3
8
5.
– Tto-ok
A garden where only the sound of falling blood drops can be heard.
As if the golden radiance that had illuminated the surroundings like broad daylight were a lie, the surroundings were engulfed in deep darkness as even the moonlight vanished.
Splash.
I wondered what could live in a pond full of nothing but moss, but a goldfish peeked its head out to check on the intruder before diving back into the water.
I let out a small breath in the suffocating silence and looked at the two legs of the radiation source.
Two broken legs that I cut off with my own hands to come closer to me.
Looking at these traces of them, I feel that my perception of the enemy becomes even more ambiguous.
Martial arts are a tool for the basic will to live.
Just like more money and greater power, stronger martial arts extend life.
It can be said that the stronger a person is, the stronger their will to live.
However, they are different.
To them, greater power and inner strength are merely tools for something else, not for their own lives.
They also use their own lives like mere firewood that burns up and disappears.
As if it were a matter of course.
“Phew.”
He let out a long sigh and shot at the ocean to dig a small pit.
Then the radiation source (that used to be)
I put all traces of it into the pit.
I roughly erased the traces and looked around.
One intact bottle remained among the broken ones.
I shook it and found there was quite a bit of alcohol left.
You shouldn’t drink if you are preparing for the guy who might show up, though.
“……
“After all that bullshit, do you think they’ll come?”
Thoughts were short, actions were quick.
I felt so awful that I wanted to clean my head somehow.
“Ugh.”
The alcohol is quite bitter.
It was a potent drug that had absolutely no scent and was used solely for the purpose of getting drunk.
I don’t know if he didn’t have money or if Bang Sa-won originally enjoyed drinking hard liquor, but he never drank hard liquor like this even during his time with Sojeongdae.
“…….”
I hesitated whether to throw it away or not, then soon poured it back into my mouth.
And I cursed at the ghost Oma guy who had imitated Bangsawon as a side dish.
“You couldn’t have kept your wits about you drinking such strong liquor. You fucking idiot.”
The death of Jegal Somyeong is three days away.
And we have only caught two of the Ghost Omas so far.
How will they appear in this life without Jegeumhak?
I tried to think of someone among the Seven Horsemen to replace Jegeumhak, but no one came to mind.
The reason Je Geum-hak was able to step forward to kill Je Gal So-myeong was.
This is because the unique magic of the demon was not outwardly manifested.
Other demon lords who are bound to reveal their demonic energy, whether directly or indirectly, will not be able to kill Jegal Somyeong by infiltrating like Je Geum-hak.
Then, that means the assassination is being carried out solely by Ghost Oma…
With two of them dead, can the assassination succeed with only the remaining three?
Or should I eventually give up and go back?
I gazed at the pile of earth that had turned an exceptionally dark color due to the blood.
I leaned on a small hope, but soon shook my head.
There is no way those tenacious ones would give up their mission over a trial of just this much.
On the contrary, they will likely try to devise an even more vicious method.
In that case, what I need to do is clear.
Moving even a moment faster is the only way to prevent Zhuge Xiaoming’s death.
Just as I was about to break the silence and stand up from my seat.
Hesitant.
My hair stood on end as I turned my gaze toward the front door.
squeak
-“……!”
I feel an energy that I shouldn’t feel.
That energy I felt at Mukrim recently.
I feel like I can’t breathe at that terribly uncomfortable atmosphere.
Thump, thump, thump.
A figure slowly approaching while deliberately making footsteps, even though they could have concealed them.
I look around the crumbling garden here and there as if taking a walk.
A moment later, as the moon, which had been hidden behind the clouds, peeked out, the masked man revealed himself in the light.
The masked man, who had been looking around, saw my face and smirked.
“Weren’t you waiting for me?”
If one were to name the first principle of assassination, it would be none other than secrecy.
Carrying out an operation without anyone noticing and leaving the scene before everyone knows.
That is why I was certain that if I sensed the battle at the Transcendence Manor, the remaining Ghost Oma wouldn’t come.
To shake his psychology, I asked a question that even the two guys before me were helplessly shocked by.
“This is the first time I’ve seen Ghost Oma speak.”
He tightened his grip on the sword hilt and raised the Baekwol Jecheon Samsik, intending to cut him down while he wavered briefly.
but.
He didn’t show even an inch of weakness.
No, he said nonchalantly, as if he already knew.
So you really knew us.
“……!”
“Maneuver said so. That you would know of our existence.”
Why is the topic of the brain suddenly coming up?
Moreover, to think he knew that I knew.
“Killing Iryeong… no, even Bang Sa-won was quite unexpected, though.”
As I remained silent, a question came flying from him.
“Is he a bastard of the Bima breed? Or is he just a runaway?”
I was about to curse, but I kept my mouth shut.
“I heard you played a pivotal role in destroying the Blood Demon Sect. If so, are you indeed a descendant of the Flying Demon Sect?”
