The Man Who Lost Her (1)
"...No."
One way or another, I am the Vice Leader of the Heavenly Demon Cult. This is already a deviation that crosses the line, but it must end here.
"Blue Sky Sword Empress... No. Namgung Seha."
The moment had come for me to fulfill my duty as the Vice Leader of the Heavenly Demon Cult.
It wasn't that I hadn't considered the idea of helping her escape. But the truth was that such a plan would be incredibly difficult to realize.
"...I'm sorry."
"What are you apologizing for?"
Namgung Seha, who had been lying down, turned her body and covered my mouth with her hand. Then she spoke in a voice softer than ever before.
"There is no need for you to apologize."
The room where every light had been extinguished. Not a single ray of illumination existed. In that darkness, I could see Namgung Seha smiling faintly.
"I was fortunate."
"Meeting you, dying so peacefully like this, and even leaving behind a child despite my blocked meridians—everything was good fortune."
"All the luck you gave me."
As the one who would have to bring her misfortune tomorrow, I could say nothing in response to those words. That night, I simply stayed up with her, sharing what would be our final conversation.
.
.
The earth was black. The sky was red. The air was thick and the taste in my mouth was bitter. My head throbbed and my hands refused to stay still. This was Shaanxi. This was a battlefield. The faint stench of blood already assaulted my nose. I felt like throwing up. Was this the place I had lived in all this time?
"Vice Leader. Everything is ready."
A woman with long white hair holding a spear. She was the lowest-ranked elder of the Demonic Cult, the Desoul Spear Demon.
Now that I thought about it, she too had once been a renowned woman of the righteous path. Perhaps it was because their hair colors were similar, but Namgung Seha seemed to overlap with her. If Namgung Seha had turned her back on the righteous path like the Desoul Spear Demon, would I have been spared from standing here today?
".... Let's go."
It was a meaningless assumption. Namgung Seha, who had torn righteousness from her heart, was unimaginable, and such a thing would never have happened.
I followed her toward the vanguard of the battlefield. There, thousands upon thousands of Demonic Cult warriors stood ready, along with the Twelve Apostles and two elders. And finally, there was one of the Ten Venerables, bound to a long wooden frame.
[Are the ropes alright?]
I sent the message to her alone so the others wouldn't hear. She turned her head slightly and replied.
"You're not tying them as tightly as I expected. Are you showing me consideration before I die, Divine Army?"
[That's a pretty way to put it.]
It would be troublesome if the people here realized our relationship wasn't hostile. That must have been her intention, yet somehow it left me feeling a little hurt.
[This is a ridiculous question to ask, but if you're going to be cut down, where would you prefer?]
It was the most foolish question in the world, yet...
"If possible, I'd like to watch the sunrise until the very end before I die. And when you kill me, please strike my heart instead of my neck."
I received the most beautiful answer in the world.
I said nothing more. I simply stood beside her and gazed at the colorful waves of the righteous path warriors. Each of them had sharpened their swords and spears, staring at our side. They looked at us with fierce eyes—especially at me.
".... You fallen hounds of the Wulin Alliance."
Meeting their gazes, lingering regrets kept rising in my chest.
"Do you wish to survive?"
Could I sever this thin thread with my sword and send Namgung Seha over to their side?
"Do you wish to grasp honor?"
I imagined it dozens of times in my head. But sadly, the result was utterly miserable.
"Do you wish to win?"
There was no way I could properly swing my sword while carrying Namgung Seha, who was practically a dead weight, with one arm. And in that state, if the Desoul Spear Demon and Jan Geobryeong and the others came after us? I wouldn't win.
"Then come at me."
The righteous side wouldn't help even if they saw it. Capturing an already secured hostage like this would look far too suspicious from their perspective.
"I will make sure you cannot escape this wretched state."
In the end, it would only lead to the hollow conclusion where both of us died.
"I am the Paecheon Divine Army."
I, who had lived my entire life alongside sin—
—*Stab.*
With an excuse that I had no choice, I once again drenched myself in blood that could never be washed away. I pulled the sword from her heart. Blood coated the blade. Even her blood was red and beautiful.
"...You must live."
What did she mean by live? Who was she telling to live?
Even as red blood flowed from her heart and mouth, she kept her head raised until the very end. Then she closed her eyes and let her head fall.
"Advance——!!"
The Desoul Spear Demon and Jan Geobryeong charged forward with battle cries. The others followed, raising their inner energy. But I alone did not move. A little later, I walked forward quietly.
I untied the knots binding her to the wooden frame and caught Namgung Seha's now-cold body, laying her down nearby. I closed her eyes and removed my outer robe to cover her.
The war was pure pandemonium. No one paid any attention to what I was doing in the rear. To be honest, I didn't know either. What I was doing right now, what I wanted to do. Why I was already regretting what I had resolved to do just moments ago and trying to cause more trouble again.
"Jan Geobryeong."
