Shaking the Foundations (5)
The young man gripped the dagger in an odd hold, as if it were caught or merely draped across his palm. His eyes were utterly dark. 'It didn't reach.' The blade was razor-sharp.
Appropriate thickness, appropriate length, an appropriately decent handle. It wasn't something one saw every day, but neither was it worth a fortune. At least, not on the surface. 'I should have driven this into that bastard's body. Then he wouldn't have survived, no matter what.'
The Twin-Headed Poison Daggers. After regaining his memories, Sama Hyeon had spent the past three years honing this unique assassination technique solely to kill the Shadow God.
In truth, it was less a formal martial art and more Sama Hyeon's personal method, devised exclusively to slay the Shadow God.
Against the Shadow God, who had mastered both the Yin-Flower Crimson Flow and the Yin-Cold White Flow to their peak, no poison worked except the Tang Clan's Formless Poison. A direct confrontation offered no chance of victory, and assassination was even more impossible. That left only hoping for a natural disaster or dreaming that someone else would kill him.
Sama Hyeon could not wait that long. He wanted revenge with his own hands.
That was why he had poured three years of blood and sweat into creating the Twin-Headed Poison Daggers. Since ordinary deadly poisons had no effect, he had synthesized a compound toxin that amplified its potency, temporarily reducing the target's life force to near nothingness.
If he had known the complete manufacturing method for the Shadow God's hereditary ultimate poison, the Death Flower Mark, he would never have needed such a roundabout approach. But the Shadow God, his master and a spy of the Saeum Sect, had never shared that information.
To be recognized as the Shadow God, one had to master several secret arts. Sama Hyeon had learned most of them on his own, yet he had only grasped seventy percent of the Death Flower Mark's formula. That was why he had forged a dagger meant not for a single strike, but for a guaranteed kill from a distance. A lethal secret art that ensured the target's death.
'Damn it.' Sama Hyeon gritted his teeth without realizing it. 'I should have held back.'
He recalled that moment. The instant Yeon Hojeong's chain had shot toward Yayul Jeok at terrifying speed.
Though his own cultivation was lower than theirs, Sama Hyeon had known. He had sensed it instinctively. Yayul Jeok had known how to deflect Yeon Hojeong's attack. Regardless of whether it would have worked, he had already been prepared for it.
Moreover, Yayul Jeok had been planning to flee. That was something Sama Hyeon could tell because he had watched only Yayul Jeok from the beginning of the fight until the end.
The escape of his mortal enemy. Sama Hyeon could not endure it.
If he missed this chance, he would never catch him again. Instead, once Yayul Jeok recovered, he would come to assassinate him. And Sama Hyeon could never block the Shadow God's ambush. Therefore, everything had to be settled right there.
Grind.
Sama Hyeon closed his eyes. 'No.' He reproached himself. 'Perhaps all of that was just my imagination.'
He knew the Shadow God well. Especially after the Soul-Subduing Art had been broken, he had watched his every move, studying his words, actions, and habits. But what if the Shadow God had been deceiving him all along? What if his outward appearance was entirely fabricated, not just for Sama Hyeon's sake, but for the world to see?
That would be impossible for an ordinary person. But not for the Shadow God. Setting everything else aside, the man had claimed to be a spy dispatched from an unknown foreign group into the Central Plains. That meant he excelled at hiding and concealing things more than anyone. The fact that he had even used the Soul-Subduing Art on him suggested he possessed several abilities Sama Hyeon did not know about.
'In the end, the fact that I made the situation worse remains unchanged.'
Thud.
The dagger slipped from his hand and embedded itself in the ground. It was a blade he had sharpened day after day without rest. It was so sharp that even though he had not thrown it, merely let it fall naturally, half the blade sank into the earth. It showed just how fiercely Sama Hyeon had lived for that single opportunity.
"What are you doing?"
Sama Hyeon flinched and turned his head. Yeon Hojeong stood there.
"I knew you were a gloomy bastard from the first time we met, but I didn't think you were the type to wallow in misery alone."
Sama Hyeon stared at Yeon Hojeong in silence. Yeon Hojeong's face showed no particular expression. It was close to expressionless, yet it did not feel cold or indifferent.
After a moment, Sama Hyeon spoke. "Has the time come?"
"What time?"
"Because of me, you lost your target. Furthermore, your subordinate is hovering between life and death."
"So?"
"You've come to kill me."
Yeon Hojeong thought to himself. This man's personality really did not suit that of an assassin. An ordinary assassin would only care about missing the target, not about a subordinate being injured.
Beyond innate nature, anyone living in such an environment would have no choice but to be that way. Yet Sama Hyeon understood Yeon Hojeong's anger and self-reproach over nearly losing his subordinate. Understanding others began with empathy. Contrary to his words, Sama Hyeon was someone who knew how to look after his own people.
"If you thought I would do that, why were you waiting here?"
"Because it's dangerous wherever I go right now."
The corner of Yeon Hojeong's mouth lifted. An expression had appeared, but still nothing could be felt from it.
"Worried Yayul Jeok might launch an ambush?"
"Yes."
Yeon Hojeong shook his head. "No need to worry about that. At least not for the time being."
"Why is that?"
