Chapter 389
Chapter 389
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 389
Chapter Title: A Fellow Traveler
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The head assassin shouted in an angry voice.
“That’s not yours, it belongs to our sect. If you wanted to leave, you should have just left quietly. Why did you have to steal it?!”
‘So the item they want back from her is the Coin of Gratitude.’
So-yo hadn't just left the Hundred Flash Assassins.
She was fleeing after stealing the Coin of Gratitude, which the Hundred Flash Assassins had secretly kept.
‘A place like the Hundred Flash Assassins was holding a Coin of Gratitude?’
Greatly surprised, Bu Eun-seol soon realized something.
He himself had received a Coin of Gratitude from Namgung Un.
Perhaps they had received it as payment for an assassination, or maybe they had taken it from someone else.
In other words, if one knew the whereabouts of a Coin of Gratitude, there were various ways to obtain it.
‘So, the Hundred Flash Assassins’ goal is her Coin of Gratitude. They’ll pursue her to the end until she returns it.’
Bu Eun-seol's mind spun as fast as light.
He thought of a way to use this situation to save So-yo.
Just then, the head assassin shouted again.
“Are you saying you’ll betray the sect that has cared for you all this time, just to save a child with no connection to you?!”
He looked down at So-yo and continued.
“Or did you steal the Coin of Gratitude to find a way to shake off our pursuit?”
In that moment, Bu Eun-seol realized several things.
She hadn't joined the Hundred Flash Assassins by choice.
And not only did she possess a Coin of Gratitude like him… but she was being pursued by the Hundred Flash Assassins because she had refused an order to kill a child.
“If you just return the Coin of Gratitude, I’ll let you go.”
The assassin who appeared to be the leader said, gritting his teeth.
“And we will no longer pursue you.”
“I refuse.”
“Why.”
“Because I need a way to save that child.”
“A way to save her?”
“Extreme Yin Severed Meridian.”
In short, the child was afflicted with the Extreme Yin Severed Meridian, and she had taken the Coin of Gratitude to find a way to cure it.
“And… you won’t keep your promise anyway.”
At So-yo’s subsequent words, the eyes of the assassin who appeared to be the leader blazed red.
“If you’ve thought that far, then there’s no other choice.”
Sighing, the assassin shouted loudly to his subordinates behind him.
“From now on…”
“Wait.”
Just then, Bu Eun-seol suddenly stepped in front of So-yo.
“There’s no need to fight.”
The head assassin frowned as Bu Eun-seol stepped forward.
“Who are you.”
Instead of answering, Bu Eun-seol took an old coin from his robes.
It was the Coin of Gratitude created by the Divine Calculator.
“How… do you have that.”
“You don’t need to know the reason. However.”
Gazing at the distant sky, Bu Eun-seol spoke in a low voice.
“This Coin of Gratitude is now in the possession of our Alliance, and we have also taken her into our custody. So, do not pursue her any longer.”
“Our Alliance?”
The assassin stared intently at Bu Eun-seol, his eyes flashing.
“Do you mean the Martial Alliance?”
“If you understand, then go back.”
Bu Eun-seol smiled coldly.
“If you don’t want to die.”
When it came to strategy, Bu Eun-seol was second to none.
With this one statement, he had pitted the Hundred Flash Assassins against the Martial Alliance assassins who were pursuing him.
*Swoosh.*
Detecting the faint sound of something cutting through the air from afar with his Mind’s Eye of Emptiness, Bu Eun-seol raised the corners of his mouth and spoke.
“Of course, even if I say this, assassins of the Hundred Flash Assassins’ caliber won’t just turn tail and run, will they?”
*Swoosh.*
The faint sound that had been barely audible began to grow clearer.
It was the sound of masters with exceptional movement techniques tearing through the air as they advanced.
In other words, more than thirty or forty masters were using their movement arts to rush to this location.
“Let’s leave the rest to our Alliance’s reinforcements and leave quickly.”
Bu Eun-seol said nonchalantly, grabbing So-yo’s sleeve.
“They’ll all be annihilated anyway.”
He immediately executed his movement art.
His movements were so natural, and a powerful Absorption Art flowed from the hand gripping her sleeve.
