WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Order
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◈ The Heaven-Slaying Sword ◈
Chapter 76: Chapter Nine - Mission, Espionage (7)
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“Let us request help from the Alliance.”
It was Jegal San’s suggestion.
The moment Dang Hwa-seo confirmed that Seon-u had been lying, it was the first suggestion raised.
Dang Hwa-seo nodded, and Namgung Jin-cheon agreed.
But that did not settle everything.
“Then what will happen to Seon-u’s mother?”
Mok Ri-won asked the question, and Namgung Jin-cheon answered.
“That could be a lie as well.”
“It is more likely to be true. From what I observed, no other evil sorcery had been placed on the child. I also circulated internal energy through his body, and there was no gu poison within him. If he is being threatened, is it not most plausible that his mother’s life is being used against him?”
This was different from their earlier argument.
Mok Ri-won was now taking Seon-u’s side with sufficient grounds, grounds the other members could reasonably accept.
At least, in terms of cause and effect.
Mok Ri-won’s words were still not rational.
Namgung Jin-cheon pointed that out again.
“We still do not know the enemy’s numbers.”
“But if Seon-u’s mother is in danger, it would be wrong to turn our backs on her!”
“It is dangerous and irrational.”
“Are you talking about rationality when an innocent life is at stake?”
“Are you saying we should risk everyone here for the life of one innocent?”
Mok Ri-won froze at Namgung Jin-cheon’s words.
Hesitation crossed his face.
“That is…”
“Chivalric righteousness is all well and good. But it does not mean you should rush toward danger like a moth to a flame.”
Namgung Jin-cheon continued with a frown.
“Remember your position. Remember how others see us. We cannot afford to lose. The Dragon Phoenix Unit is the face the White Path Martial World has put forward in this war, and we must always appear victorious. This is not simply a matter of honor. It is tied to morale as well.”
Namgung Jin-cheon was irritated.
That was the truth of it.
He still believed they should have kept Seon-u bound.
His obsessive need for control had been provoked.
Born beneath the Imperial Ruler Star, he was someone who could only rest easy when everything lay beneath his feet. He had a deep aversion to uncertainty.
“Ink Dragon, we did not meet this brat while wandering the Martial World. We captured him in the course of a mission. Know the difference. A mission is not something you can charge into however you please.”
It was not that Namgung Jin-cheon knew nothing of Chivalric righteousness.
It was not that he failed to understand why the White Path Martial World was called the White Path.
But if putting Chivalric righteousness first always led to hopeful results, who in the world would commit evil?
Why would good people suffer?
That was why rationality was necessary.
Namgung Jin-cheon was someone who valued the larger picture over what lay before him.
He believed justice could only stand firm when rationality came before principle.
Mok Ri-won looked into Namgung Jin-cheon’s eyes.
He acknowledged that Namgung Jin-cheon was right.
But he did not follow him.
“Then I will go alone.”
“…What?”
“What Sword Dragon says is reasonable. Wanting to go there immediately and save Seon-u’s mother is my own selfish desire. It would be a burden to drag the other members into it.”
Mok Ri-won clenched his fist.
“…That is why I will go alone. Please. I cannot turn my back on this.”
He lowered his head as he made the plea.
Namgung Jin-cheon’s eyes widened.
“No. If you go alone and are defeated, have you not considered that the Demonic Cult will realize the Alliance is moving against them?”
“Then I will keep them from escaping until the end. Even if swords pierce my entire body, I will endure.”
“That is what I mean by irrational.”
Namgung Jin-cheon’s expression grew harsher.
He looked ready to draw his sword at any moment.
“Do not act like a spoiled child. If you die, the unit loses more than thirty percent of its strength. It is not merely a loss of fighting power. We lose symbolic weight as well. Why are you going this far?”
Mok Ri-won did not back down.
“Because someone has to choose that irrationality.”
Namgung Jin-cheon halted abruptly.
Mok Ri-won continued firmly.
“What Sword Dragon says is right. I understand it. Sword Dragon is someone who sees far ahead and understands the greater cause. But if everyone in the world looks only at the greater cause and turns away from what is before them, who will save those people?”
That was how Mok Ri-won saw it.
Principle and rationality were different concepts, but neither was wrong.
That was why one could not cling to only one side.
Namgung Jin-cheon was rational.
His argument was rational as well.
But justice could not be complete through that alone.
Namgung Jin-cheon’s rationality could not save the weak who were being oppressed.
Mok Ri-won hated that.
If everyone in the world had pursued only rationality, he himself might never have entered this world.
“Someone has to be irrational. Someone has to leap in for the weak before their eyes. Only then can more people smile.”
Mok Ri-won was alive because of Mok Seon-o’s Chivalry.
He had been saved by foolish Chivalric righteousness that turned away from countless negative possibilities in the future and sought only to save the child before it.
How could someone who had survived that way weigh things rationally?
How could he protect only his own life and turn away from others?
“So should I not choose irrationality as well? Is that not a role only a fool like me can fulfill?”
Mok Ri-won smiled bitterly.
Namgung Jin-cheon could only clench his fist at that expression.
That was when Dang Hwa-seo stepped in.
“Enough.”
Her voice was as cold as frost.
Icy anger had gathered on her face as well.
