Chapter 14
Hong Yeom looked up at the coniferous trees so thick they could block out the sky, his heart heavy with complicated feelings.
‘How did things come to this point?’
He shouldn’t have taken on the commission from Yongcheon Hall in the first place.
It felt like pain was rising from his lower abdomen for no reason.
Even now, the memory was vivid.
The sword that had pierced his belly and drank his blood.
And Sa Bigang, laughing like a ghost.
How could such a person be an instructor at Yongcheon Hall?
“What are you thinking about so deeply?”
“Huk!“
Hong Yeom was startled and spun around.
‘When did he…!’
He hadn’t sensed any presence at all.
Yet wasn’t he the most skilled person in Gwiyeong-bu after the Bureau Chief?
‘What kind of ghostly…!’
“What’s with that expression? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
“N-no, sir. What did you call me for?”
Hong Yeom asked respectfully.
The person before him was someone who had turned Gwiyeong-bu upside down in just one day.
There was nothing good about getting on his bad side.
Sa Bigang grinned and handed him a piece of paper.
“Find the person written there.”
“Ku U-jung…?”
“Well, it’s not his real name, but he should be using that name now.”
“Who is this person?”
“You don’t need to know that. Just find him.”
Hong Yeom looked dumbfounded.
“Even so, finding someone in the Central Plains with just three characters for a name is…”
“Here. I’ve written down places where he might be. If you focus on searching those locations, you’ll definitely find him.”
Sa Bigang pulled out another piece of paper and tossed it over.
Hong Yeom frowned as he scanned the regions written on the paper.
Then suddenly…
“Th-this place…!”
“Why? Do you know it?”
Sa Bigang asked, feigning ignorance.
Hong Yeom’s face turned pale as he shouted.
“Impossible! Absolutely not! You want me to go to these places! Aren’t these forbidden territories?”
“Hmm. Just so you know, every place written there is what you call a forbidden territory. Heh heh heh.“
Hong Yeom’s expression stiffened.
Soon he spoke as if shuddering.
“I can’t go! Absolutely not! Please give me a different task!”
“Right now, that’s the job you need to do.”
“Even so, this is…!”
“Hey.”
“Yes?”
Sa Bigang’s eyes had already turned coldly sunken.
“Find him.”
“B-but…”
“As you know, I’m aware of all the locations of Gwiyeong-bu’s headquarters and branches. I have a perfect grasp of even the cell organization structure.”
“……”
“The reason Gwiyeong-bu has survived this long despite being entangled in all sorts of grudges and relationships in the martial world is probably because it’s a thoroughly secret organization. One that’s hard to trace, like its name suggests. But what would happen if I opened my mouth? You bastards would become the first elimination target in the martial world, regardless of righteous or demonic factions. I wouldn’t even need to step forward myself. How about it? Want to try living a bit more of a troublesome life?”
“Th-that’s…”
“The reason I don’t do that is because you bastards have utility value. But if I judge that you have no such value, wiping out your entire lineage would be easier than eating cold porridge.”
Gulp.
Hong Yeom swallowed dry saliva.
He couldn’t move even a finger.
Sa Bigang’s gaze seemed to pierce through his entire body.
‘This person would definitely be capable of that and more. Gwiyeong-bu’s lineage really could be wiped out.’
He was so strong it was hard to handle, and like someone from the future, he knew every piece of information and plan about the organization in detail.
Tremendous pressure.
Sa Bigang spoke coldly.
“Find him.”
“I… understand.”
“Use any means necessary and find him as quickly as possible.”
“How quickly…”
“Seven days and nights.”
“That’s completely unreasonable…”
Hong Yeom was about to pour out words but shut his mouth when he met Sa Bigang’s chilling gaze.
Finally, he bowed his head.
It was a gesture of submission.
***
“Damn it! How long do we have to keep doing this crap?”
“I’m so annoyed I can’t stand it anymore.”
The students soaking in the valley continuously vented their complaints.
But Sa Bigang, perched on a large rock, was even humming while eating ice fish.
Yeon U-gyeong glanced between the grumbling students and Sa Bigang, then shifted his gaze to one side.
There, Yeom Ja-ryang was standing blankly in the valley water, just staring down at the water surface.
“That guy caused trouble, didn’t he?”
Gok Bo-ok had approached his side at some point and whispered.
Yeon U-gyeong nodded and said.
“He stole the instructor’s sword.”
“That one?”
