The Aftermath Of Extermination (1)

“S-so?”

Go Won-gi moistened his lips with his tongue and asked with an expectant gaze. Now, at last, the story of a duel between true experts was about to come out. Until now, it had merely been a story about killing troublesome small fry.

“So… I saw all of Kunlun’s martial arts and killed him, that’s all.”

Neung Je-gang concluded it like that and lifted his teacup. He warmed the cold tea water with Samadhi True Fire and leisurely took a sip.

“That’s the end?”

“Yes.”

“So emptily?”

“Then what else is there to say?”

“No, I mean, can’t you explain in a bit more detail, like how Deung Myeong attacked, how you dodged, and so on?”

“It’s bothersome.”

“Mm!”

Go Won-gi wanted to hit him once if only he had the ability.

‘Damn bastard!’

But his opponent was the Deputy Commissioner of the great Eastern Depot. If he so much as moved his hand here, he could be shackled and sent straight to the Forbidden Demon Prison. This was how dirty rank was. Though even if he wanted to hit him, his skill was lacking anyway.

“Ah, right! But where did Lady Go go? Now that I think of it, it seems like it’s been quite a while since I last saw Lady Go….”

“Ah, that is, well….”

“Yes?”

“An, an errand. Ah, yes, I sent her on an errand. There was something very urgent.”

“Ah! Is that so? Well, that is better than being on a battlefield like this. By the way, is the Alliance Leader well?”

“Hm? O-of course. He is well, naturally. He is so well that it is a problem. Hahaha, haha!”

Since Go Won-gi was strangely flustered, Neung Je-gang, wondering if there was something, casually asked about the Alliance Leader. And as expected, there was something. There was definitely something.

In truth, Go Won-gi had sent Go So-jeong far away because he thought she might also have fallen into Cheon-geum Domain’s clutches. And he had done it secretly so that others would not discover his inner thoughts.

This was not something only Go Won-gi had done. Right now, there was not a single woman in the Martial Alliance camp.

In the case of the Emei Sect, all of them had returned to their sect. The elders had risen up and resolved to do so. Even if it had nothing to do with them, every woman had come to be looked at with suspicious eyes. What cowards….

“Ah, right! By now, they may have finished sorting the documents brought from Deung Myeong’s residence. There may perhaps be a list of people of the Cheon-geum Domain inside, so I will check and let you know.”

Neung Je-gang glanced once at Go Won-gi with pathetic eyes and stood up.

“There is something like that?”

Go Won-gi jumped in surprise. This was truly an important issue. If there was a list, strong sanctions would be imposed on the women on that list.

Moreover, those imposing the sanctions would likely be their families or people from their sects. From the women’s standpoint, they might feel wronged and even betrayed. It was something that would scatter countless seeds of conflict all across the murim.

“I’m not saying there is. I’m saying there might be.”

“Say, even if there is one, can’t you alone know about it and destroy it?”

“Yes? What will you do if a problem occurs later?”

“The Alliance Leader said he would retire. If the news that he has died is not known to the world, wouldn’t it be fine?”

“Retire? But will that work? As I said last time, even rumors alone can cause accidents.”

“Even so, isn’t it impossible to eliminate them merely because they are on a list, when nothing has happened yet?”

“….”

That was certainly true. They were potential dangers, but for that reason alone, they could not be allowed to be eliminated by their families or sects. In any case, they were also in the position of having been unfairly implicated.

“Haha! This is truly amusing.”

“What is?”

“They are all the same in having been unfairly implicated, yet for some we say we should simply watch and wait, while those powerless Necromancer Cultists must all be killed. His Majesty the Emperor issued a secret edict to kill them all. I only learned of it today. But it seems you already knew, Unit Leader. Did the Martial Alliance perhaps petition His Majesty the Emperor, saying they must all be killed?”

“Phew! In truth, yes. I heard that those who remained in the Alliance petitioned like that and received a reply saying it was accepted. I also heard that news long ago.”

Go Won-gi could not raise his head. One way or another, the Martial Alliance’s position was to protect the children and female disciples of martial families. Go Won-gi sending Go So-jeong far away was also in that context. Along with that, it was also to prevent the misfortune of his daughter dying.

“So not learning martial arts becomes a crime. Haha! In any case, since His Majesty’s order has already been issued, it probably cannot be withdrawn. Even if the list is discovered, I will not announce it. But please know this. The responsibility for every incident that occurs because of that will clearly lie with the Martial Alliance.”

“I understand.”

But it was at that very moment.

Clang, clang, clang, clang.

As soon as the conversation between the two reached its conclusion, a sharp warning sound ringing throughout the Martial Alliance fiercely struck their ears.

The two looked at each other. It was the signal that the final war Princess Jang-ok had predicted was beginning. At this moment, there was nothing else that would cause such a warning to be issued. There was no longer any bold fellow like Deung Myeong who would attack alone either.

“I will go.”

“Ah, yes. Thank you.”

Go Won-gi also answered while reaching for his sword, which had been hung on the sword rack. If it was truly the final battle, it was not something that could simply be left to his subordinates. It was the task of killing the Necromancer Cultists. The cruelty and misery of it could not be thrown only onto his subordinates.

If the weight to bear was great, then of course the heads who had made such decisions should bear more of it. At least Go Won-gi had such a feeling.

The imperial army camp Neung Je-gang returned to was also in chaos, just like the Martial Alliance. Even the lowest soldiers had all come to know that the fighting was beginning in earnest. It was because Kunlun and the Necromancer Cultists were taking the first attack and surging forward.

