Traces of the Snow Wind Palace (4)
“Young master! I'm coming in!”
The voice from outside made me hurriedly close the secret compartment and slip the inkstone back into my pocket.
Clunk.
The door opened, and Palgap entered.
“......”
Palgap stared at me intently before asking,
“Young master, did you eat something behind my back, by any chance?”
“What are you talking about?”
“You seem like you're hiding something.”
Yeah, I was hiding a lot.
Like the fact that I was living a second life.
Or that it was all arranged by the Snow Wind Palace investigator.
But I couldn't tell Palgap that.
He'd definitely call a physician with a worried look on his face.
Still, his instincts were sharp.
I thought I was pretty good at managing my expressions, but he noticed anyway.
Was this another one of the King of Killing's talents?
I chuckled and said,
“Nothing like that.”
We headed down to the first floor.
“What would you like to order?”
“Any recommendations?”
“If you've come to the North Sea, you have to try our frozen tofu dishes.”
“Then we'll have that, and......”
We ordered a variety of dishes and sat in the inn for a bit. More and more guests kept pouring in.
The presence of young girls among them made it clear they were here to enter the North Sea Ice Palace.
Soon, the food arrived.
The female disciple who brought it smiled and asked,
“I thought you'd left, but you came back.”
“Yes, just returning from a short trip.”
I brushed it off vaguely and changed the subject.
“By the way, how much longer is the North Sea Ice Palace accepting entrants?”
“Not many days left. Once autumn hits, the snow winds make it hard to even get here.”
“So this place only operates until then?”
She shook her head with a laugh.
“No, we keep going. For those who brave the snow winds, this is their only refuge.”
“Makes sense.”
I nodded.
“So, you move under the guides' lead every morning at dawn? I noticed you did that before too.”
“Right. We have to start early to fit everything in once we arrive.”
Just then, another guest called her, cutting the conversation short.
“Let's eat.”
“Yes.”
As we ate, Yeo Eung-am warrior asked,
“By the way, was that rock we saw earlier what you were looking for?”
“Ah, yes.”
“Wasn't it just a lone rock?”
The others looked puzzled too.
I pondered what to say when Seo-u warrior spoke up.
“From what I saw, it seems like they used some profound technique to convey something to our lord.”
I glanced at him in mild surprise inwardly.
It was close to the truth.
“Why do you think that?”
“Otherwise, your reaction back then doesn't make sense.”
Jin Yu warrior nodded in agreement.
I smiled, and Palgap, seeing my face, said,
“So it was as Seo-u warrior said?”
“Yeah, spot on.”
I continued,
“But I can't just blurt it out casually, so bear with me.”
Jin Yu warrior nodded.
“Some things aren't for casual talk.”
“Let's eat. This is pretty good.”
The recommended frozen tofu dish was quite tasty.
The texture was especially nice.
We finished eating and returned to our rooms.
That night, I went to bed early.
Honestly, I was exhausted.
Training martial arts for so long in that shared cave had worn out both body and mind.
I should brew some tonic when I get home.
With that thought, I drifted off to sleep.
.
.
.
“......!”
I jolted awake to an overwhelming surge of killing intent.
What the hell?
I'd never felt killing intent this intense before—it left me rattled.
But I couldn't just freeze up. I grabbed my sword and shook Palgap awake.
“Palgap! Get up! Palgap!”
“Yes? What's wrong, young master?”
Seeing my sword, a startled Palgap asked.
He had the King of Killing talent, but his realm wasn't high enough to sense this yet.
Bang—!
Then the door flew open, and Seo-u warrior rushed in.
“My lord! Ah, you're already up.”
“Yes! You felt it too.”
“Indeed. We need to get out there now.”
We grabbed our weapons and hurried downstairs.
“Guests, what's going on?”
The disciple on the first floor looked shocked to see us.
“Attack! A group is raiding the inn right now.”
“What? How......”
She peeked out the window, gasped, and slammed it shut.
“H-how did they......”
“Call the others, quick.”
“Ah, yes!”
She rang the bell immediately.
Ding-ding-ding-ding-ding!
The loud toll echoed, drawing North Sea Ice Palace disciples from their work and rest.
“What's happening?”
The one who'd rung the bell answered,
“Spirit beasts attacking.”
“What? Why would spirit beasts hit the inn?”
I asked her,
“That's not the point. Do spirit beasts even raid like this?”
“Yes, they hunt travelers in packs sometimes, but this is the first time they've come for the inn.”
So there had to be a reason for these spirit beasts to show up here.
Then—
“They're coming!”
A shout rang out, and a massive bear-like spirit beast charged, pounding the door.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
At this rate, the door wouldn't hold.
And more would pour through the windows.
“My lord, what now?”
To Jin Yu warrior's question, I replied,
“Hold your positions and fight your best. Our top priority is survival. As long as you stay alive, I'll make sure we turn this around. Don't die!”
“Yes!”
Crack!
The door shattered, and spirit beasts flooded in.
Roar—!
“Block the ones coming straight at us!”
“Yes!”
