=========================================
SERIES: Return of the Divine Thief
CHAPTER 13: Return of the Divine Thief
=========================================
Return of the Divine Thief - Chapter 13
Hwa Un's quiet question doused the roaring banquet hall like a bucket of cold water.
Instantly, all noise ceased as if it had never been.
It was the moment the ‘privilege of the strong’ that Wi Mugeuk had so proudly proclaimed was utterly dismantled by his own logic.
Wi Mugeuk’s face stiffened for a second, but he was, after all, the master of the Uiju underworld.
He wiped away the fleeting bewilderment and let out a laugh far louder and more boisterous than before.
“Puhahahaha!”
His laughter filled the banquet hall.
“Truly, the Divine Doctor lives up to his name! To think you would pose such a sharp question to test the mettle of this Wi Mugeuk!”
He spoke with magnanimity, as if he had seen through Hwa Un’s intentions all along.
“Of course, we are to become lifelong allies, so it’s only natural you’d want to confirm if your leader’s words ring true. Very well! This Wi Mugeuk shall gladly accept your test.”
He thumped his chest and declared with confidence.
“If you wish, I can show you that hundreds of my men would willingly die for this Wi Mugeuk.”
It was a masterful maneuver, instantly turning a crisis into a stage to display his own magnanimity.
But Hwa Un had no intention of playing along with his theatrics. He shook his head.
“Is that so? How exciting.”
Hwa Un nodded as if genuinely impressed.
“In that case, I shall now play the part of an assassin targeting you, Lodge Leader. I must see for myself if those wonderful ‘shields’ of yours truly work as they should.”
“Wha-what…!”
Before Wi Mugeuk could even process the meaning of his words.
*Ping—!*
From his seat, Hwa Un had done nothing more than flick his finger.
A tiny, sharp whistle cut through the air.
That was all.
A high-ranking subordinate, who had been smugly pouring wine right beside Wi Mugeuk.
A single, slender silver needle was embedded between his eyebrows.
His eyes went wide, his expression uncomprehending of what had just happened as he dropped the cup in his hand.
*Clang!*
As the cup shattered, his body slumped backward over the chair and crashed to the floor.
He didn't move again.
Hundreds of eyes darted between the dead man with a needle between his brows and Hwa Un, who remained seated at the head of the hall, his expression perfectly composed.
Hwa Un blew on his fingertips, feigning to brush away some invisible dust as he surveyed the room.
At his casual demeanor, Wi Mugeuk’s face finally flushed crimson with rage.
Before his very eyes, at his own banquet, his subordinate had been killed like an insect.
This was no mere provocation from an eccentric Doctor; it was an outright declaration of war.
“What are you all doing?!”
Wi Mugeuk roared.
“That man is no Doctor! He’s an enemy come to swallow our faction whole! Tear him limb from limb, now!”
At his command, Elder Pyo, who was on the dais, drew his sword and shouted to the men below.
“It is the Lodge Leader’s command! All of you, attack!”
But his shout was cut short.
*Ping—!*
Before the men could even move, another silver flash cut through the air.
Elder Pyo’s eyes widened at the cold sensation on his neck.
A slender silver needle was already embedded in his throat.
“Kuh… heuk….”
Unable to even scream, he collapsed to the floor.
The second death in as many moments.
The air in the banquet hall grew even colder.
The men were now frozen in place.
The man who had given the order to attack was dead before he could even finish his sentence.
“Th-this bastard…!”
The other remaining Elder cried out, his voice a mixture of horror and rage.
“Everyone, charge him together! If even one of us attacks, he can’t…!”
*Ping—!*
His words, too, were left unfinished.
The third silver needle pierced him squarely in the forehead.
A third body tumbled to the floor.
Now, no one dared to speak.
*He who gives the order, dies.*
That terrible rule was seared into the minds of the hundreds of underworld warriors, along with a deep-seated fear.
They could only clutch their weapons, trembling like leaves, and stare at the calamitous Doctor seated at the head of the hall.
Only then did Hwa Un slowly turn his head.
His gaze fell upon the last leader left standing, Wi Mugeuk.
A scornful smile, one reserved for something truly pathetic, touched Hwa Un’s lips.
“Wi-ga.”
He addressed the master of the Uiju underworld with the casualness one would use for an underling.
“You know nothing of the martial world.”
“What are you all doing?! Hurry! Kill him, now!”
Muryang clicked his tongue inwardly.
To rule through fear, one needed overwhelming martial might, greater than anyone else’s.
Like the Lord of the Demonic Cult from his past life.
The moment the source of that fear wavers, the entire structure of control collapses like a sandcastle.
“What are you all doing?! Don’t just stand there like idiots! Hurry up! Kill him!”
Wi Mugeuk shrieked like a man who had lost his mind.
At his desperate cry, a few finally moved.
They were two of his personal bodyguards, high-ranking officers who were absolutely loyal to him.
Even in this situation, they had resolved to obey their master’s command.
“Protect the Lodge Leader!”
“Kill him!”
The two men charged Hwa Un with ferocious energy, attacking him from both sides.
But while their loyalty was commendable, it was not enough.
Hwa Un didn’t even rise from his seat.
He simply extended his hands toward the two blades rushing at him.
From his fingertips, two more streaks of silver light shot forth.
These needles were far faster and more powerful than the last.
“Keuheok!”
