Chapter 591: You Won't Regret That Decision
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 591: You Won't Regret That Decision
"You're saying... the paradise I built is crumbling!?"
Lee Jae-won asked back, his face a mask of bewilderment.
He simply couldn't wrap his head around it. How could his paradise collapse just because he didn't start the Great War of Righteousness and Demons? It wasn't as if he were the one starting it in the first place.
"Currently, your standing within the Alliance is extremely precarious," she began, her expression dead serious as she slowly opened her mouth.
"Countless members of the Cheonmu Alliance witnessed you unleashing a lethal strike against a defenseless Jang Sun-woo, only to have your own arm severed instead. Furthermore, you laid a hand on Joo So-yang, who enjoys explosive support from both the Elders and the Council of Elders. There are even rumors circulating that you went to kill the unconscious Jang Sun-woo, only to return after being slapped across the face. To put it mildly, the situation is not good."
Tang Jin-seol looked at Lee Jae-won with a calm gaze and continued.
"Besides, aren't you currently under suspicion of being a serial rapist and murderer? It would be a joke if your standing were good under these circumstances."
"……"
Lee Jae-won bit his lip. Everything she said was the truth.
"Not only has trust in the Alliance Leader plummeted, but your very qualifications for the position are being questioned. If this public sentiment continues, talk of impeachment will soon become commonplace."
"Im... Impeachment!?" Lee Jae-won asked, startled.
"Yes. And if... if that impeachment actually goes through, you will lose everything you've built over the last twenty years in a single moment."
Tang Jin-seol asked him with an incredibly solemn expression, "Surely, that isn't what you want?"
"Of course I don't want that, damn it!" Lee Jae-won snapped, raising his voice.
"That is precisely why it is all the more necessary to trigger the Great War of Righteousness and Demons."
"Why?" Lee Jae-won asked, still lost.
He couldn't see the correlation between protecting his paradise and starting a war between the righteous and demonic factions.
"To flip this negative public opinion, we need to create an entirely new stage."
"A new stage?"
"Yes. Not a small stage like merely framing the Yin-Yang Demon, but a much larger one."
"A larger stage?" Lee Jae-won asked again, puzzled.
"If your honor as a hero of the Great War of Righteousness and Demons has faded, then you simply need to reclaim that honor once more."
Tang Jin-seol’s cold eyes glittered as she continued. "Through this war, you will become a hero once again."
"……A hero?"
"Yes. That is the only way to overturn the current public sentiment."
Tang Jin-seol spoke while looking at Lee Jae-won with eyes full of conviction.
"……So you're telling me to be hailed as a hero in a war that I started?"
"Exactly." Tang Jin-seol gave a slight nod.
"Do you think that makes any sense?"
"I don't see why it wouldn't." She continued, her expression perfectly composed.
"What if I get caught! What are you going to do if I'm found out!?" Lee Jae-won shouted, his temper flaring.
He understood that her words had merit. To overturn the existing narrative, he needed to perform a feat that would raise his status. But this idea was far too dangerous. Starting a war just to become a hero? The scale was too massive for a mere setup. If the truth ever came out, he would lose everything in reverse. The risk was that high.
"Alliance Leader, didn't I tell you?" Tang Jin-seol said, looking frustrated.
A hint of irritation flared within her toward Lee Jae-won, who couldn't seem to understand no matter how many times she explained it.
"If you just stay still like this, you're going to be kicked out and lose your paradise anyway."
She looked at him with chilling eyes. "In that case, wouldn't it be better to stake everything on the gamble of a lifetime?"
"……"
Lee Jae-won fell silent. He realized she wasn't wrong. He was already prime for impeachment. With public opinion against him and his political standing shrinking, almost no one would step up to defend him. Given the situation, her logic held up. If he was going to lose everything anyway, it was better to gamble it all.
"……Give me... give me some time... I can't... decide yet..."
