Chapter 241: Old Rat (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 241: Old Rat (1)
The Heavenly Dragon Academy.
An institution founded after the Blood Demon's calamity, dedicated to training swordsmen to combat demons. The academy meticulously recorded every demon's appearance, characteristics, weaknesses, and methods to counter them. This knowledge was freely available to all students, with dedicated instructors teaching these subjects.
It sounded impressive on the surface, but…
Well, it’s not exactly a bad place…
Given that the Central Plains now saw more conflicts between martial artists and demons than internal squabbles, such education was undoubtedly useful.
But did I really need to go there?
If you came from a clan, it was always better to learn your martial arts at home. Those without that privilege couldn’t even dream of attending such an academy. It was a place for the self-sufficient, meaning only those with powerful backgrounds could enter. Without an invitation, you couldn't go; even with one, failing to meet specific criteria barred your entry. In short, only scions of noble clans or their direct relatives could attend.
But noble clan members are already trained to fight demons within their own families.
Furthermore, the Heavenly Dragon Academy wasn't the only institution of its kind. There were already two in Shanxi alone, with several others established in each region under the Murim Alliance's approval.
So why did so many still clamor to attend the Heavenly Dragon Academy, despite the alternatives?
…Honor and connections. Obviously.
They say the most important thing in life is building a network. For a noble clan member, those connections were paramount. Graduating from the greatest institution allowed one to forge powerful alliances and learn the ways of politics—proof of the academy's multifaceted purpose. Its importance was such that even my father, who was usually indifferent to such matters, sent all his children there.
If it were up to me, remembering the trouble Gu Huibi caused, I wouldn't send another soul there.
But Father, appearing utterly unconcerned, dispatched us all as if it were nothing. Being born into a noble clan meant you didn't have a choice. This was especially true if you were destined to become the Young Lord.
…My initial plan was to run away.
After my regression, I had intended to flee before the academy opened. Yet, somehow, I ended up in a situation where escape was impossible.
I dug this grave myself, so I have no right to complain.
But since things have turned out this way, I might as well retrieve that item from the basement.
It wasn't meant to be discovered until after the Heavenly Demon's appearance, so taking it early shouldn't cause any major problems, right? I knew it wasn't entirely right, but I convinced myself it was acceptable.
"...What's… wrong?"
Noticing my restlessness, Namgung Bi-ah, who was leaning against me, opened her eyes and asked softly.
"Nothing. I was just thinking about something annoying."
What was I to do? The Heavenly Dragon Academy could bind me for up to two years, a year at minimum. For other young elites, it might be a holiday or a family reunion, but to me, it was a sheer waste of time.
How useful could their knowledge really be?
I wished I could just take what I needed and leave. Of course, I wasn't out of options. Far from it. It was just extremely bothersome.
Tsk.
Putting that concern aside, another question nagged at me.
Why is it opening so early?
The Heavenly Dragon Academy didn't open every year like the Dragons and Phoenixes Tournament. It opened only at specific times, and I was certain there was still time before the next session.
It should at least be winter…
Ah.
As I pondered, I glanced at Namgung Bi-ah leaning on me and realized the reason.
"Is it because of the engagement ceremony?"
The ceremony at the Namgung Clan in Anhui, which I planned to hold after finishing my business at the frontlines, seemed to have influenced this decision.
I guess they can't delay the ceremony any longer.
"...Hmm."
I looked at Namgung Bi-ah with a complex expression. It wasn't reluctance about the engagement—it was far too late for that, and circumstances had changed too much.
"...Now that I think about it."
Wasn't she supposed to attend the academy too? This thought suddenly struck me. In my previous life, Namgung Bi-ah never went. Which made sense; if someone like her had attended, she would have inevitably become famous. Whether due to her beauty or talent, stories about her would have spread far and wide.
Considering her age, the time for her to attend had already passed.
Namgung Bi-ah turned twenty this year. She was easily old enough to have attended the last time the academy opened.
Did the Namgung Clan delay it?
