The World's Greatest is Dead
The World's Greatest was dead.
It was a sudden piece of news that swept across the Central Plains.
No one believed it at first, but it was the reality.
Thirty years had passed since the end of the Great Orthodox-Demonic War, which had been instigated by the Heavenly Demon, the master of the Demonic Cult.
The warrior who had decapitated the Heavenly Demon Jang Cheon to protect the peace, the World's Greatest and the Sword Saint, Yu Cheongil, had passed away.
Since the Martial Alliance itself had announced it, there was no choice but to believe it.
One day, the World's Greatest simply died.
The cause of death was said to be a chronic illness, and Zhuge Jin, the strategist of the Martial Alliance, was reported to have watched over his final moments.
Born as the third son of the Guangdong Yu Family, he had become a hero who averted a bloody catastrophe.
The light of an era had faded into the dark, and many who owed their lives to him wept for days on end.
Just like that.
More than a decade passed.
Once, my father said to me:
"Son, you are the hope of our family."
It was a phrase I had heard to death since I was about ten years old.
A mere ten years old.
An age where one barely knew what lay beyond the front gates.
An age far too young to have any sense, yet my father would look at my young self and say those words.
"I have only you."
"No, Father. You have two other children."
It was an incomprehensible statement.
I had an older sister and an older brother.
Not only did we have a firstborn son and daughter, but I was also a bastard.
The child of a concubine, to be precise.
Our family didn't have a penny to its name anyway, and my status barred me from even entering the succession struggle.
Frankly, I had no desire to take over.
What was there to gain by becoming the head of a ruined family?
Even if they begged me, I wouldn't do it. And yet...
"Can you really say that after looking at your brother?"
My father's angry voice left me momentarily speechless.
"He spends all day chasing women! He gambles on everything, and he's going to bankrupt us! To think I call that my son...!"
"Isn't that exactly what you did in your youth, Father?"
"...What did you say, you punk?"
I couldn't help but let it slip, and my father's glare snapped toward me.
I barely managed to dodge his gaze.
The famous lecher of the Liaoning region, the "Lustful Swordsman," Bang Cheon-ho.
That was my father's long-standing moniker.
Truly... it was an embarrassing title to say out loud anywhere.
"Lustful Swordsman"? Seriously?
But what made it even worse was that it wasn't a lie.
He was so lecherous that he had three children, and all three of us had different mothers.
Having grown up watching such a father, was it any wonder my brother turned out to be a total deadbeat?
Yes, that must have been why. Why my father started placing his ridiculous expectations on me.
"Only you can do it. You must rebuild our family!"
"You should be the one doing that, Father... You're the family head."
"If I could do it, would the family be ruined like this?"
What a thing to be proud of.
He shouted it so confidently that I was genuinely lost for words.
Ah, I really drew the short straw with my parents.
Only a sigh could escape my lips.
I should have just pretended to be a deadbeat too.
If I had lived recklessly like my brother, I wouldn't be in this mess. But I couldn't do that.
Perhaps I would have if I had only grown up watching my father and brother.
Unfortunately, I had one major problem.
...Ah, I seriously want to reroll my life.
Namely, the fact that I possessed the memories of my past life.
Because of those memories, I couldn't bring myself to act like complete trash. And because I seemed a bit clever, I caught my father's eye.
Ah, damn it.
I should have acted like more of an idiot. Not doing so was my greatest regret.
When was it?
Around when I was nine, I think.
I woke up one day, and the memories of my past life flooded back.
According to the people around me, I had fainted from the shock of being rejected by my childhood friend, Yeongsun.
I couldn't believe how absurd it sounded when I first heard it.
What kind of dumbass reason is that?
Just how intense was a nine-year-old's pure love that rejection could make him pass out?
But because of that, I remembered my past life.
And because of that, I was in this current mess.
"You bastard! What did you just say?!"
"Damn it! Why are you taking it out on me just because Hwaseon dumped you for having a small dick?!"
"You... you little bastard...!!"
"Ah, gentlemen. Calm down... I said, calm down!"
I tried to pull the rampaging man back, but it wasn't easy.
Instead, my body swayed wildly every time he flailed his arms.
It was clear.
This middle-aged guy was a martial artist.
"Jang! Hwaseon said it herself! She said you're so small she couldn't feel a thing!"
This was personal information I absolutely did not want to know.
I didn't care in the slightest about the size of his junk. I just wanted them to shut up.
Otherwise, judging by how red his face was getting, he was going to do something crazy.
"You son of a bitch! Fine, let's see who dies today!"
Crash!
Sure enough, Mr. Jang, the real estate agent with the apparently tiny package, lost his temper and smashed the liquor bottle he was holding.
Shit.
This was dangerous.
I hurriedly spoke to Mr. Jang.
"Sir! If you swing a weapon here, you're really going to ruin your life!"
"Who the hell are you?! Get out of my way!"
Whoosh!
"Argh!"
The force of Mr. Jang's swinging arm sent my body flying through the air.
Thud!
"Urgh!"
I crashed into a table, flipping it over and making a complete mess.
"Oh my goodness!"
