The joy of having survived, compounded by the presence of the two Demon Lords, caused Jin Haryeong's heart to begin beating faster and fiercer.
Whether it was the Blood Heaven Blade Demon standing at her side with his great blade, or the Fist Demon slowly walking toward them, both men were truly terrifying.
'So these are the Demon Lords!'
Until now, the Demon Cult had been vague and distant to her. She had only heard that it was fearsome and cruel; the only member of the Demon Cult she had actually met was Geom Mugeuk. Young, handsome, and good with jokes.
But today, she felt as though she had seen the true Demon Cult.
The Fist Demon's face, now close by, was truly frightening, but Jin Haryeong tried her utmost to maintain a calm expression.
"Thank you so much for saving my life."
It was gratitude conveyed to both Demon Lords and I-an.
"I will surely repay this grace."
She feared the Demon Lords, but she did not hate the two men who had saved her.
The Demon Lords merely nodded once, making no show of having saved her life.
Her brother would scold her, asking if she were crazy, but she found herself curious about what kind of people these Demon Lords were.
After greeting the two, Jin Haryeong looked at I-an.
She knew how dangerous it was to fly here clinging to a blade. Moreover, it was a blade that had flown here while killing enemies.
That Demon Lord, and that I-an—neither of them made a single remark showing off that they had saved her life.
I-an released Jin Haryeong's sealed internal energy while cracking a joke.
"Friend! We agreed to meet—how could you break your promise?"
More than any word she had heard in her life, that word 'friend' now resonated deeply with Jin Haryeong. It was a moment where the friendship between the two women advanced one step further.
Jin Haryeong touched her face and spoke.
"That's why I look like this? There's nothing to see but my face."
At her reply, half-joking and half-self-mocking, I-an said something unexpected.
"Then starting today, you'll have to show something else."
Jin Haryeong could understand. I-an did not use her beautiful appearance as a weapon. That was why she was so strong, and that was why she could tell Jin Haryeong that she was beautiful. And she was saying it again: appearance is not important to them.
That's right. From today, there is no Greatest Beauty of Hubei. She would become the Greatest Swordsman of Hubei, and advance toward becoming the World's Greatest Swordsman. Never again would she face a life-or-death crisis against someone like Chorim.
Moreover, she had learned a great lesson today.
Life and death had truly been separated by a hair's breadth. If she had simply given up and resigned herself to death, she would have died before I-an and the Demon Lords arrived.
But because she had tried to fight until the very end, she had survived. She had truly felt that even heaven's will, when choosing someone, selects from among those who do not give up until the last moment.
Just then, something as fast as light came hurtling toward them.
Swhaaaaaak.
Geom Mugeuk descended upon the spot with a rapid step. His posture upon landing was so natural that he seemed like someone who had been there from the beginning.
Geom Mugeuk looked around and soon let out a sigh of relief. He could tell that the Demon Lords and I-an had arrived in time to save Jin Haryeong.
"You got here fast. If it weren't for them, I'd already be dead."
Geom Mugeuk laughed at Jin Haryeong's joke and said,
"That's why I'm close with them."
Geom Mugeuk looked at the Blood Heaven Blade Demon and the Fist Demon. His faith in leaving the judgment to the two men had been correct. They were men who had repaid faith with faith.
"You can put more strength into your shoulders. You look truly magnificent!"
"Where have you been loitering until now? Making an old man suffer."
However, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon's worried gaze was fixed on the blood staining Geom Mugeuk's clothes.
"Was it worth making the old man suffer?"
"You brat!"
Then the Fist Demon asked Geom Mugeuk,
"Are you injured?"
"It is not my blood. I am fine."
The Fist Demon nodded.
Watching their conversation, Jin Haryeong finally realized that Geom Mugeuk was the Young Cult Leader of the Demon Cult. The rumors that he had seized control of the Demon Lords were wrong. It was not that he had seized control, but rather that he had made them his own people. The gazes the two men directed at Geom Mugeuk were like the gaze of a grandfather toward her, and also like that of an older brother.
She could understand. Though I-an and the two Demon Lords were the ones who had saved her, she had ultimately survived thanks to Geom Mugeuk. If it were not for him, these people would not have moved.
"The granddaughter of the Martial Alliance Chief, indebted to a member of the Demon Cult twice over! I'm completely ruined."
At her quip, Geom Mugeuk and I-an laughed together.
Geom Mugeuk spoke to the two Demon Lords.
"Please wait at the inner quarters with I-an. I will take Young Lady Jin to the Martial Alliance and return."
"Is everything finished now?"
"No, there is one thing left to confirm before I go."
He had to confirm whether the Martial Alliance Chief had truly annihilated the Mokcheon family.
