Chapter 74
Chapter 74
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 74
Chapter Title: Nine Elders - Mission, Intelligence (5)
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It was a sudden situation.
The boy who popped out in the middle of Mok Ri-won fully immersed in his playboy act and causing a ruckus, the words spat out by that boy given his wretched state, and Mok Ri-won's expression shattered by the fallen boy.
Dang Hwa-seo's grasp of the situation was swift.
And her actions were even swifter.
“Hyun-a-!”
Dang Hwa-seo grabbed Mok Ri-won with a voice that rose as if it would tear.
She brushed off the filth staining his black robe, looking utterly shocked.
“How could something this dirty get on you! No, this won't do! Let's head back right now! We'll throw out anything that's gotten filthy and sew some even more expensive new clothes!”
Snap!
Dang Hwa-seo's head whipped around.
The corners of her fierce human-faced mask rose even sharper, her face twisting like a malevolent ghost.
“Wang Sam! Drag this damned brat over here! I'm going back right now to make him pay for this!”
Wang Sam, Jegal San, quickly caught on to Dang Hwa-seo's intent and trembled all over like an aspen tree.
Nodding his head frantically like a madman, he scooped up the boy.
“Let's go!”
Dang Hwa-seo linked arms with Mok Ri-won and strode out through the crowd.
It was quite a brisk pace, and the other squad members followed behind her obediently, though utterly bewildered.
Sympathy for the boy showed on people's faces, but no one stepped up to block their path.
Half-brothers from another mother.
No common folk hero would boldly stand against the freaks whose infamy had spread across the entirety of Henan Province in an instant.
All they could do was pray for the boy's safety.
*
Back at the manor, the Dragon-Phoenix Squad tossed aside their human-faced masks and cloaks and rushed into the inner quarters.
Jegal San spread out a mat and laid the boy on it, then tore off the boy's filth-covered clothes.
At that moment, shock filled the air.
“This is…!”
“There isn't a single uninjured spot on his body. His condition is dire.”
Il-un spoke with a hardened face.
As he said, the boy's body was covered in bruises from head to toe, making it hard to find even a patch of unmarred skin.
That wasn't all. Fractures were visible in places, and his ragged breathing was so unstable it seemed like he could die at any moment.
It was far too horrific a trace of violence for the body of a boy who looked no more than ten years old.
Dang Hwa-seo rolled up her sleeves and took the boy's pulse as she spoke.
“Jegal San! Go fetch the golden sore medicine! Il-un Monk, assist me from the side, and Young Hero Mok, bring clean water with Sword Dragon! White Phoenix! You guard the perimeter of the manor!”
The squad members scattered at her rapid-fire orders.
Dang Hwa-seo pulled out the acupuncture kit she always carried in her bosom.
The Sichuan Tang Clan of poisons and hidden weapons.
Having grown up as their successor, Dang Hwa-seo was also skilled in medicine.
Ssssh-.
A dark green ripple danced from Dang Hwa-seo's fingertips.
It was anesthetic poison.
She coated her needles with the anesthetic poison and inserted them around the boy's chest, and his breathing began to slow.
“First, we'll clean the body and drain the pus and blood. Next, we'll stitch the wounds and set the fractures.”
“Understood!”
Right after, Mok Ri-won and Namgung Jincheon brought over basins brimming with water and offered them to Dang Hwa-seo.
Dang Hwa-seo meticulously wiped down the boy's body before beginning the treatment.
*
After roughly two hours of intensive treatment, the boy's care was finally complete.
Only then did Dang Hwa-seo relax and catch her breath, prompting Mok Ri-won—who had been watching with a tense face—to ask.
“H-how is his condition?!”
“It went well. The external injuries are too severe, so he'll need bed rest for a while, but it doesn't look like he'll carry any lifelong ailments.”
“Th-that's a relief…!”
Mok Ri-won let his shoulders slump as he exhaled in relief.
Then he turned his gaze to the boy.
The boy was wrapped in splints and bandages all over his body. His breathing had stabilized, but even in sleep, his brow furrowed as if in lingering agony.
“…Who could he be?”
Hye-un, who had appeared at some point, said with arms crossed.
The squad's mood sank at his words.
“Traces of abuse.”
“It wasn't just abuse—it was like they were trying to kill him outright….”
“No.”
Namgung Jincheon cut off Jegal San's words.
Staring down at the boy with an expressionless face, he spoke with conviction.
“It looks severe on the surface, but there are no fatal wounds. The damage is cunningly focused solely on external injuries. That state was deliberate.”
Mok Ri-won's body jolted.
His gaze shot toward Dang Hwa-seo.
“Little Sister, what does that mean?”
“…Exactly as Sword Dragon says. Yes, I only confirmed it during treatment, but these wounds are definitely artificial.”
The squad members' expressions turned strange at Dang Hwa-seo's words.
Her implication was far too blatant.
Jegal San asked.
“…You're saying he inflicted those wounds on himself to approach us?”
Dang Hwa-seo nodded slowly.
Her eyes remained fixed on the boy.
Namgung Jincheon followed up.
“He could be a lackey of some hidden demon. We should bind him and interrogate him the moment he wakes.”
It was a radical statement.
But one that couldn't be entirely dismissed.
Why? The whole reason the Dragon-Phoenix Squad had been playing the playboy role was to draw out and lure the gaze of hidden demonic forces, wasn't it?
“…If, hypothetically.”
All eyes focused on Dang Hwa-seo.
Her furrowed brow showed she wasn't pleased with the situation, but still, her words didn't stop.
“If this child truly approached us with intent, there's one possibility we must keep in mind.”
“What is it?”
