Chapter 53

Chapter 53

Generally, among the Murim Alliance’s martial force members, many become romantically involved with martial artists of the opposite sex within their unit.

It might actually be natural. Being in the same martial force ultimately means entrusting your lives to each other, and in this world, relationships where you fight entrusting your lives to each other are at most only two types: comrades-in-arms and lovers.

You protect your comrades even at the risk of death. What sprouts then is friendship, and if not friendship, then affection. That’s why martial force members who were close tended to develop intimate relationships quite often.

If such a couple went on a mission together, sometimes they’d feel their hearts flutter as if enjoying a secret rendezvous.

Yes.

That day, Gwang Yeon was the same.

-Gwak Cheong, how much time do you have left in your martial force duty assignment period?

-Are you asking about me? About half a year…….

-Is that so. Then for this mission, Gwak Cheong and Gwang Yeon, you two will go. Understand?

-Pardon? Just the two of us…… you mean?

-Yes. Information says unidentified murders keep occurring in the village. I don’t know if it’s a demonic cultivator or just a pleasure killer, or the work of yokai, but judging by the targeted prey, the matter doesn’t seem serious. Two should be enough. Well, if you need more manpower, I’ll reinforce you.

-It’s, it’s fine.

-Well, do your best. I’ll turn a blind eye for the next half year. Make it happen decisively.

-Thank you. Corps Commander !

He thought it would be an easy mission. In fact, the indicators showed it was an easy mission.

Three victims. No matter how small the number, you shouldn’t take casualties lightly, but even herb gatherers dragged off by tigers in the mountains number more than that, so if you judge the severity, it was a light matter.

So he went out with the intention of enjoying a rendezvous and that day.

-No, no……! Gwak Cheong. I didn’t mean to……!

Gwang Yeon……it’s not your fault……

Gwang Yeon, caught by a yokai’s illusion art, stabbed his own lover to death.

With his own hands. Directly.

“Br, Branch Chief!”

Seugeuk-!!!

“……Kkeolleok.”

At the sight of the long claw that emerged piercing through his belly, Gwang Yeon reflexively cut behind himself and coughed up a handful of blood while looking at the yokai that had already pulled out its claw and stood far away. Blood that gurgled and continued flowing from his abdomen.

At that sight, Gwang Yeon, who unconsciously felt doubt, stared at the yokai hideously extending its claws.

‘How, why?’

He hadn’t sensed the attack. He hadn’t even sensed killing intent. Even until the moment his belly was pierced.

It was strange. No matter how much he’d retired from the front lines, wasn’t he someone who had risen to the position of Murim Alliance Branch Chief?

No matter how famous a great yokai the opponent was, not being able to even react didn’t make sense. Even if rotten, he was still decent—Gwang Yeon was a martial artist who even had an alias .

‘……At minimum, a fatal wound.’

The deed was already done. If he couldn’t find something from that moment right now, from now on it was time to think not about ‘why’ but ‘how.’

Gwang Yeon, who finished his judgment quickly, spoke while grabbing his sword hilt with trembling hands and drawing his blade.

“Run…… run away.”

“But your wound!”

“Already, it’s done. Judge…… calmly. Take your fellow trainees and withdraw from the battlefield. Right now. This is an order.”

The yokai flinched and stepped back making a growling sound as it felt intimidated by the sharp light of the raised blade. The appearance of it sensing Gwang Yeon’s internal energy and being on guard.

Gwang Yeon, who confirmed that appearance, spoke quietly without giving his gaze to the rear.

“I know…… you’re strong. I’ve seen and confirmed it.”

When the Muryeongwan trainees first joined and drove the yokai from behind.

Gwang Yeon was shocked and even thought about taking the risk to cross through the center of the Hundred Demons Night Parade right away. That made sense because the Muryeongwan trainees that Gwang Yeon knew were ultimately just greenhorns.

Greenhorns experiencing real combat, slaughter battles, battlefields for the first time often couldn’t bring out even thirty percent of their ability no matter how advanced their martial arts. Right now, the battlefield’s situation changed in the blink of an eye, yet they hesitated to kill opponents and fell into fear, making useless movements.

So he thought the Muryeongwan trainees would be the same.

That expectation was spectacularly overturned.

“You’re already at a level where you could be a martial force member without any problem. Setting aside martial arts, in the sense that you don’t hesitate even while trembling…… that’s right.”

“But this case is different. Confronting that creature is beyond your hands.”

Gwang Yeon, who had fought yokai for a long time, could confirm a yokai’s strength to some degree with his eyes. Though not absolute, roughly.

Even without special abilities, you could tell just by looking at the amount of demonic power rising. That creature was strong. Strong enough that it wouldn’t be a match for Gwang Yeon himself.

