When I went with the Fist Demon to the Blood Heaven Blade Demon’s quarters, he was reading a book.
“What book are you reading after coming all the way here?”
Without even lifting his head, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon replied.
“You won’t send me home, so I have to read here at least.”
“Where did you get that book?”
“There was a library prepared for the branch’s martial artists.”
As if martial artists would read books. Yet he had gone through even that place, set up merely as a formality, and had somehow found something to read. In that respect, he truly was someone who loved books.
“Stop reading and look at this first.”
Only then did the Blood Heaven Blade Demon close his book and raise his head.
“A letter has come from the Martial Alliance Leader’s granddaughter.”
“Why would the Martial Alliance Leader’s granddaughter write?”
“She sent an invitation to a gathering of rising young talents, along with a request for help. It is definitely related to this matter.”
“So the other side has begun to react.”
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon had advised that we should respond according to their reaction, and now word had come from someone unexpected.
“My guess is that the person who connected the Cheonhwa Sect Leader and Jin Hagun is pressuring Jin Hagun over the failure of this matter.”
For Jin Haryeong to ask to see me at a time like this likely meant that some problem had arisen for her elder brother, Jin Hagun.
This time, the Fist Demon asked.
“What will you do?”
“A friend has asked for help, so I should go.”
The Fist Demon’s expression grew serious.
“You must be careful about going to the Martial Alliance.”
My contacting them in the past and contacting them now, after becoming Young Cult Leader, were entirely different matters. My actions could become the official stance of our cult.
“I will move with caution.”
At that, the Fist Demon spoke firmly.
“We will go with you.”
Seeing as he said it without asking the Blood Heaven Blade Demon’s opinion, it seemed they had already agreed to move together with me until this matter was over.
“If the two of you attend, the entire Martial Alliance will go on emergency alert. You are people who can put even our cult’s Hunan Branch on emergency alert.”
The two Demon Supremes smiled faintly. Even to them, the incident where the Hunan Branch had been thrown into a state of alarm must have seemed amusing.
If it had been the Poison King or the Drunken Demon, they might have been able to attend the banquet with me, but these two had to move without drawing attention.
“Please stay at the safe house closest to the Martial Alliance. If I need help, I will send word immediately.”
Just as the two Demon Supremes nodded, Jeogyeon came and reported that someone had arrived. Following an unexpected letter, it was the visit of an unexpected person. Coincidentally, both were women.
“Martial Artist Yi has arrived.”
* * *
Yi An was entering the Hunan Branch. Wearing a mask, she was dressed in martial attire different from her usual clothes, and every martial artist in the branch stopped in their tracks and stared at her.
Her beauty, which could not be hidden by the mask, was one thing, but the aura she exuded was far from ordinary. From her stride alone, one could feel the momentum of an expert who overwhelmed common martial artists.
She wore black martial robes and a black mask, and on the mask, the words Ghost Shadow were embroidered in white.
Behind her, Blue Mask entered with over a dozen martial artists. They were all dressed the same, and each one of them possessed an extraordinary presence.
“Yi An!”
At my call, Yi An looked this way. Normally, she would have come running to me after not seeing me for so long, shouting, Young Master! But conscious of the eyes around us, she walked slowly toward me.
—You had new martial clothes made? They look great!
At my voice transmission, Yi An quickly replied.
—Don’t talk to me! I’m going to greet you impressively.
—Right now, you’re moving the arm and leg on the same side.
—Don’t! Don’t tease me! This is my first greeting to Young Master, so I’m going to do it properly.
When she reached me, she cupped her fist respectfully and greeted me.
“I greet the Young Cult Leader.”
—So fake!
—Bear with it!
The martial artists who had come with her lined up behind her.
“We greet the Young Cult Leader.”
At their resounding greeting, Yi An introduced them.
“They’re the First Team of the Ghost Shadow Unit.”
Then Blue Mask stepped forward and greeted me.
“I am Blue Mask, leader of the First Team. I formally greet the Young Cult Leader.”
At last, the First Team of the Ghost Shadow Unit was complete. Blue Mask was still wearing his blue mask, and the eyes behind it looked more reliable than ever. He was a man who had cast aside a place as a future Demon Supreme and chosen to be a team leader. I believed the First Team he led would surpass the first team of any other organization in murim.
“For now, there is only the First Team, but we will gradually expand.”
I could feel pride from Yi An. Blue Mask added his loyalty to it.
“We carry out only the Young Cult Leader’s orders.”
“Any order?”
“Yes, that is correct.”
“What would you do if I ordered you to go kill the Martial Alliance Leader right now?”
Though it was a suicide mission, Blue Mask answered without hesitation.
“We would carry out the order immediately.”
“What if my father gives an order? And what if that order conflicts with mine?”
For a moment, Blue Mask was flustered, but he soon answered calmly.
“We serve only the Young Cult Leader’s orders.”
“I am grateful for your loyalty to me, but my father’s orders are an exception. Regard my father’s orders as my own and follow them. Understood?”
