WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Chen
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The Martial Genius who Remembers Everything ◈
Chapter 570: An Uninvited Guest to the War (3)
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“Damn it!”
Boom!
A large stone thrown by a Gale Unit member struck the cliff face and shattered.
Thud!
“Fuck!”
The other Green Forest bandits of the Southern Forest Alliance were no different.
Defeat.
It was not simply the pain of defeat that enraged them.
They had prepared for this battle for so long.
Yet they had been defeated without even having the chance to do anything. That helplessness was what fueled their anger.
“Enough. You look pathetic, like dogs that lost a fight.”
“!”
Hwa Jeongsan’s casually tossed remark provoked even the Gale Unit members who had been keeping quiet.
“What... did you just say?”
“A loss is a loss. Stop taking it out on everyone else. If you’re that upset, go train.”
“...”
The Gale Unit members exchanged looks as though they had heard something incomprehensible. Their expressions slowly twisted.
They had realized they had been openly insulted.
Still, no one rashly stepped forward. Nor did anyone back down in fear.
“I suppose it’s because this isn’t their war. Those White Path bastards have no sense of responsibility.”
“That’s not all. Honestly, I’m more afraid of those White Path bastards than the Northern Forest Alliance. You never know when they’ll stab you in the back.”
Their voices were too loud to be called muttering. They clearly intended for their targets to hear.
Naturally, Hwa Jeongsan was not about to let that pass.
“What did you say?”
Shing!
Hwa Jeongsan drew his sword.
The Gale Unit members raised their weapons as well.
“What the hell are you doing eavesdropping on other people’s conversation?”
They might have been weaker martial artists, but they had endured harsher lives than most. The words that came from their tongues were sharper than any blade.
No matter how much he acted like a thug, Hwa Jeongsan was still an elite of the White Path. He could not easily overlook their mockery.
Crunch.
More than anything, he could not bear the sight of worthless bandits behaving like this before Mount Hua Sect’s crest.
“...It seems you want to die by my hand rather than at the hands of the Northern Forest Alliance.”
“Hah! Can that dainty little sword even cut a person? It’d make a fine backscratcher.”
“““Hahahahaha!”””
The other Green Forest bandits threw back their heads and laughed at the Gale Unit member’s words.
Hwa Jeongsan’s face turned bright red.
“Are you finished?”
Killing intent poured from Hwa Jeongsan’s body.
The dense killing intent made the Green Forest bandits instinctively step back, but the Gale Unit members only began talking louder.
“I never trusted bastards like you who stabbed us in the back. What kind of pathetic chivalric act are you putting on?”
“Forget that. A true hero wouldn’t even get involved in a fight like this. And if they did, they wouldn’t run away.”
“Are you sure that Mount Hua Sect’s emblem isn’t fake? Jjeomsun’s wife said embroidery like that was nothing.”
“Maybe he got it as payment for satisfying some widow in bed.”
“““Hahahahaha!!!”””
Hwa Jeongsan’s face darkened beyond red.
Mount Hua Sect’s crest was like a protective qi barrier that shielded him from the bandits’ vulgar obscenities.
Their crude jokes and shameless behavior stirred an unfamiliar fury within him.
“Hall Master Jin, don’t stop me.”
Hwa Jeongsan spoke as though asking for a favor.
Strategy and everything else had vanished from his mind.
Hierarchy be damned. Nothing else mattered to him now.
But then...
“I won’t.”
“Mount Hua Sect has been insulted... What?”
“I’m telling you to fight. But make sure you kill one of them.”
“...!!!”
Jin Sowoon looked at the Gale Unit members.
“You too. Since you started this, make sure you kill a Mount Hua Sect disciple.”
“...What?”
Jin Sowoon jerked his chin toward Hwa Jeongsan.
“Go cut off that bastard’s head. He insulted Mount Hua Sect.”
With Jin Sowoon directly pointing someone out, Hwa Jeongsan found himself unable to move.
“What are you doing? Aren’t you going to kill him?”
Jin Sowoon vented his anger at the unmoving Hwa Jeongsan.
“What are you waiting for? Fight!”
“...”
“...”
Neither Hwa Jeongsan nor the Gale Unit members moved.
Jin Sowoon became even more agitated.
He raged more fiercely than Hwa Jeongsan had and more viciously than the Gale Unit members had mocked him.
“Senior Hwa, what are you doing? Aren’t you going to fight? Go cut off his head, or get cut down yourself. Fight until one of you dies!”
“...”
“Hey! Gale Unit! What’s so special about Mount Hua Sect? Make a name for yourselves while you have the chance!”
“...”
When Jin Sowoon rose to his feet, Hwa Jeongsan and the Gale Unit members flinched.
“You won’t kill each other? Then do you want me to kill you?”
Shing!
Jin Sowoon drew the Scarlet Radiance Sword.
A foot-long blade of sword force extended from it.
Crack!