One North Sea Ice Palace disciple shouted, and they calmly repelled the beasts charging their fronts.
The window in front of me broke soon after, beasts swarming in.
I pointed my sword at them.
Chance to use the swordsmanship I'd learned from the investigator in our one-on-one session.
A true merchant would sell rice cakes to a tiger if they met one, right?
Huh?
But something was off.
The spirit beasts glanced at me and slunk away, avoiding my side.
As if they feared me.
Come to think of it, that Red-Eyed Snow Leopard had fled desperately when it saw me before.
The difference now: they weren't fleeing outright but skirting around me.
I moved toward the ones dodging me.
They were agile, so I used the fourth form of the True Snow Twelve Style Swordsmanship: Snow Wind.
Snow Wind wasn't just fast swordplay.
It was a fierce gale that even veteran North Sea hunters and Ice Palace disciples dreaded.
Retraining it with the Snow Wind Palace investigator had revealed its true power.
I swept my sword horizontally in a flash, the sharp wind tearing a beast's throat.
Then I slashed down to finish it.
I whipped it sideways at the next one nearby, dispatching it the same way.
That's when—
“The spirit beasts are going through the fog gate!”
“Damn! How the hell did they get inside?!”
Chaos erupted among the Ice Palace disciples.
The fog gate was that misty wall blocking men's entry.
They chased desperately, but many beasts had already slipped in.
“What do we do? The entrants left just half a shichen ago!”
“Damn! Healthy disciples, go inside now! The rest, regroup!”
Half a shichen ago meant they'd catch the front group before reaching the palace.
This was clearly planned.
From what I knew, only two guides—probably because the inside was safe.
The disciples here weren't in great shape. Even if a few pursued, it'd be too few or too late.
Staying put meant those young girls aiming for the palace would be torn apart soon.
I bit my lip.
What to do?
The Snow Wind Palace saw protecting the Ice Palace as a sacred duty.
I recalled the letter left for me in that cave, accessed via their traces.
The investigator had established martial arts for Snow Wind and Ice Palace.
As a disciple who'd learned Snow Wind techniques, my path was clear.
I told my guards to hold here and slipped out quietly.
I entered the fog unhindered and kicked off the ground.
Running through the fog for about an hourglass mark.
Thick enough to see nothing ahead, yet strangely, I knew where to go.
Soon, I reached a fog-free area and spotted footprints in the snow.
This way.
Using Shadowless Step to the max, I soon sensed intense killing intent.
“Kyaaak!”
Women's screams followed.
I rushed there without hesitation and saw a bloodied Ice Palace disciple being savagely pressed by a beast.
“Haat!”
Maintaining max footwork, I leaped in and cleaved it from head to groin vertically.
The rescued disciple thanked me dazedly.
“Th-thank you for the help.”
“I'll handle here. Protect the entrants.”
“Ah, yes.”
I charged at the red-eyed spirit beasts with sword raised.
A horde of Red-Eyed Snow Hares.
Not individually strong, but numerous.
For these, wide-range Snow Collapse was perfect.
My sword swung, sword qi fanning out like an avalanche.
The terror of an avalanche: once caught, it's over.
As I swung wildly, a thought struck me.
Was calling me to the North Sea now, teaching me personally, all for this moment?
Overthinking it?
“......!”
I whipped my head toward the hopeful girls.
Killing intent had flickered from there.
Taat—!
I kicked off without pause.
Focusing my senses, faint killing intent came from one girl.
And a vile orthodox devil's aura.
My sword rushed at her.
“Kyaaak!”
“Hup!”
“Kyaa!”
The girls screamed and crumpled as I charged sword-first.
Ice Palace disciples tried to block me in panic, but their swords never touched.
I was too fast.
Just before my sword reached that girl—
Clang—!
She parried with her own sword. A fierce strike, expertly deflected.
“So it was you. The mastermind.”
She asked,
“How did you know?”
“Just did.”
“Lies!”
Her eyes turned purple, and she shook the bell on her wrist.
The beasts' attacks intensified at the chime. That confirmed it.
She was controlling the red-eyed beasts.
But with me here, they weren't a threat.
They feared and avoided me oddly.
Realizing no win this way, she attacked me directly.
Kang—!
“Tch!”
I parried.
“Finally getting serious.”
“Guess I have to kill you first.”
“Won't be easy.”
This second life was traded for the investigator's remaining years.
I wouldn't go down easy.
“Die!”
“Says who?”
I played it cool, but her martial arts were formidable.
Without recent training from the investigator, I might've died.
Looked like he foresaw this.
Anyway, dragging it out was pointless. More people to protect.
Quick and decisive.
I raised my sword.
White Night.
A white night freezing the sun unfolded.
.
.
.
Clack—!
My sword touched her throat.
“I-I lost.”
She dropped her weapon, signaling surrender, but the disgust from her warned against relaxing.
Orthodox devils rarely honored surrender without dirty tricks.
“Spare me. There's a story behind this. So......”
I cut her off with a smirk.
“Not interested in stories. Just tell me your goal.”