Chapter 219 : Chapter 219
Chapter 219 - Tower of Causalitas (7)
Gal Un-hyeon, a warrior belonging to the Black Moon Unit.
Today, he was deeply regretting his actions. Commotions in an inn were a common occurrence. He thought what happened at the inn today would just be a very common fight.
And if he had thought that, he should not have followed them outside to watch the fight. But his curiosity was the problem.
'Am I also an unavoidable Black Moon Unit warrior?'
The Black Moon Unit was a representative information dealer of the Evil Faction that earned money through information trading.
It was his mistake to follow outside to watch the fight because something felt strange.
In conclusion, Gal Un-hyeon did pick up a huge scoop from the commotion just a moment ago. Because some unknown young warrior, whom he had never heard of, suppressed thirteen warriors belonging to the Blue Evil Sect in an instant.
What was more surprising was the fact that this unknown warrior was highly likely not from the Evil Faction, based on the circumstances.
'...A Righteous Faction bastard fearlessly invaded the middle of our Evil Faction territory? And alone?'
In short, it was a scoop among scoops. Then, the priority was to find out the identity of that unknown warrior.
Gal Un-hyeon intended to approach carefully.
However.
'Shit!'
The problem was that, contrary to his intention, he was suppressed in an instant. The reason was that he had peeked at the fight. Even when he argued that watching a fight was not a crime, the unknown warrior said with an indifferent gaze.
"Enough. You, you will have to do some pathfinding."
What kind of nonsensical talk was this.
"Pardon? Pathfinding?"
"Because I have many more things to ask besides the path."
In that way, Gal Un-hyeon began acting as a guide while completely suppressed by the unknown warrior. The problem was that Gal Un-hyeon had an important schedule today.
'I am going to be late for the banquet at this rate.'
It would be fortunate if he was only late. If things went wrong, he might not be able to attend at all. It was a disaster.
The Sahwang Banquet he had to attend was the largest event of the Evil Faction held once every two years, and today he intended to attend as the representative of the Black Moon Unit to grasp the trends of the Evil Faction industry.
"Sigh!"
Still, since things had already turned out this way, there was no helping it, so he tried to think as positively as possible. Because by acting as this man's guide, he could naturally dig up information about him.
To the Blue Evil Sect, who were helplessly defeated today, information about this man would be necessary for revenge, and he turned the hope circuit that the Black Moon Unit could sell this information very expensively.
However, the more he talked with this man, the more a chilling feeling rushed in. At first, he naturally thought he might be a person from the Righteous Faction, but there were too many strange corners for that to be the case.
Above all, he knew too little about Murim. Yet, it did not feel as if he was acting. According to his words, he had lived only in deep mountains and valleys since childhood, so he had never been out in Murim.
'Is this even possible?'
It was a natural question. Because the martial arts of this man he saw with his own eyes were so excellent. Suppressing over ten warriors of the Blue Evil Sect alone? And as if he were handling children? What was certain was that it was absolutely not the skill of a country bumpkin.
'If he is definitely not Evil Faction and not Righteous Faction either... surely?'
Then, only one thing remained. The Demonic Cult.
'Shit!'
The moment he thought of the Demonic Cult, a chill rushed in. If this guess was correct, the mystery about this man would be explained in one go.
Because the warriors of the Demonic Cult do not leave their stronghold, the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains, unless there is a special reason.
He felt as if his legs were trembling suddenly. If this man was truly a person of the Demonic Cult, it was clearly a massive scoop.
This meant that the Demonic Cult, which had recently disappeared from Murim, had resumed its activities. Of course, for this information to have value, an important premise had to be followed: Gal Un-hyeon himself had to be able to keep his life. As far as he knew, the warriors of the Demonic Cult were cruel and merciless people.
A thought rushed in that he might be murdered without anyone knowing once his use as a guide was finished.
'I must keep my wits about me!'
Still, there was hope. Because this man spared all thirteen warriors of the Blue Evil Sect who started the fight for some reason. Gal Un-hyeon thought.
'I must absolutely pretend I do not know.'
He must never get caught that he noticed this man's identity. Because for the sake of silencing him, this man would kill him without a moment's hesitation.
***
It was a good choice that I picked a fiend named Gal Un-hyeon as a guide.
He was quite organized in his way of explaining and gave the feeling of delivering core information well from the listener's perspective.
From my feeling, such a case is one of two things. He is a very smart fiend, or he is a fiend who works with information.
Those thoughts followed one after another, and I suddenly thought of information dealers. If there were information dealers in Murim too, it would be worth visiting them at least once for the sake of the quest.
"Is there such a thing as an information merchant in Murim too?"
At my question thrown casually, Gal Un-hyeon's eyes became like those of a startled rabbit.
"...Pardon?"
"Why are you so surprised?"
"A-ah, it is nothing! Information merchants, of course, there are several even in the Evil Faction!"
"Then, is there one near here?"
"...Pardon?"
The fiend's face eventually turned pale. Why was he reacting like this.
"Did I ask something I should not have?"
"No!"
"Where is the nearest information dealer around here?"
Gal Un-hyeon swallowed hard. Cold sweat was dripping down from his forehead. Then, after a moment, the fiend opened his mouth with a solemn voice.
"It is the Black Moon House!"
"The Black Moon House..."
And the fiend swallowed hard once more.
"It is also the place I belong to."
No wonder. No wonder his ability to unravel answers to my questions was excellent.
