Chapter 242: Old Rat (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 242: Old Rat (2)
The bleak darkness of the night was unexpectedly illuminated by the raging flames consuming the forest.
Pull!
The assassin tried to wrench his arm free, but he couldn't escape his enemy's iron grip.
This bastard…?
He hadn't used his full strength yet, but a cold certainty told him that even if he did, breaking free would not be easy. This realization unnerved him.
I… to a young bastard like him?
Shock coursed through him. He had lived his life in the shadows as an assassin, but he still carried the proud orange blood of the Hwangbo Clan. He should not be overpowered by a mere kid who hadn't even lived a quarter of his life.
But then why is this happening…!
The situation sent a flurry of thoughts through his mind. Beyond the sheer surprise of being caught, he was burning with curiosity. Why had this kid chased him all the way here?
Standing idle was not an option. Gazing into the kid's crimson eyes, the assassin slowly spoke, feigning ignorance. "…I'm not sure what you are on about."
His initial plan had been to intimidate the boy into silence, but that plan was already crumbling. He wondered if such a simple approach was even possible against this opponent.
It’s impossible.
Assassins were specialists in eliminating targets stronger than themselves. It was often they who achieved what the martial world called miracles—a First-rate artist slaying a Peak Realm master. Of course, that required setting a trap and striking from the shadows. In a direct confrontation of equal skill, an assassin's defeat was almost unheard of, especially in an advantageous environment like a dark forest.
"I just…" he began, but Gu Yangcheon cut him off, his voice dripping with annoyance.
"You don't know anything about this?" The True Dragon's expression darkened. The glow of his radiant red eyes, combined with the surrounding flames and his ferocious demeanor, made him look like a demon incarnate. "There is no way a martial artist on the front lines would be unaware that this is the territory of the Gu Clan."
"I just took a wrong turn, that's all."
"Oh, is that so? Quite the coincidence for a martial artist from the Hwangbo Clan to find themselves here, at this time of night."
Cold sweat trickled down the assassin's back. How does he know I'm from the Hwangbo Clan? He fought to keep his face a mask of calm. "…I'm not sure what you are talking about."
"Enough of the act," Gu Yangcheon scoffed. "I can't not know. Your qi has that peculiar, rough texture unique to your clan."
"I'm not from the Hwangbo Clan."
"Nor is it as harmonious as the Peng Clan's. Ah, that must be why the Hwangbo Clan isn't counted among the Four Noble Clans."
"…"
"See? Your expression rotted as soon as I compared your clan to the Peng Clan."
Oh. The assassin let out a silent sigh, mentally kicking himself. He had made an unnecessary mistake, his composure cracked by an unexpected insult. Perhaps he had been away from fieldwork for too long.
"What an amusing child you are…" he muttered.
Gu Yangcheon's brow furrowed, his displeasure evident. "Amusing my ass. Why are you acting all innocent after attempting to do something nasty in the middle of the night?"
"You have a very rough mouth for a noble scion. Do you know how many years this old man has worked in the Central Plains?"
"So what? Do you want me to show respect to you?"
Clench.
The pressure on the assassin's arm intensified as the grip tightened. "You ask for respect when you're the one skulking about in the night. One might think age would bring wisdom and grace, yet it seems you've only rotted."
"You bastard…!"
"To be fair," Gu Yangcheon said, a mocking smirk playing on his lips, stopping the assassin's retort cold. "Both the bastard who snitched embarrassingly after being beaten up and the one who came here at night after hearing about it look equally dumb as hell."
The assassin's anger finally boiled over. He could no longer contain his fury and began to gather his Inner Qi.
I have to kill him.
He knew the kid was extremely powerful for a prodigy. Not only had he broken through his wall at a young age, but the fact that he had caught up while concealing his presence indicated a level far beyond a mere talented youth.
However…
In the end, it didn't matter.
In an instant, the assassin's arm, previously grasped by Gu Yangcheon, slipped free as if greased, escaping effortlessly. Gu Yangcheon's eyes widened in surprise, but by then, the assassin had already vanished into the shadows.
Night is my domain.
For those who had lived as assassins for decades, the darkness was their own world. Merging with the shadows was second nature. The flames brightened the clearing, but shadows were omnipresent.
You will regret this.
The assassin was determined to make the kid regret his insults toward the Hwangbo Clan. Concealed in the darkness, his eyes glinted ominously. The kid stood still, slowly scanning his surroundings.
I was told not to kill him, but I have no other choice anymore.
