Episode 358
Maengjubu’s conference room.
A double-digit number of people were sitting around a large table.
“See you, Lord.”
“Welcome.”
The Murim lord, Hwabaek Joo, greeted me with a light nod and offered me a seat.
Unlike in the past, he did not treat me down.
Now that I have reached a position that cannot be ignored, I show respect in public places.
‘I still act flawlessly in private.’
I took a seat, feigning composure.
As if he had been waiting, Commander-in-Chief Zhuge Huan announced the start of the meeting.
“······.”
The air inside the room became heavy.
Everyone was observing the atmosphere and waiting for their turn to speak, but did not easily open their mouths.
Some people glanced this way and exchanged glances with each other.
It looked like they were having a secret conversation.
The person who took the lead was the Murim leader, Joo Hwabaek.
“First of all, I want to apologize. He must have been embarrassed to suddenly have to carry out an escort mission. “You must have been exhausted after such a big deal, and I’m sorry for not being considerate to you.”
“no. He must have decided that I, who happened to be in Jiangsu, was a suitable candidate. “I don’t mind.”
“Thank you for understanding. As you know, Maeng is currently suffering from a manpower shortage due to the Great War. However, he cannot entrust the protection of the head of God’s family to just anyone. “It is not possible to ask the Panga, which is in charge of the front line, to appoint personnel…”
The cause was very good.
In reality, it was a measure to delay my return.
Still, I decided not to question it because it was done for me.
There is no need to increase the number of enemies in front of the hunting cats who are always looking for an opportunity.
“I heard about it. You did a great job this time too. “If it weren’t for you, the Baekdo Murim would have been devastated by the devil’s scheme.”
“I just did what was natural as a member of the alliance.”
“There is no need to be humble. “There is no one here who would not acknowledge your contribution.”
“Since the Lord said that, I don’t know what to do.”
Artist Joo cheered me up by praising me, but not many people responded positively.
Master Noh, who had been watching the conversation with his arms crossed, quietly raised his hand.
“Lord.”
The Taegeuk symbol drawn on the sleeve of his clothes suggested his asceticism.
Taeyeongeom (太延劍), an elder from the Shaman faction.
It was a face I had only seen once before.
Was it when the military documents secured from artificial ruins were delivered to Maeng’s headquarters?
He is a person who usually does not show up at meetings, but for some reason he showed up.
Just by looking at his cold expression, I could see how much hostility he had towards me.
“There is one thing I would like to tell you.”
“Tell me.”
“It is clear that the plot of the treacherous witch cultists was crushed thanks to the actions of Director Cheonan. There is no room for disagreement on this point, and I have no intention of denigrating his contributions.”
“······.”
“But a ball is a ball and a fruit is a fruit. “I think we need to clearly point out the points that need to be addressed.”
“Are you going to tell a story about warriors who became jiangshi?”
“That’s right. Shouldn’t the process be justified just because the result is good? “We are not Safa or Demonic Cultists, but warriors who served in Baekdo.”
It was a strange thing to say.
The same words are different, and they are different laws.
‘If anyone hears this, they will think that I committed an evil act that went beyond the right path.’
For now, I decided to just quietly watch the situation.
If you show embarrassment or impatience here, you will only become prey.
You can refute as much as you like, but if you say it with your own mouth, it will only serve as an excuse.
“There is probably no one here who does not know that captured Baekdo warriors were used as ingredients for the river poems made by Sama Sega. “The fact that the Cheonan Inspector sitting there insisted on giving up on rescuing them.”
“······.”
“I would like to ask the person concerned. Was there a reason why it had to be like that? “I wonder if it was that difficult to tell the truth to the prisoners of war and to come up with a solution together.”
At Taeyeon’s point, the eyes of the middle school students all turned to me.
I smiled bitterly inwardly.
‘So, why didn’t you ask permission from each Segawa clan?’
I sat down and said something that didn’t even sound like a word.
Wouldn’t it be great if we had time to leisurely communicate and gather opinions?
Once he became a jiangshi, it was impossible to return him to his original state.
The best thing for the Allied forces at that time was to finish the occupation of Sima Sega before the number of Jiangxi increased further.
If the decision had been delayed, even Cheonhwi Dojang and a few other prisoners would not have been saved.
‘Well, the problem is that there is no way to prove that fact here.’
It was impossible for me to recite the records about the Gangshi that I read in the Cheonryung Library here.
Because no one here knows that I am a regressor.
Of course, there was evidence and testimony obtained after occupying Simasega.
However, would those who did not experience Gangsi in the field at the time really be convinced by that alone?
I guarantee you it won’t happen.
There has never been an attempt to return martial artists who have become jiangshi to their original personalities.
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As there was no precedent, it was inevitable that a hopeful argument would be raised: ‘You won’t know until you try.’
Humans are creatures that look at ideals rather than reality, in a good or bad way.
“There are many factors that led me to make that decision at the time, but if I had to pick the biggest reason, it would be this. “Because I kept in mind the existence of the White Bone Demon Emperor.”
“White Bone Demon Emperor?”
“As the news has spread, you probably know that, prior to Sima Se’s occupation war, I and a member of the Cheonan Ganbu directly infiltrated Sega and gathered information. As a result, we confirmed the existence of the former Shinchang Yang family head and the White Bone Demon Emperor.”
