Chapter 129

In sports, there is a term called ‘routine.’


It refers to specific actions or procedures that athletes perform consciously or unconsciously to achieve their best condition.


Of course, even the self-proclaimed genius Sima Mantian had a kind of routine.


Not for improving his condition, but a habit he falls into when his martial arts hit a wall.


Leaning back in his chair, he chews on jerky while pondering.


“Hmm~ Should I pivot on my left foot? Or use the staff as a pivot to the right?”


He shakes his head vigorously.


The important thing isn’t the direction of the rotation. It’s the speed.


He needs to increase the speed of the rotation.


More chaotic, more flamboyant, and faster.


The image forms in his mind, but it’s not well-organized.


Annoyed, he chews on the jerky.


Once the direction is set, he just needs to repeat it until it works.


But this conceptual stage is the most exhausting.


Knock- Knock-


Suddenly, the door is knocked, and Yeonghwa’s voice echoes.


“Brother, I brought you some tea.”


“Ah~ Thank you. Come in.”


He doesn’t remember asking for tea, but there’s no reason to refuse when his cute little sister brings it.


The door opens.


Yeonghwa enters with a smile on her pretty face, moving gracefully.


She places the tray with tea on the table.


“Brother, drink it before it gets cold.”


“Thank you, I’ll enjoy it… huh?”


His eyes blink. The teacup is empty.


There’s no tea. The plate that should have snacks is also empty.


What’s this? Did the delivery go to the wrong house?


“Yeonghwa? There’s no tea.”


“Hmph! There’s no tea for a brother who’s always out.”


With a mix of shyness and arrogance, Yeonghwa’s expression makes a question mark pop up above his head.


“Huh? Hmph?”


Seeing Mantian’s bewildered expression, Yeonghwa’s red eyes tremble.


Though she usually wears a mask and doesn’t show her true feelings to others.


Mantian, her beloved brother and partner, is an exception.


‘Ah, what should I do! He must be shocked… What if he hates me!?’


…But Mantian is shocked for a different reason than she thinks.


And there’s no turning back now.


Clenching her small fist, she speaks her mind in a trembling voice.


“But… Brother! You don’t pay attention to me!”


Yeonghwa’s voice echoes in Mantian’s room.


“……!!”


Embarrassed by her own words, Yeonghwa’s face turns red.


“Hmph! It’s push and pull!”


Trying to maintain her composure, she forces a dignified expression and covers her mouth with her hand, laughing gracefully.


“Hoho… You can ponder why I’m doing this!”


In love, she becomes a fool.


She tries to escape by turning her head and leaving the room.


But Mantian grabs her hand.


Stunned by his sister’s unexpected ‘but’ attack, he regains his composure.


In short, Yeonghwa is throwing a tantrum. Or… should it be called a tantrum?


She calls it push and pull, but it’s not push and pull at all.


‘Yeonghwa… Push and pull isn’t called push and pull…’


He considers explaining, but that’s not important now.


The important thing is that Yeonghwa is lonely and wants attention.


…He always thought he was paying attention.


Lately, he’s been training with Guhae and Sososo, and running around with Ran reading novels. She must have wanted attention.


“Let… let me go… Brother.”


With a trembling voice full of expectation, she weakly resists and glances at him.


Of course, he doesn’t let go.


With his other hand, he wraps around her waist and pulls her into his embrace.


“It’s push and pull.”


He whispers affectionately with a coercive voice.


“Now it’s my turn to pull.”


It seems like he never pushed in the first place, but his cute little sister wants attention.


As her brother, he should take care of her.


“…Brother.”


He looks into her trembling red eyes, anticipating what’s to come.


“Yeonghwa, let’s brush your teeth.”


“…Huh?”


After a moment of thought, he decides that this is the only thing a loving brother and sister should do.


“I’ll brush your teeth.”


In Mantian’s room.


Yeonghwa sits on the bed, nervously watching Mantian apply a paste made of salt and herbs to her toothbrush.


“Brother, did I… have bad breath?”


“No, not at all. In fact, it smelled nice.”


“Then… why are you brushing my teeth?”


Sitting beside her, I answered without hesitation.


“Because showing your mouth is a special act.”


People don’t show their mouths to others unless it’s for something special like treatment.


It’s a soft, vulnerable part of the body.


In other words, revealing your mouth to someone else.


Entrusting someone else to brush your teeth is a special act that only those who trust each other can do.


