Chapter 327
Chapter 327
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 327
Chapter Title: Confrontation
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Yi Hwan gazed at the particularly protruding cliff.
‘If I hide my body behind that, they won’t be able to see me from their vantage point.’
Yi Hwan’s confidence stemmed partly from spotting that spot.
“Be careful, Great Prince.”
“I’ll be back.”
Yi Hwan leaped straight up to the cliff and concealed himself behind the protruding section.
Hwa Ryeong let out an exclamation of admiration.
“If you hide behind that, they definitely won’t see you from down there!”
It was then.
Swoosh!
The halted barrage of arrows resumed pouring down.
Hwa Ryeong’s eyes widened in surprise.
“No way, it should be completely hidden. How did they notice?”
At Hwa Ryeong’s question, Go Mi shook her head.
“It’s not that they noticed the Great Prince climbing the cliff and attacked. They’re probably creating a diversion to climb the cliff themselves without us noticing.”
The two women quickly hid behind a tree.
Thud thud thud thud!
Arrows rained down around them.
Several arrows embedded themselves in the tree right next to Go Mi. Yet she didn’t even blink, keeping her eyes fixed on the cliff.
But Yi Hwan was shielded by the rock and out of sight.
*What you’ve seen so far is not all there is.*
Yi Hwan’s voice echoed in her mind.
Go Mi bit her lip gently and turned to Hwa Ryeong.
Hwa Ryeong, who had been looking back at her, seemed to realize something and widened her eyes. But then she smiled faintly.
“You didn’t say you’d go alone.”
Go Mi smiled faintly as well.
“Got it. Let’s go together.”
* * *
Whoosh!
A fierce gale whipped through.
Yi Hwan moved to the edge of the cliff and looked down at the base of the mountain. As expected, Zhao Kingdom troops were climbing up.
‘Climbing here isn’t just to stop you.’
Yi Hwan began snapping off tree branches.
It would still take the Zhao Kingdom warriors some time to reach the top. He had something to do first.
Moments later, Yi Hwan gathered an armful of branches and underbrush and headed to the center. There was a depression there.
Yi Hwan first laid down the dry underbrush and branches, lit them with the Threefold Flame, then covered them with fresh green branches and foliage.
Smoke rose, carried by the wind like a soaring dragon.
“Great Prince!”
“……!”
Go Mi and Hwa Ryeong came running.
Yi Hwan narrowed his eyes slightly. Hwa Ryeong beamed and said,
“Don’t worry. We followed the exact path you took up, so they didn’t notice at all.”
“Foolish…….”
“Pardon?”
“If they see this smoke, what do you think they’ll do? They’ll assume the Southern Legion will send troops no matter the reason upon spotting it, so they’ll launch a total assault to settle things before the Southern Legion arrives. That’s why I said to come alone—I can’t protect everyone if it comes to that.”
“……!”
Go Mi and Hwa Ryeong’s faces hardened.
Go Mi bowed her head.
“I’m sorry, Great Prince.”
But not Hwa Ryeong.
“Then you should have told us that from the start! I came up here to help, and this is what I get!”
“…….”
She was truly angry, her chest heaving.
Go Mi grabbed Hwa Ryeong’s arm and said,
“We’ll head down as fast as possible.”
“Forget it. The space is too narrow for everyone to fight at once anyway, so let’s block those climbing up that side.”
Go Mi’s expression finally relaxed. But Hwa Ryeong was still fuming.
Yi Hwan spoke indifferently to such Hwa Ryeong.
“Stop huffing and puffing and prepare as many rocks or whatever you can throw as possible.”
* * *
“General! Look up there!”
The deputy general pointed to the top of the ravine. Gwak Chi, who had naturally turned his head, bulged his eyes.
“What the hell is that smoke!”
“Someone climbed up there and lit it! Seeing that smoke, the Southern Legion will definitely send troops to investigate!”
“You mad……! Are they planning to defect to Yeon Kingdom?”
Gwak Chi panicked.
Lighting a signal fire here meant calling someone, and geographically, it could only be the Yeon Kingdom’s Southern Legion.
‘Defecting to Yeon Kingdom?’
Gwak Chi hurriedly asked,
“How long do you think it’ll take for the Southern Legion to rush here upon seeing that smoke!”
“From here to the Southern Legion’s camp, it’s less than two hours. If a unit near the border spots it, they’ll arrive much faster.”
In the worst case, they had at most one hour, or half in the best.
But Gwak Chi dismissed that assumption.
“There’s no reason for troops to be in this area. Even if there are, it’d be a small unit. What can a few dozen do? So assume two hours and prepare accordingly!”
“Understood.”
“The problem is even two hours isn’t much time…….”
Trailing off as he eyed Ju Tae, Gwak Chi turned to his deputy and ordered,
“If a significant number of enemies escaped to the cliff top, now’s our chance. Resume the attack—tell everyone to hurry!”
“Yes!”
* * *
Ju Tae, who had been watching with arms crossed, stood up.
“It looks like they’re starting their attack again.”
Thud!
Kim Mu-gwan stabbed his greatsword into the ground and cracked his neck.
Crunch!
“This time, I’ll block the front.”
“Leave it to me.”
Park Ji-mun stepped forward. The warriors under Jo Seok also advanced.
Ju Tae said to them,
“As I said earlier, I’ll call for help if needed, so leave it to us until then. Too many in this narrow space will just get in the way.”
