In the end, I managed to find some useful information by thoroughly beating that guy up.
The current head of the Assassin’s Room is a guy named Yeon Mipyeong, and his skills are about on par with a second-rate martial artist. He’s got some sense of loyalty but is cruel as hell, and with his charisma, he has managed to bring together the bottom-feeding scum to form the Assassin’s Room. But that seems to be all over now.
Apparently, after we killed four members of the Assassin’s Room, many of them started to desert, thinking they were under attack by a master.
So now, there are only six left, including the head.
And one of them is this bastard.
“What about Oh Su-man?”
“That guy is completely wrecked! Was it really worth attracting a master…?!”
There goes one of the few remaining forces.
That’s good news.
“So, we only have four combatants to deal with now. Hey, Jaemi Son, doesn’t this feel lucky? It seems like we just have to kill four more and it’ll all be over.”
“Fewer than expected… heh heh. Luck is on our side.”
And I noticed earlier that there were guys going in and out of the warehouse. If we include those scumbags that ran away, then essentially, there’s just Yeon Mipyeong and Oh Su-man left inside, right?
“Jaemi Son, it seems we can move now. There were some who just went out. It’s the perfect time to ambush.”
“It seems we’ll be able to resolve this grudge quickly… Oh, but one thing’s bugging me.”
Jaemi Son looked down as he said that.
“Anything you want, my bro!”
“Thinking about it, this is actually Oh Su-man’s grudge… Why the hell is the Assassin’s Room fulfilling it? Why would they resolve the grudge of a mere lackey on a room level?”
“Oh, that’s…”
He cautiously explained.
“Well, you see, that jerk Yeon Mipyeong is flaunting his loyalty, and he also captures targets to execute them brutally, like that!”
“Ahh.”
Not the best explanation, but I got the general idea.
In other words, they’re resolving a member’s grudge at the room level to inspire loyalty and a sense of brotherhood, and by doing so, showcase a brutal execution to cement the head’s terrifying image.
If the members recognize their loyalty to the organization and view their leader as a fearsome existence, that organization will undoubtedly grow stronger.
Looks like Yeon Mipyeong was trying to strengthen the Assassin’s Room that way.
It’s not a bad plan, and I can see that Yeon Mipyeong is a competent dark artist who can think ahead.
—Whoosh!
“Ugh…!”
I disposed of the now useless lackey of the Assassin’s Room.
Now that war has started, there’s no mercy.
I felt a weight drop in my heart, thinking I’ve been killing people too easily lately, but if I don’t do this, I’ll be the one to die. If I want to survive and if Jaemi Son and I want to keep living here, the head of the Assassin’s Room, Yeon Mipyeong, must die.
“Let’s go, Jaemi Son.”
“Wait a moment… I have to buy some tools first.”
“Tools?”
“Hehe… if we set the warehouse on fire to start, we’ll definitely win.”
Jaemi Son grinned mischievously.
“Good idea! You’re the best! You little Zhuge Liang!”
“Ha ha, stop with the funny talk.”
Arson sounds splendid.
We immediately headed to the nearby shopping district to buy the items needed for arson. It was unfortunate to spend money, but robbing their base should yield something worthwhile. Usually, scum like them are broke, but the boss always has some cash hidden away.
With that, we headed for the Assassin’s Room’s base.
“…”
But there was one guy guarding the entrance, even if he was a trashy lackey. I communicated with Jaemi Son using signs and moved a bit further away to the left side of the warehouse. Jaemi Son took position on the right side.
When I signal, we were planning to ambush all at once.
“…”
I saw Jaemi Son peek his head out over there.
With a raised fist, our operation began.
—Swoosh.
Naturally.
Pretending nothing was wrong, I approached the guard.
“Hmm? What’s this?”
The moment he recognized me.
—Bang!
I charged straight ahead. As I sprinted, he panicked, and just as he was about to shout and draw his weapon…
—Thwack!
Jaemi Son’s hidden weapon pierced his back.
“Crack…!”
I immediately slashed with my sword across his neck. It didn’t cut cleanly. The severed carotid artery gushed blood from his neck as he met his end.
A true stealth assassination.
He wouldn’t even know who took his life.
And not only that. Jaemi Son quickly set up the arson supplies in front of the warehouse and opened the igniter to set it on fire. He worked like a skilled pro—was he a pyromaniac in his youth?
—Flames burst forth!
“Haah, haah!”
I fanned the flames as Jaemi Son blew air into the embers to increase the fire.
“Done.”
I killed the sentry and set fire at the entrance. Everything was perfectly set.
Soon, Yeon Mipyeong would be startled and come bursting out, and we could just kill him.
—Thump thump!
This was truly the time for hunting the boss. My heart raced. But the ambush was successful, and I had Jaemi Son, a reliable partner, with me.
There was nothing to fear. Together, this dark scum was nothing to us.
I signaled Jaemi Son to wait on either side of the entrance, and then we took our positions.
“Ah, shit! What’s going on?! Why is there a fire?!”
A nervous voice erupted from inside the warehouse, and the door slammed open. With determination, anger was boiling over. This bastard was trying to kill me for his bullshit purpose!
With gritted teeth, I confirmed my target.
Bald, sharp-featured.
The head of the Assassin’s Room—Yeon Mipyeong!
“Raaaah!”
“Yikes!”
Without hesitation, I sprang into action with Jaemi Son, thrusting our weapons toward Yeon Mipyeong. He looked shocked and clumsily drew his sword, seeming like he didn’t know what to do.