In the distance, I saw Jan Geobryeong facing the Huashan Sect leader's Plum Blossom Ten Thousand Li Fragrance. It was a fierce battle. Jan Geobryeong's black blades drew dazzling arcs as they sliced through the air. The Huashan Sect leader's pale pink plum blossoms filled every direction.
I slipped into that gap. The Huashan Sect leader's face twisted, while Jan Geobryeong smiled triumphantly behind his mask. And then I sliced straight through Jan Geobryeong's mask and drove my sword in.
Jan Geobryeong, who hadn't considered my attack at all, was split from head to torso and breathed his last in vain. His black blades fell from the air like arrows that had lost their power.
"Old man of Huashan. Go and stop the Desoul Spear Demon."
Leaving behind the Huashan Sect leader, who was still dazed and failing to act his age, I cut down the Demonic Cult warriors in my path and headed back to where I had laid Namgung Seha down.
—Third form. White Night.
The color of demonic energy turned hazy white as the Desoul Spear Demon's spear rushed toward me. I lightly blocked it with my sword and sent her flying to the opposite side.
"Twelfth Elder of the Demonic Cult. Desoul Spear Demon."
She picked up her spear again and swung it.
—Fifth form. Erasing Night.
The spear that swallowed the night twisted violently, gathering the surrounding energy. As if the darkness had been erased, the world brightened for a moment as her spear tried to reach me.
"Everyone already knows your story openly."
But Mukrin blocked it first. The Desoul Spear Demon flew far into the sky, then spat out a mouthful of blood-mixed saliva onto the ground. She grabbed her spear shaft again and charged.
"I won't kill you."
With one hand, I seized the shaft of the incoming spear. She hadn't expected the spear itself to be caught and panicked, straining to pull it free.
"Just leave me alone."
There was no way she could overpower me with raw strength. I used her own power against her, snatched the spear away, and hurled it so far she couldn't retrieve it even with energy manipulation.
"If you try to stop me any further here, even I don't know what I'll do."
When I brought my sword close to her neck, the Desoul Spear Demon, sensing she had no chance of victory, quietly lowered her hands.
"Do you even realize what you've done?"
She snarled at me in fury.
"This is betrayal of the Cult!"
I knew. I knew it was betrayal. From the Heavenly Demon Cult's perspective, it was a greater crime than murder. Honestly, I didn't even know what kind of mindset I was in to be doing this. Until yesterday, I hadn't even considered leaving the Heavenly Demon Cult.
If I was going to do it, I should have decided sooner. Pathetic bastard.
"Yes. That's right. I am a traitor."
I readily admitted it and added one more thing to make it clear.
"I am no longer the Vice Leader of the Heavenly Demon Cult, nor am I your superior."
"However, I am stronger than you. According to your doctrine, obey my words."
As I commanded her, those who had noticed something was wrong left their positions and surrounded me. Twin Blade Horse, White Wolf Sword Ghost, Songgang Two Water... They were Apostles with considerable martial prowess within the Cult. To my eyes, they were nothing more than roadside weeds.
"Stand down."
I ordered them all at once. They flinched, then recklessly began raising their energy again. I swung my sword once, lightly. About twenty sword forces swept through the gaps between them.
After that threat, I signaled the Desoul Spear Demon. Move aside. She quietly raised her hand and gave them the order.
"...If he truly comes at us with everything he has, we have no chance of winning. If he wanted to kill us, we would already be dead. So don't provoke him and return to your positions."
The Apostles, who had been watching the situation, hesitated. Seeing the front line being pushed back slightly, they slowly returned to their places one by one. After watching them go, I moved toward Namgung Seha.
"Was that woman your target? The one you killed with your own hands?"
The Desoul Spear Demon, who had followed without even retrieving her spear, asked. Her voice was mixed with rage and emptiness.
"...Won't you go back? I've done what I needed to do. I've trampled on tens of thousands of righteous path warriors until now. And today, I've carried out the orders I was given here as well."
I wanted to put strength into my voice as a warning, but for some reason, I couldn't put any power into my throat. When I spoke to her as if admonishing her, she shouted back with resentment.
"Divine Army!"
"I don't know what is right either. Honestly, I don't even know if I have the right to leave. But one thing is certain—this is the end of our connection."
She no longer spoke to me with respect and warned me fiercely.
"No, this won't be the end. After we win this battle, I will definitely return to the Cult, report your betrayal, and along with the other elders, I will hunt you down and kill you."
"Come. Right now, I wouldn't be afraid even if the Heavenly Demon himself came."
She glared at me fiercely until the end, then turned her body and ran back toward the battlefield. Looking at her back, I unknowingly said,
".... Your unchanging loyalty is both enviable and heartbreaking."
I sheathed my sword and lifted Namgung Seha with both arms. She was lighter than she looked. I took one last look at the blood-soaked battlefield and slowly walked toward the opposite side.
Where am I going?
Where do I want to go?
Where should I go?
I don't know. Right now, I am simply a wanderer. I will simply follow where my steps take me. To a place where I can watch the rest of the sunset. To the place where an extinguished lantern should be.