Chapter 99: The Youngest Alliance Leader Candidate (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 99: The Youngest Alliance Leader Candidate (2)
Inside the fortress of the Martial Alliance.
Just as it had been outside the walls, the interior of the fortress was in an uproar.
"Did you hear?"
"The Lesser Sword Immortal has appeared?"
"At a time like this?"
"Good heavens. This is..."
The news that So Woon-hwi, one of the Eight Great Masters and the Lesser Sword Immortal, had returned spread through every department and hall of the Martial Alliance in an instant.
The various halls, in particular, were in a state of absolute chaos.
Tomorrow was the day of the Great Leader election.
And on the eve of such an event, the man who had been missing for nearly seven months had suddenly resurfaced.
For the camps of the five candidates running for the position of Great Leader, this news was anything but welcome. It was only natural, considering a figure of such overwhelming fame had just entered the fray.
The position of Great Leader was the highest rank after the Alliance Leader, Vice Alliance Leader, and Chief Strategist, serving as the representative for the young martial artists in their twenties and thirties. As such, those vying for the seat couldn't help but be on high alert.
*
In the office of Nokhyeon Hall.
Several people dressed in green battle garb spoke to a young man with a mustache, their faces grim.
"Hall Master! At this rate, won't he steal all the spotlight?"
"He's right. He hasn't shown his face for ages, only to appear exactly on the day of the Great Leader election. This is a blatant scheme."
"Showing up on the day of the election without even meeting the registration deadline is clearly unfair. we must go to the Strategist's Hall and protest immediately!"
They were all of one mind.
The young man with the mustache was the Master of Nokhyeon Hall and a member of the Hebei Peng family, Paeng Woo-jin. Though he tried not to let it show, he was just as troubled inwardly.
This is driving me crazy.
It was already a fierce competition. He had to contend with Lee Jung-gyeom of the Azure Dragon Hall, the former Alliance Leader's disciple; Moyong Su of the Golden Dragon Hall; and Jin Yong of the Fierce Tiger Hall, the grandson of the Ardent King Hegemon Jin Gyun, who was the strongest candidate for the next Alliance Leader.
In the midst of that, the Lesser Sword Immortal was practically a cheat code. They weren't even in the same league.
Is someone of the Eight Great Masters' caliber really aiming for the position of Great Leader?
Of course, it wasn't entirely incomprehensible. So Woon-hwi was only in his early twenties; he lacked the seniority to join the ranks of the Vice Alliance Leader or Alliance Leader within the conservative Martial Alliance. Even Woo-jin had to admit the role of Great Leader suited him.
However, his pride wouldn't allow him to show his anxiety openly.
"Enough."
"Hall Master?"
"If a more suitable candidate than I appears, I am more than willing to yield the position of Great Leader."
He felt he had to display the dignity of a virtuous man to be satisfied. How gallant he must look.
To him, Paeng Woo-chan—the Deputy Hall Master of Nokhyeon Hall and his younger brother—said, "Stop saying things you don't mean, Brother. Acting all calm and laying the groundwork isn't going to help."
"...Do you really have to dig at me like that to be satisfied?"
"This isn't the time to worry about your pride."
"..."
Ultimately, Nokhyeon Hall decided to dispatch members to the Strategist's Hall to lodge a protest. There was too much at stake with the Great Leader position to simply give up.
*
Meanwhile, in the Vice Alliance Leader's office at the Martial Alliance headquarters.
The Vice Alliance Leader, Ardent King Hegemon Jin Gyun, did not look pleased. Jin Gyun looked at the Second Strategist, Sama Jung-hyeon, who was sitting to his right, and spoke.
"So, the Lesser Sword Immortal has finally come."
"..."
"Say something."
"...It is my blunder. I did not realize there would be so many variables."
Strategist Sama Jung-hyeon couldn't bring himself to say that the biggest variable among them was Jin Gyun himself. If Jin Gyun hadn't fallen for Chief Strategist Bang Deok-hyeon's trick back then, they could have elevated the Vice Alliance Leader to Alliance Leader, even if it meant silencing some negative public opinion.
But now, the situation had devolved into a three-way battle.
"A blunder, you say... Well, may I ask you one thing?"
"What is it, sir?"
