Dark Sky Village
Thud, thud
“Agh, ugh… Aah…”
“Haah, haah, haah!! This is good…!!”
“Screeeeeam!”
The Pirate Officers were having their way with the female prisoners that had been rounded up. They were taking advantage of the women in every imaginable position, and the continuous cries filled the air. It seemed they weren’t being gentle at all; the pain appeared to be more intense than any pleasure. It was a horrifying sight, with ten Pirate Officers taking turns violating just six women.
“Ahhh!”
They didn’t even spare a pregnant woman, aggressively assaulting her to the point where blood trickled down her body. It was as if they didn’t see the women as human beings at all. One scoundrel even yanked a woman’s hair while attempting a rough position.
“Gahahaha!”
“This is fun!”
Meanwhile, the leaders of the Blood Saber Group sat back on their chairs, sipping fine wine and chuckling as they watched the violation unfold. It seemed that after committing so many atrocious acts, they had grown to enjoy watching the spectacle more than participating in it. Maybe after becoming Fishmen, they no longer had much lust for women.
‘Hmm… No more need for contemplation.’
I truly felt that Ahn Hyeon was a righteous man. These scoundrels deserved to be punished without mercy. I then activated the Sudden Movement Technique and moved right behind the leaders of the Blood Saber Group.
“Oof…”
Swish!!
With a swift motion, I executed One Slash (Il Cham), cleaving the necks of three Blood Saber Group leaders in one clean strike. Even a Fishman could die if the neck was sliced cleanly. It was a surprise attack, and my sword speed was so quick that they didn’t even have time to resist.
“Huh…?”
In an instant, the Pirate Officers stopped moving and stared at me with blank expressions. But I used that brief moment to rush in, beginning my slaughter of the naked and unarmed Pirate Officers.
Slash!
Spurt!
“AHHHHH!!”
Blood sprayed as screams echoed in the air. The upper and lower halves of the pirates were separated, revealing a monstrous display. I lunged forward and swung my sword three times, and by then, eight out of ten were already nothing but corpses. The remaining two sank to their knees, tears streaming down their faces as they begged for mercy.
“Eeeek! Eeeek!”
“Please, save us! Please…”
I looked down at them coldly and replied,
“Have you ever spared those who begged for mercy?”
“……”
Slash!
As I swung my sword again, two heads flew into the air. It struck me as ridiculous; those two couldn’t even come up with an excuse for not granting mercy. They were truly the embodiment of ruthless Pirates.
I gazed at the women lying naked in a pool of blood and said,
“I’ve taken care of the Blood Saber Group leaders. Now it’s time to deal with the rest, so please get dressed.”
The women asked fearfully,
“Who—who are you?”
“I’ll let you know later.”
As I exited the room, the women hurriedly began putting on their clothes. Once they were all dressed, I asked,
“Are there any women in the Pirates’ hideout?”
One of the women, understanding my question, responded,
“No… The scoundrels are meant to assault women here in prison. Only the Blood Saber Group leader can call his own women to his quarters.”
“I see. Stay right here.”
“Yes…”
I moved to the Prisoner Camp on Pirate Island. There, too, I witnessed women being assaulted all over the place. I started cleaning house, slashing down every Pirate I laid my eyes on.
Swish!
“Ugh!!!”
“P-please, spare me…”
Thud!
I dealt with those who begged for their lives even more brutally. I slaughtered those trying to escape and those who chose to fight back, leaving no one alive.
‘Do these scoundrels even have the decency to ask for mercy?’
I first sliced off their eyes, then severed their noses, and finally split open their bellies, ensuring they died a slow and painful death. There were twenty prisoners in total, and I left not a single one alive. There were also some prisoners barely clinging to life due to tortures, and I set each of them free one by one.
Once I released all the prisoners, they burst into tears, shouting in unison,
“Oh, benefactor!!”
“Thank you… Thank you…”
After casually accepting their thanks, I searched for Seo Mun-hye. She sat there as she once was, with white hair, staring blankly like a fool. As I approached her, the women wrapped around her, trying to protect her. I waved my hand, saying,
“I understand the situation. I intend to break her curse, so don’t worry.”
“Ah…”
And I couldn’t help but admire the loyalty of the women. Despite being able to kill them any moment I wanted, they risked their lives to protect a girl as if she were their younger sister. They were in stark contrast to the Pirates.
