—————————————
< Enough excuses >
“Cow, cow, listen to me for a moment. There seems to be a misunderstanding···.”
Ilho stumbled back and made excuses in a hurry. At the same time, he quickly scanned his surroundings with his eyes rolling.
Not a single one of the men sent with Saho, or even the men who had retreated to have a private meeting with Jinnoin, was visible.
‘You say you suffered everything in the meantime?’
Gulp.
Ilho swallowed dry saliva without realizing it. He looked at Daein with fearful eyes.
There was blood all over the man’s clothes.
But the clothes themselves were intact, without a single tear.
‘There are no scars.’
He’s a master. A master who can never be defeated.
The moment he realized that, Ilho fell face down on the floor.
“Please save me! I did it because you told me to!”
Ilho was different from the lower-level members of the organization who were taught to commit suicide rather than leak information about the Dark Blood Group.
Above all, his own life was precious, and he was willing to betray or lie in order to survive.
‘If you try to run away clumsily, you will die.’
Tears like chicken droppings fell from Ilho’s eyes. Lies flowed out of his mouth.
“I really had no choice. They took my wife and children hostage and threatened me… If I didn’t cooperate, they would kill my entire family… Keuk!”
Il-ho, who had been kicked in the side, rolled on the floor.
The man kicked him repeatedly like a sandbag. His eyes were as cold as ice.
“Do you know what makes you guys so evil? It’s in situations like this that you understand the victims who died because of you. You’re repeating the words of those you used to mock and laugh at.”
“Ugh! I made a mistake, ugh, forgive me…. Keuheuk!”
“I hate you, you little shit.”
The man did not stop kicking. He beat Ilho without any mercy.
It wasn’t just a simple hit. Each and every blow was packed with force, hitting the bones and damaging the internal organs inside.
“Keuk! Kkuluk···. Please···. Forgive me···.”
Blood flowed out of Ilho’s mouth, ears, nose, and all over his body. The idea that he wouldn’t be killed if he knelt down and begged was a mistake.
The moment he thought that he would be beaten to death like a dog if he continued like this, Ilho could not bear it any longer and got up.
“f*ck!”
The man’s fist slammed into Ilho’s mouth as he ran towards him with a scream.
Kkwaduk!
“Take it···Ugh···!”
As he pulled his fist out, a broken tooth fell out. Il-ho, whose jaw was dislocated, groaned in pain.
The man slapped his cheek and said.
“I’m busy right now. Let’s do the rest later.”
“Dog···bird···.”
Bam!
Ilho collapsed on the floor, unconscious. Daein walked past him and towards Jinnoin.
***
“Grandpa! Come to your senses!”
Namgung Hyun was crying while hugging Jin No-in. His beautiful face was a mess because of the tears.
Jinnoin reached out and stroked Hyeon’s cheek.
“Hyun-ah… You’re safe. That’s a relief. That’s a relief.”
“What good is it if only I am safe! When Grandpa is in this state!”
Both of them felt that Jinnoin’s life was running out.
There were dozens of holes all over his body, and his skin, poisoned by the poison, turned black and swollen.
The most serious was a deep wound on his back that exposed the bone. Namgung Hyun stopped the bleeding with acupuncture, but too much blood had already been shed.
The old man spoke breathlessly. He forced a smile.
“Hyun-ah. Grandpa lived long enough. Even if he were to die right now… I have no regrets.”
“Don’t say that…. You’ll get better if you get treatment. You’ll get better.”
Namgung Hyeon, his hands shaking, applied the ointment he had brought to his grandfather’s wounds.
But the golden elixir was of no use. Jin No-in held Namgung Hyeon’s hand and stopped him from doing meaningless things.
“Hyun-ah. From now on, listen carefully to what I say.”
Namgung Hyun shook his head. His eyes were swollen with tears. He denied it in a tearful voice.
“I don’t like it. I don’t want to hear it.”
Because I thought those would be my grandfather’s last words.
I didn’t want to hear a will or anything like that.
[Namgung Hyeon]
The old man called the name by phone.
This child was the lord’s only daughter.
A small, fragile life born a few days before the bloody incident at Geomhwangmun.
‘You’ve grown so much already.’
In order to protect his life, Lion Sword Jin Chung abandoned his reputation as a master of the 100 Great Masters and lived in hiding, enduring all kinds of humiliation.
