Chapter 42
“I know you’re strong. You might even defeat someone like me in no time.”
Surprisingly self-aware, Go Taehung’s statement only confused the Hongwol commander more.
“And yet you still insist on standing your ground? Such chivalry—it’s almost touching.”
“Chivalry my ass. I’m just scared.”
Despite his words, Go Taehung wore a smug grin.
“If I let you go, the King of Hell himself will chase me down and tear my soul apart.”
The commander frowned, unable to understand what he was babbling about.
Whooosh—
Just then, a strange noise cut through the air—like wind being forcibly ripped apart. The Hongwol commander shouted in alarm:
“Get down!”
The moment he kicked off the ground, something shot down from the sky.
WHAM! BOOM!
It was as if a giant meteor had struck. Dust clouds exploded, and groans echoed from every direction. When the dust settled, a ghastly scene emerged.
One of the Hongwol members who hadn’t dodged in time lay dead, his head crushed.
Crunch—
A man stepped onto the corpse, his piercing eyes shining with deadly intent.
“Give me the kid.”
Somehow, Dok Go-ryong had arrived completely unharmed.
The commander’s eyes wavered for the first time.
“…This shouldn’t be possible.”
He muttered to himself, breaking the tense silence.
“How did you shake off my men and get here?”
“How? I killed them.”
“…You killed them?”
“Yeah. You’ll be joining them soon, so wash your neck and get ready.”
Dok Go-ryong’s gaze shifted to the covered iron cage on the cart. Though he couldn’t see inside, he could sense the faint presence of a child.
Realizing his goal, the commander exhaled softly.
“…No choice then. Eliminate all witnesses.”
“Yes, sir.”
Four remaining cultists bowed and vanished in an instant.
Thunk—
“W-What…?”
From nowhere, a sword pierced through a Red Wolf bandit’s chest.
The others froze, eyes wide in terror. The moment the blade was pulled out—
Splurt—
Blood spurted everywhere as the bandits dropped one by one.
Now, death loomed over Go Taehung as well. One of the cultists lunged at him, his blade gleaming—
Clang!
But someone stepped in front of him.
“T-Thank you… sir!”
It was Dok Go-ryong, who blocked the strike aimed at Go Taehung.
The cultist scowled and redirected his blade toward Dok Go-ryong’s neck.
Swish—
A sharp gust of wind accompanied the thrust.
The cultist’s blade pierced Dok Go-ryong’s neck—or so he thought.
He grinned, sure of his victory.
“What are you doing?”
A voice growled right in his ear.
Startled, the cultist tried to leap away—
Slash—
His vision twisted. He looked down to see… his own headless body.
The Dok Go-ryong he stabbed had been a mere afterimage.
Seeing his man fall, the Hongwol commander steadied himself again.
“I’ll handle them—go save the kid.”
Dok Go-ryong, sensing the cultists’ aura change, addressed Go Taehung.
“M-Me? Alone?”
“If you can’t, you’ll die.”
Refusal wasn’t an option. Watching Dok Go-ryong vanish into combat, Go Taehung swallowed hard.
He wanted nothing more than to run—but—
If I run, Gwangryong will kill me!
He didn’t hesitate for long.
“Uwoooooh! You bastard! Move aside!”
Thud! Thud! Thud!
With each step, the earth quaked. The mountains rumbled.
Goryeongbo — Giant Spirit Step.
Though it looked slow and clumsy, each step carried massive power.
Thud!
About ten paces away from the commander, Go Taehung jumped, lifting his greatsword high.
He poured all his energy into the swing, ready to cleave the commander in two.
“Aaaaaahhh!!”
If the enemy didn’t block with energy or aura, his frail sword would shatter, and the massive blade would split him from shoulder to waist.
Smirk—
But the commander suddenly twisted his body, dodging the blow with ease.
It was only then that Go Taehung saw the unguarded cart behind him.
At this rate, his momentum and power would smash into the cart—
No! The kid will be crushed!
With a groan, he withdrew his energy and twisted mid-air, trying to change his landing.
But there wasn’t enough time.
If I crash like this, the child won’t survive!
He dropped the sword, spread his arms wide, and threw himself over the cart.
BOOM!
The cart exploded like it had taken a cannon blast. Go Taehung was thrown to the ground, rolling.
“Kid…!”
Meanwhile, Dok Go-ryong had taken out the last cultist and ran toward the wreckage—only for the commander to block him.
“You bastard. You did that on purpose, didn’t you?!”
“You told me to move, so I did. What’s the issue?”
Despite losing all his men, the commander grinned victoriously.
“If that Sichuan Dang Clan brat dies, won’t that be a problem?”
“Doesn’t matter. Our mission was to abduct and brutally murder him. Now we just need to clean up the witnesses.”
With that, the commander drew a hidden dagger and lunged at Dok Go-ryong’s throat.
Dok Go-ryong gritted his teeth and blocked the attack.
This time, the commander wasn’t holding back. His earlier performance had been a sham.
Normally, Dok Go-ryong would have welcomed a strong opponent—but not now.
I didn’t see the child escape from the cart…
No scraps of cloth, no trace of anyone crawling out.
Right now, his only priority was to defeat the man in front of him and find Eun Sowol.
Where is the kid…?!
“Cough! Cough! S-Sir! The child is safe!”
Go Taehung, just regaining consciousness, wheezed as he got up.
In his arms, wrapped in cloth, was the iron cage.
It seemed he’d clung to it during the crash.
This time, the power shifted. The commander clicked his tongue; Dok Go-ryong’s eyes lit up.
“Well done! Take the kid and get out of here!”
“Y-Yes!”
Gritting his teeth through the pain, Go Taehung stood.
“Waaahh!”
A child’s cry came from inside the cage.
They must’ve been startled by the crash.
Go Taehung hastily pulled away the cloth.
“Sorry, kid… I didn’t mean to scare you…”
But his voice trailed off.
“S-Sir!”
“What are you doing?! You wanna die too?!”
“No, it’s not that! The kid’s not here!”
“…What?”
Dok Go-ryong finally turned around.
Just as Go Taehung said, inside the cage was only Dang Jinmyeong, wailing loudly.
“Why? That’s not the one you were looking for?”
Thud—
The commander didn’t miss his chance. He stabbed Dok Go-ryong deep in the abdomen.
Gritting his teeth, Dok Go-ryong glared back, veins bulging in rage.
“You bastard…!”
Rage beyond pain and reason swept through his entire body.
Meanwhile…
RUMBLE—
The mountain shuddered softly in the night.
“…Looks like they got there first.”
Dang Jinak, traveling with Wonho, sharpened his senses.
“They went farther than I expected. Let’s hurry.”
They quickly headed toward the sound.
Just as they were crossing the slope—
“…Huh?”
Something caught Dang Jinak’s eye.
It was hard to see in the dark, but someone was climbing the mountain in haste.
Who could it be at this hour?
“Sir? What’s wrong?”
Wonho asked curiously, but Dang Jinak was focused, staring into the dark.
“…Uncle…”
A tiny voice brushed his ear.
Dang Jinak’s eyes widened, and he dashed toward the distant figure.
