How did this happen? Why was a Supreme Pavilion warrior in one of the Hidden Truth’s income branches? Did the Supreme Pavilion Lord do this? Was it revenge for being humiliated by the Earth Demon? And did Geum Man-Jung, knowing this, take him in willingly?
If so, this was a huge betrayal.
Be calm. I cannot show my feelings here.
If his suspicions were correct, then he’d be able to make his move. Without knowing his opponent’s skills, however, he needed to move carefully. He’d learned that through countless deaths.
“Please, sit.”
This time, Seol-Hwi sat.
He ran his eyes over Geum Man-Jung. He had a fat potbelly, an equally round face, and limbs that were too short for his bulk.
“Heh. Haha… This is good. We were about to send a request from our end, too.” Geum Man-Jung wiped his forehead with a cloth.
“A request?”
“Yes. As you may have heard, I haven’t been able to meet my obligations to the Corps the last few months. One of the sects here has been keeping pressure on me.”
“You mean the Blue Dragon Sect?”
“Right.” Geum Man-Jung dabbed at his reddening face again and cleared his throat. “It started about… two years ago? I met the Blue Dragon sect leader when he purchased an empty martial hall nearby. But somehow, things have changed a lot in the last few years.”
“Hmm.”
“It’s probably because of the rumors that they’re good at teaching martial arts. How many families’ children have improved their skills? Since then, word spread, and martial artists from the nearby regions have flocked to them. It’s been getting especially crowded lately.”
“So the Blue Dragon sect leader needs a lot of money because there are more people?”
“I think that’s the biggest reason. As the number of people grew, there were also more people laying claim on pieces of Chengdu under the pretext of protection. As the region grew, so did the stakes. The stores we manage, the leases, and the protection fees…”
Although Chengdu was now a developed area, it still had many weak points. Normally, a small sect or sub-sect would be used to help control the region, but the Blue Dragon Sect had grown fast enough that it didn’t need to rely on anyone else. And then, not only did they increase the tax, but they gave their skilled warriors jobs and were searching for ways to expand their power.
“Did you try negotiating?”
“Of course I did. But, judging by their attitude, I wouldn’t get my hopes up. The amount they’re asking for is more than what we’re earning, so how could I agree?”
“Hmm.”
“Besides, if we take one step back, they’ll keep asking for more. You know how it is; the strong prey on the weak.”
His words made sense. The Hidden Truth Corps danced on the edge of legal and illegal; inevitably, that created friction with the Murim Alliance. On top of that, they still had to deal with the normal pressures of business.
“And so I asked for the Hidden Truth Corps to help…”
“What do you mean?”
“I was asked to wait for a while due to the internal conflicts in the Hidden Truth Corps.”
It has to be because of the incident with the Supreme Pavilion. Seol-Hwi recalled the dead members. Their deaths had thrown the Hidden Truth into an uproar for a time.
“Right. I couldn’t afford to wait, so I asked the sect… Fortunately, someone came to help me just in time.”
“Who was that?”
“The Crimson Demon Pavilion. The situation was urgent, so they sent an escort first. Well, I was worried about my life.”
Seol-Hwi silently examined the warriors behind Geum Man-Jung. His white, well-groomed face spoke of a rare sort of nobility; his cold expression cut a cold contrast with the vividly decorated sword on his waist.
“Crimson Demon Pavilion… What is their duty?”
The man didn’t answer.
“Ah, I heard that he has no specific task because he belongs to one of the five pavilions,” Geum Man-Jung answered instead.
“Hmm.” Seol-Hwi nodded. The logic tracked—but he was more interested in what this man’s relationship with the Supreme Pavilion Lord was.
“Don’t worry too much. They said that he’d head back when his work was done.”
Seol-Hwi had an uncomfortable feeling, but he hid it behind a smile.
“What would you like me to do?” he asked.
“Well, the best solution for this would be…”
[You received a mission from “Geum Man-Jung.”] ○ Mission: Eliminate the Blue Dragon sect leader, Baek Yang-Chun. However, there should be no witnesses. - Upon Success: Acquire necessary funds for mid-year activities and manufacturing of desired equipment. - Rewards: Unsealing Scroll 1, Piece of the Secret Office Map (¼)
“If there’s a problem, get rid of it. That’s the surest solution for now.”
Seol-Hwi frowned. “There’s a chance that the main sect will come back. How are we supposed to deal with Mount Hua?”