“Keok!”
Unable to even let out a proper scream, the two men collapsed, needles embedded squarely in their hearts.
That was the last act of resistance.
“Kill him! Can’t you hear me?! I said kill him!”
Wi Mugeuk screamed until his throat was raw, but not a single person moved to help him.
Instead, as if to prove they had abandoned him, the hundreds of men took a single, synchronized step back.
That single step left Wi Mugeuk completely isolated.
Only then did Hwa Un slowly rise from his seat.
He walked slowly across the floor of the now-silent hall, approaching the isolated Wi Mugeuk.
*Tap, tap.*
His footsteps echoed through the hall like the coming of the Grim Reaper.
“Wi-ga. Can’t you feel their desire?”
“Wh-what….”
“I’m talking about the desperate hope in their eyes. The hope that the leader they once followed will step forward and take the head of this arrogant intruder.”
At Hwa Un’s words, Wi Mugeuk instinctively glanced back at the men behind him.
In their eyes, along with fear, was a glimmer of the very expectation Hwa Un had described.
The moment he realized it, Wi Mugeuk’s face twisted in humiliation.
Hwa Un walked right up to him and, for the first time, assumed a fighting stance.
“Well then. For the sake of your men, let’s give them one last dance.”
* * *
Hwa Un's mocking whisper snapped the last thread of Wi Mugeuk's reason.
Though he had fallen for Hwa Un's taunt and his pride was wounded, he was physically unharmed.
He was still the hegemon of the Uiju underworld.
His confidence in his martial prowess was sky-high.
“You...!”
A black aura erupted from Wi Mugeuk's entire body like a storm.
He drew the man-sized greatsword that had been leaning against his back.
“I'll make you regret you were ever born!”
*KUUUUUNG!*
Wi Mugeuk's form shot forward like a wild beast.
Every time he swung his greatsword, a thunderous roar erupted.
It was a truly overwhelming destructive power, shaking the very floor of the banquet hall.
“Ignorant brute.”
But Hwa Un, standing in the center of that storm of steel, was perfectly calm.
Like a butterfly dancing in a fierce storm, he read the path of the massive blade and evaded it with minimal movement.
Each time Wi Mugeuk's greatsword grazed his collar, the surrounding furniture was smashed to pieces, yet not a single scratch was left on Hwa Un's body.
“You... you damn rat!”
As his attacks continued to miss, Wi Mugeuk's frustration reached its peak.
It was as if Hwa Un knew his movements in advance, expertly exploiting every opening and blind spot.
In that moment, as Hwa Un dodged the greatsword and slipped inside Wi Mugeuk's guard, a flash of light burst from his hand.
This time, it was not a silver needle in his hand.
It was a chillingly sharp surgical knife, the length of two fingers.
“You, you bastard! What trick is this!”
Compared to Wi Mugeuk's massive greatsword, it looked as insignificant as a toothpick.
*Swish!*
Hwa Un deflected Wi Mugeuk's blade to the side and, as if slicing paper with a razor, lightly grazed the tendons in the forearm gripping the greatsword.
“Kuaargh!”
The strength instantly drained from Wi Mugeuk's grasp, and he nearly dropped the heavy greatsword.
As he swung the blade again, his face contorted with pain and rage, Hwa Un ducked low, closed the distance, and shallowly sliced the muscles of his inner thigh.
It was less a martial arts duel and more a butchering.
A man with a perfect understanding of the human body was systematically dismantling his opponent, treating him like a living anatomical chart.
Of course, it wasn't as if Muryang was enjoying it.
This was a demonstration, meant to instill terror in the remaining officers.
“You... you demon...!”
Wi Mugeuk stumbled backward, terrified.
His overwhelming strength and destructive swordsmanship were useless against this bizarre Doctor.
He gathered every last bit of his internal energy, preparing for a final, desperate attack.
It was an all-or-nothing fatal slash, completely abandoning defense.
But Hwa Un had already predicted even this final move.
The moment Wi Mugeuk charged, Hwa Un's form slid under his blade.
And the small surgical knife in his hand drew a quiet, smooth line across Wi Mugeuk's throat.
*Slice.*
It was a very small, empty sound.
Wi Mugeuk's massive frame froze.
He looked back at Hwa Un, his eyes filled with disbelief.
Then, he touched his own neck.
Hot blood spurted between his fingers like a fountain.
“Kuh... heok...”
Unable to even scream, Wi Mugeuk collapsed into a pool of his own blood.
The greatsword fell from his hand, making a hollow, clanging sound.
It was an empty end for the man once called the sky of the Uiju underworld.
The banquet hall was dead silent.
Hwa Un wiped the blood from his surgical knife on a clean cloth he took from his robes, looking down dispassionately at the fallen Wi Mugeuk.
Like a Doctor who had just completed a difficult surgery.
“Elder Heuk.”
“Yes, Doctor. No, should I call you Lodge Leader now?”
“The Lodge Leader should be you, Elder Heuk, not me. Though of course, you'll need the agreement of the lodge members.”
Elder Heuk thought for a moment before replying.
“Three days... no, two days will be enough.”
“Good.”
Hwa Un sat in the seat of honor, quietly surveying the banquet hall like a surgeon observing a patient's prognosis.
Under Heuk Cheolsan's command, the massive organization was being desperately stitched back together.
0 Comments