Chapter 44
Chapter 44
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 44
Chapter Title: A Shocking Declaration
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The stunned silence lingered for some time.
Kim San’s glare was still sharp with suspicion, and Shin Ye-rang’s eyes trembled minutely.
Well, it must be hard to believe.
But guys, this is getting a little old. Can we please start talking?
“Excuse me… my legs are getting sore…”
*Swish!*
As he subtly tried to take a seat, Kim San flinched in alarm and aimed his cane at him.
Sigh, this is…
“May I sit?”
“Shut up! How could we possibly trust you!”
“…”
He had encountered his past, but the past was reluctant to open its heart.
Well, I understand.
I’ll graciously wait. As you both know, what’s left of Cheok Wol-rin if you take away his patience?
During one operation, I once waited for three days and nights. If I put my mind to it, would a month of suspended animation be a problem?
Still, it was disappointing to receive such looks from the few people who remembered him.
First, I need to ease the suspicion in their eyes.
“His name was Jeon Il-cheok.”
“…!”
Just as I thought.
I knew they’d be surprised again. After all, few people knew the name of the man who died in the desert.
And the story I was about to tell was known only to the three of us here.
“He endured two nights buried in the sand… or so I heard.”
Neung Un-bi began as if he were relaying a story he had heard from someone else.
“It was the most difficult thing he had ever done… no, he said it was. He said he couldn’t have succeeded if you, Shin Ye-rang, hadn’t tracked his movements, and if you, Kim San, hadn’t cut off his leg…”
Their eyes trembled.
This time, it was both of them.
It made sense. Kim San had been there, and Shin Ye-rang would have heard a detailed account.
“He was a strong one, he said. The kick from that bastard trained in the Whirling Wind Arts came from an unexpected angle, and you, Kim San, blocked it, ready to have your back broken. Thanks to that, his leg could be cut off. After that, I… ahem!”
Recalling the memory, Neung Un-bi nearly spoke as if he had experienced it himself, but he cleared his throat loudly to change the mood.
“…From what I heard, Cheok Wol-rin seized that opening and drove a wooden skewer into the bastard's heart.”
“…!”
At this point, their eyes looked ready to pop out of their sockets. Kim San’s mouth was hanging so wide open that I worried his jaw might dislocate.
It was only natural, as he had not only described the scene as vividly as if he had been there but also mentioned the secret technique Jeon Il-cheok had mastered.
“H-How do you know that?”
It had happened over thirty years ago.
The memory, faded with time, was becoming vivid again as they listened to Neung Un-bi speak.
“May I sit now?”
“…”
Kim San could no longer refuse and hesitated.
Judging by the fluctuating emotions in his expression and eyes, it seemed his thoughts were changing more than a dozen times over.
It was a story known only to two people in the world.
And parts of it he had never told Shin Ye-rang, for fear of worrying her.
“Yeodo.”
“…”
Yeodo, the one who purifies with the blade.
It was another name for Kim San.
Just as Shin Ye-rang was Jahong, and Cheok Wol-rin was the Sword Fiend.
“Sheathe your sword. Let’s hear him out first.”
“B-But…”
Kim San was at a loss at Shin Ye-rang’s words. He was confused.
“If you’re that worried, you can use an energy-scattering poison on me temporarily. I don’t mind if you tie my hands either.”
“…”
Neung Un-bi offered his hands with a gentle smile.
Wasn’t such a concession necessary to dispel their wariness?
But as Shin Ye-rang stared at him, a smile touched her lips, and she shook her head.
“There seems to be no need for that. You know things no one else could possibly know.”
“…”
Neung Un-bi smiled inwardly at her words.
She believed.
Not in Neung Un-bi, of course, but in Cheok Wol-rin.
*It’s not for me to say, but I really did live a good life,* he thought. He had instilled in them an unwavering trust that he would never, under any circumstances, divulge secrets to another.
“Then will you please put away that sword?”
“…”
After a moment of frowning contemplation at Neung Un-bi’s request, Kim San finally retracted the blade into his cane.
“Don’t try anything funny. Stay within my sword’s reach.”
“Be my guest.”
Neung Un-bi replied to the cold threat with a smile, walked past Kim San, and sat down in front of Shin Ye-rang.
