Chapter 41: Shadow Corps-2
Chapter 41: Shadow Corps-2
It was a night when the pale waxing moon cast deep shadows over the jungle.
Sak Mu-heun, the squad leader of the Shadow Unit's Fourth Squad and a man regarded as the finest warrior among all former Shadow Unit members, was waiting in the jungle for his target to arrive.
The target was a woman named Cheongyeon, a member of the Seventh Squad of the Flying Dragon Thirteen Squads.
Today was the day he was to kill her.
Of course, he had no way of knowing what crime she had committed to deserve death. And in truth, he did not want to know either.
Because if she was a woman currently serving on the frontlines, the chances were high that this would be an unjust death.
But once the order had been given, there was no helping it.
They had no choice in the matter.
[If you disobey an order and are killed for it, you have no right to feel wronged.]
That was the content of the oath they had written when joining the Shadow Unit.
So once you had set foot in this place, you had no choice but to follow orders, even just to survive.
If there was one comfort for Sak Mu-heun, it was the fact that he only had to endure this life for one more year before it ended.
In one year, when he finally completed ten years of service, he would at last be able to step out into the light.
As he always did, Sak Mu-heun steeled his resolve before the mission.
'I will endure one more year without fail, and stand proudly before that person.'
Having fortified his heart as if it were a pre-battle ritual, Sak Mu-heun refocused on the mission at hand.
This mission had one slightly bothersome aspect compared to other times.
If she had simply been a discharged soldier, he could have just learned her discharge date and killed her when she came out alone. But since she was still active duty, things had become a bit more complicated.
However, it was merely more bothersome — it was not difficult at all.
A week ago, they had already visited the Thirteen Squads posing as inspectors from the Murim Alliance and had gathered detailed information on the personal particulars and duty schedules of the individual squad members.
When they had shown the Murim Alliance inspector's insignia, Vice-Leader Heon Yeong-bo had cooperated fully and willingly handed over all the information.
Based on that intelligence, Sak Mu-heun had decided to kill her tonight during the Seventh Squad's night patrol.
He gathered his squad members and spoke in a low voice.
"Numbers Five, Six, and Seven, you will round up the Liver Demons and bring them here. Can you do it?"
The squad members, who were still called by numbers because they had not yet earned names, nodded their heads briefly and clearly.
They were just as familiar with the frontlines as those on active duty, so there would be no problems whatsoever.
"Number One and Number Two, you will block the one called Squad Leader Seol Pung. According to the intel we received, he is a peak-level master — and not at the initial stage, but at a mature level. He may be comparable to me, or possibly even above me."
At this, Number Two, one of the three peak-level masters belonging to the Shadow Fourth Squad, objected.
"That is absurd. How could a man barely in his twenties possibly compare to our squad leader, who is regarded as the best even within the entire Shadow Unit?"
He was right. Sak Mu-heun, now in his late thirties, was evaluated as the finest in the Shadow Unit — a man who, should he step into the light a year from now, might immediately become a commander of the official Armed Forces.
But Sak Mu-heun shook his head coolly and said,
"It is better to overestimate the enemy and prepare thoroughly than to underestimate them and let your guard down. I do not think you will lose, but do not let your guard down in the slightest."
"Yes! Squad leader!"
"Understood!"
Sak Mu-heun's plan was to lure the Liver Demons into clashing with the Seventh Squad, and then abduct the woman named Cheongyeon.
The core of the plan was this: Numbers One and Two, both peak-level masters, would keep the high-priority target Seol Pung in check, the remaining squad members would pin down the others, and Sak Mu-heun would personally step forward, swiftly abduct only the woman, and withdraw.
Everyone except Number One and Number Two was a first-class upper-level martial artist, so there would be no difficulty whatsoever.
It was hardly a rare occurrence on the frontlines for the Blood Cult's demon heads to abduct women, so to that extent, everyone would assume it was the Blood Cult's doing.
Thus, all that remained was simply to wait for the target to approach.
About half an hour passed.
The rustling of undergrowth and the low murmur of voices could be heard.
They had come.
"Hoo-hoo! Hoo-hoo! Hoo-hoo!"
Sak Mu-heun produced the cry of a mountain bird with his mouth.
It was a sound utterly indistinguishable from a real mountain bird, but his squad members, who had been with him all this time, would be able to pick up on the distinctive stresses.
