My cup, heading toward my lips, stopped dead in mid-air.
Become his man? No way.
"What do you mean?"
"I'm asking you to become my man."
I hadn't expected Doma to come at me like this. He was publicly known as someone who supported my older brother. And yet he was abandoning my brother and choosing me? Truly, this was the most unexpected moment since meeting Hyeolcheon Doma.
"Young lord."
"Yes."
"Do you wish to become a Heavenly Demon?"
"I wish to become one."
I answered without hesitation.
"Then drink that wine. I shall become your backer."
"But weren't you supporting my older brother, sir?"
"That was a choice made when I didn't know you were such a madman."
"I've become a dragon, and I've become a madman—I've certainly been busy."
You're the madman.
I had killed his younger brother, crippled his disciple, and imprisoned his subordinate. And yet this old man was making an offer to become my backer. This old man was a human who would sell anything for his ambition.
"I killed your younger brother."
"Once one leaves the parents' bosom, one is a stranger. You think I feel pain like my entrails are being cut because my blood kin died? Don't make me laugh. It is the thorn stuck beneath one's own fingernail that hurts more."
This old man—every word he was spewing now was sincere.
"Anyway, it's not as if I've formally joined hands with the First Young Master... Even if I had, one's mind can always change."
"Gaining you, sir, would be like gaining a thousand armies and ten thousand horses. However..."
"What are you hesitating for?"
"I wonder if I can trust you, sir. Just as you are abandoning my brother now, you could abandon me too."
"If the situation calls for it, I must discard you. Do you think I'm doing this because I trust you? I'm a man who has never trusted anyone until now."
"Then why have you chosen me?"
"Because your madness, pushing forward so fearlessly, seemed worth staking my fate on."
"So in the end, you chose me because I'm a madman."
"Use that madness to devour them all."
If I were a young man of this age, I might have believed Hyeolcheon Doma's words wholeheartedly, swelling with pride at being chosen.
But I know well the despicable methods old men use when exploiting the young.
Do you want to become a Heavenly Demon?
The question he had asked earlier was like that. Words designed to create the illusion that if I took his hand, I could become a Heavenly Demon.
The question he was tossing out now was imbued with the same intention.
"If you become a Heavenly Demon, what kind of Heavenly Demon would you be?"
"At the very least, the Main Sect under my command would not see Demon Venerables stepping forth to pressure the Hwangcheon Pavilion Lord."
"Hahaha. As expected, my eyes are precise indeed."
That snakelike attitude that never reveals its true feelings even when disgusted.
All of it was the old man's high-level artifice to cloud my decision in this moment.
For now, I politely refused. In the push and pull of human relationships, if you're pulled and simply dragged along, you become unappealing prey.
"I am grateful that you think highly of me, but now seems to be the time I must attend to my duties. What would my father think? If he entrusted me with an important position and I did no work but instead engaged in politicking, would he not disapprove?"
"You're hiding behind the Cult Leader. Is that truly a wise choice?"
"What do you mean?"
"Hwangcheon Pavilion Lord? What if you do that job well? What if the Cult Leader keeps you seated in the position of Hwangcheon Pavilion Lord? Do you intend to rot away as the Hwangcheon Pavilion Lord for life? That task is merely a process now. The path you must choose is always one: a fork in the road of whether or not you become the successor. The moment you mistake that, you will lose your way and wander through the deceptively fine forest called Hwangcheon Pavilion."
He brought my father into it to finish his persuasion.
"Rather, the Cult Leader will take note of you joining hands with me. The mere fact that I chose you will increase your stature and draw everyone's eyes."
But there is one thing Hyeolcheon Doma is overlooking.
The will to enforce discipline in the Main Sect. It is not only my will that is invested here; my father's will is invested as well.
"Please give me time to think. I will drink this wine once I have made my decision."
I set the wine cup I was holding back onto the table.
Even though I had postponed my decision, Hyeolcheon Doma smiled with satisfaction.
"Exactly. Of course you should. You mustn't drink it like a fool just because someone tells you to."
Hyeolcheon Doma rose from his seat and drew the Myeolcheon Daedo that had been stuck behind him.
With the very momentum of drawing the blade from the ground, he swung it at me.
Without dodging, I drew the Black Demon Sword and blocked the incoming attack.
*Clang!*
An explosive sound mixed with metallic ringing burst forth. From beyond the crossed sword and blade, Hyeolcheon Doma spoke.
"I will hear your answer tomorrow."
"I shall tell you in five days."
For a moment, a taut battle of wills hung between us as we glared at each other.
"Three days then."
Without waiting for an answer, Hyeolcheon Doma shot up into the sky with a whoosh and disappeared beyond the wall. It was an extraordinary and flawlessly swift movement technique.
I sheathed the Black Demon Sword and rotated my wrist.
"Damn old man, it hurts like hell."
It hadn't been an all-out attack, but the internal energy carried by the flying blade was no ordinary matter, so my wrist throbbed.
'This old man. He's secretly enjoying inflicting pain on his opponent.'
He was making me aware that his martial arts were superior. One might think it was merely an old man's pride or bad taste, but I believe there is a clear intention behind Hyeolcheon Doma's actions like this.
Hyeolcheon Doma either jabbed you in the ribs repeatedly until bruises formed, or inflicted pain like today, where your arm would go numb and you'd suffer for several days.
