Chapter 180
Chapter 180
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 180
Chapter Title: The Fractured Legacy of the Savage Beast Palace
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The lives of the people in the Southern Savage Beast Palace were divided into before and after their coming-of-age ceremony.
The treatment they received differed vastly between heaven and earth depending on whether they were recognized as true warriors during that rite.
And what one had to do in that ceremony was simple.
'Prove your own capabilities.'
Most did so by capturing a ferocious beast alive and demonstrating their martial prowess.
Catching it alive was far more difficult than simply killing it.
Even the current palace lord, Su Ri-tae, had once hunted down a tiger the size of a house and astonished everyone.
Naturally, people raised the beasts they captured and tattooed them onto their bodies.
Thus, the tattoos left on their bodies became another form of proof.
The coming-of-age ceremonies had proceeded smoothly through repeated history like this.
But a few years ago, that tradition was shattered.
By one man alone.
By Suma Geon.
To explain his emergence, one couldn't overlook the overall atmosphere of the Southern Savage Beast Palace.
The palace believed it natural for the strong to attract others, so the palace lord could take multiple wives.
Thus, Su Ri-tae, with his numerous consorts, had so many princes and princesses that he couldn't even remember all their names.
With such numbers, competition inevitably intensified.
Naturally, the many princes and princesses vied for the single position of little palace lord, the successor to the palace lord.
But even after prolonged rivalry, no standout candidates had emerged to succeed him.
That was when Suma Geon underwent his coming-of-age ceremony, turning the situation upside down.
'Prove your existence.'
Suma Geon's answer to that proposition was clear.
—Bring them here.
As Suma Geon issued the order to his subordinates, the onlookers tilted their heads in confusion.
It was the first time someone hadn't gone out to hunt immediately during the ceremony.
So the people waited, wondering what he had ordered.
And moments later, when they saw what appeared, their eyes widened in shock.
—This is...!
—Wolves, aren't they?
—Where on earth did he get this many wolves...?
What unfolded before their eyes was a bizarre sight none had ever witnessed in their lives.
Suma Geon's subordinates had brought a line of a thousand wolves, bound with iron chains around their necks.
Overwhelmed by the sheer number, the people marveled even as they grew curious about what Suma Geon would do next.
What did he plan to do with so many wolves?
At that moment, Suma Geon spoke.
—You said to prove myself.
Srrrrk—
Suma Geon drew his longsword.
A chilling frost swirled around the blade, as thick as an adult wolf's torso.
As all eyes focused on him.
Slash!
Suma Geon severed the neck of the lead wolf in a single stroke.
Thick droplets of blood splattered across his face, but he didn't blink, maintaining an expressionless visage.
The onlookers gaped in horror.
—Wh-what are you doing...!
But his movements didn't stop.
—Next.
His cold voice continued, and his subordinates positioned the second wolf before him.
His response was the same.
Slash!
The third.
Slash!
The tenth.
Slash!
The hundredth.
Slash!
Suma Geon slashed and slashed and slashed again at the wolves' necks.
In the end, he beheaded all thousand wolves he had brought to the ceremony, earning the moniker Thousand Wolf Blood Slaughter.
Moreover, a massive wolf's face now adorned his back—not drawn with mere lines.
It was composed of a thousand tiny wolf faces, each rendered like a dot, forming one grand image.
"That day marked the turning point when everything changed."
Aside from the eldest princess, Su A-rang, most princes and princesses fell under Suma Geon's command, and he naturally seized the little palace lord position.
But his ambition didn't stop there.
Even with his future secured as little palace lord, he continued expanding his influence, coveting the palace lord's seat itself.
And now.
Having aggressively grown his faction, Suma Geon wielded power rivaling the palace lord's.
Hearing this, Hyeok Mulin could infer his methods to some extent.
His swift approach upon Hyeok Mulin's arrival, his unflinching demeanor, his artful flattery—they had already confirmed his exceptional political acumen.
"It's true that I don't agree with the palace lord's ways."
Su A-rang believed that empathizing and sharing hearts with beasts, rather than dominating them through force, was the best path to coexistence.
She thought that the Southern warriors, who modeled their martial arts after beasts, could thereby attain profound enlightenment.
"But the little palace lord's methods are incomparably worse."
His attitude toward beasts was merely as tools for his goals—nothing more, nothing less.
It didn't matter if they followed him or not.
No matter how long they had been with him, if unnecessary, they were no different from ants to be trampled.
"He's certainly no ordinary man."
Hyeok Mulin agreed with her words.
No matter how base beasts were, life carried weight.
To slaughter a thousand wolves just to prove himself.
It was no thought a normal person would entertain.
