Chapter 53

It was a hair-trigger moment where my life felt like it could be snuffed out any second.

With her face gone pale, Im Yeon stepped in front of me.

“P-Patriarch. Please calm yourself. He is the Seventh Young Lord.”

“Stand aside.”

The Patriarch of the Hundred-Succession Heuk Clan, Heuk Jin-pung, spoke in a voice rough as scraping metal.

But Im Yeon did not step back.

She spoke with difficulty, sharing the murderous intent and pressure that had been bearing down on me.

“Urgh, n-no. You may not lay even a fingertip on the Young Lord.”

The surging energy around Heuk Jin-pung gathered in his right hand.

I suddenly grew curious.

How much internal energy was contained in that small clump.

I did not know exactly, but that alone would be enough to erase Im Yeon.

“Guard Im, step back.”

“I, I cannot do that.”

“The Heuk Patriarch absolutely cannot kill me. Have I ever been wrong before?”

Im Yeon bit her lip.

She knew it in her head, but the killing intent and pressure pressing over her whole body kept her from stepping back easily.

Because it felt like I was in danger.

Seen like this, you could tell how excellent a guard Im Yeon was. Even when her own life was in danger, she tried to protect the one she guarded.

“Guard Im. Now.”

In the end, Im Yeon moved one step to the side.

But she glared at Heuk Jin-pung with eyes full of firm resolve, as if saying she would retreat no further.

Heuk Jin-pung spoke to me.

“Seventh Young Lord, you have made Un-hwi no different from a cripple. To sever the main hand that held his whip.”

“It is still better than killing him.”

“There is not the slightest difference from killing him. What you severed was not only my son’s arm. You severed the bright future of the Hundred-Succession Heuk Clan. Therefore.”

Goooo!

The black energy around Heuk Jin-pung surged like flames.

He opened his palm toward me, and that energy swept over me like a wildfire.

It was so fast I had no time to dodge.

“Therefore, I must have revenge. I will kill the Seventh Young Lord in this useless fool’s stead.”

“What are you doing!”

Im Yeon, Ak Mu-jin, and their subordinates all rushed at Heuk Jin-pung at once.

However.

“Urgh.”

“Gah.”

Heuk Jin-pung’s Black Kite Blood-Wind Hardened Qi did not allow them to approach. He swatted them away as if striking them aside.

Only a few, including Im Yeon and Ak Mu-jin, managed to withstand it. Or rather, it was more accurate to say they endured it.

Both of them seemed to have taken internal injuries from the single blow.

Heuk Jin-pung showed no interest in anything else, focusing all his attention on me.

He curled his palm slightly.

A vivid pain that felt like my bones were twisting and my organs bursting ran through me.

“If this hand closes completely, the Seventh Young Lord will dissolve into a mere handful of blood.”

If he increased his strength like this, my whole body really would be crushed.

But I knew.

That Heuk Jin-pung could not kill me.

With a faint smile at my lips, I spoke.

“If you want to kill me, go ahead. It is about time for the Hundred-Succession Heuk Clan to step down from the Seven Demonic Houses anyway.”

“…!”

Perhaps because it was something he had not expected in the slightest.

The pressure crushing me weakened for a moment.

“I did a bit of history study in my spare time. It seemed that in the past, Little Demons often fought and killed one another.”

Conflicts between Little Demons and their clans were allowed to some extent.

This was also part of the process of choosing the next Heavenly Demon.

“But as for a case where harm was done to anyone outside that, there was only one. If I recall, it was a direct descendant of the Destructive Blaze Seo Clan, which used to be one of the Seven Demonic Houses. What do you think became of that clan now?”

“……”

Heuk Jin-pung did not answer.

Because the Destructive Blaze Seo Clan had been exterminated.

And the one that had taken its place in the Seven Demonic Houses at that time.

“You would know better than anyone, Patriarch. Am I right?”

Had been the Hundred-Succession Heuk Clan.

“The Patriarch of a house of the Seven Demonic Houses personally kills a Little Demon, and in a public place at that. What do you think would happen to the Hundred-Succession Heuk Clan then.”

The Heavenly Demon was the Demon Cult’s absolute and only god.

To arbitrarily kill a disciple chosen by him was a direct challenge to the Heavenly Demon’s authority and an act that shook the order of the entire Demon Cult.

Heuk Jin-pung could never bear such a risk.

Because the Hundred-Succession Heuk Clan might vanish like the Destructive Blaze Seo Clan.

As expected, Heuk Jin-pung could do nothing.

Only his pupils trembled endlessly.

‘Yes, this is it.’

Inwardly, I smiled in satisfaction.

What I trusted in the end was my status, that absolute shield of being the Heavenly Demon’s disciple.

Under the heaven of the demonic path, the only ones who could take a Little Demon’s life were the Heavenly Demon as master or a Little Demon of the same status.

They might use underhanded tricks later, but at least in a public setting like this, no one could inflict extreme harm on me.