I don’t know what happened, but it seemed like both the man in front of me and Manoe were mistaken about me.
I think that beast bastard Leng Yuhuan from the other day said something similar…
I tried my best to block the information, but as expected, it seems it somehow leaked into the Demonic Cult.
In that case, would it really be a good idea to let them know that I am a Baekdoin who is more hostile to them than anyone else?
Or the other way around.
Would it be better to confuse them while extracting information at the same time?
The judgment was made quickly.
“Why is that important now?”
I decided to make the most of his suspicion.
“It seems to be right. Is it really true that you are a descendant of the extinct Bima clan?”
Of all people to misunderstand, to think it has to be a descendant of the ruined Majong.
“I’m sure I told you. Why is that important?”
Srrrr.
He drew the Red Light Sword and amplified his killing intent.
A sinister scream of unknown origin wafts out.
In the manor area where silence has descended, only the red light flowing from the Red Light Sword ominously illuminates the surroundings.
However, the guy leisurely stroked his chin without the slightest hint of embarrassment.
“Have you been living in hiding as a disciple of Baekdo all this time? And you stepped forward for revenge now that the Shingyo has appeared?”
I was thinking about how to answer, but I decided to keep it simple.
It seems that both the Bima Sect and the Taeeul Sect were destroyed by the Demonic Cult, so it’s all the same.
“I’m so sick and tired of those Mine bastards. I feel like burning them all down.”
“Hmm… Is that so? Aren’t you thinking about the descendants of the Bima clan who are still remaining?”
“What’s that sound?”
“I am not well aware of the situation within the sect. It has already been one hundred and fifty years since the Bima Sect has barely managed to survive.”
The man stares into my eyes indifferently.
“Ma-noe said that now that the betrayal by the Blood Demon Sect has been dealt with, he will revive the Flying Demon Sect once again.”
Judging from the man’s remarks, it seemed that the Bima Clan had been annihilated by the Hyeolma Clan for some reason.
They seemed to think I was a descendant of the escaped Bima clan.
Since the Blood Cult is a descendant of the Blood Demon Sect, the pieces of the story fit together roughly.
I said with a deliberate smirk.
“How can you tell me to trust those who betrayed me once again?”
The man tilted his head.
“That’s strange. Have you forgotten that resistance to the Protestant religion leads nowhere but death?”
I don’t quite understand what he’s saying. How on earth does he intend to revive the extinct Demon Sect?
“What do you mean by saying you can turn things around now?”
Perhaps everything lost and more.
I dug deeper, hoping to find out about future information I didn’t know about, but no new information emerged.
The man looked me up and down with meaningful eyes.
Do you have any intention of returning to the church?
I thought I had sufficiently dispelled his doubts, so I asked what I really wanted to know.
“In that case… should I just follow along like this?”
“hmm…….”
Or, do you need help with this mission?
“Do you know what the mission is?”
I remember it exactly.
Because the name of the operation Je Geum-hak named in his previous life was ‘Turtle Hunt’.
Let me tell you.
“Hahaha!”
The man suddenly burst into maniacal laughter.
What’s with the sudden…
His sudden behavior caused my brow to furrow deeply.
“Ah, I’m sorry. It’s truly amazing and miraculous. Lord Manoe, truly…”
He lightly touched the corner of his eye as if he had laughed so hard that he even shed tears.
And he murmured in a voice that was very cold, unlike before.
“The Demon Lord said. When you make an offer, if they say they will help and then ask about the mission….”
The guy’s eyes flash like a madman.
“Kill him.”
It was a voice colder than ice.
As I remained silent, he let out a sneer.
“Isn’t it truly amazing? Descendant of the fallen Bima.”
With him as a signal.
Chak
– Chak
Dark figures began to descend throughout the manor.
I didn’t know what was going on, but I suddenly became worried about Dang Seo-hui, who had been sent to Jegal So-myeong’s side.
“I wondered if I had driven an innocent person to their death while trying to change history. ‘Of course, excluding that bastard Yong So-ah.’ I flicked my finger at the masked man.”
“If we’re going to do it, let’s do it quickly. There is someone I’m worried about.” #The Chief Military Officer’s quarters are located near Mantongbu.
It wasn’t a grand building, but since we are in a department that works overtime so often, we needed a space to catch even a quick nap.
The commander-in-chief intended to use the sleeping quarters used by the scholars of the Murim Alliance.
“Ah, no… No, it is too shabby for the Commander-in-Chief to use.”
“Haha……. You’re sure! You’ll be uncomfortable…….”
It was actually the scholars who were shocked.
I already had an uncomfortable day working face-to-face with my superiors, so I couldn’t possibly serve the ultimate boss, the General Staff, even during my brief nap.
The scholars united in planning a small pavilion for the sleeping of the entire army, and after working faster than ever before, a small pavilion with a pond was built near Mantongbu.
