Yang Seok was deeply shocked.
‘Father is considering that man as his successor?’
The reason his astonishment was so great was because it carried the shock of betrayal. One suspicion naturally came over him.
‘Is that why he summoned him so often? Not to receive reports about me?’
Just then, Han Seol sent him another sound transmission.
—The Demon Cult’s information could be wrong. Look into it properly.
Geom Mugeuk had told her to say this. He had told her not to try to deceive him, but to sympathize and think along with him. She still did not know why she had to do that, but she followed Geom Mugeuk’s instructions.
—The Demon Cult’s information is unlikely to be wrong.
Yang Seok knew very well how exceptional the Demon Cult’s intelligence network was. His father had always emphasized, many times, that the Northern Blood Sect also needed an intelligence organization like the Demon Cult’s Tongcheongak.
Of course, there was this possibility.
‘What if Han Seol is lying?’
Why would she? What could she gain by sowing discord between Ha Gyeol and him?
And one other possibility.
‘The Demon Cult may have intentionally fed false information to the Young Palace Mistress.’
He hoped it was the latter rather than the former. Because he did not want Han Seol to be on the same side as the Demon Cult.
Including the possibility that the information truly was fact, nothing was certain, and so Yang Seok was confused.
‘Whatever trick this is, and whatever the reason, they’ve underestimated me. I will never fall for such petty schemes.’
Yang Seok’s gaze turned toward Geom Mugeuk and Ha Gyeol.
Just then, Geom Mugeuk looked over and spoke loudly.
“This friend here is quite the fellow. Come, let’s go together.”
Geom Mugeuk led Ha Gyeol over to where Han Seol and Yang Seok were.
Naturally, Yang Seok and Ha Gyeol came face to face.
Seeing Ha Gyeol made Yang Seok’s mind grow complicated.
‘It’s really you? Father made you his successor?’
He wanted to grab him by the collar and ask, but he forced himself to calm his excitement.
Ha Gyeol noticed that Yang Seok was looking at him with eyes different from usual.
But that the reason was because he suspected him of being the successor was something he truly could not even imagine. Rather, he thought it was antipathy toward the Demon Cult’s Young Cult Leader, who was acting as he pleased. Besides, he knew Yang Seok had feelings for the Young Palace Mistress of the Ice Palace. This seat would not be easy.
Geom Mugeuk alone was in high spirits as he raised his voice.
“It’s fate that the four of us have gathered like this, so let’s all have a drink together. I had been abstaining from alcohol for a while, but that ended when Elder Seo died. Come, let us drink merrily, like foals with the reins cut loose.”
If the Young Cult Leader said they should drink, what could Yang Seok say? In any case, they had come as guests, so he had to entertain them. Even without Geom Mugeuk’s suggestion, perhaps because his heart was in turmoil, he felt drawn to drink.
“Very well. I’ll have the wine prepared.”
He called a maidservant and ordered wine to be prepared in the reception hall.
But Ha Gyeol declined politely.
“I am to meet the Sect Master, so I’m afraid I cannot. Then I will take my leave.”
If he sat down to drink with Geom Mugeuk, his identity might be exposed. With the great undertaking only two days away, he had to be wary even of falling snowflakes—let alone when the other party was the Demon Cult’s Young Cult Leader.
How could he not know that the man chattering before him like a village woman was not all there was to him?
Yang Seok watched coldly as Ha Gyeol withdrew.
When they had met earlier, Ha Gyeol had said he was on his way back from meeting his father. After that, they had been together the entire time, and now he had to go meet his father? Fine, he could lie to the Young Cult Leader. But was Yang Seok not also present here?
‘He’s leaving without even glancing at my reaction?’
Geom Mugeuk began placing kindling in the fire blazing within him and blowing on it.
“Did I not say so? He’s an amusing fellow. A guard warrior who leaves behind the person he ought to protect? Young Master Yang, you must understand. Is this friend not from a wandering warrior background?”
Yang Seok instead spoke in Ha Gyeol’s defense.
“In our sect, the Sect Master’s orders are absolute.”
Though he was smiling outwardly, smoke began to rise in his heart.
‘Is he truly ignoring me because he considers himself the successor?’
Even normally, he had been different from ordinary subordinates. There was a strange air about him that made it difficult to treat him carelessly. His father had treated him differently from the other subordinates as well.
‘Was all of that truly because of this?’
If Yang Seok had not killed his own younger brother with his own hands, he would not have suspected this far. Because he had done something absurd, he now thought absurd things might also happen.
There was one fastest way to confirm this matter.
To meet his father directly and confirm it.
But he did not readily feel inclined to do so.
What if the information the Demon Cult had found out was true? How would his father react? His father had not even blinked when his second son died before his eyes—would he be unable to kill the eldest?
While Yang Seok was sinking into dark thoughts, Geom Mugeuk sent a sound transmission to Han Seol.
—You did very well.
Han Seol had performed her role splendidly. She had lied without so much as batting an eye. Relationships with people were difficult, but deceiving people was not difficult.
