The Forgotten (2)
“Impossible.”
I glared at the manager and the messenger with a face as rigid as stone and spoke in a tone that brooked no argument.
The messenger let out a long, weary sigh. The sound echoed through the room like a hollow bell.
“…I hope you have a compelling reason for this.”
His eyes, cold as winter ice, fixed on me.
“When we flee, our numbers shrink. It aids the soldiers’ morale and recovery. In the long run, it weakens the demon realm and allows us to sell antidotes to the humans later. To give up all of that and save these wild beasts—that is the meaning behind the General’s words. I beg you to have a valid reason for it.”
“Because…”
I drew in a breath and let the reason form in my mind.
Why.
Why would I want to save demons who are not even of my own race?
Why.
Why me!
In front of me, the young man who had been betrothed flickered past like a shadow.
Then the figure of the chess master I had shared long games with drifted across my vision.
All the demons I had lived among under the General’s rule since those years flashed before me.
Carrying every memory of those years etched into my mind, shoulders heavy with those bonds, I looked the human straight in the eyes and answered.
“That is the right thing to do.”
The messenger’s face twisted in disbelief.
“…You mean that right now? Sacrificing every soldier, every life that could have been saved with those precious resources—this is what you call goodness? Isn’t it true goodness to move and save them?”
“That is your idea of goodness.”
“It is the goodness of the Human Race Alliance.”
“Does the Human Race Alliance truly represent humanity?”
“Of course.”
“It seems I cannot fulfill that role.”
“The General sounds like he would betray humanity itself. Betrayal is evil, is it not?”
“Listen,” I said, eyes narrowing. “Whether human or demon, whether good or evil—I am not about to say such things.”
“Humans or demons, their goodness is not mine, and their lives are not my lives.”
I felt as though I had lost far too many important memories.
But…
There was one thing I still remembered clearly.
I wanted to live a proper life.
A life where time did not slip away because of regression, where all my bonds and years remained intact.
And for that moment, I would live my best no matter when or where that moment arrived.
“What I am telling you now as my goodness is the best I can offer for my own life.”
I would not resort to flimsy logic.
My goodness might be insignificant compared to the Alliance’s grand cause for humanity, or perhaps it was merely arrogant and self-serving.
Maybe it was hollow and hypocritical.
Maybe it was the stupid ramblings of a fool with no logic at all.
Still…
“This is the way I live. I will not force my way of living upon you, so you should not force your way upon me.”
“You don’t realize that clinging to your own position is a form of force, do you?”
“…Get out.”
Uwooong!
I pulled the General’s strength from the shadows around me and declared.
“In this occupied territory, the most important thing is Gongryeong-ji. Only seven demon tribes remain. Compared to the other occupied lands, there are far fewer demons here. How many antidotes will we get if we slaughter them all? You six are to return to the Gwanghan Realm. As for the remaining humans, they will flee with every effort we can muster.”
“…I will report as such to the Alliance.”
The two of them left the room.
I lay down for a moment to catch my breath, then sank into my seat.
I was exhausted.
* * *
By the General’s order, the expulsion of every living demon in this region was proclaimed![/LTGT]
The eighth human-demon occupation zone.
Puppets swarmed like flies, driving the demons out of their homes.
The demons resisted even as they wondered why they were being uprooted from the land they had known all their lives.
But every puppet was at least Core Formation level, and the demons had no means of fighting back.
And in the General’s residence…
There, I stared at the ceiling with a deep sigh.
‘The Counter-Extermination Heavenly Void Formation…’
I had managed to block the complete conversion of the demons into antidotes.
It had been touch-and-go, but there had still been room for compromise.
But if I refused to install the formation itself, I would truly become the human race’s traitor.
And the Gate of Heaven-Cutting and World-Breaking would be marked as a sect that raised traitors, drawing fire to itself.
As a man, I was cowardly, but I could not stop the installation of the formation.
So there was only one answer.
‘Relocate the demons living nearby as far as possible… into the distant unknown…’
The power of the Counter-Extermination Heavenly Void Formation would sweep away everything within five hundred li and unleash space storms that could cause countless casualties, it was said.
“…Yeon-sa.”
I called out to Gyeon Shin, who had been brought here to the General’s residence.
[What is it, my lord?]
His tentacles twitched.
“The humans of the General’s residence have all been sent back to the Gwanghan Realm. With no one watching, let me tell you… I wish to entrust you with the command of the seven tribes. Send them fleeing.”
[Fleeing…?]
“Yes. The humans will soon begin a large-scale slaughter.”
I could not speak directly of the formation.
But I decided to pass on an indirect warning.
“So, lead the demons as far away from the human occupation zone as possible. At least ten thousand li, and preferably more.”
