Chapter 337: Chapter 337

Late at night, Dan So-mi slowly opened her eyes and gathered her things. As if resolved on something, she quietly left the room with a determined look in her eyes.

Fortunately, Jeok Mu-seong, Sa Do-hak, Namgung Cheon, and Ma Jang-gang were nowhere to be seen.

Since only Mae-hyang was sound asleep, no one could stop Dan So-mi from going outside.

Whoosh!

It was a day when rain poured down in torrents.

Because the storm raged, even the surrounding sounds could not be heard properly, and even beasts sensitive to smell and hearing seemed likely to lose all of them right now.

Was it for that reason?

The two spiritual beasts that always stayed by Dan So-mi’s side were nowhere to be seen.

“I have to… go home.”

Getting soaked in the rain, Dan So-mi pressed forward, unconcerned by the pouring wind and rain. Even in a situation where she could not see an inch ahead, she possessed only the single will to go home.

Even though the raindrops were so thick it felt like being struck by stones, Dan So-mi continued to move forward.

She tripped, rolled, and face-planted onto the ground.

Her clothes were instantly torn and worn out, and red blood flowed from various parts of her body.

“If I do not go… I cannot welcome Father.”

Dan So-mi’s lips even turned blue from the cold. Though shivering, it seemed she had nothing but thoughts of Dan Woo-hyun in her head.

Although Dan Woo-hyun’s words telling her to think of herself first lingered in her mind, she still had to be at that manor to welcome Dan Woo-hyun upon his return.

Every time Dan Woo-hyun went on a journey, the reason Dan So-mi endured all that loneliness was also because she knew that place was the only home he would return to.

If she did not go just because they had been deprived of such a place, where on earth could Dan Woo-hyun return to?

Dan So-mi forced back the tears that were about to fall and walked.

Because all her actions were so desperate, even if someone had been by her side, they would by no means have been able to stop her.

However, since she could not see an inch ahead, she had no idea where she was. Although she was moving forward by sheer intuition, the distance was too great and the weather was too bad for that alone to guide her to the manor.

How long had she walked like that?

Running, walking, and falling for more than four hours. By now, Mae-hyang would have realized Dan So-mi had disappeared from home and would be in a total uproar.

It was not that she did not feel sorry toward Mae-hyang and the others, but even so, only Dan Woo-hyun seemed to come to Dan So-mi’s mind.

At that moment, a sound was heard from somewhere.

At first she wondered if it was thunder, but the sound, which gradually grew closer from a distance, clearly made her feel that something was approaching.

Dan So-mi suddenly jerked her head up.

It was a resonance that was somehow familiar to her ears.

A tremor was transmitted from deep within her chest. Her body shook involuntarily, and her pale face turned even bluer.

Her breathing became rough.

Crash!

Thunder that rang in her ears erupted.

Dan So-mi covered her ears and sank to the ground.

Her shivering appearance somehow brought a sense of familiarity.

“Please! Please! Sp… spare me!”

“Save me!”

“Cough!”

“Aaagh!”

The sounds heard from all over the village were the nightmares of the past that had not been heard since she met Dan Woo-hyun. Memories she never wanted to experience again or recall.

Why were they resurfacing now?

Thump, thump!

The sound approaching and vibrating the ground still stimulated Dan So-mi’s eardrums.

Soon, at some point.

They seemed to appear as if brushing aside the wind and rain.

Those approaching clad in dark iron armor.

The momentum flashing from their eyes like ghosts exuded a chill that seemed ready to freeze everything.

“Ah…”

Dan So-mi, who had managed to stand up with difficulty, collapsed. Her legs lost their strength, and she panted heavily as if her breath would stop at any moment.

Clatter, clatter.

The men in iron armor slowly approached Dan So-mi. As if they were looking at a rare curiosity, they went before Dan So-mi and looked down at the tiny child.

An appearance in which not even a shred of emotion could be felt.

Their hearts seemed just like the iron armor they wore.

“Ugh…”

“…”

“Aaargh!”

They did not hold spears in their hands, nor did they try to swing swords.

The moment they just stood blankly and stared, Dan So-mi burst into wild crying and screamed. It felt as if her vocal cords would burst as if she were about to lose her mind at any moment.

“Sp… spare us! Please… do… do not kill my mother! Pl… please do not!”

Dan So-mi huddled her body, muttering like a person who had returned to the distant past. She forcibly swallowed the tears that burst out and sobbed wildly in agony.

She was dragging out all the painful memories that this little child had possessed in the past.

Thud.

Soon, one of the men rode his horse to Dan So-mi’s side.

Watching Dan So-mi who was crying quietly, he drew his sword.

As that flashing gaze stared at Dan So-mi, So-mi trembled madly and looked for one person desperately.

“Fa… Father…!”

Namgung So-hye and Jang Sam-tae, who were watching them from a distance, had no idea what was happening.

Because they had quite good intuition, they could not approach closely, and examining the situation closely from a distance was difficult.

