“We seem to be meeting quite often.”
A quiet room.
A place where a rather strong fragrance of tea had seeped into the faint, lingering scent of wood.
Inside the meticulously organized room, as if revealing its owner’s personality, an old man was looking at me.
Quiet eyes that resembled the room.
Faint emotions lurking behind his seemingly impassive face gave off a sense of humanity.
Feeling that, I smiled slightly and answered.
“So it seems. At this rate, we might just grow fond of each other.”
“...”
At my words, the old man’s beard trembled faintly.
“Sage King. No, True Dragon Lord.”
The shift in address scratched uncomfortably at my insides.
“Yes. Elder.”
“From now on, please call me Strategist Muk.”
“Strategist Muk.”
Right now, I was facing Mukyeon, a rare strategist of the era who had returned to the Alliance.
Piles of documents upon an organized desk.
Between them, something vaguely resembling a spirit pill could be glimpsed.
*That looks like something from Shaolin.*
It obviously wasn’t the Great Rebirth Pill or the Lesser Rebirth Pill, but it seemed to be a low-grade spirit pill produced by Shaolin.
Even if it was low-grade, its value was absolutely not negligible—an expensive item.
Had they been stacked up like a mountain like that?
Though it appeared he hadn’t taken a single one.
In any case, it was evident that the Alliance was taking considerable care of Mukyeon.
“True Dragon Lord.”
“Yes.”
From amidst such items, Mukyeon spoke to me.
“I take it that it was entirely the Sage King’s wish that this old man did not bother participating in today’s exam to select the True Dragon Corps members. Since you requested to preside over it yourself, I judged it right not to go unnecessarily. But was my judgment perhaps mistaken?”
“No. It was correct.”
“Thank you. Then allow me to ask.”
*Clack.*
Mukyeon took a sip of tea and set the cup down.
In that gap, my gaze lingered on the tea liquor. I breathed in the aroma a little deeper through my nose.
“Why has this situation come to pass?”
“...”
“I heard that the Iron Dragon Lord and an applicant engaged in a duel. They say the Iron Dragon Lord did so to personally verify because the exam process was suspicious. Is that correct?”
“…Yes.”
“Understood. I shall speak with the Iron Dragon Lord in more detail regarding this part. Next.”
*Rustle.*
Mukyeon picked up one of the documents on the desk.
It was the so-called incident report that I had written and submitted myself.
“This concerns the matter of the surprise attack and assault on the Golden Dragon Lord.”
“...”
This was also the reason I was currently meeting with Mukyeon.
“As the Golden Dragon Lord is currently unconscious, neither side’s account can be confirmed. Because of that, all we have to go on are the words of the Golden Dragon Corps’ vice lord, who witnessed the situation, and the True Dragon Lord’s incident report. Thus I ask.”
Mukyeon’s gaze sank in an instant.
Watching that, my Adam’s apple bobbed without my realizing it. He was clearly an old man without a shred of internal energy to show for it, yet how could the atmosphere feel so different simply because his expression had changed?
“Why did you do it?”
I steadied my breathing at the question asked with heavy eyes.
“I believe I have written sufficiently about why.”
I had recorded the entire situation.
Right after I beat the Golden Dragon Lord black and blue, sure enough, the Guardian Corps and other martial artists arrived immediately. I also remembered the gazes of those looking at me and Ssang-ui Hwangeom, who had become a bloody mess.
Eyes filled with wariness.
Even tense movements, worried that I might run rampant.
Ssang-ui Hwangeom was a Flower Realm martial artist and a considerable expert even within the Alliance.
The fact that such a person was beaten by me and lost consciousness was also proof that there would be few who could stop me if I truly set my mind to go on a rampage.
Because of that, everyone was extremely tense, not knowing what to do.
*Arrest me here.*
Instead, I stretched out both arms and requested to be bound.
Because I had known it would come to this anyway, I had no intention of causing a commotion.
“True Dragon Lord.”
“Yes, Strategist Muk.”
“What you mean is, the Golden Dragon Lord tried to falsely claim that Geom Muhui had used trickery in the duel with the Iron Dragon Lord, and tried to spread false rumors that there was an illegal deal between the Iron Dragon Lord and the True Dragon Lord. You mean this is correct.”
*Rustle.*
A document was turned over.
“You are saying that upon hearing that, you could not contain your emotions and resorted to violence?”
“That is correct.”
A clean summary without any superfluous detail.
I had wondered if I would need to add supplementary explanations since I wrote it so roughly, but Mukyeon pinpointed only the necessary parts and finished his judgment.
However.
“I have confirmed everything as written, but the evidence is insufficient.”
This incident report was written solely from my perspective.
As Mukyeon said, its credibility was weak.
On top of that.
“This is an incident where a Great Lord collapsed after being ambushed by another Great Lord. In such a situation, one cannot judge based solely on the perpetrator’s account.”
“I know.”
“Therefore, I shall ask once more.”
Mukyeon placed the document he was holding back down on the desk.
“Why did you do it?”
He threw the same question at me as before.
“…Strategist Muk. As I mentioned earlier.”
“This is not a question about the incident report.”
“Then?”
“True Dragon Lord. Do you know why you are facing me?”
“Because you called for me, Strategist Muk.”
“Correct. Not the suppression unit of the Guardian Corps, nor the suppression unit within the Alliance—in conversing here without shackles, that was purely accomplished by using my authority.”
He had brazenly abused his power.
