Chapter 70
Chapter 70
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 70
Chapter Title: The Assassin's Dilemma
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Following Yong-un's lead, Unwoo Guild also made a bold move.
The guild had clung to the lower ranks in the preliminaries every day, facing elimination. But with its renewed strength, including Jang-gwi, they surged to 14th place and advanced through the preliminaries.
The cut line shifted daily, but it usually hovered around the top 100.
Considering that, their achievement was an absurd leap far beyond the cutoff.
As the preliminaries wrapped up and Unwoo Guild prepared for the main tournament in their waiting room, cheers echoed nonstop.
"Good work."
Yong-un stepped into the waiting room to offer them some warm words.
All the guild members greeted him in unison.
"Thank you, Supreme One."
"It's all thanks to you, Supreme One!"
They had finally seen the results of their grueling training pay off in the rankings.
Back when it was just endless drilling, they'd inwardly questioned what it was all for—over and over.
But now, with tangible proof of success, they despised their former doubting selves.
"Rest up for the next round, everyone. Guild Master, come with me for a moment."
"Understood."
"Yes!"
Amid the resounding responses, Jin-cheol looked puzzled at the sudden summons but bowed his head. ◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Jin-cheol followed Yong-un out of the waiting room and asked,
"What happened?"
He could now read Yong-un's thoughts from the subtle shifts in his unchanging expression and faint aura.
This aura was different from the norm.
Jin-cheol eyed Yong-un with concern.
"The Night Assassins Society has made their move. They figured out the Jang-an-dong incident wasn't Sareung Guild's doing—it was mine."
"That's serious. If they're targeting you, Supreme One, they wouldn't have gone light... It looks like you handled it, but how big was their force?"
"Two elite assassins, two sorcerers, numerous first-grade operatives, and even more second-grade."
Jin-cheol's face shifted from grave to outright shock.
"Any... casualties?"
"None. But the master guarding the main house nearly died, despite my orders. That's why I'm here."
Yong-un crossed his arms and leaned against the waiting room wall.
"The master was originally one of the Night Assassins Society's operatives. That's how he held off the elite assassin Su-sal."
Everyone under Yong-un knew the deep enmity between him and the Night Assassins Society.
Yet the master had been one of their assassins?
"No need to be surprised. Trust me—he's eternally one of Ghost Demon Soul Exterminators' One Ghost Soul."
Yong-un preempted Jin-cheol's worry.
But Jin-cheol shook his head at him.
"If you've chosen him, Supreme One, how could I doubt? That's not my concern."
Yong-un gave him a puzzled look.
"The Night Assassins Society won't just sit idle, will they?"
Jin-cheol followed up with a meaningful remark.
"What do you mean?"
"They've learned one of their own assassins has joined another group. And not just any—he's strong enough to defeat an elite. If you were the Night Assassins Society's lord, what would you do?"
As expected of a master strategist.
'Brought him along for the right reasons.'
Yong-un had shared this to gauge the society's next move through Jin-cheol's keen insight.
And Jin-cheol nailed exactly what Yong-un had overlooked—cleanly and precisely.
"Thanks. Now I can anticipate their next play."
Yong-un uncrossed his arms and pushed off the wall.
As he moved to leave, Jin-cheol called out.
"Wait."
"What is it?"
Yong-un turned to him, and Jin-cheol shook his head.
"You came to me after exhausting every option and measure, right?"
"And?"
"It's probably too late. They might already be moving to sway the master."
"I just got the report. If I go now, I'll make it."
As Yong-un turned again, Jin-cheol grabbed his arm.
"Wait."
"What now?"
Yong-un furrowed his brow at Jin-cheol.
But Jin-cheol stared at the floor, lost in deep thought.
Then he looked up, meeting Yong-un's eyes squarely.
"Do you trust One Ghost Soul, the master?"
Yong-un nearly burst out laughing.
The master was his.
One Ghost Soul of Ghost Demon Soul Exterminators, destined to become a Shadow Demon.
How could he not?
"I do."
Jin-cheol gazed at him earnestly.
"Then I've got a good plan for you." ◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Rain finally poured from the overcast sky.
"Rainy day, and I don't wanna hit the gate. I'd rather head home and train..."
Cheon-il, One Ghost Soul's subordinate, grumbled in front of the gate.
The Poison Witch, now Three Ghost Souls, patted his head with a smile.
"The Supreme One gave the order. Hang in there just a bit. Good boy~"
"Hehe."
Cheon-il grinned at the Poison Witch, fully integrated into Ghost Demon Soul Exterminators through training.
"Yeah!"
He hugged her tightly.
"But... why does Big Brother One Ghost Soul seem so down?"
At Cheon-il's words, the smiling Poison Witch and Cheon-il glanced at the master standing before the guards.
He stared silently at the raindrops falling from the gloomy sky.
As he handed the subjugation order to the guards, a strange thought struck the master.
'If I were still a Night Assassins Society assassin... what would I do?'
It came out of nowhere.