"That's why the beasts he keeps change frequently. Ten days is considered long; usually, they're replaced every three or four."
She called it 'changing,' but the fate of those beasts was obvious without seeing.
A deep shadow fell over Su A-rang's face as she spoke.
Seeing it, Hyeok Mulin opened his mouth.
"So that's why you've chosen neutrality."
The palace lord ruled beasts through fear, while the little palace lord disregarded their lives like scraps of paper.
With those two dividing the Southern Savage Beast Palace, it was only natural she couldn't side with either, given her nature.
"Yes. But even more grim is that no matter how their struggle ends, the palace's future will differ vastly from the dreams I had as a child."
Su A-rang sighed, her expression somber as she continued.
"And their confrontation will soon reach its climax. Both will clash directly at the Fierce Beast Festival to be held in a few days."
The Fierce Beast Festival.
It was a grand Southern festival held every ten years, where warriors pitted their beasts against one another to determine the mightiest in the South.
It was only natural that the strongest warrior possessed the strongest beast.
Thus, with the honor of raising the South's supreme beast at stake, both the palace lord and little palace lord's participation was all but certain.
Naturally, it equated to a proxy war via beasts, an inescapable battle of pride.
Currently, all eyes were already fixed on the showdown that would crystallize at the Fierce Beast Festival.
"With the mood flowing toward their confrontation, neither will back down."
Hyeok Mulin asked her.
"But isn't the outcome obvious? It should favor the palace lord."
Hyeok Mulin expected one of the black tigers that had guarded Su Ri-tae upon their first meeting to step forth.
With that level of presence, defeat against peers seemed unimaginable.
But Su A-rang disagreed.
"On the contrary, since it's beasts clashing without direct involvement, the little palace lord has the higher chance."
Suma Geon was not one to enter a fight he could lose.
Moreover, he had kept his nurtured beast hidden for months.
As one who treated beasts purely as means to ends, predicting his preparations was impossible.
"The Fierce Beast Festival's result will change many things."
If the palace lord won, his power would draw back the strong; if the little palace lord prevailed, many on the palace lord's side would realize his hidden might and defect.
"One could say this festival is the pivotal turning point deciding the South's future."
Hyeok Mulin nodded and asked her.
"Then, will you participate in the Fierce Beast Festival?"
"As you saw before, my golden leopard lacks aggression. So watching rather than competing seems better."
"I see."
The Fierce Beast Festival...
Hyeok Mulin closed his eyes, organizing his thoughts on it.
Opening them, he soon spoke to Su A-rang.
"Your questions are answered, so you may go."
"I wish the Cult Leader good fortune in battle."
Su A-rang bowed and turned away.
After she left, Hyeok Mulin, recalling something, looked at Man Ho.
He casually remarked.
"Come to think of it, your probationary protector term has already ended."
The temporary period they agreed on was just a fortnight.
And it wasn't long.
By the time they arrived at the palace, it had nearly expired.
"What will you do? Even if you wish to stop here, I'll respect your decision."
Man Ho smirked at Hyeok Mulin's words.
"I have no choice but to continue. I'll hold the protector seat until we return to the cult."
Were you aiming for this from the start?
He had sensed that, once moving south, there was no intent to end companionship after a mere fortnight.
But Man Ho didn't feel deceived.
Interest had sparked during their entry into the South and subsequent encounters.
Especially after witnessing the palace's martial arts, his curiosity deepened.
"The scale of the conflict here is larger than I thought."
By her account, the palace was effectively split half between palace lord and little palace lord factions.
Now the Cult Leader had intervened in that deepening strife.
His choice would undoubtedly alter much.
"Have you decided?"
"Indeed."
Wasn't Hyeok Mulin's choice the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's decision?
It concerned the future ties between the palace and cult.
Thus a crossroads demanding utmost caution—but unlike before, Hyeok Mulin swiftly decided his path.
No matter how he saw it, only one road lay before him.
"The one I choose is..."
As Hyeok Mulin slowly parted his lips, Man Ho's pupils gradually dilated.
The next day.
Hyeok Mulin's heavy steps finally moved.
There was no hesitation in his destination.
Arriving at his goal, he soon met the one he sought.
"I."
Gazing at the figure before him, Hyeok Mulin nodded.
And recited his final decision.
"Will join hands with you."
A crescent smile curved Hyeok Mulin's lips.
The lips of the one facing him slowly parted.
"...What do you mean by that?"
His voice brimmed with bewilderment.
And rightly so, for the one standing before Hyeok Mulin now was neither palace lord nor little palace lord.
The one Hyeok Mulin had ultimately chosen.
His counterpart was the eldest princess he had met for the first time just yesterday—Su A-rang.