Chapter 54: You’re Not So Mysterious When You’re Flustered.
Chapter 54: You’re Not So Mysterious When You’re Flustered.
The night was still and silent.
When I entered the Blood Heaven Blade Demon’s quarters, I found him sitting by the window, engrossed in a book.
“That is the most out-of-place sight in the world,” I remarked.
Startled, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon looked up. A flash of delight quickly replaced the surprise on his face.
“I’ll have to discipline the boys on guard duty.”
“Please don’t. I slipped in because I wanted to see you quietly, Elder.”
He scanned my appearance, his expression shifting to one of disbelief. “Have you only just returned to the Cult?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t tell me you came to see me the very moment you arrived?”
“I hate to ruin the sentiment, but my father turns in early.”
“Regardless!”
“Yes, you’re right. You were the first person I thought of, Elder.”
With that, I held up the bottle I had brought. It was the liquor the Blood Heaven Blade Demon enjoyed most.
We moved to the rear garden of his residence to drink. He dismissed all the subordinates guarding the area so we wouldn't be disturbed.
“Has it already been two months since you left?”
“Not quite two months yet.”
During this excursion, my mastery of the Rapid Speed Step had improved, allowing me to shave off significant travel time on my way back.
“How is Investigator Seo’s training progressing?”
“That little runt is working quite hard.”
Hearing the words ‘quite hard’ from the Blood Heaven Blade Demon’s mouth was telling. Such an uncharacteristic expression was a clear indicator of the current state of their relationship.
“He might seem prickly, but he’s a boy with a steadfast heart.”
“He’s never been prickly with me.”
“He’s also the type to size up a situation before acting.”
He was likely working hard while remaining highly observant, yet still saying everything that needed to be said. It seemed the Blood Heaven Blade Demon didn't particularly dislike that trait.
“By the way, I caught a glimpse earlier—the book you were reading was a collection of poetry and paintings. Do you actually read poetry?”
“Why? Do I look like someone who lacks the refinement for it?”
“I don’t know about your refinement, but it certainly doesn’t suit you.”
“I enjoyed books in my youth as well. I simply lived having forgotten that for a long time.”
It was difficult to imagine the younger days of this gaunt, fastidious-looking man.
“What were you like when you were young?”
“Well… I was dark and gloomy.”
“Then you were quite similar to Investigator Seo.”
For some reason, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon nodded readily.
“What does it matter how I was? Those days are long gone.”
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon emptied his cup. I silently refilled it. There are no words of comfort for the regrets of passing years. I, too, had experienced that weight once before.
“Did things go well where you went?”
“Yes.”
“I see stormy winds are about to blow again.”
What confidence did he read in my simple "yes" to prompt such a comment?
“Do you even know why I went out?”
“To stir up a bloodbath, no doubt.”
“That is a grave misunderstanding of my character. I love peace.”
“I love peace too,” he countered. “The kind of silent, blood-scented peace that comes after I’ve brought everyone to their knees with my own hands.”
I smiled and took a drink.
“It was good to be out after so long. Why don’t you come with me for some fresh air next time?”
“The world out there is full of people I want to kill… It’s more peaceful for my mind to stay within the Main Cult.” He poured wine into my cup and continued, “I don’t know what you’re planning, but be careful. In the struggle for succession, one slip-up is the end.”
“What will you do if I slip up, Elder?”
“What else? I’ll have to line up behind the First Young Master again.”
“How cold-blooded.”
“It’s only natural. If the torso dies, what use is there in the wings flapping? You have to go find another torso to attach to.”
If it were the Blood Heaven Blade Demon, he truly would do exactly that. He would grieve for a day or two, then reach out to the First Young Master as if nothing had happened. The surprising thing was that even imagining such a scene, I didn't find him hateful.
This was precisely the Blood Heaven Blade Demon’s strength. There was no need to agonize over whether this man was good or bad, or whether he would remain loyal to the end. He was simply a man who would leave if I fell and stay by my side if I didn't.
“Please do me a favor.”
“What is it?”
“Drink with me all night tonight.”
“That’s not difficult.”
I stood up from my seat.
“You said we were drinking, so where are you going?”
“I’ll go buy more liquor and prepare some snacks.”