The argument running on parallel lines was far from my taste.
Therefore, I decided to come up with the most standard answer.
“Once we learned that Sima Sega’s military power was not far behind that of the Allied Forces, we could not afford to relax. If the power gap had been overwhelming, he would have chosen to maintain a siege and kill them by stopping them…”
“Was there a need to hasten the conclusion as there was a possibility that the enemy would try to break through by using the two absolute masters? Even to block variables?”
“That’s right.”
If the focus was on the captives who had become jiangshi, my side would inevitably be at a disadvantage.
No matter what, they are innocent victims.
They were different from the renegades who betrayed the political faction and turned to the side of the Demonic Cult.
It was an object of sympathy without any room for disagreement.
It was as obvious as fire that if an argument broke out over whether brainwashing could be lifted or not, the middle school students would feel psychological backlash against me.
‘No matter what, I am the person who insisted on giving up on rescuing before even looking for a way.’
Therefore, I decided to highlight the existence of the White Bone Demon Emperor rather than the Jiangshi.
It was the only option I had at the moment.
If I gave a different answer, I would have been caught up in Taeyeon’s argument.
“What was on alert was not just the situation where Simasejia’s side was launching a counterattack. “We couldn’t ignore the possibility that the White Bone Demon Emperor would secretly escape with Sega’s executives.”
“······.”
“just as expected. When Sega was in danger, he kidnapped Sima Segaju without hesitation and ran away. “The mission he received from Demon Clan Lord was not to help Sima Sega, but to monitor and control one person, Sima Sega.”
It was a blatant lie.
At the time, I never dreamed that the White Bone Demon Emperor would make such an unexpected move.
What I’m saying now is just a fitting story based on what has already happened.
To make the explanation more persuasive.
‘There is no reason to be honest and only tell the truth.’
More than half of those who agreed with Taeyeon’s remarks would not consider the truth to be important.
They just need a reason to bite me.
So, I also planned to adapt to their methods.
“As I said a little while ago, I don’t think the process should be justified just because the result is good. I understand that you felt impatient, but did you really have to subdue the captives who had become jiangshi so roughly? Did you really think that destroying their Danjeon and taking their lives was right?”
“So you’re saying I should have taken matters into my own hands? “On a battlefield where your life is at stake?”
“You know I didn’t mean that.”
“I understand that you feel sympathy for the warriors who have become strongmen, but I think that the most important thing for a leader leading a group is to minimize damage to our troops.”
“Brainwashed prisoners are also our allies.”
“If you are saying that there is room for consideration since they did not betray themselves willingly, then I agree. However, it is an undeniable fact that at the time, they were enemies seeking the lives of our soldiers. “If we had not warned in advance not to be swayed by sympathy, the damage to the Allied forces would have been severe.”
“So, we should have taken the time to find a way to solve the brainwashing…”
“Didn’t I tell you? “It wasn’t a situation where there was that much leisure.”
Proudly and shamelessly.
I shouldn’t have seemed intimidated even for a moment.
Quad deuk!
Taeyeon’s hand left a deep mark on the table.
It seemed like he had a hard time controlling his anger.
“······.”
The atmosphere suddenly calmed down.
Taeyeon’s gaze and mine collided in the air, sparks flying.
The middle school people were silent at the sharp confrontation.
A moment that feels like an eon passes by.
Sohyeongeom (昭賢劍), who was quietly watching the situation, opened his mouth.
“Taeyeon sword.”
“······?”
“To speak my personal opinion, I don’t think it’s an issue where we can clearly determine right and wrong. “What you say is certainly correct, but that doesn’t mean you can say for sure that Director Cheonan-gam acted wrongly.”
“you······.”
“In the end, opinions will differ depending on each person’s opinion. Even if we continue this further, there will be no conclusion. “For the smooth running of the meeting, why not bury your personal feelings for a moment?”
Taeyeon’s expression distorted.
At first glance, it seemed like he was speaking from a neutral standpoint, but in reality, it was no different from supporting me.
If the shaman sect’s smoker lost his Danjeon and became a ruined person because of my argument, the Hwasan sect’s Cheonhwi dojo safely returned to the arms of his executioners thanks to me.
He would suffer aftereffects, but since we rescued him before the brainwashing was complete, he would regain his sanity over time.
“My thoughts are also the same as senior Sohyeongeom’s.”
The leader of the Jujakdae (朱雀隊), Hwaseongdo (火性刀), suddenly intervened and defended Sohyeongeom’s words.
I looked back at her with interest in my eyes.
‘oh.’
Hwaseong Island owed me a debt in the past.
I accepted her request and spared Zhongli Shaoyan’s life, and in return, she promised to do two favors for me.
‘Things are going interestingly.’
Even though I didn’t ask for it, you came forward and took my side.
It seemed like she had had a change of heart during that time.
“······!”
The middle school students all looked shocked.
Not only Taeyeon Prosecutor, but even Sohyeon Prosecutor, who was involved, responded that they could not believe it.
Her face looked like she couldn’t understand why she was taking my side in this situation.
It was natural that she was known to the outside world to have a bad relationship with me.
“My thoughts are the same as Sohyeongeom’s.”
The person who dealt the final blow was Hu Zhengquan, an elder from the Kunlun faction.
martial arts,
