Chapter 29
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: Not Too Late
"Kuh."
Namgung Ji-hu was startled. Even as he focused on his duel with Baek Ri-pyeong, he couldn't believe he'd missed someone's presence.
Namgung Ji-hu pulled back the sword thrusting toward Baek Ri-pyeong's waist and leaped away swiftly.
Thwack. Thwack.
The arrows without tips bounced harmlessly off the ground.
Baek Ri-pyeong didn't miss the opening and pressed forward immediately.
"Ugh."
Namgung Ji-hu swiftly altered his sword path to block Baek Ri-pyeong's blade.
Soon after, Yeon Ha-min and Dan Mok Un-roe appeared, launching a joint assault.
They were the ones who had fired the arrows.
Namgung Ji-hu's face twisted in fury.
A three-on-one battle.
Numerically disadvantaged, but Namgung Ji-hu held his own against them.
He'd only been pushed back a little at the start, when he'd been caught off guard.
Even so, Namgung Ji-hu's expression was grave.
There were still two more people out there. And here he was, merely holding even against just three.
He'd been confident he could handle all five at once.
'What the hell happened to these guys in the meantime?'
It was bewildering.
This wasn't the same Fierce Dragon Corps Squad Seven that had been utterly routed by a single Dang Chu in front of the Devouring Dragon Pavilion.
Gritting his teeth, Namgung Ji-hu channeled all his inner energy. Power surged through his body.
Based on that energy, he unleashed the Heavenly Bow Without Shadow Sword.
The sword, infused with both majestic and domineering aura, swept toward the three.
'Quick and decisive.'
He had to end it before the remaining two joined in.
Namgung Ji-hu's sword flew toward Yeon Ha-min's shield. That cumbersome shield had to go first. How many times had it blocked him already?
Just as the blade, brimming with sword energy, was about to clash with Yeon Ha-min's shield...
Dan Mok Un-roe's sword swept toward Namgung Ji-hu's leg.
It was always like this.
Their coordination meshed perfectly, like interlocking gears.
"Taa!"
Already anticipating it from past experience, Namgung Ji-hu spun his body and unleashed a kick toward Dan Mok Un-roe.
It was an exquisite move that dodged the sword strike while counterattacking. At the same time, he didn't withdraw the thrust aimed at Yeon Ha-min.
After widening the distance from Dan Mok Un-roe, the sword strike continued onward.
Yeon Ha-min raised her shield to block it.
It didn't matter. The shield wasn't the target to begin with.
Krunch!
The wooden shield couldn't withstand the sword laced with energy.
No—it was a strike that surpassed the shield's durability.
Among the current Dragon Training Pavilion cadets, how many could unleash sword energy like this? Maybe two at most?
And Namgung Ji-hu was one of them.
The sword that shattered the shield now flew straight toward Yeon Ha-min's torso.
Biting her lip hard, Yeon Ha-min raised her sword to block the incoming attack.
But could she really block it?
That anxiety flickered in her eyes.
At that moment, Namgung Ji-hu felt a chill in his side.
Baek Ri-pyeong had leaped in, his sword stabbing toward Namgung Ji-hu's flank.
If he pressed the attack on Yeon Ha-min, he could eliminate her—but he'd be eliminated too.
"Tch."
Clicking his tongue in frustration, Namgung Ji-hu quickly stepped aside, dodging Baek Ri-pyeong's sword and creating distance.
"Hoo."
Baek Ri-pyeong exhaled and positioned himself to block Namgung Ji-hu's front, while Dan Mok Un-roe and Yeon Ha-min flanked left and right.
The three-man formation.
They were managing to hold off Namgung Ji-hu for now, but they were gradually being pushed back as time wore on.
Yeon Ha-min had just lost her shield, after all. That meant their overall defense had weakened.
"What a monster..."
Baek Ri-pyeong muttered softly.
He meant it.
Who among the Dragon Training Pavilion cadets could endure a three-on-one assault like this and even turn the tide bit by bit?