“That’s fine because I hired someone I know. The strong people are in the Murim Alliance, too, as always.” Geum Man-Jung put his thumb and forefinger together into the unmistakable symbol for money.
Seol-Hwi nodded. Clearly, there were greedy people everywhere.
But who are you trying to fool? He thinks killing one man would fix the entire situation? No, the man had a plan. For now, however, Seol-Hwi had to play along.
<Chose from the options below.> ▶ I will go right now. (Accept mission) ▷ I’m going to search for a different method. (Mission pending) ▷ I have something else to do first. (Reject mission)
A forked path! Seol-Hwi’s eyes widened. The options were giving him choices on how to handle the mission.
Reject? I can turn down the mission? He stared at the option. The mission would entail danger, and he knew that not all choices would end well. Every choice would influence the situation and the people. He’d seen that many times.
Fuck. This is… He didn’t know what to do now. This mission had too many issues, but he couldn’t figure out which way he needed to go. In the end…
<You have selected “I will go right now.”>
“Good! You understand!” Geum Man-Jung handed him a letter with a bright expression. It had information on Baek Yang-Chun, as well as some unexpected things. “The hours he eats, the times he goes to the bathroom, when he meets people… We recorded all of it, as well as for the warriors who escort him. Please come back once you’ve got results.”
It was information for an assassination.
Three days later.
It was time for the sect leader to take a short bath and then go to bed. Geum Man-Jung had picked this as the best time to assassinate Baek Yang-Chun. Seol-Hwi agreed.
It was often said that the best time to assassinate someone was when they were asleep—however, those who have actually performed an assassination know that the opposite was true. A skilled warrior’s sense never slept; on a quiet night, when everyone was asleep, he’d feel even the smallest change.
Therefore, the optimal time was about an hour before the target went to sleep.
There was another reason: it was said that Baek Yang-Chun had to cultivate right before he fell asleep. Everyone knew that the most difficult time to react was when you were cultivating.
“Captain, what are you so worried about?” Jeok Seong asked.
The day was dark. The time was drawing closer.
“Phew…” Seol-Hwi made a troubled frown.
“If everything goes according to plan, we should have no problem infiltrating.”
“That’s the problem.”
“I’m sorry?”
“It’s too perfect. There’s something weird about it.” Seol-Hwi crossed his arms and turned to Jeok Seong. “The information is too accurate. There’s much more there than we could find. How does Geum Man-Jung know his every move? Why does he follow the exact same schedule every day, like a clock?”
“Well… Aren’t they enemies? If they were watching, then they’d be able to know.”
“Right. That’s the issue.”
Jeok Seong tilted his head, but Seol-Hwi didn’t say anything else. He didn’t want his subordinate to make a mistake because of something he said. Right now, they had to focus on their task.
If only I knew when Baek Yang-Chun cultivates. If they knew, they wouldn’t need Seol-Hwi—even the escort, Sang Chun-Jang, could have done this.
So what’s the trap? If he didn’t know, he couldn’t act. How annoying. But if he didn’t go through with this choice, he wouldn’t know what would happen.
Seol-Hwi stood up. The time had come. They couldn’t wait any longer.
“Let’s go.”
Seol-Hwi and his subordinates seeped into the darkness.
Their first mission, the assassination of Baek Yang-Chun, had begun.
Blue Dragon Sect. Sect leader: Baek Yang-Chun.
Two days ago, Seol-Hwi and his team did a survey of the man’s surroundings and the sect. The sect grounds were full of colorful buildings.
How the heck does a martial arts sect handle a place this huge?
There was a tall outer wall and a watchtower on the side. Two guards at each corner, and two more at the front gate.
He silently raised his hand. His subordinates took off, and the guards were down before they had a chance to react. Not dead, just asleep. In a mission as suspicious as this, more deaths would create more mistakes.
His team sent hand signals back, and Seol-Hwi moved.
Now it begins.
According to the calculations, it was time to hide inside Baek Yang-Chun’s residence. That way, he would be in position to make a surprise attack.
He carefully opened the door and walked in.
<Are you sure you want to break in?>
The sudden question was unnerving, but Seol-Hwi reluctantly pressed yes.
<Time Attack! If you do not enter the residence within 300 seconds, you die.>
“What is this?”
All his ominous feelings came to a head.
The timing was tight. He had no time to hesitate.
<Start.>
The die had rolled.