Chapter 194 Loyalty (3)

Mok Gyeong-un said with a sardonic smile,

“Kill Mong Mu-yak.”

‘!?’

Seop Chun’s expression instantly hardened.

He had been curious as to what Mok Gyeong-un would demand of him to prove his loyalty.

But this was a request he truly did not anticipate.

Seop Chun whispered urgently,

“Hey. Are you doing this on purpose?”

“On purpose?”

“No matter how much you want me to demonstrate my resolve for loyalty, killing Mong Mu-yak right now is not…”

“Hmph.”

At his words, Mok Gyeong-un scoffed.

Then he said,

“It’s all just talk after all.”

Seop Chun’s brow furrowed at those words.

Could it be that this wasn’t just testing him, but he really meant for him to kill?

Suddenly, Seop Chun’s eyes met Mok Gyeong-un’s.

For a moment, he felt a chill run through his entire body.

It was truly unsettling.

‘This bastard……’

Was he really in his right mind?

“Hey. We’re in the middle of a secret mission. Are you not considering that?”

“So what?”

“Wh-what do you mean so what? If Mong Mu-yak dies, how will we make contact with the advance team at the first rendezvous point and get help from the direct subordinates of the Society Leader in the Imperial Palace?”

“……”

“Are you even listening to me?”

“I wonder.”

“Don’t give me that. Proving loyalty. I can do that however you want. But killing Mong Mu-yak, the son of the Vice-Leader, right now means making both the Vice-Leader and the Society Leader your enemies. Are you not thinking about that at all?”

Seop Chun could not understand.

Since they hadn’t completed the mission yet, he hadn’t become the Society Leader’s fourth disciple.

But making such a demand as if he were already the fourth disciple and engaging in an internal power struggle was the worst judgment.

“Hmm.”

“Think carefully. This really won’t do.”

“That’s troublesome.”

“What?”

“All this advice and whatnot is fine, but fundamentally, I want a dog that follows its master’s commands without question. And you seem unfit for that.”

“You!”

-Flinch!

Suddenly, Seop Chun’s eyes met Mok Gyeong-un’s.

He hadn’t been aware of it until now, but he understood why this guy gave off a similar feeling to the Eldest Young Master.

Even while saying such arrogant and provocative words, there was no emotion felt in his eyes.

To the perplexed Seop Chun, Mok Gyeong-un said,

“Only about thirteen or fourteen are left now.”

“……”

The bushes rustled as footsteps approached.

Soon, Mong Mu-yak would arrive here.

It meant to make a decision.

‘He’s crazy. Fucking insane. If we really kill Mong Mu-yak, not only will the mission get screwed up, but everything will be messed up. No matter how much it’s to prove loyalty, this is too much. Making enemies before we even start…… !?’

Many thoughts flashed through Seop Chun’s mind in an instant.

Proving loyalty.

There must be other ways he could prove his loyalty to this bastard.

But insisting on killing Mong Mu-yak, the son of the Vice-Leader, even at the risk of such a reckless move……

‘He didn’t trust me from the beginning.’

That was it.

The reason Mok Gyeong-un gave this order was simple.

It was because of his position.

As the Third Captain Commander of the inner fortress, he could be acquainted with other successors and frequently contact those in power.

Furthermore, he could be considered a person close to the Vice-Leader.

Taking all this into account, Mok Gyeong-un had no choice but to be suspicious of him even if he pledged loyalty.

But what if he killed the Vice-Leader’s son here?

‘Putting aside the situation, from his point of view, I become a trustworthy person the moment I make the Vice-Leader my enemy. Is that it? Ha!’

There was no better way to test loyalty.

Because by doing this, he too would become an enemy of the Vice-Leader.

‘shit.’

He understood the intention, but it was extremely troublesome.

Even if he proved his loyalty, if he did such a thing, he might lose any prospects as a successor even if he became the Society Leader’s disciple.

Was he really prepared to handle that…… Ah!

‘No.’

This was a test and a trial.

Come to think of it, he seemed to have taken it too seriously.

Unless Mok Gyeong-un was an idiot, there was no way he wouldn’t know what he was worried about.

If that was the case,

‘Right. He just wants to see my resolve!’

Seop Chun now believed he understood Mok Gyeong-un’s true intention.

He meant that if he could confirm that he would kill even the Vice-Leader’s son without question at his command, he could trust him.

But this bastard wouldn’t really intend to kill Mong Mu-yak right away.

If he did that, there would be more to lose than to gain.

‘Then it’s different.’

As long as he showed his resolve, that would be enough.

This bastard would prevent the worst-case scenario.

Still, he had to show that he followed orders, so although it didn’t suit his style, he would have to put on a show of being at odds with Mong Mu-yak.

“Alright. I’ll do it.”