"Why did you contact the former Alliance Leader in the middle of the night?"
"...That is..."
"Was there something so urgent that you had to meet him separately without reporting it to me?"
Jin Gyun's eyes were filled with suspicion. Looking at him, Strategist Sama Jung-hyeon couldn't hide his predicament. In truth, he couldn't report the contact because Jin Gyun's fighting spirit was so high that he feared the consequences.
What am I supposed to do?
To Vice Alliance Leader Jin Gyun, the former Alliance Leader Baek Hyang-muk was already no different from an enemy. He was no longer a comrade who had held hands with him.
Did I misjudge him?
He had thought Jin Gyun would be different, as a man who had devoted himself solely to the martial arts. But since entering politics in earnest, the Vice Alliance Leader was quite different from before. Did the position make the man? He was increasingly craving higher power.
Jin Gyun himself didn't seem to realize it yet, but Sama Jung-hyeon, standing by his side, could feel it more and more.
He recalled the conversation he had with the former Alliance Leader last night.
[Leave him be.]
[Pardon? Why is that? It would be better if you met the Vice Alliance Leader and persuaded him...]
[It is already too late for that.]
[But at this rate, the Alliance might be torn asunder by Bang Deok-hyeon's schemes.]
[I have come to ensure that does not happen.]
The former Alliance Leader, the First Sword of Wuhan, Baek Hyang-muk, had told him to trust him. Sama Jung-hyeon had tried to figure out his intentions, but a conversation lasting only fifteen minutes revealed nothing. He wanted to ask more, but the former Alliance Leader also viewed him as the Vice Alliance Leader's man and didn't speak at length.
For now, he had to hope the former Alliance Leader had a good plan.
"I apologize for not informing you, Vice Alliance Leader. However, I did not meet the former Alliance Leader for any reason I cannot disclose."
"Then?"
"I urged the former Alliance Leader not to fall for Chief Strategist Bang Deok-hyeon's schemes and to give up."
This was, of course, the truth. It was the first thing he had said upon meeting the former Alliance Leader.
At his words, Jin Gyun's voice softened slightly. "And what did he say?"
"...He said he would compete with the Vice Alliance Leader."
At those words, veins popped out on Jin Gyun's face. His battle aura began to leak out, making the air feel suffocating. He had already been fueling his fervor, locking himself in his private training hall recently.
"This one, that one... everyone wants a piece of me, it seems."
Sigh. There's no helping it.
It seemed there was no longer any way to stop this three-way battle.
*
At the same time, in the Strategist's Hall building.
The Chief Strategist's office was on the top floor. Chief Strategist Bang Deok-hyeon was looking out the window with a somewhat serious expression.
A middle-aged man with a sharp impression asked him, "...The brat has finally appeared."
"The sole variable."
Bang Deok-hyeon clicked his tongue. He had tried to locate the boy through Bukyeong Doseong Gwak Hyeong-jik, but he had ultimately failed. That meant the other side had also prepared for this situation.
I've met a worthy adversary in my old age.
For the first time in a long while, he felt his blood boil. He could boast that he was second to none in tactics, strategy, and schemes, yet this boy had thwarted him several times. It was like looking at his own disciple, the former Chief Strategist Zhuge Won-myeong. The boy possessed no ordinary intellect.
Just what is he?
He couldn't be certain of the boy's identity. To call him the Sword Immortal's Successor, as that person suspected, his birth and background were too well-documented. There were even too many people who had seen him during his childhood.
Hmm.
Despite such a clear identity, his actions overlapped too much with their own path. That meant, regardless of who he was, he was definitely an obstacle to that person's great work. He had to nip this in the bud once and for all.
The middle-aged man asked, "If things continue like this, it will become a three-way battle. Will that be alright?"
At the question, Chief Strategist Bang Deok-hyeon turned away from the window and spoke. "I must prevent that from happening."
"Do you have a plan?"
"This old man's job is to do exactly that. Do you think I've just been sitting on my hands?"
"You've already foreseen it. As expected of the Thunder Lord."
A strategist must, by nature, look several moves ahead. Naturally, he had a plan prepared in advance for such an event. Whether the boy could evade this move as well remained to be seen.
—What are you going to do?
