Chapter 408: Chapter 408
Rewinding to the moment news reached Wuhan that the Fierce Tiger Unit had lost Dam Ak at Mount Jukho.
“What?”
Clear Water True Man set his wine cup down with a sharp clack.
“We have Mount Jukho completely surrounded, so we should certainly be able to catch——”
“Imbecile!”
The wine cup in his hand flew without spilling a single drop and shattered against the messenger’s head. Only then did the wine inside trickle down alongside the messenger’s blood.
“What use is setting a trap after the prey has already fled!”
“……”
Hye-seong and the Righteous Path Association executives, who had been listening in silence beside him. All except Clear Water True Man exchanged meaningful glances. Eventually, Hye-seong spoke as their representative.
“What do you intend to do now?”
“What else? We chase him down to the very end and capture him, obviously.”
“Do you plan to involve other sects?”
“There are over thirty sects in southern Anhui and northern Hubei that follow the Righteous Path Association’s orders. If we mobilize them all……”
“Hmm…… when did Wudang’s sphere of influence grow so large?”
At Hye-seong’s words, Clear Water True Man’s head stilled. Then his eyes flashed with a sharp gleam.
“Clear Water True Man, what is that look? Surely you do not intend to drag the entire Righteous Path Association into your ‘unilateral’ blunder?”
Clear Water True Man replied drily.
“Unilateral blunder?”
“However you frame it, the Black Thought Alliance’s Grand Strategist was invited as a guest of the Murim Alliance. You attempted to kill a man who suffered an unfortunate ordeal within the Murim Alliance. Would that not qualify as a blunder?”
“Did you not hear the same report just now? Mount Jukho is still perfectly surround——”
“And the one who flew into a rage over it was you, Clear Water True Man.”
“……”
Clear Water True Man, who had been about to continue heatedly, swallowed his fury. Then, donning an icy sneer, he spoke.
“I see now. There was a reason you all came flocking in together.”
His gaze swept over the Righteous Path Association members one by one.
“You want to shirk responsibility and crawl back under Jegal So-myeong. Is that it?”
“Ahem.”
“Hrm.”
“Mm.”
Uncomfortable groans rippled through the room, but Hye-seong pressed on rather than being swayed.
“Responsibility is borne solely by the one who committed the act. Why do you seek to transfer the blame for your own actions onto others?”
Hye-seong continued to push, sensing he’d seized the initiative.
“Moreover, given that even Hyeon-yeong—the one you were so confident in—participated and this is still the result, would you not agree this mission has failed?”
“Heh heh heh. What treacherous old men you are.”
A scoff slipped from Clear Water True Man’s lips.
“It is because all of you are so terrified of Jegal So-myeong and Hyeok Mu-gang that the Murim Alliance has come to this state. Do you still not see that?”
“You go too far!”
Pathetic. Putting on airs of dignity and authority, holding their heads high with feigned superiority—only to cower the instant they feared losing their share of the pie.
“Are you aware? That nothing is over yet.”
“……”
“Even if Dam Ak returns alive, the war will proceed as planned.”
“Are you living in a delusion?”
“You are all laboring under a misapprehension. Whether Dam Ak survives or dies here is beside the point. Even if he returns alive, time is on our side.”
“……!”
“What do you mean by that?”
People who only looked after their own bowls had narrow vision. Those with narrow vision could not see far. And that was how they revealed their hand so easily.
“Would everything really be over if he returned alive?”
“If you truly believe so, then why are you even asking me?”
The Diancang representative’s face flushed crimson. The new representative who’d replaced Myeonghyeon—former Righteous Path Association head who’d been ousted—was decidedly less capable.
“Listen well. The board has already been set. Black Thought Alliance personnel are conducting armed demonstrations at Murim Alliance branches, and the tension between the two forces has reached its peak. If casualties occur anywhere at this point, what do you think will happen?”
“You mean……”
“Even if Dam Ak returns alive, the signal arrow of war has already been loosed.”
“……”
The eyes that had been dismissing him shook violently. Hye-seong, who had been angling for Clear Water True Man’s downfall, twisted his face as if he’d bitten into dung.
“If you wish to pull out, be my guest. As long as we are stalling for time, Righteous Path Association personnel are not strictly necessary.”
Clear Water True Man rose from his seat. Now that the Righteous Path Association members had shown their true colors, this place was no longer safe from Jegal So-myeong.
A smile played at the lips of Clear Water True Man as he turned his back on them.
“Watch and see. Who wins in the end.”
***
It was truly ironic. Those who took others’ sacrifices for granted considered their own sacrifice an impossibility. A logic that only those possessed of an elitist conviction—that they were special and everyone else was insignificant—could hold.