Lee Jae-won spoke with a heavy expression. He couldn't make the decision easily. The stakes were simply too high. Twenty years of time and effort were on the line—how could he not hesitate?
"Alliance Leader, you must make a bold decision right now. If you dither, even a sure thing will fail."
"Right... right now!?" Lee Jae-won stammered, looking flustered.
Why was she being so pushy?
"There is a right time for everything. If you drag your feet, you'll miss the window."
"And you're saying that window is now?"
"Yes. It has to be now." She continued with a cold expression.
"Why?"
"Because all the leadership is currently gathered in one place to discuss the matter regarding Jang Sun-woo."
She spoke matter-of-factly. The leadership was indeed gathered together, unable to reach a decision on how to handle Jang Sun-woo.
"……What does that have to do with anything?"
"To start the Great War of Righteousness and Demons, we need two things. First, victims to serve as the justification for the war. Second, a 'venger' who will help formalize the war."
Tang Jin-seol held up two fingers.
What the fuck is she talking about?
Lee Jae-won scowled at her vague words. He couldn't understand what kind of bullshit she was spewing. Would it kill her to explain things in a way he could actually understand? Why did she have to talk in such riddles?
"……Explain it in detail," Lee Jae-won said, his expression turning deadly serious as he hid the rage he felt at his own lack of comprehension.
"I intend to massacre the families of the leadership."
"What!?" Lee Jae-won asked, shocked. What on earth did that mean?
"The destroyed clans will provide the justification to start the war. And the sole surviving executive of the Cheonmu Alliance will become the 'venger' who actively supports the war."
Tang Jin-seol flashed a bright smile, as if she were enjoying herself. Despite the horrific nature of her words, she looked incredibly innocent.
……This psychopathic bitch.
Lee Jae-won felt a chill run down his spine as he looked at that smile. He had always known she was ruthless, but he never imagined she would devise such a gruesome plan.
"……Do you really think that's possible?" Lee Jae-won finally managed to ask.
"I don't see why not."
"Massacring a clan is no easy task! Especially while leaving traces of demonic arts! Such a thing can't possibly be easy!"
"I have children I've prepared for just such an occasion," Tang Jin-seol said, her expression relaxed.
"……Children... you've prepared...?"
"Yes. They are children perfectly suited for this situation."
"……What the hell does that mean? Just speak plainly! Stop beating around the bush!"
Lee Jae-won roared in frustration. Her attitude of delivering information in fragments, like a game of twenty questions, was making his blood boil. It felt like she was mocking him. And this was coming from the woman who said they had no time.
That bitch really has a fucking annoying way of talking.
Lee Jae-won's face began to contort uncontrollably.
"Do you remember the Honma Secret Manual?"
"The Honma Secret Manual?" Lee Jae-won asked, the name sounding vaguely familiar.
"Do you remember twenty years ago, when you fought a duel to the death with an old man named Honma, who was an Elder of the Demonic Cult?"
"Ah!"
Lee Jae-won let out an exclamation as the memory finally clicked. He certainly remembered. Twenty years ago, when he had just reached the Transcendent Realm, he had fought a life-and-death battle with a Demonic Cult Elder known as Honma. They had crossed paths by chance while he was bringing Tang Jin-seol back to the Murim Alliance.
At the time, he had been utterly overwhelmed. His power as a fresh Transcendent Realm martial artist was no match for Honma, who was at the Mid-Transcendent Realm. As time passed, Lee Jae-won grew more disadvantaged, and Honma began to seize victory. It was the first true crisis he had faced since falling into the Murim.
That was when Tang Jin-seol, who had been watching the fight from behind, showed her resourcefulness. She had struck Honma near the shoulder with the Blood Butterfly, a secret hidden weapon passed down through the Tang Clan. As a result, Honma momentarily exposed a gap, and Lee Jae-won exploited it to crush the old man's skull.
"What about it?"