"Haa."
Namgung Ji-hu, regulating his breathing, felt the same frustration.
He was going all out without holding back, yet he couldn't overwhelm them. He was only gaining a slight edge.
Maybe...
He shook off the sudden thought and resumed his stance.
Then, two new presences registered in his senses.
Since he was at full power, he didn't miss them like before.
His face twisted again.
These weren't familiar presences.
That meant either the remaining two from Fierce Dragon Corps Squad Seven, or someone from another squad.
'No, it has to be Fierce Dragon Squad Seven.'
Moments later, as he'd predicted, Dang Jin-san and Nak Woo-jin appeared.
"Good. We're not too late."
Dang Jin-san let out a sigh of relief upon confirming that the three were still locked in combat with Namgung Ji-hu.
Namgung Ji-yu's delicate brows furrowed.
The trail had vanished completely.
Bi Ga-yeong watched Namgung Ji-yu with an intrigued expression.
How would she navigate this situation?
She was just a first-year cadet at the Dragon Training Pavilion, barely halfway through the semester.
She couldn't have received training for something like this.
'No, the Hidden Dragon Corps and Wa Dragon Corps curricula don't even cover scenarios like this to begin with.'
Bi Ga-yeong gave a wry smile.
This was a real battlefield situation, the kind you'd only encounter in actual combat. Unfortunately, neither the Hidden Dragon nor Wa Dragon curricula addressed it.
Namgung Ji-yu carefully scanned the surroundings. She even backtracked along her path to check again.
The last spot where traces remained.
Clear footprints.
Namgung Ji-yu examined them closely—the depth, stride, direction, everything.
She nodded a few times, then surveyed the area around the final print.
"From a stride like this, the places where they could move without leaving traces..."
Her eyes caught a small stone on the dirt ground. It was about twice the distance of the remaining footprints.
They could easily have jumped that far.
She checked around from there. After meticulously searching a fixed radius, she spotted something suspicious.
It was too clean compared to the rest.
"This must be where they erased their tracks."
A glint of admiration appeared in Bi Ga-yeong's eyes.
Without any training, she was piecing it together on her own.
However...
'Too slow.'
Even accounting for her growing familiarity in tracking, it was slow.
It had taken her about half an hour to cover roughly ten zhang—around thirty meters.
It was faster than Bi Ga-yeong had expected, but still too slow.
Namgung Ji-yu stopped and frowned. She knew she was pursuing too sluggishly.
'Keep tracking, or head back...'
It was a crossroads.
Standing there, Namgung Ji-yu sank into thought. She put herself in the opponent's shoes, slowly replaying why they'd use this tactic.
"This seems like they're scattering us to pick us off one by one..."
If so, she wasn't the only one in this predicament. The other four were likely facing the same.
They'd scattered them, then take on one each with all five.
A five-on-one fight.
If it was like at the Devouring Dragon Pavilion before, it wouldn't be a threat. But the fact that she hadn't sensed them meant they'd improved.
"Even so, Ji-hu won't go down easily..."
That realization led to her decision.
She'd return to the starting point.
Floundering around in unknown mountains and getting ambushed by the full Fierce Dragon Squad Seven sounded worse than regrouping with the others.
'The others will probably make the same call.'
A wry smile tugged at Namgung Ji-yu's lips.
Anyone but Dang Chu—she doubted he'd turn back.
Bi Ga-yeong watched the whole process and nodded softly.
'Wise choice.'
The footprints the Fierce Dragon Corps had left to lure them had, in turn, become signposts back to the origin.
With signposts present, charging deeper into the mountains in excitement and getting lost would be foolish.
In such cases, returning to the start and regrouping was the smart move.
At least, that's what Bi Ga-yeong thought.
And Namgung Ji-yu seemed to agree, as she turned back.
There was a slight difference in when they'd decided, but Yeong Ho-jun and Cheong Wu-ja had made the same choice and headed back as well.
It had been much longer for her—half an hour more—but with the trail lost, there was no helping it.
