Chapter 23: Confusing (1)
Chapter 22 – Confusing (1)
Swoosh!
The thick mist instantly scattered.
A shadow was faintly revealed through the mist.
However, because they wore a bamboo hat pressed down low and the mist was still thick, it went no further than revealing a faint silhouette.
Step, step.
They moved quietly, but did not display any particular caution to hide their presence.
The shadow wearing the bamboo hat first examined the Blood Rain Forest martial artists sprawled on the ground, one by one.
When the figure examined the last Blood Rain Forest martial artist, a presence was felt from behind a large rock over there just in time.
Sure enough, it was a person wearing a black cape and a black bamboo hat pressed down low.
Since he was completely covered in pitch-black clothing, there was no way to know his identity even if there were no mist.
While the person in the bamboo hat examined the corpses of the Blood Rain Forest martial artists, the person in the black hat was examining the corpse of Gye Pyeong-ryang, who had died with the back of his head smashed below the rock.
Finally, the two shadows walked over next to the rock.
They were now close enough to identify each other’s faces.
However, when the person in the bamboo hat raised their head, a white cat mask was revealed, and the person in the black hat was wearing a black snake mask.
The cat mask spoke first.
Surprisingly, it was a beautiful woman’s voice, like jade beads rolling.
However, the energy carried in her voice was as cold as the winter wind.
“This doesn’t balance the books, Black Snake.”
“That’s my line, White Cat. It seems Instructor Gye was taken out by the fellow wielding the scythe.”
“But that scythe-wielding fellow had his head cut off?”
“Do you think it was Instructor Gye’s doing?”
“Oh, no way. It doesn’t make sense, but he was done in by a comrade.”
“They fought and killed each other?”
“Well, at least two of them look that way.”
“Anything else?”
“One guy seems to have been caught by a surprise attack… leaving a lotus-shaped scar.”
“A lotus shape… Is it the Red Lotus Palm?”
“Who knows. You’ll have to find that out on your end.”
“I will look into it.”
“Is that really it? You should at least give an apology.”
“Didn’t you say it yourself? That they fought and killed each other.”
“I said it looks that way. That doesn’t mean it’s certain. The condition of the corpses isn’t normal, as if someone cleaned up afterward.”
“In any case, we lost Instructor Gye as well. Let’s call it even.”
“How irresponsible.”
In an instant, White Cat reached out her hand.
Swoosh!
As a snow-white folding fan flew forward infused with sharp energy, Black Snake quickly leaned back and drew a soft sword.
Clang!
Whir, whir.
The dark soft sword held by Black Snake repeatedly swayed, letting out a strange wailing sound.
It was as if a dark snake raised its head high in the air and moved back and forth.
The gaze beneath Black Snake’s mask flashed.
“White Cat, that’s enough. Don’t cross the line.”
“Indeed, it’s not easy. And here I was trying to balance the ledger.”
“Hmph! If you keep this up, we might have to recalculate from the very beginning.”
“Alright, alright. Well, not everything can go according to plan. Still, we find this incident very regrettable.”
White Cat unfolded her snow-white fan and gently waved it.
Only then did Black Snake sheathe his soft sword and turn around.
“Know your place and back off.”
When Black Snake leaped and left the scene, White Cat smiled quietly and muttered to herself.
“Know our place… I wonder if you are the ones who need to know yours?”
* * *
‘Hmm, why is there no news at all?’
Namgung Cheon looked up at the sky outside the window and tapped the desk with his finger.
By now, it was about time for a reaction to come…
Since he had hit one of the Blood Rain Forest martial artists with the Red Lotus Palm, someone would have surely recognized it.
Yes, unless they were a fool, they would have recognized it.
Yet, there was no reaction whatsoever.
In truth, the Red Lotus Palm was a trap laid to find out who was targeting him.
Hearing that Yun Jong-seung had briefly taught Namgung Cheon the Red Lotus Palm when they were very young, he had put it to good use.
Of course, Yun Jong-seung would be shocked out of his wits if he found out that Namgung Cheon had actually used the Red Lotus Palm, which he had only taught in passing during their immature days.
‘Well, it’s thanks to the First Sight Skill-Breaking Eyes, but the important thing is that he did teach me when we were young.’
By the way, to think he joined in on making him a pushover despite being that close? It made him slightly angry again.
Anyway, since he had set the trap like that, it was about time to catch the hooked fish…
‘Why aren’t they biting?’