“Just have the boys do it.”
“There’s something specific I want to get myself.”
I intended to bring an exquisite "snack" to this drinking session—one I had been preparing for the last two months.
I had made up my mind to kill the Soul-Seizing Demon Lord tonight. No one would expect me to strike on the very day I returned from my excursion. And I would be the man who had been drinking with the Blood Heaven Blade Demon all night. He would serve as the perfect witness to my whereabouts.
“I’ll be back shortly.”
Leaving the Blood Heaven Blade Demon’s quarters, I activated the Dark Shadow Step and threw myself toward the west.
* * *
The Soul-Seizing Demon Lord was unusually excited today.
It was the same Heart-Soul Great Law he performed every time, but strangely, his heart was racing.
Is it because it’s been a while?
This was the first time he was performing the Heart-Soul Great Law since Geom Mu-geuk had threatened him to stop. Because Mu-geuk had invoked the Heavenly Demon’s name, he had no choice but to suspend the ritual for a time.
Of course, it would be fine as long as he wasn't caught, but since his opponent was already certain about the Heart-Soul Great Law, he couldn't help but feel uneasy. The news that Geom Mu-geuk had left the Cult only added to his suspicion; it looked like a ploy to put him at ease before finding evidence.
However, he had reached the limit of his patience and finally resumed the Heart-Soul Great Law today. Whenever he performed the ritual after such a gap, he always chose a young child. At times like this, a young heart-soul was the most delicious.
As he descended the stairs leading to the secret room, the Soul-Seizing Demon Lord glanced back. He felt as if something were following him; his mind was unusually restless.
But there was no way he was being followed. He was currently maintaining the Black Shadow Secret Art, ensuring his own shadow guarded his back. He was certain that, with the sole exception of the Heavenly Demon, no one in the Main Cult could stand behind him undetected.
The Soul-Seizing Demon Lord entered the secret room. The walls were covered in bizarre patterns and characters, and incense emitting a unique scent burned everywhere. A child lay sleeping on the altar in the center of the room.
A smile played on the Soul-Seizing Demon Lord’s lips as he looked down at the child. Just as he reached out his hand to wake the boy, someone grabbed him firmly by the hair.
‘!’
The Soul-Seizing Demon Lord tried to counterattack, but the opponent was faster.
Slap!
The Soul-Seizing Demon Lord’s head snapped back from the force of the blow to his cheek. Only after taking the slap helplessly was he able to swing both palms and break free from the grasp.
As the Soul-Seizing Demon Lord leaped backward, the opponent spoke coldly.
“Didn’t I tell you not to do it?”
Only then did the Soul-Seizing Demon Lord realize who had struck him. It was Geom Mu-geuk.
The Soul-Seizing Demon Lord caressed his cheek, his expression one of pure disbelief. Even if it was a surprise attack, this was impossible—it was a shock and a total disgrace.
“Just how did you get in here?”
“You’re not so mysterious when you’re flustered.”
The Soul-Seizing Demon Lord flinched. Normally, he used his voice to bewitch people—making it resonate, repeat, and whisper. But now, he looked like an ordinary man who had been caught in a fit of rage.
“Is this your true nature?”
He might have flared up in rage, but after taking a deep breath, the Soul-Seizing Demon Lord regained his composure.
“I completely misjudged the Second Young Master. I deserved to be hit.”
His voice resonated as he repeated the words "deserved to be hit." He had regained his usual persona.
“Now you seem more like yourself. This makes it worth killing you. That look earlier was disappointing.”
The Soul-Seizing Demon Lord remained unfazed. “Second Young Master, answer my question first. Just how did you enter this place?”
“I followed you in.”
He likely thought I was lying, but it was the truth. The Soul-Seizing Demon Lord always guarded his rear with the Black Shadow Secret Art. Unless I had achieved the Twelve-Star Great Achievement of the Wind God Four Steps, I couldn't yet utilize the Dark Shadow Step while bypassing his technique.
However, having applied the Blood Eye Purifying Water to my eyes, the counter-dispelling method for the Black Shadow Secret Art became visible to me. The moment I dispelled it, my Dark Shadow Step took effect. In fact, it was as if I were hiding within his very shadow.