But thanks to that, Jin So-un and Dam Ak had survived. The decisive factor had been judging that Hyeon-yeong was too important to Wudang, and that Dam Ak was not worth sacrificing Hyeon-yeong for.
“Haa, haa, haa.”
Jin So-un, drenched head to toe in blood, kept running. Dam Ak, carried on Jin So-un’s back, only regained consciousness long after the fight had ended.
“Did we survive?”
“Fortunately.”
“……Truly astounding. To have survived that situation.”
“Hyeon-yeong is that important to Wudang.”
“Even so, shouldn’t they have been unable to let me go?”
Letting Dam Ak go meant the Black Thought Alliance would grow even stronger—they had to know that. But for Myeong-jin, losing Hyeon-yeong was a worse outcome than the deaths of countless lower warriors he didn’t know.
“Protecting the ones who matter…… that’s the Murim Alliance. That’s the Orthodox Path sects.”
“How noble.”
“And that’s exactly what makes it revolting.”
At the bitterness in Jin So-un’s voice, Dam Ak felt a stir of curiosity.
“What is so revolting?”
“……If they’d shown even a fraction of that concern for the others who shared the same conviction, how wonderful it would have been.”
“Did they not?”
“They did not. Not when my sect was being annihilated. Not when all my junior brothers died.”
Annihilation? Death? What was he talking about? Dam Ak was about to ask when he suddenly held his breath. The face of the man from the dream flickered briefly over Jin So-un’s, then vanished. Not the face of the giant, but the face of a man brimming with scars and doubt.
“……You speak as though you experienced it firsthand, Young Master Jin.”
Jin So-un said nothing. He simply ran on, his eyes still and sunken as though submerged in thought. Dam Ak peeked around to check on him. His face was pale, his eyes unfocused.
“Young Master Jin, are you all right?”
“I’m fine. I won’t die from something like this.”
Only then did he carefully examine the man’s body. Starting from the left arm, there was not a single spot without a wound. Blood still seeped from between blackened scabs and scars. That this body had been running all this time. This stubborn, relentless man…… what on earth was he?
“How about we rest a moment?”
“We’re almost there. Almost. We can rest once we arrive.”
No matter how skilled a martial artist, could anyone truly survive after losing this much blood? Even if his life wasn’t in danger, Dam Ak wanted to stop him. He wanted to lighten the burden on this man’s shoulders—this foolish man who guarded his rights shrewdly and coldly, yet in the critical moments, sacrificed himself without a heartbeat’s hesitation.
“Young Master Jin, it’s all right.”
He wanted to ease even a little of the weight.
“Let’s rest for a moment. Please set me down. I’m tired too.”
How long had this man endured alone? Was the man he’d seen in his dream truly nothing but fiction? A swirl of concerns churned through his mind.
He wriggled to climb off Jin So-un’s back, but the man showed no sign whatsoever of stopping.
“I will bring you back alive, no matter what.”
“Young Master Jin……”
He was clearly not in his right mind. No—maintaining consciousness in this state at all was remarkable in itself.
“I will bring you back. Alive.”
Trying to reason with him any further would only drain his stamina. What could Dam Ak do for him right now? He decided to trust Jin So-un’s ability and follow his will.
But. The moment they entered Eunhyeon, dozens of martial artists were combing the mountains and fields as though searching for something. Dam Ak had naturally assumed Jin So-un would evade them, but the man ran straight ahead in a daze and exposed himself.
“Jin So-un……? It’s Jin So-un!!”
“Then the one on his back…… is that Dam Ak?”
“Seize them!”
The searchers spotted their targets and charged without delay.
Jin So-un did not stop. He ran on with that vacant face, swinging his sword. Not the dazzling, ever-shifting blade Dam Ak had seen until now. A monotone, brisk sword art—the kind frontline soldiers might use.
“AAAGH!”
“GACK!”
“HURK!”
Fortunately, the opponents were far below the level of those they’d faced before, scattering like autumn leaves before Jin So-un’s blade. But his movements had undeniably dulled.
He failed to defend against opponents slower than himself, allowing wounds. In some cases, he reacted too late, barely grazing vital points. And Dam Ak, watching every moment, was inwardly horrified.
‘He’s protecting me.’
Wounds that had barely stopped bleeding reopened, fresh blood flowing anew. New cuts appeared on the few spots that had been unscathed. Yet through all those countless blades, he was somehow still shielding the man on his back.
Amid it all, Dam Ak caught Jin So-un murmuring softly. What was he saying?
“Bring him back alive. Bring him back alive.”
Dam Ak listened, and the surge of emotion that crashed through his chest left him speechless.
