The Gathering of Monsters
Mealtime was finally over.
After a suffocating period where I couldn't even tell what I was swallowing, let alone taste the food, I managed to return to my room, clutching my bloated stomach.
I think I have indigestion.
I grimaced, rubbing my belly.
Judging by how I felt, I definitely had a blockage.
Tsk.
But then again, how could I not?
It's not like I'm a monkey in a zoo.
People had been staring at me from all directions the entire time I was eating.
Such was the aftermath of the Black Great Saber's loud declaration.
The moment they heard I was the Little Sword Saint, everyone was too busy gawking at me.
The gazes of the Seven Great Talents, in particular, were exceptionally sharp.
Especially one of them.
Was his name Seo Pyeong?
The rising star of the Wudang Sect.
Seo Pyeong, the Wudang Cloud Dragon of the Seven Great Talents.
His eyes were terrifying, glaring at me with an intensity that was far from normal.
The wariness and hostility burning in his gaze were incredibly grating.
Why was he looking at me like that?
As for the other members of the Seven Great Talents...
Well, given the rumors, I suppose it's understandable.
A genius who looked down even on the Seven Great Talents.
A figure unmatched in this century.
To make matters worse, the rumor that the Poison Dragon was in my party had spread, making the commotion even louder.
Add to that the reaction of the Black Great Saber, and the rumors were practically being accepted as gospel.
If that was the reason the Wudang Cloud Dragon directed such an uncomfortable gaze at me, it wasn't entirely incomprehensible.
But is that really the only reason?
It felt like there was more to it.
I could tell just by looking at his eyes.
That bastard had murder in his eyes.
It definitely wasn't just a look of wariness.
Why look at me like that? The intensity was remarkably similar to the way Socheonggeom Namgung Seong used to glare at me.
How strange.
It was truly bizarre. What business did I have with a rising star of the Wudang Sect?
This is the first time in my life I've even seen someone from Wudang.
The Wudang Sect of the Nine Great Sects and One Association.
In terms of status among Taoist sects, it was a sword sect considered almost equal to the Mount Hua Sect.
A prestigious lineage famous for a sword style that was fluid, natural, beautiful, yet solid.
Why would someone from such a place look at me with those eyes?
Hmm...
The lack of answers only made it more frustrating.
But then again, even if I try to figure it out...
Ninety times out of a hundred...
It's probably because of that old man.
Yoo Chun-gil. It was bound to be the old man's fault. That was usually the case, so I figured this time was no different.
Or...
I grimaced as I thought of that freak.
The guy from the Paeng family who was exceptionally annoying.
Pae Do-jun.
Or maybe Paeng Do-jin, the Black Great Saber. There might be a different reason, just like with them.
What on earth did they do?
What kind of relationship did he have with Moyong Yeong-sun to say something like that?
And I had no idea why a guy like that was acting so friendly and approaching me.
Don't tell me the Wudang Cloud Dragon is like that too?
If he was entangled in that kind of mess as well, I was in serious trouble.
What did I even do wrong?
Being hated when I hadn't done a single thing—there was nothing more annoying than this.
Sigh.
I ruffled my hair.
The Seven Great Talents...
The Seven Great Talents of the Central Plains.
The seven individuals known to be the most outstanding among the younger generation.
Meeting them face-to-face left me with a strange impression.
Every single one of them is a monster.
Even though I had beaten him, I knew how strong the Poison Dragon was.
They possessed power that no ordinary member of the younger generation should ever have.
Normally, even if there were just one of them, people would be clamoring about them being the future of the Central Plains.
And yet, there are seven of them.
Whatever the world's intentions were, it had produced seven individuals with such monstrous talent.
And then.
"The Sword Peak."
The one who stood out the most among them.
The Plum Blossom Sword Peak of Mount Hua.
The woman reputed to be the strongest among the countless rising stars in the Central Plains.
What is her angle?
A woman like that had suddenly attacked me.
If Yoo Chun-gil hadn't warned me, that attack would have severed my hand.
What was that about?
Since she brought Yoo Chun-gil's robe of all things, I thought she intended to return it.
But that doesn't seem to be it.
She wouldn't have attacked me if that were her only motive.
She must want something from me, or perhaps she holds a grudge.
I couldn't read her expression at all.
I couldn't decipher the Sword Peak's face.
What her intentions were, or what emotions she harbored when she approached me.
To figure that out, she was...
