It Was Tasa Temple, One of the Three High Buddhist Temples?!
The thieves' duel never spilled a single drop of blood. They settled the match with nothing but their fingertips. Yi Yeok and the Shadow Alliance operative glared at each other and sank into ready stances, and a leisurely smile spread across Yi Yeok's mouth.
"First match. We each take something off the other."
The operative offered it in a voice cold as still water.
Yi Yeok nodded, unhurried.
"Fine by me. Let's begin."
A tension sharp enough to freeze the air itself closed in around them. Their gazes strained against each other, every nerve drawn tight so as not to miss the smallest twitch—and then, in the same instant, both men vanished. They moved so fast that only their shadows remained, wavering in the empty air.
Yi Yeok's hand shot like lightning for the operative's waist. At the same moment the operative's hand slid in toward the collar of Yi Yeok's robes. Neither set of fingers erred by so much as a hair.
Yi Yeok's fingers closed first around the small gourd flask hanging from the man's belt. The operative was no easy mark, though. His hand drove into Yi Yeok's robes and seized on something.
Got it...?
They drew back together. The air grew colder still, until even the sound of breathing seemed to die. Time might as well have stopped, and their eyes were keen as throwing knives.
Yi Yeok smiled and lifted his hand, letting the gourd show.
"Looks like we're done."
The operative's gaze wavered. He opened his own hand in a hurry—and found it empty.
"That's impossible..."
He checked his waist and whispered it, hollow with disbelief, staring blankly at the gourd in Yi Yeok's grip as if he still couldn't accept what he was seeing.
Yi Yeok gave the flask an idle shake and laughed.
"Speed's decent. Hands are decent. You've still got a long way to go."
A bitter smile crossed the operative's face, anger and defeat knotted together.
"You win the first match. But this isn't over."
Yi Yeok met his eyes with a provocative grin.
"Then we go again. Something more entertaining this time."
"Fine. Next we settle it by tracking. I'll hunt first."
They took their places a set distance apart and made ready. A light wind stirred, and the leaves trembled.
A moment later the Shadow Alliance operative melted into the forest shadows and was gone. Yi Yeok fixed his gaze, determined not to lose him, but the man's movement was stealthier than he had expected. No sound. No trace.
Not bad at all.
Yi Yeok climbed into the trees and searched the surroundings with care, yet the operative had buried every sign of his passing. In a hunt, what mattered most was not speed but secrecy, and the man knew it well. So did Yi Yeok.
Unleashed to its limit. Presence sealed. Aura erased.
At the same time, he slipped something from inside his robes.
Some minutes later, a glint caught the moonlight. A single small leaf shivered as it cut the air. The operative had spotted the reflected light and begun to move.
Certain now, he closed in fast. The instant he reached out to seize Yi Yeok, a hand clamped down on his back.
"What the—!"
He spun in shock, only to find Yi Yeok grinning at him. When he looked ahead again, a small jade token hung from a branch. That, it seemed, was what had thrown the moonlight back.
"You played me. And I walked right into it."
"Just another trick in a thief's kit."
The operative dropped his head and forced a smile. Yi Yeok could tell the man's pride had taken a cut.
"You're not bad yourself. This is fun. One more? This time I'll be the hunter..."
"I've lost twice. No reason to keep going."
He looked Yi Yeok over anew as he spoke.
"I don't understand it. With skill like that, why were you only working a temporary post in the Alliance? You could easily stand as a full member. Higher ranks, even."
Yi Yeok answered with a crooked grin.
"Getting tied down just isn't in my nature."
The man in black studied him a moment, then shook his head.
"You've got a rare gift. But no matter how impressive you are, in the end you're still just a thief. Your place isn't with the righteous sects. It's with the Shadow Alliance."
"I live the way I want to live. Free as the wind, and bound to no one."
The man in black was silent for a while before he spoke again.
Tasa Temple?
Yi Yeok's eyes flew wide. Laying hands on a high Buddhist temple—had that old man truly lost his mind? Tasa Temple stood among the Three High Buddhist Temples, second only to the Great Celestial Buddha Order.
"Much obliged."
He offered a courteous bow. If the other man kept to courtesy, so would he. Besides, he felt a twinge of apology toward someone who so clearly took pride in being a thief.
"That old thief who taught you is a mysterious figure. For some time now he seems to have vanished without a trace. The entire Alliance hunted for any sign of him. Nothing."
"Which only means he's that formidable."
"Perhaps. Or perhaps he carries another identity altogether. His true face may be far more complicated than any of us imagine. I wouldn't promise that staying at his side will bring you nothing but good."
Yi Yeok blinked, faintly startled. Lately he had begun, dimly, to realize as much himself.
"But digging any deeper is dangerous. Meddle in the affairs of great powers for no good reason, and you may bring a disaster down on your own head."
"So. What do you mean to do now?"
The Shadow Alliance man answered with perfect calm.
"Report the failed mission and wait for my punishment. The Alliance won't give up on you, though."
"Why not?"
"Because they can't find the old thief. Someone has to answer for this. Wouldn't it be fitting if that someone were you—the one who received the Heavenly Origin Immortal Soul Pill?"
The corner of Yi Yeok's mouth twitched. The operative went on, unhurried.
"If we get another chance, let's have a real spar."
Yi Yeok answered, halfhearted.
"I'll think about it when we get there."
"My name is Muk Wol."
Muk Wol looked at him one last time, then vanished without a trace, like the wind. His final words echoed through the empty air.
"Next time, we settle it for certain."
Once he was gone, Yi Yeok held his ground a moment, lost in thought. Muk Wol's skill had been extraordinary—far beyond an ordinary Shadow Alliance operative. It might have looked like an easy win, but Muk Wol had surely guessed the truth: Yi Yeok had needed every technique he possessed to take it, and only by the thickness of a sheet of paper.
Don't tell me he's a disciple of one of the Three Great Ghost Hands?
The Shadow Alliance was home to three legendary thieves, the Three Great Ghost Hands—living legends in the world of thieves. Become their mark, and a man wouldn't notice even if they stripped the underclothes off his back.
"Hell of a fellow, anyway."
Yi Yeok muttered it under his breath, but the easy smile never left his face.
"Still... what is that old man scheming?"
The other identity Muk Wol had mentioned didn't trouble him much. Everyone had secrets they wanted kept, even from the people closest to them. Tasa Temple, though—one of the Three High Buddhist Temples—was another matter entirely.
Yi Yeok made up his mind at once.
"If I get the chance, I'll have to pry a little information out of Elder So Cheong-ha."