By Zephyria It’s Not Intentional (2)
“I couldn’t just sit still when I heard you were captured.”
Which meant.
‘Mount Hua must be surrounded by the Demonic Cult’s elite forces right now.’
Seong Mu-ryong, the Young master, one of the Demonic Cult’s power holders, never traveled alone. Countless members of the Black Shadow Unit, unseen and unfelt by Seong Mu-yeon, must be stationed nearby, guarding the Young master.
“Fortunately, you look healthy. I wasted several days waiting for you to be alone… I can’t handle the entirety of Mount Hua on my own, you see.”
Seong Mu-ryong wore a gentle smile, unconcerned about the madness he had committed.
Seong Mu-yeon felt a chill run down his spine. He didn’t even want to imagine what would happen if Mount Hua found out the Young master was here.
Seong Mu-ryong grabbed his hand and pulled him.
“Sightseeing in the Central Plains should be enough for now. Let’s go back to the Cult.”
“W-wait a minute, brother.”
He struggled to pull his hand away, but it was no use. He couldn’t escape Seong Mu-ryong’s grasp. Seong Mu-ryong looked back at him, puzzled.
“Why? Let’s go home.”
Seong Mu-yeon was restless.
“T-that’s… I made a promise.”
“A promise?”
〈Really? You won’t go anywhere and stay here, right?〉
〈You’ll wait, right?〉
Baek Ryeo-il’s desperate face as he asked that floated before his eyes. He couldn’t just disappear like this. Baek Ryeo-il was on his way back to Mount Hua right now. If he just had one day, no, two days…
“Yeon-ah?”
Seong Mu-yeon snapped back to his senses.
Seong Mu-ryong, whom he looked up at, still wore a gentle smile. But Seong Mu-yeon’s survival instinct sent out a frantic warning.
“Explain it to me. What promise?”
Seong Mu-ryong’s mouth was smiling, but his eyes were coldly sunken.
He was showing patience now, but what if it ran out…?
‘Dangerous.’
“B-brother. I’m…”
What should he do? He had to figure out a way to send Seong Mu-ryong back before Mount Hua noticed his presence, without a violent clash.
Just then, there was a commotion from behind.
“There’s no one at Jade Lady Pond!”
“I want to wash up quickly! I’m all sweaty.”
A group of boys were approaching to take a bath.
The color drained from Seong Mu-yeon’s face. Seong Mu-ryong’s aura began to shift. The smile that had been on his face had vanished without a trace. He was glaring in the direction of the boys with a sharp, wary look.
The boys, unaware of anything, laughed boisterously as they got closer and closer. Gang Woong, a familiar face, was among them.
‘No. If they run into them, everyone will die.’
Not only the young Disciples, but also Seong Mu-ryong, Il-gwang, and the Black Shadow Unit here wouldn’t be guaranteed their lives. A massive clash would occur.
“Brother! Let’s go!”
“Huh?”
Seong Mu-ryong instantly withdrew his murderous intent and widened his eyes.
“I want to leave right away. I don’t want to be here for even a moment! Hurry!”
Seong Mu-yeon pushed him toward the forest. Fortunately, Seong Mu-ryong went inside as Seong Mu-yeon pushed him, without complaint.
“…Young master?”
A small voice was heard from behind. Seong Mu-yeon realized that Gang Woong had discovered him, but he didn’t turn around.
Il-gwang tried to lift Seong Mu-yeon up. However, Seong Mu-ryong stopped him and lifted his younger brother up himself.
“Let’s go, home.”
Thud!
The surrounding scenery flashed by quickly. Il-gwang followed behind them. Over Il-gwang’s shoulder, he could see the figures of the boys rapidly receding. They seemed to be shouting something, but he couldn’t hear them.
He kicked off the trees and glided through the air.
“I have a gift prepared for you.”
Seong Mu-ryong said in a cheerful voice.
“A gift?”
“You can look forward to it.”
He burst into a pleasant laugh. But Seong Mu-yeon couldn’t laugh at all.
〈I’ll trust you one last time.〉
His heart was cold.
“What’s wrong? Are you cold?”
Seong Mu-ryong asked as Seong Mu-yeon curled up.
“…A little.”
“Just bear with it a little longer. I’ve prepared accommodations not far from here. You can’t endure long journeys, can you?”
“Yes…”
A chill permeated his bones. Seong Mu-yeon buried his face in the crook of his elbow.
Immediately after leaving Mount Hua, they ran west without resting.
Seong Mu-yeon traveled more comfortably than ever before.
When Il-gwang carried him, he was too busy running away from Baek Ryeo-il to think straight, and when Baek Ryeo-il carried him, he felt like his soul was leaving his body.
However, Seong Mu-ryong was very considerate. He used the gentlest footwork possible, so that Seong Mu-yeon, who was physically weak, wouldn’t feel dizzy.
‘My body is comfortable, though.’
