All eyes were focused on Bisain.
Since Bisain, who usually went about in black robes, had donned white robes for the first time, gazes were naturally drawn to him.
As he walked over, Bisain desperately avoided Geom Mugeuk's eyes.
He had expected to be teased about his attire as soon as he sat down.
Geom Mugeuk filled his wine cup and spoke.
“My savior, have a drink.”
Bisain looked at Geom Mugeuk with suspicious eyes.
‘I can't let my guard down!’
It was Geom Mugeuk, after all—who knew when and how he might fluster him.
Without revealing such inner thoughts, Bisain expressed his gratitude as well.
“Thanks to you, I protected my reputation.”
Originally, those bastards had tried to use Bisain to eliminate the Lady of Thousand Flower Tower. If Geom Mugeuk hadn't intervened, their fates would have become far more entangled.
Just then, the Lady of Thousand Flower Tower, bringing the dishes herself, spoke with a bright smile.
“Not to mention, you saved all the lives of Thousand Flower Tower.”
She set the food on the table. Today's spread was truly a feast that the word *sumptuous* could not do justice. All manner of mountain-and-sea delicacies and fine wine had been prepared.
“Oh, and I've also prepared alcohol and dishes separately for the martial artists.”
Even though she hadn't been asked beforehand, she had prepared separate seating for those keeping watch outside.
Worried they might feel uncomfortable, she had arranged tables in the corners of the pavilion for the righteous, the heterodox, and the demonic factions respectively, so there would be no chance of them coming into conflict.
“Thank you truly for your consideration.”
The Lady of Thousand Flower Tower looked at Geom Mugeuk.
“You saved me in the past, and now you've saved me again.”
At that, Geom Mugeuk looked around at his friends seated at the table and spoke calmly.
“I would love to take undeserved credit before our Tower Lady, but this time, it was accomplished by all three factions—the demonic, the righteous, and the heterodox—joining hands. It is the moment when the trilateral gathering at the pleasure house finally bore fruit.”
It was a historic day when the righteous, the heterodox, and the demonic had joined hands to face a single enemy. And they had done so not through the cult leaders and alliance leaders, but through the power of their successors.
The Lady of Thousand Flower Tower bowed her head politely to the others as well, conveying her gratitude. She offered a particular smile to Jin Ha-ryeong, who had protected her.
“Then please enjoy yourselves.”
Once she excused herself and withdrew, Geom Mugeuk filled everyone's cups.
“Now, a toast in honor of our reunion.”
Geom Mugeuk raised his cup, and everyone drank.
“Today, let's drink and enjoy to our heart's content. Until this drinking session ends, forget all about enemies and schemes! Forget which faction we belong to. Let's just talk about first loves and idle nonsense and have fun!”
Everyone drained their cups in one go.
A sheepish transmission flew from Bisain.
—Don't get the wrong idea.
—What wrong idea?
—The fact that I'm wearing white robes is purely coincidental. I simply changed into whatever was at hand.
Geom Mugeuk stared at Bisain, then made a disappointed expression.
—Why?
—Did you comb your hair yourself?
Bisain flinched, then spoke firmly.
—I didn't!
Soon after, Bisain asked coyly.
—...Does it look strange?
Geom Mugeuk forced back a laugh and drank. Here was a man who had arrived late yet had still taken the time to comb his hair. Despite that fearsome face, despite being the terrifying Young Leader of the Heretical Alliance, he was still a young man in the spring of his youth.
—Now that I look again, I suppose it looks fine.
—Anyway, don't get the wrong idea.
If Han Seol hadn't been to his liking, there was no way he would have come out wearing white robes. Not to mention combing his hair? This wasn't just being pleased with a first impression; was it not love at first sight?
Geom Mugeuk was about to drink again when he flinched in surprise. Bisain was glaring at him fiercely.
—Try teasing me! It'll spark an all-out war that very day.
—I didn't say anything.
—I warned you!
Of course, the warning was ineffective. Just as Geom Mugeuk was beaming, pondering how to tease him so well that word would spread—
“White seems to suit you better.”
Everyone's gaze turned toward the speaker.
—Huh? I didn't see that coming.
Bisain didn't even hear Geom Mugeuk's transmission. The one who had spoken was, surprisingly, Han Seol.
She looked at Bisain and spoke.
“You suit it better than the black robes you wore yesterday.”
Bisain's face flushed slightly, his pupils widening.
At a loss for words, he simply sat there blankly.
—Quick, say thank you!
At Geom Mugeuk's transmission, Bisain clasped his hands respectfully and answered her.
“Thank you for your kind words.”
“I was merely expressing my feelings.”
Bisain sent another transmission to Geom Mugeuk.
—You put her up to this, didn't you? To tease me.