Shin Ye-rang watched him silently before taking out a bottle of liquor from a small table and filling a cup.
“You drink often? The bottle is half-empty.”
“It’s been a long time since I started feeling lonely…”
“Hmm.”
Neung Un-bi felt a slight sense of puzzlement at her words.
She wasn’t one to enjoy alcohol…
“Now, let’s ask. How do you know these things? You shouldn’t know them unless the Sword Fiend told you.”
“Ah, about that… Let’s wet our throats first.”
Stumped by the demand for an explanation, Neung Un-bi raised his cup to buy time.
What should I say? What…
Dammit, I didn’t think about that.
…He drank as slowly as possible.
He had to weave a story they would believe, didn’t he?
Un-bi’s mind raced.
What should I say?
That I’m his disciple?
…Would they believe that? I wasn’t that kind of person, was I?
*‘How can I leave behind the sins I’ve committed in this life? I will carry all my sins with me,’* I shouldn’t have boasted to them like that…
Then a secret child… that’s not possible.
They knew he’d never had a woman.
Damn it! I should have fabricated some kind of backstory before coming here.
“The sharp taste as it goes down is quite good, isn’t it? May I have another cup?”
At Neung Un-bi’s attempt to buy more time, Shin Ye-rang’s eyes grew heavy with suspicion.
“How interesting. That’s not a critique I’d expect for cheap marketplace liquor.”
“…”
She was calling it cheap.
It was the same white liquor they used to drink often when their operational funds were low.
Despite their age differences, they were close, and they had been happy just gathering to chat and share a drink.
But now, it burned his throat. It seemed that after only a short time in the Demonic Cult, his palate had already grown accustomed to expensive tastes.
“I’ve always been one to enjoy the simple things.”
“…I’ll try to believe that.”
“…”
Shin Ye-rang refilled his cup, but how could he not see the suspicion filling her eyes?
I’m screwed. He had momentarily forgotten that she was second to none when it came to profound cunning.
“Ahem! Indeed, it tastes just as simple on the second try.”
“…”
At his exaggerated praise, the smile on Shin Ye-rang’s lips turned cold.
Suspicion was turning into disbelief.
There was no time. He had to say something before her distrust deepened.
In that case, it’s all or nothing!
First, the truth.
“The truth is… I am a member of the Demonic Cult.”
“…What?”
*Clang!*
Shin Ye-rang’s shock at the unexpected words and the touch of Kim San’s sword on Neung Un-bi’s neck were nearly simultaneous.
It was a truly shocking declaration.
It would be strange if they weren’t surprised.
But he hadn’t been wracking his brain and stalling for time for nothing.
“The Demonic Cult?”
“…”
The sharpness of Kim San’s blade felt like it could slice his neck at any moment, and Shin Ye-rang’s glare felt like it could pierce his face, but he had to keep his wits about him.
The priority was to shake up her mind.
The odds were in his favor. I know things they don’t.
“Hey now, what a temper… Let’s put this sword away. How can I even speak properly like this?”
“Shut up! You filthy Demonic Cult bastard!”
“…”
Receiving a gaze full of contempt and scorn, Neung Un-bi felt a wave of displeasure.
It wasn’t that bad, you know?
I’ve seen it myself. It’s just rumors; the kids aren’t that bad. They’re good-hearted kids, I tell you.
Their tendency to kill people without a second thought is a problem, but that’s all because they were poorly educated…
Neung Un-bi erased any hint of panic and maintained his smile.
“So? Shall I stop?”
“…”
“I’m also hiding my identity right now, so it would be troublesome to leave a trace.”
“What?”
“To be honest, I alone could handle the two of you without issue… but there are people outside as well. One is a disrespectful brat who thinks nothing of cutting off a man’s head, and the other is a loyal fellow who wouldn’t hesitate to jump into a fire with firewood on his back if I ordered it.”
“…You’re threatening us, saying we can’t escape no matter what we do.”
“You catch on quick. And honestly, who would know if I killed you? You’re people who aren’t supposed to exist anyway.”
Smiling broadly, Neung Un-bi leisurely filled his own cup.
But the corners of Kim San’s and Shin Ye-rang’s eyes were twitching nonstop.
Those who shouldn’t exist.