Having killed the leaders and the officers, I ensured a tightly sealed environment to massacre the Pirates. I spent about a meal time breaking the Great Seal of Punishment that had been placed on Seo Mun-hye.
Gradually, she regained her senses and looked around.
“Where is this…?”
I explained everything that had happened to her. She shed tears and thanked me before pulling the other women into an embrace.
“Wha… I’m so sorry, sisters…”
“Why are you apologizing…?”
Seo Mun-hye and the women coiled around each other, crying for a while.
Even in her foolish state, she likely understood what had occurred during her time under the Pirates. I waited for her emotions to settle before pulling out a sword from the Vault and handing it to her. I then said,
“Now, let’s wipe them all out.”
With deadly intent in her eyes, Seo Mun-hye answered vigorously,
“Sure!”
Together, we stepped out and began our slaughter of all the Pirates on the island. Although there were hundreds of them, they stood no chance at all. It made sense; I had reached an apex level, and Seo Mun-hye was also an outstanding sword master, capable of competing in the Martial Arts Tournament. We tore through the Pirates mercilessly, like tigers among sheep.
About half an hour later, Seo Mun-hye and I stood amidst a sea of corpses in the Pirate’s Hideout.
“Ugh…”
“It seems like we’re almost done.”
I said to Seo Mun-hye, who was burying a blade into one Pirate’s eye. She cleaved the body into three pieces and then tossed her sword at me.
“Miss, I can’t thank you enough for your tremendous grace.”
“We can’t just kill a few and call it a wrap.”
“What then?”
“I left a few alive, so let’s let the people vent their anger.”
I deliberately dragged ten disabled Pirate Officers with me to the Prisoner Camp. These scoundrels were some of the more skilled practitioners among the Pirates, undoubtedly Pirate Officers. I threw the ten officers to the people.
“Go on, do as you wish.”
The Pirate Officers were already incapacitated, unable to move. The people each gathered weapons and began to approach the ten Pirate Officers with deadly, vengeful eyes. The Pirate Officers screamed in terror.
“AHHHH!”
“P-please, save me!”
“Hey!! Save me!! I’ll give you the legendary Muramasa!”
I recognized that one of the Pirate Officers was the one with the Muramasa sword. I couldn’t help but chuckle and replied,
“Sorry, I know exactly where it is.”
“……!!”
The next moment, people rushed in like swarming animals and began hacking at them with makeshift weapons. Those without weapons bit at their flesh with their teeth or pounded them with fists. As the crowd surrounded the Pirate Officers, they vanished from sight. A moment later, as the people drew back, there was barely anything left of the scoundrels.
I figured things were suitably cleaned up and said,
“Now, let’s prepare to leave.”
First, I treated the urgent injuries with medical care, then checked each person’s identity one at a time. It struck me as bitter to see that there were far more survivors than the last time I had come with the Naval Forces. Even a slight time difference shouldn’t account for that many, meaning countless people had perished like dogs on this Pirate Island.
Afterward, I secured the Muramasa and confirmed the locations of the treasures hidden in the secret areas of Pirate Island. However, since I intended to keep people in the Vault, I planned to leave the treasures here for now.
Then I approached the strong-willed woman I had previously spoken with.
“I’ve heard you are the matriarch of the women.”
“I’m not quite at that level…”
“The child you took care of is Seo Mun-hye, a noble from the Shadowless Gate, one of the prestigious sects in the Central Plains. How about we discuss her future?”
She suddenly looked shocked and then burst into tears.
“Thank you… Really, thank you. How will I ever repay this grace…”
Once the situation was settled, I ushered everyone into the Vault. Inside was incredibly spacious, around a hundred zhang wide, so the prisoners wouldn’t feel cramped at all. After placing them inside the Vault, I activated the Sudden Movement Technique again.
Whoosh!
This time, I arrived at the residence of Hwa the Elder in Gyeongju. Elder Hwa was reading a book when my sudden appearance startled him.
“W-who are you? A sorcerer?”
“I’m a branch of the Hwa family. I’ve come to help.”
I then pulled out a gold ingot I had been carrying. The moment I handed it over, Elder Hwa’s eyes widened, and I immediately revealed the Hwa Family’s 108 Needles and the Hwa Tao’s Golden Spirit to prove I was indeed of the Hwa Family lineage. I then made my request.
“There are unfortunate prisoners currently being held by the Pirates. Please help them.”
Elder Hwa looked at me as if I were crazy.
