10. Misunderstanding (5)
The orders received as a spy; the most important among them was none other than the neutralization of variables.
The appearance of an unexpected person, the occurrence of an unpredictable situation—if such variables could not be controlled, one was to report immediately.
For a spy who had risked their life to infiltrate the heart of the Heavenly Demonic Cult, this was a natural and solemn ironclad rule.
‘First, I must adjust his rating.’
Do-gyeong changed his assessment of Hajin from Low to Mid. This guy was not a pawn to be used and discarded; he was a target that needed to be watched and guarded against.
Having finished his judgment, Do-gyeong turned around with a slick smile.
“Well, I’ll be going now.”
Dragging the conversation out any longer was disadvantageous. It was time to reorganize the information he had on the guy.
That was when it happened. Hajin stepped forward and blocked Do-gyeong’s path.
“What is it? Do you have more business?”
“I thought you might have had more to ask.”
“I’ve finished all my questions, though…?”
Why? Why did it suddenly feel as if he were being blocked?
In an instant, Do-gyeong found himself scrutinizing Hajin’s expression. It was still a face where neither goodwill nor malice could be read, but at this moment, it felt like a chilling mask.
And then, the thought occurred again. A brutal speculation that perhaps he had figured out his true identity. He wanted to believe it was impossible, but what if all of this had been a ploy to hear his plans from his own mouth?
‘Did he calculate that far ahead? If so, is this a silent pressure not to leave his presence?’
It was just a simple question, so why were all the senses in his body on edge? He had been the one leading the conversation until just a moment ago, but he felt an unpleasant sense of crisis, as if the tables had been turned.
‘What if that’s the case? Should I break through and overcome him? But how? Can I subdue someone who is ahead of Cheon Ha-rin? That should be impossible, right?’
Yet, he couldn’t run away either; the moment he tried, Hajin might just split his skull open. In Do-gyeong’s mind, he imagined himself being cleaved in half.
With that chilling thought, he had the illusion of a bead of cold sweat running down his spine. Do-gyeong moistened his dry lips with his tongue and managed to maintain a smile. The warning lights in his head were blaring like crazy.
His gaze shifted to Hajin’s mouth. What on earth would come out? Just as Do-gyeong was struggling to maintain his composure while probing Hajin’s intentions, Hajin spoke first.
“If that’s the case, then our business is finished, right? I should be going too.”
With those words, Hajin turned around without a shred of lingering attachment. There was not a single moment of hesitation in his movements. Do-gyeong was momentarily stunned.
‘What? He’s just letting me go like this?’
What was that chilling pressure he had felt just a moment ago? Was it just his own oversensitive imagination? Or was it a high-level psychological tactic of that guy?
Do-gyeong watched the back of Hajin, who was walking away, with eyes full of doubt. A thought suddenly crossed his mind.
A perfectly defenseless back. What if he launched a surprise attack now?
In a split second, dozens of schemes were drawn and erased in Do-gyeong’s mind. Could he win? This was a powerhouse who had the strength to escape from Cheon Ha-rin, the Cult Leader’s daughter.
But he had just been given a perfect opportunity to attack from behind. If he could succeed, he could eliminate a variable that had a high potential to become a stumbling block for the righteous faction.
‘Should I move?’
It was the very moment Do-gyeong’s fingertips twitched, ready to harbor killing intent.
“You seem like a pretty good guy.”
Hajin tossed the words out without even turning his head.
“I hope we see each other for a long time.”
At these words, Do-gyeong was startled as if he had been struck on the crown of his head with a hammer. The killing intent that had been blooming just a moment ago vanished without a trace, and goosebumps rose on his spine.
“Oh, uh, yeah, I hope so too….”
Do-gyeong stammered his reply without realizing it. His voice trembled slightly. Even after Hajin had completely disappeared from his sight, Do-gyeong stood there for a long time, as if nailed to the spot.
‘Hope we see each other for a long time, huh….’
The words he had just heard lingered in his ears for a long time. If someone of that caliber said it, it couldn’t be simple goodwill. There must be another intention hidden in his words. Therefore, he had no choice but to find the real intention.
The contemplation continued. Soon, Do-gyeong came up with a possibility.
