As Expected

After resting, the three got up.
Bong Seok dusted off his backside and opened his mouth.

“By the way, when the hell is Gyo-ha going to get here?”
“He said he was in Anhui, so it’ll take a few months.”

They were crossing from Hubei into Hunan now, but the three hadn’t expected it.
Why would he suddenly form ties with the Namgung Clan and head to the Murim Alliance?

“First, let’s move. We’ve got a lot to do.”

Seo Jong-dae glanced at Bong Seok’s bundle.
It had stories about yokai written in it.
Before they knew it, the three had become yokai hunters, not martial artists.
The other two didn’t object either.
Seo Jong-dae wasn’t originally this diligent, but right now there was no one else who could move besides them.
If even they didn’t move, only the common people would be sacrificed.
Tang Ho and Bong Seok knew that too, which was why they were moving together.

As they walked, Tang Ho suddenly turned his head.
He was staring at the dead yokai.

“What is it?”

Even at Bong Seok’s question, Tang Ho didn’t answer. He was just lost in thought.
At that, Bong Seok’s and Seo Jong-dae’s steps stopped too.
Because they knew Tang Ho wouldn’t do that for no reason.
After a moment, Tang Ho looked at Bong Seok.

“Is this village the third village?”
Bong Seok nodded.
This wasn’t the only village the mosquito yokai had destroyed.

“Do you have a map of this area?”

Bong Seok took out a piece of cloth from his chest. It had yellowed, but it wasn’t unreadable.

“We’re here, and the other villages are…”
“Here and here.”

Bong Seok quickly pointed out the terrain.
Only then did Seo Jong-dae realize something.

“…There’s a lake.”

There was a small lake between the villages.
Mosquitoes lay eggs in puddles. If they lay eggs in a river, the current carries them away, so they lay them in standing water. A yokai’s habits wouldn’t be different.

“Come on. No way.”

Bong Seok shook his head, but his eyes were trembling.

“We have to check it out, right?”
“That’s right.”

At Seo Jong-dae’s question, Tang Ho nodded.
Then Bong Seok stepped in.

“Wait. If we stop by there, we’ll have to go way out of our way.”
“But we can’t just ignore it.”
“Ugh. I don’t even know. I can barely remember the last time I set foot on Gansu.”

Bong Seok followed the two and got up as well.

When they crossed the mountain, a huge lake appeared.
But they didn’t even need to check inside the lake.

“My heavens.”

The things filling the lake pitch-black.
The entire lake was writhing as if it were alive.

“How many of those are there?”

Even roughly, it looked like it was in the thousands.
If there was one mercy, they were eggs that hadn’t hatched yet.
Even so, inside the round eggs, black larvae-like shapes kept moving without rest.
They couldn’t relax just because they were eggs.
They didn’t know when they would hatch.
For an ordinary mosquito, about three to four days.
They could only hope that because it was a yokai, it would take longer.

“…This isn’t something we can handle ourselves.”

Seo Jong-dae spoke with a sickened look.
What would happen if all those hatched?
It would be no different from a disaster. At the very least, the humans around here would be wiped out.

“So what do we do now? Can’t we spread poison?”

Bong Seok asked with a hard face. He knew how serious this situation was too.
At Bong Seok’s question, Tang Ho shook his head.

“The lake is too big. It wouldn’t have any effect.”

To spread poison across the whole lake, a normal amount was impossible.

“Will the Tang Clan send people if we ask?”

Seo Jong-dae asked while looking at Tang Ho.

“They’ll send them, but not enough to deal with all that.”

There was a high chance they’d only send a few people first just to confirm the truth.
Tang Ho was still only a later-generation talent. His influence only went that far.
If they went to confirm and came back, it would be too late.
Seo Jong-dae bit his lip.
It was wartime. It wasn’t easy to spare manpower.

‘If only it weren’t war… No, wait.’

Seo Jong-dae’s eyes changed.

