Chapter 44
Chapter 44
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 44
Chapter Title: Shadows in the Aftermath
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There were always students swarming around Mu Yeonjun, but most of them were the types fawning over him one-sidedly.
He had felt it the first time he saw that group, and every time he ran into them afterward. Mu Yeonjun was always indifferent to the followers circling him.
And yet, surprisingly, his group had scored perfectly.
‘Well, there are only three groups in the upper class anyway….’
Mu Yeonjun’s groupmates were Sang Irin and Young Sojin. Among the followers, Sang Irin was the one who got closest to Mu Yeonjun, while Young Sojin was the representative of the other sycophants.
Truth be told, even if his groupmates had been different students, Mu Yeonjun’s group score wouldn’t have dropped. No matter what Mu Yeonjun did, his groupmates would have covered for him unconditionally.
Wi Sungcheon scanned the students gathered in front of the score wall. He spotted Sang Irin and Young Sojin, but Mu Yeonjun was nowhere to be seen.
Yesterday’s events came to mind. The conversation between the Taeguk Sword Lord and Yi Cheon Academy Chief Nam Myeong.
Demonic Cult spies.
“Hey.”
He considered approaching Young Sojin and Sang Irin but doubted it would yield anything good. Instead, Wi Sungcheon called out to one of the lower-class students who had competed against Mu Yeonjun’s group.
“What?”
The guy turned to him with a crumpled expression. It wasn’t particular dislike for Wi Sungcheon—it was just that his own score was abysmal.
It was unfortunate, but what could be done? Wi Sungcheon had no intention of sparing the guy’s feelings.
“Where’s Mu Yeonjun? Didn’t he come with you?”
“……No idea.”
Something had clearly happened. Wi Sungcheon stared at the lower-class student’s face. The guy awkwardly pulled his chin back, as if the gaze made him uncomfortable.
“Nothing go down?”
“……Nothing? You’re just rubbing it in that your score was good, right?”
“Why think so negatively? That’s not it—I’m just asking if anything happened.”
“Nothing happened.”
He didn’t seem to be lying. His expression, tone, even breathing—all normal. Wi Sungcheon nodded roughly. No need to ask Sang Irin or Young Sojin.
The answer that nothing happened, and the fact that those two had arrived first…
They didn’t even know about the spy. Probably… Mu Yeonjun had dealt with it himself.
He’d confirmed the scores, so there was no reason to linger by the wall. As he turned to leave, someone suddenly grabbed his shoulder.
“Hey.”
He wasn’t startled. He’d sensed the guy standing behind him ages ago.
“You okay?”
Hwangbo Sungwoo. He furrowed his brow at Wi Sungcheon’s question. Wi Sungcheon glanced at the hand on his shoulder.
The guy’s right hand had been shredded by Paeng Yeonhwa, but his left, which had only been slammed into his shoulder, was relatively intact. Honestly, it was miraculous he could move it at all.
‘Well, he swung around that broken right arm like it was nothing.’
Even right after both cheeks got torn open, he’d kept yapping away. The guy’s stamina and recovery were beyond human limits.
“……Come here.”
“Why?”
“Just come.”
With bandages wrapped around his face, Hwangbo Sungwoo’s speech was a bit slurred. Nearby students glanced their way. They didn’t know exactly what had gone down in the Blade Sword Grove, but the score difference between Hwangbo Sungwoo and Wi Sungcheon had planted seeds of suspicion—like “maybe…”
It couldn’t be helped, but Wi Sungcheon didn’t want too much attention just yet.
“Fine.”
He decided to play along and followed Hwangbo Sungwoo. Hwangbo Sungwoo shot a fierce glare at the gawking students, parting the crowd.
“What’s up?”
Hwangbo Sungwoo had dragged Wi Sungcheon behind the upper-class dorms. He first scanned the surroundings to check for unwanted “ears.”
“What happened yesterday… What the hell was that?”
Hwangbo Sungwoo knew nothing about the full story. He hadn’t heard about the Demonic Cult spies.
But he did know that Paeng Yeonhwa had rampaged because of the “Tiger Fang,” and that the fang had been implanted with Demonic Cult sorcery.
“Can’t say.”
“Knew it.”
“Then why ask?”
“If you’re not talking, it must be obvious. The Demonic Cult, right?”
Hwangbo Sungwoo spat it out in his slurred voice. Wi Sungcheon blinked, then burst out laughing.
“You look like a dumb brute on the outside, but your head turns pretty fast.”
“Mocking me?”
“No, not like that.”
Wi Sungcheon waved it off.
“No need for me to spell it out, but don’t go blabbing about it.”
“Idiot. You think this is some back alley?”
Hwangbo Sungwoo snapped back unexpectedly. Wi Sungcheon widened his eyes, not grasping the meaning.
“……Yi Cheon Academy?”
