Chapter 195
Chapter: 195
Chapter Title: Seclusion (1)
"What kind of thing?"
An attendant from the Tang Clan, shouldering an axe, approached me and asked.
Seeing him drenched in sweat made me feel sorry for him for no reason.
"I need firewood to last through the night. Could you help me out a bit?"
Everyone around was busy with their own tasks, and the only ones lounging around like idlers were me and the uncles.
That was why I immediately brushed off my backside and stood up.
"Of course. Let's go."
On a journey like this, it's easier when we help each other.
Chopping firewood was a hassle, but it had its own fun, so I yawned and got to my feet.
"Seojin, pick some dry stuff."
Gu Yeong Uncle muttered, lying on his back with the ground as his pillow.
"I've chopped firewood for years, and you're still nagging me. If you're gonna say that, you go, Uncle."
"...Cut whatever you want."
I smiled at him once, then followed the Tang Clan attendant.
"Your name... I heard it back then, but I forgot."
I struck up a conversation to ease the awkward air.
The man who had come to ask me for help was someone I'd seen a few times going back and forth.
It felt uncomfortable publicizing my face to the Tang Clan attendants like this, but since it was already out there, hiding it would be weirder.
The man said,
"It's Yoon Chang."
"Ah, got it. I'll remember this time."
We left the group behind and headed toward a sparsely wooded area.
At first, it was hard to see where to step, but gradually my eyes adjusted to the darkness.
The moonlight was especially bright, making our steps much easier.
"How about we chop around here and take it back?"
Having gone far enough to be completely separated from the group, I finally suggested it.
Now it was just the two of us left in the woods.
The campfire from the group flickered faintly in the distance.
"......"
Yoon Chang was holding two axes, but there was no reaction.
"Brother Yoon, let's get started."
"Young Master Seojin, do you have any desires?"
At that moment, I froze at the sudden change in Yoon Chang's voice.
Had I misheard, or was this his real voice?
Before I could judge, Yoon Chang dropped the two axes to the ground like he was discarding them.
He turned to look at me.
"I asked if you have any desires."
I rolled my eyes.
What the hell was wrong with this guy all of a sudden?
To buy time while gauging his intentions, I opened my mouth obediently.
"My dream is to live a long life until my hair turns white and I'm covered in gray. Since I was an orphan, I want to build my own family and live happily ever after. If I could, I'd love to see my great-grandchildren." Ṝ𝖆ꞐО𐌱Ę𝒮
"You mean you desire immortality?"
"...What are you talking about? I'm not asking for immortality. Nothing like that. Come on, enough nonsense—hand me an axe."
I asked for the axe, but I knew the situation was flowing strangely.
Only now did this forest, with just the two of us, start to feel unfamiliar and scary.
I could probably win in a fight... but why the hell was he acting like this?
"Follow me, and I'll grant any dream you desire."
At those words, I froze in place.
...The nuance was off. I could feel with my skin that the situation had suddenly turned serious.
Follow him. He'll make my dreams come true.
Wasn't this the line the Demonic Cult used when recruiting people?
But why was Yoon Chang saying it?
Was he a low-rank member of the Demonic Cult? Had Yoon Chang been swayed by them too?
But... a low-rank wouldn't make an offer like this, right?
The Demonic Cult only said things like this to those they truly wanted close.
In the past, for example... someone like Wi Cheon-sang, Baek Se-hyeon's confidant and Dang Soran's betrothed, might have heard words like these.
Why was Yoon Chang saying this?
"Ha... haha. If you're gonna say weird stuff, I'll head back—"
Swish.
At that moment, Yoon Chang slipped his hand into his collar and swiftly removed something.
In succession, a man who looked to be in his early thirties revealed himself.
Long, narrow eyes. A stubby, small nose. A large mouth.
Yoon Chang's face was now a human skin mask in his hand.
He shook out his hair once, then clasped his fists in greeting toward me.
