Chapter 183
Chapter 183
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 183
>Chapter Title: 도(道) (1)
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But the change in the women's expressions was nothing compared to Il-mok's.
"Wh-what do you mean by that?"
Il-mok had no memory of ever uttering the word "marriage."
"Hm? Didn't you say you had a girl of marriageable age in mind as a marriage prospect? I heard it from your eldest senior brother on the way back after finishing the mission."
"…I did say that, but I didn't mean I was getting married right away, Third Senior Brother."
Il-mok never imagined the conversation from that day would be twisted like this.
Seo Wan-pyeong smiled at Il-mok's explanation with his usual knowing look.
"Heh heh heh. As expected of our little junior brother. So cautious even about marriage."
Seo Wan-pyeong interpreted Il-mok's words to mean he would first consider age and then every other condition.
"This might make you the first among us senior brothers to get married, little junior. I still have a long way to go, so that's unavoidable, and Eldest Senior Brother has already entered the Transcending Demon realm, but he said he'd prioritize the affairs of the Demon Cult and future matters first."
While Seo Wan-pyeong prattled on with useless talk.
Those swept up in the bombshell he had dropped were lost in their own thoughts.
Joo Seo-yeon, who couldn't care less about Il-mok's love life or marriage, had no thoughts on the matter.
*Ho. In the process of serving the Eighth Young Master going forward, I suppose I'll need to pay attention to this as well.*
Dam-bin, as the leader of the Silver Shadow Squad, treated Seo Wan-pyeong's words as "information" and etched them into her mind.
*B-marriageable age means I'm turning eighteen soon, so in two years… What am I even thinking!?*
Jeong-hyeon imagined something bizarre and blushed in embarrassment, hanging her head low.
*The Young Master likes girls of marriageable age, does he. Come to think of it, I was nineteen two years ago.*
Jin Ha-yeon pretended to be indifferent, but unconsciously recalled her own age.
*Five years.*
For some reason, Hyeok-ryeon Seon-a was folding the fingers of her left hand one by one.
*The next five years. If I keep everyone away from him.*
With each finger she folded, the murderous intent emanating from her grew thicker.
* * *
After his trip to the Central Plains was confirmed, five days passed in the blink of an eye.
Jin Ha-yeon and Dam-bin continued educating Joo Seo-yeon and Jeong-hyeon while attending to Il-mok, while Il-mok devoted himself to training or received guests who visited Wind Rock Hall.
The same went for the Hyeok-ryeon family.
No, they were even more harmonious.
It was because of the subtle atmosphere emanating from Young Master Hyeok-ryeon Hwan.
*Heh heh heh. That lecher is finally leaving.*
The news that the Eighth Young Master would soon leave headquarters for a secret mission had spread quietly.
Those who had been trying to recruit him were frustrated and racking their brains for a way around it, but to Hyeok-ryeon Hwan, it was nothing but delightful news.
And around lunchtime on the day Il-mok was to depart.
"Hm…?"
Seon-a, who always came for morning greetings and then joined her parents for lunch at this time, had not appeared.
Feeling an inexplicable sense of foreboding, Hyeok-ryeon Hwan shot up from his seat, and his wife, Cheong-hwa Madam, felt the same.
They hurried to the hall where Hyeok-ryeon Seon-a resided, and Hyeok-ryeon Hwan's anxiety reached its peak.
For some reason, the heavy lock that was always fastened was undone. The ironclad lock that even barred her parents from entry.
Hyeok-ryeon Hwan and Cheong-hwa Madam exchanged glances, nodded, and entered the room. In the center of the room lay a letter.
Hyeok-ryeon Hwan strode over, picked it up, and read it.
As Hyeok-ryeon Hwan stood there frozen holding the letter, Cheong-hwa Madam approached cautiously, sensing something amiss.
And then she realized it belatedly.
Her husband had frozen in place.
Cheong-hwa Madam averted her gaze from her husband and turned to the letter left by her daughter.
The contents of the letter were not long.
It was, after all, a declaration of running away from home.
"Haa."
Cheong-hwa Madam, who had somehow sensed this was coming, let out a soft sigh and shook her statue-like husband awake.
"Family Head. Pull yourself together."
