The instant the Assassin King saw the evil spirits, he knew.
‘It is the Heavenly Demon’s martial art!’
For there could be only one martial art that summoned such terrifying evil spirits.
Seeing with his own eyes the Heavenly Demon’s martial art, of which he had only ever heard rumors, the pressure it exuded was anything but ordinary. Merely looking at it was enough to make one’s fighting spirit wither.
If even the Assassin King felt so, what of the assassins charging alongside him?
Their bodies were still moving, but they had already lost the will to fight. Some of them slowed, while others came to a halt where they stood.
They were seasoned assassins who had been through every sort of hardship, yet the moment they saw the evil spirits of the Guhwa Demonic Art for the first time, their hearts froze solid.
Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwak!
The assassins resisted in their own ways.
Some thrust out daggers, while others unleashed hidden weapons. Some raised protective astral qi, and others sent sword qi flying.
But none of it was any use.
Neither attacks nor protective astral qi worked. The swords they thrust out could not even scratch the evil spirits.
The assassins who leapt up to evade them were dragged back down by invisible demonic qi. With their level of skill, it was a move they could not avoid by any means.
Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud-thud-thud-thud-thud!
Shattered, split apart, crushed. The evil spirits swept through, destroying everything in their path.
The only one left was the Assassin King, who had been charging straight toward Hwi.
The Assassin King’s heart pounded as if it would burst. It was the first time since the battle had begun that he had shown tension.
What if an evil spirit had also been in Hwi’s position and had come crashing toward him? Would he truly have been able to block it?
Chaaang!
After one clash, Hwi and the Assassin King retreated.
The two looked around.
The assassins had been reduced to unrecognizable blood and gore.
Hwi raised his sword toward that blood and paid his respects with solemn courtesy. It was not courtesy toward the dead.
It was courtesy toward the Guhwa Demonic Art.
Hwi was deeply moved. Whenever the Heavenly Demon trained in martial arts, he had always left or turned his back, never once watching. On the rare occasions he happened to see the Guhwa Demonic Art being unleashed, he always paid his respects.
Yet now, he had charged alongside that very Guhwa Demonic Art. To his great honor, that Guhwa Demonic Art had saved his life.
Could there be any moment more moving than this when it came to martial arts? He could say with certainty that there was not.
The Assassin King, meanwhile, looked around with eyes that had already sunk into calm. He felt no regret over the deaths of his subordinates. Only a cold wind blew through his empty heart.
Hwi turned to look at Geom Mugeuk.
In this situation, what need was there for words? At Hwi’s gaze, which conveyed his gratitude, Geom Mugeuk gave a single nod.
‘I am the one who is grateful, sir.’
For Geom Mugeuk had more gratitude and respect than anyone for Hwi, who always protected his father.
After exchanging that greeting with Hwi, Geom Mugeuk provoked the Assassin King again.
“I understand. Assassins are cowards by nature, aren’t they?”
It was a taunt mocking him for joining forces with the other assassins. Geom Mugeuk tried to touch his emotions, but it did not work on the Assassin King.
Then Myeongsin spoke.
“He is a man without emotion.”
At those words, the Assassin King looked at Myeongsin. At least toward Myeongsin, there was some lingering sediment of emotion in his eyes.
Geom Mugeuk stepped between those gazes.
“A person ought to speak. If you dislike something, say you dislike it. If you hate someone, say you hate them. How am I supposed to know what is in your heart if you only stare like that?”
At that, the Assassin King opened his mouth.
“What is there for us to say to each other?”
“I have many questions for you.”
The Assassin King waited for Geom Mugeuk to speak.
“What did you receive as my commission fee? Were you truly promised the position of Ruler of the Night?”
Geom Mugeuk had teased the Assassin King with that before, but he thought there might perhaps be another reason.
The Assassin King, however, did not answer.
“It is principle not to speak of commissions.”
Geom Mugeuk could sense it. In the Assassin King’s mind, there was only the thought that he had to complete this killing mission successfully, no matter what.
