Chapter 111: Because I Didn't Know.
Chapter 111: Because I Didn't Know.
The Extreme Evil Smiling Demon was thoroughly enjoying himself.
In his long life as a Demon Lord, he had seen and done almost everything, but he had never been involved in deciding the successor of the Unorthodox Path Alliance. In fact, he had likely never even imagined he would have a reason to care.
"Are you truly saying we should choose the successor?"
"Yes, that is correct."
"And how exactly do we do that?"
"If the current successor, Bi Sa-in, seems decent enough, we help him keep his position," I explained. "If someone else seems like they would be more beneficial to us, we seat them there instead. I know I’m meddling, but I believe that regardless of their individual personalities, we must ensure the person leading the Unorthodox Path Alliance is someone who thoroughly benefits the Cult."
And, of course, they had to be someone who benefited me as well.
"Then we should seat the most incompetent fool possible," the Smiling Demon remarked.
"No, doing that would actually make the Murim's political situation unstable. We should seat someone whose actions are at least predictable. Regardless, if we handle this well, we will have performed a great service for the Cult."
The Smiling Demon laughed heartily. He was already pleased at the prospect of facing a formidable opponent like Seok Gwan-chu; if he could achieve a great feat through it as well, it would truly be killing two birds with one stone.
"Are we finally going to see the Second Young Master’s world?"
A glimmer of anticipation flickered in the depths of his sunken eyes.
"No. This world is still your world, Lord Smiling Demon."
"My world?"
"None of this would be possible in the first place if you weren't here. Would I have even dreamed of facing the Great Elder of the Unorthodox Path Alliance on my own?"
"Are you performing the Flattery Divine Art again?"
"Why else would it be called a 'Divine Art'? It requires a lifetime of refinement."
The Smiling Demon was delighted by my joke. He found the unfolding situation fascinating.
I had already sent Lee An and Blue Face to the safe house where the Heavenly Flower Pavilion Master was staying. I gave them orders to protect her, but there were two other reasons for sending them away.
First, it was dangerous. Now that it was clear our primary enemy was Seok Gwan-chu, the Great Elder of the Unorthodox Path Alliance, there was no telling what kind of masters might emerge.
Second, I wanted Lee An and Blue Face to spend time together. I had told Lee An: Win over your own subordinates yourself. Whether she could actually pull it off was up to her. I only hoped that Lee An’s capacity was great enough to contain someone like Blue Face.
Before leaving, Lee An said only one thing to me.
"If something happens to you, Young Master, I will die as well."
"Fine. I'll fight as if I have two lives, then."
Blue Face watched the exchange before bowing politely to the Smiling Demon. The Smiling Demon said nothing. He was blunt with his subordinates, and I had never seen him and Blue Face engage in conversation outside of official orders.
After sending the two of them to the safe house, the Smiling Demon and I set off using our lightness skills.
"Where are we going?"
"To White Night Valley to meet Bi Sa-in."
Previously, I had informed Bi Sa-in that the ones who tried to kill the Smiling Demon were the Blood Hand Five Shadows of White Night Valley. Since no new news had come from Bi Sa-in or White Night Valley since then, it meant Bi Sa-in had yet to resolve the issue of finding the mastermind behind them.
*
Bi Sa-in was drinking at a tavern near White Night Valley.
His face was flushed—not from the alcohol, but from rage. As his worries deepened, the scar on his face grew even more hideous.
He still hadn't identified the mastermind. It was precious information he had obtained in Guizhou in exchange for withdrawing the Hundred Precepts Merchant Group and paying a massive sum of money, but things weren't going as planned.
By the time he arrived here, he had intended to pressure the Master of White Night Valley into confessing that he had sent the Blood Hand Five Shadows to kill the Smiling Demon. If it came down to it, he was prepared to use force to extract a confession. He believed that with himself and seven of the 13 Wolves of the Unorthodox Path, the Master of White Night Valley and his experts would have no choice but to submit.
However, by the time they reached White Night Valley, the Valley Master had already departed for parts unknown. He had been there until the day before their arrival, only to hastily flee the valley with his closest henchmen.
Bi Sa-in had tried to beat the Valley Master's location out of the subordinates left behind, but they truly didn't know. He suspected the Valley Master might have received advance word of his arrival. Secrets were constantly leaking.
Bi Sa-in drained another cup. Suddenly, Geom Mu-geuk came to mind. Whenever he felt cornered, he found himself thinking of that man.
‘Useless thoughts.’