When he struck the ground, dust burst into the air as though it had exploded from the sword force.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
With every strike, stones scattered into powder and deep pits formed in the earth.
Small gasps rose from the Green Forest bandits watching from a distance.
“Good heavens... Someone stop him.”
“H-how are we supposed to stop that?”
No one understood what had driven Jin Sowoon to such extreme rage, and no one dared approach him.
“Kill each other already!!!”
Even the onlookers squeezed their eyes shut at his booming voice.
A chilling silence descended over the entire stronghold.
At last, Jin Sowoon stopped panting and caught his breath.
“It’s natural not to know where your anger will go in a complicated situation. But...”
His cold voice was sterner than when he had been shouting in fury.
“Make sure you know exactly who your enemy is.”
No one could even breathe properly beneath his quiet anger.
“If you truly want to fight and defeat your real enemy.”
The Gale Unit members could not lift their heads in shame. Hwa Jeongsan also subtly avoided Jin Sowoon’s gaze.
Their actions had been neither true anger nor anything more than venting their frustrations after a lost battle.
At that moment, one man stepped through the silent Green Forest bandits and approached Jin Sowoon.
“The Alliance Leader is looking for you.”
“Fine.”
Only long after Jin Sowoon had left did everyone let out the breaths they had been holding.
“That was terrifying. I thought I was going to die.”
“I haven’t been that scared since Alliance Leader Bang.”
“So there was a reason the Alliance Leader always went on about the Black Dragon Stronghold Leader.”
As they continued expressing their admiration, someone muttered blankly.
“I think the Black Dragon Stronghold Leader... believes we’ll definitely win this war.”
“Huh?”
“He said he would fight and defeat our true enemy.”
“You’re right. Didn’t you see him in battle? He was practically flying around.”
From that point on, the atmosphere changed in an instant.
“Why should we worry when Alliance Leader Bang and the Black Dragon Stronghold Leader are here? Let’s drink!”
“Fine! To the Black Dragon Stronghold Leader!”
“Hey, Mount Hua Sect. Sorry about earlier. If you came with the Stronghold Leader, you’re practically family. Let’s have a drink and put it behind us.”
One man joked as he warmly patted Hwa Jeongsan’s shoulder.
“...Mount Hua Sect isn’t my surname. It’s Hwa. And I have no intention of becoming family with you bastards.”
Still, Hwa Jeongsan accepted the cup as though he had no choice.
“Hahahaha! You’re as coy as a top-class courtesan!”
“Who are you calling coy?!”
They had lost the battle, but the Southern Forest Alliance’s morale had not weakened in the slightest.
#
Yong Soa was with the Northern Forest Alliance.
That thought would not leave my mind.
‘What the hell is going on?’
For that bastard to have moved meant the Orthodox Society was deeply involved with the Northern Forest Alliance.
The problem was the Demonic Cult.
Did the Orthodox Society know that the Northern Forest Alliance was working with the Demonic Cult, or did it not?
‘What does that bastard Yong Soa know, and why is he moving?’
I considered whether Yong Soa knew the Demonic Cult’s true identity and was cooperating anyway, then shook my head.
With his obsessive aversion to impurity, simply working alongside the Northern Forest Alliance would be unbearable for him.
‘What could his goal possibly be for him to endure even that while helping the Northern Forest Alliance?’
The Northern Forest Alliance’s actions were just as suspicious.
If they were already receiving help from the Demonic Cult, they should not have accepted aid from the Orthodox Society.
If they intended to accept the Orthodox Society’s support, they should not have allowed the Demonic Cult’s forces in.
No matter whether the destruction of Baeksong Sect or the unification of the Green Forest Alliance was at stake, the moment the Demonic Cult and Orthodox Society worked together, everyone connected to the Northern Forest Alliance would be doomed.
‘...My head hurts.’
Before I could even finish sorting through my thoughts, I reached Bang Duchil and Baek Soryeong.
“Little brother, are you all right?”
“You don’t look all right yourself, Brother.”
While the Southern Forest Alliance withdrew, he had remained at the very rear and held back the Northern Forest Alliance’s pursuit.
As a result, his arms and body were wrapped in bandages.
“These are nothing. They’ll heal soon enough if I leave them alone.”
“...”
For some reason, I felt as if he might possess recovery abilities on par with the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear, so I changed the subject.
Not because I felt a curse rising to my lips.
...Really not.
“I’m sorry. Bongho Stronghold was lost because of me.”
The Demonic Cult unit and the two major masters Bang Duchil had mentioned had not appeared. If we had pushed forward, we could probably have protected Bongho Stronghold.
Yet the reason we had abandoned Bongho Stronghold, the gateway to Shandong Province, was entirely because of Yuseong.
“Don’t say that. If we hadn’t withdrawn, we would have suffered heavy losses as well.”
Baek Soryeong comforted me, then tilted her head.
“But are Young Master Jin and your companions all right?”
