By Zephyria Choice (1)
“Now that you’ve killed me, it’s too late to run. Please stop.”
“Haha. You still don’t know a thing, do you?”
“Yes?”
The blade wasn’t aimed at Seong Mu-yeon. Instead, it was aimed at Peng Yuan-jin’s heart.
“I have no intention of running. I have no intention of denying what I’ve done.”
“Wh, what are you doing!”
The blade slowly moved towards Peng Yuan-jin’s heart. Flustered, Seong Mu-yeon tried to pull his hand away, but Peng Yuan-jin wouldn’t let go.
Thwack.
His body stiffened. He felt the terrible sensation of the sword piercing through the skin and tearing through layers of muscle beneath his palm.
Peng Yuan-jin narrowed his eyes in pain. Even so, he didn’t release his grip. Their bodies trembled as they pushed and pulled against each other, and the sword gradually sank deeper.
“Are you crazy?!”
Seong Mu-yeon screamed, his face turning blue.
“I told you… it’s to give Young master enlightenment…”
Peng Yuan-jin was smiling. Blood was dripping from the corner of his mouth.
“This time, you’ll never escape.”
He didn’t loosen his grip on Seong Mu-yeon’s hand until the very end. He was holding on so tightly that his hand turned white from the lack of blood.
Several footsteps approached rapidly, and soon people crowded into the narrow space. They froze like statues at the sight before them.
Seong Mu-yeon spotted a pale Sang-geol in the crowd. The expedition had already returned. And a particularly prominent head appeared belatedly. Time seemed to stretch out like taffy as Baek Ryeo-il emerged from behind a pillar, his eyes meeting Seong Mu-yeon’s.
Seong Mu-yeon clearly saw his expression gradually change from one of annoyance at being blocked to something else entirely. His eyes widened and his mouth opened slightly.
That fleeting moment felt like an eternity.
Finally, Peng Yuan-jin’s hand, now lifeless, lost its grip, and he collapsed, gushing blood. Soaked in red blood, Seong Mu-yeon took a step back, then another.
Shouts and screams erupted. People rushed to lay Peng Yuan-jin down properly, and at the same time, something struck Seong Mu-yeon. Someone was pressing down on him from behind.
“Murderer!”
“……”
Even in his dazed state, Seong Mu-yeon didn’t take his eyes off one person.
The man who stood frozen in place. Baek Ryeo-il wore a look Seong Mu-yeon had never seen before.
No. It wasn’t me.
Seong Mu-yeon tried to speak, but his stiff vocal cords couldn’t produce a sound, only a whisper of air.
As Baek Ryeo-il closed his eyes, a look of stark pain on his face, Seong Mu-yeon felt an impact on his head, and darkness clouded his vision.
With a thud, Seong Mu-yeon groaned and fell to the floor. Someone had pushed him hard. Seong Mu-yeon shook his head a few times in his blurry vision, but it only made him dizzier.
“What are you doing! Get out of the way!”
Along with a fierce shout, the metallic clang of weapons clashing erupted.
Seong Mu-yeon struggled to regain his senses. He managed to lift himself up slightly, but soon dizziness washed over him, and his limbs went limp, causing him to lose consciousness.
How much time had passed? When he opened his eyes again, the surroundings were quiet. He blinked, staring blankly at the ceiling.
When he tried to sit up, his whole body ached as if he had been beaten, and he couldn’t help but groan.
He was lying inside a cold iron cage. It was the same prison cell where Seong Mu-jae had been confined not long ago.
“Young master! Are you feeling better?”
Gang Woong rushed over from a corner outside the bars and clung to the iron bars. It seemed he had been waiting for him to wake up.
“What happened?”
“…People brought the unconscious Young master here and locked him up.”
“I thought I heard some fighting… What happened?”
Seong Mu-yeon frowned, trying to recall his last memory before he lost consciousness.
“Excited people rushed into the prison… If the Masters hadn’t stopped them in time, something terrible would have happened… The Masters are guarding the prison now.”
Gang Woong looked like he was about to cry. His face was pale as if he was recalling the events.
“What about the others? Are Young Master Seomun and Bang Gyeom alright? What about Jang Do-jang?”