His body tingled from the demonic power. Even in a normal bodily state, even if he drew out all his innate true energy , it was doubtful he could cut off even one arm. Yet now wasn’t he in a situation where just standing was burdensome?

“In…… this situation, for you…… to confront that creature isn’t…… reckless. It’s arrogance.”

Gwang Yeon, who bit his teeth hard enough to grind them while forcibly awakening his blurring vision, felt the fishy taste of blood beyond his throat.

“Run away.”

“We can’t hold out for one gak, let alone one moment. Even if you all join forces, it’s the same. Arrogance only increases needless sacrifices. Just like…….”

Like me in the past.

Gwang Yeon, who swallowed the rest of his words into silence and spat out blood he couldn’t swallow, gripped his sword hilt tightly.

“Run away.”

“I can’t hold out long. The only time I can say this is now. If you scatter and run, you’ll be able to run away sufficiently. So run away…….”

Cheok!

Before Gwang Yeon’s words could finish, Seomun Cheok and Seonwoo Gang, who stepped forward, each pointed their weapons toward the yokai. And Gwang Yeon, who frowned at that sight.

“……What are you doing?”

“You said arrogance?”

“We know. That it’s arrogance. That it’s foolish too.”

Seonwoo Gang, who spoke quietly, continued while pointing his blade forward.

“In the first place, a battlefield is like that. It’s a place you can’t stand in if you’re not foolish. Even if we don’t step forward right now, someone, someday, will resolve this incident.”

“Then…….”

Seonwoo Gang, who cut off Gwang Yeon’s words sharply, continued with a smirk.

“Now I understand. If there were only smart, cold, and wise people in this Central Plains martial world , the martial world would have perished long ago.”

“Let me ask just one thing.”

“What.”

“Are we martial artists?”

At Seonwoo Gang’s bluntly thrown words, Gwang Yeon, who had been staring blankly at Seonwoo Gang, ground his teeth and forcibly twisted his lips into a curve.

“……It seems so.”

“Then that’s enough.”

The two Muryeongwan trainees, who confirmed Gwang Yeon’s words falling, aimed their weapons at the yokai.

“Let’s just try being martial artists for once. What should we do?”

“……Really.”

These youngsters these days.

Gwang Yeon, who was silent for a moment, heard Seonwoo Gang’s words and lowered his blade with difficulty. And soon the declaration that followed.

“Can you hold out?”

“We have to try.”

“I see. From now on, leave the ‘seeing’ to me. Understand?”

“……Pardon?”

“From now on, I’ll become your ‘eyes.'”

Gwang Yeon, who confirmed his innate true energy dyeing his pupils gold and tingling them, pressed the acupoint  near his abdomen to forcibly stop the bleeding and grinned.

The time they had to hold out ahead was about one gak. The innate true energy—lifespan—he could use.

All his remaining life except for one gak.

“Just follow orders. I’ll make you win.”

It’s hot.

-Gang! Upper left ! Cheok! Intercept!

Kagagagagagagagak-!!!

Seonwoo Gang, who blocked the claw striking down from the upper left as soon as Gwang Yeon’s secret voice transmission  fell, felt the impact force  coming through his wrist and twisted his blade. Then the momentum immediately flowed out into the air.

“Heoeoeok.”

Seonwoo Gang, who barely shook off that momentum, stepped back one step and gritted his teeth.

‘What the…….’

Generally, there exists a limit to human perception speed. Roughly if you divide one second into ten parts, you approach that limit.

If you train in martial arts, it does get a bit faster, but even so, the fact that limits exist remains the same.

Unless you cross the ‘wall’ and surpass the limits of the human species itself, human perception speed cannot exceed a certain speed. Conversely, this means humans cannot even perceive attacks that exceed that perception speed.

“Geureureureuk!”

Unfortunately, the yokai’s attacks were fast enough that they couldn’t be followed without Gwang Yeon’s instructions.

-Cheok, right middle  continuous attack! Advance one step forward while securing space! Gang, supplement!

Kkigigigigigigeuk!

“Keuuk.”

As soon as the voice was heard through secret transmission, Seomun Cheok swung his spear shaft like a windmill to deflect the yokai’s attack and forcibly took a step forward. At the same time, Seonwoo Gang’s continuous attacks are like a storm.

Block, stab, sweep away, deflect, push. Dozens of techniques instantly embroidered the air. As if showing an example of what human techniques were, sword energy flashily cutting through the air.

“Gareureuk.”

Seeing that sword energy, the yokai that responded jumped far back to widen the distance, and Seonwoo Gang gripped his sword hilt hard enough to crush it.

‘If we’d tried to face it just the two of us, we’d already be dead.’

Strong.