The assassin began to move, erasing his presence, silencing his very being. He became one with the darkness, stealthily advancing toward Gu Yangcheon from behind. Toying with the kid without killing him was proving too difficult, a notion that wounded his pride. He felt humiliated that he, an assassin who had reached the Fusion Realm, couldn't easily handle a mere child. But such thoughts no longer mattered; all he desired was to erase this bastard from existence.
This bastard is dangerous.
The decision to kill Gu Yangcheon was fueled by the insults, but also by a chilling realization of the boy's limitless talent.
This bastard’s sky has no limit.
The world had many geniuses—the monster from the Peng Clan, the Sleeping Dragon from Wudang Sect—but facing this kid, the assassin knew he was the most dangerous of them all. Furthermore, if Gu Yangcheon saw the Hwangbo Clan as an enemy, it was better to eliminate him before he grew untouchable. In this regard, the assassin felt a grim satisfaction that he was the one sent to deal with this threat.
I should demand bigger compensation from the Young Master.
He mused, gathering his Inner Qi. The dagger in his hand swirled with sharp, lethal energy, aimed directly for Gu Yangcheon's heart. The strike was perfectly timed, undetectable.
But just as the blade was about to make contact.
Smack-!
"…!"
The assassin almost screamed. Gu Yangcheon had spun around in an instant, seizing his arm once again.
"What…?"
Crack-!
The sound of cracking bones echoed. He realized instantly his wrist had shattered.
"H…How?"
Even through the intense pain shooting up his arm, the assassin's mind was consumed by a single question: How had he been detected? He hadn't been close enough to be noticed, and there shouldn't have been time to react.
"How could I not know," Gu Yangcheon's voice was cold, "when you were clearly visible?"
"What?" Confusion flashed across the assassin's face, but the look was short-lived.
Slam!
Gu Yangcheon’s fist connected squarely with his face.
"Ughh…!"
With a jarring impact, the assassin's head whipped back. He tried to dodge, but his arm was still firmly caught. The force of the blow sent his consciousness reeling; the damage was far more severe than he had anticipated.
Drip…! Dribble…
Barely managing to move his head, blood and several broken teeth fell from his mouth.
"Ugghh…"
This had become dangerous.
Something has gone very wrong.
His instincts screamed in alarm.
My body isn’t… listening…
Yet he found himself trapped, his body unresponsive. The blow was serious, but it shouldn't have shut him down so completely. Something else was wrong.
"…Ugh…"
Struggling, he managed to raise his head to gaze at Gu Yangcheon. Even in the darkness, the boy's eyes shone with a radiant, malevolent light.
"You… bastard…! You used… poison?"
"Poison?" Gu Yangcheon tilted his head, then nodded as if conceding a point. "Ah, I guess you could call it that. You could call it a poison, I suppose."
Poison I see…
At last, it made sense. Being poisoned would explain why his body was betraying him. But when? How? He had immunities to most poisons. Only a legend from the Tang Clan could poison him so effortlessly. But it didn't matter anymore. Gasping for air, the assassin pleaded, "Let me… live…"
Begging for his life was now his only priority.
Gu Yangcheon laughed, the sound absurd and cold. "Fast on giving up, huh? I expected you to growl a little more."
If he was poisoned and couldn't escape, his life was all that mattered. The idealized death—biting a hidden pill or enduring torture for the clan—was a farce he wanted no part of. His loyalty to the clan had died long ago; he only desired to live out his days as a respected Elder.
Which was why I accepted the Young Master’s request…!
It was supposed to be a final mission to secure his honor and position, to erase his past as an assassin. He never expected this.
Gu Yangcheon remained impassive, his demeanor bordering on annoyance. "Why are you humiliating yourself like this?"
"Brother Gu… No, Young Master Gu, I… I’ll tell you everything… who ordered me. If you want, I could even… Upf!"
The assassin's mouth was silenced by Gu Yangcheon's hand. It wasn't particularly large, but to the assassin, it felt immense.
"I already know who gave the order," Gu Yangcheon said flatly. "Nor do I need any proof. We aren't living in a world where such things matter, right?"
Blaze
"Ufgh… Ufh!" Heat emanated from Gu Yangcheon's palm. The assassin tried to cry out, but no sound escaped.
Blaze-!
Flames erupted from the hand, enveloping the assassin's face and body.
"Urrghh!!"