At that moment, the pressure of Hardened Qi pressing down on my body eased away.

Heuk Jin-pung spoke as if spitting his words.

“You are far more cunning than the rumors said.”

“The cunning one is that man there.”

I pointed at Heuk Un-hwi.

“Who would have known? I never thought he would chase me all the way to Shufu to kill me. I nearly got torn into pieces. Perhaps the Patriarch knew this situation as well.”

“Do I look like I have so much leisure? And judging by what I see, it seems your mission areas overlapped and you happened to meet. I rather suspect the Seventh Young Lord bore ill will toward Un-hwi and may have struck first.”

“Do not bother with stories no one will swallow. There are more than one or two witnesses. Shall I bring them all here?”

“That is not a bad suggestion. It would be good to calmly sort right from wrong.”

For someone who had been furious enough to kill me just moments ago, Heuk Jin-pung had become extremely cold.

He felt like a completely different person.

This was what made the Patriarchs of the Seven Demonic Houses frightening.

They were people who would do anything for the safety of themselves and their clans.

Heuk Jin-pung turned his body sharply.

“Take them to the clan.”

The Hundred-Succession Heuk Clan’s warriors took charge of Heuk Un-hwi and grabbed Gwak Seok by the arms on either side.

He would surely go through many hardships from now on.

“Let us go.”

“Wait a moment.”

I stopped Heuk Jin-pung as he was about to leave.

He turned only his head slightly back and asked.

“What is it?”

“Thinking about it, I have yet to receive an apology from Heuk Un-hwi.”

“And?”

“So I want the Patriarch to do it in his stead. Including what just happened.”

At those words, an awkward silence fell over the area around the Divine Demon Gate.

Everyone probably thought I had lost my mind.

Heuk Jin-pung’s lips trembled, and he looked like he was barely holding himself back from closing his eyes and just killing me.

“Hmph!”

“Just a moment.”

I stopped Heuk Jin-pung again as he turned away.

“What is it now?”

“I also want to receive some thanks.”

“…Thanks for what?”

“I let you see your precious son’s face while he is still alive. I think that deserves some gratitude.”

Black Kite Blood-Wind Hardened Qi erupted from Heuk Jin-pung’s body again.

“Every matter in this world has an end befitting it.”

Leaving those short words behind, Heuk Jin-pung departed.

He used lightness arts and simply flew away.

I let out a small laugh.

‘Right, every matter has an end befitting it.’

The end of my second life was still a long way off.

“Phew, I really thought you were going to die, Young Lord.”

“I am not someone who dies that easily.”

“Indeed. You will surely live a long life, Young Lord. You always say everything you want to say.”

“Are you insulting me?”

“Not at all. It was so exhilarating at the end that I almost burst out laughing.”

Im Yeon’s expression was very bright.

Seeing that expression, I suddenly found it odd.

The Elder Council Lord was right in front of her, yet she did not seem particularly conscious of him.

‘Anyway, one thing is finished.’

Now that I had sent the Hundred-Succession Heuk Patriarch away, only the Elder Council Lord remained.

I walked up to him.

He had been staring holes into the masked Ak Mu-jin until now, and he flinched.

The Elder Council Lord forced himself to turn his gaze to me as if calm.

I pretended to know nothing and joked.

“What brings the Elder Council Lord out here?”

“I received news that is hard to believe, so I waited to confirm whether it was true.”

“What kind of news?”

“The news that, by the Seventh Young Lord’s unilateral judgment, he intends to accept the man who was once the leader of a heretical cult into the Divine Cult.”

The Elder Council Lord glanced sidelong at Ak Mu-jin.

“You heard correctly. That is right. I thought he was a bad person, but it turns out he was a man with his own circumstances. So we decided to dismantle the Longevity Cult and have them return to the Divine Cult.”

“And this man’s circumstances… what are they?”

“For that, it would be better to hear it from the man himself. Do you not think so?”

I asked Ak Mu-jin.

He nodded and stepped forward.

His hand moved toward his face.

The Elder Council Lord’s eyes sharpened with tension.

Soon, Ak Mu-jin’s mask came off.

His bare face, carved with a deep blade scar, was revealed.

“It has been a long time, Council Lord.”

“…!”

The Elder Council Lord’s expression hardened.

Like someone who had believed Ak Mu-jin would never return.

“H-How are you here…”

“Seventh Young Lo–”

Ak Mu-jin cut himself off mid-sentence.

He briefly knit his brows, then put the mask back on.

“As the Seventh Young Lord said. I have decided to return to the Divine Cult that is like my hometown.”

“…I thought you had become one who would never return.”

“It was far too unjust for that. There was someone I absolutely had to meet.”

“I have no idea who that might be.”

The Elder Council Lord calmly feigned ignorance.

He had been greatly shocked just a moment ago, yet he had already returned to his usual self.

Well, he must have known in advance that Ak Mu-jin was coming, so he would have prepared himself.

