Love Ballad of the Tyrant King

Chapter 280: Jaseung, Deeply Moved

Lee Jaseung stepped into his office.

It was empty.

Since it was the Alliance Leader’s office, it was naturally cleaned and kept tidy, but he felt a sense of unfamiliarity in that very cleanliness.

He had not seen Baek Seolyoung on his way here.

Anxiety grew larger and larger.

Suddenly, the image of her from his vision surfaced. The image of her not in a pregnant state.

Lee Jaseung walked slowly toward the window.

In the distance, numerous martial artists were coming and going across the vast training ground.

Lee Jaseung realized anew that he had unified this Jianghu when he passed through the main gate bearing the plaque of the Righteous Chivalry Alliance.

Dan Woobin had begun constructing a new headquarters for the Righteous Chivalry Alliance. Since it was a place to govern a unified Jianghu, it was of a grand scale never seen before.

Of course, it was not just large. He intended to build a fortress that could withstand any external invasion with the most powerful mechanisms and formations. Along with the most famous master builders in the Jianghu, mechanism experts and formation experts were mobilized.

Enormous manpower and funds were injected, but it was a massive project that would take more than three years just for the construction period.

Until then, it was decided to use the Murim Alliance building as the Righteous Chivalry Alliance headquarters.

Click.

The door opened behind him.

Lee Jaseung’s heart began to throb at the familiar presence.

Lee Jaseung turned around slowly.

Baek Seolyoung was standing at the door. Just as he had seen in his vision, she was no longer with child.

Lee Jaseung’s heart began to beat as if it would burst.

The fleeting moment before Baek Seolyoung spoke felt as long as an eon.

"Are you back?"

"Yeah."

"Did things go well where you went?"

Because her words were so calm and composed, he became even more anxious.

Lee Jaseung shook his head.

"It didn't go well."

She wore a smile.

"It happens."

Baek Seolyoung approached and gave Lee Jaseung a tight hug.

"You worked hard."

The heart that had been frozen melted at her single remark.

Stepping slightly away from Lee Jaseung, she asked.

"Why don't you ask?"

"......"

"How our baby is doing."

Lee Jaseung swallowed hard.

A touch of playfulness flickered in the eyes of Baek Seolyoung, who had been peerlessly calm until now.

"You really are kind."

"What?"

Just then, Dan Ah stepped inside from behind.

A baby was held in Dan Ah’s arms.

Lee Jaseung’s eyes went wide in an instant. He could swear on his life. This was the first time since his birth that he had been this surprised.

Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump!

The heart that should have settled was now pounding as if it would explode.

Baek Seolyoung received the baby from Dan Ah.

"I couldn't come out to meet you because it was feeding time. The little one couldn't endure the hunger."

Baek Seolyoung approached slowly and handed the baby to Lee Jaseung.

"Carefully and slowly."

The moment Lee Jaseung held the baby, his mind went blank.

He felt the weight of the child.

It was not just as light as down.

The presence given by that weight.

This is my child.

Lee Jaseung looked down at the baby’s face with a trembling heart.

"Ah!"

An uncontrollable exclamation escaped Lee Jaseung’s lips.

An incredibly pretty baby was wrapped in swaddling clothes.

"It's our daughter."

Baek Seolyoung stood side-by-side and looked at the baby with him.

"It was a daughter."

"She’s pretty, isn't she?"

"Very, very much so."

A thrill rushed through him. Simultaneously, he felt infinite happiness. Taking in subordinates, loving Baek Seolyoung, unifying the world. It was a joy of a nature that could not be compared to such pleasures.

In this joy, there was a surge of emotion that could not be expressed in words.

It touched the essence of a man, no, of a human being.

Baek Seolyoung spoke with a laugh.

"She resembles you."

They said the first daughter resembles the father, and indeed, he could find Lee Jaseung in the baby’s features.

Lee Jaseung was slightly flustered.

"Ugh, she should have resembled you!"

Baek Seolyoung smiled.

"Resembling you can be even prettier."

"No way!"

Lee Jaseung could not take his eyes off the baby.

"You should give her a name."

Lee Jaseung had a name he had thought of in advance.

"Seol (雪)."

It was a name taken from Baek Seolyoung’s 'Seol'. He had made up his mind to give her that name if it were a daughter.

"Lee Seol (李雪), Lee Seol, Seol, Seol, Lee Seol......"

Baek Seolyoung repeated the name several times.

"You don't like it?"

"No way! I like it too!"

Baek Seolyoung laughed brightly as she took the child back.

"Lee Seol, this is your name from now on."

Lee Jaseung hugged the two together. Of course, he hugged them more gently than ever before.

For giving birth to such a pretty daughter.

For steadfastly enduring that difficult process alone.

"Thank you, truly."

I love you, Baek Seolyoung.

* * *

A celebration was held that night.

It was a celebration with his four subordinates: Lee Jaseung, Dan Woobin, Mujin, Ma Young-gi, and even Mook Young, who usually did not show himself.

"Congratulations on becoming a father, sincerely."

As Dan Woobin raised his glass high, the other three also raised their glasses and shouted.

"Congratulations."

Lee Jaseung spoke with a joyful face.

"Thank you."

Everyone drained their glasses refreshingly.

"Seol is so pretty because she resembles the Lady."

Lee Jaseung tilted his head at Dan Woobin’s words.

"I was told she resembles me?"

"If so, there's no way she could be that pretty......"