No matter how much he thought about it, Jin Pae-cheon did not seem like the type to commit such an act, but if he had been caught in someone's scheme, it was hard to say.
Geom Mugeuk gazed at the Martial Alliance, visible far in the distance, and spoke a joke he had made earlier as though it were serious.
"This time I might really have to run away, sir! I may have to."
* * *
Jin Hagun strode into the Alliance Chief's residence.
Jin Pae-cheon, who had been standing by the window staring outside, turned around urgently.
"What is the situation?"
"We mobilized the Demon Extermination Corps and searched every inch of the Dongho region, but could not find her. Has there been no word from the Blue Dragon Squad yet?"
Jin Pae-cheon shook his head.
"What about the Flying Tiger Squad?"
Another shake of the head. No matter how they searched in all directions, dispatching the elite of the Martial Alliance, they could not find Jin Haryeong's whereabouts.
There had been no demands from Baek Cheongyeong, who was presumed to be the kidnapper. He was truly burning with worry.
"It would be better to make it public to the martial world."
Currently, the search was being conducted in secret, placing limitations on the investigation; if they made it a public search, witnesses might come forward.
But Jin Pae-cheon shook his head. Those bold enough to kidnap the granddaughter of the Martial Alliance Chief would not have been seen by anyone. Moreover, if they rashly made it public, the Sa Do Maeng or other villains might get involved.
Jin Hagun thought that his grandfather might say, "This is all your fault!"
But as if to say that was merely the narrow-minded worry of a child, Jin Pae-cheon said nothing of the sort. He was not someone who would shift blame onto others just because he was driven into a corner.
"Is there still no word from Geom Mugeuk?"
Jin Pae-cheon nodded silently.
The situation was gradually making Geom Mugeuk the last hope.
But the more that happened, the more complicated Jin Hagun's heart became.
'Could I really have been deceived?'
What if all of this was Geom Mugeuk's scheme?
The image of his younger sister caught in Geom Mugeuk's clutches came to mind.
After taking his sister, he thought that Geom Mugeuk might threaten him at some decisive moment.
In his fear of losing his sister, all sorts of thoughts came to him. His sister was the only person in this world who truly understood him.
Never in his life had he thought he would lose his sister. But now that it had become reality, he could not control his fear.
If he were to lose his sister?
His life from then on would change greatly as well.
And at this moment, Jin Pae-cheon was thinking the exact opposite.
"That child was confident that only he could save her."
Jin Hagun felt that his grandfather trusted Geom Mugeuk.
When he had rushed back upon hearing that his sister was kidnapped during the Demon Extermination Corps' mission, his grandfather had not trusted Geom Mugeuk at that time.
When asked who was responsible, he had answered thus.
—It was either Geom Mugeuk or Baek Cheongyeong.
And staring at him, his grandfather had asked,
—Who do you think it was?
Even then, he had not fully trusted Geom Mugeuk, and had hoped the Martial Alliance's warriors would find her.
But now his grandfather trusted Geom Mugeuk. It was not that he trusted him because he believed in him, but because the situation was so desperate that he had no choice. Though he was stronger than anyone in the world, with his granddaughter's life on the line, he had become an ordinary grandfather.
"I will go search again."
Just as Jin Hagun was about to leave, a warrior of the Alliance Chief's residence ran in and reported,
"Lady Haryeong has returned."
Jin Pae-cheon and Jin Hagun were startled.
Jin Pae-cheon sprang up from his chair and leaped down.
Soon after, Jin Haryeong entered.
She walked in first, and Geom Mugeuk followed behind her.
"Grandfather!"
Jin Haryeong ran and embraced Jin Pae-cheon. The moment she saw her grandfather, tears poured forth. Having passed through a brush with death this time, she realized anew just how great a presence her grandfather was in her life.
"Are you hurt anywhere?"
"I'm fine."
Her face and body were injured, but she had not sustained internal injuries.
"You've come well, you've returned well."
Tears welled in Jin Pae-cheon's eyes. Though he possessed a heart of iron, seeing his granddaughter return safely caused his heart to surge. He could not even remember the last time he had shed tears.
Jin Haryeong also reunited with Jin Hagun.
"Brother."
Jin Hagun held his younger sister tightly.
"I'm sorry."
All of this had happened because of him. It had started because he suspected his master.
"Why are you sorry, brother? It's my fault for getting captured so incompetently."
"Don't say that."
When the reunion that taught them how precious they were to each other came to an end, the heated gazes of Jin Pae-cheon and Jin Hagun turned toward Geom Mugeuk.
Saving Jin Haryeong was more important to the two of them than anything else. It was a greater deed than saving their own lives.
"Thank you truly for saving Haryeong."
Jin Pae-cheon formally pressed his fists together to convey his gratitude.
