HSA 47

Jin Geum-ryeon was confused.

The group dispatched to escort Ahn Do-hyun, though not quite meeting his expectations, were still late-stage talents of the Martial World, so he thought they could somehow handle even the Demonic Cult’s appearance.

However, he hadn’t anticipated the variable that was Seo Moon-gwang. Thanks to the assassins, who had doubled in number compared to what he had expected, the scene was more chaotic than he had predicted.

Jin Geum-ryeon never imagined that Seo Moon-gwang would recover so quickly and come looking for Ahn Do-hyun, setting aside everything else. Had he known, he would have ended Seo Moon-gwang’s life when he had the chance. No, considering what he had done to Ahn Do-hyun, he should have done so.

Immediately, the image of Ahn Do-hyun being toyed with by Seo Moon-gwang flashed through Jin Geum-ryeon’s mind. The sight of him unable to properly control his body, panting with feverish breaths, his hair soaked with cold sweat clinging messily to his cheeks, clearly feeling aroused but simultaneously appearing extremely distressed, and the obvious signs of ‘discomfort’ that Ahn Do-hyun himself had mentioned at some point.

But why was his act with him different?

They had no romantic feelings for each other, merely defined by the word ‘enemies.’ That day, they had simply mingled their bodies, intoxicated by each other’s Body fragrance.

Clearly, Ahn Do-hyun was already aroused due to the Body fragrance even in Illusion Valley. Nevertheless, he had said that Seo Moon-gwang’s actions were nothing but unpleasant, so even if the other person had been any Yang Person, Ahn Do-hyun would have felt the same unpleasant emotions.

But why….

Jin Geum-ryeon was chasing after Seo Moon-gwang and Ak Mujin, but the shadows of the Demonic Cult assassins never seemed to get closer. As the thought of potentially losing them filled his mind, he moved frantically, not even noticing the sharp branches scratching his cheeks in his haste.

At that moment, something narrowly grazed near his ear and flew straight. The assassin who was hit in the shoulder by the metal object twisted his body momentarily.

“Keuk!”

The assassin’s movements gradually became noticeably slower. However, since he wasn’t the one carrying Ak Mujin, the pursuit couldn’t be stopped.

Jin Geum-ryeon glanced back and saw four or five assassins closely following him. Among them, Seo Moon-gwang was at the forefront. He had just been thinking about Seo Moon-gwang’s behavior, so seeing his face naturally stirred up anger.

“Don’t even think about snatching Young Master Ahn!”

Even at this moment, Seo Moon-gwang was anxiously worried that Jin Geum-ryeon would steal Ahn Do-hyun away. Jin Geum-ryeon found it amusing, but if he didn’t stay focused, there was a possibility that he would lose Ahn Do-hyun to him.

Jin Geum-ryeon had been so focused on the Demonic Cult that he hadn’t realized, but he now suspected that some of the presences he had occasionally felt might have been assassins planted by Seo Moon-gwang.

“Young Master Ahn hates you. Haven’t you realized that yet?”

As Jin Geum-ryeon spoke coldly, Seo Moon-gwang threw a Hidden Weapon at him. Jin Geum-ryeon lightly deflected the poison needles and busily chased after the assassins.

Then, three of the four assassins who had been ahead stopped and turned to look at Jin Geum-ryeon and Seo Moon-gwang. It seemed they intended to shake them off.

Growing impatient, Seo Moon-gwang leaped high, intending to jump over them. However, an assassin in black also leaped into the air and raised a dagger at Seo Moon-gwang. Seo Moon-gwang was startled but calmly blocked the incoming dagger with his Iron fan and fought against the assassin. Then, the Illusion Valley assassins who had caught up belatedly threatened the assassin.

Jin Geum-ryeon tried to continue chasing Ak Mujin, but an assassin in black blocked his path. He let out a low, annoyed groan and began to swing his sword.

As he did so, Jin Geum-ryeon felt a sense of unease. There were definitely three assassins who had stopped, but one of them was nowhere to be seen.

“Scatter! Go and rescue Madam Ahn!”

Seo Moon-gwang shouted urgently.

“Yes, Master Gokju!”

The moment the Illusion Valley assassins split into two groups, something sharp and long quickly flew in a circle around them.

“Ack!”

“Keuk!”

Two assassins in orange clothes spat blood from their necks and collapsed on the spot.

“Ugh!”

“Eugh!”

“Heuk…!”

Two more Illusion Valley assassins fell backward, their necks cleanly severed. Even the one who barely survived had his wrist cut off.

“So-cheon!”

Seo Moon-gwang shouted while blocking the assassin. So-cheon, having lost his right wrist, readjusted his iron flail in his left hand and looked around. But there was nothing to be seen, only the sharp sound of air being cut and metal flying again.

Seo Moon-gwang quickly threw himself forward to block So-cheon, deflecting the metal object. However, the assassin followed relentlessly, steadily threatening Seo Moon-gwang. At this rate, Seo Moon-gwang wouldn’t have a chance to escape either. He muttered a curse under his breath.

