WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Order
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◈ The Heaven-Slaying Sword ◈
Chapter 75: Chapter Nine - Mission, Espionage (6)
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The boy did not open his eyes until after the sun had fully set that day.
“Mm…”
It was a groan tinged with pain.
Mok Ri-won immediately lifted his head, his face brightening.
“You’re awake?”
His voice was full of relief.
Though his entire body ached, the boy forced his eyelids open and looked at Mok Ri-won.
Then he flinched.
‘W-wow…’
Even through the haze of exhaustion and pain, Mok Ri-won’s appearance struck him at once.
The boy had never imagined a person could be so handsome.
“Does anything hurt? No, of course everything must hurt. I’m sorry. More importantly, are you feeling any clearer? Here, would you like some water?”
As Mok Ri-won looked around in a fluster, the boy finally remembered what had happened.
His encounter with the demon last night.
How it had dragged him away and imprisoned him.
Even the words it had spoken after beating him for a long time.
-There are three half-siblings who have become notorious around here lately. Find them. Beg them to save you, and if they say they’ll help, lead them here.
The instant he remembered the demon’s crimson eyes, the boy’s breath caught.
-Lure them over the wall behind the estate. Then I’ll spare your mother.
‘Mother!’
The boy jolted upright.
But his body could not endure it.
Crack!
His fractured ribs screamed at the sudden movement.
“Gah!”
“C-calm down! You mustn’t move so much!”
Startled, Mok Ri-won quickly laid the boy back down.
The boy panted, then lowered his gaze with a frightened expression.
Mok Ri-won spoke.
“Right, I was so flustered that I forgot to ask. What is your name?”
Mok Ri-won’s voice was warm.
The boy trembled, then answered in a shaking voice.
“…S-Seon-u.”
“Seon-u. What a lovely name. Can you manage to speak?”
“Yes…”
Seon-u’s eyes darted about in alarm.
There was a reason for it.
‘T-this man is one of the three half-siblings?’
Mok Ri-won was far too kind.
It was strange.
According to the rumors, the three half-siblings were vicious villains who had never shown sympathy toward anyone. Yet this man seemed far too kind.
He had been willing to trade these people for his mother because he had thought they were wicked people who deserved to die. But now he felt terrible about it.
‘Someone like this…’
Was he supposed to hand someone like this over to the demon?
Seon-u’s face turned pale.
Unaware of his inner thoughts, Mok Ri-won only saw his complexion and panicked.
“W-what is it? Does something hurt again? Wait here. I’ll get the young lady…”
“N-no! It’s nothing!”
Seon-u hurriedly grabbed Mok Ri-won.
His thoughts spun wildly as he steadied his wavering resolve.
‘…No. I have to save Mother. It doesn’t matter what kind of people they are!’
Only he could save his mother.
The demon had clearly said that it would release her if he led these people over the wall behind the estate.
Seon-u recalled the events of last night once more.
The little finger the demon had held out that night had clearly belonged to his mother.
Seon-u’s hand trembled violently.
He could not think of anything else.
“…P-please help me.”
To Seon-u, his mother’s life mattered more than the lives of strangers.
* * *
It did not take long for the unit members to gather.
When Seon-u woke up, Mok Ri-won’s flustered shouts had carried outside the room.
It was not a large room.
Once the unit members had seated themselves around Seon-u, Mok Ri-won spoke.
“Now, tell us. Seon-u, where did you come from, and why were you in that condition?”
Mok Ri-won was still warm, but the others were not.
Seon-u gulped.
It was because of the jade-blue-eyed man watching him with a particularly intimidating expression.
Seon-u knew of someone with eyes like those.
‘S-Sword Dragon.’
It had to be Namgung Jin-cheon, the Sword Dragon, one of the most famous young talents in the Martial World.
Once he realized that, he could guess the identities of the others as well.
They were the Dragon Phoenix Unit.
The rising stars currently setting the Central Plains Martial World ablaze.
Only then did Seon-u understand it all.
What the demons were after, and why that demon had told him to seek these people’s sympathy after describing the evil deeds of the three half-siblings.
‘T-the demons were targeting the Martial Alliance!’
His resolve wavered.
If these people belonged to the Martial Alliance, perhaps he could explain the situation and ask them to rescue his mother.
The thought crossed his mind briefly, but Seon-u soon abandoned it.
‘No. If I ask them for help and the demons find out, Mother will…’
She would surely die.
The demons’ atrocities over the past month had been utterly merciless.
Faced with such a risk, the boy lacked the courage to cry out for justice.
His eyes turned to Mok Ri-won.
Seeing him patiently wait for an answer made Seon-u waver again, but he steeled himself.
Then he spoke.
“…I came from So Family Estate.”
“So Family Estate?”
Jegal San answered Mok Ri-won’s question.
He had spent the past five days gathering rumors from the area, so he knew of the estate Seon-u mentioned.