Seeing this, the waiter shrieked in despair.
He rushed toward me, so I quickly raised a hand to stop him.
"I'm fine! Don't come over—"
"Oh noooo! That was the owner's favorite chair!"
"..."
Ha. What a life.
I picked myself up with an awkward expression.
The waiter, who was clearing away the broken chair behind me, whimpered.
"Young hero...! Please resolve this quickly...! If the owner gets back, I'm dead meat!"
It wasn't like I didn't want to stop him.
That guy is throwing a fit with a broken bottle. What the hell am I supposed to do?
Besides, he was a martial artist.
The report said he was just an ordinary civilian.
Civilian, my ass. How does that look like a civilian?
Throwing a grown man across the room with a single swing of his arm?
That was impossible unless his dantian was opened and he was a trained martial artist.
Damn it, where is the backup?
They said they were all busy and sent me alone, and now look at this mess.
"Get over here!"
"Eek!"
The broken bottle swung through the air, and the tavern descended further into chaos.
"Sigh."
Watching the scene unfold, I finally let out a deep sigh.
At the same time...
Clack! I gripped the sword at my waist.
I had no choice.
"Freeze."
The man froze at the sharp tone of my voice.
"What?"
"Sir. If you take another step, I won't be able to hold back either."
The enraged Mr. Jang grimaced and glared at me.
For a split second, he looked ready to explode, but he flinched slightly when he saw my sword.
Good.
It's working.
"I was trying to go easy on you, but if you keep this up, I'll slice your arm right off."
"..."
At the chilling warning, Mr. Jang finally seemed to listen—
Whoosh! Crash!
"Argh!"
Or so I thought, right before a bottle flew straight at my head.
The embarrassing part was that I tried to slice the bottle in midair, failed, and got hit anyway.
"What nonsense is this little brat spouting?!"
The furious Mr. Jang finally lost it and charged at me.
Just as I tightened my grip on my sword to defend myself...
Whoosh!
Someone leaped in rapidly, blocking my view.
They spun midair and kicked Mr. Jang square in the face.
Crack!
"Gah!"
Crash!
His heavy body collapsed onto the floor.
Shring.
With a chilling sound, the tip of a sword pressed against his throat.
Before I knew it, the newcomer had pinned him down.
"Do not move."
A sharp, clear voice echoed through the tavern.
"If you move, I will kill you."
"...!"
The voice sent shivers down my spine as well.
Mr. Jang, who had been rampaging just moments ago, froze completely.
And honestly, so did I.
...Damn, that's terrifying.
Could a voice get any colder than that?
Hearing it, I immediately knew who the young man was.
After all, there were only two guys in this town with faces that handsome.
One was him.
And the other was me.
"..."
While I was staring at the scene in surprise...
The gaze of the man who had subdued Mr. Jang turned toward me.
When our eyes met, I almost looked away instinctively.
His eyes were so cold I felt like I might get sliced just by looking at them.
Then...
"What are you doing?"
"...Huh?"
The cold voice directed itself at me.
"Are you just going to stand there?"
"Ah."
His words snapped me back to reality. I quickly moved.
I pulled out the cuffs from my robe and snapped them onto Mr. Jang's wrists.
Click.
"Ugh..."
Now subdued, a groan escaped Mr. Jang's mouth.
"I... I should have killed those bastards..."
Ignoring his muttering...
Since the arrest was successful, I had to say the mandatory lines first.
"Right... Sir, you don't really have the right to remain silent. Well... not that it matters, but if you have any family members you'd like to contact..."
As I mumbled through the protocol...
"The Lustful Demon, Jang Socheol. Subdued."
"Huh? What?"
I snapped my head up at the young man's words.
The Lustful... what?
I looked around in confusion.
Something felt off.
When I turned around, several figures had already entered the tavern.
Blue martial robes with distinct embroidery.
My face contorted as I recognized the uniforms—they were wearing the same clothes as me.
The man leading them smiled at the young man.
"Squad Member Yeon. Excellent work. Your execution was flawless."
His voice was oily.
Hearing this, I asked the man.
"Squad Leader... What is going on here?"
At my question, the squad leader looked at me.
Unlike the way he looked at the other young man, his eyes were filled with utter contempt.
"Tsk."
He clicked his tongue and spoke.
"What do you mean, what's going on? It was an operation."
"...An operation?"
"Yes, an operation. A search operation to capture the Lustful Demon. You did well enough, I suppose. Thanks to you, we flushed him out. Though, of course, most of the credit goes to Squad Member Yeon."
"What kind of bullshit—"
"By the way, are you alright? You're bleeding quite a bit."
"Huh?"
At the squad leader's words, I wiped my forehead with my hand.
When I looked at it, my palm was stained bright red.
It was all blood.
"...Ha, damn it."
The moment I realized it, a sudden wave of dizziness hit me, and I collapsed right there.
Born to the Yoryeong Bang Family, direct bloodline of the family head, Bang Seongyeon. Age: eighteen.
Currently living as a low-ranking squad member of the Anhui Branch of the Martial Alliance.
Today was another incredibly shitty day.