Chapter 400: Chapter 400

Our counterattack had shattered half the pursuit force, and the remaining pursuers fell back to a wide distance.

Of course, the risen sun played a part as well.

They could clearly see our side from afar now.

“What should we do about them?”

Sa-ryeon asked, worry creasing her face.

“Shall I go shake them off?”

“Leave them be.”

Even if I killed every last pursuer right now, others would simply take their place.

Besides, if we overreacted, it would only confirm that Dam Ak was here.

They didn’t need that confirmation yet.

Right—better to sow confusion.

“Stop the carriages.”

“What? Right now?”

“Yes. We need to eat anyway.”

The pursuers were in a state of extreme tension too.

An unexpected move would throw them into chaos. Just as it had during the exam.

The carriages gradually slowed as a large clearing beside the road came into view.

It was a rest stop where other carriages sometimes pulled over.

I kept the Taeul Sect members and Dam Ak inside their carriages.

Only the masked Black Thought Alliance members, myself, Sa-ryeon, and a few others stepped out to prepare the meal.

It was a simple affair—hang a pot, throw in water, dried rice, jerky, and dehydrated vegetables, and boil.

When a few of them tried creeping closer, I sent a volley of arrows their way and they scurried back like startled cats.

“Like a noose slowly tightening around the throat.”

Sa-ryeon’s brief observation.

Even watching them retreat, her complexion was far from relaxed.

Unlike the Gold-Silver-Copper Brothers, this was her first time experiencing a breathless pursuit.

Being hunted created an immense psychological pressure.

The Black Thought Alliance guards were proof of that.

Despite having more experience in the murim and far more rigorous training than Sa-ryeon, they couldn’t properly eat the porridge they’d been served, same as everyone else.

“I can’t seem to eat either.”

Dang Seo-hui suddenly thrust her half-full bowl toward me.

I replied, incredulous.

“No candied fruit until you finish your porridge.”

“……When you’re on the run, the standard rations are jerky and candied fruit.”

Jerky, fine—but how does candied fruit fit in there?

“If you don’t finish the porridge, there’ll be no candied fruit at the next serving.”

With a pout, Dang Seo-hui took the bowl back, and I headed for the carriages.

I opened the door just enough to block the view inside and climbed in.

There sat someone who, like Dang Seo-hui, was not eating his porridge.

“Eat first. We’ll be leaving soon.”

“Don’t worry about me. I can just drink it in one go once it cools.”

Dam Ak said this while furiously writing something.

Beside him, two newly completed volumes were already stacked.

From the look of things, he’d been writing nonstop throughout the carriage ride.

“What exactly are you writing?”

“Think of it as something like a last will.”

“……Didn’t you ask me to get you out?”

He paused his rapidly moving brush, glanced at me briefly, then turned back to his writing.

“I asked you to get me out. I never said anything about keeping me alive.”

“……”

Dam Ak, who’d been clutching his brush the entire time, looked up at me for the first time.

“So please, don’t push yourself too hard. I don’t want to incur another debt I can’t repay on this journey. You’ve already done more than enough, Young Master Jin.”

Cold as his words were, the small smile at the corners of his lips left me unable to say anything.

I knew he was being considerate of me, and yet it left an unpleasant taste.

Instead of a reply, I expressed my feelings by slamming the carriage door shut.

***

The pursuers who’d been trailing at a distance resumed their attacks as reinforcements trickled in.

Those with heightened wariness of poisons and hidden weapons switched to ranged attacks with bows and spears, and under the hail of arrows, the carriage had transformed into a porcupine.

“Ngh!”

There were casualties.

“The Black Thought…… Alli……”

Absurdly, a guard struck by a stray arrow in a vital point died in his comrade’s arms, calling the name of the Black Thought Alliance with his final breath.

Just as the fools of the Sojeong Squad had in my previous life.

One enraged guard charged into the forest vowing to hunt down the pursuers—and never returned.

Two lives, lost that easily. The remaining envoy delegation numbered just seven.

Of those, only three were scholars, Dam Ak included.