"The Honma Secret Manual is the secret manual containing Honma's martial arts." She continued in a calm tone.
"What!?" Lee Jae-won asked, stunned. "Why do you have that?"
"When Honma died, it was tucked away in his robes."
"You told me there was nothing on him!"
"I lied. I'm sorry."
Tang Jin-seol apologized with an expression that didn't hold a shred of actual remorse.
This fucking bitch!
Lee Jae-won cursed inwardly. He never imagined she would pull such a wicked stunt while he was exhausted and unconscious.
To think she did something like that.
The more he heard, the more he felt Tang Jin-seol's meticulousness and venom. Lee Jae-won's gaze turned somber. He realized she was a woman he could never afford to let his guard down around.
"Why did you steal the Honma Secret Manual?" he asked, curious.
"Because I needed power."
"Power?"
"Yes. To win the succession competition, I needed power that could overwhelm the other women."
"……You were already thinking about the succession competition back then?"
Lee Jae-won looked at her, dumbfounded. At that time, Tang Jin-seol wasn't even pregnant with his child. How could she have been preparing for a succession struggle since then?
Smile.
Tang Jin-seol flashed a bright smile at his question.
Shiver.
And seeing that smile, Lee Jae-won felt a cold shiver. He was genuinely creeped out by her unfathomable foresight.
Terrifying woman.
He was afraid. He couldn't even begin to guess how deep her dark intentions ran.
"……So you... raised people who learned those demonic arts...?" Lee Jae-won finally asked.
"That's right. I've cultivated loyal subordinates who would jump into a pit of fire strapped with explosives if I ordered it."
She continued with a pure, innocent smile. She seemed genuinely proud of having raised a secret force.
"You're insane."
Lee Jae-won muttered. It was the only word that fit. What kind of crazy woman steals a demonic manual to raise a private army for a child that hasn't even been born yet? She was definitely out of her mind.
"I was simply preparing," she said calmly.
"……So you're going to use those bastards to attack the families of the leadership?" Lee Jae-won asked, his eyes cold.
"Yes. There are over twenty of them, and they are monsters who have reached the Super-Peak Realm. They can handle a mid-sized sect like a light snack."
Her eyes sparkled with confidence.
"Over twenty people at the Super-Peak Realm!?"
Lee Jae-won was shocked. That strength was far beyond his imagination. This was supposed to be a private army raised by an individual, yet she had over twenty Super-Peak martial artists? That was a force comparable to a major sect.
"It cost a very, very large amount of money," Tang Jin-seol added with a light smile.
Demonic arts, by nature, allowed one to gain immense power quickly at the cost of their humanity. The speed was incomparable to orthodox arts. She had poured money into those who practiced such arts, feeding them countless elixirs and providing high-quality equipment and the perfect training environment. It would be stranger if they weren't strong.
"……You're becoming more terrifying by the day, Tang Jin-seol."
Lee Jae-won spoke with a look of disgust.
"Oh my, don't they say a husband and wife grow to resemble each other?"
Tang Jin-seol replied playfully, implying that he and she weren't all that different.
"……At least I'm not as crazy as you."
Lee Jae-won shook his head, denying it. He felt he couldn't even come close to her level of madness.
"Hehehe, but it's thanks to that madness that the Alliance Leader has this opportunity, isn't it?"
Tang Jin-seol's eyes glittered with a manic light.
"Now, make your decision, Alliance Leader. What will you do? Everything is ready."
Tang Jin-seol asked once more.
"You're asking the obvious."
Lee Jae-won spoke with a wicked smile.
"With preparations this perfect, how could I refuse? Execute it immediately."
The smile on his lips began to widen.
"You won't regret that decision."
Hearing his answer, Tang Jin-seol beamed. It was a strange, jarring smile.
"Of course not. Because if things go wrong, I'll kill you first."
Lee Jae-won declared, looking at her with murderous intent.
Tang Jin-seol merely looked back at him as if he were being cute.