I clearly relied on the Blood Heaven Blade Demon.
Just as I relied on my father for certain things, I relied on the Blood Heaven Blade Demon for others.
“Handle it in the way you’re best at.”
“What do you mean?”
“Kill the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader.”
I laughed loudly, thinking it was a joke, but the Blood Heaven Blade Demon was serious.
“Why are you laughing? It’s a win-win situation. If you kill the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader, no one would dare oppose you becoming the successor. Plus, you’d gain the subordinates you want.”
“I’m not going to kill the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader.”
“Why not?”
“He’s not really what you can call a good person, but he’s not such an evil person that he needs to be killed.”“That’s not the real reason. It’s because he’s your treasure trove, isn’t it?”
“Well, there’s that too.”
“You’re the real villain.”
“I admit it.”
“Why do you admit it so easily?”
“How can I catch villains if I’m too nice? I’ll become a proper villain. That way, I’ll bear the karma and go to hell.”
“Hell is for people like me. You should walk on a path of flowers.”
I was truly touched by his sincere words.
“You’ve already made your decision, haven’t you?”
“Yes.”
I decided to make the shackled man my own after finishing my conversation with General Sama Myung.
“He’s the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader’s man, so you can’t just take him away.”
“That’s right.”
“Then you need to make him come to you. Make him come to you on his own.”
“But he’s even shackled.”
“He has to free himself from those shackles. He has to show at least that much capability to be worth bringing over, don’t you think?”
“You’re right, but I’m not confident that I’ve given him that much assurance. We haven’t even spoken a word to each other yet.”
That’s why I sought out the Blood Heaven Blade Demon. I believed that he, if no one else, would understand my feelings.
Sure enough, instead of calling me crazy, he gave me an answer I hadn’t expected.
“Then give him that assurance.”
“How?”
“Show him your people.”
“!”
“If he sees your people, he’ll understand what kind of person you are. If the person you want to recruit is smart, just by seeing your people, he’ll be assured about you. He won’t be able to resist coming to you.” ȓἈɴꝋᛒÊꞩ
I stared at him quietly. Who would have thought he’d give such advice? His words were precious because they were rooted in his experience.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“It’s the best advice.”
“Honestly, it’s not that big of a deal, right?”
“Well, among my people, you’re number one, Elder. So, it’s the best advice.”
“Then it’s the worst advice, isn’t it?”
This time, I laughed first, and the Blood Heaven Blade Demon followed with a laugh.
“If they see me, they might run away, so show them the others. I wasn’t suggesting that you bring me along.”
I spoke firmly to him.
“Elder, you have to come too.”
“No.”
“It’s not because I want to show you to that person.”
“Then why?”
“I want to show you who I’ve chosen.”
“Why?”
“Then you can understand me better.”
“Why, exactly?”
“I want to give you confidence in me. I want to get closer to you. This is a win-win.”
The corners of the Blood Heaven Blade Demon’s eyes twitched. It was a typical expression he had when he was angry, but now it appeared because he was embarrassed.
“You sure know how to say such cheesy things to my face.”
“Let’s go.”
I stood up abruptly.
“Now?”
“Why delay? Let’s take everyone who’s available. Let’s show each other who I’ve chosen, and in turn, show who I am.”
“As expected, you’re… a crazy bastard.”
“Hahaha.”
Indeed. It’s this hard to make someone my own.
This applied to both the Blood Heaven Blade Demon and the shackled man.
* * *
The room’s air was cold.
The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader was staring out the window, and the shackled man was staring at the Thunder Bell. Neither had spoken a word for a long time.
It was a given who would win this silent standoff. The shackled man could go a whole year without saying a single word.
Finally, the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader spoke first.
“I’m sorry.”
It was a hard-won apology. He had hoped for a difficult response, but the shackled man replied as if he had been waiting for it.
“It’s alright.”
The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader had agonized over and over about this apology, but the shackled man accepted it too easily, which made him flare up in anger again.
But, just as before, he wasn’t in a position to get angry. No matter what, opening the space filled with corpses had been a huge mistake. Especially knowing how much the shackled man loved the space with the blue sky and fields.
“Recently, when I handed the divine item to the Second Young Master, I unknowingly accumulated a lot of anger. I apologize.”
The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader apologized again.
“It’s alright.”
The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader’s face hardened at the consistent tone of the reply. Uncertain that he could hide his expression, he continued to stare out the window, biting his lip until it bled.
All sorts of distracting thoughts tormented him.
‘Is this because I’m narrow-minded and greedy? Because I’m petty? Damn it! I can’t even win over one subordinate’s heart, yet I talk about advancing into the Central Plains? The other subordinates must be worse! They swear loyalty outwardly, but they might be laughing at me inwardly.’
Attempting any breathing exercises in this state would surely lead to inner demons.
Just then, a single word came from behind him.
“Leader.”
At that moment, the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader felt a surge of emotion. Though he had been angry and self-critical, deep down, he had been anxiously afraid he might never hear those words again.
“What?”
“You’re trying to bind not just my body but my heart with these shackles. I told you before, didn’t I? Neither you nor I are blessed enough to have everything without abandoning anything.”
“I am the ruler of the outer martial world! If I’m not blessed, who is?”