Somewhere between handing over the order and his gaze dropping to the ground.
It started from the two daggers naturally sheathed at his thighs.
'If I were the lord...'
He accepted his identity as a Night Assassins Society operative without hiding it.
He'd even maximized it, wielding daggers as the perfect One Ghost Soul of Ghost Demon Soul Exterminators.
Now, facing such a formidable foe as the Night Assassins Society, he wanted to aid his lord, Yong-un.
With info and insights on the society that only he possessed—no one else.
Experience beyond words, gained from years immersed there. He pondered their next attack route.
'If I were lord, facing a strong enemy, I'd take hostages.'
To minimize damage, and nothing bends a foe like a hostage.
'But it failed. They lost two elite assassins and two assassin squads instead. So what's next?'
Damage was already maximized.
For the society as a whole, it was among the worst losses since its founding.
'They'd recover for the next war. But how? They know through sorcerer reports that Master is active—no time...'
The Night Assassins Society was a closed group, sustained by a complex system.
Even national agencies couldn't dismantle it.
Rebuilding via new assassins or recruits would take ages.
"All clear. You can enter."
"Thanks..."
The guard returned the subjugation order.
Signaling approval, he opened the path to the gate.
But the master, deep in thought as he took it, noticed something off and scrutinized the guard's wrist.
"sir."
It was a split-second glimpse.
Between receiving the order and the sleeve falling.
A round burn scar on the guard's wrist, like a brand.
He finished his sentence, his gaze shifting from the order to the guard's face.
"Any problem...?"
A faint smile crossed the startled guard's face.
The master pocketed the order inside his suit and shook his head.
"Nothing at all."
He turned toward the waiting Cheon-il and Poison Witch.
"It was Moon Killer after all."
"Please wait. My comrades are waiting."
The guard's casual tone, accepted naturally by the master.
The guard shrugged and glanced at his partner.
"What now?"
"Wait. We're not here to fight. We're here to retrieve a precious old comrade we'd forgotten."
At their words, the master resumed walking.
"What'd they say?"
Cheon-il asked curiously as the master approached.
The master smiled and ruffled his hair.
"They said we can't clear the gate today."
"Yay!"
Cheon-il cheered.
The master knelt to meet his eyes.
"Go home first. Big bro has something to handle—I'll be there soon."
"Got it, bro! If you're late, no sparring tonight!"
Whether going home was best or not.
Cheon-il bounced away toward home.
Smiling at his innocence, the master straightened up.
"You'll come, right?"
Unlike Cheon-il, the perceptive Poison Witch asked uneasily.
Cheon-il might've missed it, but she, ever vigilant, saw it.
The faint unease hidden in the master's smile.
She spoke, and he gave a small smile.
"Of course."
Then his smile faded, replaced by the grim resolve of a general entering battle.
He turned.
"Because that's my home."
With that, the master walked toward the guards.
The Poison Witch, standing between the receding Cheon-il and master, watched his back for a long moment and nodded.
"I'll wait."
The assassin of Ghost Demon Soul Exterminators.
Leader guiding them.
"Sis, hurry!"
At One Ghost Soul Myung-su's order, the Poison Witch ran to Cheon-il waving from afar. ◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The Night Assassins Society operated like this.
Night Assassins Lord at the top.
Under him, seven elite assassins: Moon Killer, Fire Killer, Water Killer, Wood Killer, Metal Killer, Earth Killer, Sun Killer.
Each elite had one sorcerer subordinate and controlled multiple society outposts.
Each outpost housed several first-grade assassins and dozens of second-grade.
It seemed like any guild or company at a glance, but one key feature set it apart.
Outpost locations were known only to the elite assassin and sorcerer in charge—not shared even among elites.
The lord knew none of them.
This trio of rules let the society thrive in terror, evading Korea's authorities unscathed.
A peculiar system.
Capture or kill the lord? No issue.
Lose an elite? Abandon the outpost—at worst, one of seven massive branches vanishes.
The society endured.
Did it revolve around elites, not the lord?
No.
Betraying an ignorant lord could uproot everything, so the founding lord implanted a failsafe in initial and successor elites.
Upon becoming elite, they underwent brainwashing by the lord's personal master sorcerer—loyalty absolute.
No one had ever broken it, fueling countless assassins' dreams of lordship.
But that was the official line.
A few years back, the decades-old brainwashing shattered.
Between former Moon Killer—now current lord Kim Myung-ik—and current Moon Killer Park Myung-su.
"Moon Killer, return to the Night Assassins Society."
The guard-disguised man said.
But Myung-su's response made every surrounding assassin doubt their ears.
"No."
"So it is broken? Rejecting me, Kim Myung-ik, your modern lord. Heh."
The guard shed his uniform.
Revealing the black mask embroidered with "Lord" permitted only to the Night Assassins Lord.
None other than the current Night Assassins Lord, Kim Myung-ik.
He'd come personally to sway Myung-su, mobilizing dozens of assassins before him.