Not the Nose Bridge, But the Crossguard (3)
The stench hit like a hammer.
“...They’ve already been through here.”
“How did the Wako push this far inland…?”
“Hurry and gather the bodies! Put out the fires!”
“Report the moment you find any trace of them!”
A village in flames.
The reek of fish, the thick copper of blood, and the acrid bite of smoke curling from burning homes. The smell was so foul it made a person want to stop breathing altogether.
The once-peaceful settlement had been swallowed by fire until its original shape was almost unrecognizable. After two years on the battlefield, the sight was familiar to me, but never a welcome one.
At least half the villagers were dead. A horrific tragedy, yet my heart remained strangely calm. No matter how hellish a scene becomes, see it often enough and it loses its power to shock. It becomes just another landscape.
I watched from the village entrance for a long moment, then began walking slowly forward.
After some time, I spotted the martial artists of the Hainan Sect moving frantically—searching for survivors, carrying bodies one by one to a clearing in the center of the village.
I stood there dazed for a while before approaching the gathered corpses and crouching down. I wanted to examine the wounds left by the Wako.
I ran my fingers along the clean cut on a man’s body, his face still twisted in agony. The blood had already coagulated and no longer stuck to my hand. A little oil seeped out, though.
“Cut clean through the bone in a single stroke.”
A single stroke.
Too skillful for mere Wako. Killing a person with such neat precision was no easy feat. The fact that some bodies had been sliced completely in half made it even clearer—this was no ordinary handiwork.
Even in a world with aura and martial arts, cutting a human being this cleanly required genuine mastery. An unskilled fighter using aura would never produce cuts this precise. It depended on the sword, the style, and the practitioner’s realm, but by Western standards these strikes belonged to a veteran on the cusp of true excellence.
In Central Plains terms, that meant at least first-class.
Since this event hadn’t appeared in the original story, I had no information to work with. But it was becoming clear this wasn’t a simple pirate raid. Most Wako and sea raiders were desperate men who plundered to survive. The presence of veteran-level swordsmanship among them was suspicious.
Of course, there was always the slim chance that some Wako genius had been born with heavenly talent. But that was nearly impossible. Rising to first-class in their harsh environment would be a miracle in itself.
It seemed far more likely that a skilled swordsman had thrown in with the pirates.
I decided to report it to the Hainan Sect immediately.
I approached one of the disciples carrying bodies and asked for the sect leader’s location. The nameless young man stared at me awkwardly for a moment, then belatedly realized I had spoken in the Central Plains tongue and gave me directions.
West side of the village.
I walked past disciples hauling water to fight the flames and approached the sect leader. He stood gazing down at the bodies, eyes closed for some reason.
When I drew near, he looked up with a puzzled expression.
“What is it?”
“Have you examined the bodies, sir?”
“I have. It appears a highly skilled swordsman has joined the Wako. The survivors say the raiders burned the village in moments and withdrew… This attack feels different. More dangerous.”
So he had already noticed.
I watched the sect leader take several deep breaths, clearly trying to calm the rage building inside him.
“Young man, from the look of things, I doubt you’ll find your companions.”
“I’m aware.”
They had hunted every last one with relentless persistence. These were not men who took prisoners. Still, I couldn’t simply turn back.
“You should return.”
“When I served in the military, my commander—the man I called Master—once told me something.”
The sect leader stared at me in silence. His eyes held a mixture of concern and curiosity.
I met his gaze and spoke clearly.
“Respect and protect the weak. Never turn your back on injustice.”
I was no longer a knight.
But that was no reason to abandon chivalry.
A small smile touched the sect leader’s lips.
“You had an excellent master.”
The Wako had always been a persistent thorn in Hainan Island’s side. They appeared whenever people let down their guard, plundered everything in sight, and left the land soaked in blood.
The Hainan Sect had been formed by martial artists who gathered to avenge those victims. As a result, its disciples hated the Wako more than anyone else. Many of them had lost family members to the pirates.