The scholars grew increasingly unable to hide their anxiety at the grim news.

Dam Ak, by contrast, showed little outward emotion.

Only the brush strokes inside the swaying carriage moved faster—as though a man burning the last flame of his life, he wrote as if possessed.

What kind of last will could possibly need to be written in a crisis like this?

And why did it require so many words?

The questions ran deep, but there was no time for prolonged reflection.

SCREEE—

A new dispatch from the Hao Gate’s Messenger Hawk.

—Wudang Sect Fierce Tiger Unit approaching.

—Diancang Sect Taehua Unit approaching.

The main forces had begun to move, not just the Special Operations teams.

An extreme reaction to the Yuk Clan Spear Form.

Had something happened inside the Alliance?

The original plan had been to reach at least Namjeong before executing the final phase of the operation.

That would need to be moved up.

“Whoa, whoa.”

I pulled the reins and the carriage gradually slowed.

When our lead carriage stopped, the carriages in line behind it decelerated as well.

After halting, I headed for the carriage carrying the Taeul Sect members.

The moment I opened the door, the Sect Leader picked up his sword as though he’d been expecting this.

“A bit earlier than we discussed.”

“They moved faster than anticipated.”

“Is that so.”

The Sect Leader climbed down from the carriage and accompanied me to the envoy delegation’s carriage.

Seeing Hong Mun-gi and me standing together, Dam Ak gave a nod and resumed his brushwork.

The two scholars who’d been grinding ink the entire ride had hands stained black.

“This side is finished as well.”

Having completed five volumes, Dam Ak took his books and slowly descended from the carriage.

The scholars transferred to the Taeul Sect’s carriage, and the remaining Black Thought Alliance guards abandoned theirs and saddled the horses.

“Ready.”

From here, we would part ways with the Taeul Sect and move separately.

When I glanced at Dang Seo-hui and Jegal Cheon-gi and jerked my chin toward the Taeul Sect carriage, Dam Ak shook his head.

“Please go with the Taeul Sect as well.”

A departure from the planned operation.

“Strategist……”

“If you come with me, you will certainly die.”

At Dam Ak’s composed words, a Black Thought Alliance guard surged forward.

“You cannot!”

Dam Ak shook his head slowly but firmly.

“There is no need to endure more pointless deaths. Please convey my apologies to the Alliance Leader for failing to keep my promise.”

Dam Ak handed the five completed volumes to the guard.

“These books contain comprehensive strategies for the war to come after my death, as well as methods to dismantle the Nine Sects and One Gang. Deliver them to the Black Thought Alliance’s strategy department, and they will see to the preparations.”

What he’d called his last will had been a contingency plan for the Black Thought Alliance’s future—one that would otherwise be lost with his death.

“You cannot! I won’t allow it!”

“No. I must die here. Only then can the Black Thought Alliance—and all of you—survive.”

Though he’d never trained in a single martial art, the force of will he projected was unapproachable.

The guards could not bring themselves to deny his words to his face.

“The Black Thought Alliance’s rise will surely begin with my death, so leave without delay.”

This man kept spouting nonsense.

Having heard enough, I walked over and struck his Sleep Acupoint without warning.

TAP-TAP-TAP.

Dam Ak’s eyelids slowly drooped mid-sentence.

“Y……Young Mast……”

He tried to force his eyes open and glare at me, but a man who’d never trained in martial arts couldn’t resist the Sleep Acupoint.

“Wh…… what are you……”

“You were being too noisy.”

“That’s…… not even……”

With those words, Dam Ak slumped over.

I caught him and hoisted him onto my horse’s saddle.

Turning, I found the guards staring at me with vacant, stunned expressions.

“What are you standing around for? Are we going or not?”

“What?”

“No matter how ready he is to die, it’s our job to get him out alive. Isn’t that a guard’s responsibility?”

“……Oh. Yes.”

Their faces said, Is this really how you handle this? But one by one they mounted their horses.

I looked at Dang Seo-hui and spoke.

“I’m counting on you, Senior Dang.”

“Don’t worry.”

