Escape (3)
Sahwal-dan First Captain. That was Ilgak's position now.
It wasn't an official appointment through proper channels, and there wasn't even a formal document, but Ilgak felt a profound sense of responsibility for it.
"They don't seem to be following us anymore."
And now, he was overwhelmed with irrepressible joy at having carried out that duty so splendidly.
"Captain Jin! We really did it."
It was unbelievable. They'd escaped that hellish place.
A string of the worst possible crises had hit them one after another, but in the end, they'd pulled through.
It wasn't because Shaolin had pulled strings behind the scenes. The Jeongdo Council hadn't resolved it with their power, nor had the Murim Alliance stepped in to take it out of their hands.
It was through their own strength, the united resolve of the academy students.
And...
"Don't let your guard down until the very end, everyone!!"
...the decisive leadership of Jin Sowoon, who had commanded them all. That was how they'd overcome this grueling ordeal.
Ilgak looked down at his hands and clenched them into fists.
A sensation unlike any he'd felt before. His whole body tingled as intensely as when he'd first grasped a fragment of enlightenment in the Reverse Muscle Classic during his wall-facing meditation.
But...
"What're you grinning about like an idiot, baldy?"
"......"
His utterly mad superior had a remarkable talent for ruining the mood even in this moment of triumph.
...At this point, is it just innate talent?
The Buddha's teaching not to judge by appearances floated to mind, but no matter how much he recited it, focusing solely on the essence was a struggle.
Still, even the thorns filling a chestnut burr were part of the chestnut itself, weren't they?
He was a man truly gifted at sowing confusion.
"Captain Jin. Aren't you happy?"
The academy students, too, couldn't hide their joy at having survived that slaughterhouse. Despite their injuries and exhaustion, no one's steps faltered.
"This is all thanks to Captain Jin."
Jin Sowoon's face crumpled at Ilgak's words.
"Quit standing around like it's all over. We've still got a long way to go."
"What do you mean...? We shook them off in the end, didn't we?"
"Sigh. Where's the biggest Murim Alliance branch near Yunnan Province?"
Yunnan Province was one of the outermost regions, even in the Central Plains often called Zhongyuan. Sometimes lumped in with the borderlands, it was among the farthest from the Murim Alliance's power structure.
Unlike central provinces with multiple branches—sometimes nearly a dozen—Yunnan had just one small outpost in Kunming.
"Uh......"
Once that sank in, Ilgak realized.
"Yeah, we're not out of the woods yet."
"B-but."
"Of course I know. Those bastards will figure chasing us further is pointless. But better safe than sorry, right? Getting cocky and eating a knife in the back?"
"......"
It ain't over till it's over.
Jin Sowoon muttered that, his expression turning grave again.
Ilgak silently berated his own foolishness. He'd let his guard down just because they'd escaped Mukrim, assuming the world was under the Murim Alliance's thumb.
And if all their past hardships stemmed from that arrogance...
Then he hadn't learned a damn thing from this ordeal.
Foolish, Ilgak. So foolish.
Since when had he pretended to know the world, to have comprehended all existence?
He was nothing but an ignorant being in the end.
He gazed at the man before him, solid as Mount Tai.
"So what now? Should we scout for a reserve branch?"
"What're you gonna do, hole up in some no-name sect barely bigger than a speck? Die with them?"
"......Ahem. Even so, reaching Kunming with this many people is impossible."
The injured and uninjured alike had reached their limits. Push further, and they'd collapse from exhaustion before any enemy blade could touch them.
Jin Sowoon would know that better than anyone.
"I know. That's what I'm thinking about."
"Thinking about what... exactly?"
For a moment, Jin Sowoon's face hardened.
As if some major crisis loomed...
"......Just worried the rumors might twist weird again."
Rumors? What rumors?
The guy was a walking rumor mill—plenty of outlandish ones at that. And he never seemed to care much, so Ilgak hadn't given it a thought.
...Has he been bothered by it after all?
But whatever it was, it wasn't the priority now. They'd transcended life and death; an unprecedented enemy had tried to slaughter the academy students. Hesitating over rumors in that mess?