Seop Chun said to Mok Gyeong-un.

To this, Mok Gyeong-un shrugged and replied,

“I told you words alone are meaningless.”

“I said I’ll do it. Don’t nag.”

-Rustle!

Soon, Mong Mu-yak appeared, carrying dry firewood using spare clothes.

Mong Mu-yak, who was already a man of few words, silently looked at the three rabbits lying on the ground.

‘He got them.’

Although he didn’t show it, he was hungry after three days of fasting.

While it was said that high-level martial artists could control their appetite to some extent through qi circulation or internal energy, if there was no food intake, prolonged fasting would inevitably lead to difficulty.

Mong Mu-yak said to them,

“Who will start the fire?”

He asked this, but the one he was looking at was Seop Chun.

It meant for Seop Chun to start it.

At his words, Seop Chun approached Mong Mu-yak without a word and said,

“You managed to get them? Good work.”

“……”

As expected, there was no response.

At Mong Mu-yak’s attitude, Seop Chun felt slightly irritated.

‘Anyway, this bastard doesn’t know how others feel…… No, this is good.’

He was hesitant to attack him outright, but if he provoked him like this, it would serve as a suitable justification, and he could act emotionally.

“Phew. Whatever. Give me the firewood.”

With that, Seop Chun reached out to Mong Mu-yak to receive the firewood.

Then, instead of handing it over directly, Mong Mu-yak put the firewood he was carrying down on the ground, as if telling him to pick it up himself.

-Thud!

“Figure it out yourself.”

And he tried to turn around.

That moment,

“Pick it up.”

‘!?’

Mong Mu-yak, who was turning his body, furrowed his brow.

Even when he usually acted cold, Seop Chun only grumbled and left it at that.

But now, those words were laced with a sharp edge.

Was he very upset?

Well, they had been heading north for three days straight without rest while fasting, so everyone was tired and on edge.

Should I just pick it up for him?

‘……’

No.

Although he had the thought that it was possible, he didn’t feel like picking it up for him.

The moment he picked it up, it would be like he was yielding.

At this, Mong Mu-yak retorted sharply,

“Don’t be so sensitive over such a…”

It was at that very moment.

-Whoosh!

Seop Chun launched himself toward Mong Mu-yak.

It was such a sudden attack that Mong Mu-yak was startled for a moment and tried to gain distance, but Seop Chun’s sword strike infused with qi had already grazed his left shoulder.

-Shik!

“Ugh! What are you doing!”

Mong Mu-yak, whose shoulder was cut, twisted his body with footwork and hurriedly threw a kick at Seop Chun.

Of course, Seop Chun easily dodged it by twisting his body.

As soon as he dodged, Seop Chun’s left-hand sword energy struck Mong Mu-yak’s abdomen.

-Bang!

“Khuh!”

-Whoosh!

Mong Mu-yak’s body was pushed back about five steps from the sword energy he received.

Mong Mu-yak’s expression distorted terribly.

Up until the first strike, he thought it was an attack made out of an emotionally agitated impulse.

However, the sword energy just now to the abdomen went beyond that.

As a result, he suffered internal injuries.

“Cough.”

-Drip, drip!

Dark blood flowed from the corner of his mouth.

‘Let’s have a go at it.’

“You son of a bitch!”

-Whoosh!

Mong Mu-yak, his eyes wild with internal injuries, launched himself at Seop Chun.

-Bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam!

In an instant, the two masters, who had earned the title of Five Tigers, clashed for about ten exchanges.

They didn’t draw their unique weapons, the sword and saber, but they raised their qi and aimed for each other’s vital points as if to kill.

Being like troublemakers in the main sect, they knew each other quite well.

Therefore, each move was close to a stalemate.

-Bam, bam, bam, bam, bam!

Up to nearly 30 seconds into the confrontation, neither of them was pushed back.

However, even if they possessed equal martial arts, as the confrontation dragged on, superiority gradually began to show.

-Shik!

‘Hnng.’

Little by little, wounds appeared on Mong Mu-yak’s body.

On the other hand, Seop Chun had not been grazed even once by Mong Mu-yak’s sword energy.

This gave a hint as to who was more intuitive, experienced, and skilled between the two.

Seop Chun was about half a step ahead.

-Swish, shik!

Seop Chun, who had cut part of Mong Mu-yak’s back with flashy footwork, glanced at Mok Gyeong-un.

Mong Mu-yak’s clothes were gradually being stained with blood.

If the confrontation dragged on, he was likely to win.

‘You saw that, right?’

Although they didn’t use swords and sabers, they didn’t hold back against each other, so he thought this much was enough to prove his resolve.

He hoped Mok Gyeong-un would tell them to stop soon.

However,

‘What the?’

Mok Gyeong-un was leaning against a tree with his arms crossed, just watching.