Dan Woobin shut his mouth as he realized his mistake, but there was no way Mujin would miss this good opportunity to tease him.

"No way indeed. Absolutely not. If a girl resembles the Alliance Leader, her face becomes a weapon. Indeed, she’s the greatest weapon under heaven."

As Ma Young-gi nodded as if that were true, Dan Woobin spoke in disbelief.

"Regardless of anyone else, Captain Ma shouldn't say that."

"Why me?"

"Think about if Captain Ma’s daughter resembled Captain Ma."

Mujin filled in the words that the other couldn't bring himself to say.

"She’d be the greatest weapon in history."

Ma Young-gi turned serious. The target of his anger was Dan Woobin.

"Let's not bring family into this."

Then Dan Woobin spoke as if it were unfair.

"Look, the words 'greatest weapon in history' were said by Captain Mu! Besides, how can you say don't touch family when you aren't even married?"

Mujin interjected spitefully.

"You’re predicting the probability of Captain Ma getting married to be very low."

"No, that's absolutely not it!"

Dan Woobin even waved his hands in denial, but Ma Young-gi was already sending a smoldering gaze.

The meaning of the gaze was this.

Just you wait. I shall meet a woman more beautiful than Lady Song and give birth to an even prettier daughter!

Having fallen for the provocation of the gaze, Dan Woobin countered with a gaze containing this content.

Hmph! You’re going to meet a woman more beautiful than Lady Song with that face? No chance!

Mujin, who orchestrated this spark-flying fight in the middle, smiled contentedly and raised his glass.

"Now, let's drink! For our future daughters!"

Dan Woobin and Ma Young-gi clinked their glasses vigorously, as if refusing to lose to each other.

They drank while exchanging such banter.

Everyone could not hide their joy at the birth of their first niece.

After a few rounds of drinks had passed, Lee Jaseung finally brought up the story regarding the Heavenly Demon Soul.

"I have not found a way to defeat the Heavenly Demon Soul."

It was an incredibly worrying statement, but everyone was calm.

The reason the worst result did not feel like the worst was likely because everyone was together.

A single remark from Mujin represented that sentiment.

"If we die, we die together, if we live, we live together, right?"

It was the kind of thing hoodlums who hung out together in childhood might say, but it was also the heart of everyone right now.

Lee Jaseung looked at each of his subordinates and spoke seriously.

"If I die, I ask for revenge."

Then Mujin spoke with a laugh.

"Shouldn't you be saying it like this? 'If I die, at least you guys run away and survive!'"

“That won’t do. Even if we die, we must die together."

"Hahaha, as expected of our wicked Alliance Leader."

Everyone laughed out loud.

Lee Jaseung did not bother saying such things. Because they were not people who would run away just because he told them to.

Mujin spoke with a serious expression.

"But the Lady and Seol must not be harmed."

Given Lee Jaseung’s personality, he was not the type to say that only his wife and child should be saved. Everyone knew that well.

Mujin looked at Dan Woobin and spoke.

"Make sure to find a way."

A statement that Baek Seolyoung and Lee Seol must be saved no matter what.

"I'm already preparing."

He could have said it boastfully, but Dan Woobin’s expression was not bright.

"Though I cannot be certain what the result will be."

The opponent was the Heavenly Demon Soul.

Furthermore, that Heavenly Demon Soul had declared that he would kill Baek Seolyoung first.

Hiding her from the Heavenly Demon Soul was by no means an easy task.

Dan Woobin pondered over various situations on how he could save Baek Seolyoung.

And he had been preparing two things since immediately after Lee Jaseung left.

Lee Jaseung, who was staring quietly at Dan Woobin, asked.

"What is it that you are preparing?"

Dan Woobin hesitated to answer for a moment and then spoke.

"Immediately after you left, my Lord, I began building a secret hideout in a certain location. It will be built deep underground and will be a facility that no one can invade."

Enormous money was invested.

But Dan Woobin invested boldly without sparing anything.

"And there is one more plan. I am preparing someone to take the place of the Lady. I selected a woman from the martial artists of this Alliance who has the most similar physical conditions to the Lady. Master Go produced a human skin mask, and she is being trained even in behavior and voice."

The core of this plan was this.

Whether the Heavenly Demon Soul would be deceived.

Added to that was one fundamental problem.

"The Lady will never allow it. So I intend to keep this operation an absolute secret from her."

Before Lee Jaseung could say anything, Dan Woobin spoke first.

"No matter what you say, I will not give up on this plan either. When the Lady later finds out the fact that a martial artist acting as a double died in her place, she will scold me greatly, but by then, I will likely no longer be of this world either."

It was an operation to be carried out in a situation where Lee Jaseung failed to stop the Heavenly Demon Soul. If Lee Jaseung died, everyone would die.

However, Dan Woobin made such a plan out of a desire for Baek Seolyoung and the baby to at least survive. Otherwise, Dan Woobin would not have devised such an operation.

Right then, a voice came from behind.

"Then I suppose I should do the scolding now."

Dan Woobin turned around in surprise to see Baek Seolyoung entering as she opened the door.

"I didn't intend to eavesdrop on purpose, but the Strategist’s voice was too loud."

Dan Woobin’s voice had carried outside the door because he was so excited.

Though she said she would scold him, Baek Seolyoung’s expression was gentle.

"I am sincerely grateful that you cared for me to this extent. But that plan is absolutely out of the question."

She was not just opposing blindly. She had an alternative.

"Now, please listen carefully to what I have to say."