-Or so I saw in an anime in my past life.


In the anime, it was a ‘toothbrush challenge’ between brother and sister.


But in terms of strengthening their bond, it’s no different.


Originally, it’s just to indulge Yeonghwa’s whims and have fun.


Supporting her neck and back with one arm, I lay her back.


“Now~ Yeonghwa~ Open wide~”


“Wha, what? Open wide!?”


Suddenly. The sensation of a long stick entering her mouth makes Yeonghwa’s eyes widen.


“Bro, Brother…!”


Looking down at Yeonghwa calling me with a broken pronunciation.


Her red lips parted by me.


Her neat, small white teeth and her soft tongue frozen in surprise.


What is this? It feels like an electric current running down my spine.


Instinctively, I move the toothbrush.


Brush brush~ brush brush~.


Carefully and gently so as not to hurt her gums.


Brush brush~ brush brush~.


I brush Yeonghwa’s teeth.


“Ugh… Heh… Ah… Ugh…”


Every time the long stick moves back and forth, Yeonghwa’s body twitches.


‘This is… This is… weird!?’


She’s never felt this way when brushing her teeth alone.


The sensation of having her mouth exposed and being brushed like a baby by her beloved brother messes with her head.


A white stream of foam flows from her mouth.


The brushing stops.


“Bro… Brother…”


“Yeonghwa.”


The sister called for her brother, and the brother answered.


What started as fun.


Her jewel-like red eyes, filled with tears of shame, captivate him.


…And by chance, Jang Sam-i, who came to find Mantian.


Witnesses this scene.


The Sima Family servant, guard, and assassin, Jang Sam-i, is at a loss.


He knocks on the open door.


“Excuse me for interrupting… Should I report what I just saw to the master or not? It’s troubling me, so could you please stop?”


Honestly, he doesn’t want to report it. He’ll definitely get scolded.


‘Master! The young master is brushing Miss Yeonghwa’s teeth!’


‘Huh? Why?’


‘No! I mean! If you see it up close, you’ll understand!’


‘Sam-bung, are you messing with me?’


…He’s definitely going to get unfairly hit.


No, is it unfair? He only brushed her teeth.


It’s not a strange act at all.


Jang Sam-i’s mind is in chaos.


“?????”


Anyway, Yeonghwa, having regained her senses, quickly grabs a cup of water and an empty bowl.


“Excuse me… Brother…”


With a red face, she runs outside.


Fortunately, it seems her mood has completely lifted.

***


There’s a saying that if your head is bad, your body suffers.


Conversely, if your body is amazing, you don’t need to use your head…


Anyway, to establish a theory that isn’t organized, he tests various things with his body.


And while the master’s son is sweating and training hard.


Under the pretext of assisting me.


“Hehe~ Snacks eaten while lazing around are the best. I wish the young master would keep training.”


The servant, Jang Sam-i, lazes around eating tea and snacks.


Jang Sam-i admires the circle I created on the dirt floor.


“That’s a neat circle.”


“It’s an application of Taijiquan.”


Applying Taijiquan and the ‘martial arts’ taught by the master allows for stable and fast rotation.


But that’s not enough.


What should I call it? More rough and flamboyant… a spiral storm?


Jang Sam looks at Mantian pondering with a serious expression.


Though he always plays around with Mantian, he’s a master who reached the peak at a young age.


He mainly learned stealth, assassination, and disguise techniques.


Though he quickly rose in rank, he roughly understands what Mantian is trying to do.


‘It seems he’s researching footwork. I can help with that.’


Since it’s already been revealed that he knows martial arts.


“Indeed, it’s an unusually gentle rotation for the young master.”


Jang Sam-i gets up, brushing off his butt, and calls Mantian.


Suddenly, he lightly kicks off the ground, spinning counterclockwise rapidly, tearing through the wind, and moves in an instant.


“Well~ It’s different from what the young master is envisioning, but if it’s related to rotation, I can help.”


He moves behind Mantian and playfully pokes his cheek.


“Your right leg… It’s better than before, but it’s still uncomfortable. Rather than balancing, add the force of falling into the rotation.”


“Balance is like holding the reins of a horse that only acts up when needed.”


Having watched him the longest, he gives appropriate advice.


“Martial arts should adapt to the young master. The young master doesn’t need to adapt to martial arts.”

***


Hehe~ I remembered something and decided to post this cute Yeonghwa drawn by the author Yanggang King!


In love, she becomes a fool!!