*Whoosh.*
Thanks to this, So-yo’s small body was instantly pulled to Bu Eun-seol’s side and lifted into the air.
Just as Bu Eun-seol fled with So-yo using his movement art,
*Swoosh, Thud.*
About forty assassins arrived behind the assassins of the Hundred Flash Assassins.
Judging by their sharp gazes and their perfectly coordinated formation, it seemed his claim of being from the Martial Alliance was not a lie.
“When on earth did she make contact with the Martial Alliance!”
The head assassin grit his teeth, watching the backs of Bu Eun-seol and So-yo as they disappeared into the distance.
He immediately shouted to his subordinates.
“Blood Ghost Squad, hold them off! The rest will follow me, the Assassin Lord!”
***
*Shhhk!*
Bu Eun-seol was moving swiftly with So-yo.
Even though he was using his internal energy to levitate her entire body beside him, he couldn't feel any weight at all.
So-yo’s body was so thin and frail, it seemed she weighed less than sixty pounds.
*Thud.*
Finally arriving at a nearby village, Bu Eun-seol let go of her hand.
“There was no time to explain everything.”
Knowing she was older than him, Bu Eun-seol released her sleeve and spoke in a polite tone.
“Please forgive my rudeness.”
“Why.”
So-yo seemed to be asking, ‘Why did you help me?’
“We both have pursuers, so I simply used that to our advantage.”
“Why.”
This time, it seemed she was asking, ‘Why do you have a Coin of Gratitude?’
“I, too, have been searching for the Divine Calculator for a long time. The reason I came to the martial world this time was because I found his whereabouts.”
Was it because of their similar personalities and temperaments?
Bu Eun-seol, who somehow understood all her words, continued to explain diligently.
“In any case, since the two forces have clashed, there won’t be any pursuit for a while. Let’s stop sleeping outdoors and rest comfortably.”
Without waiting for a reply, he walked toward the entrance of the bustling village.
However, after walking for a while, Bu Eun-seol felt something was strange.
He couldn't feel her movements at all, though she should have been following him.
“…”
Turning his head, Bu Eun-seol couldn't hide his bewilderment.
He had naturally assumed she would be eating and resting comfortably at an inn.
But wasn’t she rolling up her pants and stepping into the waterway at the village entrance?
*Splash, splash.*
Entering the foul-smelling waterway, So-yo began to scoop up the garbage floating on the surface.
“Wait.”
Bu Eun-seol was not one to meddle in others’ affairs.
But this time was an exception.
So-yo’s every action was fiercely drawing Bu Eun-seol’s attention, like a magnet pulling iron filings.
“Why are you picking through the scraps in the waterway instead of going to an inn.”
Bu Eun-seol’s expression was filled with the confusion of someone who had just heard an unsolvable riddle.
Without even looking at him, So-yo scooped up food scraps and said.
“No money.”
‘Was she a vagrant?’
Only then could Bu Eun-seol guess that her life had not been easy.
And that her character was more upright than he had thought.
Despite possessing outstanding martial skills, she didn't want to beg or steal… so she was trying to eat garbage from the waterway.
“You don’t need to eat that.”
Bu Eun-seol said calmly.
“I’ll buy you a meal. Let’s go.”
“No.”
But she refused flatly.
She didn't say it explicitly, but her expression seemed to convey that she didn't want to receive a favor without reason.
“Thanks to you, I was able to shake off my pursuers. I’m just repaying that debt.”
A favor.
It signifies a small act of kindness a person can offer to another without expecting anything in return.
And sometimes, it can lead to an unexpected connection.
“Bu Eun-seol.”
For the first time, an emotion appeared in her eyes.
It was an indifferent yet questioning gaze.
“Successor of the Demonic Palace.”
“You know me?”
“Because I had to come to the Central Plains.”
So-yo’s goal was to find the Divine Calculator in the Central Plains to save the child.
And to do that, she must have memorized information about the state of the Central Plains’ martial world, its prominent figures, and their descriptions.
That was why she was able to recognize Bu Eun-seol instantly, unlike the assassins from the Hundred Flash Assassins.
“And you are?”
When Bu Eun-seol asked, her silver eyes sparkled as she spoke.
“So-yo.”
“Is that your real name.”
