The Former Supreme - Chapter 79

WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS x FLAME NOVELS

Translator/Editor: Chen

◈ The Former Supreme ◈

Chapter 79: The Matchmaker Comes (1)

──────

Baek Socheon returned to Daru with a leather bag slung over his shoulder. It was the same leather bag he always carried whenever he set out somewhere.

"You really came?"

"Did you think I was joking?"

"Not exactly. You don't have to protect me. I'm not a child, am I?"

"I know."

He knew better than anyone how formidable one had to be to retain the title of Assassin King.

Unless Yeom Hwasin came in person, it would not be easy for any master to kill her. Besides, she had prepared in advance and had the Guardian Assassin Stars with her.

"Then why?"

"Are we going to keep talking while standing out here?"

"Ah, come in."

Baek Socheon entered and set down his belongings. Looking around the room, he said, "Come to think of it, there's only one bed."

"Of course there is. I sleep here alone."

"It looks too narrow for two people."

"Even if it were wide, that wouldn't be happening!"

"That's true."

"You're quite the flirt when you get going."

"A flirt? I came to protect you. I can stay up all night doing energy circulation."

"Did you really come to protect me?"

"No. I'm using you as an excuse to get some rest."

It was impossible to tell whether he was joking or serious. Cheon Geuk took him at his word.

"Well, you do need some rest."

There were two reasons Baek Socheon had come to see her.

The first was Yeom Hwasin.

He was concerned that Yeom Hwasin might make a move personally, however unlikely that was.

Of course, the possibility was slim. Killing Cheon Geuk meant going to war with the Assassin Alliance. With a war against the Murim Alliance approaching, the Black Heaven Alliance would not choose to make an enemy as formidable as the Assassin Alliance.

Baek Socheon knew how meticulous and intelligent Yeom Hwasin was beneath his outward appearance.

Yeom Hwasin had come to the Murim Alliance's front gate himself and even shown Baek Socheon the woman he had hidden away, but those unexpected sides of him were entirely separate from the person he became when waging war.

He was not someone who would ruin his great ambitions over personal feelings, especially not family affection.

That was why the second reason for his visit was more important.

"There's somewhere I'd like us to go alone for a while."

Cheon Geuk shouted at Baek Socheon's casual suggestion.

"You're in more danger than I am!"

After spending quite some time persuading the Guardian Assassin Stars, Cheon Geuk finally managed to leave Daru alone with Baek Socheon.

He took her to the place where he trained in martial arts.

"You can cross it, right?"

"Of course I can!"

Cheon Geuk lightly crossed the towering cliff after Baek Socheon.

When they followed the hidden path and arrived at their destination, she exclaimed in admiration.

"Oh, there was a place like this?"

"It's my secret training ground."

"I'm honored."

They had grown much closer recently, but she still did not know much about Baek Socheon's private life. Being brought to a place that belonged to him alone made her happy.

"But why did you bring me here?"

"To fight you."

Cheon Geuk's bright expression stiffened.

"Why?"

Fear suddenly rose within her. She had never once imagined fighting Baek Socheon.

"I haven't had a chance to fight a master like you."

"......"

After a brief silence, Cheon Geuk asked, "You're serious."

"Yes, I am. Not a spar, a real fight."

It was the kind of training he needed now. Not solitary training, but fighting someone else to gain fresh stimulation. The only people around him capable of providing that much were the Alliance Leader and Cheon Geuk.

"You're not trying to kill me, are you?"

Baek Socheon nodded.

"It'll help you as well as me. And there's another reason."

"What is it?"

"I want to know your exact level of skill."

"Why?"

"I need to know how strong you are if I'm going to protect you when it truly matters."

"......!"

Cheon Geuk stared at him.

Even if those words were a lie meant to deceive her, she thought she would not mind being deceived by a lie that made her feel this way.

"What if I accidentally kill you?"

"If I'm going to die anyway, it would be nice to die at the hands of a beauty."