Even worse, as it was a stormy day, it was impossible to view the situation clearly.

However…

‘Is that… a child?’

Namgung So-hye, who was watching by maximizing her vision, tilted her head. Why was a child in such a place at a late hour, where people rarely traveled?

The men even surrounded the child.

Although she could not see their gazes, an unknown anxiety settled in.

Namgung So-hye gripped her sword.

“What are you doing!”

“That child might die! We have to go and save her right now!”

“You crazy person! If we go out now, we will all die!”

“Still, how can we just stay still?”

Jang Sam-tae’s words were not wrong.

Although she could not know the opponents’ strength, judging by the aura they exuded, they possessed a realm equal to or higher than Namgung So-hye’s.

Moreover, if the rumors about them were true, it would mean they possessed a potential comparable to the Nine Sects and One Gang or the Eight Great Families. The moment they stepped out, it was certain they would face the worst situation.

She could also understand the reason Jang Sam-tae stopped her so vehemently.

However, they could not just abandon the child, could they?

“Aaaagh!”

Soon, a sound was heard.

It was the child’s scream.

Her appearance, expressing rejection with her entire body while face-down, also looked as if she were looking at a fragment she did not want to see.

The moment Jang Sam-tae and Namgung So-hye stared at it and swallowed hard.

“Sp… spare us! Please… do… do not kill my mother! Pl… please do not!”

A voice was heard.

At that all-too-familiar sound, the eyes of the two widened as if they would tear. They had no idea why she was in such a place, or what she was fearing to act like that.

The two simply dashed forward the moment they heard the sound. As if their bodies took it for granted, they ran without a single thought.

However, the distance was great.

No matter how fast a lightness art Jang Sam-tae had mastered, he could not close this distance in an instant.

The man gripped his sword and before they knew it, swung it.

“So-mi!”

Namgung So-hye’s sharp cry was heard.

This had to be stopped. She must save that child. Such thoughts filled her head, but the distance did not close as easily as she thought.

Slice!

At that moment.

It split in half.

Blood sprayed and splattered in the storm.

The torso was severed, and internal organs burst out and scattered on the ground.

The collapse of the man who had been standing fine occurred in a single instant.

“…”

“Guh…”

And a man stood there.

Standing blankly, he shook the blood off his sword. With an indifferent gaze, he looked at those before him one by one. It was unknown what he was thinking, but not a shred of emotion could be seen in his icy eyes.

“Y… Young Master Dan…”

Standing there was Dan Woo-hyun.

His expression as he held the sword was fiercer than ever.

Step, step, step!

Those who had witnessed their comrade’s death slowly took their stances while pointing spears and swords without a care. As if the death of just one person was of no consequence.

Although that was true of Dan Woo-hyun, they also appeared emotionless.

“Fa… Father…”

In that situation, a tiny voice leaked out.

Dan So-mi, with blood splattered on her face, did not even think of wiping it off. She simply did not know if Dan Woo-hyun before her was truly the same person, or if this situation was reality or a dream.

Dan Woo-hyun turned his back.

Then he gazed at Dan So-mi and knelt.

Matching her eye level, he reached out his hand and caressed her tiny cheek.

Sensing that warmth, a sigh of relief escaped her unconsciously.

At Dan Woo-hyun’s smile, Dan So-mi’s pupils trembled greatly.

“Are you alright?”

“Uh… ugh… ah…”

Dan So-mi seemed unable to find her bearings on what to say. After groping for words for a long time, she finally burst into tears as if even that wouldn’t work.

“Uaaahhh!”

The loud burst of crying filled the place. The vocal cords of this little child even felt louder than the sound of the storm.

Drenched in the rain, listening to the thunder, Namgung So-hye and Jang Sam-tae had to stand there blankly like that.

At that moment.

Clack!

One of the men thrust his sword at Dan Woo-hyun. At that moment, the blade absurdly broke and flew away, and the head of the man who had thrust the sword suddenly disappeared.

Splash!

A fountain of blood surged up, but not a single drop splattered on Dan Woo-hyun’s clothes. That absurd phenomenon could not be believed even after seeing it with one’s own eyes.

Slide.

Soon, as Dan So-mi fell forward as if falling asleep, Dan Woo-hyun carefully lifted the child in his arms and stood up.

“Those wearing iron armor…”

Dan Woo-hyun stared at them steadily.

Those who had not shown any agitation until now were watching Dan Woo-hyun with ominous gazes for the first time.

The moment his eyes half-opened.

A fierce storm raged once again.

“Discard any thought of even a single one of you returning alive.”

The quiet words uttered by Dan Woo-hyun clearly struck their eardrums through the storm. There was no one who did not hear, nor were there any who could ignore it.

Simply looking at the gaze of Dan Woo-hyun who stood blankly, without even having the option to flee, they had to just accept death.

Slice, slice!

A bloody wind raged in the storm.

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