Just as Bi Sa-in was about to drink again to shake off the thought of Geom Mu-geuk, a man wearing a bamboo hat strode toward his table. The seven members of the 13 Wolves sitting nearby leaped up and drew their swords.
The approaching man removed his bamboo hat, revealing his face.
"It has been a while."
The man who had come to find him was indeed Geom Mu-geuk. Bi Sa-in was genuinely startled to see him appear just as he was thinking about him.
"How did you know I was here?" Bi Sa-in glared at Geom Mu-geuk with a face full of suspicion.
Geom Mu-geuk, on the other hand, remained calm.
"Since I was the one who gave you the information, it was easy to guess you’d come to White Night Valley. And how could I fail to find you when you travel in such a crowd?"
Geom Mu-geuk glanced at the surrounding 13 Wolves. He was saying that with eight martial artists moving together, finding their location was a simple task.
"May I sit?"
"Go ahead."
Geom Mu-geuk sat across from Bi Sa-in.
Bi Sa-in ordered the 13 Wolves to sit back down. They all returned to their seats, though they remained tense. The 1st Wolf, Baek Cheol-gi, sat right next to Bi Sa-in, ready to draw his sword at any moment.
"Why have you come here?"
Though he asked bluntly, Bi Sa-in was inwardly glad to see Geom Mu-geuk. He knew he shouldn't feel that way, but he kept finding himself wanting to rely on the man.
"I came because I have important information to share with you, Young Master Bi."
"What is it?"
"I have discovered who the mastermind behind this incident is."
Bi Sa-in was stunned. Not only him, but Baek Cheol-gi and the other 13 Wolves were equally shocked.
"Who is it?"
Geom Mu-geuk did not answer immediately. "I can't just give away such important information for free."
In the next moment, Bi Sa-in looked at Geom Mu-geuk with a sense of dread.
‘Young Master Geom, you’ve made a grave mistake.’
He shouldn't have mentioned such an important fact in this place. The reason was the 13 Wolves.
Bi Sa-in suspected that among the seven Wolves following him, there was a spy planted by the person trying to kill him. Several things had gone wrong recently, and he believed it was because a spy was leaking information to the enemy beforehand.
When he arrived at White Night Valley only to find the Valley Master gone, his suspicion turned into certainty. Someone was definitely relaying information to the other side. With such vital information leaked in this situation, it was only a matter of time before it reached the mastermind.
The reason he had almost sent a voice transmission to Geom Mu-geuk before was to mention this and ask for help, but he hadn't been able to bring himself to do it. He had regretted even considering the transmission. The successor of the Unorthodox Path Alliance seeking help from the blood of the Heavenly Demon? He had berated himself for even thinking of something so absurd.
"I've come a long way, and I'm quite thirsty." Geom Mu-geuk held out his cup.
Bi Sa-in poured wine into it. At that moment, Geom Mu-geuk’s voice transmission reached Bi Sa-in’s ears.
— Let’s catch the rat before we discuss the details.
Bi Sa-in’s hand paused for a fraction of a second while pouring before he finished filling the cup. He realized then that Geom Mu-geuk knew exactly what situation he was in. His heart began to race at the thought that the problem he had been agonizing over might finally be resolved.
This was the change that occurred whenever he met Geom Mu-geuk. This man constantly made his heart race. He constantly made Bi Sa-in compare himself and feel small.
‘Damn it!’
He made him hope.
*
That night, a masked man landed silently on the roof of the largest inn in the village.
He hid something under the tiles at the edge of the roof. There was a set protocol for sending secret missives. No matter which village he went to, if he hid a missive at the corner of the roof of the largest inn, someone would come to retrieve it and send it via messenger bird. If they were in the mountains, a specific tree was designated; if in a field, a specific burial spot.
Just as he was about to hurry away after hiding the missive, a voice spoke from behind him.
"Geom Mu-geuk has discovered the identity of the mastermind."
The masked man spun around in shock. Geom Mu-geuk, who had approached without a sound, was already holding the hidden missive and reading it.
Geom Mu-geuk had been drinking with Bi Sa-in at their lodgings in White Night Valley and had only left after confirming the other man had fallen asleep.
"I’m a light sleeper. Even while asleep, I heard the sound of someone creeping out like a stray cat."
The masked man realized in an instant that this had all been a trap. His haste, driven by the belief that the information was too important to delay, had been his undoing.
Just as the masked man prepared to flee, Geom Mu-geuk spoke again.