Gok Bo-ok looked at the sword hanging at Sa Bigang’s waist with surprised eyes.
Since only rumors about some incident between Yeom Ja-ryang and Sa Bigang had been circulating, he didn’t know the detailed situation.
Gok Bo-ok giggled.
“That bastard’s pretty crazy too. To think he’d do something like that. Kek kek. So what happened… Huh? Where are you going?”
Instead of answering, Yeon U-gyeong silently moved his steps.
Meanwhile, Yeom Ja-ryang, who had been soaking in the valley, stood blankly as if his mind had been seized by something.
‘It’s different. Definitely.’
He slowly raised his hand and repeatedly clenched and unclenched his fist.
All his senses were different.
A feeling he’d been experiencing constantly since regaining consciousness.
It was like being reborn.
‘Is it really because of that?’
Yeom Ja-ryang recalled what Sa Bigang had said when he called him aside.
“From now on, don’t waste your talent on pointless things. I’ll forgive you once, but there won’t be a second time. And I’ve worked on your body to match that talent, so keep that in mind.”
At the time, he didn’t understand what it meant and just stood there dumbfounded.
When he pressed for an explanation, the only response he got was to get lost because it was annoying.
‘I left in anger then… Was this what he meant?’
Just then, he saw ice fish swimming below the water surface.
No, ‘felt’ would be a more accurate expression.
Yeom Ja-ryang submerged into the water.
‘Ice fish…’
He had tried several times on the first day.
But getting living ice fish into his hands without injuring them even slightly wasn’t an easy task.
In the end, he couldn’t catch even one.
But…
‘Somehow, if it’s now…!’
In an instant, Yeom Ja-ryang smoothly extended his hand.
A slippery sensation was transmitted to his palm.
When he lightly clenched his fist, an ice fish slipped right into his palm.
‘I caught it!’
“Puhak!“
When he came up to the surface and raised his hand, there really was an ice fish in his palm.
The creature fluttered and instantly escaped his palm.
‘I caught it! I really caught it!’
Somehow, it seemed like he could catch dozens in a day at this rate.
Just then.
“I heard the story. What a pity.”
When he turned around, Yeon U-gyeong was standing there with a meaningful smile.
Yeom Ja-ryang gave a bitter smile.
“Well, that’s how it turned out.”
“I never would have thought you were planning such a thing. Even though you failed, I was truly surprised.”
Yeom Ja-ryang just shrugged his shoulders without saying much.
Yeon U-gyeong grinned and said.
“Of course, I don’t think Brother Yeom would give up over just something like this. This incident was unfortunate, but I have high expectations for Brother Yeom.”
“Is that so…?”
“Of course. You had bad luck last time, but next time you’ll definitely be able to succeed.”
As Yeom Ja-ryang just gave a bitter smile, Yeon U-gyeong quickly continued.
“Actually, to tell the truth. What kind of class is this? He’s just using us students to catch ice fish for him to eat, isn’t he? If we meekly follow such a person as an instructor, surely in the future…”
“I’m done with it.”
At the sudden voice, Yeon U-gyeong slightly frowned.
“What… do you mean?”
“Taming the instructor. I’m giving up on it.”
“Why…?”
Yeom Ja-ryang’s gaze turned toward Sa Bigang.
It didn’t feel real that the person happily munching on ice fish was the same person who had given him that cold expression.
He chuckled and answered.
“Look at that. Do you think it’s even possible to tame such a person?”
“B-but if you don’t try properly…!”
“I already tried. I was thoroughly crushed though. All my expectations…”
“Even so, giving up now is…”
“It’s not giving up. It’s just… meaningless? Or perhaps… a bit childish?”
Childish…?
Yeon U-gyeong’s expression twisted sharply.
Did he dare call him childish?
Anger welled up, but Yeon U-gyeong deliberately replied calmly.
“I’m disappointed. I didn’t know Brother Yeom would back down so easily.”
“I didn’t know either. But… Instructor Sa is probably someone I’ll never understand. Not now, not ever.”
Yeon U-gyeong ground his teeth hard and spun around.
It was a waste of time to continue conversing with a defeated soldier.
Just as he was about to move.
“Brother Yeon should give up too. Perhaps Instructor Sa might be far beyond our imagination.”
Yeon U-gyeong turned around and smiled coldly.
“Heh heh. I’ll take note of that. However, I’m not the type to give up so easily. Just watch. You can look forward to it.”
“I’ll look forward to it.”