With a look in his eyes that seemed not very pleased.

At this, Seop Chun felt incredulous.

‘It’s dangerous if we go on.’

He had already grasped most of the weaknesses in Mong Mu-yak’s swordsmanship.

If he put his mind to it, he was confident he could end the match within three moves.

Of course, that ending meant the process of driving the opponent to death.

‘How else do you want me to prove it? Now that you’ve confirmed my resolve, tell us to stop.’

Seop Chun blatantly gave Mok Gyeong-un a look.

Wasn’t this enough?

However,

-Shh!

Mok Gyeong-un made a gesture of slitting his own throat.

Seeing this, Seop Chun’s eyes wavered.

‘Wh-what?’

He wasn’t going to stop them, and what did that gesture mean?

Could this bastard really mean for him to kill Mong Mu-yak?

‘He’s out of his mind.’

If Mong Mu-yak died, everything would be messed up.

Even before properly starting the successor’s battle, he might end up with enemies and be unable to do anything.

Seop Chun used lip-reading to say this was not it.

‘This much is enough. We have to stop here. If we go any further, everything will……’

It was at that very moment.

-Shik!

In an instant of their fierce clash, someone intervened between them.

‘!!!!!!!!’

At that moment, Seop Chun’s eyes widened as if they would tear.

Something brushed past and fell to the ground.

It was,

“Aaarrrggghhhh!”

None other than Mong Mu-yak’s left arm.

A scream erupted from Mong Mu-yak’s mouth as his arm was severed below the elbow.

He could endure it if it was just a wound, but the pain of having an arm cut off was beyond imagination.

Seop Chun turned his head with an exasperated look.

There stood Mok Gyeong-un, raising his qi-infused hand with an indifferent gaze.

“You…… You really……”

“Do my words sound like a joke to you?”

“The Vi…… Vice-Leader! If you really kill the Vice-Leader’s son, the aftermath……”

“Do you think stalling and pretending is proving loyalty?”

“……”

For a moment, Seop Chun was at a loss for words.

It seemed he had misjudged this bastard.

This Mok Gyeong-un wasn’t just similar to the Eldest Young Master Na Yul-ryang, but beyond him.

Seop Chun was stunned for a moment.

‘…… Did I make the worst gamble of my life?’

This wasn’t the picture he wanted.

He didn’t want to step on a landmine from the start, but rather wanted to start together with this bastard even if he had no foundation.

To the perplexed Seop Chun, Mok Gyeong-un smiled and tapped his own head.

“Don’t use your head. I don’t want a dog that interprets things on its own. When I give a command to bite, I want a dog that can thoroughly tear out the opponent’s throat.”

“You……”

“Ah, ah. I said words are meaningless, didn’t I?”

“……”

Mok Gyeong-un pointed at Mong Mu-yak with a flick of his finger.

The meaning was very clear.

It meant to finish it.

“Ugh, ugh.”

Mong Mu-yak, holding the severed end of his arm and suffering, took faltering steps backward.

For the first time, he spoke with a face full of fear,

“Wh-why are you doing this?”

Seop Chun’s expression distorted even more as he watched this sight.

The milk had already been spilled.

Although he had held back, he had pushed Mong Mu-yak to the brink, and even if he hadn’t done it himself, he had even cut off his arm.

At that point, there was no way to salvage the situation.

‘My resolve was half-baked.’

It seemed that from the moment he wanted to become the right-hand man of the one who had to walk the path of a villain, he should have been prepared for such an outcome.

-Clench!

Seop Chun, who had been biting his lip hard, finally sighed and,

-Shing!

Drew his unique weapon, the Gwangmudo.

‘Resent me.’

He apologized to Mong Mu-yak in his mind.

Although they had no relationship of grudges, from the moment he tried to join Mok Gyeong-un’s ranks, he had crossed a river of no return.

Seop Chun swung his saber at the neck of Mong Mu-yak, who was stepping back trying to escape.

His single saber strike, devoid of any distracting thoughts, held not a shred of hesitation.

-Clang!

That moment.

His single saber strike, aiming to sever Mong Mu-yak’s head in one breath, stopped right in front of him.

‘!?’

Seop Chun looked at Mok Gyeong-un with widened eyes.

Because the one who had blocked the Gwangmudo’s blade was none other than Mok Gyeong-un’s hand.

Seop Chun stared at him with an expression of incomprehension.

To him, Mok Gyeong-un said,

“Just do it.”

“What?”

“Tsk, tsk. If you had been like this from the beginning, there would have been no need to even cut off his arm.”

“You! You!……”

-Flinch!

For a moment, Seop Chun, who was about to say something out of disbelief, couldn’t continue his words.

The moment he saw that face full of malice, with a smile reaching his ears, a chill running up his spine kept his lips from moving.