More accurately, they never sent her at all, as she didn't attend in my previous life. Looking back now, it seemed strange. At the time, I wasn't too concerned about her future notoriety or her clan's downfall. No sane person would join the Demonic Cult, and when a martial artist from the Orthodox Sects defected, it often led to their clan's destruction. Her case was only surprising because she was from one of the Four Noble Clans.
I wonder what happened to her.
What did the girl now leaning against my shoulder, with her eyes closed, experience in her past life to drive her insane and slaughter her own bloodline? For the first time, I felt curious.
Even though, in my past life, I wasn't curious about any of this.
I'd been forced to stay by her side whether I liked it or not, yet I'd never wondered about the life of the Demonic Sword Queen. I suppose my own life was miserable enough; I didn't need to delve into another's tragedy.
After staring at Namgung Bi-ah for a moment, I shifted my gaze to the moon in the night sky. It was neither full nor a crescent, but halted midway to fullness, shining brightly.
What kind of life did you live?
I felt a twinge of regret for never asking her that question when I had the chance.
After a moment of moon-gazing, I deliberately coughed.
Here I am, rambling again.
It was pointless. Nothing but useless rumination. Digging up buried memories and dwelling on them was the epitome of futility.
"You should wake up as well and… Huh?"
I started to rouse Namgung Bi-ah, but she, who had been dozing on my shoulder, had already awakened at some point and was staring intently ahead.
"...What are you doing?"
"…"
I called out to her in confusion, but she continued to gaze forward without response.
Ssss…
Simultaneously, I felt Namgung Bi-ah's combat qi begin to surge.
Zap
"...Uwh!?"
Bi Yeonsum, who had been silent beside me, flinched at her sudden release of Lightning Qi.
"What are you doing all of a sudden…!"
I tried asking again, but Namgung Bi-ah seemed not to hear me. In an instant, she drew her sword and swung it forward.
Cddddk!
"Uggck!"
Her sword qi, enhanced with Lightning Qi, slashed through the surrounding trees. A single swing felled dozens of trunks, clearing a large swath of forest. It was a clear demonstration of how much she had improved.
"Hey! What's with this sudden outburst in the middle of the night!"
I couldn't understand her reaction. I checked our surroundings, thinking a demon might be nearby, but I detected no presence. It didn't make sense for her to notice a demon before I did anyway. Perhaps she'd had a nightmare?
I looked at her with that thought, but she responded without turning her head, still staring ahead.
"...A stench."
"There was a stench…"
A stench? Following her comment, I sniffed the air.
"What stench? I can't smell anything."
If I had to describe it, I mostly smelled the forest—the grass and the earth. Ironically, for a forest infested with demons, the night air carried a pleasant, earthy fragrance.
"…"
Namgung Bi-ah didn't respond. Then, still looking forward, she tilted her head slightly.
"...Was it… a mistake?"
"What did you just say, you brat?"
She calls it a mistake after suddenly leaping up and cutting down all the trees around us? As I stared at her speechlessly, her face returned to its usual expressionless mask. She sat back down in her original spot.
Tap tap
She tapped the ground, signaling for me to sit beside her again.
"...How absurd, seriously."
I couldn't help but let out a wry smirk. When I sat down, she immediately leaned against my shoulder and closed her eyes, as if nothing had happened. The quiet of the night settled around us once more.
Brrr..
Bi Yeonsum, however, was trembling violently, clearly terrified by Namgung Bi-ah's sudden actions. He seemed more scared than surprised…
I'm sure he'll be fine on his own.
I didn't need to worry about him too much.
Also…
I glanced in the direction Namgung Bi-ah had swung her sword. Clumsy as she might appear—and she was clumsy—when it came to this, she was exceptionally sharp and sensitive. Her instincts and sensory perception as a martial artist were extremely high.
Had I been wrong? When I claimed my senses were far superior to hers.
Clench
Leaving the dozing Namgung Bi-ah and the trembling Bi Yeonsum behind, I subtly intensified my qi.
Drop
The qi spreading from my Middle Dantian merged with the breeze. I carefully controlled the faint energy, extending it beyond the felled trees.
