Chapter 14
Chapter 14
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: Fleeting Fate
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The man revealed his disappointment once more as he watched Yi Hwan retreat to avoid the suddenly appearing blood-robed figures.
‘He doesn’t seem to be the one we’re looking for after all.’
[It’s still too early to tell which side he’s on.]
The blue-robed figure was right.
The man still couldn’t be sure if Yi Hwan was an enemy or an ally. The only certain thing was that Yi Hwan wasn’t a direct descendant of the ones they sought.
No legitimate heir would be that feeble.
‘It’s not like he’s hiding his power either. Was what I sensed back then just an illusion?’
From observing Yi Hwan up to now, he had been giving his all. If he were concealing his strength, what was that sweat covering his face?
[Shall we keep watching?]
[A little longer.]
The man kept a measured distance from the retreating Yi Hwan. At that moment, the blood-robed figures charged toward him.
As Yi Hwan pulled back simultaneously, their paths converged. The man swiftly twisted his body to avoid him, but their shoulders brushed lightly.
For a fleeting instant, their gazes locked. The man felt a shock.
‘……!’
Yi Hwan’s profound eyes seemed to draw in even his soul—something he had never seen before.
‘Does he recognize me?’
The man was currently in disguise. Yet those deep eyes of Yi Hwan’s pierced right through him.
Then Yi Hwan’s words shook the man’s ear.
“Get your head in the game and focus.”
“……!”
Flash!
A streak of light dyed the man’s pupils blood-red. The flash hurtled toward the heads of both the man and Yi Hwan at tremendous speed.
Yi Hwan passed by the man at the same moment, leaving the man to face the bloodlight head-on.
[Danger!]
As the blue-robed figure’s urgent cry rang in his ear, the man’s sword traced a circle through the air.
Boom!
“Urk!”
A sharp grunt burst from someone’s mouth.
The blood-robed attacker staggered back. The other blood-robed figures looked on in shock—not at Yi Hwan, but at the man.
Then the blue-robed figure charged at the blood-robed assailants.
The head of the lead blood-robed figure was cleanly severed and flew off.
Thud!
“They’re retreating!”
The remaining blood-robed figures didn’t counterattack but fled into the Zhao Kingdom army ranks instead. The blue-robed figure returned to the man’s side.
“Let’s get out of here.”
The man glanced back at Yi Hwan.
Yi Hwan was looking right at him. Their gazes locked once more.
‘Who the hell are you?’
The man swallowed the words that rose to his throat and withdrew from the battlefield. The blue-robed figure followed, slicing the throats of a few Zhao Kingdom soldiers.
Krarung!
The fox poked its head out and barked furiously. But its target wasn’t Yi Hwan—it was Song Hoe.
The blue-robed figure hadn’t noticed.
* * *
Yi Hwan stared at the man’s retreating back as he left the battlefield, his eyes settling into calm.
‘So it was that guy.’
Yi Hwan had recognized him just from his eyes as the one whose gaze he’d met at the inn.
‘I didn’t expect him to approach like this.’
He hadn’t even imagined the man would disguise himself as a Yeon Kingdom soldier and chase him onto the battlefield.
Yi Hwan fixed his gaze on the fox that had poked its head from the blue-robed figure’s robes behind the man, barking away.
It had been a long time since he’d seen a white fox specialized in thousand-mile scent tracking.
“Great Prince! Watch your back!”
Song Cheon-mu’s urgent shout rang out.
But Yi Hwan didn’t take his eyes off the man.
Soon, the ominous aura flying toward him vanished. Song Hoe had cut down the enemy attacking Yi Hwan.
“Focus, Great Prince!”
Song Hoe bellowed.
Yi Hwan smiled faintly.
“I’m focused enough, so don’t worry.”
“You almost got yourself killed!”
“I knew you’d handle it, so I stayed put.”
“…….”
* * *
The battle ended before a full hour had passed.
Uwaaaah!
The Yeon Kingdom army’s cheers shook the mountains and forests. They had recaptured the camp.
“Liquor.”
“Here you are.”
Yi Hwan wet his throat with the liquor Cha Jung-kyeong handed him and slowly surveyed the battlefield.
Corpses from both sides littered the ground everywhere. Blood from the dead flowed down slopes mingled with rainwater, passing before Yi Hwan.
‘A meaningless fight.’
A pointless war, spilling blood with no purpose or gain.
To Yi Hwan, it was nothing more than a game for the royals and nobles of both nations.
That was why, two hundred years ago, the Non-Aggression between Court and Martial World had been established through the Mount Hua Banquet—to prevent martial artists from shedding blood in such senseless wars.
But now, two hundred years later, all that effort had gone to waste. Seeing martial artists bleed as swords of power once more filled Yi Hwan with rising anger.
‘Foolish idiots.’
Clank! Clank!
Jeong Cheon approached amid the metallic clangs. With every step, the scent of blood grew stronger.
Even the thinning rain couldn’t fully wash the blood from his armor.
“Great Prince, are you all right?”
“Fortunately, unscathed. And you, General?”
“I’m fine as well, sir.”
“Congratulations on the recapture.”
“Thank you.”
Waaaaah!
“Long live General Jeong Cheon!”
Uwaaaah!
The warriors cheered toward Jeong Cheon.
Jeong Cheon raised his sword in response to the cheers.
Yi Hwan headed to a spot without corpses. Song Hoe, Song Cheon-mu, and Cha Jung-kyeong followed.
Song Hoe muttered while staring at Jeong Cheon.
“The real deal is the real deal. Even the Commander doesn’t get cheers like that.”
“Jealous?”
“Not at all.”
“Doesn’t look that way.”
“I’m more than satisfied guarding the Great Prince’s side.”
“I’ll pretend to believe you.”
Clank! Clank!
