Chapter 91
Chapter 91
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 91
Chapter Title: Chapter 19: Solo Run (1)
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The sun, scorching as if it would burn the entire world, had finally wilted.
The drooping leaves hurriedly regained their vitality, donning vibrant yellow and red garb.
A gentle breeze swept through the world.
Noon was still sweltering, but mornings and evenings were now pleasant enough for leisurely strolls.
A woman gazed at the vast, clear sky through her wide-open window.
The deep blue expanse held not a single cloud. It was so pure it seemed like pressing a finger to it would leave a stain of blue paint.
She stared at the sky for a long while.
"It's so nice."
Her words finally spilled out after quite some time.
"That man... he's so rigid. There aren't many people as inflexible as him."
She murmured as if talking to herself.
"But he did the job so well..."
"There were three top-class ones. It would have been stranger if he'd botched it, wouldn't it?"
"If I gave you three top-class ones, could you pull it off?"
"..."
The man who had spoken to her fell silent.
The woman wiggled her finger. A waiting maid hurried over and poured tea into the empty cup.
Churrrk!
Liquid the color of pale green jade flowed from the teapot into the white cup.
The woman continued staring out the window, as if searching for a single blemish in the flawless sky.
"Vanguard, it's not that we can't kill Four Thousand Four. We're just choosing not to. Don't you think so?"
"We warned him firmly before leaving."
"Hohoho!"
The woman laughed merrily. Then she continued right away.
"You know, sometimes you all seem so naive. Or maybe not naive—just thoughtless."
It was highly insulting, yet no one responded.
"Do you really think warnings or threats work on someone like Vanguard?"
"..."
"We've let him run loose for too long. There are two kinds of dogs: guard dogs and wild ones. What do you do when a guard dog stops protecting the house and turns feral?"
"Understood. We'll deal with Vanguard immediately."
"Argh! That's not what I mean. Have you gotten too comfortable just running errands? You never think."
Her words were exasperated, but her expression showed no frustration.
She lifted the teacup and took a sip. A satisfied smile curved her lips.
"As fragrant as ever. Delicious."
She set down the cup and rose.
"Send a warning. A very strong one. Make it clear that Vanguard could die if he steps out of line. You don't need me to spell out how, do you?"
"Just one question. Do you really intend to kill Four Thousand Four?"
"That one's leash is off. Who here has the confidence to put it back on him?"
No one could answer.
The power that controlled the agents lay in leverage. Simply put, it was seizing weaknesses and blackmailing with them. If you gripped an absolute vulnerability that forced total obedience, anyone could be made to move.
For some, their child was the weakness. Threats to kill their offspring worked sometimes. For others, their sect. Threats to exterminate their sect could compel them.
But such weaknesses were never absolute.
Some would do anything for their child—except commit murder. Others would do anything for their sect—except kill their family.
When one absolute value clashed with another, the agent lost their way.
That was why they chose people carefully from the start.
Distinguish those who could be controlled through leverage from those who couldn't.
Leverage usually involved holding someone hostage and threatening them, so the agent had to carry an unbreakable debt of life toward that hostage.
Those imprisoned in the Nineteen Hells bore such debts.
Four Thousand Four's leverage was also a person.
To Four Thousand Four, there was one person more precious than the world itself.
From birth in this world until imprisonment in the Nineteen Hells, only one person had ever existed for him.
The only one with whom he could share his true heart.
Four Thousand Four acted with that person's life as collateral. The threat—"If you don't obey, this one dies"—had worked.
Against Merchant Sage Do and the collateral, collateral won.
Against the Zhuge clan leader and the collateral, collateral won.
Even though killing the Zhuge leader was nearly impossible, he moved willingly.
In other words, he was saying he'd die in place of the collateral.
But that damn murder obsession...
Before murder, even collateral was powerless. He declared it was fine to kill the collateral for pointless murders.
Collateral versus murder—murder won.
For Four Thousand Four, murder came first. Above his own life, above the collateral.
They'd thrown him into the Nineteen Hells thinking he could be controlled... but if his top priority was murder, control was impossible. He'd become a wild dog that wouldn't listen.
Four Thousand Four's random killings brought no benefit to the Heavenly Annihilation Division. No, they were a massive nuisance. Weren't they unnecessarily drawing the murim's attention?
Four Thousand Four had to be killed.
As the woman walked, she said,
"Kill Four Thousand Four the instant he kills the Dangha Escort Leader. Without hesitation, perfectly clean. I want to hear news of the Escort Leader's death and Four Thousand Four's death at the same time. You can manage that much, right?"
"Understood!"
The woman didn't consult. She didn't ask. Her words were absolute commands.
Disobey, and you were eliminated.
At that moment, Four Thousand Four met someone.