‘If he wants to see me for a long time, is that a warning not to even dream of pulling stupid tricks like I just did? Or is he saying he’ll kill me? Damn it.’
Do-gyeong wiped his face with his hands and exhaled roughly. With that chilling warning, as if he had seen right through his thoughts, he internally upgraded Hajin to a high-risk individual.
‘For now, I must report to the Alliance….’
Do-gyeong walked away desolately.
Meanwhile, Hajin was also walking slowly, retracing their recent meeting. The words Do-gyeong had poured out came to mind.
‘He shared information and even seemed like a pretty good guy.’
From the various information about the Demonic Path Academy and the people to be careful of, to the tone that seemed to worry about him.
‘I thought the Demonic Cult was full of nothing but lunatics, but there really are guys who can communicate normally like that.’
It was good to see someone like that for a long time. After giving a light nod, Hajin turned his attention to his own physical condition. It was time to start preparing.
The first stage of the exam would begin soon. Furthermore, the time was approaching when he would have to choose between the Heaven-Surpassing Pavilion and the Thousand-Day Pavilion, but in his current state, it was out of the question.
‘My magical power is too depleted; it’s getting hard to even stand.’
He had stood there looking composed on the outside, but his body had already reached its limit. He was merely struggling to endure his legs trembling and his vision blurring.
‘No choice. It will take a long time, but I have no choice but to go to a quiet place and meditate to recover little by little.’
The most effective way to recover magical power was, without a doubt, a mana potion. But he couldn’t obtain one right now.
‘I have no choice but to wait while meditating.’
Of course, he intended to find something that could replace the potion eventually. He couldn’t rely on meditation for the rest of his life.
Soon, Hajin hurried his steps to find a secluded spot with little human traffic. Meditation made one vulnerable to attacks, so he needed to conserve his strength in a safe place.
‘Where should I go? I don’t have a private room yet.’
Private rooms were only granted after passing at least the third stage of the exam at the Demonic Path Academy. Before that, it was a shared dormitory, so it couldn’t be considered safe.
Just then, a shed caught Hajin’s eye. It was a place that clearly showed signs of having been neglected for quite some time.
“Here…!”
Hajin immediately opened the door and stepped inside.
A moment later, he closed the door, sat cross-legged on the floor out of habit, and closed his eyes.
“Hoo.”
He exhaled a rough breath and steadied his unsettled mind and body. Now was the time to focus.
Hajin’s consciousness headed deep into his body, to the empty Mana Spring. He poured all his mental energy into gathering the surrounding energy to fill the spring with even a single drop.
*Goooooo—!*
How much time had passed like that?
One hour, two hours, and eventually, until the sun dipped and dusk fell outside the window, Hajin continued his meditation without a single movement. But the result was miserable.
The Mana Spring, cracked like a parched riverbed, refused to accept even the faintest bit of energy. No matter how hard he tried, the scattered magical power would not coalesce and only drifted away like grains of sand.
Eventually, Hajin’s patience hit rock bottom.
“Argh! This damn thing!”
Don’t whine?
No? This wasn’t whining. Hajin stood up abruptly, slamming his fist against the floor in irritation. The composure he had been trying to maintain was shattered, and impatience and anger were mixed on his face.
“At this rate, when am I going to fill it all up!”
He could feel it. A tiny, microscopic amount of magical power entering the spring. Even if he could manage to fill it up now since he had a little time, he was speechless when he thought about future situations. It would be a disaster if he ran out of magical power after using a few spells when a fight broke out suddenly like earlier.
Thus, it was the moment he realized painfully that orthodox methods like meditation were not enough to recover magical power in his life at the Demonic Path Academy.
Since it had come to this, he had to find another way. A fast and certain way. At the same time, a thought flashed through Hajin’s mind like lightning.
‘I absolutely need a mana potion…!’
The process of making it was complicated and the ingredients were hard to find, but once made, it was the only secret method to instantly fill his depleted magical power.
‘But would I be able to make it here…?’
Since the martial arts world also had ingredients similar to the modern world, it wasn’t that there was no way to make it. But whether it would have the same effect was another matter.
‘No, I will find a way, no matter what it takes.’
He would find the answer. Just as he always had.
