It was an evening as the sun set. The serene sunset was dyeing the thousand-day plum blossoms of Hongseong Mountain an even deeper red when a figure appeared, leaping over the walls of the Hongseong Sect.
Koyumi, known by the nickname “Yang Sang-gunja.”
A seasoned thief who had infiltrated numerous sects over time.
She easily scaled the wall and concealed herself in the shadows, stifling a laugh.
While martial arts itself wasn’t her strong suit, as far as infiltration went, Hongseong wasn’t exactly a formidable sect to her.
She had expected some ease, but she never thought it would be this simple.
Thinking back to the times she almost died trying to sneak into places like Moonjeong, the Sword Pavilion, or the Mount Wudang, navigating up Hongseong Mountain was like a walk in the park.
“I thought it would be easy, though.”
Of course, there were barriers to prevent others from approaching, but it was tough to stop someone like Koyumi.
“This mountain has a lot of dark energy.”
As she surveyed the area, Koyumi clicked her tongue briefly.
But that was all there was to it. Hongseong Mountain was a sacred ground, and gathering spirits ensnared by its aura was an everyday occurrence.
Ignoring that, Koyumi headed towards the food storage per her master’s instructions.
She spotted a few disciples here and there, but they didn’t seem overly vigilant. Well, she wasn’t attacking, just quietly using her stealth technique to mask her presence; unless they were focused, it wouldn’t be easy for them to detect her.
Brimming with confidence, she moved quickly. As she had investigated beforehand, there was a food storage near the outer gate of the Hongseong Sect.
In front of the newly built food storage, located near the building where the disciples stayed, she smirked.
The facility was tightly locked, but to Koyumi, this was no challenge. Lightly picking the lock and stepping inside, she produced a white powder from her pocket.
She meticulously sprinkled it over the food. As she confirmed that the color had completely faded and was absorbed into the food,
“Uhaaaam~!”
“Let’s prepare dinner~!”
A clear voice rang out. Immediately retreating from her spot, she noticed a striking woman with red hair and another woman with dark brown locks.
Realizing it was Hongryeon, the sect’s foremost disciple, and Ryuhyun, the second disciple, she quietly smiled.
Then she began to watch.
She observed them carry the food to the kitchen.
Only after witnessing everything did she feel she had succeeded in her mission and felt satisfied.
The two women bringing the food into the kitchen were blissfully unaware of the cold smile lurking in the shadows.
Holding her breath, she hid and watched the steam of the rice cooking rise from the kitchen. All that was left was to confirm that they ate the poisoned rice.
As Koyumi focused intently on the dining area, she suddenly thought,
“Damn it.”
A woman was walking towards her from afar.
Long, deep navy hair like the ocean. Dressed haphazardly in a slightly oversized robe, the beautiful woman moved gracefully, her long, fair legs visible beneath the short pants typical of the Hongseong uniform.
Her expression seemed innocent, but lurking behind it was nothing short of malevolence.
Sword Saint Na Yerin was approaching.
The moment Koyumi spotted her from a distance, she swiftly executed her stealth technique and made her retreat.
While others might not know, when a master swordsman is around, even hiding wouldn’t necessarily ensure safety. No, just her mere presence was enough to send chills down one’s spine.
Maintaining her distance, Koyumi focused her energy and kept an eye on the dining area.
The disciples were entering.
However, she couldn’t see inside. Still, since those who had gone in were now coming out and even washing the dishes, surely they had eaten.
She gulped. Seeing the Sword Saint heading off with her disciples to train, Koyumi clenched her fists.
She held it tight.
And concentrating as much as possible, she used her stealth near the well by the restaurant, straining her ears.
Voices floated in with the wind.
“Sayoon. Was dinner good today?”
“Yes! Senior Sister. The rice turned out really well! As expected, your cooking skills are the best!”
“Hehe. You’re saying such trivial things.”
Koyumi, eavesdropping on the lively conversation between the two girls doing the dishes, silently cheered.
Yeah.
Done.
They ate.
Then there was no need to stay here any longer.
With a cold smile, Koyumi left the Hongseong Clan.
Calmly, Hongryeon opened her mouth.
“She’s gone.”
“Is that so? I wouldn’t know…”
“Hehe. Work hard on your training.”
As Hongryeon gently ruffled Sayoon’s gray hair, she spoke calmly.
“You received a lot from that ‘Mister’ again. How should we repay him…”
“Indeed.”