I couldn't feel a single thing from her.
From beginning to end, her face remained a complete blank.
Even when she swung her sword, it was the same. That was why I couldn't tell what she was thinking.
...She's even worse than Cheon Hye-in.
With Cheon Hye-in, it was hard to read because she was actively controlling her expressions.
But with this one, there's just nothing there.
The Sword Peak was on a completely different level.
She didn't show any expression at all, making it far more difficult.
...Not a single one of them is normal.
They called them geniuses, but not one of them was sane.
"Whew."
I let out a sigh.
At the same time, the hand that had been moving in sync with my thoughts came to a halt.
The brush strokes writing on the letter stopped as well.
I lightly tapped the excess ink off the brush.
Just then.
[Child.]
"Yes?"
[How do they seem to you?]
"What do you mean?"
I asked, scanning the letter I had written.
[Those greenhorns. Do you think you can beat them?]
"Ah. Them."
He was referring to the Seven Great Talents. He wanted to know my thoughts now that I had met them in person.
"Hmm."
I picked up the letter and looked it over.
The Seven Great Talents.
They were certainly geniuses. Under normal circumstances, they weren't people I could ever hope to compare myself to.
"Well, yeah."
But now...
"They don't seem completely out of my league."
They didn't seem impossibly out of reach.
I folded the letter, which was titled Strategy Guide for the Seven Great Talents, and spoke.
The next day dawned.
I got up early in the morning and stepped out of the inn.
Even though the sun had barely risen, people were already moving about busily.
Despite the massive crowd pouring out of the inn, none of them showed any signs of fatigue despite the early hour.
If anything, the air was thick with tension.
"Ah, you're here."
As I walked down the stairs, Cheon Ui-jin approached me as if he had been waiting.
"Did you get any sleep?"
"No. I was too nervous to sleep a wink."
"Hahaha, you're quite the joker."
"...?"
I wasn't joking.
I really hadn't slept at all, but for some reason, Cheon Ui-jin seemed to think I was kidding.
"Let's go. The others are waiting."
"Ah, right."
I followed Cheon Ui-jin to where the rest of our group had already gathered.
They were as quiet as ever.
Do-hyeong was extremely taciturn, and Cheon Hye-in wasn't exactly a chatterbox either.
As for Dang Cheon-il, he had been practically practicing a vow of silence ever since I beat him up last time.
"...Let's go."
I said, looking at the incredibly awkward group.
At my word, we set off.
There was a reason we were moving without even eating breakfast.
We have to go to the Martial Alliance.
Today was the official start of the Yongbong Association.
It wasn't the tournament itself yet—the first day was more of a banquet—but we still had to leave early in the morning.
Fortunately, the distance wasn't very far.
After walking just a short distance, it came into view.
The headquarters of the Martial Alliance, also known as the Main Alliance.
A towering building, complete with a massive flag fluttering at its peak.
A long stream of people was making its way toward it.
"Whoaaaa—!"
Cheers erupted. I looked up and saw crowds of people lining the streets, watching us pass.
"So cool!"
Shouts of encouragement echoed. It was hard to know how to react.
How was I supposed to respond to this?
I hadn't expected such a massive crowd to show up just to watch.
I knew the Yongbong Association was a major festival, but...
Was it really this big of a deal?
I never imagined it would draw this much attention.
The sheer amount of attention being showered on us was suffocatingly burdensome.
[Enjoy it. These are things you will have to get used to.]
Yoo Chun-gil spoke nonchalantly, clearly aware of my discomfort.
Get used to this? I absolutely hated it.
Ugh.
Just like in my past life, I still detested being the center of attention.
Especially when it was this blatant.
—Whoaaa.
Listening to the roar of the crowd, we entered the Main Alliance.
Despite the massive influx of people, the space was so vast that it didn't feel crowded at all.
So this is the Main Alliance.
I looked around, taking in my surroundings.
It was certainly spacious.
And grand.
It's absolutely massive.
I had felt similarly when I saw the Cheongwol Gate and the Tang Family, but this place looked twice as large.
Then again, as the heart of the Orthodox faction, it had to be at least this grand.
And.
The momentum of the martial artists here is no joke.
The martial artists stationed all around radiated a powerful aura.
I heard only the elites of the Orthodox faction could come here. Was that why?
Fascinating.
I walked on, feeling a spark of curiosity.
After walking a bit further, we arrived at the banquet hall inside the Main Alliance.
