Chapter 85: Who Is the Enemy (2)
Chapter 84 – Who Is the Enemy (2)
The audience stirred once again.
Mistaking him for an ally?
What was the meaning of this?
Amidst the chaotic atmosphere, Tang Ye-seol, the Red Wave Corps Leader, suddenly asked.
“Did you see the clothes they were wearing?”
“Yes, they were wearing black light garments and masks.”
“How many were there?”
“I do not know that. I encountered one person. I also heard another person’s voice, but I did not see them directly.”
“And you must have been dressed in the attire you are wearing now?”
“Yes.”
“Yet they still thought you were on their side?”
“That is correct.”
The murmuring grew louder.
Was this not equivalent to saying that there was someone within the Martial Alliance colluding with the enemy?
The fact that they recognized him as an ally despite wearing completely different clothing made the possibility of a traitor’s existence even higher.
“Then, did you hear the conversation they had?”
“Target secured. Let’s go.”
“Is that the conversation they had?”
“Yes.”
The target must have referred to Jin So-hong.
Listening to Namgung Cheon’s story, the Gold King’s face turned pale.
At that moment.
Thud!
Murong Sin, the Blue Wave Corps Leader, stomped his foot on the floor and demanded with a terrifying expression.
“Make sense! Your words only sound like there is a traitor in our Alliance!”
“I never said such a thing, but if it sounds that way to you, what can I do about it?”
When Namgung Cheon replied cheekily, Murong Sin glared at him, narrowing his eyes.
“Then why were you wearing a mask?”
“It was not a mask; I simply covered my nose and mouth with a cloth to avoid inhaling the poison mist.”
Namgung Cheon replied calmly without being pressured by the momentum. Depending on how one heard it, it was possible to either doubt or accept it.
At this point, the Alliance Leader waved his hand to stop them.
“Corps Leader Murong, do not be excited. The boy’s words also make sense.”
“Alliance Leader! The very fact that this child was at that location is suspicious. We must not believe his words entirely, lest it cause internal discord.”
“Your words also make sense. However…”
The Alliance Leader’s gaze directed particularly toward Namgung Geom.
“Wouldn’t there be someone who would also listen to the boy’s words?”
Only then did Murong Sin calm his excitement and take a step back.
The atmosphere in the room turned strange.
The Alliance Leader let out a low groan and turned to Namgung Geom.
“As you can see, it is a very delicate issue. And he is an important witness.”
“Indeed.”
Namgung Geom nodded and continued with a face as cold as ice.
“Having a traitor within the Alliance is not something to be overlooked.”
The Alliance Leader’s expression flinched for a moment, but he soon wore a smile.
‘So you want to push it in that direction?’
He nodded and took over the conversation.
“Yes. That is why I want to hear everyone’s opinions here. That child has been testifying consistently since he woke up. However, as the situation is peculiar, there is currently no way to prove it other than his testimony. What should we do with that child?”
The audience stirred once again.
Namgung Geom narrowed his eyes and glared at the Alliance Leader.
‘Shifting the responsibility?’
He was truly nothing short of an old fox.
Suddenly, memories of the days when they traversed the battlefield together to punish the unorthodox and evil sects came to mind, and a bitter emotion seeped out.
‘Why are you growing old in such a way?’
Just then, the Alliance Guard Hall Master cleared his throat and asked the Alliance Leader.
“What does the Alliance Leader think?”
As if everyone had been curious, they all turned their heads at once to look at the Alliance Leader.
Namgung Cheon felt a strange sense of incongruity while watching this series of events.
It felt almost like watching a well-crafted play.
‘The Alliance Guard Hall Master is highly likely to be the Alliance Leader’s man.’
He had rolled around the bottom of the Jianghu for decades.
At this level, could it be said that he could get a rough idea just by looking at their glances and tone of voice?
That intuition could only become firmer in the subsequent conversation between the Alliance Leader and the Alliance Guard Hall Master.
“Namgung Cheon is still a very young cadet. What could he do alone? However… I am troubled because it seems there are some who do not view it so simply.”
