Chapter 38
Chapter 38
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: Absolute Obedience
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Squeeze, squeeze!
The pressure on his chest made Tak Hyuk-dong's mouth gape open.
Spiiiish—!
A stream of water shot out long from his mouth as he hacked and coughed.
"Cough! Cough!"
After heaving up a bellyful of water for a good while, he blinked his eyes.
Namgung Hyeok's servant was looking down at him.
Tak Hyuk-dong lowered his gaze.
Geum Cheom-sang, who had his hand pressed on Tak Hyuk-dong's heart, wore an awkward expression.
"...You weren't breathing."
"You bastard!"
Tak Hyuk-dong's face twisted savagely as he shoved Geum Cheom-sang away and sat up.
He scanned his surroundings with furious eyes.
"Where's that son of a bitch?!"
"You're still alive?"
Namgung Hyeok appeared before him, grinning from ear to ear.
Tak Hyuk-dong, sizing up the situation for a moment, had veins bulging on his forehead.
"Hey, you fucking dog! I told you you'd regret it when I got free! You're dead meat!"
Namgung Hyeok kicked the bull-like, snorting Tak Hyuk-dong as he tried to stand.
Baaam!
"Arrrgh!"
Tak Hyuk-dong flew in an arc and splashed into the pond.
Thanks to the iron chains and rocks still bound to him, he couldn't float and sank straight to the bottom with bubbles.
"Ah...."
"Hup."
"Hic."
The Thunder Dragon Squad, who had gotten up first and were catching their breath, gaped in shock.
Geon Cheon-hwi rolled his eyes, glancing back and forth between Namgung Hyeok and Tak Hyuk-dong vanishing into the water.
Namgung Hyeok cocked his head to the side.
"Should I just snap that fool's neck?"
Geon Cheon-hwi paled and shouted urgently.
"Please spare him, Young Master!"
The rest of the Thunder Dragon Squad chimed in.
"We'll serve with utmost loyalty!"
"Please forgive us!"
"We'll dedicate our lives to you from now on, Young Master!"
It was a desperate chorus.
Seeing their frantic efforts to save their comrade, Namgung Hyeok clasped his hands behind his back and tapped his foot lightly.
The wailing Thunder Dragon Squad fell silent.
Namgung Hyeok smiled faintly.
"As you can see, I'm a merciful man."
Mer...ciful?
Not ruthless?
The Thunder Dragon Squad stared at him in stunned silence.
Ignoring them, Namgung Hyeok continued.
"From now on, you just follow my orders and guard what I tell you to guard. I'll feed you, let you sleep, and even give you breaks."
Making the obvious sound extraordinary was a talent in itself.
Sleep, food, and rest were basic necessities.
Geon Cheon-hwi asked cautiously.
"...What do we have to guard?"
"Good question."
Namgung Hyeok nodded in satisfaction and said.
"You just shut up and do whatever I tell you."
"...Pardon?"
"Absolute obedience. Absolute. If I say jump off a cliff, you jump. If I say starve, you starve. Got it?"
The Thunder Dragon Squad was dumbfounded by Namgung Hyeok's words.
It was unheard of in the Namgung Clan.
Even the Family Head wouldn't phrase it like that.
The youngest, Jang Woong, muttered just loud enough to barely be heard.
"He's the emperor or something."
Namgung Hyeok chuckled.
Flinch.
Geon Cheon-hwi sensed something ominous in Namgung Hyeok's suddenly twisted smile.
Namgung Hyeok strode forward.
"Still got some life in you?"
"Pardon?"
"Guess you still have the energy to yap."
"Y-Young Master! Wait a second!"
Geon Cheon-hwi panicked and backed away unsteadily.
"I-I didn't say anything. I swear...!"
Namgung Hyeok grinned.
"Let's taste a bit more water and talk."
"Y-Young Master?"
The blood drained from the Thunder Dragon Squad's faces.
* * *
Drip, drip, drip.
Water trailed from his long, dangling hair to the floor.
Geon Cheon-hwi trudged powerlessly toward his quarters, shoulders slumped.
The Thunder Dragon Squad followed unsteadily, dragging their soaked bodies.
"Isn't that the Thunder Dragon Squad? What the hell happened to them?"
"Huh, did they go swimming or something? They're drenched."
"Look at those dark circles. Must've played hard and drained themselves."
"They got lucky. Skipping duty to fool around. Tsk tsk!"
"Shh, better not mess with them."
Normally, they'd charge over and grab collars, but right now, they couldn't be bothered.
Lost in a daze, Geon Cheon-hwi staggered along.
His limbs didn't feel like his own, and his guts churned as if they might spill out.
Drip.
The moment he collapsed into his quarters, water overflowed from his mouth and throat.
"Ughhh!"
"Oof!"
"Urp!"
The Thunder Dragon Squad sprawled out, vomiting water one by one.
The dry floor turned into a muddy puddle in an instant.
"...He said to show up tomorrow too. What do we do?"
At Jang Woong's mutter, Geon Cheon-hwi shuddered.
He couldn't forget Namgung Hyeok's face, smiling as he said see you tomorrow.
Just thinking about it gave him chills.
"Are you insane?! Do what that bastard says? No way. I'm gonna go kill that fucker right now...."
Tak Hyuk-dong shot up and started inciting rebellion.
Geon Cheon-hwi's eyes rolled back.
His fist slammed into Tak Hyuk-dong's jaw like lightning.
Crack!
"Cut it out, you punk! Why do you keep stirring shit and getting us punished?!"
Thud thud thud thud!
"Gak! Gak! C-Captain! What the fuck! Gak!"
"You little shit, it was because of you earlier too! We got dunked again! You little shit!"
Geon Cheon-hwi yelled in frustration as he stomped on Tak Hyuk-dong.