‘Why…… to this extent……’
Just as he had used others as pieces on a game board, Dam Ak had used himself as a piece too. He’d steeled himself to that extent, yes—but beyond that…… he no longer had a reason to live this life.
‘What…… am I worth.’
Even in a state where his mind was barely intact, Jin So-un was throwing his entire body into protecting him. Dam Ak’s hands, gripping Jin So-un, tightened without his knowing.
The number of warriors swarming from every direction grew steadily. People in different uniforms were everywhere, along with wanderers who appeared to be hired mercenaries.
The Jin So-un who would normally have slipped through the cordon with nimble footwork was now just standing there blankly, fending off the warriors who rushed him. And one by one, attacks began to land.
CLANG! SLICE. THWACK! THWACK-THWACK!
One of those strikes connected squarely with Jin So-un’s temple, and his body was swept sideways. The two of them tumbled to the ground like puppets with cut strings.
He had been fighting alone against so many for so long, running with Dam Ak on his back, and even now facing multiple opponents at once. No matter how exceptional a man, exhaustion was inevitable.
“Young Master Jin……”
Dam Ak looked down at the man who was still firmly shielding him. A mission that had been impossible from the start. The fact that they’d come this close to success was already an extraordinary feat.
His body, covered in wounds, and his deathly pale face were heartbreaking beyond words. That the cause of all this was himself—that pierced his chest with a sharp ache.
Had the bond between him and Jin So-un truly grown deep enough to warrant this? No—even if such a bond existed, was it possible to go this far?
When his master and fellow students had been killed by an enemy and he’d sought help, every person who had professed close friendship slipped away. Those who had sworn they’d give their heart for his career at the Imperial House turned their backs once there was nothing left to take. He hadn’t been particularly dismayed. The world had always been that way.
‘It’s supposed to be that way…… and yet……’
How long had it even been since Jin So-un met him? And despite belonging to different factions—why was he going this far?
“I’m sorry, Young Master Jin. I should never have dragged you into this from the start.”
Perhaps because he’d seen the wretched Jin So-un in that world of dreams or memories. The pity he felt for the man before him ran even deeper. That pitiful figure had certainly not been Jin So-un. Yet the Jin So-un of the present had not always been a giant either.
He couldn’t know where this man’s life had begun, but the harrowing passage of time wrapped around his still-young face pricked Dam Ak’s heart like needles. And now, the realization that the man was this desperate not for himself but for someone else made his chest ache all the more.
Dam Ak quietly looked up at the man’s face. Whether the dream he’d had was mere fiction no longer mattered.
“The debt I owe in this life, I will surely repay in the next. If that is not enough, then the life after that. So.”
Gently wiping the blood-crusted face of the man, he made his vow.
“When that time comes, please be my friend.”
“……”
In the final moment, a great saber was raised high, poised to cleave both Dam Ak and Jin So-un in two.
GLEAM—
Sunlight reflecting off the saber pierced Jin So-un’s eyes. And in that instant, Jin So-un’s eyes snapped wide open.
“Young Mast——”
“The fuck?! Who are these bastards?”
Suddenly a different person entirely, Jin So-un bared his canines and snarled. The great saber came swinging down, and Jin So-un’s fists erupted like a storm.
THWACK-THWACK-THWACK-THWACK-THWACK-THUD!
Warriors crumpled into pulp in an instant.
“AAAAAGH!”
THWACK-THWACK-BOOM!
Jin So-un’s martial arts uniform swelled as though about to burst, and a crimson Sword Force rose from his blade.
“What the hell?! These small fry!!! You all must be dying to die!”
SWIIIIISH—
A blinding red radiance accompanied a torrent of Sword Force that struck in every direction, laying waste to the area. Having swept away the fighters in a single stroke, Jin So-un snapped at Dam Ak in disbelief.
“How in the world did it come to this?”
“Well, you see, Young Master Jin was——”
“No, if this was the situation, you should have assessed it and solved the problem! You’re the Black Thought Alliance’s Grand Strategist! Honestly. Tsk.”
What? Had he regained his senses? Every word out of his mouth drained away any warmth.
“And what were you doing at the very end? Looked like I passed out at some point. Don’t tell me…… you were untying the Heavenly Silkworm Thread to run off alone? Ha, really now.”
“……”
“And why does my face itch so much?!! Something weird must have crawled across it. Tsk.”
A man’s word weighs a thousand gold, they say. As a scholar who had always held the words of the ancients in high regard, Dam Ak found himself wanting to violently reject that saying for the very first time. He deeply regretted the words he’d just spoken to that man. Enough to want to buy them back for a thousand—no, a hundred million gold.