—Was that really doing well? When I deceived someone so easily.
—You deceived him well not because you are a wicked woman, but because you are clever.
—It truly feels like you have an answer prepared for anything anyone says.
—That is because I am clever too.
Geom Mugeuk truly left her with nothing to say.
In the meantime, a drinking table was prepared in the reception hall. Fine wine and dishes were set out, and the three sat around it.
As Yang Seok poured wine into Geom Mugeuk’s cup, he thought inwardly.
‘If that information is true, then this man knows that I cannot become the successor, yet he is not showing it at all. As expected, he is no easy opponent.’
Yang Seok emptied two cups of wine in succession.
“Oh, Young Master Yang. You can drink quite well.”
Originally, Yang Seok did not have a particularly strong tolerance. But today, the wine went down like water.
After they had drunk several cups that way, Geom Mugeuk and Han Seol began the conversation they had agreed upon. Geom Mugeuk released his qi to prevent the conversation from leaking outside. Now it was beginning.
“Young Cult Leader, when will you be returning to your Divine Cult?”
“As you know, I killed Elder Seo and avenged the Drunken Demon, so our business is finished. All that remains is to return, but the Ice Palace Master asked me to look into the Extreme Cold Physique, so I stayed.”
Geom Mugeuk revealed why he spoke of such an important matter so lightly.
“To be honest, I have no interest in the Extreme Cold Physique.”
Pouring wine for Yang Seok, Geom Mugeuk asked,
“Young Master Yang, tell me plainly about the Extreme Cold Physique. Then I will relay it to the Ice Palace Master and return to the cult. If you do not wish to tell me, you may tell the Young Palace Mistress.”
“I would need to know something first.”
Yang Seok answered politely. Come to think of it, he truly knew nothing.
He had only searched for those who possessed the Extreme Cold Physique together with his younger brother; he did not actually know what those who possessed it were to be used for.
Suddenly, he recalled what Han Seol had said earlier.
—They said the purpose of obtaining the Extreme Cold Physique was related to the successor as well.
But I am the successor, am I not? If I know nothing?
Then does that mean Ha Gyeol is related to the Extreme Cold Physique?
Geom Mugeuk summarized what was currently happening in the North Sea with a single phrase.
“In any case, the greed of old men is something else.”
It was clear that the old men he referred to here were Elder Seo and the Northern Blood Sect Master.
Though it was an insult to his father, Yang Seok could not refute those words. No, he did not even feel like refuting them. His father was clearly harboring a desire he had not even told his son about.
Until now, he had trusted only his father and followed him without asking a single word about it. An unbearable sense of betrayal kept raising its head.
“Come, let us drink.”
Geom Mugeuk kept urging him to drink. Before long, Yang Seok’s face was flushed with intoxication.
The North Sea affair had begun with the matter of the Drunken Demon, and even at this moment, alcohol was playing a major role.
Geom Mugeuk did not care what means he used. Since the other side had come at them using a self-destructive art, he had no intention of dealing with them by fair means either.
Han Seol sent a sound transmission to Yang Seok.
—Ask the Young Cult Leader directly whether that information is true.
—Then will it not be revealed that you told me that?
—I am fine. Since I brought it up in the first place, I must be prepared for at least this much. Are you going to hand over the position of successor to a subordinate just like this?
Yang Seok asked suspiciously.
—Why are you trying to help me?
Geom Mugeuk had expected that he would certainly ask this. Now was the moment for her to play the second most important role she had today. A short but powerful sentence.
—I want you to become the Northern Blood Sect Master.
At those words, Yang Seok felt a surge of emotion. Since he already had feelings for Han Seol, and since he was drunk as well, the moment he heard those words, he felt a delight he had never experienced before.
Just from Yang Seok’s expression, Geom Mugeuk could tell what sound transmission Han Seol had sent. He pretended not to know and simply drank, and at last Yang Seok drew his blade.
“Young Cult Leader, I ask you as one martial artist to another.”
“Why are you acting so frighteningly?”
“Did Father truly choose Ha Gyeol as his successor?”
The smile vanished from Geom Mugeuk’s face. Instead of making excuses, he looked at Han Seol with cold eyes.
“It was you.”
Han Seol did not deny it.
“Yes. I happened to overhear the Young Cult Leader speaking with the Drunken Demon, and I told this man.”
“You did not happen to overhear it. You eavesdropped.”
In truth, considering their martial arts levels, it was impossible for Han Seol to eavesdrop on the conversation between the two of them.
But at present, Yang Seok did not have precise information about the three people’s martial prowess, and even if he had, he was not in a state to judge rationally. All his nerves were focused on whether or not that matter was true.
“I’m sorry. I only wanted to help Young Master Yang.”
Han Seol lowered her head deeply. In her own way, she was feeling a strange thrill. It was a dangerous mission she had even come wearing the Cheongung Hogap for, and yet, astonishingly, this moment was fun. She found it fascinating that she could carry out such acting so shamelessly.
Yang Seok, who had no way of knowing such thoughts, stepped forward when he saw her cornered.