It had already been fifteen days since they returned from Mount Dabie.
The academy was peaceful, Yun Jong-seung was still faithfully playing the role of the official pushover, and those who picked on Namgung Cheon became rare.
Of course, there was no way fellows like Jo Gang-min or Song Won-gyo would lie low like this forever, but so far, there had been no notable provocations.
‘Could Gye Pyeong-ryang really have tried to kill me on his own accord?’
If so, he was a real madman.
Well, if someone among their family or relatives had died at my hands, they might try to take revenge on this brat of mine.
Even so, wasn’t it too reckless?
There was surely a mastermind further up…
As Namgung Cheon’s thoughts deepened, the door suddenly burst open and a man strode in.
The noisy training room instantly fell silent, and all eyes gathered on him.
Dazzling white hair, neat features, and deep, clear eyes.
He was a man who truly suited the title of a pretty boy.
“Wow… he’s crazy handsome.”
When Yun Jong-seung blankly muttered, forgetting his own position, Song Won-gyo, who was standing next to him, smacked the back of his head hard.
Thwack!
Yun Jong-seung glared with wide eyes, but soon tucked his tail at Song Won-gyo’s threatening expression.
Song Won-gyo twisted his mouth in disapproval and approached the pretty boy.
“Who are you? I haven’t seen your face around the academy before.”
The pretty boy stared blankly at Song Won-gyo, then showed a bright, carefree smile.
“Me? I’m the new instructor.”
“If you’re the new instructor, you should introduce yourself properly first… Huh? Instructor? You’re an instructor?”
Not only Song Won-gyo but the other cadets also murmured and looked at the pretty boy.
And for good reason, since the pretty boy looked to have only just turned twenty at most.
Wasn’t he too young for an instructor?
Perhaps sensing their gazes to some extent, the pretty boy continued speaking with his usual refreshing smile.
“Ah, don’t misunderstand, I’m old enough. I’m thirty-two.”
“Thirty… years old. I thought you would be at most two or three years older than me…”
As Song Won-gyo muttered blankly, the pretty boy shrugged.
“You don’t believe me? Should I show you my identity tag?”
“Does… the identity tag show your age?”
“Ah, it doesn’t?”
Song Won-gyo and the rest of the cadets wore blank expressions once again.
What was with this guy, who seemed to have a screw loose?
Namgung Cheon also just silently watched the new instructor.
The pretty boy walked to the center of the training room’s platform and soon began his self-introduction.
“Nice to meet you all. My name is Bi Ryang. I’m the new instructor in charge of the Blue Dragon Class. Let’s get along well.”
“…….”
“You there, what’s your name?”
“Yes? Ah, S-Song Won-gyo.”
“Right, Won-gyo. Would you mind taking a seat?”
“Ah, yes…”
Song Won-gyo sat down in a daze.
Amidst the unsettled atmosphere, Bi Ryang continued speaking.
“As you all know, the former instructor in charge passed away in an unfortunate accident, so I came. Well, I don’t know how long I will last here, but please treat me well until I get fired.”
Bi Ryang kept speaking with a breezy face the entire time, and a few cadets burst into laughter.
Bi Ryang roughly skimmed the documents he brought and spoke.
“As you all know, the Wuhan Joint Dragon and Phoenix Conference will start in a little while. Since it is difficult for everyone to participate, I hope everyone prepares hard and achieves good results. That is all.”
After he finished speaking, Bi Ryang turned around without any lingering attachment and strode toward the door.
While the cadets stared blankly, Song Won-gyo quickly stood up and shouted.
“W-Wait a moment!”
“Hmm? Ah, I didn’t take questions. Are there any questions?”
“Of course there are…”
“What is it?”
“Um… so… well… is that all?”
“What is?”
“I mean, is this really the end? Aren’t you going to hold class?”
“Ah, class. Hmm… class. Yes, there was indeed such a thing as class. Hmm.”
As Bi Ryang rested his chin on his hand and fell into thought, Song Won-gyo shut his mouth with an exasperated expression.
‘No, what on earth is he thinking about? If he’s the instructor, shouldn’t he naturally teach class?’
However, the answer that came from Bi Ryang was completely unexpected.
Bi Ryang smiled so brightly that he looked simple-minded rather than just innocent, and said,
“Give me a break since it’s the first day. You guys are tired of boring classes too, aren’t you?”