Dang Chu, however, was different.
"Argh! Dang Jin-san! Where are you hiding?! Stop running away like a coward and show yourself! Let's settle this!"
He was charging wildly through the mountains, bellowing loud enough to shake them.
He'd followed the tracks until they vanished, then just kept sprinting straight ahead, assuming they'd run out of steam.
That was Yeon Ha-min's ploy at work.
Unlike the other three, she'd instructed Dang Jin-san to gradually lighten his steps so the tracks faded.
The deep prints suddenly disappearing had alerted Namgung Ji-yu, Yeong Ho-jun, and Cheong Wu-ja.
For Dang Chu, the gradually fading tracks vanishing entirely just seemed like Dang Jin-san tiring out.
In lightness skill, shallower prints actually indicated fatigue—but Dang Chu knew Dang Jin-san hadn't mastered proper lightness skill, so he interpreted the fading as exhaustion.
It was a scheme exploiting Dang Chu's knowledge of Dang Jin-san's abilities.
Thanks to that, Dang Chu was alone in the unknown mountains, venting his rage.
Namgung Ji-hu, Dang Chu, and then Namgung Ji-yu, Yeong Ho-jun, Cheong Wu-ja.
They'd successfully divided the Hidden Dragon Squad One into three groups.
This was Yeon Ha-min's primary scheme.
To advance to the next phase, they needed to eliminate Namgung Ji-hu.
All five members of Fierce Dragon Corps Squad Seven had gathered.
With Baek Ri-pyeong at the center, they spread out widely to his left and right.
"Five-on-one? Doesn't that feel cowardly to you?"
Namgung Ji-hu, sword lowered, gazed at Baek Ri-pyeong and asked.
"That might fly in a one-on-one sparring match like the Eastern Tournament, but saying it in the Summer Combat Festival? That's rich. This is a many-versus-many battle."
Baek Ri-pyeong replied calmly.
Namgung Ji-hu nodded slightly.
"True enough. Still, facing all five at once might be a bit much."
"We're wondering how we'll fare against the young master of the Namgung Clan."
Baek Ri-pyeong and Namgung Ji-hu's gazes clashed in the air.
"In war, toppling the enemy and victory—that's justice. Right now, you're our enemy."
With that, Baek Ri-pyeong raised his sword and shield into stance.
The other four quickly took their positions, moving to cover each direction.
Namgung Ji-hu gave a wry smile and straightened his sword.
Victory is justice, huh.
How dangerous a notion.
It could easily mean the will of the strong becomes justice.
"Whoever said that, it's a perilously dangerous idea. Not something a disciple of the Zhongnan Sect should spout."
Namgung Ji-hu's sword tip pointed at Baek Ri-pyeong. There was no wavering in Baek Ri-pyeong's eyes.
"Don't overinterpret. I specified 'war'."
To be precise, it was Ha Mu-baek's words.
On a battlefield divided into allies and enemies, allies are good, enemies evil.
War was ruled by that binary, irrational mindset.
That's why Ha Mu-baek despised war so intensely.
"Hmm."
Mok Hae-jin of the Iron Flag Room watched the standoff with keen interest.
It was exquisitely done.
They'd scattered Hidden Dragon Squad One and cornered Namgung Ji-hu with all five.
He glanced at Ha Mu-baek.
He watched the Fierce Dragon Squad Seven and Namgung Ji-hu with a calm, expressionless face.
It was clear this was all his doing.
Otherwise, there was no explaining the Fierce Dragon Corps' dramatic change.
Even with special training on Mount Mokran, this was extreme.
'Just who is he?'
Mok Hae-jin's thoughts turned to doubts about Ha Mu-baek.
At least, this instructor clearly knew guerrilla warfare.
He looked about the same age as Mok Hae-jin himself—where had he experienced such battlefields?
The last war, perhaps?
Mok Hae-jin pushed away the sudden thought.
No veteran of that war would be mere instructor for Fierce Dragon Corps—that was his assumption.