Then, to avoid detection by those approaching, he began to slowly fall back along with his squad members.
The time to act would be when Numbers Five, Six, and Seven lured the Liver Demons here.
***
- There are men lying in ambush ahead. They are falling back in step with our pace. It seems they have a particular point where they wish to strike.
It was Squad Leader Seolpung's telepathic transmission.
We looked at Lady Cheongyeon's face with expressions of regret.
She appeared outwardly unruffled, but anyone could guess that she was probably the one who felt the most sorrow.
Lady Cheongyeon had already anticipated this.
She had figured that if an ambush were truly coming, there was a high probability that today would be the day.
It was she who had learned that those posing as Alliance inspectors had obtained the Thirteen Squads' intelligence from Vice-Leader Heon Yeong-bo a few days earlier.
And she had already predicted that if they were the attackers, they would likely strike at night, and that tonight would therefore be that night.
But even as she had foreseen everything, she had added one more remark with a dark expression.
'Of course... I would dearly hope that all of this is merely needless worry.'
For her, the best possible outcome was for her own predictions to be wrong.
If the attackers truly came, it meant that her hypothesis was correct — that the Murim Alliance really had been killing martial artists who came from the frontlines — and it would also mean, on a personal level, that the Heavenly Brain Jegal Ji-gang, whom she had regarded as an uncle since childhood, truly had resolved to kill her.
The feeling of a close acquaintance you had trusted being the one targeting your life.
Because I knew that feeling better than anyone, I thought I could understand her heart as well.
That filthy feeling of being left utterly alone in the world.
But now was not the time for consolation — it was the time to respond.
There was absolutely no way I would let her die.
The attackers probably did not realize it yet, but they had already committed two major blunders.
One: brazenly gathering intelligence while posing as Alliance inspectors. Two: failing to properly grasp the range of Squad Leader Seolpung's perception.
And so, they would soon come to understand.
That their covert ambush had been a failure from the very beginning.
And that the side assuming the role of the hunters was not theirs.
For now, we continued advancing, pretending to know nothing.
Squad Leader Seolpung seemed to have judged that it was better to play along until we understood their intentions.
About a quarter-hour of advancing passed.
The squad leader shouted.
"Liver Demons, Sa-yeong! Liver Demons are coming from three directions!"
At that, Bi Sa-yeong shot out like a beam of light in the direction the squad leader pointed and shouted,
"Damn it all! This shit again!"
***
"Liver Demons, Sa-yeong! Liver Demons are coming from three directions!"
At the voice of the one called Seol Pung, Sak Mu-heun, who had been lying in ambush, was thrown into confusion.
They should not have been close enough to notice yet — how could it be so soon already?
And the response that followed from them was even more bewildering.
One man flew out with incredible movement technique toward the swarming Liver Demons, and then flung something over them.
"Take this!"
Chwaaaak!
Then, absurdly, the Liver Demons that had been swarming this way began rampaging in a frenzy and chasing only after his back.
"Grrrrr!"
"Graaah!"
In that manner, the man lured all the Liver Demons from three directions and then, in the blink of an eye, broke away from this location entirely.
The Shadow Unit members who had been stealthily luring the Liver Demons could only stand bewildered at this utterly unforeseen turn of events.
The possibility that the attackers might lure demons to assault them — that too had already been within Cheongyeon's predictions.
So Bi Sa-yeong had prepared in advance by drawing his own blood to use as bait.
But Sak Mu-heun and the members of the Shadow Fourth Squad, who had no way of knowing this, fell into a brief state of confusion at the plan going awry from the very start.
Sak Mu-heun hesitated for a moment.
Now that the plan to sow chaos using demons had been thwarted, if they forced the attack, there could be casualties beyond the target.
So he was deliberating, only for the briefest instant, whether to wait for the next opportunity or force the attack as planned.
"Graaagh!"
At the sudden scream that rang out, his mind snapped to full alert.
It was Seol Pung.
Drawing the four claws of the Fierce Tiger Claw, Seol Pung had already pounced upon them and pierced through the body of a squad member lying in ambush.
By the time Sak Mu-heun grasped the situation, the body of a second man was already being pierced through.
Puh-wook!
"Aaaargh!"
At the truth that dawned on him in a flash, Sak Mu-heun was horrified.
They knew about the ambush?!
And that we would attack?!