"Fine. Let's have a match."

Before she was an assassin, she was a master of the martial world. Her official level of skill was unknown, so she was not listed in the Martial World Ranking Record, but the Sage Heaven Pavilion estimated that she possessed the strength to rank at least within the top ten.

Cheon Geuk had seen Baek Socheon fight before, but this was the first time she would fight him directly. Watching from the side and experiencing it firsthand were entirely different. What would it feel like to face him herself?

She drew Death King Dagger, her signature weapon.

Baek Socheon drew the Ghost Shadow Sword.

Kihihihihihihi.

A ghostly wail rose from Baek Socheon's sword.

In an instant, chills ran through Cheon Geuk, and every hair on her body stood on end.

"A sword cry!"

"That's right."

"It's my first time hearing one. The sound of a sword crying."

"It's not something you hear often."

She looked down at her hand. Death King Dagger trembled in her grip.

It was not fear alone. Along with fear came the thrill of fighting a truly powerful opponent.

Cheon Geuk raised her head and looked at Baek Socheon.

"Let's begin."

The two began their match. Though it was called a match, it was a real battle.

Cheon Geuk attacked lightly at first. Naturally, lightly by their standards. An attack at this level would kill martial artists from the Iron Sword Corps or the Secret Pavilion in a single move.

Her dagger sliced through the air.

Whoosh!

Death King Dagger Art.

Like Baek Socheon's swordsmanship, this martial art, named after her signature weapon, was an assassination art that pursued ultimate speed.

With every move, her movements grew faster.

Of all the martial arts that pursued ultimate speed Baek Socheon had faced, hers was the fastest.

Yet Cheon Geuk was the one most surprised. Her movements gradually accelerated, but she still could not keep pace with Baek Socheon.

She pushed her speed higher and higher, unleashing the fastest attacks she could manage.

Even so, Baek Socheon's movements overwhelmed hers.

She drew away from him for a moment.

"Were you always this fast?"

"No. The martial art I learned recently pursues ultimate speed."

"That's even more surprising. You can already use a new martial art to this extent?"

"Come again."

"Here I come."

The two launched themselves at each other again.

In a flash, their positions switched. In another flash, they crossed paths once more. Their movements were truly fast.

It was a feast of light.

It was only a pity there was no one there to witness it.

Baek Socheon pushed her to her limits. Cheon Geuk's martial arts were far greater than he had expected. She unquestionably deserved a place in the top ten of the Martial World Ranking Record. In Baek Socheon's view, among the six beneath himself, Yeom Hwasin, Myeolsaeng, and Ak Sogun, she could be called exceptional.

At last, their fierce match came to an end.

Cheon Geuk was drenched in sweat from head to toe. Had she ever been this soaked while fighting someone? As she gradually lost herself in the battle, she even felt a state of total immersion.

Baek Socheon, on the other hand, was not sweating at all. That alone showed the difference in their abilities.

Both of them gained insight from that single fight.

"Did it help at all?"

Baek Socheon answered Cheon Geuk's question.

"It helped greatly."

"Really?"

"Yes."

At Baek Socheon's sincere answer, she sprang to her feet and pointed Death King Dagger at him.

"What are you doing, still sitting there? Since we've come this far, let's fight some more."

"Fine!"

The two began fighting again.

Now that Cheon Geuk had confirmed Baek Socheon's skill, she no longer held back. She used every method at her disposal.

The battle grew increasingly fierce.

* * *

Yeom Sawon stared intently into Jan Baek's eyes as the man approached him.

Looking into Jan Baek's narrow, slitted eyes made chills rise on his skin and filled him with fear. Jan Baek was one of the three strongest members of the Black Heaven Alliance's Eighteen Ghost Swords.

In truth, if Yeom Sawon had not been the Black Heaven Alliance's heir, he could never have imagined engaging in this kind of contest of wills.

"You summoned me?"

