WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS x FLAME NOVELS
Translator/Editor: Chen
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The Former Supreme ◈
Chapter 111: The Supreme Ones' Amusement (3)
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In truth, the angriest person here was Jong Mujin.
Yeom Hwasin was enjoying the situation, while Baek Socheon stood a step away, merely watching.
But Jong Mujin, who had been assigned to escort the Black Heaven Alliance Leader, could not afford to do that.
What was more, these halfwits had even pointed swords at his throat. Though he had volunteered to serve as a driver, he was proud by nature. Had Yeom Hwasin not been beside him, this place would already have become a sea of blood.
Crushed beneath that subtle killing intent, Sa Duyang slowly raised his bowed head and looked at Yeom Hwasin.
‘...!’
Right. He remembered now. The Black Heaven Alliance Leader was a massive, heavily muscled man.
Sa Duyang realized his life was hanging by a thread.
Then Jo Tong urged him again.
"What the hell are you doing? Do you know these people? Even so, you should keep business and personal matters separate."
Sa Duyang could no longer hold back. He rushed at Jo Tong and viciously slapped him.
Smack!
Jo Tong's head snapped to the side, and he rolled across the ground. He sprang to his feet and shouted.
"Have you lost your mind?"
"Shut up before I beat you to death!"
Jo Tong fell silent beneath Sa Duyang's killing intent. Only then did he realize something was seriously wrong.
Sa Duyang dropped to his knees before Yeom Hwasin and lowered his head.
"I have committed a crime deserving death. Please forgive me just this once."
His subordinates immediately prostrated themselves as well. Having roughly grasped the situation, none of them even dared breathe too loudly.
Only Jo Tong stood there, rubbing his slapped cheek with a bewildered expression.
Yeom Hwasin clicked his tongue and said to Baek Socheon, "Well, that ruined the fun."
They knew Jong Mujin, and they were unorthodox martial artists. If orthodox martial artists had been waiting here instead, not a single person present would have survived.
Baek Socheon said to Yeom Hwasin, "My stomach's burning, so let's go find something to cure this hangover. Stop playing with people's lives."
"We can't just leave. I kept my promise inside the tavern, didn't I?"
He had kept his promise not to fight inside the tavern exceptionally well. In other words, Baek Socheon was not to interfere with what happened outside it.
Yeom Hwasin turned to Sa Duyang.
"Was it Sa Duyang?"
"Yes, Alliance Leader."
"You handle that one. Make sure there are no loose ends."
"Yes, Alliance Leader."
Sa Duyang rose at once and strode toward Jo Tong.
"Huh? What's this? What's wrong with you? You bastard! Get away from me!"
Swish.
Without hesitation, Sa Duyang swung his sword.
Slash!
Jo Tong's head fell to the ground.
A life spent committing every kind of cruelty while relying on his father had come to an end. Even in his final moment, he died without understanding why he was being killed.
If he had known, he could have gone to hell and bragged, "Hey, I even poured liquor over the Black Heaven Alliance Leader's head..."
Grinning, Yeom Hwasin asked Baek Socheon, "You wanted to spare him, didn't you?"
"No. You did well. He would've spent his whole life harming others."
"Oh, as expected. You're not such a rigid man. Then let me ask you one more thing. Shouldn't the parents who raised him that way bear responsibility too?"
He was suggesting that Jo Tong's parents should be eliminated as well.
Baek Socheon wondered if this anger might be Yeom Hwasin's resentment toward his own father.
The moment Baek Socheon agreed, that family's entire household would be slaughtered.
"The grief of losing a child will be punishment enough. Let's leave it at that."
"Will it be? I don't think so. If they raised someone like him, isn't it obvious? They might have other children who are even worse."
"Have you suddenly become a chivalrous hero? These people too, they all seem to be your people. Do you want to wipe them out as well? Then kill every last one of them. They're unorthodox martial artists, so there's no reason for me to stop you."
"People's hearts truly are fickle. If you had tried to stop me, I would've found a way to kill them. But now that you're pushing me to do it, I don't feel like it."
Baek Socheon knew Yeom Hwasin had intended to stop here from the beginning. He appeared emotional, but he was levelheaded. The fact that he was leaving Sa Duyang's group alone proved it. He did not kill his own people carelessly.
Still, Baek Socheon did not show that he had noticed. If he provoked Yeom Hwasin for no reason, they would all die. Even if they were connected to the unorthodox faction, Baek Socheon had no desire to be intoxicated by the scent of blood so early in the morning.
"Let's go cure this hangover."
"Fine, let's go."
The two climbed into the carriage.
Had Baek Socheon not been there, Jong Mujin would have already dealt with everything, regardless of Yeom Hwasin's wishes.
The result would have been a complete slaughter.
Jong Mujin gave Sa Duyang an order.
"Clear away the corpse, and do not touch that man's family."
"I will obey."
"And you will come see me later. I will send word."
"Yes. I will wait."
Sa Duyang lowered his head with a dejected expression. He knew exactly what kind of person Jong Mujin was, so he would have to answer properly for this incident.
‘Damn it.’
It did not seem like Jong Mujin would kill him, but he needed to prepare himself to lose at least an arm.
The carriage slowly set off.
"Where are we going?"
"To cure the hangover."
"And after that?"
"Didn't we decide to go see the snow? Let's head north."
Baek Socheon could tell that, while it seemed like a journey going wherever their feet carried them, it was not so aimless. Yeom Hwasin clearly had a plan and a purpose.
The carriage gradually picked up speed.
* * *
"Ah, it's already been seven years since that person left."
Tears welled in Cheon Geuk's eyes as she stared out the window.
"Could he still be alive? No, he hasn't returned in seven years, so he must already be dead. Ah!"