“Jang Master woke up a little while ago, but Young Master Seomun is still unconscious. And Young master Bang… disappeared in the chaos. I haven’t seen him since…”
‘He must have escaped safely.’
Seong Mu-yeon breathed a sigh of relief. Everything was falling apart, but at least he had accomplished one thing.
“Please wait here. Master told me to let him know when Young master woke up.”
Gang Woong seemed to have a lot to say, repeatedly opening and closing his mouth, but eventually, he got up.
Gang Woong went outside. Seong Mu-yeon leaned his head against the wall and let out a long sigh. His memories were gradually becoming clearer.
How could Peng Yuan-jin be a spy?
He spread out his palms and stared at them intently. The scars on his palms, where Jegal Un’s fan had cut him, were roughly scabbed over amidst the dried blood.
The sensation of gripping the dagger’s hilt was still vivid. The feeling of Peng Yuan-jin’s hand covering his own and applying pressure, the sensation of the blade piercing flesh and muscle, all remained clear in his mind.
‘Peng Yuan-jin is dead…’
No, is he really dead?
It was a bizarre death. To throw away one’s life just to corner one person. Seong Mu-yeon couldn’t understand it at all.
He squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his fists tightly.
Bang!
He slammed his fist against the wall. A stifled groan of resentment escaped through the fingers covering his face.
‘How could Peng Yuan-jin do that?’
He trusted him.
He fervently admired the strength within his gentleness. He even considered him his last hope in this chaotic world.
But it was all fake.
In reality, Peng Yuan-jin was a man consumed by an abnormal desire for revenge, to the point of throwing away his own life.
Seong Mu-yeon curled up helplessly and covered his face.
‘And I didn’t even know…’
The sound of the door creaking open made Seong Mu-yeon snap his head up. Baek Ryeo-il stood in the doorway. Seeing him, Seong Mu-yeon felt a lump rise in his throat, and he crawled to his knees and grabbed the bars.
But as his footsteps drew closer, Seong Mu-yeon felt the urge to run away. His head lowered further and further, and his eyes stung with tears.
“……”
When he opened his tightly closed eyes, he could barely see the tips of Baek Ryeo-il’s shoes. He stood there silently for a long time.
What kind of expression was he wearing now?
Seong Mu-yeon didn’t dare to look up.
Unable to endure the agonizing silence any longer, Seong Mu-yeon spoke first.
“Peng Yuan-jin…”
“He’s dead.”
He had to say something, but Baek Ryeo-il’s voice was more subdued than he had expected, and he even felt a cold chill, making it impossible to speak.
“You…”
Baek Ryeo-il opened his mouth.
“…I don’t know what to do with you.”
Finally, Seong Mu-yeon moved his creaking neck and looked up at Baek Ryeo-il, and he was shocked as if lightning had struck him. A clear look of terror was on Baek Ryeo-il’s face.
He wasn’t angry, but stiff with fear he was experiencing for the first time.
At that moment, Seong Mu-yeon realized that he cared for him even more than he had thought. He thought he liked him to some extent, but perhaps it was even deeper than that.
That thought made Seong Mu-yeon anxious.
“Do, do you believe me…? I didn’t kill him. Peng Yuan-jin did it himself. I don’t know why he did it.”
Seong Mu-yeon explained in a trembling voice what had happened while he was away. How Seomun Yuha had brought Yang Ha-gakju, how he had followed Jegal Un because he suspected him, and how he had entered the Central Hall basement.
“Peng Yuan-jin was a Flowering Bone. He used Young master Jegal Un to trap the alliance.”
“…Stop talking.”
“He stole the Spirit Pill…”
“I said stop!”
Baek Ryeo-il shouted in an agitated voice. Seong Mu-yeon flinched and closed his mouth.
“Don’t you understand yet? I don’t care about any of that. Who was the spy, who used whom. From the moment Peng Yuan-jin died, all of that was pushed to the back burner.”
“……”
“Jang Han-soo claims that Jegal Un did it, but he doesn’t remember anything crucial, and Jegal Un is acting like a fool and has locked himself in his room. But there are countless people who witnessed you killing Peng Yuan-jin. Do you understand what that means?”
“Master…”
“You… you won’t leave here alive.”