Yet rather than shameless, Mukyeon looked resolute as he mentioned it.
“Originally, this interview should have been conducted by the Guardian Corps, not me. But I arranged this place because I truly wished to ask.”
“Should I be thanking you?”
“There is no need.”
“Understood.”
“That his words were problematic, so you assaulted him… This part strikes me as strange.”
“If you cannot believe me, then place a binding seal on me. Even so, my words will not change.”
“In the Alliance, placing a binding seal on a Great Lord is forbidden.”
“…Is that so?”
Was there such a rule?
I thought it was a truly useless regulation. Why didn’t they use it?
*If they just placed one of those, how easy would it be to find traitors. Tsk, tsk.*
No wonder the maggots inside were overflowing.
“Then, you don’t believe my words… and there’s no evidence. What is it you want to do?”
“Ah, it is not that I cannot believe you.”
“Yes?”
“As I keep saying, I merely have doubts. How the True Dragon Lord came to make such a choice… that is what I mean.”
“It’s a statement I don’t quite understand. Regarding my choice as well, everything is in the incident report—”
“Because from what I have seen, the Lord does not seem to be such an emotional person.”
I flinched. I paused for a moment at Mukyeon’s words. But I had to add something immediately.
“You are mistaken about me, Strategist. I am a very fiery person.”
“Yes, that is how you appear to me as well.”
What…?
“You are a blazing flame. A fierce fire that would burn away anything in its path. However.”
Mukyeon’s gaze was still heavy and impassive. That was even more burdensome.
“You are a flame that knows when to blaze.”
“That’s an interesting thing to say. What kind of flame knows when to blaze?”
I could not relate to those words.
Flames are a calamity.
Because they cannot choose between dying out or blazing on their own, they are called disasters and calamities.
A flame that knows when to blaze? Such a contradictory statement.
“That is precisely why it is more terrifying. How frightening is a flame that knows when it must burn?”
“…So. Are you saying that in Strategist Muk’s eyes, I am such a frightening man?”
“Well. I cannot say I am certain of that much.”
*Rustle.* Mukyeon grabbed one of the spirit pills before him and peeled off its shell.
He put it straight into his mouth and chewed. A fragrant aroma instantly spread through the surroundings.
“Someone who, if they wanted to be frightening, could become as frightening as they wished. And. Someone who would never ruin things thoughtlessly. That is the True Dragon Lord I see.”
“You are giving an excessive evaluation to a reckless, thoughtless man.”
“Then that would be my mistake. However, the Lord I see is such a person, and such a Lord does not seem like someone who would create this situation without any thought.”
“That is why I was curious. The problems that would arise from clashing with a Great Lord within the Alliance—the True Dragon Lord could not have failed to consider them.”
Though he was spitting out his personal thoughts, Mukyeon’s voice was brimming with certainty.
The more I listened, the more ambiguous it became to react in any way.
“…There is no such thing as an overestimation like this. What do you take me for?”
It seemed he was attaching countless layers of meaning to something I had simply done because I was angry.
As Mukyeon said, that was the case.
At first, I had actually expected to be thrown into an interrogation room and interviewed by the Guardian Corps.
Ah, of course, naturally…
*I had intended to use some tricks to get here from there.*
I had not expected to end up at Mukyeon’s location instead of going straight to the interrogation room.
“I understand what you mean, Strategist, but as you said, I am not that deep a thinker.”
“Is that so? That is truly a shame.”
It was a tone that didn’t believe me in the slightest.
Damn it.
Why the hell was he doing this to me?
Usually, the people who approached me could be divided into two types. One of them was:
*Humans who nitpick because they don’t like whatever I do.*
Most of the lacking bastards like Ssang-ui Hwangeom or the Dao King, whom I had just beaten, were like that.
If not that:
*Humans who have strange expectations even though I haven’t done anything.*
There were also those who needlessly repeated such overestimations. Mukyeon before me seemed to belong to this side.
If I had to say, he belonged to the more annoying side.
Because he was overestimating me, he wouldn’t let his guard down. These kinds of people, unable to be sure themselves if their assessment was correct, would resort to countless schemes to confirm their expectations.
There were no gentlemen as bothersome as this.
This time was no different.
“If you say you have no such intention, I understand. Regarding the situation as well. I plan to decide the disciplinary action after hearing from the main parties, the Golden Dragon Lord and the vice lord.”
Even with disbelieving eyes, his words were to the contrary.
Within his lowered pupils, he reflected nothing but me.
“However. Even if what you said is true. This is manifestly nothing more than an assault that violates the rules. Please keep that in mind.”
“I am aware.”
“Depending on the situation, this could even lead to stripping of your position… but as you know, the current Martial Alliance is in a situation where it needs the True Dragon Lord. It likely will not go that far.”
“Yes.”
I knew well, as Mukyeon said.
That was also part of why I had done it.
“If there is something I wish to push for. Among the conditions you put forth to take your seat.”
*Swish.*
Mukyeon passed the document toward me as he spoke. When I received it, it was a contract I had written up previously.
“The part about receiving the right to support from two of the Alliance’s Sword Corps seems like it needs to be amended. Is that alright?”
“…Haha.”
I let out a hollow laugh upon seeing it.
That he would bring up conditions because of the trouble I caused. Was it because that was absurd? No.
*This old man…?*
It was because he was rather amazing. A laugh mixed with admiration.
“How did you know?”
At my words, Mukyeon smiled slightly.