“If you intend to keep arguing, stop now.”
She was not truly angry.
She was simply making it clear, as the unit commander, that she would tolerate no more.
Even Mok Ri-won and Namgung Jin-cheon, clueless as they could be, understood that much and each took a step back.
Dang Hwa-seo pressed the bridge of her nose as though exhausted.
‘I knew this would happen one day…’
Mok Ri-won and Namgung Jin-cheon stood at opposite extremes in every way.
An argument like this had always been foreseeable.
She had not expected it to happen at a time like this, over a matter like this.
The burden weighed heavily on her shoulders, but as they were on a mission, the final decision rested with her.
“I have heard both your opinions.”
The unit members turned their eyes toward Dang Hwa-seo.
Still considering what to do, she continued.
“Honestly, I do not think you will listen just because I am the unit commander. No, if you were going to listen, you would have damn well listened long ago.”
The two men who had been arguing moments ago shrank back with sheepish whimpers.
The other three did not look particularly proud either.
“First, we will wake this brat and ask him. We will find out whether his mother truly is being held captive, and what conditions they gave him.”
A unit commander had to be the most levelheaded person.
Dang Hwa-seo had not forgotten that.
Still, it did not mean she intended to side with Namgung Jin-cheon.
“Once we have uncovered all the facts, I will leave it to each of you.”
She intended to respect the members’ choices.
“I will take responsibility.”
Responsibility was the only virtue a commander needed.
* * *
The story they heard from the awakened Seon-u could be summarized in one line.
-If he lured the unit members to the estate’s rear gate, they would spare his mother.
This was unquestionably a trustworthy statement.
Jegal San had personally checked Seon-u’s pulse to verify the truth of it.
The members now had to make their choice.
Two paths lay before them.
One was to move at once to save Seon-u’s mother, whose life might be in danger. The other was to stay where they were until Alliance reinforcements arrived.
“I have sent a message to the Alliance. Reinforcements are expected in around three days. Those who believe we should go today, come to the estate courtyard in two hours.”
With those words, the members dispersed.
Mok Ri-won went to the courtyard without a moment’s hesitation.
Not even two hours had passed.
‘I know it is selfish.’
Still, he could not give up.
As a chivalrous hero, there was a line Mok Ri-won could never compromise on.
It was a line he could not abandon, even if no other member came and he lost his life in the end.
Mok Ri-won closed his eyes and waited for time to pass.
Seon-u approached him while he waited.
“…Great Hero.”
Seon-u had begun calling Mok Ri-won Great Hero.
Part of it came from guilt, and part from gratitude toward the man who had trusted him from beginning to end.
The moment Mok Ri-won heard Seon-u’s voice, his expression softened.
“Ah, why are you out here instead of resting?”
His gentle smile was untroubled.
It was as though he were telling Seon-u not to worry.
But how could Seon-u do that?
He had heard everything the members had said.
He knew this man might walk into mortal danger because of him.
Seon-u felt his heart pounding.
His body had reacted first to his guilt and anxiety.
‘…No. I cannot let this happen.’
Seon-u squeezed his eyes shut.
“You do not have to go.”
“Hmm?”
“You do not need to walk into danger because of me. It might interfere with your mission to catch the Demonic practitioners.”
Mok Ri-won’s eyes widened.
Seon-u did not see it.
His head was hanging low.
“G-Great Hero, you might become the strongest under heaven. I heard it too! You defeated Sword Dragon at the Dragon Phoenix Gathering and won. You were so overwhelmingly strong that there might not be anyone in this generation who can defeat you.”
Rumors of Mok Ri-won, the Ink Dragon, were everywhere.
How many more people would he save in this war?
Seon-u knew.
Someone like Mok Ri-won needed to look further ahead.
He needed to be careful to save more people.
“I-I am sorry. I only made you worry for nothing…”
No answer came.
Seon-u’s heart pounded even more heavily.
Mok Ri-won finally answered after that pounding had continued for quite some time.
He was already standing before Seon-u.
“Why would you say that?”
At the gentle voice, Seon-u raised his head.
Mok Ri-won was smiling.
“Why have you decided that I will lose?”
It was a statement that could be called confidence, or bravado.
Seon-u moved his lips for a moment before answering.
“…B-because the demon looked incredibly strong.”
“Did I look weak to you?”
Seon-u shook his head.
“N-no, but…”
“Then there is nothing to worry about.”
Seon-u had no idea what to say.
Mok Ri-won was making things difficult for him.
Mok Ri-won knew that too.
So he did not delay any longer.
“Do not worry. I am heading there entirely because I am stubborn.”
Mok Ri-won placed a hand on Seon-u’s shoulder.
He did it gently, so the injured boy would not be hurt.
“I am someone who can only use a sword to help others, so I am simply going where my sword is needed.”
It was something he said to Seon-u, but also to himself.
As though reminding himself what his sword was for, he rolled the words around in his mouth before smiling.
“Do you know?”
“What…?”
“My sword.”
Mok Ri-won met Seon-u’s eyes.
Then he spoke to the boy, whose face had gone blank with confusion.
“My sword has been for people like you from the moment I first held it.”
He reminded himself why he had learned the sword.
There was no hesitation in him.
Footnotes:
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