The Incompetent Hero and the Yeom Alliance (5)
Beio — capital of the Yeom Kingdom, and the heart of the Yeom imperial house.
As befitting a capital, the city teemed with people. The approaching Grand Council had drawn throngs of outsiders from every corner of the realm, and the streets thronged with faces of every kind. With so many crowded into one place, even the smallest quarrel could erupt into a brawl, so the Yeom military patrolled with redoubled vigilance.
And from the palace at the city's center — Yeomhwang Castle — a woman with hair the color of flame looked down upon it all.
"No matter how many times I see it… it never ceases to amaze me."
Juzaku, the beauty whose crimson hair burned like living fire, etched the lively, peaceful vista into her ruby-bright eyes, then closed them. Behind her lids, another landscape rose unbidden.
A ceaseless procession of battlefields, where humans butchered one another for profit and power. The earth had never known a day free of human blood; wherever one turned, the air was thick with screams. And it was not only humans who bled in those fields of despair and anguish.
Countless beastmen.
Countless sacred beasts.
Countless yokai.
No living thing that called the Yeom Kingdom home had escaped that age of war.
And so Baekho had fled farther east.
Hyeonmu, as ever, kept her silence and her neutrality.
And she herself…
"Ah — there you are."
"…Oh. It is you."
She had been adrift in old memories when a boy's voice — still carrying the soft edges of youth — reached her. The Emperor of Yeom. She opened her eyes and turned toward the sound.
There stood a boy in splendid, formal robes, every inch the sovereign.
"I fear I may have interrupted Lady Juzaku's meditation."
Was it the weight of those old recollections? Or simply that he was that man's descendant? For a single heartbeat, the boy's figure overlapped with a face from a day long past.
"…No. No. It was hardly meditation. I was only thinking — recalling the old face of this land."
"The old face of this land? That interests me as well. You spent so long sealed within Yeomhyeongok — everything must feel new to you."
"True enough. But the old face of this land is no pleasant tale. Endless war was all this soil ever knew. Even the memory I just summoned is nothing more than one more chapter of bloodshed."
The Emperor of Yeom smiled faintly and came to stand beside her. What filled his eyes was only the ordinary, unremarkable daily life of common folk — peaceful and utterly natural.
"I wish to protect this sight."
"So it seems. A landscape without a single drop of blood. Perfectly peaceful."
"And yet it is ironic, is it not? To keep a scene like this, one must ultimately spill blood."
"That, too, is a law of this world."
And so the two of them stood in silence, gazing out over the city.
The Grand Council.
A gathering that would decide the future course of the Yeom Kingdom. For this meeting, every sect master and every family head had heaved their heavy selves upright and made the journey to Yeomhwang Castle. Now the assembled lords and masters filled the hall with idle conversation.
"I hear there is something of great importance to discuss at this Council."
"I heard the same."
"Does anyone know what it concerns?"
They had been told a critical agenda awaited them — yet most of those present had no idea what it was. A handful among them, however, already knew.
"Hmph."
Arms folded, eyes closed, sitting in perfect stillness: Dan Seolpung, head of the Sichuan Dan Clan — the Poison Sovereign, Dokzon.
"Hahaha! At this rate, the news will arrive after the war's already over!"
Laughing with boisterous good humor and shrugging his broad shoulders: Tae Haryun, master of the Kunlun Sect.
"…"
And pointedly avoiding every gaze, quieter than the rest: Moyong Muwoong, head of the Moyong Family.
Those three. Dan Seolpung gave nothing away, and Moyong Muwoong speaking at all would have been stranger still — so every eye in the room settled naturally on Tae Haryun.
"Does the master of Kunlun know what this is about?"
"Know it? Of course I know it. His Majesty the Emperor came to me in person to discuss the matter."
"His Majesty himself…?"
Tae Haryun's confident tone, compounded by the revelation that the Emperor had paid a personal visit, left the entire assembly staring in astonishment.
"Then what, exactly, is the matter?"
"Especially given that proxies are forbidden for this Council — that alone suggests it is no ordinary affair."
"His Majesty—"
Tae Haryun was grinning, about to press on with great self-satisfaction, when—
"His Majesty the Emperor of Yeom approaches!"
"All present, show your respect!"
