The Weight of the Mask
"Song Mugyeong, the Third Chief Steward, pays his respects to the Young Sect Leader."
A middle-aged man dressed in gray robes bowed deeply before me.
The position of Third Chief Steward was responsible for managing the maids and servants who attended to the Young Sect Leader, as well as overseeing the daily affairs of the Red Moon Palace.
He was likely a familiar face to the original owner of this body, but to me—lacking any of Baek Yeon's memories—this was essentially our first meeting.
"Listen up. I have urgent matters to discuss with the Young Sect Leader, so all of you, leave us."
Steward Song dismissed the maids and servants waiting in the room.
It seemed he had something confidential to tell me.
He began to speak in a gentle, soothing voice.
"It has already been seven years since I first entered your service, Young Sect Leader. It was right after your mother, the Sect Leader's first wife, passed away."
"…Ah, has it really been that long?"
"I cannot begin to describe how overjoyed I was when you were appointed as the Young Sect Leader a year ago, young master. At that moment, I swore to dedicate my very life to our sacred sect and to you."
"I am always grateful for your loyalty."
Since I had no memories of the original Baek Yeon, I didn't know what kind of person this Chief Steward was, nor did I know what the original Baek Yeon was like.
However, his gentle demeanor and the strange sense of comfort that washed over me since he entered the room made me wonder...
Perhaps he was someone the young Baek Yeon relied on deeply, someone truly close to him.
But then.
"Young Sect Leader, forgive my presumption, but I ask that you listen to me closely."
The Chief Steward stared blankly into space for a long moment, as if reminiscing or lost in deep thought, before slowly continuing.
"The Young Sect Leader of the Sun and Moon Sect must be violent, ruthless, and a cold-blooded demon. This is the most crucial quality for the successor who will lead our sect."
Of course, I knew that.
I could tell just by looking at how the servants treated me.
"I am well aware."
However.
The moment I replied with a slightly stiff expression, the Chief Steward's eyes darkened with an unfathomable depth.
Then, in a voice heavier than lead, he spoke.
"…I will not beat around the bush. Step down from your position as the Young Sect Leader."
For a second, I thought I had misheard him.
"What did you say?"
But the Chief Steward, his face and voice filled with a solemn, almost tragic resolve, repeated his words.
His pronunciation was clear, his tone unwavering, leaving absolutely no room for misunderstanding.
"You do not possess the qualifications to lead the Sun and Moon Sect. If you care for the future of our sect, you must relinquish your title."
"What on earth do you mean by that?"
I still didn't know much about the Sun and Moon Sect.
But no matter how I looked at it, a mere steward speaking to the Sect Leader's successor like this was completely abnormal.
He was supposed to be close to Baek Yeon, so why?
Before I could even formulate a response, Steward Song pressed on.
"I have pondered this for a very long time. Why you, Young Sect Leader, have gone to such lengths to act so viciously."
Act? He thinks I was acting?
The atmosphere around Steward Song was growing increasingly bizarre.
There was a strange, burning intensity in his eyes and tone.
"Seven years. That is how long I have served you."
"Steward Song."
"You might have fooled everyone else, but not me."
The violent, cruel persona that everyone saw in Baek Yeon... was all just an act?
It was hard to believe.
Yet, with that same tragic resolve, the Chief Steward struck again.
"You, Young Sect Leader, are a weak human being."
The words hit me like a physical blow, as if a hammer had slammed into my skull.
"Even now, it is the same. With a personality so timid that you cannot even look me in the eye... how do you expect to become the Sect Leader and guide us in the future?"
To be precise, Steward Song's words were directed at the past Baek Yeon, not me.
And yet, it felt as though something sharp had pierced my own heart.
The more I realized how deeply this man knew the real Baek Yeon, the sharper the pain became.
"I know the truth. You are terrified of interacting with others. You are a fragile soul who prefers to shut himself away in his room, alone. The only reason you have pretended to be cruel since childhood was to hide your own weakness."
"Steward Song..."
"It was a highly convincing performance. Most of our disciples probably have no idea how weak you truly are. They genuinely believe you are a ruthless, violent tyrant—the perfect candidate to become our next leader."
"..."
"But that was only possible because you are still young. How much longer do you think you can keep up this charade?"
Ah... So that's what it was.
Steward Song's words made everything click.
"Unable to look people in the eye..."
"Terrified of interacting with others..."
"A fragile soul who prefers to shut himself away in his room, alone."
This boy, Baek Yeon, had been an extreme introvert—just like me.
No, in a world where the concept of an "introvert" didn't even exist, Baek Yeon was simply branded as "weak."
To survive in the Sun and Moon Sect, where evil was synonymous with strength, the naturally gentle Baek Yeon had to adapt.
To hide the self he deemed pathetic, he had wrapped himself in a cloak of malice.
Lacking the courage to show his true self, he had forced himself to play the role of a violent, merciless young tyrant.
"Our sect bears the sacred mission to sweep the hypocritical Orthodox factions from the face of the earth and unite the Murim under our doctrine. What we need is a King of All Demons, one who wields absolute power and overwhelming martial might. If a weakling like you becomes the Sect Leader, our grand ambition will crumble into dust."
While I stood frozen, unable to find my voice, the Chief Steward delivered his final, heavy blow.