She let out a pained sigh.
At that moment, Eastern Star's voice came from the empty air.
"My apologies, but... it has been seven days, not seven years."
Cheon Geuk sighed.
"It feels like seven years to me."
"He will return safely."
"You think so?"
Of course, Cheon Geuk trusted Baek Socheon more than anyone. But trust was one thing, and feelings were another.
"I don't think I should ever fall in love."
"Why would you say that?"
"I'm too worried to focus on anything else. Honestly, I didn't think I was the kind of person who'd devote herself to just one person, someone so stifling and boring. I thought I was someone shallow, who'd give just enough affection and pull away whenever I wanted... but I was that stifling, boring type."
After Baek Socheon left with Yeom Hwasin, she could not get any work done. She had told Baek Socheon that people wasted their lives on pointless worries, yet she herself was floundering in a swamp of anxiety.
"I'm going to train. Don't look for me. I'll return in seven years. I'll get stronger and properly kick that crazy old man's ass!"
"..."
After she left, the Guardian Assassin Stars spoke through voice transmission.
-The Alliance Leader is suffering terribly.
-Yes.
As they all worried, Western Star unexpectedly spoke.
-It may not be because she's worried about Martial Artist Baek.
-What do you mean?
-Perhaps she isn't worried. Perhaps she's jealous.
-Come on, no way.
-Yeom Hwasin stole her first journey with Martial Artist Baek.
-...!
* * *
The carriage continued onward.
Whenever it was time to eat or the horses needed rest, they stopped at inns. Most had the finest cooks in the area.
"How do you know about places like these?"
"If you become the Alliance Leader too, you can learn anything with a single word."
Which was to say that Jong Mujin had arranged everything.
"So you still haven't given up your authority."
"Hahaha. It's hard to let go of something this good."
He also knew all the places with beautiful scenery. More precisely, Jong Mujin on the driver's bench probably knew those as well.
The view spread out beneath them now drew a sigh of admiration.
"Oh, I didn't know there was such a magnificent view here. I've passed through this place so many times."
"Even the same scenery looks different depending on the state of your heart."
"It seems my heart has finally found room to breathe. This place is truly beautiful."
Baek Socheon thought he wanted to bring Cheon Geuk here someday and show her.
"That's good to hear."
They did not focus only on food and sights.
While riding in the carriage, the two often spoke about martial arts.
They recalled the fight they had once had.
"Do you remember that moment? When you charged in while sending out sword energy?"
"Didn't you block it by striking with both palms?"
"I did. What if I hadn't done that, but dodged downward and attacked you instead?"
"Downward? How?"
"Stop the carriage."
After getting out of the carriage, Yeom Hwasin demonstrated the stance directly on the road. He did not care whether passersby saw them. They were immersed solely in their own world.
"Like this."
"If you had done that, I would've twisted my body here and attacked your head."
"What if I dodged like this?"
"Ah, that could work."
Baek Socheon sank into thought for a moment. Yeom Hwasin also considered it, then put himself in Baek Socheon's position.
"No, no. You were right. If I dodged like this and you attacked again like that, there would be no way for me to block it."
"I hadn't thought that far ahead."
"No. If it had been a real battle, your body would've naturally moved that way."
That was not all. Beyond their previous fight, they also discussed martial arts as a whole. They spoke of ways to fight an opponent with minimal movement and methods of operating body-protecting qi with the least possible internal energy. Since neither held anything back, they could speak of matters in great depth. They shared their knowledge of martial arts openly, without concealing or begrudging anything.
‘Should I really tell him even this much? Could it help him?’
Baek Socheon dismissed such thoughts from the start.
He saw a battle with Yeom Hwasin as one fought upon a vast sea. Trying to block a stream with a rock in such a fight would only make him look ridiculous and leave his trouser legs wet.
As they discussed martial arts, Baek Socheon realized Yeom Hwasin's level was higher than he had imagined.
Yeom Hwasin, of course, was also amazed by Baek Socheon's realm.
"Was your level always this high?"
He was clearly delighted. Delighted that his choice had been right.
"I attained a deeper understanding of martial arts while conditioning my body after losing my internal energy."
"I see."
"So be careful. Once I regain my internal energy... you may die by my hand."
"Hahaha. Have you forgotten? I need to advance another stage before you can regain your internal energy."
Baek Socheon could sense it. Yeom Hwasin now saw the next realm as the end of martial arts. He could feel Yeom Hwasin's confidence that, once he reached it, he would be unbeatable.
"What lies beyond the Indestructible Vajra Body?"
"I have never told anyone this, but I will tell you alone. Simply put, I have now reached a realm where no one can kill me. The next realm is..."
Yeom Hwasin spoke astonishing words.
"A realm where, if I set my mind to it, I can certainly kill anyone, no matter who they are."
"...!"
The key word was ‘certainly.’
Baek Socheon could tell that Yeom Hwasin truly believed it. At the same time, Baek Socheon thought it might actually be true.
"What do you think? Are you afraid?"
Looking at him, Baek Socheon spoke words he had never told anyone either.
"Until now, what I feared was not my own death, but what would happen after I died. The Murim Alliance would fall, my subordinates would all be sacrificed, could the orthodox martial world endure... But I have changed a great deal lately. I intend to live worrying only about myself."
Baek Socheon walked toward the carriage first as he spoke.
"So I'm not afraid. It would all happen after I died anyway... what would it have to do with me?"
Baek Socheon climbed into the carriage first.
Standing some distance away, Yeom Hwasin began walking after him and quietly muttered, "…That remains to be seen."
He had spoken so softly, almost like he was talking to himself, that Baek Socheon did not hear him. Even if he had, he could not have known what Yeom Hwasin meant.
Footnotes:
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