WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS x FLAME NOVELS

Translator/Editor: Chen

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◈ The Former Supreme ◈

Chapter 21: How Much Is My Life Worth? (1)

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Radiant Assassin.

Cheon Geuk was startled when Baek Socheon mentioned a name she had not expected.

"Why?"

"So they are alive after all."

Cheon Geuk immediately realized she had made a mistake. She should have asked, ‘Why are you looking for someone who is dead?’

"That person has already passed away."

A belated excuse would never work on Baek Socheon.

"It's too late for that, so don't waste your breath. Take me to the Radiant Assassin."

Cheon Geuk knew Baek Socheon well enough to give in quickly.

"Why are you looking for the Radiant Assassin?"

"It's personal. You don't need to know."

"If you're going to meet someone that important, you should at least tell me why."

"They may be important to you, but to me, they're just some washed-up old assassin."

Cheon Geuk's lips twitched. She barely swallowed the curse that nearly slipped out. She was the one who needed something here. If things went well, this was a perfect chance to wipe out the Seven Sword Society.

"Fine. I'll ask just one thing."

As long as his reason for finding the Radiant Assassin was not this.

"You're not looking for the Radiant Assassin to kill them, are you?"

"How could I kill the Radiant Assassin in my condition? Besides, you'll be there."

"Promise me anyway. Swear it on your name."

"My name isn't important enough to swear by right now."

"Do it!"

"Fine, if that makes you feel better."

"You promised, right?"

"I swear it on my name."

"All right. If you find the evidence, I'll take you to the Radiant Assassin. I swear it on my name too."

Just then, Beon Saeng and Im Chung's voices came from outside the house.

Beon Saeng's excited voice carried clearly into the room.

"Wow, how can someone be so beautiful?"

Cheon Geuk was the most beautiful woman Beon Saeng had ever seen.

Realizing she was the subject of the praise from outside, Cheon Geuk pointed at herself.

‘I'm that kind of woman.’

Then Im Chung's voice came from outside.

"You didn't even see her face."

"I'm sure her face is beautiful too. I'm certain of it! I want to see that young lady again."

"Brother Baek said she's the scariest person in the martial world."

At those words, Cheon Geuk wrinkled her nose slightly. It was impossible to tell whether she disliked Baek Socheon describing her that way, wondered why Beon Saeng was being so bold despite knowing that, or simply disliked the sound of the word scary.

"Brother Baek, we're here."

"Come in."

The door opened, and Im Chung and Beon Saeng stepped inside.

Both men flinched when they saw Cheon Geuk in the room.

Before they entered, Cheon Geuk had put her veiled bamboo hat back on. That made it even clearer that she was the woman they had seen earlier.

Beon Saeng stood there blankly for a moment, then greeted her as though bewitched.

"I'm Beon Saeng. I work at the branch here. I'm Brother Baek's little brother."

"His little brother?"

She looked at Baek Socheon in surprise.

"You take in little brothers too?"

"Does he look anything like my little brother?"

Was he really going to act like this in front of a beauty one might see only once in a lifetime? Beon Saeng struck back.

"Brother Baek said you're a very scary person. The scariest person in the martial world, in fact. That's slander, isn't it?"

"Of course it is. Do I look scary at all?"

Since she accepted his words so easily, Beon Saeng found his courage.

"Ha ha. I knew it. Brother Baek is great in every way, except he has a bit of a habit of making things up. Please forgive him, young lady."

"I know. It's not just that. He curses freely, and sometimes he's violent too."

"Oh, you know Brother Baek quite well."

"I know enough."

"How? No, what do you do, young lady?"

"I'm the Alliance Leader of the Assassin Alliance."

"Ha ha ha, that's hilarious. Assassin Alliance Leader, you're beautiful and good at jokes too."

"It isn't a joke."

"You're a good actress too."

"If it isn't a joke, then it isn't acting either."

"Come on."

"I'm telling you it isn't."