Jan Baek spoke quietly and politely, but he did not truly follow Yeom Sawon. He was only obeying Yeom Hwasin's order to protect his son.

"I called you because I have a request."

"Please speak."

"Kill two people for me."

Jan Baek's expression creased slightly. The very thought of Yeom Sawon using him as a blade to kill someone displeased him.

"Who are they?"

"The Assassin Alliance Leader and Baek Socheon."

"No."

Jan Baek refused the moment the words left Yeom Sawon's mouth.

Yeom Sawon was the one caught off guard. Even if he intended to refuse, he should at least have pretended to consider it first.

"Why not?"

"Because I can't!"

Jan Baek answered firmly without giving a reason.

"It is an order!"

"Even so, I can't."

"Are you saying you'll disobey an order?"

"My apologies, but if you tell me to kill anyone else, I will obey."

It was not because he feared Yeom Sawon. Yeom Hwasin was the problem.

"Then let's at least hear the reason. Why can't you?"

Jan Baek let out a light sigh.

"Must you hear it?"

"Yes."

Jan Baek finally explained.

"First, the Assassin King is stronger than I am."

"What?"

Yeom Sawon was startled.

"Do you truly mean that? You can't even deal with a mere woman?"

Jan Baek looked at him as though he could not believe what he was hearing.

"How exactly do you assess the Assassin King's strength, Young Master?"

"Isn't she just some assassin?"

"That 'mere assassin' kills them all."

"She's a woman."

"You do not understand assassins. Assassins never accept the orders of someone weaker than themselves. In other words, she is the strongest among assassins. If she has held the position of Assassin King despite being a woman, that means she is even stronger."

"I can't believe it!"

"Whether you believe it or not makes no difference to me."

"Then at least kill Baek Socheon! He has lost his internal energy."

"Baek Socheon is even more impossible for me to kill."

Jan Baek's refusal became even firmer.

"Why?"

"I cannot interfere and kill Baek Socheon. Only the Alliance Leader or Young Lord may kill him personally."

"You can't kill him because of my father?"

Jan Baek did not answer, but his silence made the meaning clear.

Everyone knew the relationship between Yeom Hwasin and Baek Socheon. Baek Socheon was someone special to Yeom Hwasin.

"I believe that sufficiently answers your question."

Jan Baek gave a bow and left.

"Stop!"

Jan Baek did not stop and walked out without another word.

Crash! Crash!

Yeom Sawon smashed everything within reach. He destroyed it all with loud crashes to show how furious he was.

"That damned Baek Socheon! Baek Socheon! Baek Socheon!"

His father had never directly compared Baek Socheon to him, not even once.

Still, whenever he heard about Baek Socheon, Yeom Sawon always felt inferior. In fact, it enraged him even more that they were not compared. It made him feel as though he was not even worthy of being compared to Baek Socheon.

"I'll tear that bastard apart with these hands."

* * *

Baek Socheon and Cheon Geuk returned to Daru.

"Thank you."

"Don't mention it. I gained a great deal of insight too."

Their fight, which had lasted several siju, had helped them both greatly. Baek Socheon in particular had gained much insight from fighting her, especially because her assassination art was built upon ultimate speed.

"Let's do it again tomorrow."

"Fine."

They returned in high spirits, only to find strategist Sima Iljung waiting in front of Daru.

"Yes, you are urgently requested at the Alliance Leader's Hall."

The fact that Sima Iljung had come here in person showed how urgent it was.

Baek Socheon hurried to the Alliance Leader's Hall.

Ak Sogun and Zhuge Hyeon were waiting for him there.

Their expressions alone told him how serious the situation was.

They looked as grave as though the Black Heaven Alliance had started a war, but news from an entirely unexpected direction awaited him.

"The Blood Cult has sent someone."

"The Blood Cult?"

Baek Socheon was startled. In the current situation, the Blood Cult sending someone was an extremely significant and meaningful move.