By Zephyria 
HF 60
===
“I don’t have the talent for sleeping with my eyes open.”
Though I have shown symptoms of sleepwalking with my eyes open before. Mu-gyeong didn’t bother saying that out loud. Wi Ho-yeon only knew that he had some sleeping habits; he was completely unaware of the sleepwalking.
Whenever he was given a bit of warmth, he would quickly cling to him and fall asleep.
He seemed to have lived with children in the Eumbyeol Hall of the Ice Palace until now, and children generally have high body temperatures. Mu-gyeong wondered if that was why he had taken in orphans to raise, but Ho-yeon wasn’t that calculating. It was more plausible that he had brought them in to play house out of excessive loneliness.
Ho-yeon rarely spoke of his past, appearing to avoid it consciously. For Cheon Mu-gyeong, it didn’t matter either way. No matter what Wi Ho-yeon’s past was, nothing changed. Just as he had no intention of letting him go even if he had dependents.
Ho-yeon lingered behind Cheon Mu-gyeong as he changed his clothes. Wi Ho-yeon was the only one who could stand behind him like this and remain safe. Neither the two guardians nor the hall masters would even step on the Heavenly Demon’s shadow.
Feeling the frost energy emanating from Wi Ho-yeon, Mu-gyeong slowly turned around. He was shirtless, wearing only his lower garments.
“I assume you aren’t waiting for food.”
Ho-yeon knew best that Mu-gyeong had returned empty-handed.
“It’s okay. Abok brought me so many things that I’m still full.”
“You two are quite close.”
Ho-yeon’s eyes widened slightly, looking puzzled.
“Of course we’re close if she takes such good care of me. Abok is so kind and admirable.”
Abok was one of the few who had survived entering the Demon-Taming Cave during the previous cult leader’s reign. Two hundred children had been locked in the cave that year, and only two survived; Abok was one of them. Han Hee-ryeong had introduced Abok as a servant, but in reality, she was her most cherished subordinate.
Mu-gyeong tilted his head and looked down at Ho-yeon.
“The Demon-Taming Cave is a place where you can’t survive just by being kind and admirable.”
Ho-yeon’s drooping eyes grew nearly twice as large. The Demon-Taming Cave? It was named as such because it was literally a cave for breeding demons. Its notoriety was so great that even Ho-yeon, from the distant North Sea, knew of it.
While it served as a training center to produce assassins or demonic practitioners, any atrocity committed in the process of survival was tacitly condoned.
For instance, if a hundred children were locked inside, only enough food for ten would be provided. That was the beginning of the struggle for survival.
To survive, children abandoned their humanity, engaged in politics through all sorts of dirty tricks, and committed murder. Even those with superior martial arts could not rest easy from the threat of assassination. It was a lawless zone where moral qualms did not exist.
“A-Abok is from the Demon-Taming Cave?”
Ho-yeon asked as he trotted after Mu-gyeong. Mu-gyeong downed the liquor on the table as if it were water. Normally, it seemed like too much, but since Ho-yeon knew he possessed immunity to all poisons, he didn’t comment.
He probably seeks out alcohol because his body is in pain. Thinking this, Ho-yeon occasionally felt a flicker of sympathy for Mu-gyeong. However, if he intentionally stopped detoxifying the poison within his body, Cheon Mu-gyeong could drink alcohol for the sake of drinking. Just as he was now.
“What about the task I gave you?”
Mu-gyeong shifted his gaze toward Ho-yeon’s legs. Though hidden by the sleeping robes, red marks remained on Ho-yeon’s ankles where lead weights had been attached.
“I did it… but it’s hard to go all the way to the mountain peak. That’s hard even without the weights.”
Ho-yeon emphasized the word “hard” twice.
“Are you saying you want to quit?”
“No! I said it was hard, I didn’t say I wouldn’t do it.”
Long past his bedtime, Ho-yeon strained his sleepy eyes to project his determination to Mu-gyeong. Mu-gyeong smirked and tilted the bottle again. The man who used to pour carefully into a glass had, at some point, started drinking straight from the bottle. Meanwhile, the fact that Abok was from the Demon-Taming Cave kept spinning in Ho-yeon’s head.
It was hard to even imagine how a child who couldn’t see had survived such a brutal place, or how grueling it must have been. Because of this, his intention to urge Cheon Mu-gyeong to teach him lightfoot techniques quickly was pushed to the back burner.
“Then is Abok’s demonic art superior too?”
Ho-yeon asked, as he had never seen Abok use martial arts.
“If she wanted to kill you, Disciple, she could probably do it without leaving a trace.”
He called him “Disciple” in that specific way, despite not thinking of him as one.
“If I die, Master would be the one losing out.”
Ho-yeon acted bold, sipping warm tea—unlike Mu-gyeong. Then, he stealthily looked up at Mu-gyeong. The man was tilting the bottle with his eyes narrowed into long slits.
Meeting his gaze, Ho-yeon realized he had become more accustomed to the crimson eyes than the ink-black ones. Yet, even with these ink-black eyes, he had a gaze that seemed to pierce through a person. For some reason, Ho-yeon’s face felt hot under that direct stare, so he tentatively brought up the subject.
“About Abok… you’re paying her, right? Actually, I’m the one who should be paying, but as you know, I don’t have any money.”