When the Alliance Leader spoke with a worldly benevolent expression as if easing his worries, the Alliance Guard Hall Master eagerly took it up.
“Is it because of the rumors that Namgung Cheon is the illegitimate child of the Great Killing Star?”
Only then did the people begin to buzz as if they had forgotten for a moment.
Certainly, the conversation between these two made them recall a fact that had been temporarily buried.
A fact that everyone thought of implicitly but did not speak aloud.
However, once it was uttered, it would inevitably be imprinted in their minds again and bother them.
The Blue Wave Corps Leader nodded and said.
“That is correct, Hall Master. Some claim that forces following the Great Killing Star still remain in the Jianghu. There are also frequent concerns that they have designated Namgung Cheon, the blood relative of the Great Killing Star, as their successor.”
Namgung Cheon was dumbfounded.
‘Forces following me?’
Even when I was alive in the first place, there were no such bastards.
To think they are selling me out like this?
Although his insides were boiling, he kept quiet for now and just watched how things unfolded.
The position of the Blue Wave Corps within the Martial Alliance was at a level that could not be ignored.
Unlike the Red Wave Corps, which focused on large-scale battles in the outer regions, the Blue Wave Corps, which was in charge of public order within the Jianghu, had a powerful influence on rumors.
In short, someone of the Blue Wave Corps Leader’s caliber had the power to make up rumors that did not exist and suppress the ones that did.
Only the Blue Wave Corps Leader would know whether there actually were forces following the Great Killing Star.
‘They are outright manipulating public opinion!’
Sure enough, the guests and high-ranking officials stirred, their faces filled with worry.
They knew very well how many Jianghu heroes the Great Killing Star had killed.
A single mudfish might muddy the stream, but the Great Killing Star was closer to an imugi that muddied the entire river.
Negative views poured out from all sides.
However, only one person in this place did not join in that gaze.
Instead,
Slam!
Namgung Geom, who slammed the table with his palm, asked in a voice that had sunk like dark clouds.
“Blue Wave Corps Leader. Who specifically said such things?”
“That… I cannot tell you.”
“Why?”
“It is for their personal safety.”
At that, Namgung Geom laughed coldly.
“Does that mean I share the same mind as those who follow the Great Killing Star?”
“Of course not.”
When Murong Sin replied calmly, Namgung Geom snorted and continued coldly.
“Or did you perhaps fabricate a story that does not exist?”
“That is absurd.”
“Then why can you not speak? Or are you admitting that there is someone in this place who has joined hands with the forces following the Great Killing Star?”
While Murong Sin, who had suddenly dug his own grave, held his tongue, the Alliance Leader extended a helping hand.
“Patriarch Namgung, calm down. The Blue Wave Corps Leader merely summarized and conveyed the stories floating around.”
“Is it not impossible to tell whether it is a story floating around, or a story meant to float around?”
“My, what a stubborn man…”
The Alliance Leader clicked his tongue and spoke so that others could hear as well.
“I do not care what the world says. It does not matter whether that child is the illegitimate child of the Great Killing Star or not. How can we hold the child accountable for the sins committed by the father? Therefore, do not pay mind to that part and please give your opinions.”
Though he spoke as if he were benevolent on the surface, the stage was actually fully set. The term ‘illegitimate child of the Great Killing Star’ was already deeply imprinted in people’s minds.
When no one easily stepped forward with an opinion, an elder of the Jongnam Sect stood up and spoke.
“Is not the one who suffered the greatest damage in this incident the Immortal of Myriad Gold? I believe we should also hear the opinion of the Immortal of Myriad Gold regarding the disposition of that child.”
“I also think that is a good idea.”
When someone agreed, the Alliance Leader also nodded and turned his gaze to the Gold King.
The Gold King, who had been dazed for a while, finally snapped out of it and recognized the situation.
The Alliance Leader spoke to the Gold King in a gentle tone.
“Though these words may not offer comfort, do not worry too much, Immortal of Myriad Gold. I will surely do my absolute best to rescue your daughter safely.”
“Thank you.”
