Chapter: 968
Yusa’s words left me momentarily speechless.
‘General?’
It was said that Shin Noya hailed from a military background.
And then there’s the claim that he betrayed his mother and vanished.
Could that possibly be true?
If it is true…
‘How on earth?’
How on earth did Noya become a general? As I listened to Yusa’s words, I continued to scrunch my face in confusion.
Crack!
“Gah!”
Noya grabbed Yusa’s face with his hand and slammed it down onto the floor.
“You’ve always been like this.”
Bang!
Bang!
After hitting it three more times, even with sound barriers in place, the ground shook like it was having a tantrum.
“Your mouth is too damn loose. That insipid tongue of yours has always been a problem.”
Bang!!!
After landing one final blow, he grabbed Yusa’s hair, lifting her head up.
“Ugh… cough…”
Yusa’s face twisted in pain.
“Guh…”
As Shin Noya watched Yusa cringe, he let out a chuckle, which sent chills down my spine.
There was something unnerving about that laughter.
Though it felt eerie, I questioned whether there was even a glimpse of malice in it.
But I didn’t sense any killing intent.
It meant that sheer atmosphere was intimidating enough.
Sigh.
I let out a long breath internally.
I already knew how strong he was.
Of course, he could smack me around like a rat, and naturally, it would be expected of him to toy with Yusa like that.
That old man. Is he really a Taoist?
The real issue was that this gentleman was a practitioner of the Tao.
Even among the great sages, renowned for their broad-mindedness and character, living life in harmony with nature.
Aside from the Plum Blossom of the Volcano, this gentleman was the most revered Taoist and hero.
But looking at him now, he seemed no different from a local thug.
“Yes… you…”
Yusa’s voice sounded worn out.
I could see blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. He seemed to be in considerable pain.
It didn’t seem like one would get so hurt from just being slammed down like that. Perhaps the reason he looked like that was…
‘It’s not the ground that’s the problem. It’s because he impacted the pottery he was holding.’
When he struck, I could see pottery shatter upon impact.
He didn’t just hit normally; he seemed to exercise considerable restraint.
That crazy old man.
There was a wealth of realization packed into that short repetition.
Compression of energy. Application. Fine control.
The use for it was violence, yet the cleanliness and delicacy within it were worlds apart.
I didn’t realize it before.
It’s becoming somewhat clearer now.
I initially wondered why a Taoist would wield such rough energy.
Turns out, the opposite is true.
Noya’s energy, in fact, was neat and refined for a Taoist.
Depending on how it’s wielded, it could be a sharp sword—or it could be just fluttering flower petals.
‘…Hah.’
Finding humor in that thought struck me as funny.
‘What am I realizing when I’m being shown this?’
It was utterly ridiculous to find enlightenment while in the middle of crushing an opponent.
Then, at that moment…
“Yusa.”
“Khuh…”
As Noya observed the staggering Yusa, he spoke again.
“There’s only ever one important thing: as always, whether you’ll do it or not. That’s all that matters. So why don’t you stop with this nonsense and have a proper chat?”
“A conversation… with a traitor?”
“How long do you think your master will keep you by his side?”
“…”
Yusa, who seemed like they’d never break their will, suddenly fell silent at Noya’s words.
Then, after a short moment, they spoke again.
“What nonsense are you talking about?”
The tone was oddly peculiar, trembling like they’d been struck at a sensitive spot.
Did Noya feel it too? Without wiping the smile from his face, he continued to talk to Yusa.
“You know this too. With your intuition, there’s no way you could be clueless. You know it yet play dumb, don’t you?”
“Stop talking nonsense! What could you possibly know about this when you’ve already left…!”
“If not, then why are you back in Yawol amidst all this chaos?”
“…!”
Yusa’s eyes widened at Noya’s question.
“…How do you know that…?”
“Ha ha ha.”
Shin Noya burst into laughter at Yusa’s shocked response.
“Even if I’m just an old man stuck in the backroom, I still have eyes and ears.”
Swish!
Just as he said that, Noya loosened his grip on Yusa’s face.
I had expected him to lose control once freed, but Yusa remained quiet.
“Now that Mujeonggang has disappeared and the other generals are causing a ruckus elsewhere, why is it that you, who should be the busiest, are here?”
“…”
“If you think it through, don’t you know the answer?”
“…Shut up.”
“The master is hoping for something to shift. And.”
“Shut up!”
GRRRGH! The ropes began to loosen gradually.
Isn’t this a bit risky? I swallowed hard, keeping my eyes peeled.