The dark quarters were lit by lanterns and night-luminous pearls, making Mu-gyeong clearly visible. Looking at the definition of the muscles on his exposed upper body, the sensation of those contours suddenly flashed through Ho-yeon’s mind. Before he could be consumed by strange thoughts, Ho-yeon quickly swallowed the tea.
“This cult is keeping a tab of your debts. Food, clothing—everything is being recorded meticulously.”
The lips that spoke the word “meticulously” were very mischievous. No, actually, they formed such a pleasant curve that Ho-yeon, captivated by the sight, almost forgot to feel wronged.
“That can all be solved if you let me send a letter to the Ice Palace.”
Ho-yeon had been frequently requesting Mu-gyeong to let him send a letter to the Ice Palace lately. Even when he pressed him, asking if the news of his death was a lie, Mu-gyeong never changed his story.
“It wouldn’t benefit the Ice Palace for the fact that they are interacting with this cult to become known.”
He wasn’t wrong. If it were discovered that they were interacting with the Demon Sect, the orthodox sects would have a perfect excuse to pressure the Ice Palace.
The orthodox sects had long coveted the spirit medicines held within the Eternal Snow Mountains. If they found out that the snow lotus had gone to the Demon Sect, they would likely fly into a rage and label them as an unorthodox sect.
Not everyone in the orthodox sects was righteous and good. Just as not everyone in the Demon Sect was a violent demonic practitioner. Come to think of it, the snow lotus the Palace Master had sent had also been stolen by the Blood Cult along with the treasures.
“You know…”
Ho-yeon’s blue eyes sank as if he were lost in deep agony. Mu-gyeong enjoyed the sight while draining the rest of the liquor.
Even though he had blocked his energy to stop the detoxification of the poison, he did not feel intoxicated. And he was not a man who enjoyed such leisure in the first place. Though there might have been a time when he did.
In truth, Cheon Mu-gyeong didn’t care at all if the interaction between the Demon Sect and the Ice Palace became known. In fact, the Alliance Leader already knew.
Since this was the first time he had taken a hostage from the Ice Palace, it was also the first time the Alliance Leader had reacted this way. With Wi Ho-yeon by his side, he was encountering new variables rather than a repeating life.
“You know the snow lotus is an incredibly precious spirit medicine, right? It can amplify internal energy by over thirty years.”
Ho-yeon spoke softly, following behind Cheon Mu-gyeong as he headed toward the bed again.
“But the Blood Cult stole that snow lotus.”
Since it was the Blood Cult that had attacked him, they must have taken all the treasures and spirit medicines. He thought that if Cheon Mu-gyeong had willed it, he could have killed all the Blood Cultists on the spot, and many of the Snow Guard would have survived. It would be a lie to say he felt no resentment.
However, in the Murim, it was rare to survive a death threat by luckily meeting a master. It was a place where one had to protect their own life. It was a world where people were frequently stabbed to death over a quarrel at an inn or robbed and killed by bandits while crossing a mountain.
Especially since they had chosen to go to the Demon Sect, everyone must have been prepared for the danger. There was no reason to be resentful toward Cheon Mu-gyeong.
The signs of his emotions surging and then calming down were clearly visible on Ho-yeon’s face.
“You’re certain, even though you didn’t see the Blood Cult take the snow lotus?”
Mu-gyeong’s tone was somewhat amused.
“Because they were the ones who attacked. I saw them take the gold and silver ingots. But the snow lotus is so small.”
The snow lotus had been kept in a small box made of snow-flower wood. Ho-yeon’s tone was somewhat uncertain, but the circumstances pointed clearly to the Blood Cult.
“I already sent the snow lotus back to the Ice Palace.”
At the indifferent tone, Ho-yeon asked back after a long pause.
“…What?”
“Along with a letter saying you were dead.”
Mu-gyeong slightly lowered his head to meet the eyes of Ho-yeon, who was looking up at him.
“Y-you embezzled the snow lotus? Well, that is actually a relief.”
Since he already knew about the news of his death, he didn’t seem to mind it much. Ho-yeon was only relieved that the snow lotus had not fallen into the hands of the Blood Cult. Whenever he watched him, he found him so absurd in more ways than one that he couldn’t help but let out a hollow laugh.
“If you write a coded letter and send it to the Ice Palace, even if it falls into the hands of the orthodox practitioners, they won’t be able to decipher it. So, can’t you just send a letter? I’m curious how the children are doing…”
“If you’re that curious, I could have told them to bring the children here. Though I’d have to revive the Demon-Taming Cave.”
Since brainwashing would be necessary to integrate outsiders as members of the Demon Sect, there was no place better than the Demon-Taming Cave.
“Wait, the Demon-Taming Cave? If I sent my kids there, they wouldn’t last a single day—ah!”
Sitting on the bed, Mu-gyeong reached out and pulled Ho-yeon’s arm. Caught off guard, Ho-yeon lost his balance, but Mu-gyeong wrapped an arm around his waist and pulled him down onto the bed.
As he lifted one of Ho-yeon’s feet, the sleeping robe flipped up, revealing the ankle where the red marks remained vividly.
“What are you doing all of a sudden…!”
As he brushed the red area with his large hand, Ho-yeon’s eyes became round like a rabbit’s.
“Indeed, I wonder how those who grew up solely under your gentle care would fare.”
A crimson light etched itself into his eyes, which had been close to ink-black.
“It’s a place where I, too, barely survived.”