When the Assassin King sent a signal, the assassins revealed themselves all at once.
They walked out from alleys and appeared atop rooftops. The assassins hidden here and there numbered in the dozens.
“So many gathered just to kill me.”
All of them were skilled and successful assassins. In particular, mixed in among them were truly terrifying assassins classified as top-grade. They were concealing their identities as much as possible, but on this side, there was Myeongsin.
—Of the two on the left rooftop, the one on the right. The entrance to the alley on the right. The bearded one in the center…
He informed Geom Mugeuk by sound transmission of the top-grade assassins he knew.
—Are you worried I might die?
—Only if you live will my betrayal have any meaning.
Now that he knew Myeongbu had annihilated his family, there was no need to call it betrayal, but because it was a place where he had stayed for so long, the words slipped out without him realizing it.
—Do not think of it as betrayal. It is work for them, and it is work for you too, is it not?
—Work?
—You commissioned it yourself, didn’t you? You and they are both simply doing your jobs.
A faint smile formed on Myeongsin’s lips.
Even in this situation, Geom Mugeuk was looking after his heart. Those words Geom Mugeuk had thrown out were certainly a comfort.
Geom Mugeuk looked at the Assassin King and the assassins, then drew his sword.
“You are right. What need is there for words between us?”
Then Hwi took one step forward toward the Assassin King.
Hwi’s back seemed to say:
Leave the Assassin King to me until the very end. This fight is mine.
‘I understand, sir. But be careful!’
The Assassin King looked at Hwi with transparent eyes.
Just as with Hwi, at this moment, only Hwi was reflected in the Assassin King’s eyes.
The Assassin King knew.
The greatest obstacle in this commission was not Geom Mugeuk, who had learned the Guhwa Demonic Art, but this man, Hwi.
For assassins, it was not a problem if an opponent’s martial arts were strong.
No matter how powerful someone’s martial arts were, assassins were those who somehow found a weakness and killed them.
But that did not work on this guard of the Demonic Cult Leader.
Because he was the one who compensated for those weaknesses.
As if by unspoken agreement, Hwi and the Assassin King charged at each other and clashed.
With sharp metallic sounds, countless sword-lines came into being.
They were no ordinary lines. Lines containing a lifetime of training were drawn and drawn again toward the opponent’s life.
When the two began their fight, Geom Mugeuk was also charging toward the assassins.
If the ordinary assassins and top-grade assassins were dogs and wolves, then Geom Mugeuk was a massive tiger.
Among the assassins were those who had considered themselves reapers who governed life and death.
And now was the moment they met the true reaper.
Geom Mugeuk charged at his opponent and used Dark Shadow Step, vanishing from sight in an instant.
When the startled assassin turned his head to the left to find Geom Mugeuk’s position, what he saw was not the left, but the sky. His head lolled. Geom Mugeuk’s sword had already cut deep into his neck.
At that moment, a sword flew toward Geom Mugeuk.
It belonged to the fastest swordsman among Myeongbu’s assassins.
‘Got him!’
His blade had already reached Geom Mugeuk’s neck.
Puuuk!
But before that, Geom Mugeuk’s sword split his heart.
‘Why?’
Even as he died, he could not understand. His opponent had reacted far later, so why?
But for the assassins, was that the only incomprehensible thing?
Geom Mugeuk stabbed another assassin through the heart and then the neck in succession, using him as a shield as he pressed forward.
The assassin behind him had his throat pierced by a sword that flew out from behind the corpse.
Shwik! Shwik!
Swords flew in from left and right. The incoming blades passed by Geom Mugeuk’s body by a hair’s breadth.
Inward sighs rose.
‘So close.’
It was so close that one might think at first glance that there was hardly any difference in skill, but in fact, this was a situation that could only be staged because the difference in skill was overwhelming.
To dodge by a hair’s breadth meant that he was fighting with absolute efficiency.
Shiiiiii.
