Chapter 82: Chapter 82
When rumors circulated that the White Dragon Squad Leader had been imprisoned in the dungeon, the Martial Alliance was thrown into an uproar.
Because the details of the incident had not yet been officially proclaimed, only all sorts of rampant rumors were going around.
The underground dungeon was filled with stale, damp air.
In that place where not a single ray of sunlight entered, the White Dragon Squad Leader and a man stood facing each other with iron bars between them.
It was not the Disciplinary Hall Master who had taken charge of his interrogation.
Nor was it Cheol Ji-ak, the person who had been betrayed.
Amazingly, it was the fair-skinned Song Yi-yeon. Song Yi-yeon, with a bewildered face, was merely watching the reaction of the Disciplinary Hall martial artists who glared intently toward this side from afar.
“No, why me all of a sudden…”
Song Yi-yeon was also at a loss. Why on earth was he here, and not the squad leader or Young Hero Cheon?
The reason was simple. The White Dragon Squad Leader had stubbornly held out, declaring that he would not utter a single word until he was allowed to meet Song Yi-yeon face-to-face.
“Alliance Member Song.”
“…Yes.”
Song Yi-yeon answered as if thoroughly displeased. It was because conversing with trash who had betrayed his squad leader was repulsive.
Whether he felt that way or not, the White Dragon Squad Leader chuckled and spoke.
“You are a merchant’s son, aren’t you?”
“Did you call me here just to pick a quarrel?”
Song Yi-yeon slightly crumpled his brow. The tag of being a merchant family’s child had already followed and troubled him enough as it was.
However, the White Dragon Squad Leader did not stop speaking.
“Then your brain must work well. Doesn’t the Black Tortoise Squad Leader seem somewhat lacking to you as well? I acknowledge the fellow’s chivalry and steadfastness, but a person must live with a moderate degree of cunning to avoid being looked down upon. Having been born and raised in a merchant household, you should know that too, wouldn’t you?”
“…So what do you want me to do about it?”
Song Yi-yeon barely swallowed the curses that nearly burst out. It was because he felt the White Dragon Squad Leader was intentionally provoking him.
At that reaction, the White Dragon Squad Leader’s smile deepened further.
“Chuckle, chuckle…”
The laughter bounced off the walls and echoed somewhat chillingly. In the end, it even sounded like an ambiguous noise, unclear whether it was laughter or weeping.
‘To think he remained friends with such a bastard. How immense his sense of betrayal must be.’
Recalling the face of the Black Tortoise Squad Leader, Song Yi-yeon let out a sigh so heavy it seemed to reach the dungeon’s cold stone floor.
Suddenly, the White Dragon Squad Leader’s words continued.
“I thought you were the only person I could communicate with. I am also someone born and raised in a merchant household, after all. What conversation could I possibly have with ignorant martial artist bastards? Isn’t that right?”
“If you keep spouting nonsense, I am leaving. Did you refuse to speak with the Black Tortoise Squad Leader and call me just to do this?”
Song Yi-yeon clicked his tongue and added, ‘What a lunatic. Does he have no shame at all!’ Soon, as Song Yi-yeon acted as if to leave, the White Dragon Squad Leader brought up the main point.
“This is advice I give because I have kept an eye on you ever since you first came to the Alliance. Leave the Black Tortoise Squad. Sticking around between that ignorant squad leader, the discarded vice squad leader, and that murderous fiend, just what glorious future do you think you will find…”
“You bastard!”
Unable to hold back, Song Yi-yeon thrust his arm through the iron bars and grabbed the White Dragon Squad Leader by the collar. Since his dantian was already shattered, the White Dragon Squad Leader could not even put up any particular resistance.
Even so, the White Dragon Squad Leader did not stop talking.
“Listen carefully. The martial world is originally a place where there are no permanent companions. What close friends? You seem to think of that monster Cheon Woo-jin as a friend, but think carefully…”
Bang!
When Song Yi-yeon roughly jerked the collar he held, the White Dragon Squad Leader’s face slammed into the iron bars and contorted.
The Disciplinary Hall martial artists keeping watch from afar deliberately dawdled as they approached. To their ears as well, it seemed the White Dragon Squad Leader needed a beating.
The moment the Disciplinary Hall martial artists approached.
The White Dragon Squad Leader roughly shook off Song Yi-yeon’s arm. Of course, since his body lacked internal energy, he could only break free because Song Yi-yeon released his grip.
The White Dragon Squad Leader went deeper into the cell and sat down cross-legged. Crossing his arms and even closing his eyes, he appeared to have no further will to communicate.