His voice was trembling, though he hadn't shaken even when fighting powerful enemies.
—I told you, I'm not that close with Lady Han.
Geom Mugeuk looked at Han Seol with renewed interest. When he had seen her before, she had given the impression of being very closed off in her relationships. She felt somewhat different now.
Perhaps finding the attention focused on her burdensome, she added to her previous words.
“Most people in our palace wear white robes, so we know who white robes suit and who they don't.”
Geom Mugeuk seized upon her words. He couldn't let this golden opportunity slip by.
“Since the subject has come up, could you offer our Young Leader a word of advice on how to wear white robes?”
Han Seol looked at Bisain. At that, Bisain's face grew even redder.
“How could I offer such advice?”
When she politely declined, Geom Mugeuk persuaded her.
“You know, don't you? For people like us, this may be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to hear such words. If you don't tell him, Young Leader Bi will wear nothing but dreary black robes his whole life.”
Unable to refuse after he had gone that far, she looked at Bisain for a moment, then spoke calmly.
“You have a strong impression, so you probably wear martial uniforms of intense colors like black or red. But doing so only emphasizes your impression further. Even if not white robes, if you were to wear clothes of bright, warm colors, you would seem much gentler.”
Bisain was speechless for a moment. It was the first time in his life he had heard advice to wear martial robes of warm colors.
Not even once had he thought such robes would suit him—no, he had never even considered wearing them in the first place.
Bisain lowered his head slightly to her and spoke.
“Thank you for your words.”
Han Seol lowered her head slightly as well.
The Twin Swords of Hanbing, seated a short distance from her, exchanged glances. They hadn't known the Young Palace Lady had such a side to her. She had usually been one to simply listen.
—The Palace Lord would be surprised to hear this.
—He wouldn't believe it.
They felt that this was a side of her that the Palace Lord knew nothing about either.
Geom Mugeuk raised his cup again.
“Now, to our Young Leader's splendid martial robes!”
Everyone emptied their cups again.
Setting down his cup, Geom Mugeuk asked Han Seol.
“Lady Han, what is your ideal type?”
At the sudden question, Han Seol wore a surprised expression. Bisain, sitting beside her, glared at Geom Mugeuk.
—Didn't I tell you not to!
Geom Mugeuk continued talking with her, pretending not to notice.
“Why are you so surprised?”
“It's the first time I've been asked that.”
Indeed. Who would have asked the Young Palace Lady of the Ice Palace about her ideal type?
“Why do you ask?”
“Isn't it acceptable for friends to ask that much?”
At the word “friends,” Han Seol's clear eyes shone even brighter.
She seemed to contemplate for a moment.
“I like dependable men. The fewer words, the better.”
“How cruel!”
The quick-witted Jin Ha-ryeong sent a transmission to Geom Mugeuk.
—The Young Leader wearing white robes—that was your doing, wasn't it?
He wouldn't have shown up to a gathering like this wearing white robes out of nowhere. There had also been a subtle current flowing at the drinking table.
—It was.
—Trying to set the two of them up?
Even without resorting to a woman's intuition, she knew Geom Mugeuk well enough to guess.
—I think they'd suit each other well.
Hearing that, Jin Ha-ryeong looked at her older brother.
‘What about our brother!’
She was worried he might feel hurt knowing Geom Mugeuk was only looking after Bisain.
Because she knew better than anyone how much she thought of Geom Mugeuk, she had such worries.
—Look after our brother a little too.
—Jin Daeju is your responsibility. You're the one leading the gatherings of the rising stars. You've met hundreds of martial heroines, haven't you?
Jin Ha-ryeong flinched for a moment. Even if not hundreds, she had met many fine martial heroines.
Come to think of it, she had never resolved to find a suitable woman for her older brother.
He would become the Alliance Leader; she had vaguely thought he would meet a better martial heroine later. Honestly, she simply hadn't cared.
Having done so, she couldn't very well ask Geom Mugeuk why he didn't show her brother the same consideration.
She reflected sincerely. Even if they were friends, he was still a man, and a man was showing such care like that.
Jin Ha-ryeong looked at her older brother. What had happened at the Jinbeop? She had felt him grow more pensive after that. Yes, with how busy and difficult things were, when would he have time to court a woman?
‘Yes, I'll find one for you, brother!’
Geom Mugeuk led the atmosphere of the drinking table with various stories while exchanging transmissions with Bisain.
—Don't just sit there drinking; ask Lady Han something too.
—Thank you for the thought, but there's no need.
Honestly, Bisain had liked Han Seol from the first impression. Based on appearance alone, she was his ideal type.
—It's impossible anyway. How could the Ice Palace and the Heretical Alliance ever be connected?
