommel, the length of the pole-arm, and the scaling of the blade itself was perfect. Seulgi wondered who the sculptor of the entire piece was. Would he know him? Perhaps the artist was famous? Wait. He shook his head once again, this time to focus his thoughts. Stop it. Art comes later.

Seulgi knew who the statue was, but the reason for there being one in the first place still eluded him. What exactly was Cheol-won's relation to this place? Seulgi didn't know much about the man personally. With the exception of what he told everyone, including Zhao Meng, he knew nothing else. It was odd really. He'd think that his family would carry the man's legacy down the generations. But his grandfather was a diplomat and his father an ambassador to Trazia. What happened? Why wasn't Seulgi a "demon hunter?"

He remembered asking his father for more about his ancestor, inquiring about demons and what other feats the man accomplished. Seulgi's father would just laugh and tell him that it was something for the future. I'll tell you later. I'll tell you more when you are older. Well, Seulgi was in his twenties– old by standards in most societies for an unmarried man. He should have been told the stories by now, but his father continued to put it off. Seulgi grunted. Something was definitely off about all of this. He felt something stir in the back of his mind. A presence.

"Huh," the voice grunted, catching Seulgi by surprise. "who knew they'd have a statue of this bastard."

"How do you mean?" Seulgi raised an eyebrow. He knew the spirit and his ancestor didn't exactly get along. After all, he was imprisoned into the glaive by the man.

"How should I put this?" If the voice had a face, he'd probably be sneering. "Your ancestor wasn't exactly the...hero type. Not the kind they make such gallant statues like this one. But hey...that's just me. For all you know, I could be ranting about my...predicament."

"Hero type?" Seulgi wanted to know more. Anything would help him with his desire to know more about Cheol-won no matter how opinionated it was.

"Need I explain everything? Look– I'll put it into simple words for you. How do you like that?" the voice grumbled with a mocking tone.

"Just answer the damn question," Seulgi growled in return. The spirit needed a reminder of who was in charge– that he was the one imprisoned into the weapon and therefore powerless to do anything. Seulgi could dump the glaive anytime he wanted. The spirit grunted in amusement to his threatening tone, but let it go.

"He's a demon hunter, kid," the voice grunted. "They aren't exactly the flower and roses type. He is not like those warriors of the West with their shining armor and glinting smiles. He isn't even like the great generals of the East like Feng Qi or Yi Do-Won. Chivalry and codes are for losers who don't know when to let loose."