Tak Hyuk-dong flailed before collapsing limply.
Jang Woong, who would normally intervene, stayed silent.
Geon Cheon-hwi stopped the beating and caught his breath.
"Fucking bad luck clinging to us."
Jang Woong asked carefully.
"...So what now? That second young master bastard said to come tomorrow."
"We'll think about it."
"Why not go to the Enforcement Hall?"
Veins popped on Geon Cheon-hwi's forehead.
"You crazy fuck! Enforcement Hall? Like they'd help us!"
"B-But isn't the Enforcement Hall there to enforce the rules...?"
"You idiot, who stepped on us? The second young master. Namgung Clan blood! You think the Enforcement Hall would side with us?"
"Ah...."
Jang Woong trailed off, swallowing his words.
They might even get punished for slandering a Namgung Clan second young master.
The top elite unit like the Changgung Squad might get a hearing.
But not the Thunder Dragon Squad.
Considering their history of incidents that had them blacklisted at the Enforcement Hall, no way they'd listen.
"...So we just go to that guy tomorrow like this?"
The Thunder Dragon Squad warriors gulped nervously.
They were already anxious about what tomorrow would bring.
Their legs went numb, their guts shrinking.
Geon Cheon-hwi thought for a moment before speaking.
"On second thought, it might not be so bad."
"Did you hit your head? After today?!"
"That was just the kid trying to break our spirits by throwing a tantrum."
Geon Cheon-hwi furrowed his brow.
"Think about it. What did he say?"
"Absolute obedience."
"Yeah! He said as long as we follow that, he'll let us live easy. Think simple, simple. We just humor the kid, get our pay, and coast."
Geon Cheon-hwi's unexpected words left Jang Woong and the squad quiet as mice.
One of them spoke up.
"Ah, I really can't do it. That guy's a total psycho! This isn't something you endure!"
"...The Changgung Captain beat us to tame us, but that guy? He meant to kill us if we slipped up. Didn't you see his eyes?"
"He's not just strong—he's strong and crazy. Captain! This is death, I tell you!"
The squad recoiled at the memory of being held underwater until they passed out, without mercy.
What kind of lunatic dunks clan warriors to actually kill them?
Namgung Hyeok's mindset was beyond their common sense.
Just hearing his voice made their hearts sink.
"Captain, let's run."
"We don't have to eat the Namgung Clan's rice forever!"
"We can be ronin or something. Tomorrow we might actually die!"
Geon Cheon-hwi unwittingly gulped.
'...No, it's not running away.'
Over a decade of being bounced around the Namgung Clan had honed his instincts.
Namgung Hyeok was on a different level from the Changgung Captain, and that different guy had clearly said.
Just guard what I tell you to.
With an unpredictable maniac, better to watch and wait for now.
Who wouldn't want to run?
But Geon Cheon-hwi decided to trust his gut this once.
"We'll go tomorrow at least. Decide after that."
The Thunder Dragon Squad grumbled but nodded reluctantly.
* * *
Midnight, with clouds hiding the moon and pitch-black darkness all around.
Three Thunder Dragon Squad members held their breath, staring at the wall.
Gulp.
Just over that wall, and they'd be out of the Namgung Clan.
A mix of emotions swirled.
The moment they crossed, the fat salary and peaceful, idle life would end.
But recalling Namgung Hyeok's face and atrocities melted those thoughts away.
'Yeah, anywhere's better than that guy.'
'Got to live without fearing for our lives. That's real peace.'
'No way we're going back to that lunatic.'
Firmly resolving in their hearts, the three scanned their surroundings.
"Area clear."
"What about the others?"
"I told them to run, but they refused. They'll handle themselves!"
"Can't be helped."
"Damn, where to?"
"We ate well here with the Namgung Clan swords. Worry about that later."
The three took deep breaths.
"Don't scatter—head straight east."
Tremble.
They steadied their shaking fingertips and regulated their breathing.
Their gazes clashed intensely in the air.
Four pairs of eyes moved swiftly in the darkness.
"Be careful."
"Yeah."
"If we're caught, we're done."
"Yeah, done for."
They all nodded and were about to dash like lightning when they froze.
"...Huh?"
"Eh?"
"F-Four...?"
Huh?
Why four?
Four pairs of eyes?
But we're three?
Three pairs of pupils shook wildly in the dark.
Their gazes slowly converged on one spot.
"...."
"...."
"....W-Who...?"
In the silent darkness, the three's breaths grew ragged.
Their breathing desynced, eyes filling with terror.
The lone, still eyes in the dark slid smoothly.
And then.
"Where you going?"
Their heads spun.
Cold sweat beaded on the three's foreheads.
A chill like arrows piercing their hearts enveloped them, suffocating silence descending.
"You're not thinking of climbing that wall, are you?"
The voice scratched at their insides.
It echoed again in the dark.
"Nah, you wouldn't? Right? Who'd do that knowing they'd die?"
The three rolled their eyes frantically.
Alarms blared in their heads.
'We're fucked.'
'Done for.'
But the water was spilled.
They had to evade him somehow and run.
"Run...!"
Crack!
Faster than lightning, Namgung Hyeok's fist smashed into the lead guy's jaw.
The leader's jaw spun as he toppled.
Toward the two panicking behind, Namgung Hyeok unleashed thunderbolt fists.
Straight punches slammed into the two's jaws.
Crack—!
With sharp impacts, their jaws snapped back, bodies crumpling like rotten logs.
Twitch twitch.
The sprawled three frothed and convulsed.
Having subdued them in an instant, Namgung Hyeok quietly bound them.
"Always some fools like this. They never learn, tsk tsk."
Drag drag...
Swish swish.
The three were dragged across the ground into the darkness.
Silence returned to the Namgung Clan.