Chapter 48
Chapter 48
“Did you see Seol-ah die?”
At the Clan Head's question, Pyo Inhaeng nodded and replied.
“Yes. If we hadn’t, we would have pursued them to the end.”
“What happened to Seol-ah’s body? Was the body recovered? Did you bring it back?”
“No, we couldn’t. The Boss slit Young Mistress Ak’s throat right in front of us and vanished with the body.”
At that, the Clan Head glared fiercely at the Division Leader.
“What the hell were you doing, Division Leader! How could you let things get to this point!”
“I apologize, Clan Head. I have no excuse. Black Dragon Keep was too powerful.”
In any case, Pyo Inhaeng had come here solely to report Ak Seol-ah’s death. He was fully prepared to endure whatever humiliation came with delivering the message.
“Get out of my sight at once!”
The Clan Head’s words were almost a relief to Pyo Inhaeng—he felt like saying thank you.
As Pyo Inhaeng stepped outside, the Young Lord, who had been weeping uncontrollably until then, followed after him.
Though he had lashed out in a moment of uncontrollable emotion, he likely understood that the Guardian Ten Division had gone out of their way to come here.
And he seemed aware of Black Dragon Keep’s infamy.
From Pyo Inhaeng’s perspective, it would’ve been preferable if the Young Lord hadn’t followed him, but there was no helping it. The Young Lord kept trailing behind.
He probably wanted to thank him on behalf of the clan, but his grief over his sister's death was too overwhelming for the words to come out.
“There’s no need to follow. Please return inside. I’m sorry I failed the mission.”
When Pyo Inhaeng spoke, the Young Lord forced down his sorrow and replied.
“I know you did all you could, Division Leader. Accepting my sister’s death has been too painful, and I acted disgracefully. Did the Guardian Ten Division suffer any losses? Were the warriors with you badly injured?”
Pyo Inhaeng felt grateful and apologetic that the Young Lord asked about their condition.
“We also suffered heavy losses. Many are gravely injured, to the point they can barely move. I can’t even guarantee our safe return to the Divine Martial Sect. That’s why I ordered my subordinates to return to the sect while I came here alone.”
The Young Lord looked deeply apologetic.
“I’m sorry, Division Leader. One day, I’ll come to the Divine Martial Sect to pay my respects.”
At those words, Pyo Inhaeng involuntarily flinched. That couldn’t happen. If he did, he would see that Ak Seol-ah was in the Divine Martial Sect.
Yet, he thought perhaps it might be alright. If the Young Lord cared this deeply for her, maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad thing.
Besides, it didn’t seem like he would come immediately, so there was time to prepare a contingency plan.
Thinking lightly of it, Pyo Inhaeng looked at the Young Lord.
“Please return inside. Now that my subordinates are traveling alone, they may run into danger, and I need to hurry back to them.”
“I understand. Please take care.”
Receiving the Young Lord’s farewell, Pyo Inhaeng finally quickened his pace.
As he rode away from the Ak Clan, Pyo Inhaeng felt a sense of relief that he had finally completed a difficult task.
He shook his head. He hadn’t expected things to be this complicated and hard.
‘What the hell am I doing…?’
Had Seo Mugyeom not fallen in love with Ak Seol-ah, none of this would have been necessary from the start.
‘Seo Mugyeom, you punk! I went through all this trouble for you—if you ever say you’re transferring to another division, I won’t let you get away with it!’
He laughed to himself.
Even if Seo Mugyeom wanted to leave the Tenth Division, Pyo Inhaeng didn’t think he could let him. Not because of the division’s strength—the Tenth had never been particularly powerful anyway.
If Ho Jo-yeong or the Vice Leader had the same skill as Seo Mugyeom, it wouldn’t matter if they left. But Seo Mugyeom—he couldn’t be let go.
‘It’s fun having him around, you know? Wait—how did he get so good at spearmanship so suddenly…? No, forget it. Thinking about it won’t give me any answers and will just make my head hurt.’
With that, Pyo Inhaeng cheerfully rode on.
Ak Seol-ah felt uneasy about the sudden turn of events. Had she not met Seo Mugyeom and the warriors of the Guardian Ten Division, she would never have imagined doing something like this.
Even now, she was terrified she was making a terrible mistake.
The one who helped most at such times wasn’t Seo Mugyeom, but Ju Jirang.
Ju Jirang, being the only female warrior among the group, stayed by Ak Seol-ah’s side almost all the time.
Even when she slept, Ju Jirang was the one who stayed with her.
Seo Mugyeom also protected Ak Seol-ah diligently, but he never entered her room.
After all, it would spark rumors for an unmarried young lady to have a man enter her chambers.
Seeing Ak Seol-ah lost in thought, Ju Jirang asked,
“You’re worried, aren’t you, Young Mistress Ak?”
Startled, Ak Seol-ah shook her head quickly.