A warrior he'd never seen before. No distinctive features in his build or clothes. Utterly ordinary, the kind you could see anywhere. But Four Thousand Four knew at a glance he was from the Heavenly Annihilation Division's main force.
'As expected!'
He'd figured the Heavenly Annihilation Division would track his movements.
The threat he'd sensed while killing had materialized. And so quickly, after just a few days.
The old man's and woman's deaths had been perfectly natural.
No traces of murder. They simply seemed to have died when their time came. Even the bereaved believed it was natural death. No one suspected otherwise.
Yet the Heavenly Annihilation Division had caught the tail.
'Impressive focus. They never let a target slip away. A bigger organization than I thought.'
Four Thousand Four walked toward the stranger.
"Four Thousand Four, you're late. I've been waiting a while."
The warrior grinned lazily.
"You're speaking informally. Raise your honorifics from now on."
"What? What did you just—"
"I assume you're delivering a message from the main force, so I'll wait until then. But if the message doesn't say not to kill you... I might. I'm the type who goes mad for murder."
"Hah!"
The warrior gasped in surprise.
Four Thousand Four's face remained utterly expressionless throughout.
No hint of offense or shock... nothing resembling a human expression crossed his features.
"Here... it's."
The warrior handed Four Thousand Four a letter.
"I thought orders came through Vanguard?"
"Special orders."
"The main force wants me dead, doesn't it? And now sudden orders. Confusing."
"Wanting you dead and issuing orders are different matters."
"What do I get for following what's written here?"
"Get...? Hahaha! Sounds like you've completely abandoned the leverage."
"Not your friend. Speak properly. Last warning."
The stranger twitched his fingers.
His intent to cut Four Thousand Four down right then was obvious. His face screamed he was dying to do it.
The warrior was confident in his martial arts.
Meanwhile, Four Thousand Four stayed expressionless. No tension showed. His body was full of openings, hands far from his sword.
Confidence that he could strike and kill bubbled up.
But Four Thousand Four only killed on orders. If an unordered person acted on their own or provoked him, they faced the same punishment.
"I don't know the details, but it's probably a promise to honor the leverage. As you guessed, I'm just the errand boy."
Four Thousand Four took the letter.
An order!
Follow the order, and the collateral still dies. Disobey, and he dies immediately.
It was only a matter of time—the collateral was doomed either way.
Four Thousand Four realized hot blood coursed through his veins.
He couldn't stop it. Couldn't block it.
The mere scent of death made his feet move on their own. How could he resist?
As long as he chased that scent, the collateral died.
But he couldn't kill now. Not someone more precious than hundreds of lives or even his own.
Moreover, the letter attached a murder condition.
Contact with Vanguard was forbidden. The orders to Vanguard were still in effect, explicitly stated. The kill order on him hadn't been rescinded.
Issuing orders in that state—what an absurd organization.
About half a shichen after opening the letter, he spoke.
"I'll accept the command."
The four pondered.
Word had just come: Four Thousand Four had accepted the orders.
The collateral truly held value. Murder was Four Thousand Four's top priority, then the collateral, then his own life. That showed how much he valued killing.
Still, Four Thousand Four had to be killed.
Since he'd accepted... the Dangha Escort Leader would die. And not even publicly this time. He'd die without knowing how.
Four Thousand Four was more than capable of that.
His assassination skills were peerless... such a pity. If only he could curb that murder lust, he'd be perfect—leadership material.
One spoke up.
"Should we call in the Fourth Platoon?"
"The Fourth Leader could definitely kill Four Thousand Four. But isn't it like using a cattle butcher's knife on a chicken? Overkill for the Fourth Platoon..."
Another man frowned as he spoke.
The Fourth Platoon was also called the Death Platoon.
No one knew who led it. They only received and executed orders. And they carried out any command flawlessly, without the slightest error.
Vanguard's Seventeenth Platoon was renowned for strength, but compared to the Fourth, they were mere children.
The Fourth was deployed for critical missions.
An order to kill the Zhuge clan leader... that was the level requiring the Fourth.
If the Zhuge leader had truly existed and the Heavenly Annihilation Division genuinely wanted him dead, they wouldn't have entrusted it to Vanguard. They'd have sent the Fourth directly.
Public assassination was like inflating the wrapper—style over substance.
No fool believed the Zhuge leader's killing could be public. If they wanted him gone, they'd have sent secret assassins.
That was the Fourth's role.
Using the Fourth on riffraff like Four Thousand Four was excessive.
"We can't call the Fourth... but it's a good idea. Use another platoon to kill him. Solid, right? A clear warning to Vanguard."
"Let's use the Twelfth and Twenty-Fifth Platoons together. That should send a message to Vanguard."
These four were the ones who had pressed Vanguard to prove his worth.
They decided Four Thousand Four's death. Or rather, how he would die.