“What does it matter how I got in? What matters is why I’m here.”
Even in this situation, the Soul-Seizing Demon Lord feigned ignorance. “If you’re going to keep prattling on about the Heart-Soul Great Law, then leave. I know nothing of such a technique.”
“Then who is this child?”
“A poor orphan. I brought him here to teach him martial arts.”
“You’re a coward.”
“What?”
This time, I mimicked his technique. “Coward, coward, coward…”
My voice echoed like a haunting refrain.
“Enough!”
At his shout, I snapped back coldly. “Just how long are you going to keep pretending? Does your courage only appear when you’re ripping the heart out of the weak?”
The Soul-Seizing Demon Lord’s pupils instantly shrank to the size of pinpricks. The surroundings darkened and then brightened, warping into a new space.
I was standing on the edge of a cliff. A wind blowing from behind tried to push me off the precipice.
“Did you forget my warning so soon? I believe I told you that if you ever saw me again, you would never return to your original world.”
His voice sounded eerie and desolate, like a ghostly wail. The Soul-Seizing Demon Lord tried to create an atmosphere of terror, but I stood tall, completely unafraid.
“I suppose you can’t endure your own fear unless you intimidate your opponent like this.”
“Truly remarkable. Even if you are the Cult Leader’s son, how can you show such spirit at your age?”
His pupils repeatedly dilated and constricted as he busily scanned me.
“You’ve come to kill me, haven’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Based on what?”
The words "based on what" repeated like an echo. This echo wasn't intended to mock me, but rather showed that his mind was wavering. Then, the echo abruptly cut off as he asked, “Did the Cult Leader send you?”
This time, it was a question devoid of any other noise. It was difficult for him to imagine that I was acting independently.
“If he wanted you dead, my father would have come himself. Don’t you know his personality?”
As the Soul-Seizing Demon Lord nodded, the surroundings became noisy again. His mutterings, the sound of the wind, and all sorts of bizarre noises mixed together. It was as if his mental world was being laid bare.
“It’s distracting, so let’s talk quietly.”
“It’s the Second Young Master’s final request, so I must grant it.”
The surroundings darkened and then brightened again. He and I were sitting across from each other in a scenic pavilion. On the tea table between us sat lukewarm tea.
“Second Young Master.”
His original voice—he had returned to being an ordinary man.
“Since we must kill each other, let us have one last candid conversation.”
“Very well.”
“We are demonic cultists. Moreover, we are Demon Lords who reign over all others. Are our lives so easy that we can afford to give the weak a choice? What is wrong with becoming stronger by consuming the hearts of those pathetic weaklings? Is greed not our right? Every choice I made was for the sake of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult!”
If Hwa Mu-gi hadn't come and if I had continued to live in the Main Cult, perhaps I might have turned a blind eye to someone like the Soul-Seizing Demon Lord. If it meant the Cult could become stronger, I might have used that as a pretext to ignore it.
But my fate had changed. The me of then and the me of now were two different people.
I had become a person who could not sit at the same table to drink tea or wine with someone who sought strength by ripping out a child’s heart. I had become a person who could not even breathe the same air.
“That’s a lie.”
“What?”
“You didn't seize those hearts for the sake of the Cult. It was solely so that you could survive longer. It was true then, and it will be true in the future.”
If he were truly someone who cared for the Cult, he would have shown signs of seeking revenge after my father’s death. But his choice had been to be the one who survived the longest among the Eight Demon Lords. Thousands of innocent lives were dissolved into his tenacious, long lifespan.
“By caring only for yourself, and only for yourself… you’ve turned into a monster.”
The Soul-Seizing Demon Lord, who had been staring intently at me, reached a single conclusion.
“A mere fledgling barely twenty years old cannot perceive me so accurately. You cannot bypass the Black Shadow Secret Art to follow me in, nor can you lay a hand on my body. You… are not the Second Young Master.”
The Soul-Seizing Demon Lord’s pupils, which had been dilating and constricting until now, began to change color. A dazzlingly brilliant purple wave began to surge within his eyes. The purple ocular light radiated into my eyes, digging into the soul that lay beyond.
He asked. His question came deep and heavy, like a resonance from the abyss.
“Who are you?”