"You have until this time tomorrow to make your decision. I pray you choose wisely."
With those parting words, Steward Song turned and left the room.
His demand was crystal clear.
I was unfit to lead, so I must voluntarily step down from my position as the Young Sect Leader.
I quickly began to assess my current situation.
If everything he said is true...
No, it had to be true.
I didn't have the original Baek Yeon's memories, but I was absolutely certain that no one in this world could understand that boy better than I could.
He is exactly like me.
What happens when an introvert, highly sensitive to the reactions of others, is repeatedly rejected, hated, and ignored?
To protect themselves from further pain, they begin to preemptively reject and push others away.
They trap themselves behind high walls, unable to break free.
That was exactly how I had lived my brief previous life.
And Baek Yeon had likely walked the exact same path.
He said his mother died when he was very young.
With no one to show him warmth from a young age, he must have closed his heart to the world after being wounded time and time again.
But that wasn't what truly shocked me.
To think he could pull off such a scheme at such a young age.
Even at his tender age, Baek Yeon had understood exactly what he needed to do to survive.
He knew that if he disappointed his father, he would not only lose his succession rights but might not even survive in this brutal world.
So, to mask his true nature, he had deliberately put on an act of extreme cruelty and violence.
And his performance had been so flawless that almost every disciple in the sect genuinely believed he was a monster.
Currently, the only one who saw through him was Steward Song...
The saving grace was that Baek Yeon was still young. If I started showing a different side of myself now, perhaps I could turn things around...
Wait.
Was it really just Steward Song?
"I am beginning to doubt whether you are truly worthy."
"Prove to me that you deserve to be the Young Sect Leader."
Recalling the words the Sect Leader had spoken to me sent a sudden, icy shiver down my spine.
I had almost missed the most critical point.
There was no way a man of the Sect Leader's caliber would remain completely oblivious to his own son's true nature.
Especially when that son was his eldest and chosen successor.
At that moment, I realized this wasn't just a problem involving Steward Song Mugyeong.
No, there was a far more critical issue at hand.
The Sect Leader is doubting me as well. And even if he isn't...
I had briefly considered reporting this to the Sect Leader to have the steward dealt with.
But that would have been an incredibly foolish move.
I have to handle this on my own.
Whew.
I took a deep breath, trying to steady my racing heart.
My gaze naturally drifted to a spot beside the Young Sect Leader's desk.
There, resting quietly, was a longsword—the weapon the original Baek Yeon had always kept by his side.
"I have an urgent matter to report regarding the Young Sect Leader."
Entering the Sect Leader's Hall, U-sa, the Marquis of White Spirit, lowered his voice as he began his report.
Having received a special order from the Sect Leader, U-sa had been closely monitoring the Young Sect Leader's every move.
He reported exactly what had transpired, detailing how the Third Chief Steward, Song Mugyeong, had demanded that the Young Sect Leader step down.
U-sa concluded his lengthy report with a grim expression.
"In accordance with your command, my Lord, I have refrained from intervening in the Young Sect Leader's affairs. However, this has gone too far. To make the absurd claim that the Young Sect Leader is weak, and to dare demand his abdication... We must drag him to the White Tiger Palace immediately and—"
"Who else knows of this?"
"No one else has heard or knows of this, my Lord. Only your humble servant."
"Then, for now, do nothing."
"Sire?"
"I wish to see how the Young Sect Leader handles this."
U-sa wondered if the Sect Leader had truly understood the gravity of his report.
Though the position of Chief Steward was relatively high, a mere subordinate committing such an unthinkable act of insubordination was treason.
It wouldn't be strange to have his head severed on the spot.
Yet, what was with the Sect Leader's passive response?
Baek Yeon...
The Sect Leader fell into deep thought.
His eldest son, Baek Yeon, had always been a peculiar child.
At some point, he had stopped initiating conversations with others.
To be precise, that change had become more pronounced after his biological mother, who had showered him with love, passed away.
However, a personality detached from the world was not a fatal flaw for a Young Sect Leader.
But that cruel nature of his...
Baek Yeon was a clever child. Clever enough to grasp exactly what his father, the Sect Leader, desired from him.
The Sect Leader, who ruled as the sun and moon of the cult, required a successor who would stand tall as the King of All Demons.
Whenever the young Baek Yeon had displayed cruelty and violence in the past, the Sect Leader had been thoroughly pleased.
Even in spars with boys his own age, Baek Yeon would casually snap a limb long after the match had been decided.
He spared no mercy for adults, either.
If a maid or servant in the Red Moon Palace made even the slightest mistake, the Young Sect Leader would lash out with harsh, merciless fury.
Until recently, the Sect Leader had believed that Baek Yeon's violent nature was genuine.
...That was, until an assassin from the Murim Alliance had ambushed him just a few days ago.
Could it truly have all been an act?
And if even Song Mugyeong, who had served the boy closest of all since childhood, felt that way...
No, the thoughts of a mere steward like Song Mugyeong didn't matter.
But if the boy suffered such insolence from a servant and failed to respond, it would be a public admission of his own weakness.
Thus, the Sect Leader decided not to intervene directly, choosing instead to watch how his son would handle the situation.
I must meet with that boy once more.