The Unexpected Encounter with the Heavenly Night Squad Commander
Yoo Eunhyeon collapsed to the ground with a thud. When the rookie Gu Pyo spotted the figure emerging from the shadows, he shouted in alarm and raised his voice.
“Why are you just standing there staring blankly?”
“You’re making things harder than necessary. There’s a reason, you know.”
Even though he had a reason, the opportunity had been lost anyway. Gu Pyo scratched his head while offering an excuse, and Go Ji-han’s face softened slightly.
“He reacted even to my pulse-seal. That’s no ordinary person.”
“Exactly. Did you come from somewhere wild? No, not just because of that….”
“Listen here, kid. Don’t make excuses. Just wait. There are things I need to do first.”
Go Ji-han cut off Gu Pyo’s words and strode over to Yoo Eunhyeon. He picked up the axe that lay nearby.
“I’ve sealed the pulse, but when he wakes up he’ll be in trouble. I should at least cut one of his meridians to make sure.”
“Wait! You can’t do that!”
“Don’t shout. He’ll only be sore for a few days. Once treated, he’ll recover without after-effects.”
“That’s not it! This young hero, do you even know what technique he used earlier?”
Go Ji-han was hurriedly stopped by Gu Pyo, who shouted it out. Sensing something off about Gu Pyo’s reaction, Go Ji-han turned his head.
“What technique? I didn’t see it.”
“He used the Silent Illusion Art! Mudong Hwanmu!”
Gu Pyo shouted in panic, and Go Ji-han’s hand froze in mid-air as he held the axe.
The serious expression on his face changed instantly. He pressed his temples as if a headache were coming and asked.
“Really? You saw it clearly?”
“Absolutely. It was a bit sloppy, but… definitely the Silent Illusion Art.”
“Sloppy? No one could be sloppy with Lord Sa’s martial arts.”
“That’s why I was startled. Otherwise I wouldn’t have missed it.”
“Hmm… I wonder what happened. I thought he was from the Uiseon Suga side. Suddenly Mudong Hwanmu… Never mind. Since Dae-in told me to bring him, I’ll take him. That guy knows the most about Mudong Hwanmu, so he can make the call.”
Go Ji-han sighed heavily and gave orders to Gu Pyo. Gu Pyo, unlike his usual self, lifted Yoo Eunhyeon carefully onto his back without any scolding.
After surveying the surroundings and assessing the situation, Go Ji-han leaped away, and Gu Pyo followed with the axe still in hand.
*
Umm…
Yoo Eunhyeon groaned as he slowly opened his eyes. The surroundings were dimly lit, making it hard to make out the details.
A small lantern no bigger than a fingernail struggled to push back the darkness, its flame flickering desperately, but it was clearly not enough.
As Yoo Eunhyeon gazed at the light, he wondered if he had simply slept and woken up. The scenes from before he fainted flashed through his mind. The moment he realized it, he tried to sit up abruptly.
“Ouch!”
It was only a hope. His limbs felt bound, unable to move freely. The pressure pressing on his clothes clearly told him he was tied to something.
Hmph… cough…
He tried to speak but coughed lightly due to his roughened throat.
Still, since he hadn’t dried up completely or run out of spit, it didn’t seem like much time had passed.
Creak.
At that moment, the door opened and three people entered.
Their identities were hidden in the darkness, but soon a burly figure moved toward the window and opened it. The light rushed in instantly, flooding the room.
In front of Yoo Eunhyeon, who squinted against the blinding light, the figure revealed himself to be none other than Go Ji-han.
“You’re awake.”
“You….”
The instant Go Ji-han appeared, Yoo Eunhyeon instinctively understood that the shadow who had attacked him yesterday was Go Ji-han himself. The realization struck him, and he almost cursed, but after weighing his situation he fell silent.
Instead, he glanced sideways at Gu Pyo, who stood at the window opening it for him, and sneered.
“Rogue warriors claiming to represent the righteous Heavenly Martial Alliance… you even kidnap people like this?”
“That was unfortunate. Hey, Gu Pyo. Untie him.”
Go Ji-han seemed to feel guilty too, and he ordered Gu Pyo to loosen the ropes binding Yoo Eunhyeon.
*Damn it. If he was going to untie me, he should have done it earlier. What kind of excuse is this? Now I can’t even run away if I wanted to?*
Yoo Eunhyeon grumbled under his breath, but he decided that being free was better than being tied and kept quiet.
“Untied me, so you must have come to talk, huh.”
“Your mood doesn’t look great.”
“Who enjoys being kidnapped?”
“I admit the method was rough, but you probably had your own reasons too, right? According to what I heard from Gu Pyo, you were treated politely, so why try to run away?”
“If you were going to treat me politely, you should have brought a carriage.”
“We don’t discriminate when dealing with vicious demonic cultists.”
As Yoo Eunhyeon kept grumbling, Go Ji-han’s tone grew heavier, as if to pressure him. Though he secretly felt deflated, Yoo Eunhyeon was not the type to stay silent.
“Vicious demonic cultist? Me? That’s ridiculous… I’m just a humble farmer who tills the land.”
“Do farmers nowadays cultivate martial arts?”
“Farmers can learn martial arts. You need stamina to farm, and if you can learn it, it’s not a bad idea, right?”