The Elder Council Lord let out a small sigh and continued.

“What do you intend to do now? So much time has already passed.”

“There are things that are not erased even as the years pass.”

“Like the scar on your face, perhaps? It seems you have lived for years chewing on nothing but that scar.”

Grit. Ak Mu-jin clenched his teeth hard.

Knowing the story contained in that scar myself, I could not help but furrow my brow.

‘Hold it in.’

I spoke to him inwardly.

Ak Mu-jin was not ready for anything yet.

Crashing head-on into the Elder Council Lord from the very start was not the best plan.

“I chewed on the scar, you say. You are right. Having something to chew on kept me from getting bored.”

Fortunately, Ak Mu-jin handled it well.

His subordinates were radiating strong killing intent, but the Elder Council Lord did not spare them even a speck of attention.

This time, the Elder Council Lord fixed his gaze on me.

“Seventh Young Lord, you have brought a most unamusing gift. I do not know why you played such a bad hand, but because of this you will face great adversity. I assure you of that.”

“We will see.”

Leaving that cold warning behind, the Elder Council Lord departed.

Now, only my party remained at the Divine Demon Gate.

“You endured well, Unit Leader Ak. There will be a day later when you can repay it in full.”

“…Thank you.”

“For what, all of a sudden.”

“Thanks to the Seventh Young Lord, I was able to meet the Elder Council Lord on the very first day. By whatever means, I will definitely avenge my subordinates.”

I quietly nodded.

I believed Ak Mu-jin would accomplish it.

“Let us go as well. I want to lie down and sleep on a soft bed.”

We passed through the Divine Demon Gate and the city surrounding the Demon Cult’s main altar.

It was as we entered the main altar.

Suddenly, a chilling aura washed over me and goosebumps broke out all over my body.

‘This feeling?’

My brow furrowed on its own.

I had felt this sensation in my previous life.

There had been an organization that artificially amplified the output of Demonic Qi, and whenever they approached in a group, I always felt chills like this.

It was like an instinctive aversion unique to those who possessed Demonic Qi.

“Y-Young Lord. It is the Demon Inquisition Corps.”

The Demon Inquisition Corps.

The highest inspection body that handled grave crimes such as apostasy and treason, which denied the very foundation of the Demon Cult.

Just their name alone struck fear into the hearts of Demon Cult members.

Because if you got tangled up with them the wrong way, your life would plummet into ruin.

“We greet the Seventh Young Lord.”

Around thirty warriors surrounded us with an oppressive air.

Among them, a man with snake-like eyes cupped his fist politely.

Feeling the chills rise, I answered.

“You came out to welcome me too? With the Elder Council Lord, the Hundred-Succession Heuk Patriarch, and now the Demon Inquisition Corps, what a commotion.”

“A grave matter that may disturb the Cult has arisen, so the Demon Inquisition Corps has been dispatched to investigate. We ask for your cooperation.”

I clicked my tongue softly.

I had already expected that the Demon Inquisition Corps would drag off Ak Mu-jin and his subordinates.

They were the ones who had formed the Longevity Cult to strike down the Demon Cult. It would have been more strange to leave them alone.

It was just unexpected that the timing would be this fast.

This meant they had a read on our movements, which in other words meant the Demon Eye Pavilion was distributing information about me almost in real time.

If not, there would not have been such a grand welcoming party.

‘Well, fine.’

I looked around at Ak Mu-jin and his subordinates.

I spoke in a reassuring voice, as if to put them at ease.

“Do not worry. I will get you out soon enough.”

“I am not worried. I will calmly explain my position.”

“That is a good attitude.”

The Demon Inquisition Corps promptly fastened special iron chains around their wrists as if they had been waiting for this moment.

I spoke to the snake-eyed man.

“Do not treat them roughly just because you call them criminals. Understood?”

“I will keep that in mind.”

I nodded in satisfaction.

He looked fierce, but for someone from the Demon Inquisition Corps, his impression was not bad.

The ones I had met in my previous life had never felt likable at all.

I thought this was where I would part with Ak Mu-jin and the others for a while, yet for some reason the Demon Inquisition warriors did not look like they planned to leave.

‘What is this?’

As I wondered inwardly, the snake-eyed man spoke.

“You will have to come as well.”

“Who?”

“The Seventh Young Lord, of course.”

“…Me too?”

“Yes. We will not treat you roughly as a criminal, so come with us.”

Well, would you look at that?

One corner of my mouth curled up slightly.

I should take back what I said earlier.

People from the Demon Inquisition Corps really were hard to feel attached to.

‘I had to go to the Demon Inquisition Corps sooner or later anyway.’

Considering what I had done in Shufu, I was bound to be summoned sooner or later.

The timing had just come much earlier than expected, but it was not a bad thing to get it over with now.

“Let us move.”

Our party headed to the Demon Inquisition Corps just as we were, in the same clothes we had worn upon arriving at the main altar.