“Do not seize on someone innocent. This is my problem, so settle it with me.”
He held out his wine cup. His expression said that they should speak man to man, martial artist to martial artist.
“Did Father truly make Ha Gyeol his successor?”
Geom Mugeuk glared at Yang Seok with cold eyes. It was a chill incomparable to when he had been smiling and speaking frivolously before.
Han Seol could feel it. Such a contrasting reaction increased the credibility of the words he was about to say. She realized that overwhelming and deceiving an opponent was not accomplished by words alone. A single expression, a single gaze, changed the impression entirely.
“You have learned a fact you should not have known.”
With Geom Mugeuk responding this way, all of it seemed true to Yang Seok. He was gradually being swept up in the atmosphere Geom Mugeuk created.
“This is my affair. It is a fact I ought to know. I will ask again. Did he truly make Ha Gyeol the successor?”
Now wearing an expression as if he had no choice, Geom Mugeuk answered calmly.
“He did.”
“Do you have proof?”
“We deployed all of our intelligence capabilities for this matter. My word is the proof.”
Geom Mugeuk, wearing a serious expression, truly did not look like a man who was lying. Yang Seok was confused. Had his father truly abandoned him?
“If your sect master finds the Extreme Cold Physique, you may find yourself in a difficult situation.”
Because he was saying it to his face, he expressed it as difficult situation, but those words meant he could be eliminated. There was an intention behind them to keep him from going to the Northern Blood Sect Master to confirm it.
“That is why our cult’s Tongcheongak is also keeping watch over this matter. It is not common for someone to eliminate their own blood kin in order to make another person their successor.”
This time, he directly used the words eliminate their own blood kin. Geom Mugeuk’s calculations were contained in each and every word.
Suddenly, Yang Seok thought about why his father had so easily allowed his younger brother to be eliminated. Because we are not Extreme Cold Physiques, and therefore have no use?
The flames of suspicion that had caught fire in his heart now began to give off black smoke.
“When someone searches for a special constitution, is it not usually because they intend to perform some Great Art? It may be a Great Art that should never appear in the world, so our cult is on edge in various ways. Thanks to that, I am the only one being bothered.”
His half-believing, half-doubting heart tilted further. Geom Mugeuk had no reason to lie about something like this. What would the young cult leader of the Demonic Cult lack that he would stay in this freezing North Sea?
“Now, I’ve been honest with you, so tell me honestly everything you know about the Extreme Cold Physique.”
Yang Seok hesitated for a moment, but in the end, he opened his mouth.
“I don’t know the details either. My father only said it was an important matter and had to be handled in secret. Ah, he did say this: that the Extreme Cold Physique would make our sect the foremost sect in the North Sea.”
A chill passed through Hanseol’s heart as she listened. Those words meant they intended to pull down the North Sea Ice Palace. Judging by what they had done so far, their methods would never be righteous.
‘If that is your plan, then you won’t be erased by the Demonic Cult, but by our hands.’
Geom Mugeuk casually offered a solution.
“If you find the Extreme Cold Physique first, the matter will be easily resolved.”
Still acting as though he had no great interest in it, Geom Mugeuk added offhandedly,
“If you find out, be sure to contact me. Either me, or the young palace master here.”
“I will.”
The three of them drank again.
At that moment, Yang Seok was making a decision that would change his fate.
‘Seize the Extreme Cold Physique and get rid of Hagyeol.’
If his father truly intended to make Hagyeol the real successor, then of course he had to kill him. And even if this information wasn’t true, it didn’t matter.
It would simply mean that one subordinate who had been an eyesore would die. If he was right, he would be saving himself; if he was wrong, it would only be the death of one subordinate.
The problem was his father. If he learned that Yang Seok had seized the Extreme Cold Physique and killed Hagyeol, he would not let it go. Then how could he avoid responsibility?
Yang Seok raised his head and looked at Geom Mugeuk.
‘What if the young cult leader of the Demonic Cult seizes the Extreme Cold Physique? What if Hagyeol dies at the young cult leader’s hands?’
He meant to use Geom Mugeuk as the blade for killing with a borrowed knife. Among all the blades belonging to others in the martial world, this was the most terrifying and powerful one.
If that much was merely petty scheming, then he was now entertaining an even more dreadful thought, one he should never have had.
‘What if even Father dies at the hands of the young cult leader of the Demonic Cult?’
Now a blaze was roaring in his heart. It was a flame in which suspicion, rage, and desire were all mixed together.
‘All of this will become your doing. Yes, keep smiling like a fool.’
As if he had truly read his mind, Geom Mugeuk smiled brightly and held out his cup.
“Seeing you, it feels as though the North Blood Gate has opened wide.”
Yang Seok did not understand the meaning behind those words, but Hanseol did. She had said it herself: Ian could open even the gates of hell, so she would try opening the North Blood Gate.
And now Geom Mugeuk was telling her that the gate had opened.
“Now, let us toast to the North Blood Gate!”
Between desire and mourning as they collided, a toast of admiration was added.