“Did you seize the outer martial world with your own strength? Leader, you simply inherited it. Granted, that’s a great blessing in itself, but the kind of blessing I’m talking about isn’t one that comes from being born into privilege.”
“You’re so irritating! You’re getting on my nerves again!”
With that, the shackled man fell silent.
An awkward silence ensued.
Whether he spoke or remained silent, it infuriated him.
The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader knew exactly where his anger was coming from today.
“Why did you accept the Second Young Master’s drink?”
“Just because.”
“There’s no ‘just because.’ Tell me the reason. I deserve to know.”
The shackled man did not respond. The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader abruptly asked a question he truly did not want to ask.
“You’re not thinking of going to him, are you?”
The shackled man neither confirmed nor denied it.
For a moment, the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader felt his legs go weak.
“You’re really going? Truly?”
“Nothing has been decided yet.”
“That means you are!”
The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader’s eyes narrowed as he shouted.
“When did you plot this? Have you been exchanging secret messages behind my back?”
He almost wished for a deceitful answer.
“We’ve never exchanged secret messages.”
“Then how?”
“I read his mind. The Second Young Master wants me.”
“Cut the crap! Cut the crap, I said! Who do you think you are, trying to imitate the Soul Reaper Demon Supreme? What do you mean you read his mind? How could you possibly read anyone’s mind?”
The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader now understood why he had felt so bitter and angry when Geom Mugeuk had poured the shackled man a drink earlier. It wasn’t because he refused his drink but accepted the Second Young Master’s.
He had anticipated this very scenario. His fate, his instincts, his premonitions had predicted this terrible turn of events.
“Do you think I’ll let you go? I’d rather kill you than let you leave!”
“Then you’ll have to kill me now.”
“What?”
“Kill me while you can. Later, you won’t be able to.”
The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader’s whole body trembled with rage.
The shackled man was the only one who truly understood him. And now, to kill him? To let someone else take him away?
“You think I can’t kill you? You’re mocking me!”
The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader strode toward the shackled man, raising his hand high.
One strike, and all his troubles would be over.
If the shackled man had looked up at his face, he might have struck him.
But the shackled man kept his head bowed, making it easier for the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader to act without guilt.
Seeing the shackled man calmly accept death, the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader couldn’t bring himself to strike.
“If you don’t kill me now, you’ll never be able to. If I decide to live, no one will be able to kill me. So, kill me now if you must.”
The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader’s raised hand trembled in the air.
But in the end, he couldn’t bring it down.
Slowly, he lowered his hand. The fury that had erupted like lava cooled and settled, leaving behind a profound pit of despair.
“Do you think you can just run away from this chaotic world? That easily? No way! I won’t let that happen.”
The shackled man slowly raised his head. Their eyes met, filled with complex emotions, in the empty space between them.
Melancholy, affection, pain, sorrow, acceptance, anger, guilt, regret and sadness boiled in their hearts.
The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader hadn’t given up hope yet.
“You said you haven’t decided to go yet, right?”
“Yes, not yet.”
“If I don’t lose you, it’ll be fine, right? I just need to be better than Geom Mugeuk, right?”
A smile appeared on the shackled man’s lips. It wasn’t a forced smile but a natural one.
“Yes, that’s how we’ll keep living.”
“Stop talking as if we’re going to part ways!”
“Don’t cling to me. It just looks bigger because someone else wants it.”
“Shut up! At least give me a chance to persuade you and decide who you’ll follow. They say even grudges become affection with time, and we’ve spent years in the same room. I’ll fight tooth and nail to keep you.”
“It still won’t work. You’re not his match.”
The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader sighed. The divine items, which had already been drained, told him he was outmatched.
“I won’t let you go that easily. If you’re leaving, take me with you.”
The shackled man chuckled, the first time he’d laughed since their argument.
“Fine. Let’s go to the young master together.”
“What?”
The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader was dumbfounded, not expecting an invitation to join.
“Are you crazy?”
But what the shackled man said next was even more surprising.
“You said you decided to make the Second Young Master the Heavenly Demon, right? Let’s go together and make him the Heavenly Demon. Then your dream will come true as well. The Second Young Master, as he is now, will establish the main base of the Heavenly Wind Cult next to the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect.”
“Madman! How can you say that?”
At that moment, a subordinate spoke from outside.
“The Second Young Master and his guests are here.”
“Guests?”
“Yes. He has five people with him.”
The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader sighed, shaking his head.
“Ah! He really pushes hard.”
Normally, he would have been irritated, but now his face was calm, having accepted the situation.
“You’re right. We talk too much about the Second Young Master. That’s why he comes looking for me like a tiger that heard its name.”
The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader addressed his subordinate.
“Bring them in quickly. And prepare a grand spread of drinks and snacks.”
“Yes, sir!”
The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader looked at the shackled man with a different expression than usual.
“Fate seems to want us to settle this. Fine, let’s decide today. Whether the young master dies, I die, whether you go to him or stay with me. We’ll decide everything today. But judge fairly.”
“In that case, the Second Young Master is at a disadvantage. As you said, I have more affection for you.”
“Good. Then that’s settled.”
Soon, Geom Mugeuk and his party entered.
The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader greeted them with a hearty laugh as if nothing had happened.
“Hahaha, welcome!”
And so began the fateful drinking party that would change their destinies.
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