"The Martial Alliance is after him. They even had a proper fight. Do you really think a small fry like you is still on his mind?"
"……!"
"Overinflated ego? Or has failing at revenge narrowed your vision? Right now, he's desperate to reclaim his destroyed main base. You're not even on his radar."
"……"
Sama Hyeon's expression did not change. He merely watched Yeon Hojeong with slightly trembling eyes.
"And I have no intention of killing you either."
"Why not?"
"Why not?"
"Aren't you angry? Because of me, you lost him."
"I am angry. I was furious with you too."
"Then why?"
"If getting angry meant killing anyone and everyone, that would make me a reckless murderer, wouldn't it? Though my enemies might see me that way."
"……Rather than that, why not just slap me across the face?"
"Want to feel better?"
"……"
"You're not in any state for a proper conversation. But I'm busy, so I'll have to force your mind awake."
"What do you mean?"
Yeon Hojeong crossed his arms, making a show of it.
"Am I angry? Yes. I was very angry with you too. But the one I'm most angry with isn't you. It's myself."
Sama Hyeon's eyes deepened.
"Yourself?"
"Anger at my own incompetence for failing to block even a surprise attack from a brat like you. Anger at myself for being foolish enough not to anticipate the movements of someone as easy to read as you."
"……!"
"In the end, it was my mistake. I knew you were an amateur, yet I was so caught up in my own growth that I failed to account for it. A painful error."
Sama Hyeon's eyes trembled slightly.
Yeon Hojeong continued. "In the same sense, while one could say my subordinate was injured because of you, the greatest fault lies with me for failing to properly inform my subordinate about you."
"It wasn't because of me?"
"It was because of you. And because of me as well. What matters is which part I feel greater responsibility for."
"……"
"If you feel even the slightest bit of remorse, apologize to my subordinate later. That will be enough for me."
"He may not be your subordinate."
"That's your business, and his."
"……"
"I'll say one more thing. Don't look down on my subordinate so lightly. He may act like an idiot sometimes, but his capacity is far greater than a small fry like you who doesn't even know how to wait for the right moment for revenge. He wouldn't even understand why you're apologizing."
Sama Hyeon's face twisted slightly.
"I'm not sorry to your subordinate. We were never comrades to begin with. You simply ordered him to protect me on your own."
"So what?"
"……"
"If you're not sorry, then don't apologize. A fake apology full of pretense only serves to mock the other person."
"Are you really saying you don't hate me?"
"Do you want me to hate you? Should I kill you right now, then?"
"……"
"I don't care what's confusing you. What's important is now. If you bear no hostility toward me, I won't care whether you follow me or not. But I refuse to have someone tagging along who offers no help whatsoever."
Sama Hyeon, who had been gazing up at Yeon Hojeong, pulled the dagger from the ground, wiped it clean, and tucked it away.
"What do you want to know from me?"
"All information about Night Castle."
"……"
"Currently, Yayul Jeok—your master and enemy, the Shadow God—is stationed near Night Castle with nine hundred elite assassins."
For an instant, fire ignited in Sama Hyeon's eyes. His mortal enemy, whom he had nearly lost forever, was stationed near Night Castle. That fact breathed new life into his previously despondent heart.
At the same time, he felt puzzled. 'Near Night Castle…… Why on earth?' Stationing meant lining up assassins like soldiers, waiting for the moment to attack. That was not a tactic an assassin would normally employ.
Assassins always assumed the worst. It was standard practice to prepare secondary and tertiary safe houses in case the main base was raided. Naturally, the Shadow God Yayul Jeok had hidden numerous safe houses throughout Guangdong.
Yeon Hojeong's gaze darkened.
"Doesn't it seem strange? There's no need for that. If anything, he should be hiding more thoroughly, yet he's openly summoning forces and targeting us—targeting Night Castle."
"……Strange indeed."
"It's because of the Saeum Sect."
"……?!"
"He's a spy for the Saeum Sect. And he needs to report the current situation to his main headquarters. Whether as a spy or whatever else, anyone operating in foreign territory has a duty to immediately report any drastic changes in the situation. That's the same for any organization, whether in the Central Plains or beyond."
"Are you saying that man is trying to reclaim his main base to contact the Saeum Sect or whatever it's called?"
"Even if not to reclaim it entirely, he has a reason to stop by at least once. I believe it's to send information to the Saeum Sect."
"……No."
"What?"
Sama Hyeon shook his head. "That reason may exist, of course. But that's not all. He wouldn't do something so reckless for just that one reason."
Yeon Hojeong's expression grew serious.
"Then what do you think? Why do you believe he's trying to reclaim his main base?"
"To contact the Saeum Sect…… and at the same time……"
"At the same time?"
Sama Hyeon unconsciously touched his lips.
"If the situation involves fleeing…… losses…… evaporated forces and falling behind in information warfare……"
"……"
"It's war."
"What?"
Sama Hyeon's eyes gleamed.
"He's preparing for war."
"……War with us?"
"Not the kind of war you think of. A shadow war that only assassins can wage."
"……!"
"And if my prediction is correct…… he has already infiltrated Night Castle."
Yeon Hojeong's face turned grim.
"We'll talk details later. Let's move. Hurry."