“Just So-yo.”
It seemed that she, too, had been abandoned without even a name, and had been given that name at the Hundred Flash Assassins.
“I see.”
Nodding, Bu Eun-seol lightly extended his hand.
“Then let’s go.”
For someone like So-yo to reveal her name meant she was accepting his favor.
At the Fragrant Flower Inn, in the banquet hall.
A table large enough for ten grown men to sit comfortably was placed there.
And on it, enough dishes to feed ten grown men to their fill were piled high.
A girl in black martial arts attire and a man in gray martial arts attire sat facing each other, eating.
They were Bu Eun-seol and So-yo.
*Chomp, chomp, chomp. Clatter, clatter.*
While Bu Eun-seol picked at a piece of braised fish.
She was chewing on a piece of roasted duck, a mouthful of chicken noodles, stir-fried beef, and a plump shrimp, all stuffed into her mouth at the same time.
*Munch. Munch. Munch.*
So-yo had the appearance of a teenage girl, but her appetite was greater than that of ten grown men combined.
She ate continuously, making one wonder where all that food was going into her small mouth and stomach.
“More.”
As the food quickly disappeared, So-yo pointed at a plate with her finger.
Each time, Bu Eun-seol would call a servant and ask for more dishes.
But as this kept repeating, the servant ended up waiting right outside the banquet hall, continuously taking orders.
“One bowl of chicken noodles, fried beef, one more roasted duck, and two chickens!”
*Chomp, chomp, chomp.*
In the meantime, So-yo held a bowl in one hand and swept food into her mouth with her chopsticks.
“Incredible.”
Though he was someone who wouldn’t bat an eye at most things.
Colors of emotion continuously flowed through Bu Eun-seol’s eyes.
“Eat slowly.”
Bu Eun-seol said calmly.
“The clash between the two factions won’t end easily. There won’t be any pursuit for a while.”
So-yo spoke, her mouth full of food.
“Have to eat a lot, when I can.”
Suddenly, Bu Eun-seol’s gaze darkened.
It was a common habit of vagrants. The days they could eat proper food were few and far between.
So, when they could eat, they would stuff themselves until their stomachs were about to burst.
An ordinary martial artist would have asked her about her circumstances while they ate.
But Bu Eun-seol asked nothing. He had really just intended to buy her a meal.
So-yo. She was probably the person who had sparked Bu Eun-seol’s interest and curiosity the most in his entire life.
But surprisingly, she was the one who started the conversation.
“With the Coin of Gratitude. Can ask anything?”
It seemed that although she had stolen the Coin of Gratitude, she didn't have much information about the Divine Calculator.
“Probably.”
“Met him?”
She spoke casually, as if talking to a subordinate.
But Bu Eun-seol didn't mind.
Not only was she older, but it seemed she had never learned any etiquette during her life as an assassin.
“I know someone who has met him.”
Bu Eun-seol recalled the round face of So Ok-rim, smiling and showing her white teeth.
“According to her, the title of Sage of the Martial World doesn’t seem to be a lie.”
“Hmm.”
So-yo’s eyes looked as if she was deep in thought.
She appeared calm, but there was a sense of desperation about her.
“Is the child you need to save a family member?”
Based on the head assassin's words earlier, Bu Eun-seol had guessed that she had left the Hundred Flash Assassins to save a certain child.
And that she had stolen the Coin of Gratitude for that purpose.
“Don’t know her.”
He hadn't really expected an answer when he asked.
But surprisingly, So-yo willingly told him her story.
“But she looked… exactly like my younger sister who starved to death when we were young.”
With that one sentence, Bu Eun-seol understood the whole situation.
So-yo, out on an assassination, must have found a child who looked just like her sister who had starved to death.
But the Hundred Flash Assassins, who never left witnesses alive, would have naturally ordered her to kill the child.
She had refused that order and saved the child.
However, the child happened to be suffering from the Extreme Yin Severed Meridian.
Realizing there was no cure, So-yo must have stolen the Coin of Gratitude kept at the Hundred Flash Assassins and fled.
“I see.”
Having grasped her entire situation, Bu Eun-seol nodded.
Assassins live a closed-off and dark life, except when they are out on a mission.