Geom Mugeuk also returned the courtesy politely and answered,
"Young Lady Jin is not only the Alliance Chief's granddaughter, but also my friend. Please do not mind it too much."
A life debt is repaid by saving a life in return. Jin Pae-cheon resolved that someday, he would save Geom Mugeuk's life.
Meanwhile, Jin Hagun was ashamed of himself for having doubted Geom Mugeuk even for a moment.
'I still have a long way to go.'
In the past, he would have ended with shame and a sense of inferiority, but now it was different. He felt that he had to work harder and strive more. Seeing that Geom Mugeuk stimulated him even at this moment, he truly was a person whose very existence was a stimulus.
"First, go receive treatment and rest. We can talk about what happened later. And you, come out with me for a moment."
Jin Hagun and Jin Haryeong noticed that their grandfather wanted to speak with Geom Mugeuk alone. Since they could speak with Geom Mugeuk later, the two withdrew obediently.
"Yes, Grandfather."
Walking with Jin Hagun, Jin Haryeong turned around and said,
"I'm so happy to see Grandfather again."
Jin Pae-cheon smiled and nodded. The thought of what might have happened had he not seen that child again caused his heart to sink.
And so, only two people remained in the Alliance Chief's residence.
"What happened to that Baek Cheongyeong?"
"He is dead."
He had expected as much since his granddaughter had returned, but hearing it directly from Geom Mugeuk put him in a strange mood.
"Did he say why he kidnapped Haryeong?"
Then, astonishing words flowed from Geom Mugeuk's mouth.
"Baek Cheongyeong is the younger brother of the Mokcheon family head."
In that instant, Jin Pae-cheon's eyes widened.
How could he have forgotten about the Mokcheon family?
"They are all dead."
"That is not so. One person, the family head's younger brother, survived."
"I believed him to be dead as well."
"He faked his death."
Now Jin Pae-cheon finally understood Baek Cheongyeong's dual nature. Could all of this really be related to his son's death?
And the most important question of today's conversation came out.
"Allow me to ask you, Alliance Chief. Was it you who annihilated the Mokcheon family?"
A heavy silence fell.
Geom Mugeuk thought that this silence was not a confession. If he had truly committed the deed, he would not fall into a silence that invited such suspicion. This was a silence born of circumstances.
Soon, Jin Pae-cheon let out a short sigh and began his story.
"That day, I went to find them for revenge. It was my family's vengeance, so I went alone."
His expression furrowed as if the scene of that day was vividly rising before his eyes.
"When I arrived, they were already all dead."
Jin Pae-cheon proved that he was speaking the truth in the most powerful way he could.
"I swear upon my dead son and daughter-in-law. I did not kill them."
For him, who valued honor above all, to swear upon his son meant his words were true. He too knew how important it was to reveal the truth.
And that day's events had remained a great wound in Jin Pae-cheon's heart.
"Seeing that scene snapped me back to my senses. Do you know what I thought as I, who had rushed there like a madman for revenge, looked upon that sight?"
After a brief pause, Jin Pae-cheon poured the emotions of that day into a long sigh.
"I thought it was a relief."
Geom Mugeuk listened in silence.
"I, the Martial Alliance Chief, thought it was a relief. If this had not happened first, I might have committed such deeds myself—that is truly what I thought. I, who should have mourned and raged at the deaths of the innocent!"
Jin Pae-cheon's face hardened. Pain seeped from his expression.
"You would not have annihilated them, Alliance Chief."
Jin Pae-cheon stared at Geom Mugeuk and asked,
"Do you truly think so?"
No, one could not know. How could anyone be certain how far a parent who had lost a child would go? Nevertheless, Geom Mugeuk spoke firmly.
"Yes, because you are not that kind of person."
Jin Pae-cheon let out another long sigh. It did not suit his usual domineering demeanor. One could see how much this matter had remained a deep wound in his life.
Torn between the thought that he might have annihilated them and his disappointment in himself for feeling relieved at the sight, he must have suffered all along. Because he had lived his entire life upholding righteousness, that wound must have been deeper than anyone else's.
Geom Mugeuk repeated his earlier words once more.
"You would not have done that, Alliance Chief."
Jin Pae-cheon's pupils trembled. At this moment, he realized. He had wanted to hear these words from someone for a very long time. That was why he had wanted to say them himself.
'Yes, I would not have done that.'
Jin Pae-cheon looked at Geom Mugeuk with deepening eyes.
"Why do you trust me so much? You hardly know me."
"Yes, I do not know you well, Alliance Chief. But is there not one thing that is certain?"
Geom Mugeuk calmly added,
"Is it not because you are someone who would not have done such a thing that I am able to stand alone in the very center of the Martial Alliance?"