WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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Episode 23: Escape (3)

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Tap-tap-tap-tap!

With our faces covered by masks, we were moving southwest.

Blood-Nurturing Valley lay within a mountain range surrounded by peaks.

There were countless mountain paths in every direction. Some were rugged, while others offered a relatively safe and swift descent.

The route we were taking was an escape path Blood-Nurturing Valley had prepared long ago.

The mountain terrain along the descent was high, making it difficult to see from other mountains. It was their safest escape route.

- But isn't that Squad Leader Ha person the most at risk?

‘Of course they are.’

They had been covered from head to toe in Thousand-Li Scent Chaser, so they could not help being in the greatest danger.

To divert the enemy's attention, Gu SangWoong, the Tyrannical Blood Brigade Leader, had assigned the task to the fastest among his Squad leaders, someone skilled in movement skill and stealth arts.

- That's a mission to die for.

That was true.

Unless fortune favored them, the chances of survival were extremely slim.

It was ultimately a mission requiring sacrifice.

By now, they were likely luring the enemy down a dangerous escape route no one else would take.

If they were discovered in the end...

- Will they kill themself?

Even if they did not want to, they would have no choice.

If captured by the enemy, they would suffer every kind of torture.

- The Blood Cult really is harsh.

‘Who knows.’

Even if it was not the Blood Cult, any organization put in such circumstances would sacrifice someone.

All under the pretext of sacrificing one person to save many.

It was ruthless, but that was the martial world.

- Anyway, we should hope they aren't discovered.

Would that not be best for everyone?

So far, there had been no problems.

Since Baek Ryeon Ha was with us, Gu SangWoong had joined our group, allowing us to travel the mountain paths without obstruction.

He had worked at Blood-Nurturing Valley since his days as a Squad leader, so he knew the nearby terrain well.

Gu SangWoong led the group from the front.

Jang MunWoong, the Escort Brigade Leader, guarded the rear.

In the middle of the escape column, Evil Heaven, two Squad leaders from Blood-Nurturing Valley, the twins Song JwaBaek and Song WooHyun, and I escorted Baek Ryeon Ha.

- She's eating again.

‘Who?’

- Baek Ryeon Ha.

When I looked over, I saw Baek Ryeon Ha slightly lifting her mask and secretly eating jerky.

She had lost weight, but it seemed her appetite remained.

Had her illness not fully healed if she could act like that at a time like this?

Perhaps sensing my gaze, she hastily lowered her mask and hid the jerky in her clothes.

What was the point of hiding it when I had already seen it?

Wait. Did someone just say she was eating again?

- She sneaks a bite whenever she gets the chance.

I narrowed my eyes at her.

Just how much jerky did she have hidden in there?

“I want some too.”

“Don't stare, idiot.”

It seemed I was not the only one who had noticed.

When Song WooHyun swallowed hard and spoke, Song JwaBaek quietly scolded his younger brother.

Ever since learning Baek Ryeon Ha's identity, he had become more cautious around her.

“...”

Perhaps embarrassed, Baek Ryeon Ha pulled out three pieces of jerky from her clothes.

Without a word, she handed them to the twins and me.

Was she telling us to keep quiet because she was giving us some?

‘Hmm.’

I was not particularly hungry.

Still, it tasted good just to have something to chew.

“Chew quietly, you little brats.”

Evil Heaven, who was walking ahead of us, sounded annoyed by the chewing.

Baek Ryeon Ha quietly apologized.

“I'm sorry, Uncle Hae.”

“...”

After that, Evil Heaven said nothing more.

* * *

We had been swiftly descending the mountain for about an hour.

A host of ringing sounds buzzed in my ears.

Frowning, I looked in that direction.

At nearly the same moment, no, even faster than me, Evil Heaven looked in the same direction.

Then,

Whoosh!

Evil Heaven hurriedly used movement skill toward the front of the column.

Soon, Gu SangWoong, who stood at the front, raised a hand to stop everyone.

“What is... Mmph?”

Song JwaBaek muttered, confused.

I covered his mouth, pointed toward where the ringing had come from, and quietly sent sound telepathy.

[There is an ambush over there.]

His eyes widened in surprise.

[How do you know that?]

He seemed more surprised that I had noticed them than that enemies were there.

I could not sense their presence from this distance either.

I could only hear the swords.

[Can't you tell from how Master looked over there and immediately ran to stop us?]

I gave a plausible excuse.

Apparently satisfied, he nodded.

Unease filled Baek Ryeon Ha's eyes.

Evil Heaven was the only one who had detected the enemy's presence. Baek Ryeon Ha seemed worried that the ambushers might be numerous.

Then sound telepathy reached my ears.

[Bring the two Squad leaders there and come quietly to the front.]

Only the two Squad leaders and I had been called.

I sent sound telepathy to Squad Leader Hae OkSeon and Squad Leader Yang GangIl.

They nodded.

As I prepared to head forward with them, Baek Ryeon Ha asked,

[Only the three of you were called?]

[Yes. Only us three.]

She looked somewhat relieved.

She seemed to think the ambushers might be few in number.

I did not know for certain either.

Judging from the sword sounds alone, there were at least five people. If there were also unarmed fighters or those using other weapons, there could be more.

When we reached the front of the column, Evil Heaven was speaking with Gu SangWoong through sound telepathy.

[Master.]

The moment I called out, Evil Heaven sent sound telepathy to me.

[Seven people are hiding behind the hill to the right. One is an Expert, and the rest range from Advanced to Second-rate.]

That meant two of them used weapons other than swords.

Fortunately, the number of ambushers was small.

With this many, they were closer to scouts than an ambush party.