"......You're really telling the truth?"

Cheon Geuk nodded. Beon Saeng pulled his neck in like a turtle and backed away. Only after retreating all the way to the wall did he speak with a mournful expression.

"......Why is a Squad Leader from the Murim Alliance's Iron Sword Corps meeting the Assassin Alliance Leader in his room?!"

A smile formed beneath Cheon Geuk's bamboo hat, though no one else could see it.

She rose from her seat.

Beon Saeng recoiled in alarm, thinking she was coming toward him, but she only smiled and said goodbye.

"See you next time."

"Yes, Alliance Leader! It was an enormous honor to meet you!"

Beon Saeng bowed so deeply that his waist nearly touched the ground.

When he raised his head, she had already left the room.

Im Chung looked at Beon Saeng as though he were pathetic.

"You probably wouldn't have greeted our Murim Alliance Leader that politely."

"Our Alliance Leader won't kill me for giving a casual greeting."

Beon Saeng turned to Baek Socheon.

"Is that woman really the Alliance Leader of the Assassin Alliance?"

"She is."

"How do you know someone like that?"

"I put her in that position."

Normally, this was where Beon Saeng should have started joking that his brother's tall tales had finally risen to the level of an alliance leader.

But Beon Saeng could not say a word. He was overwhelmed just by the fact that he had met the Assassin Alliance Leader.

From the way things had gone, she really did seem to be the Assassin Alliance Leader.

It was hard to believe that he had greeted and even spoken with someone he might never have had the chance to meet even once in his life. The fact that she was a young woman was a fresh shock as well.

"I really can't believe it."

Baek Socheon had said earlier that he was calling someone from the assassin world, but Beon Saeng had never imagined that person would be the Assassin Alliance Leader.

He was happy, surprised, and filled with a complicated mix of emotions.

‘Ah! Are those two dating?’

Yet Baek Socheon's assessment of her was far colder than that thought would suggest.

"That woman leads people who kill others for money. So don't admire her."

"Yes!"

Beon Saeng answered forcefully. He had no intention of admiring her. He did not even intend to go near her.

He would not go around bragging that he had met her, either. He could already picture it: one night after boasting and babbling about it everywhere, he would wake up to find a masked assassin drawing a dagger across his throat and saying, "Someone as insignificant as you has no right to speak of that person."

* * *

Cheon Geuk drank aboard a boat drifting downstream.

Rather than staying inside some house, she preferred floating on a river like this. For some reason, being here put her at ease.

Eastern Star asked carefully, "Who is this Radiant Assassin?"

"A very famous senior in the assassin world. They were called the Radiant Assassin because they completed assassinations as swiftly as light. They have retired now and live quietly."

When the Assassin Alliance trained Guardian Assassin Stars, they were raised in complete isolation from the world.

All problems arose from desire.

That was why the Guardian Assassin Stars were kept apart from the world. The more they formed ties with the world, or with people, the greater the danger to the Alliance Leader's life.

So they were taught neither information from within the assassin world nor news of what was happening beyond it. They were only taught how to kill, all to protect the Alliance Leader.

In that sense, the Guardian Assassin Stars were unfortunate people. They had been raised like dolls for someone else's purpose.

Cheon Geuk was different from the previous Alliance Leaders.

She taught the Four Heavenly Assassins about the world. She taught them about people and emotions as well. That was why the current Guardian Assassin Stars had hearts and individuality.

Despite those around her warning that it would have side effects, she pushed ahead with her own decision. As a result, she gained the most loyal guards of any Alliance Leader in history.

"Why does Baek Socheon want to meet the Radiant Assassin?"

Cheon Geuk shook her head at Eastern Star's question. She could not even begin to guess. There was only one thing she knew: Baek Socheon had called it personal business.

‘What personal business could he have with Elder Radiant Assassin?’

Once the matter of the Seven Sword Society was settled, she would find out. Raising her cup, she spoke softly.