Dang Seo-hui nodded, pulled her mask back up, and launched herself into the air.

‘……Everyone already knows she’s Tang Clan because of that blue-green changshan.’

She must have really taken a liking to the mask.

Dang Seo-hui moved out to clear the pursuit force.

I headed toward Sect Leader Hong.

“I’m told Wudang’s Fierce Tiger Unit and Diancang’s Taehua Unit are heading this way.”

Despite the mention of Wudang and Diancang, the Sect Leader’s expression didn’t change.

“Don’t worry. Take care of yourself.”

“Yes.”

I turned to say goodbye to my father, who stood at the very rear of the Taeul Sect group, when—

Something flew at my face. I caught it.

“What’s this?”

I looked down and recognized it at once. I turned back to my father.

“Isn’t this the Heavenly Silkworm Treasure Robe?”

“Wear it. You said yours was ruined.”

So he’d remembered me mentioning that it had been damaged not long ago.

“You wear it, Father. I’ll be fine.”

In this situation, the one in greater danger was my father, not me.

Just as I was about to throw the robe back—

“If you don’t wear it and somehow die because of that, I will follow you in death.”

“……”

His voice was so gravely serious that every Taeul Sect member turned around in shock.

I was equally taken aback.

Yet the man himself continued, calm and resolute.

“I trust the people of my sect. That is why I insisted on coming. If the same is true for you, then see to your own safety first.”

After that, I could not bring myself to return the Heavenly Silkworm Treasure Robe.

WHIZZ— BANG—!

A moment later, Dang Seo-hui’s signal flare arced into the sky—all pursuers cleared.

“Go.”

At my father’s simple word—

“Please take care of yourself.”

I pulled the reins and began to ride.

***

Even after Jin So-un and Dam Ak’s group departed, the carriages maintained their speed.

Dam Ak was supposed to still be in this carriage, after all.

The Black Thought Alliance scholars and Jin Tae-san hid inside, while every Taeul Sect disciple stood ready outside the carriages.

Hong Mun-gi watched his daughter, who had grown into a fine young woman before he’d realized it, and asked.

“Has there been much of this sort of thing?”

“Ugh…… don’t even get me started. Every single day felt like walking a tightrope.”

She answered with clipped complaints, but her face was full of worry.

And at the same time, her eyes shone with unmistakable trust.

The mismatch between her words and expression told him his child had grown up.

Come to think of it, when had Jin So-un matured to the point where he was the one looking after the adults?

A pang of guilt struck him for having been too complacent.

Despite all his struggles, Jin So-un hadn’t been able to confide in the adults—which meant he’d endured all that suffering and loneliness on his own.

The self-reproach was impossible to contain.

“It’s because we adults failed in our role.”

“Huh? N-no, that’s not……”

He patted the flustered Sa-ryeon’s shoulder to reassure her.

“Don’t worry. From now on, we’ll share the burden So-un has been carrying.”

The conversation went no further. For some time now, figures radiating tremendous force had been hurtling toward them at impossible speed.

These were not mere scouts or trackers.

Elite fighters.

The kind who belonged at a sect’s main mountain or within the Murim Alliance itself.

“Speed up.”

He ordered the carriages to accelerate, but the gap between them and their pursuers showed no sign of widening.

“No one engages.”

These were not opponents to be handled carelessly.

They had to be faced head-on.

‘Wudang? Diancang?’

Whichever, they were formidable.

Sure enough—

The pursuers overtook the carriages, raced ahead, and landed simultaneously on the road.

The cloud of dust that had been billowing up was snatched downward in an instant, as if seized by some invisible force.

The sight triggered a flash of recognition in Hong Mun-gi.

It reminded him of when the Dragon and Phoenix Assembly had visited the Taeul Sect.

‘……The first time I saw it, I thought it was truly wondrous.’

He raised his head and looked straight ahead.

Thirty figures blocked the road.

Unlike every pursuer before them, they wore no masks.

The emblems on their martial arts uniforms made their affiliation immediately obvious.

‘Diancang.’

The man at the front raised his sword to halt the carriages.