At first, it was because of the order. It was because of the sacrifice of my comrades who risked their lives to open the way.
It was because of the kindness of the Geomhwangmun who took him in and raised him when he was an orphan.
‘The truth is, I wanted to abandon you many times.’
Countless nights of being chased by pursuers.
——————
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Whenever I passed a temple or a farmhouse, I often thought about leaving some money and a child in front of it and leaving.
‘But I couldn’t do that.’
The child was so smart that he didn’t even cry much. Whenever he held his own finger tightly with his small hand and looked up, all his worries melted away.
[You are of the bloodline of the great Sword Emperor, but at the same time, you are the son of me, the Lion Sword Jin Chung.]
“grandfather···.”
Jin-chung didn’t say much. His eyes were filled with deep affection for Nam-gung-hyeon. There was more meaning in those eyes than words could convey.
That’s why I felt sorry that I had to say this.
[You must continue to live in hiding. Not only the Demonic Cult, but also the Murim Alliance are your enemies.]
15 years ago, the Geomhwangmun bloodshed.
Although it was officially known as the work of the Demonic Cult, Jin Chung, the sole witness and survivor, knew part of the truth about that day.
[The Murim Alliance intervened in that matter. It may have been the Murim Alliance’s doing. I don’t know if it was all or part of it···.]
The two most powerful forces in the martial arts world are both enemies. Even the best in the world couldn’t fight them.
“···i know.”
Since it was something he had heard many times before, Namgung Hyun nodded silently.
Jin No-in looked at Namgung Hyeon with sad eyes.
To the child who would become an orphan as he died, he had nothing else to say.
[You have to survive somehow. Pretend to be a man, blend in with the crowd of ordinary people, until they give up on you…]
The old man’s breathing became rapid. It was difficult to even use his internal energy to send out a message.
I wanted to talk a little more about this and that, but there wasn’t much time left.
“I’m sorry···.”
I was feeling drained. There really wasn’t much time left.
“Oh my.”
It was then that the great man, feeling sorry for himself, intervened between the two. He said, scratching the goosebumps on his arm.
“Sorry to interrupt, but the genre I hate the most is melodrama.”
The man crouched down in front of the old man, making an incomprehensible sound.
Then he took something out of his bag and asked.
“Elderly. How are you feeling?”
At the tone of voice that seemed to ask, “How’s your cold?” Jin-no-in couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.
“That’s not good. Did you save our Hyun?”
Namgung Hyun briefly explained the incident of being attacked in the guest house next to him. Jin No-in looked at the old man with a surprised expression.
“You were hiding your skills too. Huh. You were nagging me about training to a master who was better than me…”
The man shrugged.
And then I took the glass bottles out of my bag and lined them up in a row.
Red vial. Blue vial. Green vial.
The old man looked at the sight blankly and said.
“···Would you please grant this dying old man one request?”
Instead of answering, the man muttered, shuffling the bottles around.
“Was this one first? Or wasn’t it? Was this one first?”
The old man was a little angry at that sight. How could he ignore the words of a dying person?
But soon he calmed down and spoke in an earnest voice.
“Please. Just take our Hyeon-i safely to Heilongjiang.”
“I think the antidote potion came first···.”
“If it’s compensation, I’ll pay. I’ll give you all the money we have… If you want, you can give me my martial arts skills too….”
“No. Should I fill up the missing blood first?”
When the old man continued to ignore his words, the dying old man shouted.
“Hey, you punk! Cool!”
The man who finally made up his mind opened the cap of the bottle at the same time.
“I don’t know. I guess we can just use them at the same time.”
Then he poured three potions into the old man’s body at the same time.
Gulp gulp gulp.
“Oh my! This guy! What the heck is this…!”
The old man was shocked and stopped speaking.
The torn wound was healing on its own.
The skin that had turned dark returned to its original color, the blood that had been lacking returned, and the blurred vision became clearer.
After a while, Jinnoin’s body was completely healed. In fact, he even felt healthier than before.
“Huh, heh heh heh···.”
“grandfather!”
Namgung Hyun hugged Jin No-in tightly. She rubbed her cheek against her grandfather’s face as if she couldn’t believe the incredible miracle that was happening before her eyes.
“Huh, heh heh heh···.”
Jinnoin just smiled blankly. He looked at the great man.
After a while, the two people who had finally come to their senses bowed deeply to the man.