“It’s the largest estate in this city. I heard a new live-in son-in-law joined the family a month ago.”
At the words “live-in son-in-law,” Seon-u flinched.
Dang Hwa-seo carefully watched his reaction and asked, “Little one, was that live-in son-in-law the reason you were beaten so badly?”
“Y-yes…”
Seon-u shrank back and nodded.
Then he began telling the story as he had been instructed.
“T-that live-in son-in-law threatened and imprisoned my mother! I tried to save her, but he caught me…”
Tears welled in Seon-u’s eyes.
It was not an act.
Thinking of his mother, who was truly being held captive somewhere, filled Seon-u with deep sorrow.
Mok Ri-won let out a pained sigh.
“You must have suffered terribly.”
“P-please help me! Save my mother! The door to the estate’s secret passage, I…”
Before he could continue, Dang Hwa-seo moved.
Her hand moved so quickly that it left an afterimage as she tapped Seon-u’s Acupoints.
Seon-u gradually fell asleep.
Mok Ri-won turned to her in surprise, and Dang Hwa-seo said, “He is lying.”
Her tone was certain.
* * *
At the same time, in the inner residence of So Family Estate.
A man lay in a room painted entirely in blood, staring lazily at the ceiling.
He was a wretched sight.
Dark red blood, long since dried, clung to his entire body. It was impossible to know how long he had been submerged in that sea of blood, and every breath he exhaled carried a heavy stench of blood.
That was not all. Corpses were scattered around him, and he was chewing on a human finger.
Cannibalism.
That was what the man was doing.
“…Flame Demon.”
A figure clad in black stealth clothes rose like a shadow.
Oh Gang-ak, the Flame Demon, rolled his eyes toward his subordinate.
The subordinate bowed his head.
“It seems the brat entered the estate safely.”
“Good.”
“But…”
“Hmm?”
“Will this truly be all right? If he tells them the truth and receives support from the Alliance…”
Oh Gang-ak snickered.
“Chun, do you know why I went so far as to beat that brat myself before sending him there?”
“…Please instruct me.”
“Because he is afraid. And because he is selfish.”
“What do you mean?”
“Cowards cannot make rational judgments. Selfish people put lives on a scale. That brat was exactly like that. He hid in a latrine just to save his own skin, begged for his life after I beat him, and readily agreed when I told him I would return his mother in exchange for someone else.”
Oh Gang-ak spat out the finger he had been chewing.
It struck the ceiling with a thud and fell, scattering a long trail of blood.
“He is perfect for it. And he does not think things through. That brat will certainly be caught in his lie.”
The masked figure called Chun flinched.
Staring at Oh Gang-ak in shock, Chun said, “I-isn’t that dangerous? If the Alliance learns of this and sends reinforcements…”
“Isn’t that what makes it fun?”
Oh Gang-ak’s smile deepened.
He spoke as though he had encountered something immensely entertaining.
“We will be spectators.”
“Spectators? What do you mean…”
“We will see what becomes of the Chivalry those hypocrites prattle on about.”
Oh Gang-ak brushed away the blood scabs stuck to his face.
“Now, those hypocrites will face two choices.”
His skin was revealed.
A thick, enormous scar ran across his face, as though someone had dragged a finger across it.
“One is to come here tonight. That brat dared to deceive them, but it is true that his mother is being held captive. If they truly uphold the Chivalric righteousness they preach, they cannot hesitate while common people are under threat.”
“And the other choice…”
“They can ask the Alliance for support and wait. But that will take several more days. During that time, the brat’s mother will die. I will make sure of it.”
Chun pressed his lips together and stared at Oh Gang-ak.
Even as Oh Gang-ak hummed happily, Chun felt deeply uneasy.
Oh Gang-ak continued.
“They are a contemptible lot. Trash who rule through force, then dress themselves up in pretty words. I am very curious to see how long they can preserve that façade. Will they keep prattling about Chivalry even when a sword is at their own throats? Or will they only speak of Chivalry when it benefits them?”
“The danger…”
“If they come, we fight. What is there to worry about? Hmm?”
Oh Gang-ak looked at Chun.
Madness glinted in his eyes.
What he did next was grotesque.
Still sprawled across the floor, he flailed his limbs and cried out in an exaggerated voice.
“Heavenly Demooon reeeigns! Ten thousand deeemons booooow!”
Then he abruptly stopped moving.
Oh Gang-ak’s face went blank.
“Can’t we just scream things like that while tearing them apart? For the sake of our grrrreat Young Cult Leader.”
It was an irreverent act.
It showed neither loyalty to the cult nor respect toward its future master, an offense deserving severe punishment.
Yet Chun could not call him out on it.
“…I will follow your orders.”
Chun knew too much about this man.
He knew how deeply this man hated the Young Cult Leader.
Oh Gang-ak, the Flame Demon.
Before the current Young Cult Leader appeared, he had been the one who held that position.
Footnotes:
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