This was incredibly awkward. I could tell just by looking at Yeong-yeong's expression. She was reacting this way because she knew I had a fiancée. I suspected Seol Baek was up to something, but I didn't expect her to go this far.
I glared at Seol Baek, who was wearing an innocent expression, and let out a deep sigh. I had to draw a firm line right here.
"I think you've misunderstood something. We aren't in any kind of relationship."
At my words, Yeong-yeong looked at me with suspicious eyes and asked, "...Really?"
"Would I lie to you about something like this?"
"I suppose. There's no way Brother would have eyes for another woman when he already has a fiancée."
As she said this, Yeong-yeong was staring at Seol Baek, not me. It was as if she were telling her not to touch someone who was already taken. I don't know when they became so close that she'd take her side, especially after she had been so disappointed to find out Sama Yeong was a woman that she'd almost cried.
Then, Seol Baek said with a bright smile, "That's why I'm working hard to seduce your brother. An engagement is just an engagement, after all."
"!?"
A moment of silence fell over the group. My head wasn't just starting to ache; it was throbbing. Looking at the curve of Seol Baek's smiling eyes, she was clearly enjoying this situation. Yeong-yeong, speechless and appalled, seemed to snap and tried to shout at Seol Baek with a flushed face.
"You fox—mph!"
Namgung Ga-hee covered Yeong-yeong's mouth. As Yeong-yeong struggled to be let go, Namgung Ga-hee warned her in a whisper.
"Yeong-mae. There are many eyes watching."
Yeong-yeong's eyes darted left and right. Just as she said, the gazes of the people around us were all focused here. Realizing this, Yeong-yeong nodded.
I sent a sound transmission to Seol Baek.
[If you don't stop, there will be consequences.]
At my words, Seol Baek shrugged and sent a transmission back.
[She's cute.]
[Cute?]
[She's fun to tease... I'd welcome such a cute sister-in-law anytime.]
With that, she winked at me.
"..."
Welcome, my foot. She spoke as if we were already married. This woman was surprisingly persistent.
—Can you handle a three-hundred-year-old vixen?
Yeah, just as you said, Lesser Conversation Sword, she's no ordinary woman. I suppose it's because of her age.
In any case, there were too many eyes here, so I had to leave quickly. If people started gossiping, I'd just get caught up in unnecessary rumors.
"Let's head inside the fortress for now."
I hurriedly led Yeong-yeong toward the Martial Alliance's gate, but then I saw one group—no, two groups of people approaching.
One of the groups consisted entirely of women. Seeing them, Namgung Ga-hee raised an eyebrow and muttered, "Plum Fragrance Hall."
Plum Fragrance Hall? I had heard of it. Even before my regression, there were five halls in the Martial Alliance made up only of women. Among them, the most prominent were the Phoenix Hall and the Plum Fragrance Hall, and it was common knowledge that their relationship was far from amicable.
This was because the daughters of the Namgung and Moyong families—rivals among the Five Great Families—served as their respective Hall Masters.
Is that woman Moyong Hye?
She seemed to be that bastard's younger sister. Like her brother Moyong Su, her eyes and overall impression were sharp. Of course, she was like a child compared to Baek Hye-hyang.
But what was that other hall? They were wearing uniforms with a pattern similar to tiger skin, a hall uniform I had never seen before. However, I knew who their leader was.
—Isn't that him? The grandson of that old man, the Ardent King Hegemon.
Correct. It seemed to be a newly established hall. Before my regression, neither the Ardent King Hegemon nor Jin Yong were part of the Martial Alliance. Slowly but surely, history was becoming something I didn't recognize.
But why were these two groups approaching as if they had business with me?
Jin Yong strode up and spoke to me. "With what face do you dare show up here!"
He really hadn't changed. From his perspective, it might have been seven months, but regardless of the difference in our abilities, his attitude toward me remained as unchanging as Song Jwa-baek's.
"Hall Master of the Fierce Tiger Hall! What kind of attitude is that toward my brother!" Yeong-yeong snapped at him.
At her words, Jin Yong frowned. Judging by his reaction, he seemed to know that Yeong-yeong was my sister. Belatedly noticing Namgung Ga-hee, the Master of the Phoenix Hall, and her hall member Eon Yeong-in, he gave a light fist-and-palm salute.