Meanwhile, Jin Geum-ryeon noticed that the assassin who had taken out the Illusion Valley assassins was approaching him from behind. He quickly stabbed at the assassin he had been fighting several times, and as the assassin moved away to avoid them, he unleashed his Sword Aura.

“Keuk…!”

The assassin, with a large wound on his chest, collapsed on the spot, spitting blood. Hearing his pained groan, Jin Geum-ryeon lowered his body without hesitation to avoid something aimed at his head.

Creak—, chwareureuk—

Judging from the sound, it was definitely a weapon using chains. He quickly stood up and turned around, and as expected, he saw an assassin approaching, wielding a chain sickle.

If he didn’t chase after Ahn Do-hyun right now, he would lose him. At the end of his vision, he could see the back of Elder Yeo, already disappearing as a small black dot. Jin Geum-ryeon contorted his face as much as possible and quickly deflected the approaching sickle with his sword.

“Stop, don’t interfere!”

Clang— Jin Geum-ryeon’s sword shattered the chain. Jin Geum-ryeon quickly leaped towards the assassin, aiming for his waist. The sword smoothly pierced the assassin’s abdomen, and the assassin gasped, pulling meaninglessly at the fallen chain sickle.

As Jin Geum-ryeon swung his hand widely, the left side of the assassin’s body was cut horizontally and fell to the ground. The vivid sensation of killing overwhelmed him.

His eyes shook violently.

But now was not the time to indulge in such emotions. He didn’t even look back at Seo Moon-gwang, who was still struggling, and hurriedly used his Light Body Skill to start running.

***

Jin Geum-ryeon’s chest was beating strangely fast and hard as he ran. No matter how much he focused on looking around, there was nothing noticeable.

Was he going to lose them like this?

Whooosh.

It was just a small sound, like leaves brushing against something, but Jin Geum-ryeon reacted keenly and turned his head. Looking towards the source of the sound, he saw the long hind legs of a deer disappearing hastily between the trees.

Losing his strength in an instant, Jin Geum-ryeon seemed to pant for breath, then looked down at his sword with a hollow expression. Only then did the thought that he had killed someone slowly spread through his mind.

The shock of his first kill wasn’t as great as he had expected. However, he was a little embarrassed that he was too busy trying to save Ak Mujin to even pay attention to it.

Why was he trying so hard to save Ak Mujin, Ahn Do-hyun?

A sense of bewilderment crossed Jin Geum-ryeon’s mind. It wasn’t that he was disappointed that he wouldn’t be able to have him judged by the Martial Alliance if he lost Ak Mujin. He felt extremely regretful about the situation itself, where he would part ways with him so futilely. Once again, he was feeling emotions that he thought were inappropriate for an enemy.

Jin Geum-ryeon sheathed the sword he had been staring blankly at and stopped. He couldn’t walk any further because a wave of regret was belatedly pouring into his heart.

From the moment Jin Geum-ryeon reunited with Ahn Do-hyun at the pharmacy, he hadn’t had a moment of peace. The desire to avenge his parents and the desire to trust him even a little clashed, tormenting Jin Geum-ryeon.

Ahn Do-hyun, while being involved with the Demonic Cult, had saved the life of the young Jin Geum-ryeon. As the Vice Leader of the Demonic Cult, he couldn’t have been unaware of the consequences. Yet, the fact that he had left the seed alive was proof that he wasn’t a completely heartless person. As if to confirm this, Ahn Do-hyun had already said with his own mouth that he hated the Demonic Cult. That he didn’t want to go back.

Besides, Ak Mujin had already said ‘I’m sorry’ several times, hadn’t he?

It wasn’t just the words he had said to Jin Geum-ryeon a little while ago. The words he had muttered in front of Jin Sang-aeng’s corpse when Jin Geum-ryeon was young were clearly etched in Jin Geum-ryeon’s mind.

The reason that hadn’t been an excuse for Jin Geum-ryeon was probably because he himself lacked conviction.

Would this have happened if he had acted with even a little bit of direction?

Would this have happened if he had given up on revenge from the beginning and let Ahn Do-hyun go?

Since he wouldn’t be accepted by the orthodox sects anyway, what would have been different from his current reputation if he had spent a little more time with the Vice Leader of the Demonic Cult?

Suddenly, a scene that had been deeply rooted in his memory came to mind.

The image of Ahn Do-hyun standing elegantly amidst a shower of red plum blossoms, his black robes fluttering, looking at Jin Geum-ryeon. That scene, deeply etched in his mind, always lingered before his eyes.

Jin Geum-ryeon could now realize what this scene meant. He was finally able to confront those vague emotions.

That was how he came to understand why his heart tickled and he wanted to reach out whenever he saw Ahn Do-hyun.

Before he knew it, a single tear fell and wet the toe of his shoe.