How in the world?!
The moment he grasped the situation, Sak Mu-heun desperately shouted,
"Number One! Number Two! Engage that man!"
And then he too shot forward like a beam of light.
Pa-bak!
His target was the woman at the very back of their formation, whose face was concealed by her long bangs hanging down.
Number One and Number Two, both peak-level masters, erupted with energetic force from their respective sword and saber as they clashed with Seol Pung, who had been slaughtering the squad members.
"Haaap!"
"Taat!"
"Hng!"
Kwakwakwakwang!
But the surprise attack seemed to have no effect whatsoever.
Seeing them block the attacks of Number One and Number Two with such indifference, it looked like this job was not going to be easy.
He had to finish this as quickly as possible and withdraw.
It was when Sak Mu-heun leapt over their heads in an instant and flew toward the target.
Seol Pung suddenly shouted.
"Number three!"
Number three?
Even as he bore down on the target, Sak Mu-heun felt a question about the meaning of those words.
But he did not need to wonder about it.
Because he found out the very next moment.
As soon as Seol Pung had shouted number three, Hae Cheong-yeon had immediately spun around, launched herself away, and begun to flee.
"!"
Number three was the operation they had decided upon where Hae Cheong-yeon would flee and stall for time when the enemy's martial prowess was out of the ordinary.
"I won't let you get away!"
Sak Mu-heun gritted his teeth and immediately pursued her.
It seemed like they had used their heads quite a bit, but perhaps this could actually work out better.
It would take more time, but if she separated from her comrades, dealing with her might actually be cleaner.
Of course, this thought was backed by the confidence that he, a man possessing over seventy years of internal energy, could not possibly fail to catch a woman who was merely at the upper tier of first-rate.
But at that moment, a handsome young man, Hae Cheong-yeon's comrade, shouted.
"Lady Na! The enemy is chasing you! Be careful!"
Lady Na?
At his words, Sak Mu-heun could not help but falter.
Was he saying that the woman who had covered her face with her bangs was not the target, but someone else?
But when he felt confusion and looked toward the other women once more, he managed to catch sight of a woman next to the young man, looking at him with a flustered face.
And that young man was staring at him with sharp eyes.
I've been tricked!
He realized it immediately.
When he looked back, the woman who appeared to be the target was already far in the distance.
"Damn!"
Just as he gnashed his teeth and launched himself again, a voice came from behind.
***
"Jin! Chase after her! At least seventy years!"
But even before the squad leader said it, I was already in the process of launching myself. The enemy's speed in chasing Miss Cheong-yeon had looked far from ordinary.
We had laid a trap, but at that speed, it seemed like Cheong-yeon would be caught before she could even reach it.
A peak-level master with over seventy years of internal energy, was it...
If I faced him head-on, I'd be chopped to pieces in an instant, wouldn't I?
I immediately settled on a response and began to act.
"Hap!"
Pyushushushuk!
I hurled throwing weapons at his back.
Then he glanced back, kicked off a tree, and slightly changed his direction to escape the range of the projectiles.
Tadak!
Just as I thought.
He was a cautious one.
Though he could easily have blocked them, he had chosen to dodge rather than block.
It was an admirable stance, but for me right now, it was nothing short of a welcome response.
I immediately threw more throwing weapons.
Pyushushushuk!
He changed direction again to dodge them.
The way he glared at me with fierce eyes, he seemed incredibly annoyed.
It was because the projectiles I had deliberately thrown biased toward Cheong-yeon's side had forced him to slow his pursuit.
Pretty annoying, right?
So here's one more!
I threw more projectiles around him a few more times, focusing on slowing his steps.
It was the so-called mosquito tactic of buzzing around and being a nuisance.
Then, the bastard finally seemed to decide he had to deal with me first.
He suddenly changed direction sharply and came at me.
A blue sword qi flashed from his blade.
The feeling of a peak-level master with over seventy years of internal energy bearing down on me in earnest was absolutely chilling.
But it didn't matter.
Because I had been preparing to run away since a moment ago.
"Hap!"
Pabak!
With a kihap, I launched myself with all my might.
In our squad's movement technique ranking, Squad Leader Seol Pung and Bi Sa-yeong were tied for first, and next was me.
No matter how much of a peak-level master he was, it was impossible for him to catch me when I was seriously running away.
Because my alias was none other than the Flying Sky Black Wolf.