Though the Ice Palace belonged to the mysterious forces beyond the central plains, it was a sect close to the righteous faction.
—Did you and I become friends because we were from compatible factions?
Geom Mugeuk refilled Bisain's empty cup.
—And if it doesn't work, it'll be because of your face, not because of the Ice Palace and the Heretical Alliance. How could it be because of the sects?
Bisain had been about to flare up but let out a hollow laugh instead.
—True enough.
—Conversely, it might work because of your face.
—What do you mean?
—Didn't I tell you before? Your smile is handsome. A woman who thinks like me would fall for that face.
—Nonsense!
He truly thought it nonsense. Even he could see that he looked truly fearsome and fierce.
—If she had no interest at all, she wouldn't have told you earlier that white suits you.
Bisain tilted his cup again.
—If we part ways this time, who knows when we'll meet again.
—I know your game. You want me to confess so you can tease me when I'm rejected?
—Of course, I'm not entirely without such thoughts, but why would I want to watch you ruin this fine drinking session in anger?
Bisain knew he ought not let it pass, yet he let it pass once more.
—Then why are you doing this?
—The martial world is fine, the Heretical Alliance is fine, all of it is fine. But we are also young, aren't we?
—!
These youths did not yet know. How quickly time flowed, and how soon one reached the final destination of life.
—You might remember Lady Han later, but won't you forget what this excitement felt like?
Bisain stared at Geom Mugeuk. He'd never even lived that long, yet he could say such things.
—Have courage. You're the one who even danced before all those people.
Bisain eventually laughed. At least when he recalled that incident, he had no regrets.
—If rejected, I won't even piss toward the Northern Sea! If war breaks out, I'll storm the Northern Sea Ice Palace first! At that time, our cult will come too!
In truth, there was a temptation far stronger than these playful empty words.
That he had never suffered losses or regrets from listening to Geom Mugeuk until now.
Of course, that didn't mean he intended to reveal his feelings to Han Seol. Even if he regretted it later. The memory of Geom Mugeuk persuading him like this was enough. Later, Geom Mugeuk would tease him. Saying, “See, you should have listened to me.” Yes, he might regret it.
But Geom Mugeuk was not a man to give up.
—The night is still young. Now, shall we liven up the mood?
Geom Mugeuk sprang to his feet.
“We weren't the only ones who fought last night.”
Geom Mugeuk's gaze turned toward the Sado Sipsam-rang and the Demon Annihilation Squad standing guard everywhere, and further to the Faceless Guests perched on the far wall.
“We fought together, so we must drink together. At least for today.”
Geom Mugeuk extended his hand, exerting his Vacuum Grasp.
Srrrrk.
He drew the tables and chairs prepared in each corner into one place. The tables laden with food moved quickly, yet not a drop of wine was spilled, and though countless chairs moved, no sound was made.
“Let's all gather and drink together today. Let's share drinks with one another and toast. We don't need perimeter watch today. If they couldn't defeat us sober, how could they defeat us drunk?”
At those words, some martial artists laughed. But they couldn't simply be drinking when the Young Leader and the Demon Annihilation Leader were present.
Then a voice rang out.
“Today, we will protect Thousand Flower Tower.”
Turning around, Geukak Soma was standing at the entrance. Behind him, the Faceless Guests lined up.
Jin Ha-gun and Bisain were surprised and bewildered.
They hadn't been able to drink with Geukak Soma and the Faceless Guests anyway. But even so, they hadn't expected Geukak Soma to say he would protect them.
Geom Mugeuk spoke with a smile.
“Would you do that?”
Geukak Soma smiled from behind his mask.
“Drink to your heart's content today.”
Geom Mugeuk looked at Jin Ha-gun and Bisain. With Geom Mugeuk stepping forward, and even Geukak Soma coming forth, there was no need to hesitate further.
The two nodded and called all their subordinates inside.
“Now, drink comfortably today! That is an order!”
The people of Thousand Flower Tower rushed about with alcohol and food.
The Sado Sipsam-rang and the Demon Annihilation Squad sat together. They had carried out operations together before, so their relationship wasn't particularly awkward.
Geom Mugeuk went around pouring wine for everyone.
“Now, drink comfortably today. Put down all your worries and concerns, and celebrate that we survived, at least for today!”
Raucous sounds were heard from inside.
Before long, Geukak Soma was standing atop the highest roof of Thousand Flower Tower, arms crossed.
Below him, the Faceless Guests were scattered across the roofs and walls, standing or crouching as they kept watch on the surroundings.
Moonlight shone through a hole in the broken wall.
Through that hole, the figure of Geom Mugeuk was visible, raising his wine cup high and shouting a toast.
Today, it was not the sword at his waist but the wine cup raised together that shone in the moonlight.