“Yeah, Yi Cheon Academy. Where they train righteous talents to fight the Demonic Cult. You met the Chief, right? Did he tell you to keep your mouth shut?”
He hadn’t been told that outright. He’d just planned to keep quiet on his own. Hwangbo Sungwoo smirked, as if he’d expected as much.
“The Heavenly Demon Hyeok Wolun killed the previous Heavenly Person, and the Demonic Cult went silent for thirty years. Sure, they haven’t been totally idle—demon beast sightings have increased. But… the Demonic Cult meddling in Yi Cheon Academy like this? First time in decades.”
“Ah, got it.”
Wi Sungcheon nodded at Hwangbo Sungwoo’s words. A regular martial academy wouldn’t spread word of Demonic Cult spies among the students.
It’d just cause needless fear or panic. But this wasn’t a regular academy.
“Soon, the spy situation will be officially announced. Class content might shift a bit too. After all, it’s the Demonic Cult making a move after decades.”
Hwangbo Sungwoo chuckled wetly.
“So.”
Wi Sungcheon stared at the chuckling Hwangbo Sungwoo and spoke.
“You dragged me here to confirm that?”
“……Paeng Yeonhwa?”
Hwangbo Sungwoo’s laughter stopped. He averted his gaze and scuffed the ground with his foot.
“She wake up?”
“Yeah.”
“No issues?”
“Looked way better than you. Her head hurt a bit, though.”
“……Good to hear.”
“My turn to ask.”
Hwangbo Sungwoo frowned. Wi Sungcheon didn’t wait for a cue and fired off his question.
“Why’d you cover for Yeonhwa?”
“What’re you talking about?”
Hwangbo Sungwoo feigned ignorance. Wi Sungcheon didn’t press with words—instead, he stared blatantly at Hwangbo Sungwoo’s face.
The big guy fidgeted awkwardly, then looked away.
“……Death Sentence Sword.”
“What?”
“Professor Seok Ijin asked me. Said expulsion over this would be too much.”
Wi Sungcheon had figured as much. But he wasn’t satisfied and smirked.
“Since when do you follow professors to the letter?”
“What do you know about me to say that?”
Hwangbo Sungwoo’s attitude flipped instantly. Wi Sungcheon shrugged and shook his head.
“Don’t know you well, but I know you’re not the type to obey professors.”
“……I just didn’t feel like it. If anything, I started the fight… And Paeng Yeonhwa had lost her reason. That’s all.”
Hwangbo Sungwoo turned away sharply. He clearly didn’t want to discuss it further.
“Can I tell Yeonhwa?”
“……You’re dead.”
“Scary.”
Wi Sungcheon snickered, and Hwangbo Sungwoo whipped around to glare. After a moment of glaring, he sighed heavily in frustration.
“……Tell her I’m sorry.”
“Why not say it yourself?”
“And no need for her to feel guilty about me.”
Wi Sungcheon teased, but Hwangbo Sungwoo ignored it. With that, he turned and walked off. Wi Sungcheon chuckled at his retreating back.
“Kinda cute, in a way.”
Hwangbo Sungwoo would’ve bellowed if he heard.
* * *
“Please, come in.”
Baek Cheongha didn’t chide Nam Myeong for showing up unannounced.
Instead, she lifted the curtain herself, smiling as she showed her face. Nam Myeong paused, then let out a deep sigh.
“……Sorry for barging in without notice.”
“It’s fine.”
Baek Cheongha smiled warmly. Yi Cheon Mountain was her domain, riddled with the Shadow Division’s eyes and ears everywhere.
She’d known Nam Myeong was coming long before word arrived.
“I’ve heard the story.”
He’d met Wi Sungcheon and the Taeguk Sword Lord. And today, he’d spoken with Mu Yeonjun too.
“How long have you known?”
“About what?”
“The Demonic Cult spies.”
“About three days.”
“Why not tell me?”
Nam Myeong’s gaze sharpened. Even if the woman before him was one of the Ten Heroes, Moon Shadow Fairy Baek Cheongha, he had to press the issue.
Nam Myeong hadn’t heard a whisper about the Demonic Cult spies until yesterday, before meeting Wi Sungcheon and the Taeguk Sword Lord.
“It was the Shadow Division’s job to handle. Even if I’d informed you beforehand, Chief, nothing would have changed.”
“That makes me feel slighted. Though the Shadow Division and Yi Cheon Guard follow your orders, Baek Cheongha, I am the Yi Cheon Chief.”
“I had no desire to overstep your authority, Chief. This was my oversight—please forgive me.”
Baek Cheongha bowed her head slightly. Nam Myeong didn’t care for her placating tone.
“……Mu Yeonjun told me.”
“Yes.”
“That child caught two spies. You said it was the Shadow Division’s duty, so you should have eliminated them before the students got involved.”