“…….”
It could have been taken as an insult, but no one did. They had already witnessed Ju Tae’s terrifying prowess.
The middle-aged man signaled everyone to fall back.
As they retreated, the middle-aged man said,
“That smoke—is it a signal to Yeon’s Southern Legion?”
“That’s right.”
“Then how long until their troops arrive?”
“About two hours from here to their camp. But I sent a messenger pigeon well before entering this ravine, so they’ll arrive sooner.”
“Well before…… what do you mean?”
“Before entering this ravine, I already sent word to the Southern Legion. So by now, they’re probably not far, searching for us.”
“Ah…….”
The middle-aged man’s face brightened.
He glanced at Jo Seok. Jo Seok also looked relieved at Ju Tae’s words.
It was then.
“They’re coming!”
* * *
Twitch.
Gwak Chi’s eyebrow twitched fiercely.
His subordinates, charging into attack, were falling, spurting blood.
But this time, it wasn’t Ju Tae. Shockingly, another figure displayed prowess equal to Ju Tae’s.
“Argh!”
“Ugh!”
Subordinates plummeting with agonized screams.
Gwak Chi trembled at the gruesome sight of his men rolling with torsos severed from legs.
“Damn it…….”
The deputy general shouted.
“At this rate, it’s pointless! Pull the troops back before more losses!”
Crunch!
“Cease the attack.”
“Fall back!”
“Everyone, fall back!”
The attackers hurriedly retreated.
Gwak Chi’s eyes quivered. In that short time, six had lost their lives pointlessly.
“If they’re going to play it like this…….”
Poisonous intent filled Gwak Chi’s eyes.
A cruel order followed from his mouth.
“Prepare the fire arrows!”
“G-General! Using fire arrows will reach even Third Prince…….”
“Shut up! He chose to defect to Yeon Kingdom and betray His Majesty! Even if he dies, His Majesty won’t blame us! Hurry and prepare!”
“But isn’t it too early to jump to conclusions?”
“After seeing that smoke, you say that?”
“……!”
“Quit dawdling and move!”
“Yes!”
Meanwhile, Ju Tae and the others narrowed their eyes at the Zhao Kingdom troops retreating easily again.
“They’re trying something else.”
“The movements of those in the back look suspicious.”
Everyone stared at the Zhao Kingdom troops gathered at the ravine entrance. Hundreds were crouched, busily making something.
Kim Mu-gwan, watching intently, narrowed his eyes subtly.
“No way, fire arrows?”
“This is trouble…….”
Then Gwak Chi’s shout rang out.
“I’ll turn that place into a sea of fire soon! If you don’t want to be roasted alive, tell Jo Seok to surrender now!”
Gwak Chi’s shout pierced clearly into the ears of Jo Seok and the others who had fallen back.
Their faces hardened like stone, and Jo Seok’s wife trembled violently.
Jo Seok gently embraced his shaking wife and approached Ju Tae and the others.
Pain shook his eyes.
“I can’t let you all suffer because of me. Let’s…… end this.”
“You’re giving up?”
“Not giving up, but accepting this unavoidable situation. You know what happens if fire arrows fall here.”
“Your Highness!”
Jo Seok’s warriors cried out in anguish, and his eyes reddened.
Ju Tae and the others were troubled.
Even if fire arrows fell, they’d be fine—they could just break through the encirclement.
But for Jo Seok and his group, it was different. Most would die, including Jo Seok and his wife.
Ju Tae looked up toward Yi Hwan’s position. With him absent, the decision was theirs.
But it wasn’t easy.
‘Is this the heavy burden you always carry?’
* * *
Whoosh!
The gale shifted directions, blowing fiercely.
The Zhao Kingdom troops hadn’t reached the summit yet.
Yi Hwan’s robe fluttered as he scanned the base.
It was then.
“Great Prince! The Southern Legion is coming!”
Go Mi pointed north and shouted.
Yi Hwan’s gaze reflexively turned to where she pointed. Troops were rapidly descending through the forest.
“It’s the Dragon-Tiger Army!”
The unmistakable banner of the Dragon-Tiger Army.
A faint smile played on Yi Hwan’s lips.
“They’ve grown considerably.”
Otherwise, Total Commander Paeng Mu-wi would have sent a different unit.
Yi Hwan looked down the cliff. The closest Zhao Kingdom warriors still had about thirty zhang to the top.
A light appeared above Yi Hwan’s head.
The light shot out swiftly, piercing the lead climber.
Thud thud thud!
“Argh!”
“Ugh!”
They plummeted, clueless as to what hit them.
Some below, dodging the falling bodies, tumbled down as well.
“Enemy at the summit!”
“There’s an enemy!”
The Zhao Kingdom warriors panicked.
Even the greatest masters couldn’t perform at full strength while scaling a cliff. And against Yi Hwan, the outcome was obvious.
Swoosh!
Thud!
“Gah!”
This time, a rock flew in.
Normally blockable with protective aura, but here it was deadlier than an absolute master’s blade.
Thud!
“Argh!”
“Uaaagh!”
“This is too much fun!”
Hwa Ryeong shook a rock, flashing white teeth.
The light around Yi Hwan vanished.
The Zhao Kingdom warriors could no longer hold and began descending the cliff. Falls continued amid the retreat.
Yi Hwan shifted his gaze to the Zhao Kingdom troops at the ravine entrance.
“They’re retreating.”