“…Didn’t the Henan Shin Clan move near here?”

He recalled the siblings he’d met in Qinghai.

“I heard they settled in Shenlong.”

If it was Shenlong, it was close by.
Unlike other places that ignored the report, the Henan Shin Clan moved right away.
Partly because two successors were involved, but also because living in Qinghai Province meant they’d experienced many strange things.

“What are you planning to do?”

Bong Seok asked, growing uneasy.
Seo Jong-dae didn’t answer and organized his thoughts. Then he looked at Tang Ho and asked.

“What’s your standing in your clan?”

At the sudden question, Tang Ho furrowed his brow. But thinking there must be a reason, he answered.

“…They have expectations for me, I guess.”

It wasn’t just ‘expectations.’ Tang Ho’s father, the Patriarch’s younger brother, held an elder position.
And Tang Ho’s talent had been recognized early, so the Patriarch cherished him.

“If we say you were captured by the Unorthodox Sects, they’ll come to rescue you, wouldn’t they?”
“…They would.”
“A lot?”

By then, even Tang Ho grew uneasy. Seeing him unable to answer, Seo Jong-dae’s eyes glittered.

“Good. And you… no.”

After Tang Ho, Seo Jong-dae looked at Bong Seok and shook his head.
At that, Bong Seok bristled and spoke.

“What is it?! Say it.”
“If we say you were kidnapped, how many would the Beggars’ Union send?”
“Kidnapped? What are you talking about?”
“Shut up and answer what I asked.”
“…About ten?”

He wasn’t sure. Even ten was being generous.
Even though he’d left Nanjing like this, there wasn’t a single message telling him to return.
Especially after the last report, there wasn’t even a reply.
Seo Jong-dae nodded as if he’d expected that.
Bong Seok flared up, but he couldn’t bring himself to speak.
If the Beggars’ Union saw Bong Seok as he was now, it would be different.
Unlike when he set out, now you could call him a master without shame.
But the Beggars’ Union didn’t know Bong Seok had grown.
The Beggars’ Union already had a huge number of disciples.
Naturally, his value couldn’t help but be low.

“Brother Seo. What are you thinking right now?”

He asked, but Tang Ho had already caught on to Seo Jong-dae’s idea.
But it was too outrageous.

“They can’t move people because it’s war, right? Then we just have to start the war the way we want.”
“The Shin Clan won’t allow that.”
“They said they’d help once, since we helped them last time.”
“To Gyo-ha.”

Bong Seok corrected from the side.

“Sahyung and I are basically one body. We’re from the same Kunlun Sect, right? And besides.”
“And besides?”

Seo Jong-dae looked back at the lake.

“Unless they want to move again, they’ll have no choice but to help.”
“……”
“…….”

It was true.
If those hatched, this whole area would be ruined.
They didn’t know how far the damage would spread.
At Seo Jong-dae’s words, the other two grew serious too.
If those bastards multiplied like this, even the Tang Clan would be in danger.
This really wasn’t the time to nitpick.

“Bong Seok, you tell the Tang Clan about this. While you’re at it, pass it along to Emei Sect and Qingcheng Sect too.”

Of the three, Bong Seok was the fastest on foot.
And he didn’t even need to deliver it personally. If he reached a Beggars’ Union branch, the word would be sent on its own.

“We’ll go get the Shin Clan’s approval.”
“…That’s already not ‘approval.’”

Bong Seok sighed.
Maybe the kidnapping news would spread before the two even reached the Shin Clan.

“If it’s just Tang Ho, it’s a bit much, so inform a few Orthodox-affiliated people nearby too.”
“…You’re kidnapping them too?”
“No way. There’s no time for that. If they hear normal people got kidnapped, they’ll come out even if it’s just out of curiosity.”

The point was to gather people anyway.
If there were enough people, they’d move forces first instead of spending time verifying.
And at the center was a direct line of the Tang Clan.
The truth didn’t matter.