“Yes, understood!”
With deep trust, I patted Blue Mask on the shoulder.
“I will be counting on you from now on.”
“I will serve you with all my loyalty.”
The real request, however, I made through voice transmission.
—Rather than me, take good care of your unit commander.
Blue Mask answered with the look in his eyes behind the mask. It was a gaze more trustworthy than any words.
Passing Blue Mask, I slowly walked before the First Team members. They were all young. Since Yi An and Blue Mask had carefully selected them, they were martial artists I could trust.
As I passed, each of them removed their mask and stated their name.
After meeting each of their eyes, I spoke to them.
“There is something I always say to your commanders. Cherish yourselves most of all. Live for your own happiness.”
They all looked as if they had heard this before. Yi An had probably told them about me.
I asked one of the Ghost Shadow Unit’s martial artists.
“Do you know why it was named the Ghost Shadow Unit?”
“I heard it was named from the resolve to become the Young Cult Leader’s shadow.”
“Yes, that is correct. You are my shadows.”
At that moment, I sensed Jeogyeon, who stood behind me, tense and waver slightly. The aura of the Ghost Shadow Unit’s martial artists was no less than that of the guards, and seeing them named my shadows seemed to have stirred a strange sense of rivalry. She must have considered the shadows to be themselves.
Pretending not to notice, I continued speaking to the Ghost Shadow Unit.
“If the main body is happy but the shadow is unhappy, wouldn’t that be strange? So don’t make me into a bad person. Let the shadow become happier than the main body. I am someone who believes this organization will become stronger only when you are happy. Now, repeat after me. We will become happy shadows!”
“We will become happy shadows.”
Even as they repeated it, the First Team members looked awkward. They may have heard that I was an unusual Young Cult Leader, but they surely had not expected to be made to recite such a shout.
Happiness.
It was probably a word that had never been emphasized in any organization of the Demon Cult until now. No, it likely had not been emphasized in the orthodox or unorthodox factions either.
Then Yi An stepped in and spoke to them.
“You do understand that those words do not mean you should become cowards, right?”
“Of course!”
A resounding answer rang out.
“You worked hard coming here. Jeogyeon, provide the Ghost Shadow Unit with food and rooms. And Unit Leader Yi, come see me for a moment.”
After letting the Ghost Shadow Unit rest, Yi An and I walked through the garden together.
“How did you come here?”
“I heard you were here, Young Master, so I stopped by on my way back to the cult. It was on the way.”
“You didn’t come to show off your First Team members?”
“Was it obvious?”
She smiled awkwardly. She had come running to me at once because she wanted to show them off.
“I wanted to show them to you first, Young Master. What do you think of my subordinates?”
I held back my answer for a moment. As I was wondering how to tease her when she was so tense, she beat me to it.
“I’m relieved. Thank you for saying I picked them well.”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“I can tell just from seeing you think about how to tease me. If I had messed up, you wouldn’t even be thinking about teasing me.”
At quick-witted Yi An’s words, I offered sincere congratulations instead of a joke.
“Yes, they all looked good. You worked hard choosing them.”
Yi An smiled brightly. With that single sentence, she must have felt her past hardships rewarded.
“How was it for you?”
“While traveling around the Central Plains this time, I realized again and again that I had only been living inside a well. I also felt how important experience truly is.”
“In that sense, come with me to gain one more experience. Since an invitation arrived on the very day you got here, it must be fate telling us to go together.”
On the day Jin Haryeong’s letter arrived, Yi An arrived as well. I took it as fate telling me to let the two women meet. Since both of them were extraordinarily intelligent women, I believed this meeting would help them grow in some way.
There was also one more reason.
I recalled the conversation I had had with Jin Haryeong.
—Do you perhaps have a woman back home? A woman you like?
—There is a woman prettier than you.
—Prettier than me? Then your credibility drops sharply.
—You are Hubei’s foremost beauty, aren’t you? That one is the greatest beauty under heaven.
—Next time, you must show me that greatest beauty under heaven!
I had meant to introduce her if the chance came, and now at last the chance had arrived.
“Who sent the invitation?”
I smiled faintly and said,
“There is someone. The person who made my credibility plummet.”
* * *
Jin Haryeong held the gathering as usual.
To take part in this gathering, the rising talents of the younger generation each made every possible effort. Only those who distinguished themselves in their respective regions could receive an invitation.
The gathering’s greatest advantage was that it provided an opportunity to build connections with the children of other sects. In particular, the gathering was meaningful simply because one could make an impression on Jin Haryeong.
The young talents attended the gathering while secretly dreaming of marriage to Jin Haryeong. Most of them were the most successful figures in their own towns, so they dared to dream big.
As she was the Martial Alliance Leader’s granddaughter, Hubei’s foremost beauty, and also outstanding in martial arts, she could be called the finest marriage prospect in the orthodox murim.