* * *
Tap
Under the cover of darkness, a mysterious figure flitted rapidly through the forest, stepping lightly on tree branches. Despite his swift, restless movements, the assassin's mind was a whirlwind of complicated thoughts.
How bewildering.
That sword attack the girl had unleashed. Remembering the brutal yet perfectly controlled qi, cold sweat trickled down his back.
…Her Lightning Qi was unmistakably from the Namgung Clan.
He had been initially stunned by the girl's beauty, but witnessing her detect his presence and swing her sword shocked him a second time. After putting a considerable distance between them, the assassin stopped to gather his thoughts.
This is truly strange.
He was more confident in his ability to conceal his presence and hide in plain sight than anyone else. In the past, this very talent had allowed him to escape numerous emergencies and eventually rise to become an Elder of a clan.
And I was almost caught by a young girl.
He felt a mix of dejection and shock. It was surprising enough for someone her age to break through to the Peak Realm, but this was something else entirely. His presence shouldn't have been detectable, yet the girl seemed to have sensed him somehow.
Though it felt less like she noticed me directly…
The sensation was different, but the result was the same.
This almighty Ghostly Dark Tiger was… caught by a martial artist barely twenty years old.
The feeling was more eerie than shocking.
I accepted this mission gladly, as it was the Young Master's request…
The current blood relatives of the Lord were usually reluctant to ask favors, given the future obligations it entailed. A request now would mean repaying the debt later, likely when the Young Master became the Young Lord, or even the Clan Lord one day.
I didn't expect him to come to me, of all people.
Considering his profession as an assassin, his existence was a stain on the Hwangbo Clan's reputation as an Orthodox Sect. Yet the Young Master had approached him kindly, requesting his help and even offering to help erase his past misdeeds. That was why the assassin had accepted such a seemingly trivial task.
I didn't think intimidating some young prodigy would be difficult.
It wasn't even an assassination. Just scaring a young talent into silence, crushing their spirit with a little pressure—it should have been easy, especially in the chaos of the frontlines where no one would notice.
But an unexpected problem arose.
The assassin had only come to scout, not to act.
The girl sensing me is one thing…
The bigger problem was the True Dragon the Young Master had spoken of. The assassin had wondered how formidable he must be to have defeated the Young Master and his escorts.
…But I can't see it.
He couldn't perceive the depth or nature of the True Dragon's power. Unlike the girl, whose breakthrough he could sense, the young man was an complete enigma just by looking at him.
"...Such a thing shouldn't be possible."
This implied one of two things: either the True Dragon was exceptionally skilled at concealing and controlling his qi to a degree even the assassin couldn't penetrate, or his level was simply higher.
The assassin laughed dismissively as the absurd thought crossed his mind.
"Ha, I must be going senile in my old age."
There was no way a boy could hide his qi and presence from him. The second possibility was even more impossible.
My skills must be rusty—it's been years since my last job.
It was understandable that his dormant abilities might lead to a mistake.
"...I should go back and find a better opportuni-"
"Well, obviously the cam-"
A voice sounded from behind. The assassin's eyes widened, and he swung his fist without hesitation, moving with the speed of the wind, qi erupting around his arm.
Cwak!
But his arm was caught firmly before the blow could land.
Swoosh!
The qi surrounding his arm dissipated uselessly into the air as a gust of wind.
"How did you…"
The assassin broke into a cold sweat as he stared at the person holding his arm. The young man, meanwhile, wore an easygoing expression.
"I doubt an old man like you is out for a stroll this late at night."
Crack
Increasing pressure began to crush the assassin's captured arm.
…You…!
The force was far stronger than he had anticipated. Then, the young man's dark eyes, fixed on the bewildered assassin, began to glow with a dense, radiant red light that was almost frightening. As a light smile played on the young man's lips and a violent qi emanated from him, the assassin knew something was terribly wrong.
The young man asked a question, his voice deceptively calm.
"What does the Old Rat of the Hwangbo Clan have to do with me?"
As he spoke, an engulfing flame began to rise around them.