And in front of the pond, Yongso-ah was staring blankly at the pavilion.
A tenacious struggle was taking place inside the pavilion.
“What on earth are you doing! Get out of here right now!”
Zhuge Xiaoming, who rarely raised his voice for trivial matters, let out a sudden yell.
However, the opponent, whose shadow was even small in the flickering candlelight, did not back down and shouted boldly.
My grandfather used to tell me to imitate every single move of those who are good at it…
yo. this.”
“I need to beat that damn old Poison King!”
Total military……
You just have to do what you usually do…
Yong So-ah tilted her head at the sight of Jegal So-myeong’s shadow trembling in the candlelight. ‘Is it because of the wind? That shouldn’t be the case.’ Then, the door burst open, and a small figure clad in a turquoise robe was tossed out of the pavilion… no, flew in.
The figure, which was about to fall precariously to the ground, adjusted its posture with a strange movement in mid-air and landed on the floor as if sliding.
The lesser of two evils
Soon, a shout was heard from the palace.
“If you come in here one more time, I’ll make sure you never set foot in the Mantongbu again, so keep that in mind!!”
bang!
A door closing firmly, as if about to break.
Dang Seo-hui, having demonstrated a perfect landing, looked dejectedly at the darkened pavilion.
“Hmm… If I continue like this, I cannot become a true chivalrous hero…”
Yong So-ah, who had been watching the whole process intently, opened her mouth.
“Why are they doing this? The military is not a game.”
Dang Seo-hui looks up at him at Yong So-ah’s question.
Then, he quickly turned his head and approached the pond, squatting down.
Dang Seo-hui, with pouting cheeks, picks up a small twig and swirls it around in the pond.
After a moment of silence, she quietly asks.
“Then why did Yongso-ah come here?”
Although the counter-question might have been unpleasant, Yong So-ah answered obediently.
He is uncertainty. His impulsive plans are a source of anxiety for the future.
The crucian carp tangle around Dang Seo-hui’s strange hand movements. Climbing a thin branch, a crucian carp came out of the water and gaped with a foolish expression.
Yong So-ah, who was watching the scene, lightly snapped her fingers.
Then, the goldfish that had been frolicking on the tree branch stumbled and fell.
with a splash
The goldfish goes back into the pond.
Dang Seo-hui glared at Yong So-ah.
However, Yong So-ah replied with an indifferent look and voice.
“Even lowly creatures are living things. It is not right to torment them.”
Dang Seo-hui, still crouching and gazing at the pond.
A question filled with transparent bewilderment flies in from behind her small back.
“Why are you doing something so pointless?”
Useless thing to do.
Dang Seo-hui tightened her grip on the tree branch.
I admit that Junior Jin is an uncertainty.
She didn’t give up and stirred the pond again.
“But Junior Jin’s plans always produced the best results I never imagined.”
Eventually, Dang Seo-hui’s hand stops, and her frail yet firm voice follows.
Uncertainty breeds imperfection.
Dang Seo-hui stared up at Yong So-ah.
Are you sure?
Yong So-ah did not avoid the gaze directed straight at her.
I am not uncertain.
“Was it certain in Maryeong Plateau, Jeongsi, and Mukrim as well?”
Certain… certainty, certainty.
At Dang Seo-hui’s words, Yong So-ah stared at her silently before speaking.
Those moments were not ‘uncertain’ either.
“I admit it. But it is a fact that Jin So-un came up with a better answer.”
Dang Seo-hui, who had been stirring the pond, this time grabbed a fist-sized pebble and began bouncing it with a tree branch.
Then, when she struck the stone floating in the air with a thud, countless cracks instantly appeared on the pebble and it transformed into small grains, which landed right in Dang Seo-hui’s hand.
Clatter clatter.
Dang Seo-hee rolls the pieces in her hand like a child who has found a toy and smiles gently.
“And…… hanging out with Jin is fun, too.”
“Is it just for fun?”
Dang Seo-hui shook her head.
“I don’t think what Junior Jin is doing is all that useless…….”
Dang Seo-hui, who had been speaking, suddenly turned her gaze toward the darkness on one side.
Then, Yong So-ah also turned her gaze to where Dang Seo-hee was looking.
Yong So-ah felt what Dang Seo-hui felt.
It is a rare, dirty energy.
The pebbles playing in Dang Seo-hui’s hands grew smaller and smaller.
To think they came all the way here… they are dangerous guys.
I admit it.
“Are you admitting that Junior Jin was right, too?”
In the midst of the crisis, Dang Seo-hui looked at Yong So-ah, but he did not turn his head.
At the dirty and sinister aura, Dang Seo-hui straightened her body and composed herself.
And yet, not forgetting to casually throw in a remark
– spat it out.
That’s cowardly, unlike Yong So-ah.
Yong So-ah still remained silent.