Slice! Slice!
Geom Mugeuk, gliding forward with Flash Step, swept his sword through the assassins standing on both sides. In the very instant of a flash, the assassins collapsed.
Even more astonishing was the fact that Geom Mugeuk was paying attention to Hwi’s fight while fighting like this.
From the fleeting glimpses of Hwi’s and the Assassin King’s movements, from the sounds of sword and dagger colliding, he was grasping how their battle was unfolding.
On top of that, Geom Mugeuk was even keeping an eye on Myeongsin.
Myeongsin was fighting well. He used every secret technique he possessed to face the assassins.
He also made use of the devices he had created. The hidden weapon he threw exploded, killing the assassins around it. He understood the minds of assassins better than anyone.
Of course, the assassins did not simply let themselves be taken down. They used every kind of hidden weapon. Blades sprang from their shoes, and hidden weapons coated in deadly poison flew in all directions.
In the midst of that melee, Myeongsin sensed an attack flying at him from behind and fell into despair.
‘Too late!’
It was an attack from a top-grade assassin brought in from outside. Since he knew nothing about him, he had not expected him to strike from behind so quickly.
‘I’ll give up my shoulder.’
Just as Myeongsin twisted his body to at least avoid instant death—
Shiiiiing!
Something passed by his face with a tremendous gust of wind.
Puuuk!
The thing that pierced through the neck of the assassin rushing in from behind was Geom Mugeuk’s Black Demon Sword.
Myeongsin had no leisure to express his gratitude. Assassins swarmed toward both of them like bees.
In particular, when the sword disappeared from Geom Mugeuk’s hand, they thought this was their chance.
But there was also an opportunity for Geom Mugeuk. An opportunity to try out a martial art in real combat.
Avoiding an incoming sword, Geom Mugeuk thrust out his fist.
Thud!
The assassin whose ribs were shattered flew far away and rolled across the ground.
Kwa-rururung!
Thunder roared from his fist. It was the Fist Demon’s Thunderclap Asura Fist.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
He lightly avoided the incoming swords and drove out his fists.
The assassins’ jaws shattered, and their internal organs burst apart. What awaited them was a death even more painful than being killed by a sword.
Overwhelmed by that momentum, the assassins stopped attacking for a moment.
Geom Mugeuk extended his hand toward one side.
Whiiiik.
Then the Black Demon Sword embedded in a corpse was pulled free and rose into the air.
Fear flooded the hearts of several assassins watching the sight.
They had lived believing death always belonged to their opponents.
But now, it felt as though death had risen into the air and was watching them. That death crossed the sky and entered Geom Mugeuk’s hand.
Of course, that did not mean the assassins simply retreated. They fought desperately to kill Geom Mugeuk and Myeongsin.
Sword qi poured down on Geom Mugeuk. A net of steel spread out, and hidden weapons coated in poison flew. They poured out every technique and every assassination skill they had learned.
But it did not work.
Where on earth was there a place to dodge? There was space to dodge.
How could one possibly counterattack in that situation? Geom Mugeuk did.
He found a direction that should never have existed, matched the angle, and controlled the speed.
Puaaak!
And so even the last assassin collapsed, spraying blood.
Geom Mugeuk was already drenched in blood, so he did not avoid the blood that rained down.
As always, Geom Mugeuk did not spare the dead even a single glance.
Myeongsin watched him in silence.
This was not the Geom Mugeuk he had seen until now. The man before him did not feel like the talkative, joke-loving Young Cult Leader, but like a lonely war god who had survived alone on a battlefield.
‘This is the Young Cult Leader’s true form.’
Then Myeongsin’s eyes met Geom Mugeuk’s.
The two eyes of Geom Mugeuk, which had so perfectly suited the word loneliness, filled with a bright smile.
It was the moment he returned once more to the bright Geom Mugeuk.
“You survived.”
At Geom Mugeuk’s words, Myeongsin nodded and said,
“I still have to finish the commission.”