"Pleased to meet you. I am Duguk Jinmuk of the Ming Cult. I approached you like this to recruit you. No need to hide it. I'm not entirely sure what your abilities are, but I know you had a profound influence on Cheongwol and Dang Soran, leading them beyond the wall of peak realm."
Blood Night Demon Duguk Jinmuk.
Master of disguise, assassin of the Ming Cult.
There were plenty of side characters who met futile deaths at his hands.
He hadn't killed many directly yet, but from now on, the numbers would explode exponentially.
And it wasn't just major or side characters—countless innocent commoners fell to his blade too.
Duguk Jinmuk didn't hesitate to commit assassinations for his empire to expand his influence.
His underlings killed plenty as well.
He became the heaven for desperate people burning with vengeance through contract kills.
Several elders discovered during the Namgung Family raid had died in their beds without even resisting, and Duguk Jinmuk was likely behind it.
"I'm interested in your abilities. Join us. I'll guarantee you a life without lacking anything."
Before I could calm my shock, I finally realized how screwed I was.
It felt like my blood was drying up in an instant.
From his words, it seemed he'd been watching me for a long time.
Fuck. Fuck...!!
I said I didn't want to get involved, didn't I?!
Lately, my relationships with Cheongwol and Dang Soran had become too publicly known, hadn't they?
But since no problems arose, I'd felt like an idiot for fidgeting alone.
That was why I'd passively tried to discourage their approaches...
Look! Look... this is what happened...!
I was right!
Duguk Jinmuk of the Demonic Cult??
If I upset Duguk Jinmuk now, wouldn't I never have a peaceful night's sleep again?
Wouldn't I have to worry every morning if I'd wake up?
Wasn't this saying it was too dangerous for me to survive alone now?
That I needed someone's protection?
Unlike when I met Cheongwol, who hadn't joined the Demonic Cult yet, this was a real crisis.
Duguk Jinmuk was already fully in the Demonic Cult. The real deal.
"Ha... haha. I... I didn't recognize a noble guest. Pleased to meet you. I... I'm satisfied with my current life. I have no desires either. But it seems Great One Duguk has something he wants from me—tell me now, and I'll help with all my heart."
"What I want is for you to follow me."
...No way, fuck!
What the hell do you think will happen to me?
Am I crazy enough to walk into the tiger's mouth?
Duguk Jinmuk smirked at my silence.
"You don't want to, I see."
"It's not that I don't want to... it's just too sudden... haha. I need some time."
"Fine. Then one more question. It'd be best if you answer well. Did you suppress Cheongwol and Dang Soran's heart demons and lead them beyond the peak realm wall? Is that why Cheongwol isn't joining us?"
"......"
I had nothing to say to that either.
It might really be thanks to me.
I no longer intended to deny that their heart demons had quieted down now.
I didn't know exactly how Dang Soran handled her heart demons in the original story, but since she'd already reached peak realm, she'd clearly suppressed it for now.
In the original, she might have gone to war still burdened by an unresolved heart demon.
Whatever it was, it might be my doing.
...But how do I admit that?
How do I say it happened through SM play?
And if I admit with my own mouth that I tamed their heart demons, wouldn't I become their top target?
When the false rumor spread that I was a heart demon healer, would the Demonic Cult leave me alone?
"You're mistaken."
So I spat out a lie.
Duguk Jinmuk stared at me for a long time.
I didn't avert my eyes. It was scary, but it felt like I had to do this.
Duguk Jinmuk slowly nodded and turned as if to leave.
I didn't know what spy work he'd done among us, but maybe he was heading back now.
Dragging my body for force would be annoying and tiring. Maybe he'd let me go.
I hoped so.
"...Mistaken, you say."
Duguk Jinmuk whispered.
"We'll have to confirm that going forward."
Swish!
When I came to, Duguk Jinmuk was already behind me.
Thud!
He jabbed somewhere on my neck.
I felt my body stiffen rigidly.
...Fuck.
...So this is pressure point technique.
....
He was gone.
Cheongwol tried to trace Han Seojin's unique scent, but she felt nothing anywhere.
"Haa... haa..."