“I have no excuse for that. But the Shadow Division agents weren’t incompetent. Our people killed the two rat pups on Boeun Peak.”
Baek Cheongha smiled wryly.
“In the past decades, the Demonic Cult’s sorcery has advanced greatly. …Though I’ve declined, those rat pups slipped past my eyes onto Yi Cheon Mountain.
I realized too late and ordered the Shadow Division to hunt them down… Heh. Seems I underestimated the demonic arts’ cleverness.”
Nam Myeong had no choice but to stay silent at her self-mocking words. Moon Shadow Fairy Baek Cheongha. She had secluded herself on Yi Cheon Mountain even before Nam Myeong became Chief. The reason… He didn’t know exactly. But he had some guesses.
‘Not what she used to be.’
Decades ago, Baek Cheongha had roamed the martial world as Cheongnim Sect Leader and one of the Ten Heroes, her fame resounding everywhere.
But around twenty years ago, she stepped down as sect leader and declared seclusion.
That was decades ago now, and the ignorant gossiped that she’d died of illness, claiming someone else should take her Ten Heroes seat.
But Baek Cheongha was alive and well before him. Nam Myeong knew her seclusion wasn’t due to sentiment or disillusionment with the martial world.
She had a reason to seclude herself. Health issues? Or something else?
Demonic Cult sorcery was bizarre, but not refined enough to fool a Ten Hero’s senses.
Mu Yeonjun and Wi Sungcheon had spotted the spies first, and even the Shadow Division elites had caught the rat pups. Simple as that.
Baek Cheongha’s eyes had dulled.
“……Four spies infiltrated Boeun Peak. I heard your agents killed two, but the remaining two… You didn’t find them?”
“No. I ordered them left alone.”
“Why?”
“I determined those rat pups weren’t fierce enough to threaten the Heavenly Person.”
Baek Cheongha said it without dropping her smile. Nam Myeong’s cheeks stiffened at that unchanging expression.
“You tested the Heavenly Person?”
“That child was raised as the Heavenly Demon’s nemesis. Not yet complete, but born with the fate to exterminate demons.”
“That’s… still.”
“Don’t call it harsh. That’s the Heavenly Person’s fate. The martial world’s destiny rests on his shoulders. I didn’t raise him so fragile he’d crumble against a few rat pups.”
She smiled, but her voice was icy. Nam Myeong said no more. In the end, Baek Cheongha’s words echoed the Taeguk Sword Lord’s. The Heavenly Person must be thus. And indeed, Heavenly Person Mu Yeonjun had proven their expectations.
Alone, he had found two Demonic Cult spies and slit their throats.
“……He’s just a twenty-year-old boy.”
“Not an ordinary boy, is he?”
“……About the Blade Sword Grove. You already know, even without me telling you.”
“Yes, the Taeguk Sword Lord informed me. Paeng Yeonhwa… that girl rampaged.”
“She was so adamant, we decided not to make it public.”
“You won’t report it to the Alliance either?”
“……No.”
The Taeguk Sword Lord had staked his name on taking responsibility. Reporting Paeng Yeonhwa’s rampage to the Martial Alliance would draw arrows her way.
Ten Hero Taeguk Sword Lord. He seemed a bit softer with age, but at heart, he was the Sword Ghost even his sect feared. Without transcendent skill, he’d have been expelled long ago.
But people don’t change at the core. The Taeguk Sword Lord would sooner shield with his body or slaughter the archers with his sword.
“You made the right call. If the Taeguk Sword Lord takes responsibility, I won’t say more.”
“……Wi Sungcheon. You’ve heard about that child too?”
“He found the Blade Sword Grove rat pup first, right?”
Baek Cheongha had no intention of revealing that Seo Il was one of her Shadow Division leaders. Wi Sungcheon didn’t know, and even the Taeguk Sword Lord hadn’t told Nam Myeong about Seo Il.
“My mistake. If I’d known a rat pup hid in the Blade Sword Grove, I’d have prepared.”
“……Fortunately, Wi Sungcheon spotted it first, and with Professor Seo Il and the Taeguk Sword Lord stepping in, we caught and killed it early.”
“The Taeguk Sword Lord said he’d teach Wi Sungcheon alongside Paeng Yeonhwa. Heh, who’d have thought a Cheonhwa Sect disciple would catch his eye…”
“……Remarkable child. They say he sensed the Demonic Cult spy purely on instinct.”
“Ahaha, is that so? Makes me embarrassed. I couldn’t even properly detect the rat pups.”
“Not what I meant.”
“Of course. Just a light joke on my part.”
Nam Myeong smiled and responded. He slowly rose.
“……Oh. And about the Demonic Cult spies. I’ll announce it to the entire academy.”
“Yes, do as you see fit.”
Baek Cheongha smiled gently.
“Shouldn’t the other students share even a little of the burden the Heavenly Person carries?”