"Captain Jin, what foolish talk is this? Worrying over something so trivial."
This was the time to steal if they had to—just to survive. To live and report what happened in Mukrim to the Murim Alliance. Only then could they stand against this terrifying foe.
"Why the uncharacteristic hesitation? Survival is the top priority now, isn't it?"
"I know that. Just worried you lot might use chain of command as an excuse to point fingers at me."
Point fingers?
Heat rose to Ilgak's scalp.
"Who—who the hell could point fingers at Captain Jin?! Without your resolve, every last academy student would have died in Mukrim."
"No, I know that—"
"Even if a handful survived!! It would've been a pittance. Anyone harboring grudges, viewing it with white eyes, or slandering it..."
Ilgak stepped forward, thumping his chest.
"I'll step up."
How could they distort the achievements of the man who'd accomplished this?
Anger fueled Ilgak's outburst.
But...
"......Hmph. Yeah? That's how it is, huh."
Jin Sowoon's response was oddly lukewarm.
"Fine, then. We'll go with First Captain Ilgak's idea. Sound good?"
"Perfect."
If he had to take the filth, he'd do it gladly. Ilgak nodded confidently.
"......"
And immediately regretted it.
#
"Hah, hah, hah."
The euphoria of surviving that hell faded fast; Jong Chuoak was on the verge of blacking out.
He knew better than anyone they couldn't stop, but his body was too wrecked to obey.
No, he felt like he was dying.
He'd long forgotten if he was even running properly.
No wonder—it had been days without proper sleep, running nonstop day and night.
What now?
Reaching the Kunming branch was impossible. Holing up in some minor sect here meant no rest—and possibly dying with them.
With so many injured, no sect could house them all anyway.
Splitting up for aid requests? Laughable. They'd barely held against the enemy united; scattered, it'd be suicide.
Stuck on all sides. Like in Mukrim, but now...
Jong Chuoak breathed a huge sigh of relief that he wasn't the captain.
Still, time for a decision soon...
Honestly, dying in battle was starting to sound okay. Not that he meant it.
Even the toughest training back home hadn't been this brutal.
Then...
"Hang in there just a bit longer! I'll let you rest soon!"
A booming voice echoed from ahead. Jin Sowoon's.
"Our First Captain Ilgak came up with a brilliant plan. Bit of a problem with it, but I can handle the rest."
Huh? Why mention Ilgak now? In this situation...?
But the words that followed shattered his doubts.
"Once we get there, you'll get treatment and rest easy under guard!"
Such a place existed? Treatment and safe rest...
No righteous sect around here fit the bill. Maybe a Murim Alliance-linked merchant guild or escort agency?
He racked his brain, but nothing came up.
Yunnan was so remote from the Central Plains that few sects even had branches, barring a handful.
He must have something in mind.
Too exhausted even for thoughts, Jong Chuoak cleared his mind.
How long did they run? Murmurs rippled through Sahwal-dan.
"W-where are we headed?"
"Yeah... But the captain sounded so sure. Must be a plan."
"Am I lost? This doesn't seem like our kind of place..."
Others pondering that too, huh. Still got energy left.
Jong Chuoak just wanted rest, any way possible.
"Wait, hold on—this feels off."
"Y-yeah."
The confusion swelled.
"N-no way, right?"
"Heard Ilgak the monk suggested it. Nah."
"Even so..."
"......"
The growing clamor irked Jong Chuoak.
"Shut up and run! Captain's orders!"
"Brother Jong, even so..."
"What? Embarrassed to follow orders now that we're alive? And you call yourselves righteous...?"
"No, Brother Jong! Look closely. Here! Know where this is?"
Jong Chuoak snorted, following the man's finger.
"Like I know Yunnan's geography..."
And there, lining the road...
"......"
Banners shaped like snakes and spiders.
"Still don't get it?"
"......"
How could he not? That sigil terrified every righteous disciple.
"......Why—why here...?"
Ahead loomed a massive hall. Stone-built entrance towered like a fortress wall. Its crude form screamed defensive stronghold.