Hajin gritted his teeth and shouted, making his resolve. For now, he had to focus on recovery.
“Haa.”
Of course, sighing didn’t make his recovery any faster, so he just rubbed his face vigorously with both hands.
* * *
A week passed like that.
In front of the entrance to the Demonic Path Academy, where only desolate winds blew, a heavy carriage approached, kicking up dust.
The door of the carriage, which had stopped with a creaking sound, opened, and a man stepped out. He was a middle-aged man with neatly swept-back graying hair and a sharp spirit radiating from him.
As soon as he stepped down, a man who had been waiting at the entrance approached quickly. It was Chae Un-ryang, one of the martial arts instructors of the Demonic Path Academy, who wore a neatly tied headscarf.
Chae Un-ryang approached the middle-aged man with gray hair, bowed deeply, and paid his respects.
“Welcome, Blade Demon.”
Respect was embedded in his voice. The Blade Demon before his eyes was one of the masters of the five Demon Sects that supported the Heavenly Demonic Cult, and it was no exaggeration to call him the Greatest Blade User Under Heaven.
Just looking at his piercing, glowing eyes was enough to make one’s spine shiver.
“You’ve had a hard time.”
After responding to the greeting in a lukewarm manner, the Blade Demon scanned him from head to toe. Chae Un-ryang swallowed hard. Was there something wrong?
*Gulp.*
Just as the tension was mounting, the Blade Demon frowned slightly and tapped his own waist.
"But really, why on earth did they build the Demonic Path Academy in such a rugged place? My backside was killing me from all the jolting on the way here."
"Haha, then I shall guide you to your quarters immediately. You must be quite uncomfortable after such a long journey..."
The Instructor hurried his pace. The Blade Demon watched him quietly. To be precise, he was staring intently at the academy building.
'I don't like this at all.'
The fact that the building where his only daughter would be staying was in such a state did not sit well with him. He was just contemplating having it expanded if the situation called for it.
From the opposite side, someone approached the Blade Demon.
A woman with jet-black hair and violet eyes that exuded a mysterious aura. Her mere appearance pulled the surrounding air taut; it was the Mad Demon.
The Mad Demon walked slowly toward the Blade Demon, a mocking smirk playing on her lips.
"Oh my, to think I’d see such a rare face in a backwater place like this? Are you that worried about your daughter? You’ve even managed to drag the notoriously homebody Blade Demon all the way here as a guest instructor for the Heaven-Surpassing Pavilion."
At the Mad Demon’s sarcasm, the Blade Demon spat out, looking annoyed.
"I am the only one who can properly teach my daughter, So-yeon."
"The reason sounds plausible enough. Is your daughter really that pretty? I’m half-tempted to get married myself just to see if I can understand that sentiment."
"You...?"
The Blade Demon’s expression stiffened for a moment. As if to show off, the Mad Demon traced her finger slowly down the white skin from her neck to her collarbone.
"Where else would you find a woman as skilled in martial arts and as high in status as I am? Wouldn't I be the perfect heroine for your daughter to use as a role model?"
Despite the seductive posture that would have left most men dazed, the Blade Demon simply let out a deep sigh.
"I say this for your own good, Mad Demon. Giving birth at an advanced age is very harmful to the body. Besides, unlike you, my daughter is sane."
In an instant, the smile vanished from the Mad Demon’s face. A chilling murderous intent erupted from her eyes.
"You bastard, do you want to die? Shall we have a life-or-death duel right here?"
As she shouted, looking ready to pounce at any moment, the Blade Demon waved his hand dismissively, as if she were a nuisance.
"Forget it. More importantly, why are you at this Demonic Path Academy? I thought you didn't have even a speck of interest in this kind of education?"
"That’s because there’s a disciple of the Ghost Soul Hand in this batch."
Her violet eyes flashed with interest and madness.
"It’s intriguing, isn't it? To see just how useful the final work of that senile old man will be."
As if she hadn't been radiating killing intent just a moment ago, the Mad Demon licked her lips slowly with her red tongue and muttered. Watching this, the Blade Demon sighed once more.
He struggled to swallow the words that it seemed she was more senile than the Ghost Soul Hand.
0 Comments