“Wh-what should we do?”

At the driver’s question, Hong Mun-gi nodded, and the driver pulled the reins to bring the carriages to a gradual stop.

CREEEEAK—

The carriage halted with a grind of the wheel brakes.

“A brief inspection, if you will.”

Without so much as an introduction, the Diancang warrior stated his business and nothing more.

“An inspection?”

“A traitor of the Murim Alliance has escaped, and we are in pursuit. Your cooperation, please!”

The Diancang warrior strode toward the carriage.

And at that moment—

SHINK—

Sword qi erupted from Hong Mun-gi’s blade, scoring a gash in the ground at the warrior’s feet.

“What do you think you’re doing?!”

CLANG—!

The Diancang warrior glared as if ready to kill and raised his sword.

Looking down at the man, Hong Mun-gi spoke at ease.

“Strangers whose names I don’t even know want to open my carriage. Should I simply let them?”

“You insane…… can you not see this emblem?!”

The man jabbed a finger at the crest on his chest, his arrogance boundless.

Watching him, Hong Mun-gi smiled bitterly to himself.

‘There was a time I accepted this as perfectly natural.’

Their presumption. Their discourtesy.

He’d treated it as an ordinary phenomenon—a natural part of the world.

Because he’d been too weak, it had never occurred to him that it was humiliation.

“Who is your master?”

“M-my master?”

Hong Mun-gi pointed to the small pennant affixed to the carriage roof.

“Did your sect not teach you whose emblem this is?”

“……I know it. But what does that have to do with your attacking me?”

“Do you know the Taeul Sect?”

“I do. And I also know that your sect is aiding the traitor.”

“Then bring me a written order.”

“……”

The Diancang warrior answered with a murderous glare instead of words.

But Hong Mun-gi’s thunderous voice dominated the scene.

“Surely you haven’t committed this discourtesy without even a written order? If so, how are you any different from the Black Path ruffians you claim to despise?!”

CRACK.

The Diancang warrior’s teeth ground audibly, and his sword trembled as though ready to strike.

Then, from among those blocking the road, one man stepped forward and offered a clasped hands greeting.

“I am Jang So-pyeong, Captain of the Taehua Unit. Might I ask your honored name?”

“Hong Mun-gi of the Taeul Sect.”

Jang So-pyeong appeared to search his memory for a moment, then gave up with a sigh.

“I’m afraid I don’t recognize the name. Might I ask your rank?”

“Sect Leader.”

“……I see.”

Despite a disciple of one sect having been grievously rude to the elder of another, not one of the Diancang operatives so much as flinched with embarrassment.

This was the Taeul Sect’s reality—the truth he’d turned a blind eye to for so long—and Hong Mun-gi suppressed a small shudder.

Jang So-pyeong continued with a more relaxed expression.

“Then you must be well aware of the transgression your sect has committed.”

“And what transgression might that be?”

“As I’ve explained, we are pursuing a traitor. We’ve also received intelligence that your sect is aiding said traitor.”

But Hong Mun-gi was not so easily cowed.

“You keep saying ‘traitor, traitor’—who exactly are you referring to?”

“……”

“You can’t even name this person, yet you claim to be on official business?”

“That is classified.”

Classified. As if. Anyone could see this was a sham.

The old Hong Mun-gi would have flung open the carriage doors himself, baring everything to prove his innocence.

Yes, he certainly would have.

He’d have rationalized it to himself—what’s so hard about opening a door?—and thrown it wide.

But now he understood.

This wasn’t simply a matter of opening a door or not.

“How absurd.”

“What is so absurd?”

“I’ve realized that what you take for granted is not, in fact, a given. How could I not laugh?”

Jang So-pyeong drew his sword.

“So you refuse to cooperate.”

Hong Mun-gi let out a dry chuckle.

“Go ahead. Use the force you’re so fond of and see if you can get what you want.”

At once, all thirty drew their swords.

In the old days, his legs would have buckled with terror and the strength would have drained from his hands.

“Come!”

But Hong Mun-gi’s spirit had never been more tranquil.