The Emperor's guard cut Tae Haryun off mid-sentence as the doors swung open. Tae Haryun's words died in his throat; he turned toward the entrance with poorly concealed awkwardness. Every family head and sect master in the room — save Dan Seolpung — turned with him.
"It seems I am rather late."
Behind the guard, the Emperor of Yeom entered at a leisurely pace. Walking at his side was a woman with crimson hair. Most of those assembled tilted their heads at the sight of her, though none dared ask aloud.
"It has been some time, Your Majesty."
"Indeed it has, Jegal Yeoyu. And to all the family heads and sect masters gathered here — it has been some time as well. Though of course… a few of you I met quite recently, to discuss matters ahead of this Council."
The Emperor's gaze flicked briefly, precisely, to Dan Seolpung, Tae Haryun, and Moyong Muwoong — then he withdrew it and took his seat.
"Regarding this Grand Council, there is one matter I wish to address before all others. I shall state the conclusion first. The Yeom Kingdom intends to prepare for war."
"War, Your Majesty?"
The sudden declaration of war sent a shock through every person present. War — so abruptly — and against whom?
The Jo Kingdom? The Western lands?
"Against the Beastman Alliance."
"The Beastman Alliance…?"
"You summoned all of us for a war against mere beastmen?"
"Before you say 'mere,' look at these first."
At the Emperor's word, booklets were distributed. As the sect masters and family heads began to read, their expressions steadily darkened. When the last page had been turned, Namgung Doryong, head of the Namgung Family, spoke for them all.
"Is this true?"
"It is."
The report detailed thorough preparations for war — vast sums of capital secured, weapons stockpiled, and a host of other measures already underway.
"The master of Kunlun has independently cross-verified these findings as well."
"Mm. Just so. Kunlun confirmed it ourselves. The Beastman Alliance is preparing for war."
With Tae Haryun's endorsement, the remaining lords and masters at last began to believe.
"There is something I wish to declare before hostilities begin. Should the Beastman Alliance surrender, I have no desire to impose harsh sanctions upon them."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Exactly what I said. Consider why the Beastman Alliance came into being in the first place. It was born of our own fear. And so—"
Before the Emperor could finish, the woman standing behind him seized him in a sudden, urgent grip.
"?!"
"What in the world are you—"
"It's coming!"
BOOOOOOM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
A single word from Juzaku — and with a colossal roar, Yeomhwang Castle collapsed.
"Cough… What on earth…"
Everything had come down in the sudden blast. The Emperor of Yeom forced his wits back into place, dragging air into his lungs as he looked around. A barrier of blazing crimson flame was shielding him — and he turned toward the only being capable of such a feat.
"Lady Juzaku."
"Are you unharmed?"
"Thanks to you, yes. But… what is happening…?"
He stared at the ruins of Yeomhwang Castle, still gasping. Juzaku answered with the calm of someone remarking on the weather.
"Is it not obvious? An attack."
"An attack…"
"Yes. It feels… exactly like those days I still remember."
The Emperor swallowed hard and looked beyond the barrier.
"We're under attack!!"
"All hands — to arms!!!"
The valiant shouts of martial artists rang out.
"Kill them!!"
"Butcher every last human!!!"
The enraged howls of beastmen answered them.
Yes.
The war had already begun. They had simply failed to notice.
Which meant the present chaos had to be brought under control first.
"Lady Juzaku—!"
"No."
She cut him off before he could finish.
"I know precisely what you mean to ask. And I refuse."
"Why?"
"You are alive right now because you are here, inside this barrier. The moment you step beyond the flames, they will target you — and if that happens, I will not be able to protect you."
"…"
But did that mean he was simply to stand here and watch? The Emperor bit his lip and stared past the wall of fire.
"More than that… he has come. The Dragon Demon King."
"!! Fukhaedaeseong?!"
"I cannot say whom he fought to end up in that condition, but he is far from whole. Half his true strength… no, less than half — and still he dares to invade."
"That would be… from his clash with the hero who dueled you, Lady Juzaku."
Juzaku recalled the events within Yeomhyeongok and gave a small nod. Insolent as the man had been, his skill had been worthy of acknowledgment.
"Then take heart. Perhaps… even the humans below may be able to stand against him."
"If that proves true… nothing could be better. But…"