This pain plants unconscious fear in the opponent. And this physical violence plays a considerably positive role in manipulating the opponent to one's will.
The more you experience it, the more you realize he is not a pushover old man. At the same time, I understand why my father is using me to perform this sword dance.
Because there are not one but eight existences like Hyeolcheon Doma. If they are tightly bound together under the name of the Eight Demon Venerables, even my father would not find them easy to deal with. Among themselves, they slander and backbite and fight and bicker, but when facing the Heavenly Demon Cult, they become of one mind.
Moreover, they are the main force of the Main Sect. If you eliminate them just because you don't like them, the Murim Alliance or the Demonic Path Alliance will immediately come charging in.
'You like me because I'm a madman? Those are words spoken only when you don't know how far I can go.'
Before returning to my quarters, I briefly stopped by Ian's personal training ground.
Ian was so focused on training that she didn't even know I had come; as I had instructed, she was in the middle of basic stamina training. Gasping as if her breath would give out, Ian endured and devoted herself to training.
'Why you?'
Because if it's my order, you become a stubborn fool of a bear. You weren't originally a stubborn fool of a bear, yet you willingly become such a person for me.
After watching her train for a moment, I returned to my room.
I brought some wine and sat by the window, taking it easy. When I think of Hwamugi, I cannot rest for even a moment, but that doesn't mean I'll just run forward looking only ahead. If I lose the leisure to look around, there will surely be things I miss.
And so, with the brilliantly bright moon as my drinking snack, I had a few drinks for the first time in a while.
I thought of my father, of Hyeolcheon Doma, and of the other Demon Venerables. I also thought about my life after killing Hwamugi.
* * *
Even the next day, Yang Tae's spirit was unbroken.
"Hmph! Hwangcheon Pavilion Lord, you've messed with the wrong person. Don't you know that touching me is the same as touching the entire Namdo Sect?"
Having threatened me like this, using Hyeolcheon Doma as his backing.
"If you just release me, I'll let bygones be bygones. I'll personally speak to the Demon Venerable to ensure his anger brings no harm to the Pavilion Lord."
He also tried to entice me like this.
He had never experienced such a desperate situation in his life. Looking at his records, he had risen steadily from Dogwi to Sipdogwi to Baekdogwi. He had never suffered hardship, and no one had ever picked a fight with him in his life.
So he didn't know how to conduct himself in this situation. Rather than sincerely apologizing and begging for forgiveness, he was simply resorting to enticement and threats as he had always lived.
Unlike yesterday, I faced Yang Tae calmly.
"Warrior Yang. Sit down. Today, the Namdo Sect officially announced its regret over this incident."
At that, Yang Tae was overjoyed.
"I told you so. The Demon Venerable would never abandon me. Now, release me."
Thinking he would soon be released, Yang Tae's expression softened.
"Let us forget the past."
At his attitude, as if he would forgive me, I calmly asked, "Do you know why I am treating you politely now?"
"Isn't it because we want to wrap this up nicely?"
"No. It is because this is the last day I will see you."
"Isn't that what I said? Once I get out, we'll have no reason to see each other again."
Yang Tae's face was full of joy. Now was the time to make that face show its true expression.
"I think you're misunderstanding something."
"Misunderstanding?"
"The Namdo Sect did not express regret to us; it expressed regret to you. To you, for tarnishing the Namdo Sect's honor."
"...What?"
"And they officially apologized for the fact that this unsavory incident was caused by a martial artist of the Namdo Sect. They apologized to the victim and promised compensation. They also said they would ensure such a thing never happens again."
"What... nonsense? The Namdo Sect has never officially apologized for something like this. No matter what incident occurred."
Yang Tae's voice was trembling.
"You should be honored. You've changed the Namdo Sect like this."
"Stop lying!"
"Well then, I hope you enjoy your stay in the underground prison."
I rose from my seat. Belatedly, Yang Tae screamed and caused a commotion. I told them to just leave him. That tantrum, too, would be his last today.
Instead, he would have to take responsibility for his actions, having not shown a single moment of sincere reflection until the very end.
I gave instructions to Seo Daeryong, who was waiting outside the door.
"Contact the underground prison and send him to the hardest section."
"Yes."
The Main Sect's underground prison is hell even in the comfortable sections. The saying that it's better to be beheaded than to go to the underground prison isn't spoken for no reason. With that personality, he wouldn't last in the underground prison. His son would be the same.
I did not sympathize with them. If I had not intervened, they would have lived their entire lives in arrogance, while the victim Gwak Su and his family would have lived miserable lives. There must have been other Gwak Sus I didn't know about before, and more Gwak Sus would continue to appear in the future. The investigator Jonghwa, who had been threatened, would have had his future life completely ruined as well.
Therefore, I felt not a shred of sympathy or regret.
"What in the world happened?"
"What?"
"Why did the Namdo Sect issue an apology statement? This is unprecedented."
"Go and ask them why."
"I would if I could. In the current atmosphere, if you went to the Namdo Sect, you probably wouldn't walk out."
"No. Right now is precisely when you could dance in the Namdo Sect's training ground and walk out safely."
Leaving behind Seo Daeryong, who couldn't understand what I meant, I strode down the corridor and added:
"For the next two days, that is."