"I didn't realize the members of the Phoenix Hall were here as well."
Namgung Ga-hee replied, "I didn't know the Master of the Fierce Tiger Hall was so well-acquainted with Great Hero So."
"Acquainted? Hardly."
Jin Yong snorted in denial and said to me, "Are you here because you're aiming for the Great Leader position?"
I frowned at his words. Did this guy really not know? If so, it seemed Ardent King Hegemon Jin Gyun hadn't even told his own grandson. Then again, this guy didn't exactly look like the type who could keep a secret.
Yeong-yeong smirked at Jin Yong and said, "Heh. Why? Are you worried my brother might apply for the Great Leader candidacy?"
Her tone clearly implied, Are you afraid my brother will become the Great Leader? and Jin Yong's expression twisted fiercely. It seemed he had also registered as a candidate.
"Worried? Who said anything about being worried? Do you think I'd care about the Phoenix Hall's Deputy Master's brother? That position is..."
"Reserved for my brother or Lee Jung-gyeom, the Master of the Azure Dragon Hall."
Someone interrupted. It was Moyong Hye, the Master of the Plum Fragrance Hall. True to her bloodline, she was exalting her brother, Moyong Su.
At this, Namgung Ga-hee said sarcastically, "For the Master of the Plum Fragrance Hall to come all this way personally... despite your words, you must have been worried to hear that Yeong-mae's brother had arrived."
"Worried? Ha! I simply came to see the face of Great Hero So, who has been missing for seven months."
With those words, Moyong Hye gave me a fist-and-palm salute. If I were just So Woon-hwi, I would have accepted the greeting regardless of who it was in such a public place, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. Not with the burning glares Namgung Ga-hee and Yeong-yeong were giving her. They really seemed to get along terribly.
When I didn't return the greeting, Moyong Hye's expression soured slightly, and she spoke loudly for everyone to hear.
"For someone who even turned down the position of Vice Alliance Leader to suddenly covet the lower rank of Great Leader and apply for candidacy... wouldn't that be the most amusing thing? Don't you agree?"
Now I understood Moyong Hye's goal. She had come outside the fortress specifically to incite public opinion. She was using this ploy to prevent me from even thinking about running for the Great Leader position.
"You!"
Just as Yeong-yeong was about to lose her temper at the scheme—
"Ahahahaha!"
Suddenly, Seol Baek burst out laughing, clutching her stomach. Moyong Hye, displeased by her behavior, glared at her with sharp eyes.
"Who are you to laugh like that?"
At the question, Seol Baek didn't even look at her and spoke to me instead. "What are we doing, getting caught up in a children's squabble?"
"Children?"
Moyong Hye's face twisted hideously at those words. Feeling insulted in front of so many onlookers, she even placed her hand on the hilt of the sword at her waist.
"I find it hard to let those words slide."
Seol Baek gave her a cold, mocking smile. "Child. If you don't take your hand off that hilt, you'll regret it."
How could she let that pass?
"How dare you!"
The moment Moyong Hye tried to draw her sword—
Seol Baek was suddenly behind her, making a motion as if she were gripping her throat. Everyone, including Namgung Ga-hee, Eon Yeong-in, and Yeong-yeong, was stunned. Jin Yong was no exception. With their level of skill, they couldn't perceive Seol Baek's movements at all.
"Hall Master!"
The members of the Plum Fragrance Hall were startled and tried to draw their weapons. Seol Baek gave them a light glare. There was no way they could withstand the pressure released by an absolute master of her caliber.
'!!!'
The members of the Plum Fragrance Hall trembled, unable to move a muscle. Moyong Hye, her face filled with tension, asked, "Wh... who are you?"
Seol Baek leaned in and whispered into her ear. "You don't need to know that. Just know that he isn't a man whose name you can take so lightly. Do you understand? Child."
The overwhelming difference in power. Feeling the intense pressure radiating from her, Moyong Hye found herself nodding involuntarily.
Seol Baek had cleanly settled the situation. Looking at her, Yeong-yeong whispered to me in a voice filled with awe.
"Where did you find a sister like her?"
...Why are you suddenly calling her 'sister'?