And after an assassination is completed, an extreme sense of emptiness is said to wash over them.
Most assassins indulge in alcohol or women to fill that void.
But she had endured that boring and painful life solely by longing for her dead sister.
Then, upon finding a child who looked just like her sister, she must have thought it was fate and thrown away her entire life.
“You should leave first.”
Bu Eun-seol said, gazing at the distant sky.
“I intend to stay and rest in this village a little longer.”
In truth, Bu Eun-seol was lying.
The warriors of the Martial Alliance were not fools. The clash with the Hundred Flash Assassins would not last long.
And the Hundred Flash Assassins had a clear objective: to retrieve the treasure that was the Coin of Gratitude.
But since it was now believed that Bu Eun-seol had the Coin, the Hundred Flash Assassins would pursue him, not So-yo.
Bu Eun-seol was planning to become a decoy so that So-yo could meet the Divine Calculator first.
“Perhaps the assassins from the Hundred Flash Assassins and the Martial Alliance have wiped each other out.”
The lies flowed smoothly.
Bu Eun-seol still couldn't understand why he was being so kind to her.
“So, rest assured and head to Myoga Village first.”
“Why.”
“I told you. I’m going to rest a little longer before I go.”
But So-yo looked at Bu Eun-seol with cold eyes and asked again.
“Why.”
So-yo knew as well.
That Bu Eun-seol was intentionally becoming a decoy to help her escape the pursuit.
She was now asking, ‘Why are you helping me?’
“Hmm.”
Understanding the meaning behind So-yo’s words, Bu Eun-seol fell silent for a moment.
Then he spoke honestly.
“As I said before, I don’t know either.”
From the moment he learned that she had run away from the assassin sect to save a child, Bu Eun-seol had felt the urge to help her.
It was due to the quality of a righteous hero inherent in his heart, but Bu Eun-seol himself didn't know precisely why he had made that choice.
“Don’t worry. I have the strength to handle it. Even if the Hundred Flash Assassins and the Martial Alliance pursue me, I can escape.”
“So.”
“That’s all there is to it. There’s no other meaning.”
A moment of silence followed.
Had she accepted Bu Eun-seol’s favor?
So-yo stood up from her seat. And without a word, she walked out of the inn first.
Bu Eun-seol stayed the night at the Fragrant Flower Inn.
He washed away the grime and slept in a comfortable bed for the first time in a while. But there was still no pursuit from the Hundred Flash Assassins or the Martial Alliance.
“This should be enough.”
With a half-day's distance between them, the Hundred Flash Assassins and the Martial Alliance would surely pursue him.
And while he delayed them by fighting, So-yo would be able to arrive at Myoga Village safely.
Because of this, Bu Eun-seol might not be able to meet the Divine Calculator.
A meeting with the Divine Calculator that he had long wished for. Bu Eun-seol was helping So-yo so sincerely that he was willing to give it up.
Without knowing why.
“I should get going.”
Bu Eun-seol left the village and headed for a deserted mountain path.
But something unexpected happened.
*Ssk.*
As he was crossing a mountain pass, a small shadow suddenly appeared in front of him.
It was So-yo.
“Why didn’t you go?”
“Same path.”
“You could have gone ahead first.”
“That’s good too, but.”
So-yo looked at Bu Eun-seol with a resolute expression.
“This way is safer.”
Judging by her expression and gaze, she wasn’t joking or had any other intentions.
For a moment, Bu Eun-seol gave a faint nod.
‘She’s not stupid.’
She knew that Bu Eun-seol was the successor of the Demonic Palace, renowned for his outstanding martial arts and strategic mind.
And she must have weighed her options.
Arriving at Myoga Village while Bu Eun-seol bought time. And accompanying Bu Eun-seol. Which would be more beneficial to her.
In the end, she had judged that accompanying Bu Eun-seol was safer.
‘Is that why she told me her story earlier?’
Only then did Bu Eun-seol realize why So-yo, who found it a hassle to even say a single word, had explained her entire situation to him.
She had already gauged his abilities to some extent. So, she was probably trying to gauge his character.
Whether he was someone she could trust her back to as a companion.
‘It’s certainly not a bad choice.’
Bu Eun-seol nodded at So-yo’s judgment.