“The demons might already know our true identities.”
Mok Ri-won gasped.
Dang Hwa-seo continued.
“Isn't that right? The demons would have heard the rumors about us too. They wouldn't use a child's pity as bait for luring. But saying he's unrelated doesn't fit either—his actions were far too unnatural. Especially charging straight through that crowd to reach us in the center.”
In hindsight, the suspicious points weren't just one or two.
Crawling out to the main street in that broken state, and of all people, seeking help from them specifically.
Normally, if desperate for aid from anyone, one would approach the first person in sight.
“…As Sword Dragon says, let's take minimal precautions. If he's not a demon's lackey, we can hear his story and help him. If he is, we extract information.”
The other squad members nodded.
They were agreeing with her.
Everyone except one—Mok Ri-won.
“…Little Sister, that seems too harsh. The kid's body is wrecked like this. He has no means of escape anyway, so shouldn't we let him rest easy first? He's just a commoner with not a scrap of inner energy.”
Mok Ri-won felt the squad members were utterly unfamiliar.
With such an injured child right there, talking about him maybe being a demon's lackey, binding him, interrogating—it created a sense of distance from them.
“Young Hero Mok, this is demon business. It's a mission. We can't let personal feelings guide us.”
“If he's not a demon's lackey, he'll surely be terrified. With clear signs of abuse, treating him harshly here too—how much more trauma would that cause? That's too much!”
“Mukryong, don't act like a child.”
Namgung Jincheon spoke up.
His pale eyes held an emotion that could almost be taken for anger.
“Think rationally. If this brat is a demon's lackey, he might have a way to contact them.”
“The kid had nothing on him!”
“It could be inside his body. Or if not, he might have planted a contact point somewhere before meeting us.”
Namgung Jincheon's words made sense.
Mok Ri-won knew it too, so he couldn't retort immediately.
Namgung Jincheon snorted at him.
“I won't fault you for chasing romance. But at least discern right from wrong.”
Mok Ri-won looked around.
The other squad members were nodding along with Namgung Jincheon.
‘Why….’
Why was no one taking his side?
Did they truly think it right to treat a child who hadn't learned even a thread of martial arts harshly, all because of the mere possibility he was a demon's lackey?
Mok Ri-won couldn't understand.
No, his head knew, but his heart couldn't accept it this time either.
Truth be told, that was the case.
The squad's words were perfectly logical.
If there was a chance he was a demon's lackey, it was right to set aside unnecessary risks and take certain measures.
‘But….’
Just because it was logical didn't make it righteous.
Mok Ri-won was the kind of person who couldn't coldly turn away someone in need.
“Then….”
To Mok Ri-won, this situation felt wrong.
“…I'll stand guard by his side continuously. I'll watch him. So please, no binding or interrogating.”
Mok Ri-won placed a hand on his chest.
Desperation filled his face.
Namgung Jincheon spoke once more.
“Some demon lackeys deliberately avoid learning martial arts. To infiltrate the world. But that doesn't make them any less demons. Children raised by the Demonic Cult come out after utterly horrific mental conditioning. Surely you've learned about that in the Alliance?”
“There's also the chance it's not. Even if this child was sent by demons, he might just be under duress.”
“You're banking on such hopeful speculation?”
“Believing in that possibility is what makes one a hero. As far as I know, as long as there's even a speck of chance he's an innocent commoner, terrorizing him is unacceptable.”
Mok Ri-won's voice was resolute.
His gaze didn't waver in the slightest.
After locking eyes with Namgung Jincheon, Mok Ri-won turned to Dang Hwa-seo.
“Little Sister, I'm sorry. I want to watch over the child.”
Dang Hwa-seo quietly peered into his eyes.
And in doing so, a memory surfaced.
Not by intent, but because this situation so closely mirrored a past incident.
‘…It was exactly like this in the Residual Blood Valley.’
She recalled facing a young girl in the Residual Blood Valley while crossing from Jiangsu to Anhui, and having this very argument.
That day, she had said it might be someone's trap, while Mok Ri-won argued for the possibility it wasn't.
And the one who was right that day was Mok Ri-won.
-So risking such threats is what makes a hero, and cultivating strength for that is what makes a hero. Isn't that why we hone our martial arts?
Recalling it shook Dang Hwa-seo's heart.
‘I….’
Was she making a mistake now?
Was she turning from the righteous path in her obsession with mission success?
The passing thought took that form.
If prioritizing coercive measures for the goal, how was that different from the Black Dao?
The moment she thought that far, a hollow laugh escaped Dang Hwa-seo's lips.
“…I can't take responsibility for Young Hero Mok's actions.”
“I'll take full responsibility.”
“If the child is a demon's lackey, it could lead to danger.”
“I'll gladly bear it.”
A bitter smile touched Dang Hwa-seo's lips.
But the conversation's flow was tilting toward permission.
The other squad members sensed it too.
“Poison Phoenix, are you truly going to allow Mukryong's wish?”
Namgung Jincheon's demeanor grew even fiercer.
Mok Ri-won said.
“Trust me.”
“No reason to.”
Mok Ri-won and Namgung Jincheon's gazes clashed once more.
Namgung Jincheon ground his teeth as he spoke.
“It's unnecessary. Inefficient. Why take the hard road on purpose?”
He truly despised this situation.
Risking danger on the off-chance he wasn't a demon's lackey—what could be stupider?
Binding and interrogating him first would reveal his identity without any risk.
Glare as he might with those thoughts, Mok Ri-won replied.
“Even knowing adversity lies ahead.”
It was the one thing he alone knew.
“Taking the hardest path is what makes one a hero.”