"We'll know soon enough."

She felt optimistic about the outcome of this matter. Baek Socheon inspired that confidence, a man who casually disregarded whether someone possessed internal energy.

* * *

The son sent to bring Black Hand returned with unexpected news instead.

"Father, Black Hand has disappeared."

"Disappeared?"

"He isn't at his residence, and he isn't anywhere in the house."

Wang Gon's expression hardened. He had kept a close watch on Black Hand in case he caused trouble.

"Did he go to the clinic?"

"No. I checked. They said he never came to the clinic."

Wang Gon flinched and shouted.

"Don't tell me! Did he go to get revenge on that bastard?"

Black Hand's pride in his martial arts had been boundless. Yet it had been utterly shattered this time.

"So I sent people to look into it, but nothing has happened at the Murim Alliance branch."

"Damn it. Then where the hell did he go?"

"Could he have run away out of shame?"

"Black Hand? Absolutely not."

Black Hand was rotten to the core, but fiercely loyal to him. He would not simply vanish.

"If Baek Socheon got to him, news of Black Hand's death would have come out."

"What if that bastard dealt with him without anyone noticing?"

"A Murim Alliance martial artist? Surely not."

"Hm. Then where the hell did Black Hand go?"

The answer buried deep beneath the ground was not something Wang U could know.

"Tell Cheon Yangho to find out about the man who was recently dispatched here and report back."

"Yes, Father."

After Wang U left, Wang Gon frowned. Now that he thought about it, pain surged through the gums where his teeth had been broken.

One unexpected hardship after another was crashing into his once peaceful life. He had been beaten, arrested, and now Black Hand had disappeared.

‘It'll be a disaster if the Mythic Gang Leader finds out.’

Being arrested by the Murim Alliance branch was conspicuous enough. With Black Hand missing as well, if those two matters were reported together, it would look as though something seriously wrong had happened.

He had to resolve this before it grew any larger.

Naturally, his anger turned toward Baek Socheon.

‘You bastard, you look like you've seen a bit of action somewhere, but you picked the wrong man this time!’

* * *

Baek Socheon, who looked like he had seen a bit of action somewhere, did not play around today either.

Once again, he was climbing a cliff with his bare hands.

Not long ago, it had been so difficult that he felt as though he would die. Yet now he climbed it with a leather bag on his back and heavy weights fastened to his wrists and ankles.

Though he had climbed faster than before, his breathing was not as ragged. He did not collapse onto his back, nor did he even set down the leather bag.

His stamina had advanced to the next level. Over the past three years, Baek Socheon had experienced this kind of growth twenty-seven times.

Of course, the changes had not been dramatic at first. Going from lying down all day to walking was advancing to the next level, and going from walking to running was the same.

Sometimes he advanced after only a few days, while other times it took several months.

How many more levels could he surpass?

Whenever he thought he had reached his limit, his body carved out new territory once again.

In fact, this was possible because he lacked internal energy. If he had possessed internal energy, he would never have felt the need to train his body to this extent.

A cool breeze stirred Baek Socheon's hair and clothes as he stood at the edge of the cliff. It felt as if the wind were asking what he would do next.

"I'm going back!"

Baek Socheon's shout echoed through the mountains. The sky, clouds, forest, mountain birds, and flowing stream bore witness to his determination.

He had a reason he absolutely had to return. His demotion had been for the sake of returning.

He might fail in the end. If the reason for that failure came from outside, there would be nothing he could do.

If some stronger bastard beat him to death, or some clever bastard deceived and defeated him, he could accept it as his fate and give up cleanly. This life would have ended there.

But he never wanted the cause of failure to come from within himself. He absolutely refused to lose because he had not worked hard enough.

Baek Socheon shouted once more.

"I will definitely return!"

He was determined to return to two different places. One was a physical place, and the other was a symbolic one.

To the Alliance Leader's Hall,

And to first place in the martial world rankings.

Footnotes:

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