Their gazes intertwined in midair.
But now was not the time to share their feelings.
The two looked toward where Hwi and the Assassin King were fighting.
Their battle, too, was nearing its end.
And that end was utterly still.
Neither the Assassin King nor Hwi could be seen. They were fighting while concealed.
An assassin’s concealment and a guard warrior’s concealment.
It was the final choice of two men who took pride in their stealth.
In empty space, only the blades of a sword and a dagger flashed.
Clang! Claang!
Sparks flew in midair. The dagger and sword that appeared in an instant vanished again.
Shwik! Paat!
Each time a blade flashed, someone’s blood scattered.
They sensed beings who did not even breathe, and cut them down.
It was truly a duel between those who possessed the utmost mastery of concealment arts.
Everything they had was at work in this fight.
Innate talent, instinct, all the effort they had put in until now, their state of mind, even luck.
Surely, one of them possessed the greater sum of it all.
Slice! Paaak!
Once again, the sound of flesh being cut rang out, and blood burst into the air. Judging by the amount of blood, the wound this time was deeper than before.
Paaak!
At the same time, blood burst from the other side as well.
Neither of them allowed an attack without answer. If one was cut, the other cut back.
Blood sprayed, and sprayed again.
Because neither man let out so much as a single scream, Geom Mugeuk and Myeongsin could not tell who was suffering the deeper wounds.
‘Uncle!’
Now that the fight had become a battle of concealment arts, it was not easy for him to intervene.
If he interfered carelessly, Hwi might be the one to suffer for it.
In a situation where Hwi was concentrating to the utmost, he himself would be the greatest variable that could disturb Hwi’s focus.
Cut, and cut again. Hide, and reveal. Sense, and sense again. Give up flesh to aim for bone. And hide once more.
Just as that suffocating fight continued on and on—
Shiiiiing.
Shwaaaang.
Two sounds of blade wind, different from anything before, rang out.
And the sound that followed was not merely the sound of flesh being cut as it had been until now. It was the sound of flesh and bone being pierced through.
Puuuuuk!
Silence fell over the place.
Drip, drip.
Blood flowed down from empty air.
From that place, the concealment began to unravel, and a figure started to appear.
A man slowly revealed himself.
Blood was flowing from his pierced heart.
Now, the figure of the one who had stabbed him also slowly appeared.
Blood running down the blade, the hand gripping its hilt, the outstretched arm, and then the man who had fought with everything he had—Hwi—revealed himself.
Geom Mugeuk let out a deep sigh of relief and looked up at the sky.
‘Thank you. Truly, thank you.’
He did not know how many times he had regretted it while watching the fight. I should have come alone. I should have found some excuse, any excuse, and come alone.
Because his heart had been wound so tight, Geom Mugeuk now felt so overjoyed that he wanted to shout.
Geom Mugeuk thought that perhaps this was what had decided the match.
It likely did not matter whose concealment art was the higher art, or whose was more refined.
What determined victory and defeat was that Hwi had lived concealed for far longer than the Assassin King.
Because Hwi had silently lived his entire life in concealment, protecting his father.
Because Hwi’s concealment was not martial arts, but his life itself.
In the end, had it not been Hwi’s devotion that killed the Assassin King?
Blood gushed from the Assassin King’s mouth.
When he had first begun this affair, the Assassin King had never imagined a death like this. If he died, he had thought it would be by the Demonic Cult Leader or that Young Cult Leader.
For the first time, emotion appeared on the Assassin King’s face. Anger and irritation. Though he said nothing, his expression seemed to say this:
—To think I would die to a mere bodyguard, of all people.
Hwi had shown him. He had shown just how well a man who knew how to protect could kill, once he set his mind to it.
Looking into the Assassin King’s clear eyes as the life faded from them, Hwi spoke calmly. Perhaps his words represented the hearts of all bodyguards.
“It’s just that we chose a life of protecting.”
Absolute Regression, Chapter 492