The three of them were in that position. It was a fate they had accepted as a matter of course from the moment they decided to follow ‘him’.
Besides, by now they must have realized.
Neung Un-bi hadn’t recited any demon-subduing chant. The thick demonic energy emanating from his body filled the room, and the unpleasant, cloying sensation must have made them shudder.
With this, he had made them face the truth of him being from the Demonic Cult and had shaken the deeply cunning Jahong’s mind.
“Aren’t you curious? How a member of the Demonic Cult like me knows the Sword Fiend?”
“Ugh…”
Following her groan, Shin Ye-rang let out a deep sigh and gave Kim San a look.
“Jahong!”
“Let’s… hear him out first. It’s hard to even breathe in his demonic energy…”
They were no match for him.
She didn’t say the rest, but there was no way Kim San didn’t understand her meaning.
“But I will not sheathe my sword.”
“Then don’t. It’s not a pleasant feeling, but do as you wish.”
“…”
Neung Un-bi smirked and looked at Shin Ye-rang.
“Fine. Continue.”
“You both know how Cheok Wol-rin met his end, right? He must have sent word.”
“That’s right.”
Recalling the past, Shin Ye-rang’s expression darkened drastically.
The trembling of the blade against his neck suggested that Kim San was feeling a similar emotion.
But… can you hold it a little steadier?
What are you going to do if you actually slice my head off?
“He probably had no regrets about his death. He would have thought it was enough just to have protected him. The same goes for the two of you…”
“Mmm…”
Her groan seemed to rise from the depths of her being.
“But how could you, a member of the Demonic Cult, know Cheok Wol-rin? A man from thirty years ago…”
“Exactly.”
“…”
“I’m about to begin the story of a connection you know nothing about. Would you care to listen?”
She tilted her head slightly but said nothing else.
At her unspoken permission, Neung Un-bi smiled triumphantly.
He had finally broken through her defenses. Having played the Demonic Cult card and even proven it by unleashing his demonic energy, she couldn’t remain suspicious forever.
But before that…
“With liquor like this, I’ll need to wet my throat first.”
“…?”
“I’m not usually like this, but my station is not ordinary. If I drink something like this, my people will talk behind my back later. They’ll point fingers, saying there’s a limit to being frugal, you know?”
Having openly revealed his demonic energy, Neung Un-bi smiled with cold eyes and shouted toward the outside.
“Wang Cheon!”
*Crash!*
The call was immediately followed by the sound of the door shattering.
*Shwaaa! Thwack!*
Two streaks of light flew in fiercely without warning.
“Stop!”
*Pak! Zzzzzing.*
The blades halted mid-air, emitting a deadly tremor.
Wang Cheon’s sword, having deflected the blade aimed at Neung Un-bi’s neck, was now at Kim San’s throat, while Ju Seung’s sword was at Shin Ye-rang’s.
Though Kim San and Shin Ye-rang had never placed much value on death, in this moment, they couldn’t help but swallow hard. If Neung Un-bi hadn’t stopped them in time, their heads, separated from their bodies, would have stained the floor with blood.
“My lord! Are you alright?”
“Yes. As you can see.”
Neung Un-bi nodded and glanced at Kim San and Shin Ye-rang.
“L-Lord?”
I knew they’d be surprised by that.
Somehow, being called ‘lord’ felt quite satisfying right now.
“Just give the order, my lord. I will sever the heads of these damn bastards in an instant.”
Wang Cheon’s eyes bulged as he awaited the command.
Neung Un-bi smirked and said.
“Sheathe your sword and go buy some liquor.”
“…Pardon?”
“The most expensive kind.”
“…Pardon me?”
“Ju Seung, you fix the broken door.”
“…Y-Yes, my lord.”
The loyal Ju Seung immediately lowered his sword and began gathering the fragments of the broken door, while Wang Cheon tilted his head with a bewildered expression.
“What are you doing? I told you to go buy liquor.”
“…Yes. Well.”
Wang Cheon gave an awkward smile and left with a frown, while Neung Un-bi beamed at the two jaw-dropped individuals.
Did you see that?
This is how I’ve returned in glory.
Of course, you’ll never guess my true identity in your wildest dreams.
Dammit, this is the kind of thing you’re supposed to brag about, isn’t it?