“I clearly warned you. Now get lost.”
The Disciplinary Hall martial artists also looked at the White Dragon Squad Leader in disbelief.
“You begged us to let you speak just once and we called him, so what is this shameful display! Are you all right, Alliance Member Song?”
“…Yes, well.”
Song Yi-yeon smacked his lips bitterly.
Soon, as he glared at the White Dragon Squad Leader once, the Disciplinary Hall martial artists said it would be best for him to leave now.
Nodding his head, Song Yi-yeon bowed to the martial artists and exited the dungeon.
Because his eyes had adapted to the darkness of the dungeon, the sunlight felt stinging when he emerged outside.
Frowning, Song Yi-yeon looked at the crumpled piece of cloth in his hand. It was something the White Dragon Squad Leader had slyly pressed into his palm while shaking off his hand.
“Did he keep spouting nonsense just to do this?”
Song Yi-yeon tasted bitterness. In the end, it was virtually equivalent to having danced to the White Dragon Squad Leader’s tune.
Soon, Song Yi-yeon unfolded the cloth. Inside, red characters appeared to have been written with blood.
– How could I bear to look upon the Black Tortoise Squad Leader’s face? Go seek out the Third Chief Manager of the All-Under-Heaven Bank. It should be enough for the medicine expenses of the Black Tortoise Squad Leader’s mother, who suffers from a chronic illness. Would that fellow ever use this money with an easy mind?
At the end of the letter, it stated that all the money earned through business with the Unorthodox Path had been confiscated by the Martial Alliance, and that what was in the All-Under-Heaven Bank was solely the accumulation of the stipends he had received from the Alliance over several decades, so even if taken to the Disciplinary Hall Master, it was money that would not be forfeited.
Song Yi-yeon tightly shut his eyes.
The White Dragon Squad Leader was right.
It was unknown whether the Black Tortoise Squad Leader would use this money or not. He might reject it, calling it dirty money, or endure and accept it considering his sick mother. If the former, the money would return to the White Dragon Squad Leader’s family, that pathetic younger brother of his.
‘However, either way, the squad leader’s heart will not be at ease.’
In that case, delivering the money through another person’s hands would suffice. The White Dragon Squad Leader’s choice was rational. Those who were at the scene at the time were Young Hero Cheon, Young Hero Jin Un, and himself…
Recalling Cheon Woo-jin and Jin Un one after another, Song Yi-yeon let out a profound sigh. From the start, there was no one else to call but me.
“I am thoroughly caught in a bind…”
Stuffing the cloth into his pocket, Song Yi-yeon soon shuffled forward.
* * *
That evening.
A letter sent from the Xi’an Branch of the Martial Alliance arrived.
The Disciplinary Hall organized all circumstances and evidence, completely grasping the case before concluding it.
The White Dragon Squad Leader would not be able to leave the dungeon until his death. What he had done merely to protect his profits and obstruct the Black Tortoise Squad Leader’s promotion had grown into a violent gust, like a wind born of a butterfly’s flapping wings.
The cause, outline, and outcome of the incident were organized clearly and proclaimed throughout the entire Martial Alliance. Not every incident was proclaimed in this manner, but it was because this was an act committed by a squad leader of the headquarters against another squad leader.
“It is truly the end of the world. That fellow’s face was originally thick, but to think he would pull such a stunt even against his close friend, the Black Tortoise Squad Leader.”
“Tell me about it. I never believed it from the start. Would Squad Leader Cheol ever be someone to collude with the Unorthodox Path?”
“Last time you said Cheol Ji-ak was a son of a bitch.”
“Khm!”
In the inn frequented by Martial Alliance members, that story was circulating everywhere. Everyone spewed contemptuous curses at the White Dragon Squad Leader, while some pitied the Black Tortoise Squad Leader.
There were those who reversed their attitudes at the overturned result, and amidst that, talk of Cheon Woo-jin and Song Yi-yeon was not omitted either.
“Ever since this batch entered the Alliance, there has not been a single peaceful day. In the end, didn’t those fellows achieve merit yet again?”
An alliance member spoke while tilting a liquor bottle, and the man sitting across from him nodded while accepting the cup.
“Cheon Woo-jin, Song Yi-yeon. They are truly peculiar fellows, but for some reason, one ends up rooting for them.”
“Those two probably have no need for your cheering, you know. Especially Alliance Member Cheon, there are even talks that he is already stronger than squad leader level. Just where on earth did such a person spring from?”