"I’ll chase after you and tell everyone that the member of the 13 Wolves currently missing from his post is the traitor. I’m quite confident in my lightness skills, so you won't be able to get back before me."
The masked man flinched and halted his movement. Geom Mu-geuk provoked him further.
"It would be better for you to try and kill me here. That way, at least your identity won't be revealed."
The masked man turned toward Geom Mu-geuk and drew his sword. He remained silent. He didn't know how things would turn out, and he didn't want his voice to be recognized. Since things had come to this, there was only one way out: kill the witness to silence him, return quietly, and feign innocence.
The masked man lunged at Geom Mu-geuk.
Swish!
As expected of an expert said to be stronger than a Demon Lord when paired with another, the masked man’s movements were formidable. His form blurred as he instantly closed the distance and struck at Geom Mu-geuk.
Clang!
The moment their swords first clashed, the masked man’s heart sank. He nearly lost his grip on his sword, and in that instant, he knew: Geom Mu-geuk possessed internal energy far superior to his own.
It wasn't just his internal energy that was superior.
Clang! Clang!
The techniques he had used to kill enemies with ease until now were completely ineffective. His strikes aimed at vital points were invariably blocked by Geom Mu-geuk’s sword. While he was exerting his full strength, it felt as though his opponent was blocking him with casual ease.
Feeling the clear difference in skill, the masked man threw himself in the opposite direction after barely ten exchanges. His only thought now was that he had to flee far away to survive.
Right then!
Ping!
Thud!
A finger wind shot through the air and pierced his thigh.
With a sharp cry of pain, he tumbled across the ground before scrambling back up. The person who had landed in front of him, blocking his path, was the Smiling Demon.
"A man turning his back during a fight? Have you no shame?"
The masked man’s eyes reddened with humiliation. Geom Mu-geuk had already closed in from behind. The problem was that these two weren't the only ones who had appeared.
"6th Wolf!"
The masked man’s heart plummeted at the sound of his name. Bi Sa-in and the rest of the 13 Wolves emerged from the shadows.
The masked man was indeed the 6th Wolf. Their leader, 1st Wolf Baek Cheol-gi, was trembling with rage.
"Is it true? Have you really betrayed us?"
Even seeing it with his own eyes, Baek Cheol-gi couldn't believe it. If someone had asked him to rank the thirteen Wolves from most to least likely to betray them, the 6th Wolf would have been his first choice for the most loyal.
"Why? Why did you do this? Did you not know that the 13 Wolves must never involve themselves in politics?"
The 6th Wolf pulled off his mask. "And why shouldn't we?"
"What?"
"Why must we live bound by such rules, established by God knows who?"
"You fool! What more did you expect as a martial artist? If you didn't want this life, you shouldn't have sworn your loyalty in the first place!"
"Because I didn't know! I didn't know that after a lifetime of refining my martial arts, I would end up living such a pathetic life! I didn't know my life would consist of wandering around in a pack just to protect a single First Young Master!"
Bi Sa-in’s expression hardened. He hadn't known the 6th Wolf felt that way while following him. Did the others feel the same?
The 1st Wolf shouted at him. "Stop with the excuses! What did they promise you? What exactly did they offer to help you escape this 'pathetic' life?"
The 6th Wolf couldn't answer. These weren't words he could say to the 1st Wolf or his other comrades. He couldn't bring himself to say he had been promised vast wealth and a high-ranking position.
"I am not a traitor. I was only trying to find my own life!"
With a roar, the 6th Wolf chose a target to take down with him. The person he chose was Geom Mu-geuk.
"This is all because of you!"
The 6th Wolf lunged at Geom Mu-geuk. He had been no match even when calm; now, he was wounded and hysterical. As he unleashed his techniques toward Geom Mu-geuk—
Stab!
A blade erupted through his chest from behind.
As the 6th Wolf slowly turned his head, he saw Bi Sa-in standing behind him.
"…This is all because of you."
At the 6th Wolf’s resentful words, Bi Sa-in replied bluntly.
"You said it was because of the Second Young Master just a moment ago."
As if he had no desire to talk further, Bi Sa-in withdrew his sword. Under the moonlight, a fountain of blood sprayed from the 6th Wolf’s body. Had he stood still, Geom Mu-geuk would have been drenched in blood, but he stepped aside. This fight was, after all, an internal affair of the Unorthodox Path Alliance.
Bi Sa-in, holding his dripping sword, turned to Geom Mu-geuk.
"Now, tell me. Who is the mastermind?"