Hongryeon shrugged at Sayoon, who muttered in a downcast tone.
‘And I need to repay him too…’
If it wasn’t for the wall-ghost pill he gave, I couldn’t have tricked the enemy like this. Hongryeon fiddled with the wall-ghost pill in her pocket.
As night fell, Hongryeon remained alone in her room, sitting cross-legged in thought.
Since mastering the Hongseong Divine Art, she had fought many people. However, it was the first time the Hongseong Clan had been directly attacked.
The thought that the Hongseong Clan, which was like family to her, might be in danger weighed heavily on Hongryeon’s heart.
What if I make a mistake?
What if my sisters get hurt or killed?
What if. What if.
“…Hoo.”
Releasing a low breath, she couldn’t concentrate, so she grabbed her sword and stepped outside. Would swinging the sword mindlessly help ease her?
If not…
“No. No. Not now…”
She had already received too much. It felt like her heart would burst. So now, shouldn’t she give a little back?
Instead of just going and leaning on him, it would be better to think about that now.
So, what could she give him in return?
But unless you’ve given a present to a guy, it’s hard to come up with good ideas.
Hongryeon unknowingly averted her gaze. What caught her eye was the collection of romance novels she’d been gathering. Surely there must be something useful among these.
As her eyes skimmed the pages slowly, they stopped at a shelf adorned with books of a different kind, slightly tinged red.
Her face flushed red instantly, as if about to burst.
“Ah, uh, huh.”
Why did those lowly jokes she made with her sisters suddenly come to mind? Why did she bite her lip at the wild pounding of her heart?
“Can’t sleep, can you?”
Just then, the door opened, and a voice echoed. It was the Sword Saint, her blue hair clumsily braided and flowing down. Judging by her skill, it seemed she had done it herself.
“Not watching that Chun-seo like usual.”
“Hahaha…”
Startled, Hongryeon quickly shook her head at the horrible thoughts that had popped up earlier. After all, she was still a maiden who had never been in love. Maybe with her sisters, but certainly not with him…
As she quickly glanced at her reflection in the mirror, the Sword Saint smiled gently at her.
“I thought you were getting your mind together. Are you feeling uncertain about yourself?”
“Oh. Not that… Well, I can’t say it’s not true.”
With a smile, Hongryeon approached the Sword Saint. She sat beside her, brushing out the stray hairs, and began to braid her hair carefully. Accepting the tender touches, the Sword Saint spoke calmly.
She went and sat her down, gently untangling the stray hairs, combing through them, and began to braid them nicely. Not refusing the careful touches, the Sword Saint calmly spoke.
“It’s okay. It’s all going to be fine.”
Once her hair was all braided, she turned to hug Hongryeon.
“You’ve done everything you could, right? So everything will turn out well.”
Hopefully, that would be the case.
Hongryeon gently closed her eyes in the Sword Saint’s embrace.
“And the poison… I think it will start showing its effects around noon tomorrow.”
“Do you know the poison?”
“Well, I’ve seen it before.”
The Sword Saint smiled and stroked Hongryeon’s hair, and she let out a sigh.
In moments like these, her Master was indeed reliable.
With her Master by her side, it was time to gather her thoughts.
They had done everything they could.
Sometimes, there are days like this. A day that’s unnecessarily nice yet feels just as unpleasant.
An unidentifiable sticky energy was swirling around the Hongseong Clan, and all the disciples could feel it.
Still, they didn’t show it. They simply went about their day, recognizing it as just another ordinary day.
As the sun reached its peak, a day that seemed no different had passed.
When noon arrived…
“Cough!”
It all started with Ryuhyun. Red liquid spewed from her mouth. Following her lead, several disciples collapsed onto the floor.
“Guys!!”
Hongryeon’s cry echoed through the Hongseong Clan. And then…
Boom!!
With a low rumble, the barrier around the Hongseong Clan shattered. At the same time, the walls crumbled, and figures dressed in black began to walk in.
A tall man stood among them, with a sharp jaw and bulging eyes.
His gaze was menacing enough that anyone—Hongryeon or not—could tell he was a villain who would harm people whether he needed to or not.
He marched in with an unmasked killing intent, followed by a dozen or so men in black.
They grinned mischievously as they observed the state of the Hongseong disciples.
“What’s going on!!”
With her sword drawn, Hongryeon yelled. At that moment, she stumbled.
“They call me the Cheolhyeol Master of the Iron Blood Clan.”