“You learned martial arts? From whom?”
Go Ji-han’s eyes lit up as he asked. Yoo Eunhyeon, who had been speaking boldly, averted his gaze awkwardly.
“From a book.”
Even though he said that, he knew it sounded unbelievable. They had clearly recognized the technique he used yesterday—the Silent Illusion Art.
They were probably interrogating him about it.
“A book? You learned the Twin Immortals’ Dogeom Ssangseon Lord Sa’s Mudong Hwanmu from a book? That’s quite the story.”
Go Ji-han mocked him as if it were his turn. Before Yoo Eunhyeon could reply, the man standing behind him stepped forward.
“I’ll handle this from now on.”
His voice sounded childish and young, but Go Ji-han bowed deeply and stepped back, indicating the man held a much higher position.
Yoo Eunhyeon turned his gaze to the man who had stepped forward.
He wore a grayish robe that seemed to glow in the light, his long, glossy hair tied in a ponytail that partially covered his face. Yet his fair skin, youthful round face, and small stature made him look almost boyish.
His flexible body and the small sword scars scattered here and there clearly proved he was a martial artist.
“The conversation was getting heated, so I jumped in.”
As he spoke, the man gave Yoo Eunhyeon a gentle smile. His smile was innocent and pure, but his eyes—watching him—carried an overwhelming presence.
“Correct. I am Son Jin-won, the commander of the Heavenly Night Squad of the Heavenly Martial Alliance.”
“Heavenly Night Squad…”
Yoo Eunhyeon didn’t know much about the Heavenly Martial Alliance yet, but from what Yeo U-hui had told him, it consisted of five divisions. If it was the commander of one of them, it meant a position among the top ten in the alliance—and his martial arts must match that level.
*He looks pretty young… and his tone of downplaying things feels off. Did he do it on purpose? Or is he actually older?*
In reality, Son Jin-won looked quite young, almost the same age as Yoo Eunhyeon.
“Even though things turned out this way, the Heavenly Martial Alliance isn’t the type to kidnap and threaten people, so you can relax. I, the second disciple of the Heavenly Martial Alliance’s Lord Dogeom Ssangseon and commander of the Heavenly Night Squad, Son Jin-won, hereby guarantee your safe return and compensation for any injuries. How is that? Not enough?”
He shrugged nonchalantly, acting casual, yet his words carried depth and weight that weren’t fake.
Yoo Eunhyeon finally realized he could no longer act defiant.
“The Silent Illusion Art… I learned it directly from Lord So.”
Son Jin-won’s round eyes narrowed slightly. His expression and voice changed dramatically with every word, making his emotions easy to read, but the extremes made it hard to follow.
*Not just a poker face. Master-level technique.*
Sure enough, Son Jin-won’s narrowed eyes widened again, and his lowered voice rose.
“You learned it directly from your master? You were his disciple?”
“No, I wasn’t. But I did learn from him. Only three techniques, though.”
“Only three techniques? And you learned martial arts but weren’t his disciple? What does that mean?”
Son Jin-won asked suspiciously, but since Yoo Eunhyeon wasn’t lying, he nodded calmly.
“I didn’t learn Hwandong Simgong. It’s not half, it’s only a quarter.”
“Without Hwandong Simgong? Your master is someone who wouldn’t teach incomplete techniques….”
Son Jin-won tilted his head curiously. At that moment, Gu Pyo behind him whispered to Go Ji-han.
“If it’s Hwandong Simgong, it’s necessary to unfold Mudong Hwanmu, right? That’s why it felt incomplete.”
“That’s true. There’s no bad blood between Uiseon Suga and our Heavenly Martial Alliance. If there was an opportunity, he might have learned a simple technique. It fits, but Lord Sa’s words have some point too…”
Go Ji-han replied as if he had been waiting. When Son Jin-won lightly slapped Gu Pyo’s mouth to stop him, Gu Pyo closed his lips and turned his head.
“I simply received what was offered and gave what was expected. Nothing more, nothing less.”
“Is that so? My master had been away recently. Since he’s fair and just, it could be. But what exactly did he receive that let him teach Mudong Hwanmu, which he doesn’t hand out even to his direct disciple?”
Son Jin-won smiled playfully, but Yoo Eunhyeon shrugged as if it didn’t matter.
“It’s a secret between us. Since Dogeom-nim said Lord Sa is his master, you can ask him directly, right?”
In fact, Son Biwon hadn’t specifically asked Yoo Eunhyeon to keep the martial arts a secret, but Yoo Eunhyeon conveniently placed the credit on Son Biwon.
He would follow whatever Son Biwon said. Since he was the lord of the Heavenly Martial Alliance, Son Biwon wouldn’t be questioned. Yoo Eunhyeon smiled inwardly, thinking his excuse was perfect.
“Dogeom-nim?”
At that moment, Son Jin-won’s eyes widened in shock at Yoo Eunhyeon’s words.
Though it was an accidental slip, Yoo Eunhyeon wondered if he had said something to upset the master and quickly glanced at Son Jin-won.
Even if Son Biwon didn’t care much, he couldn’t know how the disciple felt.
Contrary to his expectation of an outburst, the words that came out were unexpected.
“Wait… are you Yoo Eunhyeon?”