"We will now begin identity verification."
A martial artist blocking the entrance began verifying everyone's identity one by one.
They didn't seem to care much when we entered the main gates, but apparently, they checked here.
"Bang Seong-yeon of the Cheongwol Gate. Confirmed."
I took back my recommendation letter at his flat tone.
It had been a while since I met someone who didn't look shocked upon hearing my name.
Once cleared, we stepped inside. Naturally, the banquet hall was enormous.
It had to be, considering it needed to accommodate hundreds of people.
Our seats are... over there.
Our assigned seats were at the very front.
The seats were lavish, clearly indicating that they were reserved only for those who had received the golden recommendation letters.
I scratched my cheek at the sight and took my seat.
By the time I sat down, several others were already seated.
...Huh?
Something was off.
This...
The seating arrangement is weird.
I thought they would group us by party based on our recommendation letters.
...Why are these people sitting here?
The moment I sat down, the person next to me spoke up.
"Oh! Young hero!"
A sharply handsome young master.
It was Namgung Cheon, known as the Thunder Dragon.
"We couldn't even greet each other properly yesterday. To meet like this... must be fate, don't you think?"
"...Nice to... meet you."
"Likewise! Hahahahaha!"
His cheerfulness was practically dizzying.
The moment the Thunder Dragon saw me, he grabbed my hand and began shaking it vigorously.
Someone watching this clicked their tongue.
"Tsk, tsk. You are noisy no matter when I see you."
It was the Black Great Saber.
Sitting somewhat uncomfortably in a chair that was too small for his massive frame, Paeng Do-jin dug at his ear as he spoke.
"Why do you talk so much when there are so many people around?"
"I don't think you're one to talk, Brother Paeng...?"
"What?"
"Setting aside my talkativeness, you're noisy because your voice is so loud, Brother Paeng."
"Ha!"
The Black Great Saber gasped in sheer disbelief at the bold remark.
"What do you mean my voice is loud?!"
"...My ears hurt."
I silently agreed.
He was sitting right across from us, yet his voice was that booming.
I rolled my eyes as I watched the Black Great Saber.
I felt a gaze on me. Seo Pyeong was sitting next to Namgung Cheon.
That bastard was glaring at me today, just like he did yesterday.
Someone walked over and sat down next to him.
It was Cheon Hye-in and the Poison Dragon.
No matter how I looked at this...
It seems like they gathered all of the Seven Great Talents here.
As if intending to gather the current Seven Great Talents in one place, they were indeed assembling one by one.
And then.
Screeech.
A woman sat down directly opposite me.
She took the seat next to Cheon Hye-in. It was the Plum Blossom Sword Peak.
She sat down wearing a robe that looked identical to Yoo Chun-gil's.
She didn't look in my direction.
She simply closed her slightly sleepy-looking eyes.
If this is the case...
It meant that all of the Seven Great Talents, except for the Beggar Alliance's Fighting Dog, were now seated.
...But why am I here?
Why on earth was I squeezed into this group?
Just as I was racking my brain to make sense of the situation...
"Silence!"
A booming voice instantly silenced the murmuring crowd.
It happened before I could even process what was going on.
"Silence! The Alliance Leader is now entering!"
"...!"
My eyes widened at those words.
If it was the Alliance Leader...
The Trustworthy Spear?
The announcement came the very moment all the rising stars had taken their seats.
"The Alliance Leader?"
"...The Trustworthy Spear, so suddenly?"
"What in the..."
Everyone looked astonished.
It was only natural. Normally, the Alliance Leader would make an appearance at the end of the banquet or right before the start of the martial tournament.
Yet he was showing up early in the morning?
While everyone was whispering in confusion...
"The Alliance Leader is entering."
Along with the announcement...
Step.
Footsteps echoed. They were incredibly distinct. Everyone instinctively turned their gaze toward the sound.
Someone was walking out from the source of the sound.
He possessed a massive build comparable to Paeng Do-jin, wearing the martial uniform of the Alliance and a light blue robe.
He was an old man with an eyepatch over one eye and an incredibly fierce glare.
I knew who he was the moment I saw him.
It's Sinchang, the Trustworthy Spear.
He was the current Leader of the Martial Alliance and the master closest to being the world's greatest.
The problem is...
But...
Why does it feel like he's looking at me?
The moment the old man appeared, his gaze seemed to lock onto me, piercing right through me.
And it didn't seem to be an illusion.