“Ahem! It is just a figure of speech. At any rate, such geniuses chose the Black Tortoise Squad rather than the Heavenly Tiger Squad, and they even turned down the invitation to join the Dragon and Phoenix Society. Somehow, it brings an inexplicable sense of satisfaction.”
In this manner, there were also those who cheered for the two.
Alliance members born as ordinary mortals, living ordinary lives.
Looking at the youngest members who did not walk the path geniuses typically chose but forged a new path on their own, their hearts would grow warm.
“In any case, this batch is so peculiar that I am looking forward to the upcoming sparring tournament.”
“Snicker, everyone seems to be anticipating it.”
The sparring tournament was a festival held after every selection examination.
It was an occasion where new alliance members designated opponents to spar. Usually, peers nominated one another or chose seniors from the same martial force squad to learn a lesson.
But was this batch merely ordinarily peculiar?
Everyone awaited the sparring tournament with expectations that an unprecedented picture would unfold this time.
A man whose face had turned red, seemingly drunk by now, turned his head left and right to inspect the surroundings, then lowered his voice and spoke.
“I wish Alliance Member Cheon would designate those Dragon and Phoenix Society bastards and beat them to a pulp. Lately, rumors have circulated that the Dragon and Phoenix Society isn’t what it used to be, so if even such a thing happens, their state will become quite laughable.”
When the drunk man openly insulted the Dragon and Phoenix Society, the man drinking with him was greatly alarmed and hurriedly scanned the surroundings.
Such was the presence of the Dragon and Phoenix Society in the Martial Alliance. The most outstanding individuals from every batch joined it. For that reason, there were countless figures of high rank in the Alliance who hailed from the Dragon and Phoenix Society.
They were truly the powers behind the power within the Martial Alliance.
Such a Dragon and Phoenix Society had failed to recruit Cheon Woo-jin, said to be a genius counted among the very best in the history of the Martial Alliance. Because of that, rumors that the Dragon and Phoenix Society was no longer what it once was had been circulating openly.
Just as the man, busily turning his head and confirming there was no one listening nearby, let out a sigh of relief.
Clang!
Out of nowhere, a flying dagger landed upon the table.
Even the heavily intoxicated man seemed to snap to his senses, his eyes widening round as he stared at the flying dagger.
Soon, a voice came down from above their heads.
“I dropped it by mistake. My apologies.”
The faces of the two men turned stark white. Straining their stiffly frozen necks, they looked up.
A man sitting on the second floor of the inn, looking down at them while his eyes glinted ominously with deep green light.
Merely meeting that gaze made their knees tremble, cold sweat pouring down their spines.
Tang Bi-cheon. A man who was the current president of the Dragon and Phoenix Society and the young patriarch of the Tang Clan.
Calling him young patriarch was merely nominal; he was nearing forty years of age, and because the Tang Clan Patriarch suffered from dementia, there was talk that he was practically no different from an acting clan head.
Since the Sichuan Tang Clan was a family vying for the title of number one clan in the Central Plains alongside the Namgung Clan, one could not even begin to imagine how immense Tang Bi-cheon’s authority was in the present era.
“V-Vice Hall Master…”
Tang Bi-cheon was also the vice hall master of the Martial Alliance’s Medicine Hall. Because one could not reside in the Alliance without an official post, it was a title obtained merely for appearances.
That the Medicine Hall Master instead lived walking on eggshells around Tang Bi-cheon was already an open secret.
The sharp corners of Tang Bi-cheon’s mouth curled upward. While his mouth smiled, his eyes held not the slightest hint of amusement, making the two men feel as though they might wet themselves right then and there.
“The Dragon and Phoenix Society is still going strong. As long as the Martial Alliance does not fall, it plans to remain so in the future as well. I am simply very grateful that you worry for us.”
“T-That is not…”
When Tang Bi-cheon waved his hand lightly, the flying dagger stuck in the table was sucked away in an instant. Seeing this, the two men sprang to their feet and bowed their heads deeply.
“W-We are sorry. I was drunk on alcohol…”
“Yes, I did not say a single word. This fellow was drunk and merely spouted reckless nonsense.”
The man who had spouted nonsense kept his head bowed and whispered curses in a low voice to his friend.
“Hey, you son of a bitch…”
Of course, the man merely feigned ignorance.
Soon, Tang Bi-cheon’s cold voice fell above the two men’s heads.
“If you have finished your meal, both of you return to the Alliance. People keep staring, after all.”
The moment his words ended, the two men dashed out of the inn without looking back.
Watching their retreating figures, Tang Bi-cheon hardened the corners of his mouth, then callously stabbed the deep green dagger into his table.
“I cannot leave things like this any longer.”