“…Cough…”
Ryuhyun bit her lip tightly. Behind her, Hyunhwi spewed another wave of red liquid.
After observing that more than half of the disciples were struggling, the man sneered at Hongryeon.
“The poison worked well. Where’s the Sword Saint?”
“…Poison.”
“Yup.”
He was relaxed. Of course, he could be.
Those disciples of the Sword Saint wouldn’t be able to fight properly in their poisoned state.
Look at that Na Yerin—barely standing, relying on her sword to not fall over.
“…You coward!!”
“Haha. How naive. We’re not here for a fair duel. We’re just here to eliminate the weak. Let me give you a piece of advice: there’s nothing cowardly about a fight.”
A sinister grin spread across the Cheolhyeol Master’s face.
“There’s no such thing as cowardice.”
Exactly. In the brutal truth of survival of the fittest, where’s the place for cowardice?
If necessary, use poison, and if needed, betray without hesitation.
When a predator hunts its prey, there’s no need to play fair.
If you’re weak, just bite off the neck.
The Cheolhyeol Master showed this truth with a laugh and asked his subordinates.
Cheolhyeol Master grinned, revealing his teeth, and asked his subordinate.
“What about the others?”
“According to the message we received before, there are many officials near Hongseong Mountain, so I believe it won’t be easy for them to come through for negotiations… However, they are not the type to break their promises, so you needn’t worry. Furthermore, if there’s any friction with the officials, I’ve instructed them to just pay and move on. They are surely already nearby, waiting for the signal. How dare they defy the innkeeper’s orders? Once the flare is shot, they will move immediately.”
“Tch. Joyo. Have you confirmed it?”
“…I apologize. I have not confirmed it yet.”
He clicked his tongue at Joyo, who was standing behind. However, just as his subordinate said, the high-ranking members of Go-Hwa Clan and Ju-Gyeong University have their skills, so they won’t mess up.
Moreover, they themselves would soon follow the will of Iron Blood, so how could they fail such a simple mission?
Let’s be generous and forgive this much.
The important thing is…
“…They really are a bunch of cocky ones.”
The Sword Saint approaching from over there, a woman who doesn’t even flinch at poison, is certainly no one to leave out.
And the most crucial preparation is with the Hongseong disciples over there, who are spitting blood themselves.
He planned to unleash a poison around noon and act before the Sword Saint could detoxify her disciples’ condition.
“It is an honor to meet you. I am the Cheolhyeol Master of the Iron Blood Clan.”
“…Did you really think you could touch my disciples and walk away unscathed?”
With just her voice, she dominates the room. Her heavy aura makes all her subordinates exude a killing intent.
Cheolhyeol Master shrugged.
“Sword Saint, I know you’re strong. But your disciples, the children of Hongseong, are dying. And yet… are you just going to let it happen?”
Click. The Sword Saint gritted her white teeth and waved her hand, causing her disciples to look a little more relaxed.
As expected, she is indeed as formidable as her reputation suggests. Just by manipulating her internal energy, she can detoxify them?
He was glad to act in time; had he given the Sword Saint more time, more of her disciples might have detoxified.
Cheolhyeol Master muttered softly in his mind and laughed.
More than half of Hongseong’s disciples are already poisoned. Can she really treat them all?
“Attack.”
Even while taking attacks from the Iron Blood Clan?
Although the hired mercenaries haven’t arrived yet, they believe they would be sufficient for now.
With that thought, Cheolhyeol Master shouted harshly, and the moment one of his subordinates lunged to cut Hongryeon’s neck.
– Crack!!
Hongryeon’s eyes sparkled as she staggered, and her great sword turned his subordinate into a pulp with a single strike.
The sight of the subordinate, crushed with flesh and entrails spilling everywhere like under a massive boulder, made Cheolhyeol Master question everything.
What the hell?
What in the world is going on?
Before that question could even form an answer, an enormous amount of energy erupted from the bodies of the Hongseong disciples, who had just been struggling.
“W-What…?”
Are they not poisoned? What in the world is happening here?
The sword of the girl who was sitting weakly deflected the sword of an Iron Blood member and sliced through his arm. The woman who had just spat blood reached out her fist, sending two members flying at once.
All of them.
All of them.
They are fighting effortlessly.
Cheolhyeol Master’s face twisted. Facing him, Hongryeon swung her great sword at one of the members and smiled coldly.
“Let me give you some advice. There’s nothing cowardly in a fight.”
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