Even if Bu Eun-seol could hold off the pursuing assassins, he couldn't stop an attack from assassins who had gone ahead and were lying in wait.
Furthermore, he possessed the strategic mind to pit the assassins of the Hundred Flash Assassins and the Martial Alliance against each other with a single word…
After carefully calculating various factors, she must have judged that traveling with Bu Eun-seol was much safer than going alone.
“Very well. Let’s go together.”
Bu Eun-seol nodded and started walking.
*Chirp. Chirp.*
When night fell with the chirping of insects, Bu Eun-seol found a suitable place to camp and lit a fire.
Then she naturally gathered fallen leaves and made a bed.
There was no conversation, but she did her part as a companion.
When the day broke, the two once again used their lightness skill to cross the mountain pass.
When they were hungry, Bu Eun-seol would roast dried rations he got from an inn or catch a fish.
Then she would gather firewood, start a fire, and cook the meat.
During that time, not a single word was exchanged between the two, but they worked together perfectly.
Even without conversation. Without looking at each other.
They could even understand each other’s intentions with just a glance, as if their minds were connected.
*Shhhk!*
*Swoosh!*
Moreover, even when Bu Eun-seol used his Extreme Speed Shadowless Art at the seventh level, So-yo kept up with him.
Once, to test her lightness skill, he had used his full power to increase the distance between them.
A considerable gap had formed. Nevertheless, she found Bu Eun-seol again in no time.
She possessed the unique senses of an assassin and had mastered superior tracking skills.
Therefore, even if Bu Eun-seol was hiding or concealing his presence, she could find him without fail.
‘Her skills are incredible.’
With skills like that, she must have been a top-tier assassin who had reached the highest level in the Hundred Flash Assassins.
Bu Eun-seol could somewhat understand why the Hundred Flash Assassins were so relentlessly pursuing So-yo.
There was a risk that the unique secret assassination techniques of the Hundred Flash Assassins could be leaked.
‘But her way of speaking seems to be influenced by the Cold Soul Art.’
Although her personality was cold, So-yo’s speech and attitude were frozen, as if she couldn't think normally.
Assassins generally learn the Cold Soul Art, which makes them forget fear and freezes their emotions.
After all, the most crucial qualities for assassins who seize opportunities to carry out their contracts are calmness and patience.
Perhaps because So-yo had even mastered the Cold Soul Art, a stiffness unintentionally came out in her speech and attitude.
‘But… this kind of journey isn’t bad either.’
The journey to Myoga Village with So-yo brought Bu Eun-seol an unprecedented sense of calm and peace.
So-yo’s indifferent and cold demeanor.
It was as if it was a mirror image of his own childhood.
Although she was actually older, in Bu Eun-seol’s eyes, she just looked like a girl with a hint of childishness.
Even without long conversations, it felt like they had exchanged hundreds of words, and their gazes were comfortable.
Whether animal or human, one feels comfortable when meeting their own kind. For the first time in the martial world, Bu Eun-seol had met someone like himself.
‘It feels a little strange, though.’
All the people he had traveled with in the martial world so far had personalities opposite to his.
But So-yo’s personality was a perfect match for Bu Eun-seol’s, and even her insight seemed similar.
Even when he decided to camp for the night. The choice of location and time.
And even the way they made a fire and prepared their beds. Even their preferences matched.
*Munch. Munch.*
The only thing that was completely different was their appetite.
The amount she ate was unbelievable.
When Bu Eun-seol ate one piece of dried jerky, she would devour an entire bundle of it.
But her eating didn't look unseemly.
The way she earnestly and seriously filled her stomach looked almost solemn.
*Swoosh.*
Just then, a sound of something cutting through the air echoed from the distant sky.
Their number was about eighty.
Bu Eun-seol, who had been closing his eyes for a moment, didn't use his movement art and calmly waited for them.
*Thud.*
The assassins who finally arrived were none other than the assassins from the Hundred Flash Assassins he had seen before.
Their clothes were torn, and they were covered in dust and blood, as if they had just come from a fierce battle.
“You bastard…”
The head assassin glared at Bu Eun-seol and ground his teeth.
“To think you’d spout such nonsense when you have nothing to do with the Martial Alliance!”