“How on earth can I repay this favor···.”
“Thank you, bro. I really appreciate it.”
The great man had no intention of holding back from the two men repaying the favor.
“Then, to repay the favor, please grant me a favor.”
Jinno-in suddenly stood up and took the lottery ticket from the elder. His body felt light as if he was flying.
“Of course. I’ll grant any request as long as it’s not for Hyun’s life and mine.”
Shh.
At that moment, a sinister smile spread across the man’s lips.
“Then let’s go to the Murim Alliance together and help me find the items.”
“The Martial Arts Alliance···?”
A look of bewilderment appeared on both their faces.
Because the man was telling them to go to the place they most definitely should not go.
Namgung Hyeon asked cautiously.
“Why do you want to go to the Murim Alliance? And what kind of items are you talking about…”
The man no longer hid his purpose.
He looked straight at Namgung Hyeon and said.
“Go as a member of the Sword Emperor’s Office and ask to see the Heavenly Sword.”
The two people were so surprised that they froze like stones.
***
“School is boring.”
Lily left the classroom with a pout.
The schools established in were mainly attended by children who were either poor or orphans.
But Lily had a hard time adjusting there.
“He’s that superman.”
“They say you can burn monsters to death. Is that true?”
Most of the children were afraid of Lily and did not want to come near her.
Red hair and red eyes. Exotic appearance.
Moreover, he has the status of a superhuman who can create fireworks at will.
‘I saw him burn a monster to death a while ago.’
‘Really? Isn’t it dangerous?’
The children would glance at Lily from a distance and gossip, but Lily could hear them all.
“I can hear you all! You idiots! Should I scold you?”
As Lily glared and shouted, the chattering students ran away screaming.
An angry Lily ran across the playground, snorting loudly.
Boom boom boom!
As I was spinning the bag of indoor shoes around, the little girl hiding inside screamed in confusion.
Kyaaaa!
“Shh! Be quiet! If you get caught, you’ll get in trouble again.”
Wow···.
The aggrieved Malrang went back into the slipper bag. Fortunately, Lily didn’t turn the slipper bag any more.
In front of the school gate, two boys were waiting for Lily again today.
“···Lily.”
“Eminai! Let’s play!”
The two boys, Jang Yeong-sin and Lee Hong-dan, who had been waving their hands vigorously, glared at each other.
“···You’re going to play with me today.”
“Huh. Don’t be ridiculous.”
“···Have you finished your homework?”
“T-Tha, what are you meddling in!”
“···You came from North Korea to study here.”
“Don’t interfere!”
Lily watched the two boys arguing, sighed, and walked past them.
The two boys who had been arguing hurriedly followed the girl.
They each tried to win the girl’s favor.
“···Want to go eat pizza?”
“Eminai! Let’s eat chicken together today!”
“Want to go eat something delicious?” which in my experience was the most effective, didn’t work today.
Lily said with a pouty expression.
“I don’t feel like eating today. I want to go home.”
Then, telling the two not to follow her, Lily flew into the sky and returned to the guild office/lodging alone.
“I’m back!”
I greeted them vigorously, but there was still no one at the dorm today.
Hogu and Sirutteok went out on a mission in the morning, and As was playing a game in his room.
“tooth···.”
Lily’s cheeks puffed out even more as she entered her room. Now, they almost looked like steamed buns.
It’s all your fault, sir.
“It’s so sad that only the old man is having fun.”
Lily opened the top drawer of her desk and took out the letter. It was crumpled, as if it had been read so many times.
-Kid. I’m going out for a bit, so don’t worry. Go to school well, listen to your teachers, make some friends… If anything happens, tell As.
What could be wrong?
-And don’t you ever think about following me. Absolutely not.
“You idiot, uncle!”
School is boring, I haven’t made a single friend in over a week, and the other team members are too busy to even hang out with me.
The old man must be having fun at a place called
No, maybe something dangerous happened!
Lily muttered with a serious expression.
“···He can’t fly by himself, and he’s really bad at cooking. He might starve to death.”
Besides, since the old man is a person who does good deeds as a hobby, if he helps out here and there, he might return to Earth very late.
The moment I thought about it that way,
Suddenly.
Lily jumped up from her seat.
“This won’t work! I have to go save the old man!”
There were plenty of excuses.
ⓒ Ganjjajang