Her fingertips trembled endlessly, and her breathing raced out of control.
Gone. No trace. Vanished.
Her sole sanctuary.
Her sole happiness.
Amid the surging terror, Cheongwol barely mustered her will.
She wanted to collapse, but she had to endure now.
She and Dang Soran poured their energy into lightstep skill, rushing back toward the group.
Cheongwol suppressed the anxiety pressing on her heart and whispered to herself.
It would be fine.
Han Seojin would be there.
As always, sprawled on the ground, sharing laughs with the Beggars' Sect beggars.
"Branch Leader!"
In the center of the gathered crowd, Cheongwol cried out.
Those preparing for bed turned in surprise.
Dang Soran also whipped her gaze around, urgently asking the Beggars' Sect elders.
"W-where did Young Master Seojin go?"
Gu Yeong stood up with a confused expression and asked.
"He, he went to chop some firewood, but the kid's late. Did something happen...?"
Cheongwol felt her blood turn ice-cold.
No.
Despair tried to buckle her knees.
Before this fear, she was becoming Chaha again, the girl who'd lost her parents.
But she couldn't lose her reason completely.
She still had to move.
Unlike that day's Chaha, Cheongwol still had the ability to handle the situation.
Cheongwol immediately stood before Gu Yeong and asked.
"Where did he go?"
"T-to that forest over there..."
Without waiting to hear the end, Cheongwol spun and ran.
Asking her master for help or informing the Beggars' Sect elders didn't even cross her mind.
There was no time. She wasn't that calm.
Dang Soran seemed to think the same, charging toward the forest with eyes shaking mercilessly.
The two women's lightstep skills cleaved through the woods like lightning, but Cheongwol's heart kept sinking heavily.
What if Han Seojin was gone?
What if this was the end?
Just imagining it felt like hundreds of blades stabbing her chest.
The reason something like this happened to him was surely because of her.
Hadn't Duguk Jinmuk hinted at it then?
'Right. Something's already by your side keeping you there.'
"Ugh!"
Han Seojin had said he hated martial artists.
He'd said he hated getting tangled in things like this.
Cheongwol shook her head to push away the negative thoughts.
It wouldn't be.
Once she entered the forest, Han Seojin would be there chopping wood with a surprised face, and she could embrace him soon.
"Haa... haa..."
But midway through the forest, Cheongwol and Dang Soran's steps halted.
Two axes scattered on the ground. One human skin mask.
Dang Soran picked up the human skin mask with trembling hands, then looked ahead.
Dang Soran appeared calm, but inside, she seemed shaken enough to barely hold her reason.
Fak!
Dang Soran shot forward first. Her back looked more desperate than Cheongwol had ever seen.
"Ah... aaah..."
Cheongwol stared down at the axes, swept in despair.
This must be exactly what Han Seojin had feared.
Because she'd clung to him so obsessively, this had happened.
The guilt and despair from that fact made her feel like she'd go mad.
But with the despair rose a fierce obsession.
She had no intention of ever giving up Han Seojin.
Cheongwol steadied her shallow breaths and began wrapping her entire body in condensed qi as if compressing it.
If there was one thing she was confident in about herself, it was her tracking ability.
Animal tracks, traces of fleeing meverdoox martial artists, the footsteps of bandits struggling to survive... all revealed themselves helplessly before her eyes.
This time was no different.
Cheongwol carefully traced the marks left on the ground.
But there were almost no traces.
No, it was safe to say there were none.
Footprints that didn't go forward, sideways, or backward.
No way to tell where they'd gone.
"......"
But that didn't mean Cheongwol would give up.
Duguk Jinmuk could erase traces, but Han Seojin couldn't.
How could he have erased his too?
This didn't make sense.
So.
Cheongwol gritted her teeth and made her decision.
She bit her finger and let out a sharp whistle that echoed.
A signal to gather here.
Then she drew her sword.
Sring!
Kwagak!
The moment sword light flashed, the dirt floor split, and a hand popped out.
Duguk Jinmuk, realizing his concealment was detected, immediately rose.
