Chapter 230: Chapter 230

“Ugh…”

Mae-hyang, who let out a groan, barely managed to open her eyes.

Suddenly realizing what had happened and why she was in such pain, she jumped up from her seat.

“Ugh…”

“Lie back down. You received a significant impact to your head, so you won’t be able to move your body easily.”

Hearing the voice out of nowhere, Mae-hyang frowned.

This was because a throbbing headache rushed in. Clutching her head and swallowing her groans, she turned her head.

There stood the man she had seen at the courtesan house.

“Who are you…?”

“I am Dan Woo-hyun.”

“Why… am I here?”

“Because that guy brought you here.”

Dan Woo-hyun glanced at Jang Sam-tae.

He turned his head with an embarrassed expression. When leaving the courtesan house, Jang Sam-tae had carried the woman on his back.

Though he also thought it might be a rash action, leaving a injured woman behind was not something a man should do.

“Hmph! If you’re grateful, say you’re grateful. I saved you just to hear those words.”

“What did you say? I didn’t even ask you to save me, you know? Rather, shouldn’t you be thanking me? Where else would you get to talk to a beauty like me?”

Mae-hyang shot back, clutching her throbbing head. If he had just stayed quiet, she might have at least shown some gratitude, but Jang Sam-tae’s words instead provoked her annoyance.

“Look at this, I saved her and now she’s demanding my bundle too? Let’s go, Master! Let’s leave her to live or die on her own.”

Furious, Jang Sam-tae huffed. Even though he had gone through the trouble of saving her, she instead got angry and snapped at him, causing a surge of anger to rise within him.

At that moment, Dan Woo-hyun stared intently at Jang Sam-tae.

He turned his head.

“Hehehe, you should quickly hurry on your way.”

“Yes, indeed.”

Dan Woo-hyun let out a chuckle.

He seemed to find Jang Sam-tae’s rapidly changing behavior rather amusing.

Just then, Mae-hyang looked around and spoke.

“Where is this?”

“An inn, you wench.”

“I can tell it’s an inn just by looking, you dog.”

“…”

“…”

Dan Woo-hyun’s gaze shifted back and forth between the two.

Both of them had foul mouths.

Their refusal to lose to each other was also quite similar.

Could they perhaps be a match made in heaven?

“It might turn out to be a good relationship.”

“Don’t talk nonsense!”

“Take your bullshit outside.”

Instantly.

Whack! Whack! A succession of sounds was heard.

Jang Sam-tae clutched his head, and Mae-hyang also held her forehead as she rolled around on the bed. It hurt so much that even her headache disappeared.

“Watch your mouth.”

“Ugh…”

“Ahhh…”

Sighing, Dan Woo-hyun shook his head.

As if dealing with Jang Sam-tae alone wasn’t already exhausting enough, having another woman just like him made his own head start to hurt.

“Let’s go. Get ready.”

“Ugh, understood.”

Jang Sam-tae clutched his head and shed a tear.

* * *

Crash!

The main hall where Jeokmuseong resided was located at the highest point within Martial Sovereign Castle.

Just as it was with the Demonic Cult or the Martial Alliance, those in high positions required a seat that befitted them.

In such a place, Jeokmuseong was playing Go without a thought, when suddenly Macheolkwon kicked the door open as if to break it and walked inside.

His flushed face showed just how angry he was.

“Castle Lord!”

Macheolkwon, whose beaten cheek was so swollen that the shape of his face could hardly be recognized, huffed and looked as if he would start a fight with Jeokmuseong right then and there.

Jeokmuseong’s eyes sparkled as he put down a Go stone and stared intently at him.

“What is the matter, Patriarch Ma?”

“Why did you stop the formation of the pursuit squad?”

Jeokmuseong shrugged his shoulders, then simply chuckled and waved his hand dismissively as if it was absurd.

“If you are going to talk about such useless things, leave, Patriarch Ma. There is no way I can form a pursuit squad of Martial Sovereign Castle for your personal grudge, is there?”

“P… Personal grudge?”

“Yes, a personal matter. Furthermore, do you not have outstanding subordinates? I thought it would be fine if you just used them, but…”

“Grr…!”

Looking at the trembling Macheolkwon, Jeokmuseong wore a cheerful expression.

He didn’t know about the other patriarchs, but he had wanted to tease this guy for a long time, and it seemed he had chosen a good day.

“Then are you saying it does not matter if I capture those bastards and tear them to shreds?”

“Tear them, boil them, or roast them, do as you please.”

Jeokmuseong muttered with a bothered expression.

In truth, things should not be done this way.

If someone from unknown origins had attacked a patriarch who held up a pillar of Martial Sovereign Castle, it was only right for the entirety of Martial Sovereign Castle to step forward and capture that person.

Also, there was a rule in Martial Sovereign Castle.

In Taiyuan, which could be called the front yard of Martial Sovereign Castle, blood must not be shed recklessly.

This was a rule that had been kept since Martial Sovereign Castle was first established, and it was also a regulation that proved this Martial Sovereign Castle governed the unorthodox people who didn’t know where they might bounce.

Yet now, Jeokmuseong told him to do as he pleased.

Those words meant he did not care where blood was shed.

Macheolkwon grinned.

“Thank you very much for that. It just so happens that I found where they are and have already sent the boys. However, those guys are quite rough, so blood might be shed. Right in the Castle Lord’s front yard!”

At those words, the elder who was playing Go with Jeokmuseong frowned and tried to stand up.