The Gold King replied in a somewhat hoarse voice and stared blankly at Namgung Cheon.
‘Are they asking me to decide that child’s disposition?’
Like a merchant, the Gold King quickly realized the fate that had been presented to him.
‘They are telling me to choose a side in the midst of this.’
Normally, he would have taken the Alliance Leader’s hand without any hesitation.
After all, the reliable smile the Alliance Leader had shown earlier made him want to cast aside everything else and rely on him.
However, his daughter’s face lingered in his mind.
That face of hers, with eyes shining as she called Namgung Cheon a hidden dragon.
‘Namgung Cheon… are you truly a hidden dragon?’
He looked at Namgung Cheon with a heavy gaze. Namgung Cheon also met his gaze calmly without avoiding it.
A hidden dragon.
He was clearly a hidden dragon.
Yet he was a hidden dragon that was far too dangerous.
Even the Alliance Leader was trying to hunt the hidden dragon.
The reason?
He did not know.
Was it because he was the illegitimate child of the Great Killing Star?
Or was that child truly in league with those who kidnapped So-hong?
No.
That could not be the case.
This was a merchant’s intuition. If they had targeted his wealth, it was far too reckless. Furthermore, the relationship between his daughter and that boy was amicable, and was rather moving in a favorable direction.
He knew she had given him expensive arm guards not long ago. Though it was somewhat unexpected when Yun Jong-seung showed up wearing them.
Then, was it indeed because he was the illegitimate child of the Great Killing Star?
Staring blankly at the Alliance Leader, he saw that the Alliance Leader was also staring intently at Namgung Cheon.
At that moment, the Gold King recalled a certain fact and flinched.
‘I see. Perhaps the Alliance Leader also…!’
Might have realized that the boy is a hidden dragon!
If so, there was reason enough to hunt him.
Was it indeed like a needle in a pouch?
No, it could not exactly be called a needle hidden in a pocket.
He had become a stone that stuck out on its own accord.
Through this tournament.
As if to watch and see who would strike him.
And he clearly confirmed that the one striking him was the Alliance Leader.
As if acknowledging this assumption, Namgung Cheon turned his gaze to stare straight at the Alliance Leader. The gazes of the Alliance Leader and Namgung Cheon tangled complexly in midair.
The Alliance Leader and the hidden dragon!
The Gold King quietly clenched his fists.
A conversation he had with his daughter a long time ago came to mind.
“Father, what do you do when you have to make a truly difficult choice?”
“If you do not know the correct answer, filter out the wrong answers first.”
“What if you do not even know the wrong answers?”
“Choose the one that makes the calculations simpler at least. If the arithmetic becomes complex, errors are bound to occur.”
The one where the calculations were simple.
Although it was circumstantial evidence, there was no reason for Namgung Cheon to kidnap So-hong. To create a possibility of kidnapping, one would have to put forward too many hypotheses. In other words, the arithmetic would become complex.
On the other hand, the Alliance Leader’s mind was difficult to read. Whether there would be something to gain by supporting him, or whether there would be disadvantages in saving Namgung Cheon.
‘It is unknown and complex.’
Having finally finished his calculations, the Gold King spoke in a calm tone.
“That child is close friends with my daughter. I request that you simply release him.”
The audience stirred once again at the Gold King’s words. Everyone wore an expression of surprise. Naturally, since he had lost his daughter, people assumed that human psychology would make him target anyone as an object of resentment.
However, analyzing the situation coolly even in this state indeed made them think that it was typical of the Gold King.
The Alliance Leader also wore a surprised expression for a moment, but soon replied with a good-natured smile.
“I understand. I, too, shared the same thought as the Gold King. We must not allow injustice to occur due to needless rumors and speculation. Release Cadet Namgung Cheon.”
“Yes, Alliance Leader.”
As one of his subordinates replied politely, the Alliance Leader turned to the Gold King and spoke.
“I repeat, do not worry about your daughter. I will surely rescue her safely. No matter what it takes.”
“Thank you, Alliance Leader.”
As he nodded and looked at the Gold King, the Alliance Leader’s gaze deepened.