At his wife's call, Hyeok-ryeon Hwan snapped out of his daze and shouted urgently.
"You're right, Madam! This is no time to lose our wits. I need to go find that damned lecher right now and bring our daughter back!"
"Haa… It's already too late. It's been at least an hour since the Eighth Young Master left headquarters. Besides, didn't she say she'd return before entering the Demonic Path Academy?"
Cheong-hwa Madam pointed to the letter Seon-a had left.
That was the biggest reason she accepted her daughter's elopement.
Not because of the promise to return before entering the Demonic Path Academy. Rather, it was due to her daughter's side effects.
*After entering the Demonic Path Academy, she won't see the Eighth Young Master for another two years. She's already reached her limit after being apart for the past two years, so it might be better to let her be with him for even just a few months.*
But Hyeok-ryeon Hwan's response was something even Cheong-hwa Madam hadn't anticipated.
"What are you talking about, Madam? Seon-a won't be entering the Demonic Path Academy!"
"What do you mean? Are you planning to send her at eighteen, three years from now?"
Cheong-hwa Madam recalled the newly revised education system of the Demon Cult.
The age for initiating demonic arts training had been delayed to sixteen, naturally pushing the Demonic Path Academy entry to eighteen as well, a system set to be implemented in a few years.
But that system was only for young children who hadn't yet learned demonic arts.
It didn't apply to her daughter, who had begun learning demonic arts around age ten.
And Hyeok-ryeon Hwan wasn't referring to that system either.
"Thanks to the Clan Head, I haven't seen my daughter for three and a half years already! And now you want us to be apart for another two? What kind of horror is that? I won't send Seon-a anywhere until she's thirty!"
"……."
At this declaration of excessive doting, Cheong-hwa Madam felt doubt for the first time.
Doubt about whether she had married this man for no reason.
Was it doubt about life itself?
"Ugh."
A sudden wave of inexplicable nausea hit her.
"Madam!!"
Seeing his wife's poor condition, Hyeok-ryeon Hwan's face turned pale.
She had only stopped training after conceiving their first child, Seon-a. Cheong-hwa Madam was still a Demon Cult member who had learned demonic arts.
Hyeok-ryeon Hwan was certain her Demonic Deviation had been triggered by their daughter's elopement.
*That damned Eighth Young Master!!*
Thinking this was also Il-mok's fault, Hyeok-ryeon Hwan hurriedly scooped up his wife and rushed to the infirmary.
At the sight of the pale-faced Hyeok-ryeon Hwan carrying Cheong-hwa Madam, the physicians in the infirmary quickly ushered her inside.
They waited tensely in one corner of the infirmary for a moment.
Soon the door opened, and one physician approached Hyeok-ryeon Hwan.
"Is Madam all right!?"
Facing the anxiously inquiring man, the physician smiled and replied.
"Congratulations, Young Master Hyeok-ryeon. Madam is expecting your second child."
It had been a little over a month since Hyeok-ryeon Hwan emerged from seclusion.
The nights of the reunited couple after three and a half years were passionately hot, day after day.
* * *
News of Cheong-hwa Madam's pregnancy spread quickly, naturally causing an uproar in the Hyeok-ryeon family.
As direct kin of the current Clan Head Hyeok-ryeon Cheon-gang, this child might become the future clan head, and above all, it was a blessing after fifteen years since the birth of their first child, Seon-a.
Naturally, everyone in the Hyeok-ryeon family was on high alert for Cheong-hwa Madam's well-being.
With it being her first pregnancy in fifteen years, her safety was paramount. Even Seon-a's elopement was completely overshadowed.
Meanwhile.
Oblivious to the chaos at headquarters, Il-mok glanced at Seon-a traveling beside him.
She wore a blissfully happy smile.
*The Young Master allowed her to accompany him…*
That morning, as Il-mok was preparing to depart headquarters early, Hyeok-ryeon Seon-a had come and said exactly that.
Of course, Il-mok didn't believe her. Merely.
*She said only until entering the Demonic Path Academy…*
The girl's eyes had looked so desperate. This time, it would be her entering the Demonic Path Academy, unable to exchange even a single letter for two years.
But this was merely Il-mok's perspective.
Il-mok turned his head and looked at Dam-bin.