“Where are they?”
“Here they are.”
Moments later, the injured prisoners rushed out in droves from the Vault, and Elder Hwa was left dumbfounded as he watched in shock.
“T-this, how is that possible…?”
“It’s a wonderful item.”
“Ah, so it is a good item…”
“And please introduce me to Jeong Cheol-wook.”
Thanks to Elder Hwa’s introduction, I soon met Jeong Cheol-wook. He looked at me with incredulity and said,
“Are you a daydreamer? You managed to slip past my guards and come here undetected…”
“I apologize for the rudeness, but the situation demands it…”
I explained to Jeong Cheol-wook how I had vanquished the Pirates and the story of the prisoners. When I revealed the captured Goryeo people to him, he was taken aback. He stuttered,
“T-t-this is astonishing. There are people inside that vault?”
“Yes.”
“W-well… I understand now. I’ll help them.”
“Thank you.”
Jeong Cheol-wook then slyly added, revealing his evident greed,
“By the way, are you not willing to sell me that Vault…?”
“I’m sorry, but I won’t sell it for even the price of a castle.”
“Hmm… Is that still true, even for a Duke?”
“Absolutely.”
I answered firmly, causing him to let out a heavy sigh.
“I see. Then let’s proceed as is.”
“Thank you.”
I figured that if Jeong Cheol-wook was adamant about getting the Vault and was truly devious enough to imply he wouldn’t take in the prisoners without it, he would have insisted without hesitation. However, he wasn’t that malevolent, so we moved on without further issue. It was precisely because I had observed his character as Jeong Cheol-wook’s guard for many years that I dared to ask him for help.
“This should be sufficient to attain your trust.”
“T-thank you.”
Once I had settled matters concerning the Goryeo people, I handed Elder Hwa another gold ingot as compensation. Following that, I once again used the Sudden Movement Technique and arrived at the Shadowless Gate. Upon reaching the Shadowless Gate, I felt so tired that I briefly sat on a tree stump to rest.
“Ah… It’s exhausting…”
Though my stamina shouldn’t have dwindled from my immense energy reserves, I felt mentally drained.
It seemed that I had done too much in a single day. It was already dark, signaling the close of another day. As I rested on the stump, the guards of the Shadowless Gate approached me with astonishment.
“Hey there, kid! What trick did you pull? How did you appear out of nowhere?”
I ignored their questions and opened the Vault, releasing Seo Mun-hye. As she appeared, she looked around with dazed eyes, quickly realizing she was back in her home, the Shadowless Gate.
She gazed at me with wide eyes,
“Your grace is truly remarkable…”
The guards, upon recognizing Seo Mun-hye, turned pale and knelt down.
“We greet the Master of Rumors!!”
“……?”
Seo Mun-hye looked bewildered at suddenly returning to her homeland from Pirate Island. However, she soon regained her composure and firmly addressed the guards,
“Do not act carelessly. This benefactor is my savior.”
“Understood!”
Maintaining her dignified demeanor as the noble lady of a Heretical Sect, she asked,
“Is my father inside?”
“Yes, the Master is in the Training Hall.”
“Understood.”
I promptly retrieved the women from the Vault. One of the Vault‘s convenient features was that I could retrieve objects in accordance with my thoughts. As long as I had organized them in my head, they would appear as I envisioned. Naturally, they had no means to resist while inside.
“Eek!”
While the guards were startled again, it was evident that discussions had already taken place. It seemed most of the women had resolved to live a second life at the Shadowless Gate, while some looked like they wanted to return home. I placed the ones who wished to leave back into the Vault, saying,
“Seo Mun-hye, do you intend to take care of these women?”
“Yes, indeed.”
“That’s great.”
A little while later, I entered the Shadowless Gate alongside Seo Mun-hye and the women. Seo Mun-hye and the women first took the time to cleanse themselves with a thorough bath, and I, too, soaked my blood-soaked body in the bathtub. On the outside, the Shadowless Gate didn’t seem overly large, but it was clearly a wealthy sect with luxurious annexes.
‘It seems like it’s been ages since I had a bath.’
Once washing up was complete, Seo Mun-hye and I could finally meet the Lord of Shadowless Gate, Sword Demon. As the Sword Demon listened to Seo Mun-hye recount the events that unfolded, he nodded slowly.
“I see…”
I thought I could predict what he would say next.
“Then marry her.”
I decisively replied,
“I refuse.”
“……”