[We strike first. I will deal with the Expert and one Advanced fighter. You handle the rest.

We cannot drag this out, so eliminate them quickly.]

That was right. If we took too long, they might call for reinforcements.

Evil Heaven would handle two, Gu SangWoong would handle two, and the remaining three were likely Second-rate. That was probably why Evil Heaven had called the three of us Squad leader-level fighters.

After exchanging hand signals, we suppressed our presence and headed toward the hill.

Rustle.

Evil Heaven slowly raised a hand.

It was a signal to stop for a moment.

From this distance onward, Expert fighters could detect the presence of Squad leader-level fighters like us. Only Evil Heaven or Gu SangWoong could approach without being detected.

As we waited, the two of them moved at once.

Whoosh!

Once the two masters crossed the hill, we heard the commotion of weapons being drawn.

At the same time, the two Squad leaders and I also launched ourselves forward.

As we crossed the hill, I saw Evil Heaven facing those wielding sabers and swords, while Gu SangWoong faced those using sabers and fist techniques.

Whoosh!

The Squad leaders and I each targeted someone who caught our eye.

‘I've chosen you.’

He was a swordsman in a blue martial uniform with narrow, slanted eyes.

He possessed Second-rate martial prowess. Before my regression, even dealing with just one person like him would have been difficult, but he was no challenge for me now.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

“Ghk?”

After only three exchanges, I had him at my mercy.

Since I completely overwhelmed him in skill, there was no need to use a technique. On the fourth exchange, my sword pierced his chest.

Shnk!

“Ghk!”

He threw himself backward and avoided a fatal wound, but the pain made him drop his sword as he gagged.

I covered his mouth and knocked him down.

Then I intended to drive my sword through his neck and take his life.

- No!

A cry rang through my head.

It came from the sword he had dropped.

It was screaming because I was about to kill its master.

‘Ah!’

In that brief moment, a good idea came to me.

Tap-tap-tap!

After sealing the Second-rate swordsman's blood pressure points and chi, I picked up his fallen sword and spoke to it.

‘Can you hear me?’

The Second-rate swordsman's sword was startled by my voice.

- Wh-what? How can a human speak to me?

‘What do you mean, how? I can hear you, so I'm speaking to you.’

- It's real?

All swords reacted the same way.

They could not help finding it astonishing that someone could hear their voices.

Since there was no time, I went straight to the point.

‘You do not want your master's throat pierced, do you?’

The sword pleaded.

- Please do not kill my master. If my master dies, I will become a sword without an owner.

It was somewhat pitiful.

But I could not soften here.

‘Then tell me everything. Your master's identity and the locations where their companions are hiding.’

- N-no. I cannot tell you.

It must have realized my intentions, because it stubbornly refused.

Even if I could hear swords, that did not mean I could force their egos into submission. Swords fundamentally served their masters.

- You are from the Blood Cult, aren't you?

The sword actually questioned my identity instead.

- I was told that Blood Cult members are cruel and vicious, and that they must all be killed for the greater good of the martial world.

Thanks to that reaction, I could roughly guess their identity.

Since it was talking about a greater cause, they had to be members of the force of justice.

‘Is that so? Then I have no choice.’

I raised the sword and aimed it at the throat of the swordsman whose blood pressure points and chi were sealed.

- Hey, that's a little cruel.

The SoDam Sword, which rarely spoke up, scolded me.

As a sword itself, it apparently did not like the idea of making a sword kill its own master.

I wondered if it really was too much, but the result came quickly.

- I-I will tell you! I will tell you, so please don't do that.

The sword yielded.

Judging from how quickly it spoke, having to stab its master with its own body must have been deeply painful.

It told me everything it knew.

After hearing it, the situation seemed rather serious.

- I told you. You will spare my master's life, right?

The sword spoke with anticipation.

I lowered it to the ground.

‘I’ll spare their neck.’

- What?

Before it could finish questioning me, I drove the Southern Heavenly Steel Sword into the swordsman's heart.

The swordsman's writhing body soon stiffened like wood.

- You human bastard! How could you...

At that moment, the sword poured curses on me.

‘Sorry. The only consideration I can show you is not making your blade kill your master.’

The sword continued to curse me.

There was no helping it.

If I let this person live while we were escaping, there would surely be grave consequences later.

This person had come to kill me as well. Sparing them would not be mercy, only foolishness.

- At least you showed consideration.

The SoDam Sword spoke bitterly.

I only did not want to do that because I knew it would upset you.

As I felt strangely unsettled, Evil Heaven's voice rang out.

“I told you to deal with them quickly. What are you doing?”

Looking around, I saw that all the remaining enemies were dead.

Everyone had faced opponents far weaker than themselves, so they had finished quickly.

“You hesitated to kill. You still have a long way to go.”

Ah.

It must have looked that way because I had silently held a sword and spoken with it.

I received an unnecessary misunderstanding.

“Ghk!”

Then a faint groan came from somewhere.

Gu SangWoong was crouching in front of someone. Soon, he rose and shook his head.

Evil Heaven clicked their tongue.

“Tsk, tsk. You failed.”

Gu SangWoong nodded, approached, and said,

“They bit their tongue. A stubborn one.”

It seemed he had tried to extract information.

But he had failed.

Evil Heaven shook their head in disappointment.

“Nothing can be done. Hide the bodies somewhere the brush will conceal them, then return.”

“Understood.”

Just as everyone started moving to dispose of the bodies, I spoke to Evil Heaven.

“I found out.”

“What?”

“These are martial artists from Cheonjin Sect and Haeyeon Sect.”

Everyone, including Evil Heaven, stopped in shock and stared at me.

< Episode 23: Escape (3) > End

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