His attempts to resist were feeble; he lacked even the strength to struggle properly. The flames raged until his life was extinguished. As his meaningless resistance ceased, the flames instantly vanished. All that remained in Gu Yangcheon's palm was a clump of ash that bore no resemblance to a human being.
Rustle
Loosening his grip, he let the ashes scatter to the ground. As he shook his hand clean, a thought occurred to him.
"Oh."
Right. He'd forgotten to ask for the man's name.
"…Maybe it doesn't matter that much?" It was probably Hwangbo Something anyway.
Bending down, Gu Yangcheon pulled a small, unburnt token from the charred remains and tucked it into his pocket. After a brief, indifferent glance at the corpse, he turned and walked back the way he came. Leaving the body here was fine. Demons would soon arrive to devour it, leaving not even a trace behind. That was the nature of the forest on the front lines.
* * *
While Gu Yangcheon was briefly away, Bi Yeonsum was enduring an excruciatingly awkward situation. The tension was so thick he felt he might suffocate.
Please… save me.
He sat statue-still, back rigid, eyes fixed forward, yet his entire attention was focused on the girl beside him. She sat perfectly still, gazing toward the forest.
Glance.
Bi Yeonsum risked a fleeting glance and gulped.
She’s… so unbelievably pretty.
The girl's beauty made it hard for him to breathe. Her white hair seemed to shine with a light of its own under the moonlight, and her distant blue eyes transformed the atmosphere around her into something dreamlike. When he had seen the Snow Phoenix, he'd wondered how a person could be so beautiful, but the woman before him now surpassed that entirely. He wondered if she could even be called human.
This person is the Sword Dancer…
He knew of her. The Sword Dancer, Namgung Bi-ah. A martial artist who had appeared unexpectedly in the Dragons and Phoenixes Tournament, and the older sister of the Lightning Dragon. She had been defeated by the Meteor Sword, the son of the Murim Alliance Leader, but during her fights, she moved with such grace she seemed to be dancing with her blade, a sight engraved in the memory of all who saw it, earning her the title Sword Dancer.
Bi Yeonsum, who had left his clan in shame after his own poor showing in the tournament, hadn't gotten a proper look at her then. Seeing her now, she was far beyond his expectations.
Not just her beauty, but her martial skills as well.
The single strike she had executed earlier, cleaving the forest before them, was shocking. It seemed almost unreal. Of course, a master swordsman was capable of such feats, but Bi Yeonsum felt a pang of shame that Namgung Bi-ah possessed such power despite being his age.
Along with the shame came envy—envy directed at Gu Yangcheon. Because this incredibly beautiful and powerful girl was his fiancée.
How long had Bi Yeonsum been stealing glances, a mixture of awe and envy swirling inside him? Namgung Bi-ah was so quiet she seemed not even to breathe.
Rustle.
Suddenly, she stood up, her pretty lips parting as she looked forward. "…Where… were you?"
"Pardon…?" Bi Yeonsum, puzzled, thought she was speaking to him and answered hesitantly.
"There was just a rat."
Another voice chimed in before Bi Yeonsum could continue. Gu Yangcheon emerged from the bushes, his face looking more exhausted than before.
"…Rat…?"
"Yeah, a pretty big one."
Bi Yeonsum was confused. A rat? Why would Gu Yangcheon feel the need to hunt a rat?
Namgung Bi-ah, also seeming lost in thought, asked softly, "…Are you okay?"
What was she asking about? Bi Yeonsum didn't understand. Was Gu Yangcheon scared of rats? The whole situation was incomprehensible.
Gu Yangcheon smiled at her words—a smile so unsettling that Bi Yeonsum instinctively recoiled. "Why wouldn't I be okay? I just stepped out for a bit."
"…"
He responded casually, but Namgung Bi-ah's expression showed she wasn't satisfied. Gu Yangcheon, noticing her look, made a slightly conflicted face.
"Stop making such an expression, I'm really fine."
After his brief response, Gu Yangcheon turned his gaze toward Bi Yeonsum. Startled by the sudden eye contact, Bi Yeonsum flinched, feeling an unexpected wave of intimidation. He worried his reaction was too obvious, but Gu Yangcheon didn't seem to care.
"Hey."
"Y-Yes!"
"Let's head back now."
Bi Yeonsum's eyes widened. "Huh…? But we still have some time until the sun rises." They were supposed to stay until dawn.
Gu Yangcheon, rubbing his neck wearily, responded, "I found a good excuse to go back to the camp."
Excuse? Bi Yeonsum cocked his head, utterly puzzled by what Gu Yangcheon meant.