Needless to say, the yokai was strong. Strong enough that without Gwang Yeon’s help, they couldn’t properly receive even five exchanges. Fast, powerful, and also bizarre. It was even hard to properly guess where it would come from.

‘More manageable than expected……!’

That unidentifiable ability from the beginning didn’t show. No matter how strong and fast, if Gwang Yeon’s eyes hammered the situation one step ahead into their ears, there were few cases of being helplessly hit. Then.

It was manageable.

“Geureureuk…… Geureuk?”

The yokai, who tilted its head sideways as the battle didn’t flow as intended, licked the blood on its claws and opened its mouth.

“Human, weak. Can’t win, strange.”

“I, strong. But scary human, stronger. Eat a lot before they chase. No time to delay now. So.”

The yokai, who slightly trembled as if recalling something in fear, bared its teeth and extended its claws long. And soon a bizarre noise shaking the air.

“Now die.”

-Center !

Kaaaang-!!!

The sword that reflexively shot out deflected the yokai’s claw. The yokai that reached Seonwoo Gang’s front in an instant distorted its face like an evil spirit and showed deep laughter. And the claw that extended again.

At the speed that claw extended, Seonwoo Gang instinctively opened his eyes wide.

‘Slo……w?’

It was visible. The attack, sloppy and slow.

The yokai’s claw, extended leisurely without any trace of its earlier speed, aimed not at Seonwoo Gang or Seomun Cheok but at Gwang Yeon this time. Probably considering the fact that Gwang Yeon couldn’t move properly.

But then couldn’t he just deflect it?

Blocking this level of speed wasn’t difficult. If the yokai wanted to kill Gwang Yeon, it should have rushed at Gwang Yeon at its fastest speed, much faster than this.

Thinking that, Seonwoo Gang extended his sword to protect Gwang Yeon.

-Gang! What are you doing! Don’t move without orders……!

In the world that suddenly slowed down.

That entered Seonwoo Gang’s eyes.

Kkadeuk.

A small crack appeared in the space above Seomun Cheok’s head.

Kkadeudeudeuk!

And the long claw protruding from within.

-Damn, an anomaly ……!

The sight of Gwang Yeon, who ground his teeth, reflexively reaching for his sword. Gwang Yeon, who drew his sword swiftly despite the injury, as if instinctively sensing the near future.

However, it was too late. In the time that slowed like an eternity, the blade far away couldn’t reach. It was also impossible for Seomun Cheok to notice the situation above his head. At this rate, Seomun Cheok would…….

‘Die?’

Blankly.

Seonwoo Gang, who saw the claw falling very slowly above Seomun Cheok’s head, muttered to himself.

‘He’s dying?’

It didn’t feel real. The claw falling very slowly from the sky. If that fell, Seomun Cheok would definitely die. Then he had to block it.

How?

‘There’s no way to block it…….’

In this situation, in this short time, deflecting that level of attack was impossible for his current self. Right now, Seonwoo Gang was merely Muryeongwan trainee Seonwoo Gang.

At this rate, Seomun Cheok would die. The comrade-in-arms he’d spent four years with, fought today entrusting his life to, and would have to entrust his life to again from tomorrow.

His own stubbornness would lead to this comrade dying on this battlefield.

Could I──

Accept that?

“Don’t──fuck──ing──mess──with──me-!!!”

No.

There was no way I could accept it.

Seonwoo Gang, who ground his teeth while looking at the shadow occupying the space above Seomun Cheok’s head, infused explosive internal energy into his fingertips. Wasn’t it simple logic?

If the current Seonwoo Gang couldn’t do it, bring out the strongest Seonwoo Gang. If you’re late taking an unfamiliar path, just go on the familiar path and don’t be late.

Of course, it couldn’t be undone. The blood-red sword energy unique to Hyeolgeommun  had an appearance that was easy for anyone to recognize. At least Seomun Cheok or Gwang Yeon in this place would definitely recognize it.

So what?

‘I won’t let him die……!’

Even if expelled from Muryeongwan, even if perhaps after this battle he was dragged to the Murim Alliance and killed, what wasn’t right wasn’t right. At this moment, Seonwoo Gang knew what he was swinging his sword for. It was too simple.

To protect.

To definitely protect what must be protected.

-I hope you can find it. Your way of the sword .

The method didn’t matter. Whether a killing sword  or a living sword , they were just means. What would happen later didn’t matter. Then the best strike.

The fastest one move  that he, who had learned martial arts until now, could bring out!

Hyeolhae Surajgeom  Secret Technique

Kwaaaaaaaa-!!!!!

The sword energy drawn out like lightning flew through the sky and broke the yokai’s claw. And.

“……Huh?”

Seonwoo Gang, who looked at that sword energy, made a deflated sound blankly.

The color of the sword energy.

Was brilliant gold.