They arrived at an inn in a nearby village in the middle of the night. It was one of the Demonic Cult’s secretly run businesses. The inn seemed to be empty, as all the guests had been kicked out for the Young master. All the employees greeted them politely.
Seong Mu-ryong nodded at the innkeeper’s question of whether they would like a meal.
“I’m fine, but Yeon-i must be hungry. Bring up the meal.”
“No, brother.”
Seong Mu-yeon replied.
“I’m tired and want to rest.”
“Alright. Do that. I need to wash up a bit.”
He ordered bathwater instead of a meal and took Seong Mu-yeon up to the room. The room, which occupied the entire top floor, had several rooms attached to it, so it was almost embarrassing to call it just a room.
Seong Mu-yeon went into any room and lay down on the bed. His eyes were heavy from staying up all night, but he couldn’t easily fall asleep.
‘What is Mount Hua doing right now?’
Gang Woong must have seen him leaving with strangers. Maybe it’s a mess right now.
Or maybe they’re forming a pursuit squad to find traces. That was the last thing Seong Mu-yeon wanted.
Seong Mu-ryong is strong. The martial prowess of the Demonic Cult’s Young masters cannot be determined by age order, but generally, the older one has trained longer, so they are superior in terms of inner force and experience. It was only natural that Seong Mu-ryong, the second oldest, was strong.
〈I’ll trust you one last time.〉
Baek Ryeo-il’s voice and expression as he said that, the temperature of the sunlight pouring in from the window behind him, and the movement of the air were vividly recalled.
Seong Mu-yeon pulled the blanket over his head and curled up.
‘What’s so important about that promise?’
If Baek Ryeo-il had been there, a fight would have broken out, and someone would have died or been injured. As a result, Ma Jin-cheon’s life was saved, and the Disciples of Mount Hua were not hurt.
‘Yeah, that’s enough.’
“Yeon-ah, are you sleeping?”
Seong Mu-ryong called him from outside. Soon, the door opened carefully. Seong Mu-yeon didn’t move, still covered in the blanket. Seong Mu-ryong looked inside for a moment, then closed the door and left.
Baek Ryeo-il is fast, so he might have arrived at Mount Hua by now.
What kind of expression would Baek Ryeo-il make when he opened the door of Emerald Pavilion and found that no one was waiting? Would he be angry?
No, maybe he’d be relieved that things turned out this way. He might be happy that he no longer has to be swayed by the fickle Seong Mu-yeon.
‘It was real this time.’
A bitter taste lingered on the tip of his tongue.
Seong Mu-yeon slept for a whole day. Eventually, Seong Mu-ryong, unable to watch any longer, woke him up and forced him to eat. When he barely managed to swallow a few spoonfuls of porridge and put down the spoon, Seong Mu-ryong frowned.
“Why can’t you eat like this? You’ve always put down your chopsticks whenever you have something on your mind, but it seems to be getting worse as you get older.”
“……”
Soon, he pushed a bowl of hot herbal medicine toward him.
“It’s because you haven’t been taking your medicine properly. Hurry up and drink it. That’s right. Good job.”
Seong Mu-ryong coaxed the listless Seong Mu-yeon and took him to the next room.
On the table was a small, palm-sized, ornate mother-of-pearl box.
“What is this, brother?”
“I told you I prepared a gift. Open it.”
Seong Mu-ryong sat across from him, propped his chin up, and smiled brightly. He looked more excited than a child receiving a gift.
Seong Mu-yeon reluctantly opened the box. Then, a strange scent that he had never smelled before burst out.
Inside, a round elixir the size of a thumbnail was wrapped in silk cloth.
“This is…”
“It’s the Demon Soul Divine Pill.”
Demon Soul… Divine Pill?
Seong Mu-yeon’s hands trembled.
Demon Soul Divine Pill!
It was the Demonic Cult’s most precious spirit pill. It was said that if you ate half a pill, even someone on the verge of death would be healed as if washed clean, and if you ate a whole pill, you could even revive the dead.
“H-how did you get this?”
Seong Mu-yeon looked at his brother with wide, startled eyes.
With this spirit pill, Seong Mu-yeon’s body could be healed. There was a time when Seong Mu-yeon had tried to obtain the Demon Soul Divine Pill, but even the Cult Leader kept the Demon Soul Divine Pill safely in the vault and didn’t take it out unless it was absolutely necessary. Naturally, Seong Mu-yeon had never even seen it.
“It wasn’t easy.”
Seong Mu-ryong’s smile deepened.
“I’ve always been worried about your weak body. Didn’t this brother promise to heal you no matter what?”
Seong Mu-yeon didn’t know whether to be happy or not.
There was definitely a time when he desperately wanted the Demon Soul Divine Pill. With this one pill, he could not only heal his body but also expect to gain powerful inner force that would rival Baek Ryeo-il’s.
Seong Mu-yeon could achieve everything he wanted.
With this one pill.