[…Are you about to use a powerful weapon from the human side? Only the highest Integration Grand Completion level could attack in such a unit.]
He asked, tentacles writhing.
[Even if you tell me, I will pass the information to the Demon Alliance when I meet them.]
“…If you say that, freeing me as a messenger will become difficult.”
[It’s because I am Seokyeong. I am speaking honestly. I have no desire to betray the demon realm, nor any wish to lie to Seokyeong.]
“…Admirable. But…”
I looked at him and said.
“For the time being, you will only need to run. Again, ten thousand li. That is the minimum, and it might even need to be several times that. So…”
Uwooong!
I unfolded the Jeomuldo and pulled out several puppets beside me.
All of them were the remaining Heavenly Person level puppets, not given to Yeon-jin.
“Order the puppets. Lead the demons as far away as possible. Use your spiritual sense to guide and pacify the tribes.”
[Understood.]
Thud!
A while later, Gyeon Shin clung to the head of a Heavenly Person puppet and stepped out into the open.
He would suppress the demons’ minds and drag them out forcibly.
‘I have already sent most of the remaining humans and the demons who were soon to die outside the occupation zone.’
Soon, I too would be able to flee.
“….”
‘Is this truly the best?’
I could not know whether what I had done was the best or not.
Had I done well?
Was there no better way?
I thought for a while, then finally made my decision.
I wrote a letter.
Then I told the letter to Seokyeong, who had guarded me all this time, and infused it with my consciousness to input the command.
“…You should be able to deliver it, right? Pass it to him.”
I decided to send the letter through Seokyeong.
And Seokyeong became a streak of light and flew far away.
His speed would reach the destination in a few months and deliver the message.
‘…That is everything I can do.’
What remained was for Gyeon Shin to lead the demon crowd out of the eighth occupation zone.
Through the senses of the Heavenly Person puppets clinging to Gyeon Shin, I traced exactly where he was.
‘We have almost left the occupation zone. Then I can…’
At that moment.
Uuuuwoong!
“…!”
A majestic aura enveloped the entire occupation zone and covered it completely!
Startled by the energy, I rushed outside and looked up at the sky.
“What… is this…!?”
Kugugugug!
Barrier!
The sky was already covered by a barrier!
The entire eighth occupation zone was wrapped in dazzling light, transformed into a formation that spewed out seven-colored light!
‘That must be…’
I searched for the core of the formation.
The core was the Gwanghan Oak that had been driven into the demonic veins of the eighth occupation zone.
The seven demonic veins in the occupation zone!
Seven Gwanghan Oaks had been planted there and woven into a seven-sided barrier.
And above the barrier, a face slowly began to emerge.
‘That… is the messenger!?’
No, not that.
I rolled my head and thought.
“You… were not a simple messenger.”
Kugugugug!
The enormous face above the formation slowly opened its eyes.
[You have a sharp mind….]
“It’s obvious you came here to punish me, but even a Core Formation level messenger would not have the authority to activate such an enormous formation…”
[Correct. I am the Integration Grand Completion level Tae-jin, named Wi-ryeong-seon, of the Human Race Alliance. All messengers dispatched to the occupied zones and the Alliance’s total leaders sent to each human heavenly void are my own clones that I have painstakingly created.]
“…!”
[The task of monitoring the entire human race from the Alliance is mine. But what of you, Eighth Occupation Zone Temporary General Seo Eun-hyun? You have abandoned the sacred duties given to you and what are you doing now? What was told to you through the messenger—I personally heard it from the Alliance and passed it on to you. It is one thing to waste the precious resources, but are you trying to drive those people out of here? Are you leaking the secrets and tactics of our occupied zone to the enemy that might come to save you?]
Uuuuwoong!
Chiiing!
The messenger’s voice pierced my head, making my mind spin and my thoughts hard to gather.
At the same time, a deep desire to obey and follow his words welled up in me.
Was that not the truth?
Wasn’t that the real truth?
“…Puppet….”
But I forced the existence of the Integration Grand Completion Tae-jin to the limit and poured every ounce of strength into my words.
“I… delayed… the time when the demons would join the demon army… after the heavenly void formation was activated…!”
Kuddeuk!
“There is no risk of information leaking…”
Kwoong!
I shattered the pressure with my spiritual sense and stared into his eyes.
“I would like to ask you something instead. You have the strength to kill even a weak Core Formation practitioner, yet you lacked the strength to protect the Noryeong-do from the True Immortal’s attack…? They say an Integration Grand Completion practitioner was fatally wounded or died while trying to see the fragment of the True Immortal realm, and the reason for such stupidity—may I ask, Tae-jin?”
For a moment, the void fell silent.