The Dragon-Tiger Army came running.
Yi Hwan counted heads and subtly furrowed his brow.
Nearly thirty were missing. Even these handpicked elites had suffered such losses—the rest of the Dragon-Tiger Army’s combat prowess was obvious as day.
It didn’t sit well with him, even though they were Dragon-Tiger soldiers he’d leave behind when the time came.
“Deputy General.”
“Yes, Great Prince.”
“Once we’re back, drill them properly in training. Make it clear that those who can’t endure training won’t see battle.”
“Understood.”
“Get them something to eat right now.”
“Yes, sir.”
* * *
“You look lost in thought.”
“…….”
“Do you think he’s not the one we’re after?”
“Judging purely by what we’ve seen, even if he were of the Sword King’s lineage, he doesn’t seem like a legitimate heir. No true inheritor would be that weak. However…….”
The man trailed off. He was recalling Yi Hwan’s eyes from just before they’d escaped the battlefield.
The blue-robed figure asked.
“Then maybe it’s those other guys?”
“That’s the same. Even their descendants wouldn’t be that feeble. He’s no legitimate heir either.”
“Ah…….”
The blue-robed figure scratched his head.
“Then there’s no point in watching longer, right? Wouldn’t it be better to just go find that wandering swordsman who passed on the Soul Separation Technique?”
The man shook his head.
“He recognized the Soul Separation Technique. Even if he’s not of either lineage, there must be some connection. We’ll watch a bit more.”
“Yes.”
The man gazed at Yi Hwan heading to the battlefield’s outskirts. Thinking of those eyes from their encounter sent shivers through his body.
His skills were pathetic, but those eyes were different.
‘To think a person’s gaze could be like that…….’
* * *
Zhao Kingdom army camp.
A general visited the Commander’s tent.
The location was about twenty li west of the canyon where the camp recapture battle had raged—a massive encampment housing nearly a hundred thousand troops for decades.
“What happened?”
“I’m sorry. It failed.”
“You sent five of them and it still failed!?”
“They say an incredible master was guarding the Yeon Kingdom prince.”
Wrinkles creased the Commander’s brow.
“I heard he was a discarded child of the Yeon Kingdom royals, yet he has a guard who even five martial world experts couldn’t handle?”
“They say Yeon Kingdom’s Fourth Imperial Prince is a considerable master himself. He held off the fierce general Heo Yun alone, apparently. There must’ve been an error in our intelligence.”
“Hmm.”
The Commander groaned heavily.
“The Yeon Kingdom’s Fourth Imperial Prince, said to be a mere figurehead, turns out to be a master—and with an incredible powerhouse as escort? This reeks of suspicion.”
“Indeed. And Commander…….”
The general hesitated slightly before continuing.
“We lost the camp.”
“What?”
“They got careless, trusting the downpour.”
Thud!
The Commander slammed the table and roared.
“Fools!”
“I apologize. I’ll lead troops myself and take it back.”
The Commander’s anger subsided there.
After downing a bowl of cold water, he continued.
“Leave a mere camp skirmish to your subordinate generals. Mobilize every scrap of intelligence you have and dig deep into that Yeon Kingdom Fourth Imperial Prince. If he’s hiding his skills to come to the Southern Legion, there’s sure to be a reason!”
“Understood.”
“And contact the Imperial Palace. Request more Blood Ghosts. They’ll see plenty of use ahead, so ask for stronger masters this time.”
“Understood.”
The unorthodox martial artists disguised as the Black Tiger Squad—they were the Blood Ghosts. Affiliated with the Zhao Kingdom army, they were known to outclass the Black Tiger Squad in skill and force.
“Dismissed.”
“Yes. Rest well.”
Once the general left, the Commander sank deep into his chair, his eyes calming.
Snap!
He flicked his fingers, and the tent’s back wall split open as a blood-robed figure emerged like a ghost.
“Report.”
“The Black Tiger Squad sent after Cha Jung-kyeong has vanished without a trace.”
“No contact at all?”
“Yes. I’ve sent out the kids to track their whereabouts first.”
“Hurry. Add more men if needed.”
“Understood. But you haven’t told the Deputy General what the item Cha Jung-kyeong took really is?”
“The Deputy General still thinks it’s the higher-ups’ secret funds. That’s why he’s so fired up, ready to wage war over it. Just play along with him. You—recover the Jang Bo Sword no matter what. Got it?”
“Yes, General.”
As the blood-robed figure vanished behind the tent, the Commander shot to his feet and threw open the window.
Whoosh!
The thinning rain intensified once more.
So did the ferocity in the Commander’s eyes.
‘Even if the heavens split in two, I must find the Jang Bo Sword. I must…….’
* * *
Having successfully recaptured the camp, the Yeon Kingdom army immediately began reinforcing the tents the Zhao Kingdom forces had used.
Since they were Yeon Kingdom tents before being taken, most warriors were familiar with the camp’s layout.
The Dragon-Tiger Army, assigned their tents, went to rest. It had been ages since their last battle, and tasting victory left them exhilarated.
But Song Hoe berated them harshly. Mourning their fallen comrades took priority.
Meanwhile, Yi Hwan tilted his teacup in his tent while examining the map Cha Jung-kyeong had given him.
‘It’s not far from here…….’
The red mark on the map indicated a spot about twenty li from the camp. No other notable landmarks nearby, so it was hard to pinpoint without going there himself.
‘No matter how I look at it, this isn’t a military map.’
So was it really something like the Jang Bo Sword?
But Yi Hwan soon shook his head.
‘No way the commander of a frontline unit would secretly build a treasure vault…….’
As he pondered without resolution, he heard footsteps outside.
Yi Hwan tucked the map into his bosom and lifted his teacup.
“Great Prince, it’s me.”
It was Jeong Cheon’s voice.