Yeom Ja-ryang answered with a grin.
He watched Yeon U-gyeong’s retreating figure while muttering to himself.
“Well, I’ll be looking forward to it in a slightly different sense.”
His gaze finally turned to Sa Bigang.
Sa Bigang was still smacking his lips while eating ice fish.
‘Ugh. Did I really see wrong?’
Yeom Ja-ryang’s head was complicated.
***
Uuuung.
Veritas cried out once again.
Sa Bigang furrowed his brow and drew Veritas.
Seureuruuk.
The blue blade gleamed as it caught the light.
A murderous aura that seemed like blood would drip just from touching the flesh.
If it were an ordinary person, their legs would go weak just from watching.
Uuuung! Uung uung!
The trembling became a bit more intense.
‘Damn it. Be quiet!’
He gripped the handle and infused it with mana.
Beu beu beu beu beu!
At that moment, Veritas shook violently.
As if it couldn’t be suppressed by force.
Sa Bigang felt the mana he had infused into Veritas being repelled back.
“Keuk.“
As expected, Veritas wasn’t an ordinary sword.
A sword that had followed the Demon King.
It couldn’t be easily suppressed.
“Fine, let’s see if you win or I win!”
Furious, Sa Bigang ground his teeth and gripped Veritas’s handle tightly with both hands.
Deu deu deu deu deu!
Veritas thrashed as if struggling.
The blade gradually heated to a red glow.
Cold sweat also streamed down Sa Bigang’s forehead.
How long did they struggle like that?
Kwaang!
Like a dam bursting and collapsing, something that had been resisting the mana disappeared, and the energy Sa Bigang had unleashed flowed into Veritas in streams.
The blade also returned to its blue color.
“Huu, huu, huu.“
Sa Bigang took deep breaths and wiped the sweat flowing down his forehead.
‘This should keep it quiet for a while.’
But it was only a temporary measure.
In a few days, the thing would struggle again.
“Do I really need that?”
Sa Bigang narrowed his eyes and muttered to himself.
***
Dark night.
Sa Bigang’s quarters.
A pitch-black shadow seeped into the room.
It was a considerably skillful stealth technique.
The appearance of completely concealing presence and melting into the darkness was completely different from Yeom Ja-ryang a few days ago.
The masked figure moved ghostly and smoothly, instantly approaching beside the bed.
Sa Bigang was sleeping soundly, oblivious to the world.
‘Heh heh. Sleeping well.’
The masked figure, Yeo Un-jin, looked at Sa Bigang and slowly extended his hand.
He just needed to touch a point on the forehead.
After that, it didn’t matter if he woke up. No, he had to wake him up.
Only then would Sa Bigang, feeling threatened, use demonic arts.
He just needed to threaten enough to make the opponent use demonic arts.
There was no need to actually assassinate.
If the opponent just used demonic arts, then it would be fine to kill him.
If only that happened, he would become a hero of Yongcheon Hall.
The great person who struck down an evil demon!
Yeo Un-jin was confident that Sa Bigang had learned demonic arts.
That’s why there was no hesitation.
‘Heh heh heh. You’re finished now!’
Just as his finger was about to touch Sa Bigang’s forehead, Sa Bigang, who had been sleeping soundly, suddenly opened his eyes wide.
“Huk!“
The moment he reflexively tried to retreat.
Tak.
Sa Bigang caught his wrist.
“You’re working hard even at this late hour.”
An ice-cold voice.
“Iik!“
As Yeo Un-jin concentrated power in his hand and tried to pull his arm free.
Pa bat!
“Eot?“
Sa Bigang’s body disappeared without a trace before his eyes.
‘What is this…?’
He made an expression as if possessed by a ghost.
“Do you have business with me?”
A chilling voice heard by his ear.
Sa Bigang, who had somehow appeared behind him, thrust out his palm.
Yeo Un-jin was startled and twisted his body, but the situation was already too late.
Kwa ji jik! Peo eong!
A blue orb exploded on his chest with a blast.
“Keu aa ak!“
Yeo Un-jin, who was sent flying, rolled on the floor for quite a while.
Yeo Un-jin trembled as he got up.
‘Th-that bastard! No doubt about it! This is the first time I’ve seen such unheard of martial arts! It’s demonic arts! It really is demonic arts! This son of a bitch! He really did learn demonic arts!’
Meanwhile, Sa Bigang approached with heavy steps.
“I asked you. Do you have business with me?”