He shot me a look of disbelief as I fled like a streak of light. Then he immediately tried to turn around.
It seemed he, too, had only intended to threaten and drive me off rather than deal with me in earnest.
But too bad.
I had absolutely no intention of letting him go.
So, I stopped my movement technique, and spat out the magic word that would hold him fast.
"Murim Alliance."
At that, he flinched, just as he was about to launch himself, and stared at me.
He was trying hard to feign calm, but the very moment he stopped and looked at me, his pretense of ignorance had already failed.
I smiled a nasty smile and threw one more jab at him.
"You've got quite the nerve. A warrior of the alliance, stooping to this kind of dirty work."
At that, his eyes twisted.
And he began to radiate killing intent.
His thoughts were obvious.
He must have decided to silence me since a secret had been discovered.
And he would be curious about how much was known, and who else knew.
Pabak!
When he launched himself at me like a fierce tiger, I, who had been prepared, launched myself away as well.
The chase was on again.
Pyushushuk!
This time, he threw projectiles at me as he pursued.
The roles were reversed from before.
And now that the situation had flipped, I could understand his feelings from moments ago a little bit.
It was not easy to flee while dodging throwing weapons.
Shhhhik! Shhhhik!
I barely dodged them.
The sensation of the flying weapons grazing my clothes was utterly chilling.
But that was only the beginning.
My movement technique itself was slightly superior to his.
However, the throwing weapons of a peak-level master boasting over seventy years of internal energy were threatening enough to nullify that difference in footwork.
Shhhhik! Shhhhik!
'Ugh!'
I had already lost count of how many times the projectiles had grazed my collar.
The mere fact that nothing had struck my body yet was enough to deserve praising myself.
It felt like it would not be strange if my body was pierced through at any moment.
My spine had gone from cold to freezing.
I only survived thanks to the sensory training I had done with the squad leader; without it, I felt I never could have fled like this.
These days, while my senses were not quite on the squad leader's level, I prided myself on being as sharp as most beasts.
But as I fled, dodging the projectiles of a peak-level master, every instant was a crossroads between life and death.
Shaaaak!
'Kugh!'
On top of that, as I ran while dodging his projectiles, the distance between him and me was steadily shrinking.
And the closer the distance became, the higher the accuracy of his weapons grew.
It was an infuriatingly vicious cycle.
'Damn it all!'
Suddenly, a temptation surged up within me. Would it not be better to stop and fight rather than keep fleeing and get struck by a weapon?
But I gritted my teeth and kept running.
And I repeated to myself in my mind.
'Just a little more, just a little more. Just a little further now!'
And a moment later, I was finally able to arrive at the place I had desired.
It was the place where I had laid the trap to deal with the enemy.
'It's done!'
I let out a cheer in my mind, launched myself forward, and cut the rope hidden behind the tree.
Shaaak!
As the tautly pulled rope was severed, dozens of hidden arrows were launched all at once toward him, the one pursuing me from behind.
Pushushushushushuk!
"Huh?!"
He let out a startled cry at the arrows pouring down like a shower.
But that was all.
It was a mechanism I had painstakingly crafted, but as expected, a peak-level master with over seventy years of internal energy was no easy opponent.
Though he seemed flustered for a moment, he swung his sword and deflected every flying arrow.
Shuhaaaaak!
Tadadadadadang!
In that single instant, it was as if his sword created a blue wall in the air.
It must have been the sword barrier I had only ever heard about.
Indeed, he was undeniably a monstrous master.
'However! That wasn't what I was hoping for anyway!'
I, too, had not expected to be able to kill him with this trap.
Because all I truly wanted was to divert his attention for a single moment.
After deflecting the arrows, he looked around with a flustered gaze.
It was because he had lost track of me in that short interval.
At that moment, hidden behind the shadow of a tree, I concealed my form with the stealth technique I had honed against the demons on the front lines, and began to observe his movements with senses other than sight.
Then, I opened the mouths of the sacks I had prepared and propped up behind the tree on either side of me. At once, dozens of snakes began to slither out from within.
The moment they emerged, the snakes hurried away from me, as if disliking the scent coming from my body.
The effect of the scent pouch made with the secret method I had obtained from Dakam was indeed absolute.
'Now, the real battle begins from here.'
This next battle was a contest using stealth techniques.
It was a war of assassins.