However, Jeokmuseong stopped him and smiled slyly.

“Well now… I hope it goes according to the patriarch’s wishes.”

“What?!”

Macheolkwon frowned even more at the cryptic words.

* * *

“That girl is following us.”

While walking to leave Taiyuan after exiting the inn, Jang Sam-tae glanced back through his bamboo hat and muttered.

Mae-hyang, whom he thought had already gone back, was hiding between buildings and trees, following behind the two.

Whether she thought they wouldn’t notice, or whether she was determined to follow even if they did, she showed no intention of going back.

“She does so because she knows she will surely die if she goes back like this.”

“Eh? Why is that?”

“The man you picked a fight with is none other than Ma Dok-jin’s father.”

“Ah?!”

Jang Sam-tae was startled, as he truly hadn’t thought of it. Though he had a somewhat unpleasant feeling, to think he was Ma Dok-jin’s father?

Only now did Jang Sam-tae realize his own recklessness.

“Then are you saying Martial Sovereign Castle might chase us?!”

“Indeed.”

Jang Sam-tae’s face turned pale. Among the three major organizations, none showed a temperament as cruel as Martial Sovereign Castle.

Part of it was that they were born criminals, but because they were people who had traversed through all kinds of battlefields since childhood, in a way, they possessed personalities even more cruel than the members of the Demonic Cult.

Jang Sam-tae trembled.

“What are you doing? Why aren’t you moving faster!”

“It seems we are already too late.”

“Eh?”

Whoosh!

The moment Dan Woo-hyun finished his sentence, hidden weapons flew in from somewhere. They were definitely targeting Dan Woo-hyun, Jang Sam-tae, and Mae-hyang.

The moment Jang Sam-tae, discovering the rapidly flying hidden weapons, tried to dodge.

Dan Woo-hyun lightly extended his scabbard.

Rustle!

A wind blew.

By that gentle wind, the flying hidden weapons fell helplessly to the ground.

At that sight, everyone was startled.

Even those who had thrown the hidden weapons.

Because they had thrown them with a considerable amount of internal energy mixed in, they could not believe the result that had just unfolded before their eyes.

“Ah…”

Mae-hyang collapsed to the ground.

Seeing the flying hidden weapons, she thought she was dead, but she was surprised to still be alive and well. Her legs lost their strength, and she couldn’t get up easily.

“Even if I ask who you are and where you came from, the answer will be the same… and looking at your actions now, your purpose is clear.”

Dan Woo-hyun’s gaze turned toward the man standing at the very front. The man holding a spear swallowed hard and raised his momentum.

If they couldn’t capture these people, they would die anyway.

Failing to predict the opponent’s strength was their mistake.

In the end, it became no different from coming to commit suicide.

Drip.

Cold sweat trickled down his forehead.

“I am called Mabaek.”

“I am Dan Woo-hyun.”

“This is also an order, so…”

Mabaek tried to speak while catching his rough breath.

But Dan Woo-hyun smiled and shook his head.

“Stop. That’s enough. When we both want to kill each other, what is the point of having a conversation?”

At those words, Jang Sam-tae nodded.

But the situation was clear.

Since there was no way Dan Woo-hyun would become a corpse, it meant he would kill everyone in front of him.

Mae-hyang, who was sitting down because her legs had lost their strength, also stared blankly at the situation and let out a groan.

Clang!

Soon, Dan Woo-hyun drew his sword.

Boom!

The ground he was stepping on collapsed deeply. Fragments splattered in all directions, and Macheolkwon’s subordinates staggered as if an earthquake had occurred.

Dan Woo-hyun’s eyes harbored a brutal feeling.

* * *

Meanwhile, Macheolkwon was glaring at Jeokmuseong.

Jeokmuseong, who was saying incomprehensible things, definitely felt like he knew the identity of that person.

“Do you know who he is?”

“What does it matter if I know, and what does it matter if I don’t?”

He glared fiercely at Jeokmuseong, who answered with a smirk.

This clearly meant he knew who that person was, and he even reached the suspicion that this whole affair might have been plotted by Jeokmuseong.

A surge of anger rising, Macheolkwon shouted and raised his momentum.

“Jeokmuseong!”

The moment he shouted loudly and rushed toward Jeokmuseong.

Boom!

An earth-shattering roar was heard.

It was a sound so loud that not only Jeokmuseong, but also the elder and Macheolkwon were terrified. The moment Macheolkwon turned his head to look toward the source of the sound.

Thud!

“Ack!”

A spear that flew from somewhere pierced through his chest. As if even that wasn’t enough, Macheolkwon’s body floated up and flew, sliding all the way toward the throne where Jeokmuseong was sitting, before crashing into the wall.

Crash!

Macheolkwon’s body trembled violently.

He knew the owner of this spear.

It belonged to Mabaek.

How did this end up pierced in his own body?

Without even being able to resolve that question, his head slumped down.

“This… crazy…”

Jeokmuseong, who was watching the situation, broke into a cold sweat.

Thinking that if Macheolkwon hadn’t been there, he might have been hit by that spear himself, goosebumps broke out all over his body.

“Elder!”

“Yes!”

“No matter what happens, today’s incident must be covered up!”

At Jeokmuseong’s attitude of not even thinking about finding the culprit who killed Macheolkwon, the patriarch of the Ma Family, the elder groaned but soon nodded his head.

This was because he had seen it too.

He had seen Jeokmuseong, whom he thought would fear no one under heaven, trembling hands and all.

“Never… never… touch that man.”

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