Then Wi-ryeong-seon opened his mouth again.
[I spread the formation latent in the Gwanghan Oak to trap you and the demons together. I cannot know whether your words are true or false… This formation not only traps you, but also transmits my will to you. You will be captured the moment the formation master and the Alliance’s inspector arrive.]
“Haha… I see. So all it can do is trap.”
I looked in the direction of the Gwanghan Oak.
But sensing my intent, Wi-ryeong-seon said with a mocking tone.
[Trying to destroy or uproot the core Gwanghan Oak? Unfortunately, the moment the formation activates, touching the Gwanghan Oak will only make the formation stronger. The power of the Oak will surge even more, and the formation will become so powerful that even an Integration Grand Completion practitioner will be unable to move for a short time.]
“…For trapping just one Core Formation practitioner, that is enormous.”
[It is not just a Core Formation. I have observed you closely through the messenger’s eyes. Your total power is estimated at the Four Pillars level.]
“….”
I remained silent for a moment.
Then I lifted my head and asked again.
“Why were the Integration Grand Completion Tae-jin fatally wounded by the True Immortal?”
[That is obvious. The True Immortal attacked the human heavenly void, so we had to protect it….]
“You are lying.”
I said, eyes wide.
“I know the distance from the heavenly void to the Heavenly Do where the Integration Grand Completion practitioners are is considerable. Those who did not care about what happened at each heavenly void would suddenly be panicking because a True Immortal had descended.”
I glared at him.
“You had some scheme, didn’t you?”
I could see it.
When I mentioned the True Immortal, greed stirred in Wi-ryeong-seon’s consciousness.
Greed.
And regret, sorrow, shame—all colors appeared on his face.
‘The Integration Grand Completion practitioners wanted something from this True Immortal. Not to stop the True Immortal for the sake of the heavenly void. They wanted something from the True Immortal, but the True Immortal had no intention of fulfilling their request, so they wounded him and vanished.’
Just from the colors of emotion, the story was clear enough.
After hearing my words, Wi-ryeong-seon fell silent for a moment, then glared at me.
[You do not know. You are only to wait here inside this formation until the formation master and the Alliance’s inspector arrive… This veil can only be crossed with the Alliance’s permission. Crossing it from outside is not free. Of course, it is limited to humans, and other races cannot enter… Even if you truly communicated with the demons, there is no demon here that could come to save you.]
“I do not communicate with them, so there is no problem.”
[Huhu, that is for the inspector to judge… I have sent the antidote maker with the inspector. This is the chance to turn all the trapped demons into medicine.]
“…You intend to use the demons as resources?”
[Is there anything wrong with that?]
“…Meaningless conversation ends here.”
Plop!
I sat down on the spot.
Now the only remaining human in this occupation zone was me.
So there was only one thing I had to do now.
[You have given up…? You were clinging to useless stubbornness, and now it has worked out. Then in the Alliance’s court of judgment, I will see you, Eighth Occupation Zone ‘War’ Temporary General Seo Eun-hyun….]
Busssss…
After delivering the words, the face melted into the formation and vanished.
‘I have already sent him the letter.’
In the end, even if real Integration Grand Completion demon practitioners arrived, the humans would not lose.
At the same time, I felt my eyes shine.
‘But I cannot let those children die.’
From now on, I would block it with all my power!
Uwooong!
Around me, hazy something swirled and filled the surroundings completely.
For the past eighteen years.
The countless bonds I had met in this life had been recorded as spirits in this technique.
And as I recorded the people, the technique’s mastery gradually rose.
Uwooong!
Now, simply by recalling, I could record the people.
Churulruk!
Spiritual energy gathered from the surroundings and recorded yet another person.
The Wi-ryeong-seon I had just spoken with.
‘Wi-ryeong-seon judged my total power at Four Pillars level and used this formation to trap me. Then the inspector who will come to arrest me is also at least Four Pillars level.’
Uwooong!
‘A Four Pillars practitioner starting from the Human Race Alliance to the eighth occupation zone would take roughly seven days and nights.’
I gritted my teeth with shining eyes.
‘From now on, within seven days and nights, I will find the memory.’
What if I cannot find it within that time?
‘Then…’
I gritted my teeth.
‘I will enter the Nascent Soul realm.’
The moment I entered the Nascent Soul realm, I felt a great change coming to my Invisible Sword.
And if it was a changed Invisible Sword, no matter how solid the formation, I would be able to cut it down.
Pa-tsuch!
I closed my eyes and prepared to create the spirit with the nameless technique and challenged the Nascent Soul realm.
‘Here I go…’
Whether I become meat or rice, I will reach the Nascent Soul realm and protect the bonds that have come into my life!