By Zephyria 
“What brings the Jegal Clan here? Shouldn’t you be heading toward Beijing by now?”
It was a rare sight to see the Jegal Clan led personally by the Family Head.
The ‘Frozen Poison’ Jegal Yeom-gang had not shown his face in public for a long time. This was because the Young Family Head, the Swift Wind Hero Jegal Un, had been handling external affairs on his father’s behalf since before he reached adulthood.
“…Ahem, regardless, you’ve come at a good time, Jegal Family Head. Do-hwan is in danger. Didn’t you cherish him like your own nephew? For now, please lend a hand in eliminating those ruffians. We can discuss the details later!”
“That child is my nephew.”
As Jegal Yeom-gang, who wore a terrifying expression, spoke and strode forward, Paeng Oe-cheol almost stepped backward instinctively.
Jegal Yeom-gang always had a fierce impression, as if he were perpetually angry, but today he radiated an exceptionally chilling aura. The deep furrow between his brows remained unyielding, as if an invisible person were constantly pricking him with a needle.
It wasn’t just his appearance; he actually had a very foul personality. In his youth, Paeng Oe-cheol had a history of being disciplined several times for acting too bold around him.
“Eh? Since when was Do-hwan of the Jegal Clan bloodline? Well… he is like a nephew, I suppose. Those people are lackeys of the Seventh Prince Seong Mu-yeon. Truly a persistent, ill-fated connection.”
“I am not talking about Paeng Do-hwan!”
As Jegal Yeom-gang muttered through gritted teeth, Paeng Oe-cheol frowned.
“…Brother Jegal, have you gone senile already? Where on earth would you have another nephew?”
The Paeng family and the Jegal Clan had maintained close ties for a long time, and their successors had grown up calling each other brothers. The older generation was no exception. Paeng Oe-cheol unconsciously addressed Jegal Yeom-gang by their old terms of familiarity.
“Anyway, since you’re here, please help—”
Paeng Oe-cheol shut his mouth.
Something was strange about Jegal Yeom-gang. His face was flushed red as if suppressing something, veins bulging, and the tips of his whitening beard were trembling. Paeng Oe-cheol felt puzzled, as it had been a long time since he had seen Jegal Yeom-gang this agitated in their old age.
“Brother Jegal? Why…”
“I said the Seventh Prince Seong Mu-yeon is my nephew!”
Jegal Yeom-gang unleashed a Lion’s Roar. Everyone, including Paeng Oe-cheol, turned to look at him in shock.
“…What?”
Silence fell over the area. Amidst this, only Jegal Un, who had been standing quietly in the back, maintained his composure. He let out a hollow laugh at his father’s revelation. He knew it would happen, but wasn’t this a bit too blunt?
“…I’ll deal with you later.”
Jegal Yeom-gang glanced back at his son and gnashed his teeth. Jegal Un’s smile vanished, and he quietly lowered his gaze.
Jegal Yeom-gang had received a letter from Jegal Un just as he was leaving the clan to head north. Until then, Jegal Yeom-gang had been displeased with his son for abandoning his duties to go out on a whim. He had intended to punish him upon his return.
However, when he saw two identical necklaces, his heart sank. With hands trembling like aspen leaves, he unfolded the letter to find a single sentence written inside.
I found him.
What the two necklaces implied was clear.
He had found his lost sister.
Upon receiving the letter, Jegal Yeom-gang cast aside his duties as a member of the martial alliance and immediately turned toward Lanzhou, racing forward like a madman.
〈Sister!〉
The journey from Hubei to Lanzhou in Gansu was not smooth. Jegal Yeom-gang, on the verge of fulfilling a lifelong longing, felt no fatigue, but his family servants did. He had to let them rest, as they had been running relentlessly, deviating from their path to follow the Family Head without knowing why.
He was indescribably anxious.
It was his sister, rediscovered after nearly 30 years.
After coaxing and soothing his servants, Jegal Yeom-gang finally reached Gansu, where he spotted a familiar Jegal Clan signal flare in the distance. It was Jegal Un.
After immediately firing a signal flare back, it wasn’t long before Jegal Yeom-gang was able to meet the son he had been longing for.
Excited at the thought of seeing his separated family again, Jegal Yeom-gang instead received tragic news, contrary to his expectations. Unfortunately, his sister had been dead for a long time. For Jegal Yeom-gang, who had comforted himself by touching his necklace whenever he missed her, believing she was looking at the same sky, it was a great shock.
However, there was a bloodline left behind by his sister.
“Y-you’re joking, right?”
Paeng Oe-cheol tried to laugh it off, but Jegal Yeom-gang did not seem to be joking at all. He was glaring at Paeng Oe-cheol with eyes burning more intensely than ever, as if he wanted to devour him.
“…Are you serious? Could it be that my sister…?”
Paeng Oe-cheol remembered the Jegal Family Head’s sister. After she disappeared without a trace one day, the previous Family Head and his wife had searched desperately for their daughter, and after their passing, Jegal Yeom-gang had inherited that fate.