“If change is what’s coming, you might very well be the first to change, you know.”
“SHUT UP!”
Kwahg!!!
Yusa exploded in frustration.
At that moment, the ropes snapped, and he was free.
Gubong reacted quickly, reaching for his sword.
I too felt a surge of adrenaline racing through my heart.
But…
“Yusa.”
What I dreaded did not come to fruition.
Though Yusa had gotten up after being untied, he didn’t charge at Noya.
“Once, he was the ruler of the most splendid moonlight.”
The intent and murderous aura were palpable, yet…
He simply glared.
In that situation, Noya seemed to anticipate it and kept on talking.
“Why have you become so decrepit? You seem to have forgotten what you desired, and even the color of your fur has faded.”
“Cut the nonsense and speak plainly, Hwayeon. What do you really want to say?”
Interrupting Shin Noya, Yusa snapped back.
Upon hearing that name, I perked up my ears.
“Hwayeon.” Yusa’s way of addressing Noya struck me as peculiar.
“You hide away like a dead rat, and now you come out to pull off some ridiculous stunt? What’s the point of that?”
Yusa stepped closer, his expression fierce, and the tail of his being seemed to swell in size.
The grass-green hair trailing back was getting a bit longer.
Noya looked on calmly.
“Yusa.”
In his gaze, not a trace of fear toward Yusa was found.
“I have a proposition for you.”
“You? For me?”
“I will grant you the dream you’ve yearned for.”
Yusa’s expression changed as soon as the wish was mentioned.
There was a flicker of understanding on Noya’s face about what was being discussed.
“…you.”
“Yusa. Don’t you wish to become the master of this land?”
“…!”
As Shin Noya broached that subject.
“I will help you achieve it.”
It might be a mere illusion, but there was an unmistakable stillness in the air for a moment.
A little while later, back to that spot.
As the sun began to set, I perched myself on the edge of a building, gazing up at the sky for a moment.
A quick look behind me revealed scattered debris and damage from the earlier chaos.
In that wreckage, I let out a quiet sigh.
Hearing that sound, someone settled beside me. It was Noya.
“What kind of hangdog expression is that?”
What in the world was he holding in his hand?
It turned out to be a skewer. What was that about?
Why’s he randomly holding a skewer? My curiously puzzled gaze shifted toward Gubong, who also bore a skewer in hand.
His expression didn’t suggest that he had chased after it for a snack.
It appeared that Noya had shoved it into his hands.
“Eat up. It’s delicious.”
“…In the midst of all this, is this really the time for that?”
“We’re all doing this to eat and stay alive, right? So eat up.”
“This is absurd, truly.”
His frank indifference was comically mind-boggling.
What’s even more outrageous is the fact that I ended up accepting it.
Then, naturally, I took a bite.
Just my luck, it tasted decent.
As I chewed on it, I glanced at Noya and inquired, “Noya.”
“Yeah.”
“What just happened?”
The sunset was still unfolding.
I kept my gaze there while speaking to Noya.
“What do you mean?”
“I’m talking about Yusa.”
I mentioned the topic regarding the master.
Upon hearing that, Noya made a short sound like “Ah.”
“That thing?”
His demeanor suggested it was nothing significant.
“It’s what it is. Yusa was meant to be the rightful master.”
“…”
The gravity of his simple words weighed heavily.
“…What do you mean by that?”
“I mentioned it, didn’t I? Yusa was the strongest of the Moonlight folks.”
His casual nose-picking manner was infuriatingly irritating.
“So he must have strived to be the master; however, things went awry.”
“What do you mean by ‘things’?”
“I’m not sure of the specifics, but it seems like there was something to be dissatisfied about.”
“…”
Yusa was supposed to have been the master.
But that didn’t happen, which led to the conclusion that I became associated with his mother?
What, exactly, is a master anyway?
Wasn’t it tied to the existence of the world itself? When I heard aside from Mu-a…
Didn’t I hear that when a master changes, all life gets erased and reborn?
There seemed to be a paradox in the assertion that he couldn’t become one. And the notion that there were other circumstances made it all the more confusing.
On top of that…
“So… does that mean Noya was a general?”
It was also odd to think that Shin Noya was once a general who betrayed his current master.
Honestly, this was more bewildering than the prior mentions of the master.
Hence, I questioned Noya.
“That?”
This time, Noya directed a slightly more serious gaze toward me.
Then came the response.
“It was your mother’s request.”
He delivered that with a seemingly nonchalant gloominess.
“Not a master of the whole world. Your mother’s request.”
He proceeded to unravel something rather peculiar.
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