Of course, once they met Jin Haryeong in person, they realized that it was an unattainable dream. She led the gathering itself splendidly, but she never revealed any personal feelings. Especially after the last Soryongjeon incident, she had allowed not even the slightest opening.
“Is something the matter? You seem nervous.”
Jin Haryeong’s guard, Chuho, asked with some concern. Today, she looked especially tense.
“I’m fine.”
She did not assume Geom Mugeuk would naturally come. Unlike the last time they met, there was now a clear difference in their status. Simply coming to the Martial Alliance meant taking a great risk, so it was more likely that he would not come.
Even so, she found herself hoping for no reason. If it was Geom Mugeuk, she felt he would somehow come. He was a man who gave her that sort of expectation.
In the meantime, people began to gather in the banquet hall one after another. They exchanged greetings with one another, each striving to make themselves known.
She looked outside from behind the curtain, but Geom Mugeuk was nowhere to be seen.
‘Is he not coming?’
Putting aside disappointment or wounded pride, her elder brother was in a situation where he desperately needed him.
“It is time for you to go out.”
At Chuho’s words, she composed herself. The expression on her face as she went outside was completely different from before.
When she appeared, everyone applauded and cheered. Those seeing her for the first time were greatly amazed by the beauty of Hubei’s foremost beauty.
Normally, it would be customary to begin by thanking all the fellow martial artists who had honored the gathering with their presence.
“Good to see you, friends.”
When she opened with a joke, laughter burst out from all sides, and the atmosphere immediately improved.
“When my grandfather begins a speech, no matter how bored you are, none of you can even blink, right? Now then, it’s all right to doze off here.”
Laughter followed again. Originally, Jin Haryeong had not been this open and easygoing. But after meeting Geom Mugeuk, she had changed. She was trying to change. She herself did not know why.
“You have probably heard some unsettling news lately. News from the Demon Cult, and news from the Evil Dao Alliance.”
At the mention of the Demon Cult and the Evil Dao Alliance, everyone’s expressions stiffened. Most of those gathered were children of prestigious sects, so they had heard rumors about the successors of the Demon Cult and the Evil Dao Alliance through various channels. In particular, the rumors about the Demon Cult’s successor were so astonishing as to be almost unbelievable.
“That rumor tells us why we must gather, and why we must stand firmly united. Because someone more extraordinary than any successor in history has appeared. And the ones who will face him are not our grandfathers or our parents. In the future, it will be us.”
A heavy silence flowed through the hall.
Pausing her speech for a moment, Jin Ha-ryeong silently looked around at them. The young martial artists had to awaken. If they were to face him, they had to change in earnest.
It was at that very moment. Jin Ha-ryeong’s eyes met someone’s among the rising talents.
The instant she saw him, she was startled. When on earth had he come in? Amid the crowd stood Geom Mugeuk, smiling.
‘Ah! He came!’
A surge of joy welled up in her. Those clear, deep eyes, yet pure as if he might start playing a prank at any moment, were the same now as they had been then.
She was grateful to him. When she asked for help, he had not refused and had come running like this. Though he was the young cult leader of the Demonic Cult, he stood there alone among the people of the righteous faction. All because she had asked him to come.
Gazing at Geom Mugeuk, she continued her speech.
“The young cult leader of the Demonic Cult in the rumors is no ordinary person. They say he is stronger, smarter, and braver than anyone. They even say he keeps his promises well, don’t they?”
Geom Mugeuk’s smile deepened.
“So we, too, must stay alert and hone our skills. If we let our guard down, someday the young cult leader of the Demonic Cult’s sword will pierce our hearts. So let us all join forces and strive together! For the peace of the murim! There’s no time to be dozing off.”
The rising talents cheered with fervor.
In the noisy hall, the two of them simply gazed at each other.
* * *
After finishing her speech, Jin Ha-ryeong immediately met Geom Mugeuk separately in the rear garden.
“You really came.”
“We agreed to be friends, didn’t we?”
“It’s been so long that it feels awkward.”
“You can treat me comfortably. I came as a friend.”
Seeing Geom Mugeuk up close, Jin Ha-ryeong felt needlessly nervous and unsettled. With the matter involving her older brother as well, all sorts of thoughts ran through her mind. He really had come as a friend, hadn’t he? Could she perhaps be being deceived by this man? Gratitude and fear mingled together.
So she put on an unnecessary show of banter to ease her tension.
“Well? Seeing Hubei’s greatest beauty after so long, are you trembling?”
“I’m someone who sees the greatest beauty under heaven every day.”
“There you go boasting again.”
“I knew you’d say that, so I brought her with me.”
“Then show me this greatest beauty under heaven.”
Until that moment, Jin Ha-ryeong had thought Geom Mugeuk was joking.
But when Geom Mugeuk turned his head, Ian appeared from behind a building in the distance. Realizing he had truly come with a woman, Jin Ha-ryeong was startled.
Ian slowly emerged from the building’s shadow and began walking toward the two of them.