"I had a suspicion, and you truly were a fiend who handles information."
"Did you not already know?"
"Am I some kind of fortune-teller? How would I know what a fiend I saw for the first time today does!"
"I-I see!"
"What a dull fiend."
Anyway, thanks to Gal Un-hyeon, I was able to roughly grasp the political situation of this place called Murim.
That Murim is largely divided into three forces.
The Righteous Faction, the Evil Faction, and the Demonic Cult. These three forces are in a state of confrontation with each other, and recently, the conflict between the Righteous Faction and the Evil Faction is said to have reached its peak after fighting two great wars.
The place where I am now is exactly the territory of the Evil Faction. And the place that acts as the focal point of the Evil Faction forces was Evil Path Alliance.
"The fiend called the Leader of Evil Path Alliance, how strong is he in Murim according to your view?"
"...Pardon?"
Since this fiend also belongs to the Evil Faction, he might be biased.
However, I thought an information dealer might give a more objective answer.
"Is it perhaps an answer I have to pay money for?"
"A-ah, no!"
The fiend was sweating profusely.
"If you peeked at the fight secretly, you should pay the price properly. Is that not right?"
"Then I will speak honestly."
"You are saying the obvious."
"Our Black Moon House views that the Murim Alliance Leader would be ahead of him by a paper's thickness."
"Is that person you are talking about the Leader of Evil Path Alliance?"
"That is correct."
It was a somewhat disappointing answer. I was thinking of going to strike the Leader of Evil Path Alliance, but it turned out this fiend was not even the number two, but the number three. If an information source of the Evil Faction, not even the Righteous Faction, made such a judgment, it is highly unlikely they are wrong.
"Then what about the Leader of the Demonic Cult?"
At my question, Gal Un-hyeon's pupils fluctuated. I wondered if an information dealer fiend could properly sell information if he failed to manage his expression like this.
"...There are stories that the life or death of the Heavenly Demon, the Leader of the Demonic Cult, is unclear."
As he said that, the fiend seemed to be gauging my reaction.
"The Blue Evil Sect fiend also said so; it means even your side does not know. Anyway, if he is alive, is that man the top expert of Murim?"
At the repeated question, Gal Un-hyeon nodded with a solemn look.
"We view it that way."
"Then start the pathfinding in earnest from now on."
"Where is the destination?"
"The place where the Leader of Evil Path Alliance is."
If the Heavenly Demon is alive, he is the number three. If dead, I planned to decide the next destination after dealing with the fiend who was the number two.
***
"Are you talking about the place where the Union Leader of Evil Path Alliance is?"
"Yes."
"Before that, may I ask for what reason?"
"Because I want to cross swords with that fiend."
"Whaaaat?"
Gal Un-hyeon doubted his ears for a moment. No matter how much of a Demonic Cult expert this man was, there was a limit; not only was he asking for guidance to the place where the Leader of Evil Path Alliance was, but he also wanted to cross swords. He naturally thought he was bluffing.
"Why are you so surprised? I am just saying that people who learned the sword should cross swords."
Gal Un-hyeon narrowly managed to hold back the swear words that were about to burst out. To think there was such a lunatic in the Demonic Cult. This was an utterance that crossed the line by far.
"I-I see."
Then he suddenly thought it was for the better. Conveniently, today was the day of the Sahwang Banquet, the largest event of the Evil Path Alliance.
Naturally, the Union Leader is also scheduled to show his face at the banquet.
Gal Un-hyeon himself could now attend according to his original schedule.
Furthermore, he reached the conclusion that by taking this man there, he would not only escape danger naturally but also achieve the merit of catching the tail of the Demonic Cult, which had recently disappeared. Thus, Gal Un-hyeon cheered inwardly.
"By the way, Great Hero, do you happen to know about the Sahwang Banquet?"
"I told you. I have never been out of the mountains since I was a child. I know nothing at all about the affairs of Murim."
"Oh, that is right. Then I will explain it briefly."
The Sahwang Banquet. As a great festival for Evil Faction members, at the banquet, promising juniors engage in Bimu to boast of their swords, and the winner here receives a huge prize.
Also, enjoying the opportunity to have dinner with the leadership of Evil Path Alliance is a great benefit. Upon hearing this story, the unknown warrior of the Demonic Cult showed a satisfied smile.
"It is perfect timing. Then guide me to the place where the Sahwang Banquet is held."
Seeing him talk like this, this man truly seemed to know nothing about Murim.
"Actually, not just anyone can attend the Sahwang Banquet."
"Then?"
"An invitation is needed. It is a place where entry is strictly restricted."
"You said you are also an Evil Faction person. Did you say you belong to the Black Moon Unit? Even there must have received at least one invitation. Have you not been thinking of taking me there since the moment you introduced the Sahwang Banquet?"
Gal Un-hyeon flinched slightly. While trying to act as if he were doing a favor, he felt as if his inner thoughts were exposed instead. The man continued his words with a solemn voice.
" I do not know what you are thinking right now, but do not try to use your petty tricks."
At these words, he thought his breath stopped for a moment. Because he felt an unknown weight in the gaze of this man who was interrogating him.
"Yes. I understand, Great Hero."
Gal Un-hyeon's answer came out reflexively.
The place where the banquet was held was Jeoksong Academy, one of the four great sword halls of the Evil Faction.
It was not very far from here. It would be time for the banquet to have started by now.
He thought he should hurry.
Because being alone with this man was too suffocating.