"Cheongwol, Cheongwol... your senses are far too sharp. My hiding secret technique, and you're already using such a bizarre tactic."
Duguk Jinmuk brushed the dirt off as he appeared. Cheongwol charged without hesitation.
"Where's that man."
"Shouldn't you put down your sword before asking?"
Cheongwol's techniques unfolded like flowing water. But even swinging her sword, she couldn't fully concentrate.
Where was Han Seojin?
Was he safe? He was probably under that ground where Duguk Jinmuk had been hiding.
Was he still breathing? Was he alive?
Had they tried to capture him alive, or just kill him?
The spot where Duguk Jinmuk had crawled out had collapsed, buried in dirt.
If Han Seojin was unconscious, that meant he was being buried alive right now.
As her heartbeat tangled with chilling terror, her strikes grew fiercer.
Duguk Jinmuk barely dodged the onslaught, breathing roughly.
"Do you intend to kill me? Can you still call yourself a nun after that?"
Cheongwol ignored him. Her sword plunged relentlessly.
Then Duguk Jinmuk drew a dagger from his bosom to counter.
Kwagagak!
Qi clashed with qi, vibrating with power.
"Ugh!"
Duguk Jinmuk's arm trembled from the surging force.
He couldn't hide his shock at how a freshly peak realm martial artist could unleash such monstrous attacks.
But soon, as if resolved, he parted his lips.
"...Ah."
In that instant, Cheongwol spotted a small poison needle glinting under his tongue.
A vile hidden weapon typical of evil factions.
Even she had no time to dodge the surprise.
Puuk!
But just before the poison needle shot out, a swift dagger flew in, piercing Duguk Jinmuk's cheek and embedding in his tongue.
"Gahk!"
With his face and tongue fixed, he screeched and tumbled backward.
Dang Soran rushed in from afar, her green eyes gleaming, as if she'd already seen through such a trick.
Her speed was tremendous.
Duguk Jinmuk didn't hesitate long.
He scattered smoke bombs from his bosom onto the ground.
The smoke spread instantly in the pitch-black night, swallowing vision.
By the time Soon, Gu Yeong, and the Beggars' Sect elders arrived, only thick smoke remained—no trace of Duguk Jinmuk's shadow.
Pabak!
But Cheongwol didn't stop.
She ran to the dirt where Duguk Jinmuk had emerged and frantically dug with both hands.
"B-branch Leader! Just hold on!!"
Her palms scraped raw, nails lifting with blood seeping out, but she felt no pain.
Her only thought was to save Han Seojin.
Her everything was buried in this dirt.
This wasn't just Han Seojin's grave—it might be Chaha's too.
Dang Soran was the same. Forgetting her fine silk clothes getting filthy in the mud, she clawed at the ground until her fingers were worn.
Their desperate futility gained speed only when Tang Clan attendants arrived with shovels and joined in.
Gu Yeong and Ma Chilseok also grasped the situation, cursing as they roughly dug.
"Hey, Seojin! Can you hear me?! Just try dying, you bastard!!"
Soon after, a pale human hand finally emerged from the dirt.
Cheongwol's tears burst forth.
"Branch Leader!!"
With trembling hands, she cleared more dirt, finally revealing Han Seojin's face.
Dang Soran immediately pressed her ear to his chest, eye brimming with tears.
Cheongwol wanted to shove her away for a moment, but confirming if Han Seojin was breathing took priority.
"He's... alive..."
Dang Soran's stiff expression crumbled, shoulders shaking as sobs escaped.
Soon quickly noticed the blocked meridians in Han Seojin's body and released the pressure points.
"Haaaah..."
Han Seojin let out a long sigh.
His eyes finally opened.
"Ugh... hugh!"
Unable to hold back her tears, Cheongwol threw herself onto Han Seojin.
She didn't care about the surrounding gazes.
He'd know the relief his breath brought her.
After hugging him once, Cheongwol grabbed him and asked.
"B-branch Leader. Are you okay? Does anything hurt?"