Neither the Orthodox Society members within the Northern Forest Alliance nor our side had suffered any deaths.
Both sides had been too busy recognizing one another and panicking.
Yong Soa and I were the only ones who had truly fought.
“They were only startled because they didn’t know.”
“...”
Baek Soryeong looked at me for a moment before lowering her eyes.
“Those people... they were definitely White Path martial artists, weren’t they?”
I gave her a definite answer.
“Yes. They were undoubtedly members of the Orthodox Society.”
“...Then.”
“Nothing changes.”
“But...”
“Soryeong.”
Bang Duchil’s deep voice filled the hall.
Despite being covered in bandages from his wounds, none of his imposing presence had faded.
“If my little brother says so, isn’t that enough?”
He was speaking to Baek Soryeong, but Bang Duchil’s gaze never left me.
“Young Master Jin, is that so?”
“Yes.”
I began choosing the words I would use to persuade them.
But then...
“All right.”
“What?”
“If Young Master Jin and Brother Bang say so... then I suppose that’s how it is.”
A faint smile formed on Baek Soryeong’s lips.
“Then shall we discuss what comes next?”
I was dumbfounded.
It felt strange that I was not being made to explain myself in order to clear away their doubts.
Trust. This was only possible because they trusted me.
Still, this was not the time to dwell on such feelings.
Baek Soryeong spread out a map of Shandong Province and placed Northern Forest Alliance markers on two points.
“Since Bongho Stronghold has fallen, Yeoksan Stronghold and Jangho Stronghold nearby must be considered doomed as well.”
Losing the gateway to Shandong was a devastating blow.
“Now that we have confirmed they have not only the Demonic Cult but also White Path masters, we need to be even more careful with our strategy.”
The battle at Bongho Stronghold had proven that the presence of masters could heavily influence the course of an ordinary battle.
That influence was even greater for Green Forest bandits who had received hardly any military training.
“Regardless of the relationship between the Northern Forest Alliance’s White Path faction and the Demonic Cult, the battle situation itself is unfavorable to us.”
We had far too few masters.
Considering the Demonic Cult unit, the two major masters, Yong Soa, and the Orthodox Society’s experts, the Southern Forest Alliance was in a situation of songs of Chu from all four sides.
“We must defend Black Axe Stronghold. It happens to occupy a position well suited for defense, so if we move the people from Yeoksan Stronghold and Jangho Stronghold there and properly prepare against their masters, we should be able to hold them back.”
Baek Soryeong’s strategy was the best option the Southern Forest Alliance could take at this point.
Yet neither Bang Duchil nor I could easily agree with it.
“...”
“...”
As though she understood perfectly why we could not agree, Baek Soryeong nodded.
“I know. This strategy can only be a minimal defense.”
That was right.
The strategy Baek Soryeong proposed would do no more than hold back the Northern Forest Alliance.
It could never turn the tide of the war.
“But if Black Axe Stronghold falls, Earth King Stronghold is next. That place is practically an open gate.”
Silence filled the hall.
We knew Baek Soryeong’s strategy was sound, but neither Bang Duchil nor I could accept the result.
Still, I had come here to help Bang Duchil. I was not a member of the Southern Forest Alliance.
I had no right to casually decide the life and death of Green Forest bandits.
“...”
But Bang Duchil was still hesitating.
And we had no time.
After gathering my courage, I picked up one of the Northern Forest Alliance markers.
“What if we do this?”
Tap.
Baek Soryeong’s gaze followed the place where I moved the Northern Forest Alliance marker.
“...You want to give up Black Axe Stronghold?”
I then returned the Yeoksan Stronghold and Jangho Stronghold markers that had been gathered at Black Axe Stronghold to their original positions.
“There’s something I need to confirm.”
“...”
Baek Soryeong pressed her lips together in disappointment.
If this had been the Martial Alliance, everyone would probably have looked at me as if I were insane and thrown me out of the meeting hall.
Honestly, that might have made me feel a little better.
The weight in my heart only grew heavier because of the trust those two placed in me.
After a long silence, Bang Duchil met my gaze.
“Little brother, do you believe that plan will bring victory to the Southern Forest Alliance?”
“I don’t only want victory.”
“Hm?”
“I...”
I looked directly into my brother’s eyes.
“I want the Southern Forest Alliance to unite the Green Forest Alliance.”
That was why I had come here.
Bang Duchil stared blankly for a moment, then burst into booming laughter.
His laughter echoed through the hall so loudly it felt as though my ears would burst. Baek Soryeong shook her head as if he could not be helped.
“Soryeong, you, and I all share the same desire. There’s no reason to hesitate. Fine, what are you planning?”
It was certainly dangerous.
But no matter how much I thought about it, I could not stand the idea of obediently dancing to the Demonic Cult and Orthodox Society’s tune.
‘Do you think I’ll let things go exactly as you want?’
Let’s see what you can do.
Footnotes:
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