And above the gate...
"This place..."
The sigil's owner.
"M-Mandokmun?!!!"
#
Mandokmun's sect leader, Dan Sewoong, had turned in unusually early.
The past few days of Mukrim chaos had worn him down with sleepless nights.
Damn fools.
The academy students visited every twelve years, always grating on his nerves.
Not that he feared they'd harm Mandokmun. Green as they were, fresh to the jianghu.
But them stirring up Mukrim bothered him. It was Mandokmun's greatest treasure trove.
Endless poisons to harvest, new ones appearing constantly. Even the Tang Clan had considered a branch there—a poison master's paradise.
Those kids trampling it? Infuriating, naturally.
Previously, they'd camped at old sites and wasted time, so no big worry. But this group was rowdy—explosions nonstop, torches blazing at night.
Hunting spirits? ...This cohort's full of lunatics.
They weren't huntable anyway. He'd tried himself and knew.
Those things weren't of this world—dropped from the immortal realm.
Suggestions to scout Mukrim arose internally, but they held back. The Alliance was hypersensitive to academy events.
Better to feign ignorance, avoid entanglements.
Then, a face came to mind.
The academy rep, right?
The righteous punk from Sahyeokryeon. No close talk, but memorable.
Unofficially, he'd saved Sahyeokryeon.
Strange guy.
He'd pulled mad stunts distinguishing black path from white, then risked life to save their chief strategist—their archenemy.
As a key Sahyeokryeon figure, Dan felt mixed emotions.
Hmm... Maybe visit while he's here...
He shook his head. The kid was Sahyeokryeon's benefactor. Visiting would spark awkward rumors, harming Alliance prospects.
Couldn't burden his benefactor—or draw unwanted eyes.
If they met again...
Only on the battlefield.
Black and white paths were like that.
Then.
Thud, thud, thud.
Rough footsteps in the corridor. A servant's tense voice followed.
"S-sect leader. Are you asleep?"
They knew he'd finally gotten rest—visiting now?
Dan's voice came out sharp.
"What?!"
"Y-you need to come out now..."
Out? At this hour? To him, the sect leader?
Dan scowled, sighing.
"I asked what it is."
"W-well..."
Hesitation seeped through the door. Dan flung off the blanket, slamming it open.
"What demands interrupting me at this hour?!!!"
"I-it's guests... no, enemies... uh, how to put it..."
The subordinate's stammering reddened Dan's face.
"You want to shit blood from your ass for a week?"
"Eek! N-no. There's someone—er, people—looking for you, sect leader."
"Looking for me?"
At this late hour? He'd retired early, but it was still deep night. Who dared disturb Yunnan’s Night King, Dan Sewoong?
Donning his robe—packed with poisons to turn foes to blood in five steps—he shoved past, heading out.
Calm strides took him past chambers, training grounds, to the main gate.
There...
"Ha......"
Mandokmun subordinates stood rigidly; he scowled deeply.
"What?! Under attack?!"
"We thought so at first too..."
The subordinate trailed off annoyingly; Dan pushed to the gate.
The flustered gatekeeper moved; massive doors creaked open.
And...
"Ah! Hello!"
...an utterly unexpected figure stood there, with an utterly unexpected greeting.
"How've you been? You look healthier than last time."
So casually asking after him, Dan almost thought they were friends.
"Jin Sowoon......"
"Ah! You remember. Sect Leader."
Dan's gaze shifted behind him.
Worse still. Young righteous disciples, ragged as beggars, faces stiff.
"......What the hell is this?"
"Ah, well."
Jin Sowoon smiled easily, lips curling.
"Long story short, we had a little trouble."
Too short; Dan nearly retorted.
"So anyway..."
Jin Sowoon's voice rang bold as brass.
"Mind treating our wounded and putting us up?"
Like retrieving left luggage, utterly nonchalant.
"......"
Dan was speechless.
"Must be urgent if we came here."
Jin Sowoon beamed, face gleaming.
"You get it, right?"
Not even a little.