Officially, he held the highest rank, but in truth, she was the one in charge of this journey.
As leader of the Silver Shadow Squad, she was tasked with assisting and protecting him.
Il-mok couldn't understand why she had accepted Hyeok-ryeon Seon-a's lie.
Nor why she had accepted that guy too.
"Hahaha! Just trust me, Ha-yeon. Thanks to my time in the Hundred Ghosts Unit, I know the ins and outs of Shin-gang like the back of my hand!"
Goo Yang-moon shouted confidently, but he was strangely untrustworthy.
Incredibly, Goo Yang-moon was also part of the group heading to the Central Plains. Even as a member of the Silver Shadow Squad.
This madman had finally left the Hundred Ghosts Unit and transferred to the Silver Shadow Squad.
And the reason Dam-bin accepted Goo Yang-moon and Hyeok-ryeon Seon-a into the group was simple.
Like other Demon Cult organizations, the Silver Shadow Squad was starved for talent, and both Hyeok-ryeon Seon-a and Goo Yang-moon had proven abilities.
Especially, they had expertise not just in martial arts but also in attending to someone. More so than new recruits like Jeong-hyeon or Joo Seo-yeon.
Of course, they had personality flaws, but Dam-bin didn't care.
Among those residing at Heavenly Demon Divine Cult headquarters, finding someone with a normal personality was as rare as finding a needle in the Shin-gang wasteland.
And the talent recognized by Dam-bin, Goo Yang-moon, was chattering away enthusiastically.
"If we go another half an hour from here, there's a small oasis, so let's rest there, Ha-yeon!"
He glanced sideways at Il-mok.
The biggest reason he had transferred from the Hundred Ghosts Unit to the Silver Shadow Squad was Il-mok.
No, not at all to serve him, despite being impressed by his talent.
He acknowledged the talent, but had no intention of living as someone's attendant.
The first reason he transferred to the Silver Shadow Squad was Joo Seo-yeon's case.
He had witnessed with his own eyes that getting seriously injured while saving Il-mok could land him in Jin Ha-yeon's arms, so he couldn't help but follow.
The second reason was a sense of crisis.
*At this rate, Master might steal Ha-yeon from me!*
The "Master" Goo Yang-moon referred to was Il-mok. And a few days ago, when his sworn brother brought up Il-mok's marriage talk.
Goo Yang-moon had been staring intently at his beloved Jin Ha-yeon's face, so he didn't miss it. The very subtle change in her expression when "marriageable age" was mentioned.
*Master says he has no feelings for Ha-yeon, but you never know with people! Who knows what might happen between them while I'm away!*
Goo Yang-moon was oblivious to the fact that even if he stayed by her side, he had zero chance with Jin Ha-yeon.
Il-mok briefly scanned the pitiful girl and sleazy youth who had suddenly joined the group, then let out a light sigh.
Thus, a modest group of seven was formed.
Il-mok and Dam-bin. Jin Ha-yeon and Joo Seo-yeon, Goo Yang-moon. Jeong-hyeon and Hyeok-ryeon Seon-a.
It could have been a different composition, but Il-mok's influence had played a major role.
*One person at Dam-bin's level is enough for oversight.*
What was the purpose of heading to the Central Plains? For Il-mok, who dreamed of a comfortable, free life, having other high-ranking Silver Shadow Squad members with him was inconvenient in many ways.
*I need to train to enter the Transcending Demon realm, but I hate anyone interfering.*
And so, after traveling for a long while across the Shin-gang wasteland with these somewhat familiar companions.
Il-mok, who dreamed of a comfortable future, felt an inexplicable unease.
*No way, right?*
* * *
Setting out from headquarters, crossing the horrific Shin-gang wasteland, passing through Yumen Pass—the border between Shin-gang and Gan-su Province—following the official roads of Gan-su Province for several days.
After more than ten days of travel by horse or lightfoot skill, Il-mok and his group finally arrived at Go-rang County in Gan-su Province.
The Branch Leader of Go-rang County welcomed Il-mok, who had finally reached the branch he had longed for in his dreams.
"Please, talk the Hundred Heavens Young Master out of it!"
At the Branch Leader's greeting, Il-mok squeezed his eyes shut.