“No, Vice Leader.”
Ak Seol-ah knew just how much they had risked to rescue her. And she also understood how many complications would arise from taking her to the Divine Martial Sect.
They didn’t have to take such risks, yet they stepped forward willingly—for her.
If she looked worried or down, she felt it would only dampen their spirits.
Ju Jirang smiled knowingly, as if she understood Ak Seol-ah’s reasons for answering that way.
“You can be honest with me. Of course you're worried. To tell the truth, so am I.”
“You too, Vice Leader? But why?”
During their time together, Ak Seol-ah had watched Ju Jirang and found her admirable.
The way she trained fiercely and had skills surpassing others impressed her. So hearing Ju Jirang express unease made Ak Seol-ah wonder if she was just trying to comfort her.
“When we return to the Divine Martial Sect, I’m going to request the First Division Leader to let me join the Tenth Division.”
“Ah…”
Ak Seol-ah nodded, recalling that Ju Jirang belonged to the Ninth Division.
Ju Jirang seemed especially close with Ho Jo-yeong, and the other Tenth Division warriors also treated her warmly, so she had almost forgotten.
“If I go to the Divine Martial Sect, I’ll be staying with the Tenth Division too, right?”
Ak Seol-ah asked, and Ju Jirang nodded.
“I heard the Divine Martial Sect is the successor to the Heavenly Demon Cult. Can people without faith join?”
At Ak Seol-ah’s question, Ju Jirang hesitated. She had never seen anyone like that before.
“I’m not sure. But since the Division Leader gave his approval, I don’t think it’ll be a problem. Still, it might be good to adopt the faith to avoid future issues.”
“I… guess you’re right.”
The Ak Clan was part of the orthodox sects, and Ak Seol-ah knew exactly how they viewed the Heavenly Demon Cult. It was only natural for her to feel uneasy.
Ju Jirang understood why Ak Seol-ah felt that way, and she wondered what she could say to help.
There were limits to what they could share just by being women.
She thought it might be better if Seo Mugyeom were here instead.
“How about stepping outside and talking with the others?” Ju Jirang suggested.
“Alright, Vice Leader.”
Ak Seol-ah felt that Ju Jirang seemed uncomfortable, so she readily agreed and followed her out.
When they stepped outside, Ho Jo-yeong spotted them and immediately rushed over. Seeing him brought a smile to Ak Seol-ah’s face.
Ho Jo-yeong had a good-natured appearance, and being around him made her feel at ease. And it seemed he liked Ju Jirang. Seeing him treat Ju Jirang so kindly—and her seem comfortable beside him—made her happy for some reason.
“Young Mistress Ak, shall I go find Mugyeom for you?”
Ak Seol-ah’s face flushed.
“Why are you even asking that? He should come find me without needing to be told.”
“Just a moment then, Young Mistress Ak. I already know where that rascal Mugyeom is. He’s obsessed with a new martial art lately and disappears to quiet places to train whenever he can. Why don’t you come with me?”
“Can I really? If he’s training, I don’t want to disturb him.”
“You don’t have to worry. Why do you think he’s training so hard? It’s so he can spend time with you when you're around.”
Ak Seol-ah’s face turned even redder. She hoped Seo Mugyeom truly felt that way, but he didn’t seem like the type.
Ho Jo-yeong led the way confidently.
“If Warrior Seo is training that hard, aren’t you learning anything by watching? Doesn’t it bother you that a junior is surpassing you?”
Ju Jirang teased, and Ho Jo-yeong’s shoulders jerked up then dropped.
“I do think I need to try harder…”
Ju Jirang laughed at his reaction.
And a relaxed smile soon spread across Ak Seol-ah’s face as well.
When they finally found Seo Mugyeom, Ak Seol-ah was glad to see him—but she couldn’t be entirely happy.
She didn’t know why, but seeing him made her feel sorrowful and emotional.
Ho Jo-yeong was about to speak to her when he noticed her teary eyes and froze. Ju Jirang also saw it and immediately understood.
Ju Jirang had expected that Ak Seol-ah’s emotions might suddenly shift, but she didn’t feel confident comforting her. Awkwardly, she slipped away. Ho Jo-yeong also sensed he should leave and followed her.
Soon, Ak Seol-ah was left alone.
Seo Mugyeom, now with greater internal energy, had become more sensitive to his surroundings without even trying to use qi sense.
He had known the three were coming but assumed it wasn’t urgent, so he had continued training.
When he realized they had come all that way and then left again, he turned around in confusion.
Then he saw Ak Seol-ah with red-rimmed eyes.
“Young Mistress Ak, what’s wrong? Did something happen?”
He approached her, clearly worried. Ak Seol-ah didn’t know what to say. Nothing bad had happened, and yet she suddenly felt overwhelmingly sad.
Seo Mugyeom looked deeply concerned, his expression demanding an answer.