“Filthy bastards…”
Lim Ha-jin, First Senior Disciple of the Hainan Sect and leader of the vanguard, stared down at what had once been a child—now sprawled like a discarded toy—and spat the words through gritted teeth. The others ground their teeth in shared fury.
“It looks like they toyed with the child before killing it.”
“How can any human do such a thing?”
“Even the demonic cult wouldn’t commit such cruelty against children.”
“...Woo-yeong, Gang-seo. You two, take care of the child’s remains. We cannot leave it like this.”
“Yes, Senior Brother.”
In their hearts they all wanted to carry the small body back to the village together, but they carried a critical mission to pursue the Wako. There was no time for such things.
“The rest of us will resume the chase at once.”
The vanguard moved past the child’s pitiful corpse and headed west through the dense forest that offered excellent cover. According to the sea watcher’s disciple, the enemy had anchored somewhere along the western shore.
They struck at the weakest point in our defenses. Is there a traitor among us?
Since the Wako normally came from the east, their attack routes usually began from the eastern coast, occasionally swinging south or north. Coming all the way around to the west was an enormous detour.
Even for pirates who crossed nearly ten thousand li of ocean, adding several hundred more li could hardly be welcome. To reach the western anchorage they would have had to circle wide around Hainan’s entire surveillance network.
This is no time for speculation. Action is required. Pull yourself together, Lim Ha-jin!
He scolded himself and quickened his pace. If the Wako who had penetrated so deeply managed to escape through the port, it would be a disaster. They had to strike while the enemy was still ashore.
“Halt.”
“The port as well…”
“They’ve set up tents at the harbor…”
“The Wako?”
They always struck fast and withdrew. Why are they camping?
No matter how strong the Wako might be, they were still outnumbered and outmatched by the Hainan Sect. Normally they should be frantically preparing to sail away by now. Setting up camp instead made no sense.
“First Senior Disciple, their numbers seem smaller than expected.”
“You’re right.”
“Could some of them have gone to attack another village…?”
“...Mu-jin, return to the sect leader at once and deliver this information. We cannot handle Wako scattered across such a wide area by ourselves.”
“Understood.”
Mu-jin, one of the vanguard, answered quietly and immediately turned, launching himself toward the village with light footwork.
“What should we do now, First Senior Disciple?”
“There must be a reason they’ve made camp. We will not attack immediately. First we discover why they stopped here. And when they are sound asleep…”
Instead of finishing the sentence, Lim Ha-jin drew a finger across his throat. No further explanation was needed. Everyone nodded silently.
“We’ll split into two groups. Then—”
That was when it hit him.
A bone-chilling sensation crawled across his skin, as if a blade rested against his throat. Lim Ha-jin drew his sword in a flash.
Dozens of blades answered, filling the air with cold, ringing steel.
“Who goes there!”
“Rats from Hainan Island, I see.”
That thick stench of blood… This man is undoubtedly a professional killer.
How many lives had he taken for such a heavy aura of death to cling to him?
Lim Ha-jin glared at the newcomer, face tight with tension. The man’s presence alone made it clear he was no easy opponent.
“Who are you?”
“Me? Hm… Just a passing mercenary, let’s say.”
A man wearing strange armor never seen in the Central Plains. The warrior clad in what the eastern islands called tosei gusoku rolled his eyes lazily toward Lim Ha-jin.
He cannot be alone.
No matter how powerful a master, facing dozens of first-class martial artists alone was reckless. The fact that he revealed himself anyway meant—
“Everyone, stay alert! Watch the surroundings!”
“Oh, I really don’t like quick-witted ones.”
The armored swordsman let out a cold laugh and raised his right arm. At once, the forest came alive with hidden presences.
The movements were far too disciplined to belong to ordinary Wako.
This is bad. I should have been more cautious.
To be ambushed on their own island was humiliating. Even as he cursed his mistake, Lim Ha-jin did not forget his duty.
“All personnel, retreat inland immediately!”
“Extra shares for anyone who takes an enemy head!”
In that instant, the roles of hunter and prey reversed completely.