“If you touch that child, you must be prepared for an all-out war with the Jegal Clan.”
Paeng Oe-cheol broke into a cold sweat and fell silent.
Gang Woong was equally surprised.
‘To think Young Master Seong Mu-yeon is of the Jegal Clan bloodline…’
Il-gwang and Bang Gyeom were just as shocked. Only the Owl remained the same as always. No one knew what expression he wore behind that unchanging mask.
“That means… with the Demonic Cult Leader Seong Hyeok-gwang… how could such a thing… Brother Jegal! Are you acknowledging and accepting Seong Hyeok-gwang’s bloodline? This is absurd! This is an insult not only to the Jegal Clan but to the five great families, no, to the entire orthodox sect!”
“Watch your tongue. My sister’s bloodline is the Jegal Clan’s bloodline.”
“….”
Jegal Yeom-gang barked back mercilessly, as if refusing any rebuttal. He glared coldly at Paeng Oe-cheol with disapproval, clicked his tongue once, and turned around.
“Let’s go!”
“Yes, Family Head!”
Without another word, Jegal Yeom-gang leaped forward with his servants.
Although the sister he had desperately sought was no longer in this world, the legacy she left behind was alive and breathing.
He would be able to meet him soon.
That alone was enough for Jegal Yeom-gang. If he failed to find even that child, how could he possibly face his sister’s face in the afterlife?
‘Wait just a little longer.’
He would definitely save the child and make up for the mistakes of the past. Only then could he face his sister with a clear conscience and a light heart on the day they reunited.
“W-we’re going too!”
Paeng Oe-cheol, who had been standing dazed in shock, snapped out of it and chased after the Jegal Clan leading the way. Il-gwang, the Black Shadow Unit, and Gang Woong followed behind.
As they approached Kilyeon Cliff, which boasted a magnificent mountain range, Gang Woong repeatedly steadied his wavering heart.
He was facing an unfamiliar fight in an unfamiliar place with unfamiliar people.
Whether in a good direction or a bad one, a conclusion would be reached today.
By the rules, Gang Woong should have returned to Mount Hua the moment he realized his master was not returning. Three days had passed since Baek Ryeo-il left without notifying him of his destination or return, and there had been no specific mission assigned.
The correct course of action was to return to the headquarters, report to the superiors, and wait for a decision from the elders—whether to wait for his return or report him missing and go search for him.
However, since Baek Ryeo-il had headed toward where the Sect Gate was stationed rather than somewhere else, there was no possibility of him being missing, but…
It seemed Baek Ryeo-il had intentionally not given a separate order, keeping this situation in mind. It meant that if he didn’t return, Gang Woong should return to the headquarters on his own.
But Gang Woong chose to stay.
By doing this, he was no longer an innocent disciple who had been forced to leave the Sect Gate by his master, but someone who had left the sect of his own volition. No one knew this fact, and he did not disclose it. He was worried that someone might forcibly send him back.
Gang Woong could not leave like this. If he did, there was no telling how much more time would pass before he could meet Seong Mu-yeon again.
‘Young Master… you must be safe.’
Gang Woong was a good child.
He did not pry deeply into the affairs of adults. He believed that if there was something he needed to know, they would tell him first even if he didn’t step forward, so he waited patiently.
Even when he was burning with curiosity, he endured until the end.
Three years passed like that.
No one told him anything.
Seong Mu-yeon disappeared, and Baek Ryeo-il kept his mouth shut.
Since entering Mount Hua, his master or other adults were always by his side, and they made all the decisions. There were no explanations. Gang Woong only had to follow.
But a moment ago, when the Paeng family asked for their position on Seong Mu-yeon, Gang Woong felt that this alone was not enough.
It wasn’t just about that. Gang Woong had always been the last to learn Seong Mu-yeon’s secrets. He didn’t know about the illness that everyone else knew, and he didn’t know about Seong Mu-yeon’s hidden martial arts. Even Seomun Yuha, whom he hadn’t known for long, knew, while he alone did not.
For Gang Woong, who prided himself on being the closest person to him other than Baek Ryeo-il, that fact came as quite a shock.
Baek Ryeo-il had known the identity of the servant wearing the badger mask from the beginning but didn’t tell him.
Because he hadn’t asked.
If he had asked why he was in such a bad mood, why he was obsessed with the Badger, or what he thought of him, would Baek Ryeo-il have answered?
Thinking about it now, it didn’t matter whether he answered or not. Simply asking himself the questions would have been enough.
Why, why, why.
If he had searched for the reason, he might have realized his identity a bit sooner.
And so, a reason emerged why he absolutely had to meet Seong Mu-yeon again.
Regardless of Mount Hua’s position or his master’s position, if no one would tell him first, he would now seek the answer himself.
There were too many questions he had to ask Seong Mu-yeon.
Which one was the real version: the Seong Mu-yeon he knew, or the Seong Mu-yeon the world spoke of?
What really happened that day?
The time had come to find the answers for himself.