Song Won-gyo and the cadets gaped.
No, what kind of instructor was this?
Where on earth did this guy roll in from?
Paying no mind to the cadets’ reactions, Bi Ryang even hummed a tune as he slipped out of the training room.
Even after he left, the cadets could not even think of moving for a while.
Only after a long time had passed and Song Won-gyo was about to say something, the door burst open again.
It was Bi Ryang.
He lightly scanned the training room once and asked,
“Who are Namgung Cheon and Yun Jong-seung?”
Soon, the cadets’ gazes turned toward Namgung Cheon and Yun Jong-seung respectively.
Bi Ryang spoke with his usual bright smile.
“Could you two see me for a moment?”
* * *
A room without a single window.
Namgung Cheon and Yun Jong-seung sat side by side at the table, while Bi Ryang paced back and forth on the opposite side with his arms crossed.
At some point, Bi Ryang came to a sudden halt.
“So, you are saying you taught Namgung Cheon the Red Lotus Palm?”
“Yes, just briefly when we were very young…”
Yun Jong-seung nodded, though he seemed to find it hard to understand.
Bi Ryang nodded.
“I see. And the rest of the situation unfolded as Namgung Cheon said.”
“Yes.”
Namgung Cheon replied curtly.
Up until now, Bi Ryang had been questioning Namgung Cheon about what happened on Mount Daun.
Namgung Cheon quietly stared at Bi Ryang.
He had thought that someone would eventually fall into the trap, but he had never expected it to be this guy.
‘Are you the mastermind?’
Certainly, Bi Ryang had many suspicious aspects.
Although he seemed to have a somewhat clumsy and carefree personality, the energy radiating from his entire body carried the fragrance of an expert.
He could tell this by instinct.
Like the absolute sense of a fugitive specialized in survival instincts.
However, the peculiar thing was that, while hostility would normally arise in such a case, he felt no hostility toward Bi Ryang.
Was it because his outward personality was so carefree?
No. If it were his original personality, he would have been even more on guard in that case.
Because in the life of a fugitive, the most dangerous people were those who smiled at you for no reason.
So, despite watching him with utmost vigilance, strangely, his tension would automatically melt away whenever he saw that foolish smile.
‘I can’t get a handle on him at all.’
In times like this, it was not a bad idea to confront him head-on instead.
Namgung Cheon asked, intentionally sounding displeased.
“What is the reason for keeping me here for an hour and asking these things? Do you perhaps think I killed the instructor?”
“Ah, don’t misunderstand. I’m just doing what I was told from above.”
“From above? Who?”
“Well. Is a cadet curious about even that? You ask ‘who’ rather than ‘how’ or ‘why’?”
Look at this guy?
While prattling on as if he were brainless, didn’t he have an unexpectedly sharp side?
Namgung Cheon chuckled.
“Of course I’m curious. Since I hit a Blood Rain Forest martial artist with the Red Lotus Palm, if I caught the eye of someone high up, my path to success might open up.”
“Oho, indeed! Since you killed those who deserved to die, it’s only right that you receive a reward. Do you have any reward in mind?”
Bi Ryang asked, looking rather excited instead.
This fellow was certainly not easy.
He could not read his thoughts.
Usually, there were only two reasons when someone’s thoughts were this unreadable.
Either he was a madman as crazy as himself, or he really had nothing in his head.
He could not even tell which one this guy was.
‘He’s an interesting one.’
Namgung Cheon shook his head, laughing inwardly.
“How should I know? It’s up to the giver.”
“True. They won’t award a cash prize to a cadet, and it’s hard to guarantee immediate success for just that. Maybe they’ll give you a wooden plaque or something? As a symbolic gesture.”
“How stingy.”
“Indeed, it is. But the world is originally a bit stingy.”
In these areas, they seemed to agree quite well.
“Then may I leave now?”
“Sure. Good work. Run along.”
“Excuse me.”
“I-I’ll take my leave too!”
Yun Jong-seung stood up first and ran out of the room, and just as Namgung Cheon was about to follow him out, it happened.
“Cheon.”
Suddenly, a voice spoke to his back.
Turning around, it was still a smiling face.
However, that smile looked quite meaningful, unlike before.
“Don’t worry, I will speak well of you to the higher-ups.”
Namgung Cheon slightly knitted his brows.
This bastard is really confusing.