“You’re really…”

Bong Seok said with a sickened look.
But Bong Seok also knew there wasn’t a better way.

“Fine. People will definitely gather.”

Nodding, Bong Seok stepped forward.
Bong Seok moved forward as if sliding.
It was the Ten-Thousand-Li Chasing-Wind Movement Art.
It had improved enough that the Swift Wind Beggar would be proud if he saw it.
It wasn’t a realm you could reach by talent alone. He had put in that much effort.
Watching Bong Seok vanish in an instant, Tang Ho spoke.

“If we’re not careful, this could get big.”

All of Sichuan could be swept into war.
But Seo Jong-dae was calm.

“It was going to happen anyway.”

It was true. The war had already begun.
Even if it was only a localized conflict now, it wouldn’t be strange for it to become full-scale at any moment.
At Seo Jong-dae’s words, Tang Ho started to speak, then shook his head.
This wasn’t the time to worry about a war between martial artists.

“Let’s hurry.”

They didn’t know when those bastards would hatch.
The two hurled themselves in the opposite direction from where Bong Seok had gone.

Gyo-ha and Namgung Hyeok shook off their travel fatigue at an inn.
Even if you called it fatigue, their stamina couldn’t be compared to ordinary people.
With this level of sleeping rough and hardship, fatigue didn’t even build up.
But even these two couldn’t avoid one thing.
Ugeok-ugeok.
Gyo-ha’s hands moved busily across the table.
Namgung Hyeok was also bringing food to his mouth at a fast pace while keeping his dignity.
Thanks to the money the Medicine Hall Chief had given them before leaving, their pockets were thick.
Privately, he was no different from a nephew, so he had taken care of him.

‘If they were worried, they could just send him home.’

Gyo-ha glanced at Namgung Hyeok while eating a dumpling.
Because of the attack, even his life had been in danger.
He heard that the madam of the Namgung Clan had nearly collapsed when she heard the news.
No one would say anything if they stopped the journey and returned to the clan.
But maybe because he was a martial family’s descendant, or because that was the Namgung Clan’s way.
Namgung Jin-yeong, the Medicine Hall Chief, and even Namgung Hyeok continued the journey as if it was only natural.

‘Thanks to that, I get to eat full, though.’

Whenever the food on the table started to run low, new dishes came out.
As befit a rich young master, even his spending was different.
That didn’t mean Namgung Hyeok always ate like this.
It was because Gyo-ha was here.
Namgung Hyeok’s respect had grown deeper than when they first left the Namgung Clan.

‘Now it’s really burdensome.’

The moment their eyes met, Namgung Hyeok spoke.

“Brother, should we order more? Say the word.”

It looked like he’d buy the whole inn if he just said so.
Not just the vibe. It looked like he’d actually do it, which was even scarier.

“No. I’m fine.”

Gyo-ha hurriedly shook his head.
Even now, he was watching Gyo-ha while eating.
Inside, Gyo-ha sighed and looked around.
A bustling inn.
Martial artists with swords were visible here and there, but it looked peaceful.
Because the Murim Alliance was getting close.

‘It’s a little disappointing not being able to fight.’

Gyo-ha smacked his lips. But since they could soon go to the Murim Alliance, he decided to endure it.
Then, the inn door was thrown open.
A filthy little boy came in.
People checked the boy, then went back to what they were doing.
When the boy looked around the inn, the innkeeper stepped in.
He thought the boy had come to beg.
That happened sometimes.
But the boy quickly dodged the innkeeper and ran to Gyo-ha and Namgung Hyeok.

“H-h-heroes, please help!”

Gyo-ha and Namgung Hyeok looked at each other.

‘What should we do?’

At Namgung Hyeok’s glance, Gyo-ha thought briefly, then nodded.
It meant they would at least hear him out.
At their reaction, the boy’s face brightened.

“Bandits kidnapped my little brother!”

At the boy’s words, Gyo-ha lifted the corner of his mouth.
As expected.