Well, I could see why.
If I were in his position, I’d feel the same way.
Out of nowhere, there was a fire, and then two crazy killers ambushed me from the sides. Even a trained master would find this tricky, so what could a worthless scum like him possibly do?!
“Shit!”
With a loud curse, Yeon Mipyeong took a swing at Jaemi Son’s weapon. Naturally, Jaemi Son used the unique style of his odd weapon to catch Yeon Mipyeong’s sword.
That was all it took.
“Die, head of the Assassin’s Room!”
“Nooo!”
There was no need to unleash the Flowing Stream Sword Technique. I just thrust directly at his unguarded back. Sparks flew off the Heavenly Thunder Sword’s blade as it struck. It felt nostalgic to see, but that wasn’t what I should be focusing on right now.
I was too busy trying to kill a man.
—Thwack!
“Ugh!”
Yeon Mipyeong was sentenced to an inescapable fate of death.
My Heavenly Thunder Sword pierced through his abdomen.
After confirming it, I pulled my sword out. He could do nothing in defense. He merely crumpled to the ground, clutching his belly. He couldn’t make a final stand or a farewell. All he could do was spew blood from his gaping wound.
“Mipyeong, it’s me. Kim Geunhyeop, your target. You dared to lay hands on us… your punishment is death.”
“M-me, crazy… cough, I never thought you’d ambush like this… ugh.”
Not much to say here.
The head of the Assassin’s Room, Yeon Mipyeong, died just like that.
“All done.”
“Not yet… Let’s check inside.”
“Sure. But before that, let’s put out the fire.”
The fire wasn’t that huge. Initially, we hastily gathered some cheap arson supplies. But the flames rising had their limits.
However, it was enough to scorch this little hell.
—Boom!
We immediately danced around the fire, extinguishing it, and then we attempted to evolve Yeon Mipyeong’s corpse. Dongtak did the same with his city, lighting it up throughout the festival. I hope Yeon Mipyeong does the same.
Wishing for that, we entered the interior of the warehouse.
“Ugh… what the hell…”
I saw Oh Su-man sprawled on the ground, looking completely wrecked.
My old pal.
The one responsible for all this chaos.
“Nice to see you, Su-man. I’m Geunhyeop. How have you been?”
“Uh, uhhh?! You, you!”
“Mipyeong is dead by my hand… now it’s your turn to follow. Let’s go. The kids are waiting. Mipyeong is up there in hell waiting for you.”
“You little bastard!”
At the last moment.
Oh Su-man displayed an extraordinary spirit, unbelievable in this situation. But it was all pretty pathetic. With his limbs wrecked, there was little he could do.
I unleashed the Flowing Stream Sword Technique.
The fierce whirl of my blade struck into Oh Su-man’s head. I couldn’t split it completely, but it was enough to kill him.
That was enough to sever this damn grudge, too.
“Haah.”
The final kill.
A wave of fatigue washed over me.
Everything felt dreamlike.
“Truly over.”
There are still some punks outside. But once they see their head and base torn apart, they’ll probably run without a second thought.
“Ahh… this is the end.”
“Let’s gather the spoils, Jaemi Son.”
“Heh… this is the most thrilling moment.”
Jaemi Son stood guard while I quickly rummaged through the warehouse. All I found was a little cash and some weapons. It was meager for the price of murder. But after gathering everything, I left the warehouse.
“Let’s check this bastard too.”
I flipped through Yeon Mipyeong’s corpse.
“Oh!”
He had more money than I thought!
He had several small silver coins!
“Heh, looks like the head of a dark organization had something saved up.”
“Hey, Jaemi Son. Let’s split this exactly in half.”
“Heh… that’s why I like you.”
I gathered their weaponry, but frankly, nothing caught my eye as the Heavenly Thunder Sword owner. I could just sell these coins to the night watchmen for about a hundred coins.
After wrapping things up, we nonchalantly slipped away from the murder scene.
It’s far too common for lowly scum like these to kill each other, so it wouldn’t make it even to the news. News sites would just brush it off. New guys will come in, and no one will remember the vanished Assassin’s Room.
Just another mundane tale.
A cheap finish to a blood feud.
“That wraps up one grudge nicely…”
Jaemi Son, arms crossed, looked up at the sky and said.
“Right.”
“But Geunhyeop… don’t let your guard down. In the Martial Arts World, feuds never end.”
“Never end, you say?”
“We’re already caught up in the whirlpool of grudges.”
The whirlpool of grudges.
“Those connections we never thought would happen… like friends, siblings, or family of those lowly Assassin’s Room bastards, could come seeking revenge.”
“Ah.”
“We killed everyone left here to eliminate future troubles, but you never know. Someone might find out about us and try to get even. Plus, those who escaped earlier and those still outside might have similar thoughts.”
“…So what should we do?”
Jaemi Son’s gaze pierced into me.
“We just have to survive.”
Through the unruly hair framing his face, his shining gaze was visible.
“Fighting with grudges until the moment of death. That’s what it means to be a martial artist.”
With those words, Jaemi Son honestly made me feel nauseous.
That day.
I was captivated by Jaemi Son’s martial arts philosophy, sharing drinks and deepening our bond. Today, I finally became a martial artist.
An existence living tangled in grudges until my final moment.
That’s what being a martial artist is.
I’m going to stride boldly out of this whirlpool of grudges.
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