Until now, the imperial army had attacked first, and Kunlun had put the Necromancer Cultists in front and defended with human wave tactics. But look now! That human wall surging in like a tide!

Today’s situation was certainly very different from before.

“Damn it! We’ll die of exhaustion trying to beat them all to death.”

“But do we really have to kill them all?”

“They say they’re not in their right minds. And there’s no way to make them regain their senses either.”

“Even so, kill them all?”

“If we’re ordered, we have to do as ordered.”

The conversation of the lowest soldiers reached Neung Je-gang’s ears as he hurriedly walked toward Princess Jang-ok’s tent. The current situation was generally like this. The minds of the soldiers who had to fight on the front line were not at ease. There was no way it could feel good for people to kill people. And that was even more the case if it was a massacre.

The battle against the Necromancer Cultists was burdensome even for martial artists. After today passed, the soldiers might live with anxiety and fear buried in their subconscious. That was what war was.

His thoughts were broken by his companions gathered in front of Princess Jang-ok’s tent, waiting for Neung Je-gang.

“Captain!”

Especially because of this guy, Ma-jil, who was smiling brightly at Neung Je-gang as if something was good despite being beaten nearly to death last night.

“Hut!”

Neung Je-gang could not help but laugh as he looked at Ma-jil. Though he had not left wounds or injured him, he had tossed him around a little harshly last night. Thinking of the situation where his hair had been singed and the smell of burning had filled the air, even tossing him around that much was honestly not that severe. Of course, this was Neung Je-gang’s thought.

But there was no lingering resentment at all. If it had been Ma-jil before he was imprisoned in the Forbidden Demon Prison, he might have stubbornly resisted to the death and had to be beaten even more, almost to the point of death, before coming to his senses.

The others all looked at Ma-jil in disbelief as well. They too knew how much Ma-jil had suffered. And yet for him to loosen up like that in a single night was mysterious.

“Let’s go in.”

Neung Je-gang went and stood before the princess’s tent.

“She said to enter as soon as you arrived.”

After hearing the guard’s words, Neung Je-gang immediately entered the tent.

A short while later, they took their seats around the large table prepared in the princess’s tent. Those gathered were the major figures of the Eastern Depot who had set up camp here, led by the princess and Neung Je-gang.

“In about one double-hour, an all-out war will begin. We have already contacted the Martial Alliance, but in order to protect the soldiers, the Martial Alliance has agreed to take charge of the foremost battle.”

At the princess’s words, everyone nodded. Certainly, the difference between the abilities of martial artists and ordinary soldiers was great. If the soldiers stood at the front, the damage on this side would also be considerable.

“And so, I would like the Eastern Depot to stand at the front as well. It would be discourteous to leave it entirely to the Martial Alliance, and if we do not wish to hear later that the Eastern Depot sat idle, we should show leadership by example at a moment like this.”

“We accept the order.”

The Eastern Depot figures answered in loud voices. Afterward, they went outside to prepare. One double-hour was long if called long and short if called short. To make full preparations within that time, they had to hurry.

“What will the Deputy Commissioner do?”

Princess Jang-ok looked back at Neung Je-gang and asked.

“I will strike the rear.”

The formation of the Necromancer Cult that Neung Je-gang expected had the Necromancer Cultists at the front and Kunlun martial artists at the rear. Their scheme was likely that after the imperial army and Martial Alliance grew tired from cutting down the Necromancer Cultists, the Kunlun martial artists would later step forward and cut them down.

“The rear? There will be elites there….”

“Now that Deung Myeong and Jieun Territory are gone, there should not be many martial artists above the peak level.”

“Understood. Then please take care of it.”

“Yes. Cheong Yeon, you stay here with So-yeon and protect the princess.”

“Yes.”

Though there were experts from the Eorim Institute, he was uneasy. Moreover, he did not want to show Je So-yeon the horrors of war. And the same was true of the princess.

“Your Highness should also avoid coming out of the tent if possible. It will not be a sight worth seeing.”

“I understand.”

Princess Jang-ok also accepted it. She was the princess who had screamed even while fighting mountain bandits. If she saw the blood of the battlefield, she might perhaps faint on the spot.

Neung Je-gang left the princess’s tent and went to his own tent. Those who could be called his close aides had all gathered there.

“Did you look through the documents?”

“We looked through all of them, but almost all of them were things like land deeds and house deeds. There was nothing visible regarding this Cheon-geum Domain you mentioned.”

Gongsun Gyeong-in answered. Gongsun Gyeong-in had to take responsibility even for sorting the documents he had stolen. Ma-jil had been beaten and rolled around last night, then received very painful treatment from Je So-yeon, so he had had no time, and Gongsun Gyeong-in had handled it alone.

“Is that so? Well, should I call it fortunate if it is fortunate?”

With this, Neung Je-gang himself and the Martial Alliance no longer needed to feel responsibility for misfortunes that might occur later.

“So-yeon, go to Her Highness’s tent. Protect Her Highness together with Cheong Yeon.”

“Yes.”

“And Ma-jil and Gongsun Gyeong-in will strike the enemy bandits’ rear with me.”

“Yes?”

“I mean we will deal with the Kunlun Sect Leader and the elders.”

“Ah! Um, but do you mean just us?”

“Yes. But if you two want to survive, you will have to suffer quite a bit.”

Neung Je-gang’s words were calm, but Ma-jil and Gongsun Gyeong-in shuddered. The two knew very well that in any case, Neung Je-gang would not be the one suffering. Only they, who followed along with him, would suffer enough to nearly die.