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Growing up in the famous
Korean Seong Dojang headed by her father, Seong
Han-Myeong, Mi-Na had always been surrounded by weapons, many of which
she learned to use quite well, even surpassing her father with the guan dao. However, her looks led the local boys to tease her and call her nothing
more than a girl, an image supported by her father who wanted her to settle
down and marry a suitor, preferably Hwang, whom Han-Myeong had personally
wanted to adopt into the family. Facing increasing incursions from Japanese
raiders, a coast guard was quickly formed and led by Lee Sun Shin, her
father's childhood friend, with Mi-Na desperate to join in the ranks; but
she was barred from joining on account of her gender. Overhearing rumors of Soul Edge, deemed the "Sword of Salvation", while eavesdropping on a
private conversation between her father and Hwang, she decided that if
she would not be able to prove herself in the coastal defense, she could
just as easily prove herself by finding the fabled sword for her country.
This prompted her to pack her belongings and run away from home, not knowing
that Hwang had already been sent out on his own official quest for the
weapon.
During her search, she did
meet up with Hwang, and upon receiving
news of an impending Japanese invasion of Korea, he cut his quest short
and returned home, dragging Mi-na home with him. Not long after her return,
Mi-Na ran away again. Her frustration with rigorous training, combined
with her father's eagerness to marry her to Hwang and a proposal from one
of her father's wealthy trainees, sent her over the edge and out the door. Mi-Na resumed her quest for the Soul Edge, but gained a valuable lesson
along the way. She heard of a female warrior named Ivy, who was also searching
for the Soul Edge. But upon meeting Ivy, she was told that Soul Edge was
inherently demonic and that Mi-Na would be better suited at home because
she was only a weak little girl. Quick to anger, she challenged Ivy to
a fight, but, overwhelmed and confused by Ivy's unusual snake sword, she
suffered a humiliating defeat. Questioning her own strength, Mi-Na met
a middle-aged, alcoholic man with a beaten bo staff who jeered her and
told her not to challenge people so hastily. But true to form, she attacked
him and never landed a single hit, as he caught her guan dao with his bare
hands. She asked if she could train under him, and he reluctantly agreed;
despite his chronic alcoholism, his ability with the bo staff taught her
much during her training. After a year of training, he mysteriously disappeared
while out to buy more alcohol, and her only trace of him was a goodbye
note telling her there was nothing more he could teach her, signed by a
one 'Kong Xiuqiang', who was, in reality, Xianghua's long-lost father and
an exiled student of the Ling-Sheng Su Temple. From this experience, Mi-Na
learned to never underestimate the strength of an opponent, and she continued
training for two years until she was ready to resume her quest for the
Soul Edge. Eventually, however, she was dragged home once again by Hwang.
Four years later, Mi-Na saw
a student of her father, Hong Yun-Seong,
angry after being rejected by Hwang when he challenged him to a battle.
She felt sorry for the brooding young man and handed him a Seong family
heirloom, the dao 'White Storm' that, according to legend, possessed the
ability to reflect the innermost thoughts of those who wielded the blade.
That night, Yun-seong had packed his belongings and run away from the dojo
in pursuit of Soul Edge, taking the dao with him. Since Mi-Na had lent
the heirloom to him, she felt obligated to retrieve it, and decided to
leave the dojang to find him. Seong Han-Myeong did not want her to go,
but he knew in his heart that if he protested, she would simply run away
again, and he gave her his blessing to retrieve the weapon. By the time
he considered that she would, in fact, try to seek and destroy the Soul
Edge on her journey, it was too late, and she was long gone.
Seong Mi-Na traveled throughout
Ming, continuing her search for Yun-Seung. In one city, she got involved
in a fight. After defeating a brawny man, one of the onlookers casually
remarked that her style largely resembled the fabled Ling-Sheng Su Style.
When she thought about it, the man who had taught her how to use her weapon
had never given a name for the style. This fighting art was a solid part
of her now, but she didn't know where it originated from. Mi-na became
interested and decided to visit this temple famous for its martial arts.
She went to the said temple
and found that it was destroyed a few years ago. However, she found out
that an old master of the said style was still alive. She decided to visit
the old man living in some mountains in the Himalayas. She arrived and
saw Edge Master, who was also
Kilik's
master. When she first challenged him to a fight, he refused. But in the
end, he agreed. Seong Mi-na suffered a total defeat. The old man then invited
her to stay with him to train. During breaks, she told him of stories of
her travels. He seemed vaguely interested, but he jumped at the information
that Mi-na was also looking for Soul Edge. He told her the sword was evil.
She did not believe him at first, but she knew that a man like him would
not lie. After a few months of training,
Mi-na made up her mind to go after Yun-seong again, to tell him that the
sword was evil. After saying goodbye to her new master, she thought that
next time, she would bring Yun-seong along. She concluded that it would
be so much fun.
  
 
 
 
 
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